Chapter 32: Thingstead

We arrived in Halstaad Fjord and were greeted by a group of elders accompanied by twenty beefy looking men, all were dressed in the traditional Neo Viking way with leather vests and trousers and shirts.

They all wore identical helmets and swords and all were dressed in the same dark brown color. Egill was also with them. As we stepped ashore he said to me, I know what happened, Eric and I will take it from here. You may have noticed the men; these are the first members of the Nilfeheim Beskyddare Vakt or Police force if you will. I tell you more about them later. We waited for your arrival because due to the recent events the great meeting is held today and not at Yuletide.”

Father who was helped ashore by two of his men said. “Go to the Burg Eric; bring the clan insignia and the Olafson sword, only an Olafson can open the clan shrine. I need to get that leg fixed!”

I said. “Greifen, tell the doctor to check father out for Psycho drugs as well. I am not sure if he can say it himself, but I want to know if he is on his own mind!” Greifen nodded.” I will do as you say!”

I borrowed uncle Hogun’s flier and went to the Burg. It was a strange feeling going home that way holding fathers clan ring which I needed to open the shrine. I set down right in the main yard, rushed over to the High Halls, a freeman women almost collided with me as she came out the door carrying a basket and crying. I said.”What is the matter? Has Harkun done something again? By Odin this time I am not helpless!”

She shook her head.” No Sir, they found Harkun dead in his torture chamber.” She tried to look away but I saw the bruise in her face and the split lip.

“Then who?”

“Master Eric, there is nothing you can do; we know you are not welcome in your own home.”

“You tell me this instant who harmed you, girl! It is my home and I will set things right, right now!”

Hope glimmered in her eyes.” Your brother, the Lords favorite, he does this all the time.”

I took my PDD.” I call you a flier so you can get to the clinic and be checked out. If there are others with wounds or maladies, be it Freeman, clansman or low man tell them they can go to the clinic as well. The days of fear and torture in this burg end today or I tear it down, by Odin’s spear!’

I rushed in and saw Lothar, Tyr and Gretel sitting at the great table having lunch. Gretel’s face dropped as she saw me and she blurted out.” You are alive?”

“And so is Isegrim! The Doctors will clean his mind of your vile poisons!”

Lothar threw a piece of fish on the floor. “Go eat that, like a Nubhir puppy. I want to see you eat that and then get out; when father comes back he will break your bones if I tell him you did not!”

“You sniffeling piece have you forgotten already? I drew Mördaren, rushed to him and hissed. “You will clean that up; you will crawl on your knees.” He still was unimpressed! “Mother, can you tell this Nubhir poop pile to do as I told?”

I never hit anyone as hard as I hit Lothar. My fist clenched around the grip of the sword hit him at the side of the head; he was thrown out the chair and landed on the floor. I put my boot on his head.” If you even so much as make a noise I kill you right here and now!” Tyr came running.” Let my brother go!”

Gretel rose from her chair, producing a little elegant looking off world weapon and she shot but she hit Tyr who was still in front of me. I did not give her a second chance grabbed a bowl of fish and flung it at her she ducked instinctively and I was right after the bowl smacking the weapon out of her hand and put the sword tip on her throat. “Tell me now, when did you start poisoning father with your drugs?”

She panted and then a smirk came over her lips. “Only a few years ago! He killed that blonde bitch all on his own! I simply told him to do it and he did! He is just a man and so are you! Now be a good boy, put that sword away and I show you what a woman can do to a man to make him forget all else.” She cupped her breasts. “You are old enough to learn are you not?”

She disgusted me so much, but I could not murder her. She was responsible for my mother’s death and to to blame for my miserable childhood, but I could not drive the sword through her neck.

She purred in a sultry way as I put the sword away.” I knew I could convince you. Maybe you and I can work something out!”

I hit her with my fist square into her painted mouth. I felt a tooth crack and said.” You are a Nubhir scrubber and nothing more, a cheap whore that is fatter than a pregnant Fangsnapper. I will not soil this sword with your filth.”

I left her as she was slumped in her chair and went to father’s study and opened the Clan shrine with the ring and took the chain and sword that was in it.

As I came back out, she was still sitting there, Lothar was by her and I said.” The piece of fish is still on the floor!”

He stared at me but then dropped to his knees and ate the fish. I left them and returned to Halstaad Fjord.

