Sailing to Borgarsandr, day 12
Skiringsalr (Larvik)
We have arrived at Skiringsalr during the night. Our last stop in 'Norway' and we will stay here for two days, because this town is big. It's a city. Largest so far, and definitely not a Nordic Viking village in the style of Birka, or even Hedby. Many complete stone buildings and a small fortress overlooking the bay. Lots of cobbled streets and several piers where many ships are located. Longships, rounder Knarr's and two large rounder ships with upper aft decks like this ship, that I think are Cogs. Banners of different colors flutter in the wind. Definitely a great trading city, just as my company told me. They're been looking forward to experiencing Skiringsalr. Well, Alith and Bodil have been here before. I take a few discreet pictures.
Urgh! I can see slaves tied with rope around the neck and hands in a line being lead along the harbor. In more than one place. I shouldn't be surprised, but I've just not seen the slave trade openly that way before during the journey. But this is the flatter southern part of Norway so surely significantly more population and farms inland. I should see if I can find an alchemist or similar.
A thought comes to me, and after checking with Danr, I hire Hagan to show both his own and my improved life preserver for a couple of hours during the morning, and tell people about hammocks. I give him a couple of coins even though he tries to refuses to accept them. Seems like he slept with the life preserver on last night in his hammock, and I think he likes the life preserver more than I understood. But, then again, it is a 'magic vest' that makes him float, given to him by a powerful magician. That he knows how it is made doesn't seem to have affected that. When we eat breakfast, there are already some who are waiting their turn to try the vest where Hagan stands on the beach and demonstrate.
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We walk around and along the streets and shops, looking at goods being offered and deals being decided. There is a large market on the outskirts where animals are traded. I need to learn to ride properly. I've ridden horses before but a long time ago, and it wasn't far or very long. More like sitting than riding. I've sat on a camel in Morocco, but hardly what even I would call riding.
It definitely makes a difference to have a couple of guards, a gorgeous free woman as a maid and another beautiful slave. I'm treated completely different. Iselin acts as an intermediary and talks to people, asks for saltpeter or someone who knows what it is. We succeed in finding someone who sells what must be basically pure sulfur. Really yellow crystals, and the scent is 'right'. A bit expensive but I buy all he has, it's just a bit more than a kilogram, and who knows when I will find sulfur again or have such luck?
I wonder how much of his advice is true, because I don't know much about dyeing and other things, and the sulfur is probably from Iceland. I can scrap all my plans for extracting sulfur from sulfur ore etc, at least for now. Not that I'm complaining. Now I just need some charcoal from willow or birch. Willow is slightly better if I remember correctly, but any wood works if it's done right, and I'm not sure what willow actually looks like, and the Elves have different names for many trees than those I know. On the other hand I know birch well. But to quote Clarkson: 'POWER!'. It's nice, and if you going to do something, you might as well do it properly. Especially with limited resources.
After a bit of asking around, we can easily get hold of lead, so I buy two kilograms. It's nice to have so much money that I don't have to worry, and I need to use the fact that I'm in a trading city. I just can't start neglecting my economy in the long run. There isn't any social safety net here, so economy is a matter of life or death, and I have four people to think about.
We pass a blacksmith who sells weapons and armour. Alith seems really interested and I let her look around because it is instructive and fun for me too. Bodil seems to be used to it. They both lack chainmail and have simpler leather protection on the upper body and thighs, but chainmail is the equivalent of 2 annual salaries for them. I should probably get me some armour. I won't buy it now, but maybe in the future. I might actually have a need for it. Shit. Don't they have hardened leather here? I've seen leather protection in different types but it doesn't look like it has been treated with anything except colored. Beside different thicknesses, some have rings or plates sewn on the leather. There are different ways to harden leather, everything from impregnations to heat treatments. I have an acquaintance who works as a blacksmith and makes historical swords, shields, crossbows etc. Unfortunately, we have not talked so much about that as we only meet at events and parties, not privately. It got me to read a bit about it and see a few youtube videos and documentaries. I have made my own knife in carbon steel, with dark wood and brass for the grip, and with a leather sheath covering wooden plates. It was a high school workshop's project, but I havn't looked at it for years. I can buy a knife that's better for 6 Euro's.
