Her Gilded Firebird: Book Three in the Norse Warriors series

by Susannah Shannon

Gunnar was grinning, he delighted in the pleasure he could bring his lovely girl. He came with a powerful thrust and gritted his teeth and groaned as he came deep, deep within her. Elin was still hazy in her senses, still cast adrift on waves of pleasure when she heard a branch snap. Gunnar heard it too and looked over his shoulder, keeping his arms protectively around Elin. Hako stood high above them a mouthful of plants from the ponds hanging from his mouth, dripping their green water on both lovers. The moose gave a shake of his head, and the plants disappeared down his gullet. Gunnar and Elin took this as a sign that they had been gone long enough and hurried back to the cart.

  This time, Gunnar announced that Elin would ride with him for a while. Ragnifer looked skeptical. He walked closer to the moose and held its muzzle in his small, rough, skilled hands. Something about the moose’s countenance reassured him. The wood sprite looked over his shoulder at them, “ He says that he can carry a big sack of boulder like the likes of you, the girl won’t add much.” And then in a softer, bewildered tone, “He likes the name Hako, by the by.

  Elin was not at all sure about this. The saddle barely fit Gunnar’s muscular thighs, which meant that she was basically straddling Gunnar legs. Since they were already aboard an animal that had legs over five feet long, she felt her security was tenuous at best. However, Gunnar showed her how to put her hands on the front of the saddle and his arms around her made her feel safer.

  Elin had not ridden a horse before, her family had an ancient horse that pulled their carts to market. Riding horses was something that the rich, or warriors did. Having nothing to compare it to, she was delighted, if a bit surprised at how fun it was. There was a brief second when it felt as if they were flying and then the powerful clomping of two of the feet and then they bounded, briefly up again.

  Elin and Gunnar were both laughing. “Is this what you call galloping?” she asked him.

  “I suppose, although it’s a bit more like a gallumping-“ he said matching the odd rhythm.

  The moose suddenly stopped, Elin would have gone ass over teakettle over the animal’s head if Gunnar hadn’t had such a good grip on her. Three masked men were in the middle of the lane. Two of them had bows cocked at them, and the one in the middle had a sword.

  “We just want you, blacksmith,” the man with the sword said in a thick foreign accent. Gunnar whispered to Elin, Hang on tight to Hako’s saddle, no matter what. He will take care of you.”

  Elin had no time to argue as her husband swung himself down, and, giving the moose a solemn look, walked towards the would-be assassins.

  “What could you possibly want of me?” he asked keeping some distance from the masked men.

  “We know who you are. Prepare to die.” The sworded man lunged forward, but Gunnar for all his size was faster. He rolled out of the way of the sword and was able to get behind the man. He wrapped one powerful arm around the man’s neck and gave a violent wrench. Elin screamed as the archers turned from pointing their arrows at Elin and the moose and turned to shoot Gunnar. Hako was on the first archer before he could lose a single bolt. The man was haplessly lifted by the massive antlers and thrown against a tree. He landed with a dreadful thwack and then tumbled to the ground with blood erupting from his nose and mouth. Elin had given up on holding onto the saddle, and both of her hands were grasping Hako’s hackles which stood up like those of a hellhound. With a whirl the Moose was upon the other archer, running him down with brutal efficiency. Hako barely slowed down and

  Gunnar swung himself back up into the saddle. The trio turned around and raced back to the cart. Ragnifer and Ake were still moving along, they had been undisturbed. Gunnar asked Elin to get into the cart as they headed back to where the bodies were.

  She climbed in, not at all convinced that she was safer in the cart. In no time they made it back up the trail to where the bodies were. Except, they were not. There was some blood, some scraps of what Elin cringingly suspected were skin, hair, and bone from the man Hako had trampled.

  “You are sure they couldn’t get themselves up and into the forest?” Ake asked.

  “They were dead,” Gunnar said, and Elin shook her head in agreement trying not to give herself over to her fear.

