Islands in the Fog

by Jerry Autieri

  The men were already breaking up under Snorri's direction. Toki had disappeared and Gunnar begged to be picked up again. Ulfrik smiled at Runa, who tried to smile back.

  "That is just what I'm afraid of, Ulfrik. Men covet power."

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Toki stood upon the black rocks, careful not to slip into the sea. He wore his sword, and carried an unstrung bow and leather quiver of arrows. Otherwise, he dressed in simple clothing and wrapped himself in a gray wool cloak. He leaned forward into the small boat to get his pack of supplies from Bork. The waters of the cove were as calm as Halla's slave had promised. But Bork jostled the boat as he handed over the pack.

  "Careful now," Bork said. "Don't want to be wet all day. Nothing dries in this weather."

  Toki nodded, snatching his pack. "I'm fine. Count your time carefully, and return here tomorrow."

  "I've got five fingers on this hand," Bork said as he held up his left hand. "And four more on this one. Fucking Irish got the fifth one." He wiggled the stump of his index finger and laughed. "So don't ever stay gone more than nine days and I'll always know when to find you."

  "Gods strike me dead if you can count that high. Just remember what we planned."

  "No one saw us leave, and no one's looking for poor old Bork. You're fine here, and you paid me enough to not know where you went."

  "Good. The silver was for using your boat. And you still owe me, Bork."

  Bork cackled, his scraggly beard wagging. Then he used an oar to shove back from the rocks. "Isn't my business where you go. I'm your man, and you know it. Have fun with that lass, but be smart."

  Toki smiled and waved to his friend, who sat at his oars and rowed out of the cove. Fog roiled as Bork faded to a dark stain, soon vanishing. Toki turned to the black rock face behind him, searching for a way up. He took several frustrating missteps before finding purchase up to the grass. He sat a moment to rest. His body still ached from six hours of rowing.

  Like the south, Hardar's lands were rolling plains of grass that tumbled from blunt mountains and ran down to cliffs. Settlements formed in the flats of the coasts. The plains spread out into the fog, making the perfect cover for Toki. The fog would resist the sun for hours. Though he couldn't see far enough to note the landmarks described to him, he knew to travel east and down slope. He stood again and started out. The grass swished at his feet as he walked. The fog made him feel as though he moved on a disk of green hanging in a cloud.

  Toki's excitement heightened now that he had come so far. The week had dragged since Halla had left. Every moment he anticipated this meeting, and fretted over keeping it secret. Fortunately, after the festival everyone was wrapped up in their own concerns. He only worried that Halla had changed her mind. Otherwise it'll be a long day hiding in a hole, he mused.

  A sheep bleated at him, and Toki leapt back in surprise. Three more resolved out of the dense white. All four looked at him with the dumb expression of all herd animals. Toki had no rapport with animals, not even dogs. These four bleated again and began to run.

  Tossing about for a place to hide, he heard more sheep skittering away through the grass. "Odin's balls!" he cursed under his breath. If a shepherd was near he would be discovered in moments. The safest retreat was the way he had come. He jogged along the trampled grass until he judged he had a safe distance. Only birds screeched in the distance, and no sounds of pursuit came. He let his breath run out and restarted his journey.

  He searched for the rock outcropping landmark to show him where to turn. Instead he stumbled upon two small shadows in the fog.

  Toki's first impulse was to draw his sword. His hand fell to the hilt, but better judgment stayed him. The two shadows stopped, and one voice hissed Toki's name.

  "Halla! It's Toki. Thanks be the gods you found me." Stepping into his circle of vision came Halla and her slave, an Irish girl called Dana.

  Halla smiled, pausing at the edge of the fog. "You came after all. I waited this morning and didn't find you. I thought you wouldn't show."

  "The journey here took longer than I guessed with only two sets of oars."

  Halla looked as radiant as he remembered. Her hair was woven into two tight braids hung over her shoulders. She wore a summer dress of green and brown. He noticed the hem of her skirt had been soiled from dragging over the wet grass. Her slave, Dana, looked as though she could have been Halla's sister but for her shorter chin and wider face. She wore a dress of raw cloth, dirty but not tattered, and her hair was cropped short to mark her as a slave.

