He bowed low, flattening himself, but peering up, unable to look away.
* * *
Her white wool cape trimmed in white fur, touched the bears as she passed.
The growling monsters shivered and fell silent, gripping tight their mugs of mead
As if they knew death walked amongst them.
* * *
Veļu māte picked up a cup of the sweet wine, took a sip, and cocked her head.
Piške held his breath.
* * *
She blew on the rim and fog appeared.
One death white finger stirred the mead,
Until honey wine, roses, and rot mingled with the smell of blood.
She sucked one more drop of the golden elixir from her fingertip,
Winked at Piške, and vanished into the wisps of fog.
* * *
It was chilly in the hall, but death itself warmed Piške’s blood.
His goddess bestowed upon him a weapon,
One suitable for a frail merchant.
Now he must deliver that mead to the bears.
* * *
He trembled to rise, but no bear noticed.
Invisible, he walked over bodies of former friends,
Of former rivals,
All silent in death.
* * *
His fingers touched the sanctified mead.
And froze like bare flesh on an icy sword
Aching, burning, freezing.
* * *
Then, as he watched, his fingers rotted from the tips.
And the sweet smell of death's perfume rose to meet him.
He shook, almost dropping the ensorceled amulet.
A drop of mead fell on one of the corpses.
* * *
Instantly the corpse rotted from the drop out,
Piške controlled his trembling hand.
So little time.
He dropped a bit into the first bear's mug.
* * *
The rot crept along his fingers.
He moaned as the bone deep rot
Ached like a putrid tooth,
And the bears turned their heads in his direction.
* * *
Not much time before the rot took this chance away.
No noise. He must bring the mead to each bear
But silent as death herself.
* * *
As rot consumed first fingers, then hand,
He delivered the potion to the bears,
Watched as they drank and fell unconscious to the ground,
* * *
Once the last bear fell into a long slumber, Piške released the baneful cup at last,
His hand a mockery of meat and pustulence.
Aching, burning, rotting.
* * *
It was done. Now to bring Gudrud to her gods.
He touched the soft furs covering her corpse with his rotted hand.
They deteriorated in moments.
* * *
He mustn't touch Gudrud. Not with that hand.
With feet and unrotted hand he rolled her body in a fur,
Then dragged her to the woods, far from the massacre.
* * *
He laid his fair Gudrud on a pyre and consecrated her to her gods.
“Be at peace my one true love,” he whispered as he lit the flame,
Offering special blessings to Veļu Māte, of the Curonians,
His generous goddess of death.
* * *
As the flame-flicked pyre drew Gudrud's soul up,
He felt her ghost’s insubstantial kiss.
* * *
Veju Māte walked through the smoke to touch his rotting hand,
Leaving clear smooth skin and glorious relief.
* * *
Then she caressed his heart.
He felt her rot spread throughout his chest,
Growing tendril by tendril.
* * *
She flattened her hand against his breastbone once more.
It held the weight of all lives that had ever lived,
Their moaning and lamentations.
Their lost loves.
Each a sacrifice as great as his.
"Mine," Veļu māte said before vanishing into the smoke.
* * *
Dying inside, but living outwardly
The rot within him in abeyance for the day Veļu Māte called him forth.
So it was that Piske sent Gudrud's soul to the gods
At the cost of his own.
The best trade he’d ever made.
An Academic Note on Magic in Thule
by the Great and Honorable Professor Dr. Kondrát Boethius Beneit, Ph.D.
In my soon-to-be most esteemed work on the Eddaic Magical Theory Model (EMTM) I posit not that magic unequivocally exists, but that there is a possibility that it could have existed or may still exist somewhere.
Pause there.
Consider my genius. I know it is overwhelming. May I say, magical?
This is the key to understanding this book. Of course, more corroborating evidence must be found in a correlating location in space and time. Arguments over the Eddaic Magical Theory Model (EMTM) will surely focus on the texts presented in the slim volume currently in your hands. Think on the stories of Sif and Jörd, of Giants and Witches, of Thor and Loki, of Pytheus and Eirik, of Thule. Think and shudder.
The theories of Heliand and Drang Isle which I established in my last article (2018) prove my approach and the EMTM are sound. As everyone can see, the anima of the creature harnesses the belief of the corpus into reality. Obviously.
My discoveries of the Polina Manuscript and Edda of Caedmon further support EMTM theories binding impenetrable webs between my other theories involving the EMTM, as presented in 2017 (after the Terror’s discovery) and 2019 (after the Vorcan’s discovery) at the International Mythopoeic Translation Conferences.
