Vincent
Dagstygg Jarl and the Berserksgangr
Northeast shores of Northwind

At this point small huts were complete, and they were running low on supplies. The largest of these men would lumber out of his tent and step slowly to the ships on the shore, high tide was upon them and the time was no better than now to push their ships to sea, a strong wind was flowing from the north, the weather was a bit agressive, but they had sailed far worse storms in the far north. Once the man made it to the ships he would blow into the horn of a large bull, the sound resonating like the roar of a dragon, this would gain the attention of the clan, who came to see what the call was intended for. As they gathered around, he began to speak.

"Þeir sem eiga von á barni í framtíðinni, eru veikir eða feimnir við að berjast, fara. Þeir sem eru víkingar, vertu áfram." 

These words dispersed the majority of the group, pregnant woman, older folk, and those in the building and farming trades would return to work. The only men who remained were heavy set, mostly carrying weapons and had the hands of those who know war.

"Við þurfum að borða, drekka og kaupa birgðir. Þið vitið þetta öll. Við erum af skornum skammti af öllu sem þú getur nefnt. Auðvitað gátum við ekki stolið frá konungi okkar í útlegð. Svo við tókum aðeins eigur okkar með okkur. Þeir klárustu vita hvað ég er að skipuleggja, við verðum að gera eins og í gamla daga ... Og fara út á víking!"

The men and women of the warrior group bang their swords and axes against their shields, chainting the name of their Jarl as they hear this, with haste they board their ships, and a modest sized expiditionary force takes to the sea

The boats had been sailing for roughly a day now, and they were approaching the border of Terresol, finding not a village or camp worth stopping for. The storm had now spread into a tempest, and the boats cut and crashed through the waves like angry fists, to keep morale up they sang and drummed during storms, they were coming up on the grey hills, and the spotters soon took note. The four drakkars, each carrying 20 thirty men, would turn their sails for shore as the Jarl blew his horn
Ronald
**The Grey Hills**

A flash of lightning revealed the skyline of the land. Grey over white over black.
The proximity surprised the spotters, who warned the ships to steer port.

The storm showed no signs of abating, but amidst the night, a yellow light could be seen: a lighthouse.

The longships were not the only boats looking for a save harbour, several merchant ships were heading towards the lighthouse as well. Unlike the _drakkars_ however, they were afraid of the storm.

The longships closed to the lighthouse, only to find it was part of a greater fortress. There was no bay to dock at. Instead, a pair of stone fortification guarded the entrance to the river, like sentinels lowering a chain. Those ships looking for a safe haven would have to find it further inland.

In the confusion created by the tempest, all ships were allowed to go past the estuary, the berserkers would be able to slip unnoticed.

The plan however, would not be without it's risks. As the spotters made sure the rest knew: the fortress was a gate. A gate that opened and sealed trough a chain mechanism.

It would be easy to go in, but it would be harder to get out.
Carol
Levi Cortez
Northwind 

Levi's warm smile smoothed his features, but it masked the darker thoughts in his mind. *A father? I'm not even able to keep the men around me alive and I'm now expected to raise a daughter in this mess? If there are gods out there why do you insist on cursing me?* Levi thought to himself, before tossing a bone at the young pup. 

*Oh to be young again. Araedia... If only you were not so caught up in your elusive gods that you could pay more attention to the needs of your people. I would return.. I wonder how Xavier is doing. Probably a lord now, turning into more of a bookworm than interested in anything else. We always had to force you outside.* He thought, the smile on his face growing wider. 

*Though Kedra always liked you more. You just never knew it. Now I wonder where you all are.* He thought as the young girl ate. He chewed on a small piece of meet, sitting on top of the table with his feet resting on the bench. 

"If you are going to stay, there are going to be a couple of rules. If you want to leave the camp, make sure you have someone tagging with you. Even I have to follow that rule. It keeps us safer." He said before a young man burst into the tent.

"Levi! Scouts..." He said, tucking his head between his legs and panting. "Scouts at the northern coast report landfall of a new... New group of people landing. And they are *Huge*." The young man said, walking over with his hands on his sides. 

"Don't worry about them. If they are at the Northern border we have nothing to worry about. If they do seem to become an issue, slit their throats without mercy as they slumber." Levi said, before making the man come closer. 

"The wolfmen, they are supposed to arrive today, no? Where are they? The sun is almost at its highest point. They should be here." He said, his pale eyes flickering around the man's face. 

"They are being led on the main road, with guards in front and behind. Shouldn't be long." The man said, backing up when Levi let him go. Levi told the man to leave and turned back to Loralie. 