  "Lucky we found you. You're going the wrong way. Homes are just over those rises. I thought I told you to travel down slope?"

  "I wasn't going down slope? This fog is more confusing than I thought. But we are together now, and you can show me where we were supposed to meet."

  Halla giggled and walked up to Toki. Her closeness quickened his pulse, and her smile led his mind to imagine her laying back in the grass for him. She took his hand into her cool, smooth grip. "I'll be glad to show you. Dana, follow us but not too closely please."

  Toki ignored the slave, and simply stared at the young beauty holding his hand. She started forward, giving him a gentle tug. He followed, anxious to get to Halla's secret location.

  They traveled in silence until Toki saw the standing stone he had searched for earlier. No runes marked it. It appeared out of the fog like a giant sentinel in a lichen vest. They both stopped in the weak shadow of the stone. "What is its purpose?" he asked.

  "No one knows. It was here before my family. Maybe the Irish monks placed it. Or maybe giants."

  "Giants more likely. The monks are still here and would've told you about this old stone."

  They moved on in companionable silence, then arrived at the secret place Halla had described. She had not overstated the beauty of it. A slender path folded down into a steep drop. Peering through the fog, Toki saw a large basin shimmering with seawater. He guessed an underground cavern fed it. The water lapped a thin strip of sand that yielded to lush emerald grass. As they descended the path, the earth rose around them. Once at the bottom, the air was cool and smelled of sea salt. Toki imagined he was at the bottom of a gigantic well.

  "My brother showed me this place when I was a small girl. I've never forgotten it, and come here often."

  "Your brother?"

  "Dead many years. A fever."

  Toki gave a curt nod. "So you came here earlier and didn't find me? I admit that I hadn't expected you to come."

  "We must trust each other from now on. I was cursing your name this morning." Halla covered her laugh and walked further into the grass. "Mind the water. It is deep and I fear a current could suck you under. There is a crack in the wall over here. If you can squeeze through, it leads to caves."

  She released his hand and walked to where she had pointed. She turned sideways to demonstrate how to fit into the crack. But Toki instead studied how squeezing between the rocks pulled her dress tight against her curves. She stepped back out, her face blushing. Toki smiled, his breath growing hotter. "So where is your slave now?"

  "Dana's up there." She gestured toward the steep path. "She will be a lookout. If we are found together, my father will probably kill you."

  "He'd have to catch me first." He extended his hand and she accepted, then he pulled her to him. He had long been without a woman, and now he had chosen the most dangerous one to bed. The danger fueled his lust.

  "You are a handsome man," Halla said as she drew into him. "I've been watching you since you came to my father's hall."

  Toki pressed his lips to hers, pushed his hands beneath her blouse. Urgency and need drove him, and words and thoughts had no place in his mind. Halla recoiled, as if hesitating, but he gently drew her back. He guided her to the soft grass, and prepared to slake his long thirst.

  On the evening of the next day, Toki and Halla sat together in their secret meeting place. Sunlight skipped across the open mouth of the basin, spilling ochre light halfway down the damp
rock walls. The bottom remained in cool shadow. The ambient light gave Halla an ethereal cast to her cream colored blouse and her platinum hair. They sat by the water, its lapping sound echoing through the basin in a serene rhythm. Halla leaned against him, warming the both of them. Neither had spoken for a long time, knowing this was their final meeting before Toki left.

  "I am going to miss you, Toki. Fate has been kind in joining us. Time passed quickly."

  "Let's think ahead to our next meeting. This cannot be all?"

  Toki had never met a finer woman. She made him feel sharp and alive. She was independent, smart, and quick-witted. None of the eligible women in Nye Grenner could match Halla. He resolved to court her with all this strength, dismissing any thought of another. Jarl Vermund's face flashed in his mind, but he thrust it aside.

  "This is only the start. Yet my father is possessed with jealousy of Ulfrik. He has not stopped ranting about him since we've returned home. He insists Ulfrik plans to conquer the whole island."

  Toki pulled away and looked at her. "We would still meet? Like this, in secret, yes?"

  "My father will never accept us, so secret meetings are all we can plan for now." She placed her hand upon Toki's and squeezed it.

