Chapter Seventeen

"Shit, shit shit.." Katla flopped on the ground. Her breath escaped her as she lay panting there in the fresh grass of the meadows. A dandelion bobbed just beyond her right eye, the slightly bitter scent of its pollen almost breaking past the scent of rotting offal. Bjorn joined her, laying on his back as he drug in desperate breaths. His mace fell from his fingers, covered in green and black gore, as they attempted to wrap their minds around a village of the dead. 

"Would smell better. Odin's balls, those things.." He barely suppressed a ragged gag as his stomach knotted and the breeze shifted enough to force him to smell himself and the coating of viscera that stained his clothing in vicious smears. Katla didn't have the same control as she managed to roll over enough to keep from choking as she gave in to the urge to vomit. Her stomach spasmned in rage, despite being empty, over the scent and sight they had been exposed to in that village.

"Draugr... they should have remained just stories." Her sentence was broken up by her gagging before finally, she started struggling out of her clothing to kick it aside. The scent seemed to abate once the gore-streaked clothing was removed leaving her in just the thin strips of scrap leather that made up her undergarments. It didn't do much for the gore coating her hair, but at least the worst was gone. Bjorn didn't hesitate to follow her example. 

Naked except for their underthings, they both reluctantly rolled up their pants, helms, and shirts in their cloaks before carrying them towards a small stream they could see well within the borders of the well-lit meadow. The slight cool of the air and its gentle breeze caused her skin to tighten in protest at the chill after becoming accustomed to the warmth of her clothing. Katla stood there for a moment, frozen as she worked through the mental fog that surrounded the last hour. Shock, exhaustion, and disgust warred in her mind. 

"Let's wash up and find a spot to make camp for the night." Bjorn decided as she stood there, her eyes slightly unfocused and starting to get lost in shock. Her breaking point seemed to be the walking, zombie-like, warriors that had filled that tidy little village. His mind rebelled at what they had seen, the men built powerfully. Healthy except for whatever green miasma that surrounded them; their skin sloughing off in random patches and steps uneven.

The bastards had been too fast for a thing whose body was made soft from rot. The sound of them, just remembering it made his stomach clench, how they seemed to squelch with each step. The way their bodies seemed to ripple as if something was gnawing just under their skin and the half-rotted furs they wore. Bjorn closed his eyes and shook his head before pushing them towards the stream and the promise of washing the stench off.

"Yes, wash. I don't think I can sleep tonight though." Katla finally spoke. A shudder rippled through her as she took those hesitant steps towards the shallow stream that was nestled between the hill they were on and the next one over. Even cold, the water had never felt so good as it did then. She dunked and scoured and dunked some more in an attempt to get all the gore off herself and the bundle of clothing. 

Even when their clothing was clean and left on the grass to dry, Katla and Bjorn continued to scrub and wallow in the water despite the bluish tinge to their lips, and the heavy shivers that caused their teeth to clatter together in a noisy symphony. Finally Katla couldn't stand the cold any longer and practically crawled to the edge of the shore before wiggling into the stiff, sun-dried troll leather clothing. The faint warmth of the sun helped ease away her shivering as she worked to rebraid her hair back into the tidy coil around her head. 

The grooming kept her attention on herself for when Bjorn crawled out and joined her in dressing. Clothed, still cold, and drained Katla looked at their current location. The small vale was cozy and fairly well hidden. A good spot for a campfire and to try and get some sleep over the night. 

"I am too tired to move. Can we just camp here?" Katla sighed, ready to admit defeat if it meant she didn't have to stagger back to standing. They were close enough to The Elder to justify setting up a camp here, but she wasn't comfortable with the looming threat of those wandering zombies. 

"Sure. Just for tonight." Bjorn agreed as he took the task on himself to set them up a campfire on what looked like the least slopped portion of land in their immediate vicinity. Katla managed to drag herself closer, huffing softly as she fought to keep her teeth from chattering in the chill of the air. The warmth of the fire helped cut against the cold air and the passed-out cold rations of boar jerky, a chunk of honeycomb, and carrots filled their stomachs. 

