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As Asbjörn and I is having a fairly private talk, I ask him if he is willing to sell me the slaves who have stayed on the island and work here during the winter. I want to buy and free them, and might do the same with the other slaves who worked here. Of course it's a matter of economy, but it feels right to do. Asbjörn is not surprised since he know I don't like slavery, and he know that both Iselin and Ciara were slaves. Some of the slaves who have worked here are condemned to slavery and cannot be sold or freed, but Asbjörn smiles as he says he will check with Pedr, and agrees to sell me the slaves who have deserved it later this spring. Fair enough. I'll just have to put silver aside, since that might be something like 300 ounce or more. Still feels right to do. Asbjörn is slightly amused of how well the slaves that have stayed live, which is far better than a lot born free.
We continue to talk about different subjects, and our talk becomes an interesting conversation about nation-building and identity. I am not a history or society expert who's good at stuff like that, but I know there are basically no real nations here. There are more areas ruled by a king, larger or smaller kingdoms and regions bound under the same leader or family, but the kingdoms and regions retain their own identities. There are no national flags, so when the king is changed, the flag is changed, and princes can split the kingdoms between themselves, or a region change ruler as the princess marry her husband and so on. Frankly, the most 'nation' like state seems to be that Queendom Damman in the south, since 'special rules' apply there. There is a certain flag representing the Queen, no matter who is the queen, and that flag is inherited with the position, but that is not a nation flag. The borders of the queendom never change according to law and tradition, and the occasional land ruled by the queen outside the border, is still treated as it's own region. That might happen if the Queen marry some other ruler, who dies and before they have children old enough to rule. Generally a son or secondary child will rule that while the crown princess becomes the queendom's new Queen. But it's still not a nation, as the two large cities Reiekrône and Dammâu, have their own councils and laws and flags, and the rest of the land in the queendom is smaller half fiefdom's, usually ruled by a relative to the queen, and those positions are often not inherited. It seems like a complicated feudal mess, and I actually prefer how it is here in the north.
Here in the north it is different. Almost all land is owned by people and the only land owned by the 'state' is Northmen Ting's land with its Tingshamn, and that is so the Northmen Ting is held on neutral ground where everyone is equal and the Northmen Ting's power is total. The chosen King rule, and is the one to decide about War and Viking Raids, but he have to follow the Northmen Law decided by the Ting. There is a Tingsman or Tingswoman with the King as witness that the Northmen Law is followed, and he or she, have to report to the Northman Ting what the King have done and how he have ruled during the past year. The Tingsman can't overrule the King, but it's his duty to inform others and the Jarls if the King is breaking the Law, and a new Tingsman is randomly selected each Northman Ting, so the King can't collude with the same Tingsman or Tingswoman. The chosen 'King' does not have any extra land at his disposal when he becomes King, as he only have his personal property. The royal castle in Borgarsandr is Asbjörn's private property, so if he loses the royal title, the castle is still his, and the capital will change to where the new King resides. Generally the King with his entourage travels around and makes two or three journeys per year, and it's just the last two generations that Borgarsandr have become the capital, since that is where the King have lived.
In the inland there are huge tracts of wilderness that no one owns and where no one lives, especially to the north. There isn't really a clear boundary to where the Kingdom ends. It's more if the settlers there consider themselves to belong to a Jarl's district, or a Jarl forces them to belong to his or her district, and thus they are now a part of the realm. If someone builds a farm in the middle of nowhere and moves there, it will generally fall under some Jarl's district sooner or later as more people move nearby, and they either independently chose to join a district or are forced to submit. But it may take decades or centuries. Those who live outside a Jarl's territory have of course no voting rights in the Ting, and technically the Northmen Law does not apply to them, but generally they are not completely lawless since that is dangerous. It is a good reason to place themselves under the rule of a nearby Jarl in order to gain more rights and safety. But people's identity is where they live and who they are related to, and it can be quite a small region. They are rule by local Ting's, that are ruled by a Jarl, that is ruled by the King and the Northmen Ting. But there isn't a common flag. And it is a us vs them between regions or family linages. Who you are related to is important, and marriages are alliances and for power more then for love.
What started the discussion was when Asbjörn wondered what Midgård is like, and how elections happen, and the ruling structure. How long kings rule there and how it can be done more effectively, etc. I diverted the focus a bit from that to the thinking of a nation instead. Asbjörn like that he might help be the founder of a nation; something bigger than just leading the royal family; something that can survive another family taking over, and far into the future; that he has founded something greater, and continued in the footsteps of his ancestors. I'm not sure exactly how to do all that, especially here without communications, media and rapid transportation for the general public.