  "The reward is worth the risk," he said with a laugh. "You will have to consider leaving with me of your will, when the day comes."

  She shrugged, leaning away from Toki. "In time. That is what I have been thinking all along, but have not had many choices until I met you. But I need to know you better first. When I do leave home, I can never return."

  "I'd say you've seen much of me already."

  Suddenly Dana called down the slope, trying to suppress her voice. "Lady Halla, I've spotted men from your father's hall. They've gone out of sight behind the hill. You must leave or they'll discover you here."

  Halla's posture slumped. "My parents wonder why I suddenly enjoy outdoor life. I think they've sent men to either fetch me or spy on me. Either way, I must go."

  Toki placed his hand upon her shoulder. "Be careful, and calm your father's suspicions. How will I know when to return?"

  "I can't think of an easy way. I am not like a man who may travel freely or dispatch messengers." Halla rubbed her hands and frowned. Dana hissed her name again.

  Toki glanced at the spindly slave in irritation. "Let's try this. I will return one week hence. If you cannot meet me, send Dana or leave sign of your passage and I will go home. Otherwise I will wait one day for you, and if you do not show I will leave a sign. I will try again the following week on the same day."

  "What of your boat?"

  "I saw places suitable for mooring it. Now go, before you're found here."

  Toki opened his arms and Halla stepped into them. They embraced and he kissed her forehead. Then she dashed up the path, turning back to wave before disappearing over the top. Toki watched a moment longer, as if she might run back to him. She did not, and he started gathering his belongings into his travel sack. Within the hour he was ready to meet Bork and return to Nye Grenner, though his only thought was to return here.

  CHAPTER SIX

  Ulfrik kicked the grass in frustration. He scanned the ring of men assembled around him, their faces hard and eyes set. A sea breeze tousled hair and tugged at cloaks, but otherwise none moved. Ulfrik paced, his hands clasped behind his back, his brows taut in concentration. He glanced at Snorri, who sat just inside the circle and wrapped himself in a faded red cloak. He slowly nodded at Ulfrik.

  "As your jarl, I am sworn to defend and protect you. I will take the matter of disputed fishing grounds directly to Hardar. As for the claim of sheep raiding, I need more proof to accuse him of that. So few sheep could've strayed."

  "My flocks are not so large that I'd lose track of them," said Egbert Longneck. He stood again, shaking his fist at the sky. "If Hardar's ships were nearby, then three of my flock go missing the next day, what am I to think?"

  Many murmured agreement, but others told Egbert to sit. Ulfrik waved down the excitement. "We've been through this already. No one witnessed Hardar's crews stealing your sheep, Egbert. But Darby and these others have had run-ins with Hardar's fishermen. That's something I can address."

  Egbert stomped back to his place in the ring. Ulfrik sighed, weariness straining his voice. "Before we close this meeting, is there more to discuss?" Men glanced from face to face, and no more voices were raised. Ulfrik seized his opening. "Then we are finished. What we have decided today let no man defy."

  The assembled freemen rose, dusted off their pants, and broke up. Groups drifted to every direction, many heading over the grassy horizon. As was customary, Ulfrik waited at the center of the ring for everyone to go. Snorri struggled to his feet, bracing his leg and barring his teeth.

  The sky was a sullen gray sheet, draining the green expanses of color. Snorri's red cloak was dazzling against it as he approached. "Hardar's nipping at your heels. Wants to see how tough you really are."

  Ulfrik wiped his hands on legs, and shook his head. "The sheep raiding doesn't make sense. Why only three? That's got to be coincidence. But what are his fishermen doing this far south?"

  "Already told you the answer to that one," Snorri said, putting his arm around Ulfrik's shoulder. "Let's get back to our wives and see what's left in those cooking pots. During the whole meeting I kept smelling that delicious soup."

  Snorri drew an exaggerated sniff, while Ulfrik chuckled. "You're getting hungrier with age; I thought old men ate less. What does Gerdie feed you?"

  "Anything I ask for, and more." They laughed and ambled down slope to the clustered dwellings of Nye Grenner. A lone sheep wandered between two buildings, bleating at them. He heard Thorvald clanging at this forge in the distance. A new shipment of bog iron had arrived with traders a few weeks ago; Thorvald had been ceaselessly working it into tools, mail, and weapons.