The response to Ratramrus’ letter by “the Opponent” on the topic of cynocephali, which I brought into the academic sphere in my 1989 thesis (Dog Headed Men Letter: A Response), has always been treated poorly by more conservative academics. Cryptozoologists and race-theory enthusiasts brought me on their podcasts to twist my words or chop up my statements. The foul Liberal media accused me of “opportunistic science” because of the melting ice in the Arctic. Is it my fault the ice is melting?
My incredible insights into Old Norse literature and archaeology and my translation abilities allow me to elaborate on how, when the EMTM is applied to the Polina Manuscript, this proves Feodor Curalis and Janiko Hwep of the Borlänge School are incorrect in their assertions.
Get that Janiko? Wrong, again!
The academic scholarship I bring together for this translation will change the way Old Norse literature is taught in classrooms for generations to come. As you read, you shall find that all your theories are missing a key element, which is essential for Old Norse scholarship going forward to function as scholarship, science via the EMTM. Soon all Old Norse scholars will consult my works before blundering into the morass of intricate tripwires found between translation and literary theory.
Scholars considered the Poetic and Prose Eddas to be the greatest collection of Old Norse literature for centuries. These stories have sparked the imaginations of annotational scholars, but the work translated here before you will cause them to Feuer Fangen.
As Smith and Sigurðsson (1976) stated, the “microcosmic embodiment parable in the perspective of macrocosmic warfare” found within the Eddas rhymes with that of the Homeric Greek literature, especially when using the EMTM. Such areas of investigation, EMTM, fundamentally uncharted, have established the components of the structural rationality of my analysis.
Thus, magic is real. As is obvious to all reading this.
Acknowledgments
Books seem like lonely projects but that is profoundly untrue. There are so many people who help, who motivate, or who do serious professional work to make books come to fruition.
This is certainly a partial list because I have received a great deal of kindness as I've worked on these stories. I am deeply appreciative to the following:
Mia Kleve, my editor and one of the best editors in the fantasy/SF arena, amazed me with her encyclopedic knowledge. Obviously all mistakes are mine, but there would be a lot more without her red pen. You'll find her website at http://www.mrkdup.com.
Manon Chraszez Witherington, who takes as much joy in raiding stories for mistakes as Magnihild does on her Viking raids.
Jennifer Lopez of Mistress Editing who wielded her scary red pen on the first story in the collection. You can find her website at https://www.mistressediting.com
Konrad Bennett Hughes, whose expertise in all things Vikings was invaluable and who channeled the mad professor Kondrát Boethius Beneit to contribute his theories on Thule to this volume.
Courtney Luckhardt, whose knowledge of Vikings is as vast and impressive as her kindness.
Anthony Cournoyer who created the artwork for the Thule microsetting in the Micronomicon, a black and white version of which can be seen on the following page. You can find him and his artwork at https://www.instagram.com/sorrow_scavenger/
John D. Payne, who included us in the Micronomicon, accepted our microsetting on the magical land of Thule, read my Thulish short stories and eddas and provided critical advice that was much appreciated.
Thanks to those who read these stories and Eddas and offered invaluable critical advice including: Max Roprez, Eva Papier, Mela Eckenfels, and L.A. Selby, and The Boy Band (Ryan English, John D. Payne, Miles English, Nate Givens, and James R. Payne).
With much thanks for the discussion on naval tactics for the final story in this collection in which I learned a great deal, though mostly I learned that I had a lot more to learn: Justin Watson, Larry T. Davis, and David Cole.
Sandra Greenberg, for always believing in my writing.
For unrelenting encouragement, Astrid Harp and Helen Savore.
William Allen Webb for being a never-ending fountain of enthusiasm and advice on writing, marketing, and publishing.
Thank you to the tribe at Superstars Writing Seminars, who welcomed me in, taught me, and steadied me in the journey. And to my Memphis tribe of writers whose support I’ve relied upon as I stepped into this new world.
Finally, Stephen Stein could have fit in any of the categories below. He is everything to me. He is my best friend, best first reader, best historical and strategic source of knowledge, kindest encourager, harshest editor and proofreader, and so much more. So I'm just going to thank him again for being exactly who he is. I am so lucky to have him in my life.
About the Author
Carolyn Ivy Stein is a freelance writer. She writes historical, fantasy, and science fiction as well as non-fiction and gaming supplements. She has received six Honorable Mentions from the Writers of the Future contest.
When not writing she games and experiments with gourmet vegan cooking.
* * *
http://www.carolynivystein.com
More to Explore
For fun roleplaying in Thule, check out Tiny Dungeon 2e and the Micronomicon coming soon to Drivethrurpg.com.
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