The morning was rank with the smell of rotten fish and fresh human carcasses. This recent counterattack by the local slavs had been unusually desperate resulting in a big pile corpses feeding the crows. Thorstein was sitting down panting with his gambeson covered in mud and blood. In the distance he heard a voice shouting "Thorstein!". He tried to ignore it for a moment inspecting the rest of his tired body for any signs of injury. So far he only felt sore after a shield bashed his face. Fortunately his helmet had protected him from any serious head injuries even if his head was spinning. "By Tyr Thorstein get up and help us carry Stein!". Finally, Thorstein forced himself to stand up using his wooden shield as support. Standing up he saw the rest of the crew carrying a beast of a man. Stein was by far the largest and strongest man he had ever met. Carrying a two handed axe always seemed like waving a small stick for Stein. His fair hair and piercing blue eyes made him quite popular during his years in miklagård during his youth.
"Ah by Freya's tits! Be careful you idiot" Stein shouted with a burly voice. "Attack this fishing village they said most of the men can barely carry an axe!", "This is the last time I trust that treacherous Gut!". Thorstein hurried himself to the rest of the men to help. He grabbed Steins arm and saw a that an arrow had pierced the big man in the right leg below his heavy chainmail. "Oh shut it Stein!" another voice said, "Lay down on the ship in the meantime while we figure out how in hel we get home again." They laid Stein down on a pile of animal pelts with him groaning and complaining.
Afterwards a smaller man with huge pauldrons of fur around his collar approached Thorstein with a grim look. Before he could speak Thorstein asked "Snorri, where is Harald?", Snorri looked at the rest of the tired and disheveled crew. "Harald is dead he got a spear in the gut during the surprise attack", Thorstein managed to respond. "Well at least he died warriors death. Found any valuables on the damn slavs?". Snorri shook his head "Only the clothes and weapons they carried.", Another one of the men approached them. "What is it Tyke?" Snorri asked the man with an annoyed tone. "We could always just plunder wherever they came from; they probably sent all the men they had after us.", Tyke said. Thorstein never understood why they always allowed someone like Tyke to join them. The man had been a nuisance back home in Birka being accused of thieving and extorting merchants. Maybe that is why Harald brought him along to give us advice on how to best extort some isolated villages here in the east. Tyke smiled with a toothless dark grin towards Thorstein "We could plunder the local church, they must have some golden idol of their false savior". Snorri looked disapprovingly at Tyke gripping his cross on his necklace. "I will have no part in it Tyke! We can go to the village but only to gather slaves and extort the rest.". Tykes smile turned into a evil grin and just as he was about to insult snorris new found faith a had grabbed his shoulder. "That's enough!", the man said "We are down six men and we need at least 20 to sail home". Snorri agreed "Runar is right we could hire some local Varangians to help us home". From the longboat they could hear Steins voice shout "Finally a good plan! But I will not miss plundering these bastards.". Thorstein continued "I will search for help with Runar, Snorri leave two men guarding the boat and take the rest to the village." They all nodded in agreement and set off for the rest of the day.
A soft wind with the smell of salt from the Baltic swept across his face as he cleared the forest onto the beach. The stony beach had a small fishing hut with tired workers tending to the fishing lines and nets. There he saw a familiar face. A woman with braided blonde hair decorated with golden colored bronze bracelets met his eyes. He called to her but could not hear his own voice, everything was muddled. Behind the woman a small girl peeked at him with a smile. He tried to approach them, but it was like walking in a heavy bog. Suddenly he stopped, he could not move or speak with his mouth. He felt a sudden pain in his chest and numbness in his limbs. He tried to look down as the pain spread to his skin. The pain was boiling and the skin burst in bloody puddles to the ground. In its place black boils swelled with pus coming out. His nails fell off as he tasted blood in his mouth. Then the pain passed, and he could move but not speak. His tongue refused to move an inch. The limbs started to move forward towards the woman and child. He felt an unquenchable hunger to bite, claw and devour. He tried once again to speak to warn them. He prayed to all the gods and even the Slavic god on a cross. His thoughts cried out. He tried to resist but his mouth widened on its own over the woman's throat and before he could taste her flesh his vision darkened.
" Hey are you even listening to me?", Thorstein jolted awake under the tree he was resting. He tried to make sense of what he just saw maybe Loki was playing tricks on him. "Yes of course I am." Thorstein said. "Alright anyway like I said she was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen." Thorstein sighed silently but tried to at least give the impression of listening to his dark-haired companion. "Her skin like the olive oil the Birka priest has and eyes as dark as Guthmund's special mead." Thorstein started carrying their provisions of dried meat and fish. After packing he started walking at a fast pace towards a nearby town near the river. Runar started running after him still talking about the foreign woman.
