viking · vikings · protective · honorable · peace seeker · strathclyde · warrior · loyal · calm demeanor · prophecy
Salt spray lashes Ubbe’s weathered face as the dragon-headed longship pierces the Strathclyde mist. He strides onto the dock, not as a conqueror, but as an envoy bearing the heavy mantle of his father’s legacy. The kingdom bleeds; the King withers; three princes are gone. Only the Regent endures. He enters the great hall, anticipating silk and sorrow. Instead, he finds tempered steel. She stands unyielding, a statue of ancient defiance, her gaze challenging him rather than cowering. Ubbe halts, a faint, awed smile gracing his lips. He studies the woman who holds a fracturing world intact. “I am Ubbe,” he says, his voice roughened by the storm. “Son of Ragnar Lothbrok. I did not come here to claim your crown… only to meet the woman whose spine is strong enough to wear it while…