“Man the ballista! You ten protect its front! Setup for the flank!”

Einar shouted as men and women raced into position, preparing for the giant that the scouts had reported was coming toward them.

“Two-thirds the way through the pass,” Osvif muttered. “We almost made it.”

“Now is when we see if everything works,” Einar replied. “Is that harpoon ready?”

“It is, but we’ll only get maybe four more chances to use the poison if it works. Remember, we need to wait at least a minute before we can tell if it does its job.”

“All while avoiding a charging giant.”

“Exactly,” Osvif said as he started to jog away. “But I’m sure you’ll have no problem holding its attention!”

Ignoring his friend and the taunt, Einar turned back to the warriors who were almost in position.

“You ready for this?”

Avitue was grinning, bouncing on the balls of her feet, shield, and spear in hand.

“I want to say I’ve never been more excited but then you might feel bad about how our wedding night went.”

Laughing, he gave her a gentle slap on the butt, receiving a matching gesture from her.

“Go and make sure your warriors do what they have promised. Be the leader they need.”

Rolling her eyes, she jogged off to where the shield maidens cheered, each looking as excited as Avitue was.

With one last thing to do, he turned and looked at Ragna, who was standing quietly behind him, his robe pulled down and tied around his waist, showing the runes that covered his upper body.

“You’re certain you want to take part in this?” Einar asked. “While I’m interested in seeing your power, we’re not certain yet on how strong these are going to be, and if you get the giant’s attention, keeping you safe might be hard for all of these men.”

“I didn’t come here to be safe. I came here to earn my reward,” the rune caster replied with a mischievous grin. “Besides, something tells me I won’t be the one who gains this creature’s attention if even a fraction of those songs I’ve heard are true.”

Snorting, Einar nodded and pointed at the wall of warriors behind them.

“We’ll see. For now, those are your lifeline. Stay close and behind them.”

Ragna gave a slight bow and ran off toward the Vikings tasked with protecting him as he cast spells.

Focusing on the pass, Einar shook his head, trying to prepare himself mentally for what this next fight might be like.

Odin… let’s see what all this is really about.

***

Not many things had made Einar wonder about the potential factions within the Viking culture as it did right now.

“The ballista won’t fire! The mechanism isn’t working!” Geir shouted again as Osvif raced toward the weapon.

Pushing away the dozens of questions about why it wasn’t, the leader of these four packs faced a foe that left him anxious and excited.

I can barely reach its knees… It has to be close to thirty feet tall!

Lumbering toward them was a hulking brute that stood close to three stories in height. In its left hand was a crude club, formed out of a tree that had to have been much larger at one point, worn off from repeated blows against the ground or creatures.

Bite marks and chewed sections could be seen on the outer edges near the top and Einar guessed it had to be from the creature licking and acquiring whatever organic paste had been smashed beneath it.

A dirty loin cloth-like covering that was stitched together in a haphazard collage covered its waist and privates.

Scars, cuts and bruises were easy to see on the dark-tanned skin.

Two black eyes were focused on Hogni who rode next to Drifa, the pair riding on horses, taking turns shooting arrows at the creature.

The single brow that it had was furled and misshapen teeth were displayed in a snarl as it charged headlong at the two horses, ignoring the group of Vikings that were beginning to surround it from all sides.

“Use the poisoned spears!” Thorodd shouted through the megaphone that Einar had created for moments like this.

Two drums played out the beat to match the commands of the servants and assistants who came with them.

Each group has two spears… that’s ten sets of spears not counting mine, each of them with a single charge of poison…

Osvif had given very specific instructions on how to use those spears, and now the concern was how thick the skin looked.

In the corner of his vision, Einar saw Avitue nod at him.

Letting his wyrd flow through him, he channeled fire and power through his body, igniting the spear he carried, the tip covered with poison as both horses raced toward him, splitting a dozen yards or so away and running by both sides.

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

With a shield in his left hand, knowing if it got hit, the metal defensive item the elves had made him would be worthless. Einar took a few strides, seeing a thread appear as he moved and tossed the flaming spear at the giant.

It flew like an arrow, his strength far beyond what most Vikings could hope for, covering the seventy yards as if they were nothing, streaking upward at its target.

A roar came as the spear impacted the giant in its stomach, a good four feet of it penetrating and sinking into its body.

Both eyes left the horses, now focused on him, and the giant took four steps, each one eating up almost fifteen yards, its club coming down at the spot Einar was standing.

Racing to the side, he dodged the attack, feeling the ground shudder and shake from the impact as wood and rock fragments exploded from where it had missed him.

Shouts came as others moved toward the giant, each group acting in the order Osvif had instructed.

Skardi’s group hurled their two spears first, both of them striking in the mid-thigh, barely penetrating more than a few inches, just enough for the poisoned tip to sink in before falling to the ground.

Only one of the second group struck, the other missing as the giant turned, almost stumbling as it tried to slow down and find Einar who had his outstretched hand covered in flames.

He sent a quick blast of fire, knowing it wasn’t as strong as it could be, wanting to keep the monster's attention while everyone else tried to figure out how to get close without getting hit or stepped on.

The giant almost tripped on its own feet, twisting and turning when the flames impacted its side. Still roaring, it dragged its weapon along the ground, sending up a shower of rocks.

