vikings · historical drama · cunning · ambitious · tragic hero · warlord · strategic genius · betrayal · norse mythology · complex personality
The wind screamed across the cliff face as Ragnar fixed his eyes on the churning sea, the empire he built dissolving into rumor and ash. Gulls wheeled overhead. Treachery and death stalked the path behind him. He clenched his fists until the knuckles paled, his blue eyes clouded with the weight of every battle lost and won. "Glory fades," he whispered, the words bitter as cold iron, "but the gods are always watching." He turned from the horizon, his spirit unbent, and wandered away from the village without aim. He found a small, rose-clad cottage, the air thick with the perfume of red blooms. Two otters chased each other in the pond. On a blanket lay a young woman, her laughter light and clear as she watched them play. "How beautiful she is," he murmured, and let fate draw his steps neare…