Content and safe, Katla leaned against Bjorn's shoulder as she fought to go to sleep just yet. Her nerves wrapped around her as she tried to make sense of what had occurred. The memory of hope as she and Bjorn had approached the village; their hands linked and the warmth of the sun on their backs. 

She could remember the first hints that something was wrong as the scent of decay carried on the wind. The need for others had her pushing back the sense of danger, explaining away the smell as a recently butchered animal- even if animals slain in this place simply disappeared leaving only the appropriate parts behind. 

The arrow at their feet, shot from one of the houses had caused them to pause. Katla remembered looking at Bjorn and watching his expression turn from annoyance into alarm, then straight to horror. That arrow was probably the only thing that had saved them from walking unsuspectingly into the waiting horde of Draugr trapped within that cozy village. 

They hadn't even bothered to work out a strategy as they just ran. Both of them bolted back up the hill, ignoring burning thighs and calves as they tried to outpace the rush of undead things. The fight of the ones that reached them had been gruesome and disgusting mixed into one traumatizing bundle. The fact that upon death all that was left was a pile of steaming intestines had not helped matters as Katla had fought her need to vomit against survival. Each shot she could take slowed down the advancing horde, giving Bjorn time to pick off the ones that he could. 

"Stop thinking about it." The husky whisper of Bjorn's voice over her ear jerked Katla from her thoughts. A little frown graced her lips as she pressed her nose against the comforting living smell of the man beside her. "You are only going to exhaust yourself. Just accept it as part of this world and learn from it. You will go crazy otherwise." 

"I can't help it. We were so close to becoming food to those things.." Her eyes pressed closed as she forced herself to swallow. The jagged filed teeth in the undead creatures were enough to inspire nightmares on their own; without the green cloud that surrounded them, or the faint glow in those clouded-over eyes. Katla relaxed only slightly at the large hand that gently stroked along her hair in a soothing motion. 

"We didn't though. We can get some sleep and find a place to set up in the morning." Bjorn shifted his ruck as a makeshift pillow. His deer hide cape draped comfortably over him and partially onto Katla. The soft still warm earth provided them a comfortable bed that smelled like earth and living things. "I will take the first watch, you get some rest." Bjorn lay there, waiting until her breaths fell into the slow and steady rhythm of sleep. 

Carefully he pulled her cloak over her before sitting up and adding another piece of wood to their campfire. Tonight, shadows weren't welcome around them and the flickering of flames only provided a small inkling of comfort. Each snap of the fire, rustle of leaves from the wind, or snort of a wandering boar had him grabbing for his mace. 

He watched as the stars roamed across the sky and the soft light of dawn started to creep over the horizon. Sleep forcibly claimed him as he dozed off with his hand lightly clasped around the handle of his mace and body still upright and sitting. His last memory was that of an exhausted mind justifying why he needed to sleep then. 'Just a small nap; nothing would come for them.' 

A hard kick of a boot to his ribs had Bjorn jerking upright, his fingers tightened around empty air. Startled and barely awake he groped for the missing weapon even as he rolled out of the way over another kick. His eyes narrowed as he readied to yell at Katla for waking him so abruptly when he had been considerate enough to let her sleep. Instead, he found her standing with her hands up and bow confiscated. The look on her face though; was certainly lethal. 

"What do we have here?" He found himself looking up at a bear of a man. Broad-shouldered, hairy, with clothing that appeared pieced together from both the trollhide and copper. The other was in a deer hide and copper mix; indicating that trolls might not be as common on this island as it was on theirs. 

"I told you, we are traveling to look for The Elder like the damn chicken said to." Katla hissed. Her fingers tightened and curled at her sides as if she strained against throwing at least one punch at the man antagonizing Bjorn. The only thing that kept her still was the sword the man held and how close her companion was to the danger. 

"You look under-prepared.." The appraising look he cast over Katla had her stiffening in resentment. She had Bjorn were better armored than the duo, more so since they wore the full trollhide outside their cloaks, and they weren't limited in their ability to move while still having a good level of protection.

"and you under washed.." Bjorn nearly groaned at her snarky retort. People skills didn't seem to be part of her knowledge and he wondered if it was an enemy that had ended her in her previous life. The big one stepped closer to her, trying to menace her with the fact he was armed and bigger. Katla just raised her chin in a silent dare. From where Bjorn crouched he could see the small flash of a flint knife she held in her hand. 