  “That means there are more of them around. Stay tight now, let’s look lively,” Ake commanded. It seemed to Elin that being as quiet as possible was the best possible thing to do in the situation. She was surprised when Ragnifer began making a series of odd snorts and chirps. He threw his head back and made a sinister howling sound. His wild vocalizations cut through the woods and made Elin want to jab her fingers in her ears, except that she was too frozen with fear to do any such thing. She glanced at Gunnar, wondering why her warrior husband wasn’t telling the bossy little man to be quiet. Ake also seemed unconcerned. How could it be that the only person who understood how much danger they were in was her?

  Chapter 19

  Soon it seemed as if the shrill yelps emitted by Ragnifer were echoing back at them from the woods. Almost immediately after that, she heard the urgent sound of people frantically running through the woods, followed by a cacophony of hoofbeats.

  The birds burst out. First, owls and terns and ravens, their wings beating the air, their cries haunting. There was a moment of silence, and then four men stumbled onto the path with every animal of the forest herding them towards Gunnar and the cart. Ragnifer and Ake leaped from the vehicle and with the elk, and wolves and the bears circling them had no trouble tying up their would-be captors.

  Elin climbed onto Hako, and the prisoners were bundled into the cart. A pack of wolves silently surrounded the carriage and walked with them keeping wary yellow eyes on their captives. The four men seemed so grateful to not be left tied in the woods with the animals that they immediately began telling Ake everything he wanted to know. They had dragged their compatriots’ bodies off the path and were planning a second attack when every animal in the forest had joined forces to round them up.

  Elin could not listen as carefully as she would have liked since Hako’s hoofbeats were very loud. The moose did not seem to enjoy the proximity of the wolves, and Gunnar let him gallop. It was incredible, Elin would feel that they were flying for a few seconds and then the feet would jarringly hit the ground seemingly all at once. She could never have held on if she hadn’t had Gunnar’s arms wrapped tightly around her.

  Talking to her husband was impossible while they raced along on Hako’s back. She allowed her thoughts to wander and tried to imagine what the crown wanted with Gunnar. Perhaps he had been released from the snowforce by mistake. If they wanted to make him a knight, would he still want a dairymaid from a tiny village as his wife?

  In the first rays of daylight, they had been spotted by a sentry. Two long columns of knights rode out to meet them.

  “Hail,” the first knight said, and Gunnar solemnly returned the greeting. One of the knights in the back of the column broke rank and trotted up to them,” G! Remember me?”

  Gunnar carefully held Elin steady on the saddle and slid himself off. His friend did too, and they clasped arms happily. Gunnar, turned and introduced his wife,” Elin this idiot is Kai, we shared a bunk when we were younger.”

  Kai squeezed Gunnar’s upper arm, “You are massive. What do they feed you down there?”

  Gunnar laughed, “I’m a blacksmith,” he said, and Elin hoped he wasn’t ashamed of his profession.

  A knight still on his horse said, “return to the castle immediately and report that the blacksmith has arrived.” One of the riders immediately did as he was told.

  Elin was not sure how Gunnar had gone from being a blacksmith, to be “the” blacksmith. A horn blew, and Gunnar said, “They must have spotted the others.” He helped Elin remount Hokan. They rode up to the gatehouse.

  Elin was not sure how Gunnar had gone from being a blacksmith, to be “the” blacksmith. A horn blew, and Gunnar said, “They must have spotted the others.” He helped Elin remount Hokan. They rode up to the gatehouse. The young
soldiers waiting there looked at each other, part of their job was to hold a horse's reins the better to aid its rider to dismount. One of them sort of awkwardly grasped the moose's antlers. Hokan turned his head which dislodged the boy’s hand. Both sentries gave a solemn nod of their head and said, “Welcome, sir," to Gunnar. Gunnar seemed even more disoriented that Elin did.

  Chapter 20

  A young woman in a spotless blue dress met them and smiled. "I am Britt, the hosteler here. I will show you to your room, ma’am.”

  A young soldier bowed to Gunnar and said, “Come with me please sir.”

  Gunnar squeezed Elin’s elbow. “It will be alright,” he whispered.