After a while and an 'Alith' and Look from Bodil, Alith remembers that she is supposed to be my guard, and we can all see the 'Oops' when she returns to guard duty, and Bodil disapproving face. I don't care, because I also got to watch and learn. I ask about leather and there are a few different ways to impregnate leather, make them more flexible or rigid, protect against the weather and so on. Every technique has pros and cons. But leather hardening, it might be something to do, I just need to test it before telling people. Better to come up with a surprise than a hype that fails. I wish a lot of modern companies thought that. I can't afford to fail at things now in the beginning and get a negative reputation.
As we walk around, I see someone selling stone things and carved stone. What I react to are the dark blue grey stone tiles that he has lying around as a type of tile or sanded out a pattern on, compared to the piles that seems destined to be for floors. Clearly slate tiles. I buy a pair that has at least one really flat side, the flattest he has, a larger one in maybe 40x35cm and a smaller one of about 30x20cm. They are both quite thin, the small tile is only about 1cm thick. The same seller also has carved white limestone chalk that has been shaped into larger figures and statues. I buy a couple of them too. It will feel bad to ruin someone else's craft, but I need to be able to make sketches etc. I can't fill my one and only small block of paper with doodles.
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We return to the ship after a couple of hours. I ask Iselin to take Bodil with her and try to get hold of a Fjölkunnig woman who is a midwife or similar and ask if she is willing to share some information in exchange for another. I trust that Iselin completes the task in a good way. So I sit on the bench outside the cabins and take apart the figures to make long narrow crayons, while Ciara sits next to me and embroiders Iselin's bag. The figures legs and arms became almost perfect to use directly as writing crayons. Alith, who is leaning against the wall, looks on in slight shock when I start carving on the figures and divide them into parts. But I'm very happy when I can use it as chalk and write on the board. It's hardly perfect but useful enough. Both Ciara and Alith look questioningly but understand the purpose, when I wipe away and sketch a T-like thing and another with bows instead of arms sticking out.
This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
A roar attracts our attention. Apparently Hagan's demonstrations arn't over and we see him run from a pier and jump out into the water. He pop back up and with legs and arms paddle back to the beach. There's a lot of shouts and cheering. Looks like he's done that before. It's entertaining to see a beefy elf with a small thin moustache and long braids having fun that way, but he really shouldn't do that unless he learns how to swim. The vest or straps might break from the impact.
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Shortly after dinner, Iselin returns with an 'older' woman in perhaps 35-40 years of age, approximately the same age as me, with bone jewellery pieces and precious stones beautifully woven into her blonde hair, and jewellery and fur around her neck and shoulders. A lot of 'bling' but she is beautiful enough without, and she has evidently washed and made herself pretty.
The woman presents herself as Fjölkunniga Liv, which is someone with a lot of knowledge, including medicine and sejd. Liv, which means life, is a fitting name if she helps women in childbirth, or just general medicine. Iselin introduced herself as a maid who works for Sejdmann Robert Arnesson, and her master has a small sejd creation that can stop children from being created, even a few days after sex, and it lasts for many years, and wants to talk to her about it. Liv has never heard of such a sejd and of course she is tempted to talk to that person, but a respected man who is openly a Sejdmann? It immediately made her want to talk to me, and she dressed for the occasion.
That I have pants and not a dress like a Seerman surprises her, and she casts long glances at my beard, and I almost want to say 'my eyes are up here' - just because I can. I'm obviously not what she expected. Iselin joins us when Liv and I go in the cabin to have a talk. At first Liv is a little unsure, but I explain that Iselin may be needed to interpret, which my bad Norse makes obvious.
We talk and I confirm that I have a thing that should work. It's a kind of sejd but I can explain it, and my hope is that women who need or want it will be able to get it, but that I as a man shouldn't help them with it. It should be women. But it is important that this sejd thing is created correctly so it doesn't hurt the woman or make her sick. It can be unpleasant and deadly. Both listen attentively and seriously. Liv tells me that I shouldn't worry about what will happen, and yes, there will certainly be women who get into trouble or may even die from it. Most sejd is hard to get right and some people just doesn't have the Gods favour. But women suffer and die every day because they don't have this. If this works as I say, it will change so much. Women will be able to choose to not have children and continue to have sex, and if they are raped or just careless, they won't have to undergo treatment or risk giving birth to an unwanted child that they have to take care of. Many women die or suffer because they have children, where the father doesn't want it, or where the father is the wrong man and they are forced to marry, and so on. So I shouldn't worry about what might happen and that a few will suffer. Think instead of all those who won't suffer and have a better life. It's all logical and they're used to people dying, but I will feel terrible. But that is a small price to pay.