Its attack was missed by a few good yards, but those stones impacted off Einar’s shield with enough force to convey just how much force was being put into its attacks.

Stay close… that range is too dangerous.

Einar moved quickly, using the giant's slow bodily movements and lack of quick turns to get close. His axe in hand, covered in flames, he raced toward the dirt and mud-covered foot closest to him.

Ignoring the giant's smell and stench, he ran his blade along the top layer of skin, feeling it slice through.

A good six-foot gash appeared, easily three inches deep, separating the top part of the skin on the foot and blood ran out from the wound.

Like a child or newborn animal trying to learn to walk, the giant raised its injured foot, trying to move from the pest beneath it, stomping and spinning around as best it could.

When it slammed its injured left foot down on the ground, a cloud of dust rushed out, forcing Einar to close his eyes for a moment, rolling out of the way of the attack.

Standing upward, movement caught his attention and years of training made him raise his shield as a spear fell, striking the metal barrier he held above his head and bouncing off into the dirt.

A poisoned spear! Shit… they can’t pierce the skin!

Unsure if more spears would fall, Einar dodged the club the giant thrust downward, catching its right leg as he moved behind it for protection, slicing again at the skin and once more being rewarded with a gash.

Each strike of his weapon brought damage but they didn’t cut as deep as he hoped. Part of it felt like a paper cut against such a large foe, and the knowledge that his allies were not doing any damage made this fight harder.

Dozens of yards away, the groups of Vikings stood ready, out of reach of the giant’s club, yet no more threw spears, seeing that they weren’t having any success with them.

“Give the spears to the stronger warriors! Run in and thrust them in!” Jepi yelled out.

The fight felt comical for a moment to Einar, like a cartoon he had watched as a kid. Weaving between the legs of a giant, only at its knee height, he hacked and slashed, avoiding kicks, stomps and attacks from its weapon as he waited for backup.

Vikings appeared in his vision, and one he recognized as Gylfi from Jepi’s pack came close. He thrust a spear into the giant's back calf, and the weapon finally stuck and stayed.

A smile appeared on the bald warrior’s face right before the foot of the giant flinched backward, catching the Viking and sending him flying through the air like a ball.

The sickening crunch of bones shattering was there, able to be heard over the din of the fight and Einar wondered if that had just ended the man's life.

Each second continued the dance the giant and Einar were carrying on, his fast movement and skin-carving weapon causing damage while the giant stumbled more each second.

“Incoming!”

Thorodd’s voice rang out over the noise of combat, once more the megaphone doing its designed job. Einar watched as the giant stumbled sideways a second later, this time falling to the ground, its weapon going free and crashing into a group of Vikings.

Unsure which group had just been injured our killed by the falling fifteen-foot weapon, Einar turned to see the poison harpoon they had originally intended to use had pierced the side of the giant, over half of it sunk inside the monster’s chest.

Grunts and groans came as it tried to reach and grab the metal object inside it. Not wanting to give it a chance, he ran at the creature's exposed back.

Thick skin could be seen all up and down its upper body. Course hair that was longer than his arm, slick with sweat, was matted against the tan flesh.

Calling upon more of his wyrd, Einar let the flames and the power engulf him even more, and he started to chop at the area where the spine would be, just a few feet above its hips.

A gash appeared, and blood flowed, causing the giant to howl as it attempted to roll and grab at the harpoon in its side.

Darting to the side and leaping away, Einar managed to avoid the giant’s back from flattening him, its arm missing as it caught on the harpoon.

The sound of flesh tearing as its own weight pressed against the metal sending a river of blood free from the wound.

A thud and a cry caught his attention as he stood up, seeing Batria’s hammer moving near the giant’s head.

Once more, a thud came and then a third time.

She’s hammering this things head!

Not to be outdone, he moved to the hip and began slicing at its skin, running along its thigh and leaning into the attack as his blade fileted open its quad.

Shouts and the sound of others rushing in came as the groups didn’t wait any longer, using the chance to attack the downed creature, staying right on the edges of its range as Vikings joined the battle.

Less than thirty seconds later, the giant was barely moving, its chest struggling to rise and fall.

Einar leaped upward, almost slipping on the sweat-covered skin as he got on top of the fallen giant.

“Spear!” Skardi shouted, hefting a two-handed one toward their leader.

Tossing his shield away and catching the weapon in mid air, Einar moved toward the giant’s head, hearing labored breaths and seeing blood flowing from its mouth and nose.

“For Odin!” Einar cried out as he took a few steps, seeing a thread and following it.

Jumping into the air, he turned the spear tip downward, wyrd flowing through him as flames ignited the spear and drove it through the partially open eyelid.

For a moment, the slightest amount of resistance came and then was gone as the weapon pierced the eyeball and was forced deeper into the giants skull.

It jerked once as the Viking who held it landed on its cheek, forcing it further inside. The Viking drove downward and did not let go no matter how much the giant had shaken its head.

A few shudders came and then it stopped moving completely.

[ Rune Experience Gained ]

[ Rune Leveled Increased ]

[ Rune Leveled Increased ]

[ Strength Increased ]

[ Agility Increased ]

[ Perception Increased ]

[ All of Asguard has witnessed your battle. A boon has been granted ]

The sound of silence told Einar he wasn’t the only one to receive that message.