  Life in Nye Grenner had settled back to normal after the festival. It had taken several weeks to restore the daily patterns and to replenish depleted food stores. The arrival of the traders had solved most of Ulfrik's problems. After the festival, he heard complaints that men cannot eat gold and glory. Now they had salted meats, wood, iron, and traded their wool and hay. People were satisfied. Up until today.

  Ulfrik and Snorri tramped into the hall, Snorri leaving his long knife in the front room as was customary. Ulfrik, being the jarl, had no restriction. The windows and smoke hole were open and the wan light filled the main room. Gerdie and another woman tended the fat iron pot over the hearth, while Runa and two girls worked at the loom in the back. Ulfrik heard Gunnar squealing with delight but didn't see him. He was in a pile of boys who wrestled and played about the hall while the women worked.

  "Was I ever that happy?" Ulfrik asked Snorri as they entered the main room.

  "Nothing wrong with a happy kid, unless he's simple. But that boy of yours, he's got his mother's wit." Snorri slapped Ulfrik's shoulder and moved to the cooking pot, sniffing at the rising steam. "Is it ready now? Those damn assemblies make me hungry."

  Gerdie hustled him to a table, and Ulfrik picked his way back to Runa. She set aside her distaff and basket while the two other girls worked the loom. "Welcome home. How was the assembly?"

  Ulfrik embraced his wife, then moved to a bench where he lowered himself with a groan. "It went fine. I settled grazing disputes, kept Thorkel Two-Toes out of his neighbor's pasture. For the third time. Of course, there's the fishermen's troubles with Hardar." Ulfrik mumbled the last statement, knowing how Runa would react. She did not disappoint.

  "You were too heavy-handed during the festival. Your friendly competition, as you called it, started a larger fight. Now we've got an enemy to the north." She folded her arms, looking away. Ulfrik glanced after her and saw Gunnar emerge from the dog pile, his smile shining bright through the dirt on his face.

  "The festival was over a month ago. I admit, I had fun showing off to him. Can't he let it go? I never insulted him the way he did me, and I'm fine."

/>   "Well, you'll have to ask him. Seems he's sending his fishermen to start trouble. So you'll meet with him, then?" Ulfrik nodded, but stood from his bench.

  "Gods, woman! Can I have peace? I will handle matters with Hardar. Before you say it, I will do all I can to renew good relations with him. If he'll be sensible enough to listen to me."

  "You must not be hasty with him, Ulfrik. I think he wants a fight."

  "He had no trouble attacking me without a reason five years ago. So the man needs no reason. Stop telling me what I know to do. I will arrange for travel tomorrow." Ulfrik had shouted, and he now felt foolish as Gerdie and Snorri both pretended not to hear. Runa gave a lame shrug and turned back to her loom.

  Ulfrik stood like a man left ashore after his ship had launched. He realized his pulse had quickened and shook his head to clear his mood. "Where has Toki been? I haven't seen him in days."

  "Wasn't he doing something for you? Teaching boys about sailing or something?" Runa sat at her stool, her two companions working in silence and seeming to ignore the conversation. She gestured to one of the girls for a basket.

  "Teaching boys about sailing? I never asked him to do that. He said he was ... Snorri!"

  Snorri was upending a wood bowl to his mouth. He peered at Ulfrik over the rim as he slurped down his soup.

  "Did you ask Toki to teach boys about sailing?" Snorri extended his bowl to Gerdie for a refill, then shook his head. "Have you not seen Toki, either? I thought I was just lucky."

  "Not at all. He told me he had repairs to make on Raven's Talon."

  Now Runa dropped her basket and regarded Ulfrik. He stared back at her, and saw the thoughts moving behind his wife's eyes. He chewed his lower lip, knowing that Toki had lied but not knowing why. Ulfrik suspected Runa had guessed. "What's he up to?"

  "I don't know, but," she paused and touched her chin, "he has been strange since the festival, whenever he has been present. I am certain he's found a woman. But he hasn't told me so, or anyone else it seems."