Wishes

Standing in a field of blood and death, swords clash, and the smell of iron fills the air.

Two figures stand on the corpses of the dead, Ares, God of War, stands panting with a vicious smile and predatorial glint in his eye, "You truly are a monster among men"

His opponent, a man in his sixties stands gasping for air with many gashes covering his body, "If i was in my youth, this battle may last forever but time waits for no man"

Within a blink of an eye, their wounds and exhaustion disappear, the battlefield vanishes and a medieval tavern takes its place.

"Once every million years or so, we gods are permitted to chose a champion that will be given a new life with all their previous memories and experiences intact"

"I have chosen you to be my champion, you will be given three wishes with some minor limitations and a world of your choosing", Ares finishes his sentence before summoning two large mugs of ale and taking a hefty drink.

The champion takes a sip before confusion fills his face, "Earth is the only world i know of"

A hearty laugh comes from Ares, "I meant fictional ones, like Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, and various others... but, I will only permit you to live a life in a world or universe where war and battle is constant"

The champion nods, "Well, I never paid much attention to games, media, or books, I only ever watched was a few medieval shows like Vikings... so i guess I'll be born there as the older twin brother of Bjorn"

"Now, what are the limitations of my wishes?"

Ares finishes his drink, "You cannot wish for Godhood, more wishes, a system, and you cannot wish for something that doesn't fit in the world you're going to... meaning, you can't wish for superpowers"

After a brief silence, he makes his first wish, "Hmm, who is that superhero that was given a serum that made his a super-soldier... Colonel America, that's it, I want the body of a super-soldier"

Another laugh comes from the god across from him, "You mean Captain America, yes, that wish is possible and i shall grant it upon your rebirth"

Sitting up straight in his chair, he makes his second wish, "I played a Viking game a few days before i died, it was Assassins Creed: Valhalla, I want the main character's Odin Sight"

"My last wish is to have the sword skills of Ser Arthur Dayne from Game of Thrones, i never watched the full show but i watched his battle versus Ned Stark which was awesome"

Ares stands up from his chair, "Good, That about does it, enjoy your next life"

After a firm handshake, Ares pushes him through a door made of light and his vision blurs.

-- Three Years Later --

Three years of laying on my back, sucking on breasts, and shitting myself. acting like a child is beyond exhausting.

Now that i can walk and talk, life is immensely easier.

Bjorn is an adventurous boy that regularly tries to wander off, our older sister Gyda is only two years older than us but tries to help mother around the house as best she can.

I spend my time mostly around Bjorn and Ragnar knowing that a close relationship with them in the future will help immensely.

I'm a rather large child, even as a babe, i weighed twice as much as Bjorn. I was born with blonde hair like mother but piercing blue eyes like father.

Even if i was a child, i spent my days being active to bolster my stamina even if it was only a little.

There weren't many children around and we barely left the farm which i was happy about, less people mean fewer dangers.

-- Two Years Later --

Vikings didn't have birthdays but i kept track of mine and spent each birthday praying to Ares.

I was given the same shitty haircut as Bjorn, We spent a lot of time together, we spent most days pretending to fight, i won every fight we fought, he may be Bjorn Ironside but he's still a child.

I made sure to test my body's capabilities to their fullest extent with every year that passes, My stamina was immense already and Odin Sight allowed me to find any rodents that tried to get into our food.

Just like in the game, Odin Sight allowed me to see people through walls, find gold and treasures, highlight those that were allies blue while my enemies were highlighted red.

I was the tallest of my siblings by a few inches, maybe it was due to my super body or because i ate more food than that of an adult, either way, i was happy.

One day while wandering the woods, i "accidentally" found Floki's house down by the sea and introduced myself, we get along great, he's a bit weird and laughs for no reason but i know he's a very loyal and loving person if you put time into having a friendship with him.

Mother and Gyda caught a small cold while winter was passing and father was off raiding, I put Bjorn in charge of cutting the firewood and keeping the house warm, i wiped off their sweat with a wet cloth, fed them, and made sure they stayed in bed.

Days passed and their illnesses vanished, mother was grateful and kept complimenting us.

Life was good for the moment, seven more years were left until Ragnar left for England and found Athelstan.

-- Five Years Later --

Now ten years old, i have the body of a thirteen-year-old despite not hitting puberty yet.

Bjorn had matured mentally, he no longer was the always giddy boy several winters of hardship.

I had tested my strength and speed of a young man of sixteen.

Odin Sight allowed me to save up a small amount of gold I've hidden away for safekeeping, roughly a hundred pounds of gold and silver.

During shooting practice with my brother deep in the woods, we came across a pack of wolves, luckily with my past experiences and new superior body, i was able to defend us but not with gaining three large and long scars over my left eye, luckily my vision hasn't been impaired or hurt.

Spending weeks in bed and regularly getting scolded by mother and Gyda wasn't a fun experience but father boasted about his warrior son to his closest friends.

Bjorn continued training after apologizing to his beloved brother for just standing there and not helping.

Thrain never doubted him, he knew what kind of man Bjorn would become, After weeks of rest, his father presented him with a gift.

His gift was a fur cloak made from the wolves he killed, but he also gained something else, a name.

Just like how Ragnar Lothbrok is known to most as Ragnar Odinson, and Bjorn is known as Bjorn Ironside.

He was given the name by the people of Kattegat, Thain Fenrir, otherwise known as The God of Wolves.

-- Two Years Later --