But we are talking about giving the people a self-image, because a nation is really an image of something bigger that many share. Not something you hold in your hand, and intangible. To do this and unite the people as one, symbols are really used to gather under, because many want to belong to something bigger and be part of a group, especially if it is desirable or considered exclusive. A proud self-image to live up to and a desire to be part of, which can be based on history - true or invented - to provide legitimacy. A name is needed for the nation and this self-image, but it is important that it is not based on a people group or family. It needs to be something everyone can feel they want to belong to and respect. Something that distinguishes the people in the nation from the rest of the people in the world. Something that gives nationalism. The Elves world view is different because no-one sees maps or just something like a weather report overview as part of everyday life. You know land because you have been there, and the same with borders. A common person are at most a few tens of kilometers from the place they were born during their entire lives. That is a bit different here in the north, simply because they travel to Tings and to the Northmen Ting. But many doesn't travel far. I give some examples of names from Midgård, such as the Nordic countries and Scandinavia.
We discuss how religion, and strongly common religion, and priests who preach it can help gather people, especially if they preach it in a language people can understand. And how to methodically indoctrinate people into a certain view and reinforce a self-image, but I tell him in a way that I hope will give a more tolerant view towards other religions, so it doesn't lead to crusades, although a strong religion protects the nation from being taken over by other religions and rulers. It would be a good idea to actually write down the equivalent of a bible for the Aesir belief and spread it, because now it is very open, with many contradictory stories and actions. If I choose the right angle, and which tales and legends the 'bible' tells, the first Aesir bible can give a stronger unified religion that is at the same time more tolerant, but it must be done damn carefully so as not to divide the believers by forcing something on them. Which means stuff like rituals, sacrifices and prayer have to be free. The bible might have to evolve over the centuries. Basically, create a foundation that future generations can use, because the stories that are written down will be retold more, and feel more authentic. Sure, other stories should be written down and saved, but in a separate book. If they are a bit of a mess and contradict each other, they will be less valuable over time. Hopefully. A nation that grows slowly becomes stronger with less problems for internal strife, especially if it is done over a long period of time. Invading a people and saying they now belong to the kingdom is bad, and especially if they are treated badly or as lower class people; there will be friction, and probably fighting and resistance. Integration and making life better for them, or coming to their aid, is more effective. Save the people from a brutal leader, or improve their lives with more freedom, prosperity and a better future, especially for their children, and they are more likely to be on your side. Asbjörn of course understands this, and the Count's in the south is an example. Instead of forcing Jarl's on them, they are helped to maintain their power, prosperity and fiefdoms, and are helped to resist Daes raiders or conquest. Over a longer time, the Count's power can be weakened while the power of the Northmen Ting and local Ting's are increased. If it is done too quickly, at least some Count's will start to oppose it, and think that maybe it is better to belong to the Daes kingdom and swear loyalty to Daes King Magnbjorn?
The most important thing for a nation, that helps people and nationalism, is a flag that everyone can have and gather under. But the flag should again be more neutral, avoiding colours strongly associated with any specific family or region. A symbol on that flag enhances the impression but there are both pros and cons if that symbol is too strongly associated with, for example, the Aesir belief. The symbol should also be simple so it is clear from a distance and fairly easy to reproduce, because people need to be able to make their own flags. Be able to carve it into wood and art and paint it to make the symbol their own. The symbol is like the house mark on and for the nation.
I also describe how the misdeeds of a group can completely blacken and warp a symbol, and as an example I take the sun cross and the swastika; truly ancient symbols, and found on some things here, but the swastika was used on a flag by a group of bad people and thus the associations it now has in Midgård because of what those people using it did. Colour or used as a flag doesn't matter. Just the symbol now has a certain meaning, no matter what size or even the correct orientation. So it is important that the symbol of the kingdom is a good one, without bad associations.
Since we're discussing symbols, I fetch paper and a couple of chalk and slate boards. When I return, Myrun, Liv, Haera and Unn have joined Asbjörn, and Iselin, Kari and Caecilia comes along with me. Gradually, as we discuss and draw, we draw more people. There is a lot of symbolism and sketches on slate, and drawings on paper. They have so many symbols. Some simple, some anything but simple. I should have expected that something like the 'road sign' symbol for ancient monument to be amongst them, i.e. a square with looped corners. The symbols that appeals to a lot are Yggdrasil, the World Tree with a circle of roots and branches. Then there is a grid they call Skulds or the Web of Wyrd which has to do with destiny since it consists of all the lines that make runes, so it covers all the future text that can be created and all the historical text. The valknut, which is three triangles either nested together or as a single line, symbolises the life-death-life cycle, the death of a warrior, the nine worlds, Odin's power, protection against spirits, etc.