"Also another rule, do not go near the wolfmen. They may hold a grudge against me and I do not need them knowing you exist." He said, before standing up and hopping off of the bench. 

"I'm going hunting after they arrive. Care to join me?" He asked the young girl.
Katherine
Loralie Douze
Northwind

Loralie had been listening with vetted interest while Levi had talked to the man. Her eyes did not widen as he mentioned slitting their throats in their sleep, nor did she stop eating. The stew, though a bit rustic tasting, was very delicious. She had to restrain herself to still eat like a lady, but when Levi had turned back to her, already half of the stew was gone from the bowl and in her stomach. She was feeling a good bit better now, with something in her tummy to keep her going. Gabriel was ravaging his plate of raw meat on the ground like the little beast he was, and Loralie smiled down at him before looking back up at Levi

Wolfmen? Were they like the stories of werewolves? Or were they wolves shaped like men? Loralie didn't ask, but her brow furrowed as she took another heaping spoonful of stew into her mouth.

"Hunting?" She repeated, her green eyes lighting up."I mean-I would very much like to go with you, sir. Um..." She glanced around. "Um, do you have a bow I might be able to borrow?"

The wind blew her hair again, a strand plopping into her stew. If the wolfmen were going to take a bit to appear, then the thought of having someone slice off her hair in the meantime grew more and more tempting.
Vincent
Dagstygg weighed out his options, the fortresses in question were not terribly large, but the actual ship chains themselves were a problem. They could in theory raise the chains themselves if they killed those who operated them, but the amount of time involved in doing so would allow for reinforcements. There was a village not terribly far from the shore, within sight. He swung his hand in a circle then pointed at the shore, and the Drakkars would crash through the waves and push against the sand. Once ashore, the geared up and marched off towards the village
Ronald
**Coastal Village - The Grey Hills**

The streets were empty. Torrential rain had driven rats and people alike into the safety of the homes. Curiously enough, most were not pauper dwellings. Even a small costal village like this one seemed strangely prosperous, with large fields surrounding it further inland and big buildings sprawling from it's centre.

Two villagers came out of one of the homes, making a dash trough the rain towards one of the barns. They didn't see the berserkers on their way to the stables, but the light of thunder revealed the score of men right standing in front of them as soon as they turned around.

One of them, a skinny man, screamed and ran towards the town's equivalent of a longhall.

"Giants!" He shouted in Soltongue.

The other, a young woman, was left frozen under the rain. She attempted to take a couple steps back, but fell on the mud of the streets. The skinny man kept shouting until he too fell flat on his face One by one, the villagers began to open the doors and shutters of their homes, their gaze was directed at the newcomers with a mixture of fear and curiosity.
Vincent
Dagstygg Jarl and the Berserksgangr
Grey hills, Northwind.

As they approached the village, the Jarl of these men would charge into the village as he would lift his axe to the sky and unleash a hellish roar, the Vikingr's would hack down doors with axe and shield, killing anyone who stood in their way should they try, they took food, alcohol, building supplies, tradeable goods, anything of value. 

They were leaving no home untouched and no stone unturned as the raid went on*
Ronald
**Coastal Village of Vernisse - The Grey Hills**

Villagers ran chaotically from their homes to the stables, a few grabbed horses, some attemped in vain
 to defend their homes or families with pichtforks, but most just ran. There was no organized defense... At first.

"DE BURGH! JOHN DE BURGH IS HERE!"

From the from the depths of a stone watchtower, a group of pikemen came out into the storm, and following them a another group carring strange mechanical weapons. Last of all came a young knight in silver armor, his helmet adorned with purple and white feathers. He was the sole fighter riding on a horse.

"To the fields!" He shouted to the villagers. "Don't take anything with you! Run!"

The pikemen began to take formation, capitalizing on the berserkergang's pillage to buy time. The knight adressed his men again:

"Men of Vernisse! De Burgh's forces are here! You are the land's fist line of defense! Stand firm! Make the Red Maiden proud!"

An alchemical red flare soared trough the stormy sky. One final trooper came out out of the tower, unnarmed.
From beyond the horizon, another flare answered in kind: the river fortress.
Still, while the town garrisson held a slight numerical advantage, this was rendered insinificant in the face of the invader's sheer size and ferocity. 

There was no guarantee that vernisse's garrison would hold for long enough, but they would make a stand.
Vincent
Dagstygg Jarl and the Berserksgangr
Vernisse

Once the vikingr's made their appearance, Dagstygg Jarl would roar into the skies for his men, ordering them into a shield wall

"Skjaldveggur! Mylja þær eins og rottur!" 

