Silence.
Then the hall exploded into a cacophony of gasps, curses, and disbelieving whispers.
"By Odin...!"
I could almost see the stunned, horrified expressions on the faces of the Karls, Thralls, and nobles gathered in the hall. After all, to us Vikings, Valhalla stood above all else. It was the pinnacle of our aspirations and the highest honor a warrior could hope to attain. Thus, it was hardly surprising that my words had left them appalled. For to swear such an oath and then fail to fulfill it was, in the eyes of many, nothing less than condemning oneself to an eternity of shame — and perhaps a fate far worse.
I had deliberately backed myself into a corner, one from which there would be no escape except through accomplishing all that I had sworn to achieve. And the goals I had chosen were nothing short of inconceivable. No sane, mortal man would’ve dared make such claims.
...But perhaps the War Sovereign, Ragnar, son of the Binder of Crowns, would.
I glanced towards Mother, only to see a pained expression on her face, one that slowly settled into quiet, sorrowful resignation. Olvi, as I had expected, wore a solemn countenance, his brows faintly furrowed. Arngrim, however, was brimming with anticipation for a future filled with war. And Second Eldest Brother... he... he merely gave a subtle nod, a faint smile gracing his lips.
The silence in the hall was accompanied by an unsettling tension.
Outside, the wind battered against the wooden doors, its howling echoing through the Great Hall.
Father glanced at me but said nothing. For a while, he simply regarded me with a blank expression. Then, as though unfazed by my words, he leaned back against his throne and said:
"Then rise — not as a boy, but as a man!"
Then came the cheers. Deafening and explosive, they resounded throughout the once-silent hall. I rose to my feet. Amidst the congratulatory words and gestures of acknowledgment, I wove my way through the bustling crowd.
Now that the serious aspect of the coming-of-age ceremony was over, some of the nobles had already resumed their indulgence in earthly desires. A select few had several female thralls surrounding them, dressed in revealing, translucent garments as they danced for the drunken nobles. Others had a single female thrall seated upon their laps, their hands wandering over her body as they laughed and drank.
Knowing my people, I wouldn’t have been surprised if they had decided to continue their indulgence right in the hall. However, Father’s presence had more or less prevented that from happening. To some extent, at least.
I smiled and shook my head, politely avoiding the female thralls who approached me. I was ten, for Thor’s sake. Whatever the custom of my people might permit, I had no interest in indulging in such things. Not now, at least. There would be plenty of times for that when I was older.
For now, I had more important things to concern myself with.
However, the thralls didn’t seem to understand that and continued seeking my company. I hastened my steps, swiftly evading them as I made my way toward my brothers. I could almost see them struggling to contain their laughter.
Bastards! I thought through gritted teeth.
My retreat, however, did not go unnoticed by the rest of the crowd. A loud, boisterous chuckle erupted from somewhere behind me, quickly followed by several others.
"It seems the young prince would rather face a shield wall than the ladies."
Still avoiding the women, I replied with a grin, "Perhaps I would have gladly accompanied if it were your daughter."
The nobleman fell silent for a few moments before, apparently unbothered by my words, threw his head back and laughed heartily.
"Then I shall be sure to introduce her to Your Highness. I am sure you’d find her to your liking."
"Your daughter is a little bit too old for His Highness, is she not?" another nobleman called out with a grin. "I think the prince would be more interested in my younger daughter."
The hall erupted in laughter at the man’s words.
"She is still well within her maiden years," the nobleman, Sigsid, replied.
"So is my daughter."
"...Aye, but she’s young," another man remarked.
The Hersir merely shrugged, a sly smile tugging at his lips.
"All the better. A young bride is easier to teach."
His words elicited a wave of laughter from the men.
I laughed and said:
"I shall be sure to visit your houses when I intend to take a bride."
"I shall be looking forward to seeing Your Highness, then."
Their laughter followed me as I continued toward my brothers. Before long, I reached them and took my seat.
I was about to admonish them when the Great Skald Kormákr rose and walked toward the burning fire. Silence settled over the hall. Then he raised his cup and proclaimed:
"Hear now of the day when the sea itself rained red..."
His words immediately drew the attention of everyone in the hall.
"Hear of the king who went where no king had gone before. Hear of the Binder of Crowns. The Breaker of Shield. The Lord of the Northern Seas.
He was talking about Father.
"Before him, Scandinavia had been a land of many crowns and countless rival banners. Jarls warred against Jarls. Kings raised swords against Kings. Brothers spilled the blood of brothers, and no man could say where one kingdom ended and another began.
"Then came the Raven’s King. Where other men saw a land divided, he saw one. He took crown upon crown, not for the gold upon his head, but for the people beneath it. Fjord by Fjord. Valley by Valley. Shore by Shore. Until they remained no rival beneath the Northern sky.
Father was the first.
"The first king to bind all of Scandinavia beneath a single crown. Yet his greatest victory was not won in the hall of kings, nor upon the fields where armies fought beneath their banners. It was won in the farthest north. Beyond the lands where men dared not settle. Beyond the forests where the sun seemed to forget the earth. Beyond the mountains where the wind screamed like the dead.
The dead never screamed.
"There lay lands of horror and nightmares. Lands where men vanished without a cry. Lands where beasts walked that no shield-wall could withstand. Lands where even hardened warriors whispered prayers before lighting their fires.
The land of nightmares.
"And when those lands threatened his people, he did not flee south. He marched north. Into the darkness. And he returned with his people alive. That alone would have been enough to fill a hundred songs. Yet there came another day. A day when the enemy came like a black tide. Their banners covered the horizon. Their shields were like a wall. And their numbers so great that our warriors looked upon them and thought the gods had forsaken us.
I wasn’t fortunate enough to witness the scene, but Second Eldest Brother and Eldest Brother did.
"Yet the King looked upon the sea of men... and drew his sword.
He killed one.
Then another.
And another.
Until the ground beneath his feet could no longer be seen beneath the dead.
"The enemy came in hundreds. He answered with blood. They came in thousands, he answered with steel. Again and again, they sought to surround him, and again and again they found themselves feeding the ravens.
Olvi said that was when Father had earned the name: The Raven’s King.
"We were outnumbered. We should have fallen. But he would not fall. And because he would not fall, neither did we. The shield-wall held. The ravens feasted. The sea turned red. And when the sun finally descended beyond the mountains, it was not our dead that covered the field.
It was theirs.
"Remember this, sons of the North. Remember the name of the King who united the scattered crowns. Remember the king who walked into the lands of nightmares and brought his people home. Remember the king who stood against an army and made it flee."
The hall was drowned in silence.
"Many have worn crowns. Many have sat upon thrones. And many have called themselves kings. Yet only one was first.
"Only one made all the North kneel beneath a single banner. Only one walked where even the gods might have feared to tread. And when the skalds speak of kings, they shall speak of him before all others.
For before him, there were kings. After him, there were only those who sought to become his equal."
He paused.
"And now the blood of The King stands before us."
Silence.
Then his eyes settled upon me.
"What songs shall the skalds one day sing of him?"
What song shall one day be sung of me?
For a moment, I realized I had no answer.
...But I would.
And when that day finally came, and the Great skalds sang my name, they would sing of no man greater.
That was a promise.
And House Hvithrim always kept its promise.