  Elin watched the broad shoulders of her husband walk away. Britt led her down a wide hallway. Everyone they saw paused and gravely curtsied to Elin. The room she was taken to was as large as their entire cottage. Centered in the place was a vast bed with crisp white sheets and a luxurious red woolen coverlet. It was very enticing. Her whole body ached from being knocked around in the cart. She was exhausted. A knock on the door signaled that their baggage was being delivered. The girl who brought it gave a quick bob to Elin.

  "If you choose the gown you want then Oda will to take you to the bathing suites, “said Britt. Elin rummaged in her bag and found her best dress, which was still shabbier than the one worn by the maidservant.

  The women's bathing suite contained three large tubs that had steps leading up to them. An enormous copper was in the center of the room and pipes from it went to each tub. The maid turned a tap steaming hot water suddenly flowed into one of the tubs. The maid threw in a generous handful of lavender and rosemary and then while they steeped, she helped Elin undress. Elin had only ever been helped in and out of her clothes by her mother or sisters. She felt awkward and exposed. Stepping down into the tub she was surprised to discover a wooden bench. The tub was big enough that she could lean back and dunk her hair under. The soap was silky and sweet smelling. The hot water melted some of the knots in her shoulders but served to make her rump throb even more than it had been from the wagon. Elin was unsure what awaited them and considered lingering in the tub. Only her desire to find Gunnar propelled her to move out of the tub.

  The maid seemed to sense Elin's discomfort and glanced away while handing her a towel. Elin followed the maid into an adjacent chamber where the fire was banked high. Elin sat, firmly wrapped in the commodious towel, and relaxed while her hair was combed out. It dried quickly in the warmth. Her hair was still only barely damp when she braided it and twisted the braids up and around her head. The maid laced up her dress and waited patiently while Elin rolled up her stockings and buckled her shoes. They left the bathing suites, and Oda led her to a secluded study.

  She had not anticipated the warm welcome she received as soon as the door was opened. “You must be Elin, the bride.” A tall, well dressed middle-aged man, stood to greet her.

  Elin found herself flustered, he was so spoised and so handsome, and he was treating her with such attentiveness. “I am, Gunnar is my husband.”

  “Yes,” the man said quietly, and Elin could have kicked herself for being such an awkward idiot. Clearly they all knew who she was married to; otherwise, she wouldn't be in the castle at all. Her husband was already there and stood to make the introductions. “Elin, this is Prince Georg, the high commander.”

  The well-dressed man gave a stately bow and managed to seem both supremely confident and perfectly humble, no small feat. A much slighter, very old man peered from behind Gunnar’s girth.“May I?” Armund asked Gunnar who smiled and nodded. Elin suddenly found herself wrapped in the wizened warriors’ arms. “Well, you are pretty as a spring morning! Of course, I always knew our lad here would do well with the ladies.”

  The door opened, and a servant came in carrying a tray of drinks. Georg handed Elin a goblet, raising his own high, he said to the blacksmith, “Welcome home.”

  Elin kept a close watch on Gunnar, not sure how he would react.

  “That is wonderful to hear. You have no idea how much I dreamed of that for years. The fact remains however that I failed out.”

  Armund stood up so quickly that he sloshed red wine all over himself. “We never said that! Never!”

  Gunnar shrugged, “You didn’t have to. I was too sickly.”

  Georg cocked an eyebrow at Gunnar’s massive arms. “Hardly sickly.”

  Armund shooed the servant that was trying to mop the wine off his soaked clothes. ” I heard you stopped getting sick as soon as you started your apprenticeship.”

  “That’s right,” said Gunnar. “How did you know that?”

  “I have closely followed your life since you left Pinnacle keep.”

  The massive blacksmith seemed embarrassed by this, “Thanks, I guess.”

  Georg reached for a sword that was laying on a shelf. “Oh yes,” Armund said, “Good. That’s why we are all gathered here. Lad, did you repair this sword?”

  Gunnar reached for it, “I did, the boy was joining the Snowforce,” he turned the sword, and it glinted in the light “The family wanted him to use his grandfather’s sword.” He set it down. “Was that against the law?”

  Armund was quick to assure him that it was not. “It didn’t affect us here, but all along the wall, a disaster occurred.”