"She has you there Arne.." The small bald one started laughing as he rested his spear butte against the ground. The shift in his posture was a silent signal for the larger berserker type to stand down. 

"No point in washing if I have to trudge through those murky waters. Not all of us need to be as sleek as a badger's ass Einar." The grin across Arne's face was both disturbing and somehow reassuring as the flash of white teeth parted the dark mass of beard and mustache. "Get up. Might as well take you back and let the rest decide what to do with you." 

Katla looked at Bjorn and gave a short little nod. Her acceptance was that they had little choice in the matter. At least their rucksacks had been left alone along with the cloaks they had been wrapped in. What possessions they could carry were once more settled as they found themselves marching between the two armed warriors. Despite the danger of the situation, Katla found herself reassured. At least this time they had been found by the living and surely they couldn't be as terrible as the undead. 

As they approached the pair of shoddily constructed longhouses Katla wondered if the undead might just be better neighbors. Instead of a tidy layout, the long houses were haphazardly constructed. A swathe of packed bare earth with a few stubborn dandelions stood near the entrance to each hut. Smoke escaped in lazy circles from an opening in the roof along with gaps between the walls making it clear that inside would be hazy from woodsmoke. 

Animal pens held a few sad-looking boars that snuffled around for what food could be found in the too-small pens. Close enough to be contaminated by the pigs, rows of carrots waved their cheery green stalks in the breeze. A smeltry, charcoal furnace, and stack of wood stood to one side of the buildings. A small lean-to shelter housed what Katla could only assume was the smithy. Her nose wrinkled as she looked up at Bjorn in silent question. 

A subtle shake of his head told her that she wasn't alone in being disgusted by the overall mess of a layout found here. As they approached, the squeal of the still partially feral boar alerted others of their approach. Three more men in varying appearances, from dark skin almost the color of midnight and closely braided hair, to men just as fair as the moonlight. All wore some variation of troll hide armor and copper armor. 

All of them looked moderately surprised and wary at the two approaching; at least until they realized Katla happened to be female. The appraising glances might have made another woman shrink down, or lean into her male companion as a false sense of security. Katla wasn't that woman. She faced them with a smile that featured more as a silent snarl. A threat that she could and would bite, or do other bodily injury to the first wandering hand.

"Hey there Einar, what have you found there?" The cleanest of the lot called out. Katla paused to take his measure. Soft brown skin with eyes just a couple shades darker, his hair was shaved on either side of his head with the center third braided close to his skill and clubbed off just before the back of his head. A scar bisected over one eye causing the iris to have a cloudy film over it. His armor was made of pure copper and the heavy sword he carried was an explanation why he had the heavier slowing armor on. 

"Couple of strays. Found them about halfway towards that draugr village." A chortling laugh escaped the beastly man and Katla fought the urge to cause bodily harm to the man. Where Bjorn's taunts were teasing, friendly, and even flirty; this man's seemed mean-spirited and almost degrading. The tone grated along Katla's temper and she fought against the urge to fight her way free and just dismiss humanity outside of her and Bjorn. 

"Oof good thing you were found before stumbling over there. Nasty pieces of work those things." The man wiped his hands off his shirt as he stepped closer and moved away from the shelter of that first hut. Katla eyed the structure dubiously as she wondered how long until it would topple over. For some reason beyond the laws and rules of gravity, it remained standing despite the uneven nature of the walls and earth beneath. 

"We know. Nearly walked right into that village yesterday." Katla huffed as she pulled herself forward. Impatience won and she decided she was tired of being discussed as if she were not there. "I'm Katla by the way, my friend here is Bjorn. As we explained to Bear's ass there, we are looking to follow Hugin's next cryptic task. If you don't mind, we just need a spot to throw up a portal and maybe a small home."

"And you survived?" The man's question seemed to skip over the entire request she had placed. Katla rolled her eyes slightly at the things that seemed important to others. 

"Obviously." Her snarky reply earned a hard look from Bjorn. Her companion moved closer in a subtle show of support for the woman who had more balls than brains sometimes. 

