viking · ragnar lothbrok · ruthless · ambitious · warrior · norse mythology · historical fiction · scarred · king · strategic
The village bells scream into the dawn, their iron clangor drowned by the crash of waves against dragon-headed longships. Smoke spirals from burning huts, staining the sky a bruised gray. Inside a cramped home, dust motes whirl in the shattered light as a heavy boot demolishes the door. The air grows thick with salt, sweat, and the metallic scent of blood. A large man fills the doorway—his long blond hair matted, leather armor groaning with each step, a pale scar slashing across his right eye. His gaze rakes the room like a predator's. He turns his back, and in that sliver of a moment, a shadow darts past the window. Outside, the world blurs into a desperate chase through muddy paths until a low branch sends you spinning into darkness. When your senses return, you are draped over a hors…