  Armund leaned forward in his chair. “The sword you repaired is the only one that didn’t splinter last week. Some sort of spell has been cast, and only a weapon forged by you resisted it.”

  “A spell?” Elin asked.

  “Yes, a spell. The wall runs along a deep fissure of magic. This gives us a lot of power, but it’s sort of like a river. It makes the ground fertile, but it can drown you as well. I suspect it was cast by Hoor.”

  Elin had heard of Hoor, he was a malevolent god who could freeze his enemies and ruled one of the underworlds.

  Gunnar was baffled, “But I failed out of the Snowforce. Why would that sword survive and not others?”

  Armund reached for the much bigger man’s hands, “Lad, stop saying that. I believe that you got severe sickness because a forge was calling your heart. The fact that you stopped getting sick as soon as you were near a forge is proof of that. Sometimes, your destiny in the Snowforce requires training that we cannot give. It is not the usual path, but it was your path.”

  Gunnar seemed relieved. “Do you really think I belong in the Snowforce?”

  “Oh, my boy, I always knew that. Didn’t I tell you that back then?”

  “You did, but I just thought you were being kind.”

  Georg laughed,” Armund, kind? Perish the thought.”

  Elin swallowed the rest of her wine. “What do you want him to do?” she asked warily.

  “We need you, both of you, to forge swords.”

  “I’m not a blacksmith,” she stammered.

  “No, even more importantly you are the wife of a blacksmith. We need him, he needs you, and the Snowforce takes care of its own.”

  “But wouldn’t you immediately storm the wall if you knew you had destroyed all the swords along it?” Gunnar asked warily. Which, Elin had to agree was an excellent question.

  The general settled into a large comfortable chair.

  "We were lucky, the spell only took effect during a freak eclipse..”

  Armund interjected,” It wasn’t luck. The world itself was trying to defend the wall.”

  Georg continued,” Each keep thought they were the only ones at first.

  Gunnar turned to his bride to explain, ”The Keeps are each a days travel from each other.”

  Georg nodded and continued, ”It appears that we have been able to convince our enemies that the spell didn’t work. Our soldiers have worn their scabbards with the hilts glued onto them."

  Armund added, “ It appears they are unsure if their spell has worked. We think they are casting other spells. The pewter plates exploded, and then another day, metal hinges all twisted. Our isolation made it hard for them to see us. The wall is shiveri
ng with effort. "

  "Archers are stationed on the turrets of every keep. The cauldrons are full of the shattered blades and if our it over any assailants. Thus far no keeps have been stormed, but obviously, we cannot remain swordless."

  "And you think I can make swords that will hold.”" Gunnar was amazed.

  "We do, we found the one surviving sword, and as soon as we knew you had forged it, we sent after you."

  "What exactly is the plan?" asked Elin.

  "We will try and make things look as normal as possible. The new class of squires should be leaving for the wall in two days. Instead, we will keep them here but send the carriages on as if the boys were on board. At each keep, you will make swords. Armund will go with you, as he knows more about the wall than anyone alive."

  “So, we will be away from home for a long time?” she asked.

  “Yes,” Gunnar answered quietly.

  Chapter 21

  Elin felt that this was something that should be discussed. Her husband apparently felt that if it was his destiny, there was nothing to negotiate.

  “I told my parents we were only coming for a short while,” she whispered to him, wishing they were in private.

  “We can arrange for visits,” Georg interjected. Elin had to remind herself that he was a prince and the supreme commander, as she was about to tell him to mind his own Godsdamned business.

  “I would appreciate that,” she said. Part of her wanted to really argue, and yet looking at Gunnar’s face, she knew that this was the fulfillment of his dreams. She had married him because he was strong and interested in helping others, it seemed unfair to marry someone for his virtues and then demand that he shuck them like a pair of breeches. She squared her shoulders, she would learn to be a Snowforce wife.

  ”That’s settled then,” Georg said, politely, but clearly dismissing them. Armund entreated Gunnar to walk with him so that he could tell him everything he knew about the spell. Turning to his wife, he kissed her and happily said, “I will be back soon, and then I will take you to dinner in the grand hall.”