Gretel saw Eric leave and her mind spun. If it was true and Isegrim was at the clinic and got treated for the Psycho blocks, he would come back and he would have no mercy. She still had the Credit strip, with a considerable sum on it; maybe she could leave the planet and somehow obtain a new identity. There had to be a way for her to turn things around. She tried to call Adolph but the call was not answered and neither was her call to Brunar. She waved at one of her handmaidens.” Don’t just stand there, fetch me ice you worthless thing!”

The hand maiden came back a few moments later with a bowl, but then dropped the bowl revealed a sharp dagger she was carrying underneath the bowl and stabbed Gretel in the throat and came closer with a smile as she looked in Gretel’s pain filled eyes.” Worthless? I don’t think so. I am going to collect 60,000 credits for your head. You know I heard what Harkun said to you as well, and I checked your bounty on GalNet!”

The handmaiden pointed the bloody dagger at Lothar. “As for you, my older brothers are on their way and they will have a word with you for what you did to me.”

Lothar brimming with tears seeing his mother die gushing blood all over herself, he was still on his knees as he heard the footfall of heavy boots. Three young Freemen with clubs and sticks came into the hall.

Everyone was there, just like at Grandfather’s funeral. I had no idea there were this many clans on Nilfeheim. The Roundhouse also was filled to capacity, it was especially historic as the Eldest occupied the seat that was always empty and to my surprise he was flanked by the current Head keeper of Hasvik to the right and the Ancient one to the left, both wearing the white robes with the World tree, and white hooded cloaks looking very mystical. Before the Eldest chair was a block of solid Platinum of table size. I had heard of it but never seen it. It was the Altar of Odin, brought from Earth by the first settlers, and upon it on a stand the Krigen Sverd, the mystical two hander sword of Olaf Erikson the first warrior and the Spear of Odin on which the first Circle of Elders had sworn to uphold the Laws of the Traditions. Every Clan chief was there as well, old and new. The Speaker for the Freemen and the majors of the three towns, everyone was present. I even saw a few teachers and Mr. Valthim.

I was sitting in the chair of my father. He had send message for me to represent the Olafson clan. He was still in the Clinic, they had no problem fixing his leg and his concussion, but the doctor told me over the PDD, before I sat down that my father was heavily poisoned by very complex and advanced psycho drugs and he had to be put in a deep sleep trance while a specialist from Med Center, via Holo Presence worked to get the blocks removed and the effects neutralized, it would take at least a week, but they were confident to get him back to normal.

Egill rose from his seat and it became silent. He then touched the spear and said.” I call to order the Great meeting of Nilfeheim.”

He sat back down and continued.” Events of great importance have caused us to call this meeting today and not after Yuletide. Our world is under attack and our very civilization on the brink of destruction, but before we talk about what we can do to prevent that and look to the future, let us recall the past and deal with the present.”

He motioned and two men carried in a stretcher with the dead assassin and another two carried a table with the mask, her clothing and her Neuro ripper. They set it up in the circle and Egill continued. “The recent murder was not committed by women of this world but by an Off -world assassin. She had Psionic powers to take control over others and posed in the guise of Sif Arnske to seed discontent. She came to this world called by Brunar Bendixen. Brunar who discovered a treasure on the bottom of the Ocean, pearls produced by a legless crab that can as far as he knew only be found at the Bendixen Grounds. This is why he wanted this part of the Ocean declared as his private real estate. He wanted to find out who killed his father and believed it was the deed of one of his rivals, namely the Lindbergh Clan.”

He paused and they brought in Brunar Bendixen. He wore his Clan insignia and even his sword.

His face was stoic but his eyes full of hatred and anger. “Yes this is so! All I wanted is to protect my investment and my business. I elevated the Bendixen Clan from the shadows of many to a foremost position and I tried to reason and tried to have my rights to my discovery protected, but my own father, an Elder was murdered on the day he became a member of the Inner Circle! What I did was for my clan and this is what a Clan chief does and I should not stand accused!”

“Equipping your boats with Tech stop generators and attacking another boat is one of the accusations I level against you, Brunar Bendixen. Paying an Off World Assassin and let her commit acts of Terror is a crime against the Book of Traditions. Your father raping a twelve year old daughter of a Freeman is a crime and this is why he was killed! Low men, Free Men Clan members and Elders will no longer be different when it comes to the law. Everyone will have to abide by the rules or face the consequences.”

Brunar made a hard laughing sound and said.” If that is so, why could I not get a fair ruling or even a hearing? I was not out to kill at the beginning. I was out to fish pearls and sell crab meat and do so at my underwater farms undisturbed.”