"I heard she was already taken by that foreign merchant from Miklagård" Thorstein said.
Runar gave him an eye-roll and responded, "Well the last time I saw him he was as fat as a Jotunn no sensible woman would lie with him." Runar continued "Besides she gave me plenty eye contact before we set off to this gods forsaken place". Thorstein cracked a smile "Maybe she was thinking how nice it would be to get rid of another pagan in the east killed by god fearing Christians." Runar tried to shake it off as he stroked his mustache. "Besides weren't you talking about another woman Hildi or whatever her name was", "at least she doesn't worship a dying man in trousers on a cross.". Runar tried to remember the woman Thorstein mentioned. After a few moments he burst out laughing. "Oh yes now I remember well after we laid in Sigunn´s hay I haven't heard from her in a while, anyway, let me tell you about the other time when…." Thorstein thought to himself that Ragnarök couldn't come soon enough as he kept on walking with determination.
After a while they reached the outskirts of the town. Smoke was rising from the huts behind the wooden palisade, but no animals or people could be heard. The front gate was decorated with a flag of a black crow on a red field. The flag of Norse Varangians they thought assuredly. Thorstein looked at Runar with a puzzled face as he reached for the gate.
Opening the gate all the chirping sounds and wind from the surrounding forest silenced and a dread rushed up into the two Norse men. "Looks abandoned" Runar said surprised. The two men entered the town and started shouting in Norse and broken Slavic. No response was heard. "Strange, the town looks abandoned but no signs of a battle or anything.". Thorstein entered a hut resembling an ordinary home. The home still had a boiling pot of food over a fire with a fresh bowl of barley on a table. It reminded him of home and his own family. He often thought about how he should never go away on this adventure. If he died his family's reputation would be slandered even more. He pushed his doubts to the back of his mind as he checked the rest of the house. Before leaving he went to check the loft beyond a wooden ladder. As he climbed a putrid smell entered his nose. As he continued to climb the smell became worse and now a cold rushed his body. As he peeked over the dark loft he saw a woman lying down with a knife in her chest.
Her cold dead eyes met his as he froze up. Behind the woman the wall was decorated with a symbol still dripping with blood. The symbol was shaped like a deformed cross with claws sticking out of each point. The woman seemed young and looked unwashed and dressed in ragged but common clothing. Likely a slave of the Norse Thorstein thought. He had seen enough and slowly climbed down the ladder.
As he left the house, he decided they had seen enough. He looked to his left and saw Runar inspecting an abandoned horse. Thorstein nodded to him somberly signaling that it was time to leave. Runar nodded back then turned his head towards the forest they came from. His face turning pale and eyes widening. He pointed so that Thorstein could see. Along the edge of the forest a line of people stood. They did not move or make a sound, their eyes glowing red and mouth gaping. Thorstein tried to count them, and he counted them to fifteen before the first one ran towards them with their mouth still gaping. The rest soon followed, and a shrieking sound could be heard inside Thorsteins head. Runar grabbed him and helped his companion on the horse before commanding it to run in the opposite direction.
They managed to ride to the other side of the town and Runar dismounted to open the other gate. In the distance the sound of feet running came closer each second. Thorstein looked back as he saw a tall man covered with boils and sickened skin charging towards them. Runar managed to open the gate and turned. "Loki´s balls!" he shouted drawing his axe ready to smash into the creature. He buried his axe deep into the creature's neck almost decapitating it. To his surprise it still moved, and its hands grabbed Runars' face and burrowed its thumbs into his eyes. Shrieking in pain he managed to push it to the ground. Thorstein also dismounted by now swung his axe and chopped both of its arms. Looking behind him he sees the rest of the horde approaching slower than the first one. "I can't see! Thorstein help me up damn you!". Thorstein grabbed him and helped him climb the horse. He then took the reins and rode out of the gate wondering if this is a sign of the end times.
After riding for a while he looked over his shoulder to see what was happening. The horde turned left running back in the opposite direction to the forest. As if they were alerted to something. "Are you alright Runar?" Thorstein said as he patted his companion's thigh. "No, my vision is barely returned. Were those draugr Thorstein?". Thorstein would rather not answer that question only thinking of getting home. However the thoughts of home made his chest hurt and he focused on helping Snorris group in the fishing village. "We should go to Snorri and the rest we are not getting home without them".