I think Yggdrasil is more appropriate as the symbol for the religion, Aesir belief, which many agree with. The valknut seems to fit well after we talked about colours or ways to make it special. Many like my quick example of the symbolism in the blue flag which symbolises the sky, water and seas which is important in the culture, and is surrounding their country, with the valknut in the middle. The lower triangle is green to represent spruce, forest and land, and the thick line of the triangle can have inverted V arrows around to resemble a spruce or what a spruce cone looks like and thus the triangle is special even without colour. The left triangle in the middle is gray to represent rock, stone and mountains that is everywhere, especially in the northwest end of the nation which is Norway, and its broad line is unmarked. Solid like stone. The last upper triangle is yellow to represent the sun that shines above all, and the broad lines of the triangle are given fine lines that seem to radiate from the center. In combination with colours, there is a lot of symbolism at once, including that the nested triangles cannot be separated from each other if they are made as a chain or nested.
The discussions are lively. Asbjörn nudge me and whispers that he understands what I meant by symbols people want to gather under and be part of. More have joined the discussions, including some of the staff, which is damn good as it need to be something that everyone gathers under. Frankly, it will be interesting if this leads to anything. To switch topic a bit from symbols, we continue to discuss how a common faith can strengthen the nation, especially if it is spread more effectively such as with books and more organised and planned, especially if 'the enemy' has a different faith, and we also touch on making Borgarsandr become a better capital, and a true capital. Frankly, the capital and the seat of power should be 'state' owned, and having a ruling hall or castle built in Tingshamn would be better, since no matter who is the king, that will be the capital and castle.
Asbjörn and the others are not stupid and quite quickly they understand why I consider the most important thing for a big city and its future, is to have enough clean drinking water, sanitation with sewage and waste management, followed by infrastructure in the form of roads and harbour, and with proper urban planning so the city can grow, and still function and be healthy to live in. After all, infrastructure like roads also binds a nation together and strengthens trade and communication. Asbjörn, Haera and Myrun are very attentive and involved, and I have to be careful what I say, but both seem interested in simple lessons in why big cities exists, what they require, how they grow, and so on, and solutions to problems. They have obviously heard of really huge cities down south, and they understand enough why a smart leader invests in sanitation, infrastructure and reduced fire risk, especially if the cities get really big. They have not missed that I from the very beginning invested in sanitation, water and infrastructure here on the islands, and I confirm that it will become even more important in the future, and water quality is important to protect. That include from waste, garbage and industrial use. Just because it's gone under the surface and can't be seen, doesn't mean it's gone. The lake in the village is its primary source of fresh water, so a large water tower with filtration is being built precisely to make drinking water cleaner, and that cleaned water will be piped into most buildings, while the residential sewage is led to a treatment plant in the form of a multi-stage ponds, before it is discharged into the sea.
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I don't know enough details about water purification via ponds and fish farming, but I know it was used for real big cities around the world, especially Kolkata and some parts of Southeast Asia, but it has also included Münich and other places in Europe. If it worked for a huge city like Münich in that climate, it will work here. The primary reason it stopped being used is not that it is bad or doesn't work, but that the wetland became too valuable for housing, the industrial waste became too toxic, and ponds with fish farming is simply less economical than other methods. Those replacements often involving petroleum based fertilisers and industrial purification. But it does work, and Alfheimr should implement proper water purification as soon as possible, and hopefully avoid the mistakes Midgård made. Beside being good for nature, it will save insanely many lives, livelihoods and make people healthier. The elves have learned that humans drink far more water than mead and beer, and know how important good drinking water and access to it is for me and Jane.
One problem with the implementation, is that I know it works, and of course the system requires time, space and manpower, but I don't know important data. What amount of fresh water in relation to waste water? What type of wastewater? What pond volume is needed? What depth is appropriate? What kind of fish? What kind of plants on the pond banks? Time for the water in each step? We will have to experiment that, and frankly I plan to design it for experimentation and hopefully oversize it to handle future growth. Certain types of really dangerous sewage, where I think fabric dyeing and leather treatment are counted, must not go into the sewage ponds and need to be dealt with separately. How? It might have to be evaporated, compressed and dumped into some type of waste pit, where lime and such deal with it, or in the future burned at high temperature, but gas and smoke might be a problem. Those wastes are less of an issue than starting with just general water treatment from common household drains and human-animal faeces.