The raiding men and women would form a shield wall, preparing for battle. Spears would push through the crevices in the shield wall, and archers would take aim behind the mass
Ronald
**Vernisse - The Grey Hills**

The strategy wall pushed the pikemen back. Their halberds were not enough to shatter the shield wall. Without shields of their own, they were forced to give ground... And men. But then the armsen with the mechanical weapons loaded and fired: a hail of short-ranged crossbow fire ripped trough wood and metal rims. Bolts pierced shields and flesh, shattered bones.
The berserkers took few casualties thanks to their sturdy constitution, and most of the damage had been tanked by the warriors at the front, leaving the archers unharmed, but many of the the wounds left by the machines ran deep.

The crossbowmen did not have enough time to unleash a second volley, the retaliatory arrows of the berserkergang caught several of them in the open before they could dive for cover. Alas, it had stopped the shield wall advance long enough for the pikemen to take formation once again. Dagstygg could now figure out their strategy: the pikemen were never supposed to defeat them, they would only delay them long enough for the marksmen to unleash on the gang their esoteric weapons.

No sign of the knight, he had apparently abandoned his men. But like the flare earlier heralding incoming reinforcements, it was a bad omen.
Vincent
Dagstygg Jarl and the Berseksgangr
Venisse village

He would call for those uninjured to drag the injured backwards in the shield wall, the now missing area of shields would soon be closed again as the shield wall tightened to replace their injured, as the Jarl roared he would blow into his horn, unleashing a volley of arrows over shield wall and toward the paladins. These arrows were broad headed, thick, and long, clearly these were made for shredding through the abominations of the witherlands these men came from. The shield wall would begin to advance with a loud and syncronous "Hough!" As the crossbowmen were forced the somewhat long process of reloading compared to archers.

"Fylltu í götin og ýttu! Bogfimi að vild!"
Ronald
**Vernisse village - The Grey Hills**

The garrison soldiers, protected only by a curaisse and helmet, were felled whenever they attempted formation. Seeing how the villagers had ran into the hills, one of the sargeants called his remaining men to regroup inside the tower. Dagstygg's tactics had proven effective, if not yet final.

To allow for the distraction needed to buy time, the knight came from the archer's flank, leaping with his stallion over the thunder of the storm. He managed to slay two of the archers before fading into the tempest agin, but he was too far to enter the tower. The garrison closed the doors without him.
Vincent
Dagstygg Jarl
Venisse village

Dagstygg would grin and call to his men, commanding them to load the newly dead aboard the ship so they may recieve proper burial at the encampment. They had no hope of getting into the tower without siege equipment. They had what they needed, and wasted no time loading their plunder upon their ships. Dagstygg removed his helmet and locked eyes with the knight, before lifting his axe to the sky, a bolt of lightning flashing behind him before he cries out in his native tongue

"Blóð fyrir blóðguðinn!"
Ronald
**Vernisse Village**

It had been a better decison than even Dagstygg would've accounted for. Had they decided to go back to the ships later, they would've been seized by the ennemies who could be now seen sailing from the river fortress.

The retreat and losses had given no chance to take prisonners, but the rest of the bounty more than made up for it: for a town this small, the houses had proven to be surprisngly loaded with valuables. This land had grown fat on it's own riches and harvests.

There was still no clue as to why the town had been so unusually defended, but Dagstygg would have time to ponder on it later. It was a strange land, but it was a land of fortune.
Carol
Levi Cortez
Northwind

Levi looked at the young girl, then at her plate, then back up at her with a grin making its way across his lips. "Only a bit hungry, eh?" He said, chuckling a little at his own joke before taking a rag out of his pocket and softly tilting her head up. 

"Don't eat so fast you make yourself sick." He said, wiping the corner of her mouth. He let her eat again, and set the wool rag beside her. He waited until she was finished with her bowl before taking it and filling it up again. "You haven't eaten in a couple of days. You might as well go ahead and eat more. Soon we may be traveling again." He said, sitting beside her again. 

"Speaking of bows, we have some. Many, in fact. Enough for you to find a bow that will fit. We can always make adjustments if needed. But first, I have a gift for you." He said, reaching to the small sheath at his waist. He placed it on the table. Inside held a small dagger, with a razor sharp edge. "Should you need it. If you don't know how to wield it I'll show you." He said, pushing it over to her. 

"Hand me your hands." He said, taking her hands and studying them. They were small, but they were rough. They had been used. 



He let go of her hands and looked up towards her. "What did you do all of these years? You said you were taken, but where?" He asked, before taking their glasses and filling them again.