"What she means is we ran like the hounds of Helheim were on our asses. We only fought a pair of them." He decided to downplay their abilities. His shoulder butted against Katla's in a silent warning for her to not protest the story he had started to spin. The action earned a scowl from her as she crossed her arms in front of her; the body language was not exactly confident but instead of an angry female who was likely to take your arm off if approached.

"Sounds right. Gustaf by the way. Unofficial leader of this ragtag group." He finally offered as he appraised the duo before him. Despite her sharp tongue, Katla hadn't threatened anyone and the man seemed to have some tact. Neither had made airs of trying to raid their supplies. "Default since no one else wanted the damn job" 

"Bjorn. And like my companion said. We don't require much, just a place to build this portal so we can go back to our home as needed." The request was reiterated. A clear indication of what they wanted. "Or if you don't mind, we can take our weapons and settle a little ways away." Bjorn didn't care which way this went; he just wanted to end the stalemate before Katla stabbed someone. He could already see her impatience rising and feared for the health of the next person to annoy her. 

"Sure thing, don't own the whole lot of the island. Just over there should be a fairly good spot." The indicated area was a small distance away and with the way the breeze seemed to constantly shift, felt like it would be the perfect spot downwind to catch each one of their noxious smells over the fresh breeze. 

"Thanks.If you don't mind.." Bjorn nudged Katla as they started to break apart from the group. The designation seemed to be the final say about the pair of them joining. Katla didn't need a second nudge as she fell out of line and started to walk towards the designated area. The plot was small, nestled between a stand of trees and one of the ragged pig pens. Large enough for a small hut and a place for their portal home. 

"Getting ready to go after the Elder?" Gustaf had followed them and Katla fought down the wave of irritation that came as she set up a workbench in the area to start putting together the portal first that would take them to their home. From there she could get the basic materials to form a small simple place for her and Bjorn to rest that would keep them near their next goal. 

"We are. And your group?" Bjorn tipped his head towards the village as a handful of men appeared over the rise, their rucksacks full and dented pickaxes clasped in their hands. Katla looked up from her task as she raked a hoe over the ground, doing her best to level out the plot before putting any sort of structure down. A few 1-meter posts were already stuck out of the ground in 4-meter intervals, forming the footprint of a small home. 

"We are working on it. Tried once and got our asses handed to us. Thought the damn Stag was bad; this thing is a nasty piece of work." Gustaf continued to chat, watching keenly as the pair divided their labor. Bjorn had started clearing the marked land of random sticks, dandelions, and rocks. The items were carefully tucked into his rucksack to be used at a later time. The pair worked in tandem unlike the group of men he worked with that had to be bullied and forced together like mismatched pieces. 

"Well, I guess that puts us all in the same spot. Smithy open to all?" Bjorn put a pile of stones to one side. The placement was carefully just out of the way for Katla but still close enough to grab the materials if needed. Once the ground was sufficiently leveled Bjorn picked a spot just far enough outside the outline she had created to place the portal. The magic demanded a name and he gave the matching, holding his breath until the opening suddenly flashed a vibrant swirling orange before appearing empty leaving only the glowing orange glyphs to indicate the opening was active. 

"We try for a community approach here." The chieftain started and Katla jerked her gaze up from her task, almost daring him to lie. "Neat piece of magic there." The words had barely left Gustav's mouth before the heavy flap of wings announced Katla's least favorite avian friend. Her work stopped as she rose to full height, glaring as the large bird landed on top of the portal Bjorn had just created.

The creature's black and gold beady eye focused for a moment on the woman in a silent challenge. Her lips pressed thin as she battled her temper back, reminding herself that it wasn't wise to roast a messenger of Odin in a world where things like draugr and deer that shot lightning existed. The bird satisfied dipped his beak down to speak to Gustaf. 

"Portals are great for fast travel between different parts of the world. Of course, you need to build one on the other end as well, then give the pair the same name, and they will be automatically connected!" The scratchy almost toneless voice irritated Katla every time she heard it. The fact that the bird arrived to give useless information every time just furthered her ire.