The first step is a sedimentation pond where the effluent should be left for at least a couple of weeks, so solid matter can settle out and it will hopefully kill parasites and the like by interrupting their life cycle. My plan is two sedimentation ponds that are used alternately, where one is filled while the other rests, and I have to calculate the future need of something like 300 people, but that is fairly easy maths. Volume per person per day, multiplied with total duration, multiplied with fresh water ratio. Then the water is slowly flowed down to different fish ponds so I can test different fish and the stuff like that. It needs to happen slowly because high concentration quickly is of course far worse than a slow introduction. Two parallel systems are better than one, especially for experimentation and seeing differences, and every few years a pond will need to be emptied so that the bottom sediment can be dug up and tried to be used as fertiliser for fields. The ponds will probably be more rectangular than desired because it is a practical shape, but I prefer a more organic shape to look nicer. There will be 'walkways' on the banks between the ponds to facilitate work and maintenance, and there will also be small trees and other things to give the ponds a greener and more attractive appearance. It will be very visible from the Academy, since I simply have no choice due to nature and natural flow. Using pumps where it's not needed is just dumb. But it's not all bad as development and experimentation with sewage ponds and water treatment is something that will be taught at the Academy. After all, I want to spread such knowledge and make cities realise the advantage of good water purification, which is; cleaner water is good for nature and health; fish farming in the ponds can produce a lot of fish; the ponds and their management provide many jobs; and the sediment is hopefully free fertiliser for the crop fields. Our talk move over to sterilization and such. I should have assumed, that the people on the small coastal farm outside Borgarsandr where we lived last summer, have talked, so I share more information about microorganisms, sterilization, disinfection and other things.
Our talk moves on to Rome, its size, problems and how Rome worked. It feels like stuff like this should be old knowledge for them too, but after a while I realise that they don't really study old writings, have no documentaries and archaeologists who try to piece together and discover knowledge that has been lost. They simply haven't had anyone teach them that before, and haven't really had the chance to learn. I expect it might be different in other places in Alfheimr, but not here. So history will be important to teach at the Academy, but it may be difficult to give examples, since I should find and use them from Alfheimr. I'll include stuff from Midgård, since it's good lessons. After all, Rome hardly did everything right, especially not when it came to hygiene, but the Romans didn't know any better.
It really feels like I'm giving a lecture as I continue to talk the classic version about how cities grow, and why local transportation that is cheap or free will be needed in the future, to prevent several poorer families moving together in a small house to share the cost, and slums are formed when the richer moving from those areas. My carriages and wagons is another topic of conversation, and we will make a carriage available so that it can be tried by those who have not already done so. It's cold, and road is slippery, so hardly optimal, but at the same time it shows how nice and comfortable it can be inside a carriage compared to on a horse.
After that diversion, the subject continues into population and children, for a nation that has more people and a healthier population with sufficient food production, will of course be an economic power as well as a military power. A small nation cannot have a large Army, and although the small Army can be more effective and dangerous, a several times larger Army will have a great advantage, and can handle loss better. Then there is the fact that a nation with a larger population can more easily field a large Army, and can more easily recover from huge losses. A larger Army can more easily protect more fortifications and castles, and be in several places at the same time. Communications and transportation take time, and improvements in those areas also help in warfare and defence, but only to a certain extent. Of course they also understand this. In the end, more children must be born and survive to adulthood, which places demands on safer food production and overproduction of food and good storage. More efficient farming, fishing and other production, means that there is more time for other things. Improved food, health and medical care help keep children and the population alive, and also make the population healthier, happier and more productive.
However, it becomes a bit difficult for them to grasp when I start talking about that, in the future, I will give grants and bonuses on my properties to women who give birth, and that the women will get paid maternity leave. I will also build orphanages, more primary schools and so on. They don't get it because it is an expense for me that I won't profit from, and a woman will be able to have child after child. And get paid for it. Which reduces the workforce until the children are old enough. It's really long-term thinking, from which neither I nor the next generation will get a big benefit. But if the next generation is increased by just 25%, then the generation after that increases by 31.25%, and the generation after that by 39%, and so on to 49%, 61%, 76%, 95%, etc. In seven generations, the population has doubled compared to normal growth. What I'm not saying is that I hope population growth will go faster than that, partially due to fewer deaths, but food and water need to be solved. And my economy. However, a generation is 15-20 years, so I have some time to introduce and spread information and technology. Myrun, who knows how big the world is, and suspects that I will try to colonize it, is clearly contemplating and thinking.