I use the slate board's sketch to show what it looks like and size and make a simple description of where it must be placed, how it is made and taken out etc. That it can twist, rotate or the threads find their way up. But as Liv start to understand it, she looks sceptically at the sketch, and it's easy to understand her thoughts on whether it can really work. A little copper wire on something. Liv ask:
"How can Sir know this works if Sir hasn't done it before?"
I'm pondering my answer when Iselin helps me by telling what I've already done in front of witnesses. She wasn't present when I called down the lightning, but she has seen my sejd that made a stone light up a great hall, and the sailors on the ship are witnesses. She can promise I'm not lying about this, and that I want to give it as a gift to all women.
Liv stands her ground and wisely enough she carefully questions what evidence I have. This is powerful sejd, but she have also never heard of Sejdmann Robert Arnesson. Never heard of a Sejdmann except in Sagas and fairy tales. I can't show her the documentary on the tablet, she's not going to understand it anyway, and it's far too advanced technology to just throw at someone like that. Again, Iselin comes to my rescue and whispers that I should take off my shirt, show my ears, chest and arms. I look questioningly at her, but Iselin turns to Liv and quite seriously says;
"I know why it works, but I have sworn an oath to keep Sejdmann's secrets."
I trust Iselin, and it is a smart move, so I straighten the hair over my ears. I'm still surprised that so few Elves notice my ears, because so far my hair isn't that long, just a little overgrown on the ears, but who expects some ones ears to be different from what everyone has? Then I stand up, take off my shirt and Liv stop staring at my ears and gasp. This is getting old.
"I know, but I have no evidence that I can show you here. There is a good reason you havn't heard about me, because I came here two weeks ago. I think you know when."
Liv understands my emphasis and starts nodding but her wide open eyes flutter between my ears, chin, arms, chest and eyes. A hand moves slowly forward before it's pulled back and Liv looks me in the eyes.
"Yes, you can touch the hair if you want."
I stand in the middle of the cabin and it's with almost reverence that Liv slowly moves her hand back and forth, along my arms and looks at my back, which is also a bit hairy where it's not worn away. It tickles a little because her touch is so light and I get shivers on my body, and it's cute how she bites her lower lip with lust in her eyes, and it's with a rather monotonously dreamy voice says:
"I have solutions to Sejdmann Arnesson's problems, and I want to negotiate what my knowledge is worth. I would usually have sold this knowledge expensively, but the purpose is more than noble, and Sejdmann have already freely shared his knowledge and I agree: If it works, the knowledge should be spread." There is a pause, and Liv stops in front of me with a small devilish smile while she feels my beard. Ah, I have an idea of what might come next. "... but as Sejdmann Arnesson knows, a price must be paid for everything, and rewards must also be given for deep wisdom that is freely shared between sejd users. I hope we can agree on an arrangement that works for the both of us."
She gives of a business like attitude and face, but it can't hide her intentions.
"As Sir probably knows, there are very few men who dare to take a sejd woman to bed, and it's difficult to find a man who is worthy to share my bed. I want Sir to come with me to my home and make me enjoy tonight, because I promise to make Sir enjoy it too. If Sir wants, his whole company can come along, but I'm Sir's center and focus. I promise on my honor - from one sejd user to another - that there won't be a child; it would be stealing from Sejdmann Arnesson and isn't something I would do. May Freya punish me if I break my word."
Iselin directly stands and says that she should come along and we should bring Alith as a guard, while Bodil can stay here with Ciara. I'm surprised and I don't want Iselin to come along, so I stop her wish, but the rest is a good idea, and I don't have much choice really. It's 'so tragic' when a real Elvish MILF wants to have sex with me, and she's not my employee or a slave, and the last few days near Iselin have been hard enough. Literally. Poor me.
Woho!
I put on my shirt, and go out on deck with Iselin and Liv and announce the plan for tonight, and that I might sleep elsewhere, and considering how Liv reacts to it, it's likely to be. Bodil, Iselin and Ciara stay here while Alith accompanies as a guard. Iselin looks a little disappointed and it feels so wrong to leave her here, but it would be worse to take her with me, because it would have been difficult to focus on Liv with Iselin near by. Still feels like I betrayal her. I definitely got feelings for Iselin.