"We figured that out you giant flying chicken." Sometime during the interval she had come closer. The giant Raven's feathers lifted as it puffed up in an instinctive need to appear larger. All it did was make Katla want to roast it over a fire even more. "How about some new information? Or are you just in the habit of providing useless information after the fact?"

The bird just ignored her before launching itself into the air with a grating caw. Katla made an aggressively rude gesture at the fleeing feathered back end of the raven. A huffed breath escaped her before she looked at both men staring at her. One was in bemusement and the other looked at her like she had grown a second head. Bjorn found her outbursts mildly amusing at this point; having experienced them since his first day in Valheim when she had stripped off her pants and handed them to him. 

"Did she?" Gustaf's bewildered question was cut off as Bjorn just laughed at her outburst.

"She and Hugin have a running hate- barely tolerate relationship." Bjorn laughed as a dandelion, roots and all hit him in the center of his chest. The faint twitch at the edge of her lips was the only indication that Katla found any humor in his commentary. 

"I see.. she realizes?"

"She realizes just fine, Gustaf" Katla interjected herself into the conversation; tired of being spoken about like she wasn't standing right there. "Bjorn, we need to go grab the wood we have stored. Plus I am certain the pigs need to be fed at home." Her head jerked toward the portal. 

Bjorn nodded as Gustaf took the unspoken cue from the woman to leave. Culturally they had been conditioned that women ruled the homestead; they were the ones in charge of maintaining and managing the household and the other man was in Katla's domain the moment the plot was ceded to them. The fact that Bjorn deferred to her only reinforced the image that Katla was the authority between them. 

"If you need help..." Gustaf offered over his shoulder as Katla paused at the portal looking at him for a moment before ducking through. Bjorn offered a half-wave of farewell.

"We will ask." Bjorn gave a little nod before following her through the portal. Once on the other side, he found stacks of wood waiting for him to pick up to carry back through though no Katla at first glance.

He looked over their small neat homestead in comparison to the larger grouping that was the basic start to a village. This was home, the soft curl of smoke through the opening in the roof. The tidy courtyard and organized layout of animal pens and their crops. Katla stood by the pigs, her feet resting on the lowest run of the split pole fence. A few wilted carrots and mushrooms were on the ground before her as she took a moment to watch the little piglets darting between the legs of their parents. Their little brown bodies with black stripes were a cute contrast to the bristly black bodies of their parents. 

"I don't like it, Bjorn." Katla voiced her misgivings as she stepped away from the pen. Her attention turned back to the portal as she gathered up the last crop of matured carrots. The top of her cultivator peaked out from the top of her rucksack. "They are close to where we need to be, damn that bird, but it just feels off." 

"We will keep separate as possible. I am certain there is a way to lock our belongings and doors from others. We will figure out it." He looked at their small home. It wasn't a true goodbye as they would be coming back and forth to take care of the boars and move resources that were precious back to their main camp. It was an ending though, of the simple life of just the two of them. 

"It will have to do. If that man was telling the truth, we would need them for this next monster. If The Elder is this bad, then how will we get past the rest of them?" She didn't fight as Bjorn wrapped his arms around her shoulders, pulling her towards him to rest her cheek against his chest. Katla stiffened just slightly before relaxing against him. 

"We will manage," Bjorn muttered before pulling away from her. "Now, let's get our new home set up before sunset." Katla gave a sharp bark of a laugh before shaking her head to step through the portal, hoisting up a bundle of wood into her pack as she stepped through. 

By sunset, a small house had been constructed. Two stories with the first holding the workbench, a storage place, and the small hearth set up to accommodate both the spit and cauldron. Shelves were built over the workbench with several chests on them. Deerhide rugs lay on the floor near the hearth and upstairs two beds were set in the loft with a chest between them providing a flimsy division of sleeping arrangements. Another rug lay on the floor and a couple of brightly colored banners were hung to offer insulation between the sleeping area and the open air where the hearth vented. 

Cozy, tidy, and built with utility in mind their small outbase would provide a good place to rest as they worked with the rest of the village to prepare. Contented Katla looked over downstairs as the sun started to set. The next day would involve gathering more resources and finding a way to secure their belongings.