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The day's festivities come to an unexpected end, because the guards discover there is faint northern lights - aurora borealis - and soon we are all standing looking at the sky. The mountain to the north with its forest obscures much of the view from the pavilion or courtyard, and it is a kilometer to walk to the mountain to the south where we got married, so we walk along the road to the village and up the western mountain where we get a good enough view of the horizon in north. Elvira and others help Iselin carry her beloved star telescope and accessories such as the red-glazed lantern and a small folding table.
Northern lights in southern Sweden isn't unusual, but it needs to be strong to not be pathetic and it depends on the sun spot cycle, and then cloudless skies are added, which is a bigger problem. In southern Sweden's interior, clouds are very common during the winter months, and often thick clouds day and night. There can be several weeks in a row when it is not even possible during the day to determine where the sun is in the sky, and the street lights can be switched on even in the middle of the day. I sometimes keep track of what the aurora forecasts say, but it doesn't matter if there is a great chance for strong aurora if the whole southern Sweden has thick dark clouds. Which can be frustrating. The next problem is that this far south the northern lights are generally weak, and finding a dark place without either the street lights or farms with strong lights the nearest 10km to the north is difficult. You need to look low to the horizon because the northern lights are often much further north, but the phenomenon's incredibly high altitude in the atmosphere makes it visible from afar. My usual spots are all on the south side of suitable lakes, where there is a suitable beach with parking. Right to roam the land is nice. With weak aurora borealis, even incredibly weak reflection from ice crystals or almost invisible clouds is enough to make the weak auroras difficult to see. Sometimes very weak auroras only appear as a lighter band in the sky to the north, too weak for the eye to see the colour which is usually green. Easy to overlook or mistake for reflections from distant farm or community. But the afterglow does not make a band in the sky or have gaps in its pattern, or that faint 'striping' that the northern lights have. A camera with a slow shutter speed usually makes it clear, but that feels like cheating. I've seen enough to recognise what is aurora and what is not, even when very faint.
Trying to see good northern lights is often a time-wasting just wait, and that is why I prefer sitting in a car which is somewhat more pleasant than standing outside in freezing temperatures and wind. Since it's usually been work nights in the middle of the week, I can stay out too long, so often it's an hour or two just waiting, keeping track of the prognosis, and often it never becomes much more than pathetic and a waste of time. But sometimes it happens, the aurora gets stronger and it undoubtedly is an aurora. The tall standing striped parts and spots or ribbons that get strong. The light begins to slowly fade and move in the sky. Sometimes it lasts minutes, sometimes whole nights. Sometimes the light show just becomes stronger and for five to thirty minutes it can be really sharp, with red bands and areas when the oxygen in the atmosphere starts to glow. Often green below and red above. Sometimes even purple-white tones. If the northern lights are strong enough, you can't avoid seeing them even in an illuminated city, but you have to be outside or look at the sky, and not the TV. Further north in Scandinavia, if there is snow on the ground and the light is strong, you can easily drive a car without headlights, kind of like a full moon.
Tonight the Northern Lights are fairly strong, and in a world like this without electric light or pollution, the night sky is so much easier to see as long as it's a cloudless sky and clear. The staff have brought folding chairs and a table, and hot drinks are being served along with bread and cookies. We stand or sit and just watch the silent lights show. As expected, Iselin's telescope isn't good for getting a better view, but instead she points it at the crescent moon and lets those who want to take a look. Almost all of the elves have seen the northern lights before in their lives, but mine and Jane's presence makes this a slightly different experience. Bifrost is not just a myth. For better or worse.
Do I wish I never came here to Alfheimr? Both yes and no.
When I stand like this in the cold winter darkness and watch the northern lights silent show, accompanied by some atmospheric music from the musicians, surrounded by Viking Elves in a medieval world, I can't help to think and contemplate. Without being too smug, I'd say that for Alfheimr's future it's good that Jane and I are here, and we just have to accept that we are here. As the absolute ruler of the islands I stand on, with an arm each around Ciara and Iselin, and with Kari holding me and leaning against one of my shoulders, I've been lucky, and my life could have been a lot worse. For better or for worse, I no longer live alone. It's still hard to see myself as a married man, and in a few months I'll probably also be married to the amazing woman leaning against my shoulder. Children are a future question, but I honestly don't know if I'm ready to be a father, or the potential immense pain of losing a child to illness, or even one of my partners during birth, so I'm both relieved and worried that Liv haven't become pregnant. But many couples tries for years, and we are not the same species.
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I'm surprised when Iselin brings Caecilia along when she comes to join me sleeping, but Iselin just says even the marriage bed needs variety, and her smile is so sinful I can almost see horns on her forehead. Caecilia is so happy to be included. When they seductively show me their fashion teddy's they've worn under their dresses, and that Iselin is wearing a new one, it's not just my smile that grows.