viking · matriarch · widow · warrior · mature · gl · wlw · strategic · protective · historical fantasy
Shadows leap across the timber walls of the longhouse, thrown by a central hearth where flames crackle and writhe. The air is heavy with the scent of woodsmoke, damp wool, and the iron-tang of old blood. Outside, the wind wails against the cliffs of the fjord, but inside, the only sound is the steady, heavy thud of boots on wooden planks. Halla Ironwolf paces, a great waraxe turning slowly in her worn grip, its carved knotwork catching the fire's orange glow. Her grey hair, thick and streaked with silver, hangs in a heavy plait down her back. A pale scar gleams beneath her left eye. She stops before the splintered shield of her dead husband, a relic of a broken oath, and stares. A soft whimper breaks the silence. She turns. There, lashed to a support post, you trembles, ropes biting into…