- Styrbjorn: Interest you? You robbed me of my wealth when you left for England. I presume you would do it again.
- Sigurd: Not my idea...
- Eivor: You left us with nothing when you pledged for King Harald. We took only what we deserved.
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Where Legends Are Born
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Where Legends Are Born was a virtual representation of one of Eivor Varinsdottir's genetic memories, relived by Layla Hassan in 2020 through the Portable Animus HR-8.5.
Description[edit | edit source]
After leaving Ravensthorpe, Eivor and Sigurd arrived back in Norway to speak with Styrbjorn.
Dialogue[edit | edit source]
Eivor and Sigurd sailed their longship into Norway's waters.
- Sigurd: So strange... little has changed, but it feels unfamiliar.
- Eivor: Our few years abroad have shaped us more than all the decades we spent here, Brother.
- Sigurd: And it's bloody cold. Colder than I remember.
Sigurd and Eivor neared land.
- Sigurd: This is Harald Fairhair's kingdom now, every peak and fjord. It pains me to say it, to think it even.
- Eivor: And our father his fool, the poor man.
- Sigurd: It is a role he chose. He bent easily, and broke in half. Do not pity him.
- Eivor: No.
- Sigurd: For many moons, I could not sleep, always thinking of his betrayal. The horrors I wished upon him. He deserves nothing but shame now.
- Eivor: Put it out of your mind, Sigurd. There is no need to hound the old man.
- Sigurd: No, he must taste the same foulness that I taste. He must know what glory he missed by staying here, the lapdog of a conqueror.
- Eivor: You want to speak with him?
- Sigurd: Yes. Face to face. I will tell him the truth.
Nearing the shore of Alrekstad, Sigurd and Eivor spoke about their father.
- Sigurd: Alrekstad. It thrives. In spite of our father, no doubt.
- Eivor: Are you sure of this?
- Sigurd: I will say what needs to be said.
- Eivor: Do you fear his rebuke?
- Sigurd: O no, I crave it. It may be the old hound has lost his bark.
- Eivor: Or it may be you will light a fire beneath him. Inspire him with tales of our glory.
- Sigurd: If I do, I'll stoke that flame until it burns.
Sigurd and Eivor docked their longship.
- Sigurd: What was it Randvi said? Our father spends his days in the meadhall and his nights on barren planks of wood?
- Eivor: That's right.
- Sigurd: We'll search the meadhalls.
- Eivor: I remember one nearby. A sad hole where men soak their unhappiness.
- Sigurd: We should look there.
- Eivor: We come empty-handed. Not even a gift to offer.
- Sigurd: Rats don't appreciate gifts. They sniff and lick them, without care.
- Eivor: You are chipper, Brother.
The two saw a note pinned with a knife to one of the dock posts.
Public Notice:
King Harald Seeks Warriors
- King Harald is offering silver and good weapons to brave men and women seeking gain and glory.
If you are interested, look for King Harald's ship, the Vagrbrjota.
Ask for Guthorm the Wise.
As both siblings arrived at a tavern, they overheard customers talking.
- Norse Woman 1: That poor soaker he never leaves.
- Norse Man 1: From sunup to sundown, he just sits there, staring into his horn.
- Norse Woman 1: Once, just once, I'd have him take a bath.
- Norse Man 1: He was a king once, that one. You'd never know by the way he sulks.
Sigurd and Eivor entered the meadhall and saw a depressed Styrbjorn.
- Eivor: We should go. Look at him.
Sigurd walked towards his father.
- Sigurd: Father...
Styrbjorn composed himself and looked up in surprise at his son.
- Styrbjorn: S-Sigurd...? My son... Eivor... by Odin's blessing! Come and let me look at you both!
- Sigurd: Stop. That is far enough.
Styrbjörn looked at Sigurd's maimed arm.
- Styrbjorn: Blood of Týr, what happened there? A grievous wound you have. Are you well?
- Sigurd: Far better than I look, I assure you.
- Styrbjorn: This... this calls for a toast! Your journey has been long and cold. A drink to warm your blood!
- Sigurd: We are not here to drink or make merry. Only to look upon the wreckage of a once great man.
- Styrbjorn: And then what? Make new war against King Harald? Stake a claim on his crown? Is that your wish? To sow more chaos here?
- Sigurd: You are absurd, old man. What could possibly interest me in this frozen backwater?
- Styrbjorn: Hmph.
Styrbjorn got a drink while Eivor and Sigurd looked at each other.
- Sigurd: I have returned for one reason only. To say goodbye. And to thank you... for your colossal failure.
- Styrbjorn: Failure?
- Sigurd: As a father, as a king, as a man. For without it, I would not have discovered my true self.
- Styrbjorn: My failure, as you call it... my oath to King Harald... was the only sensible path forward for a man in my situation.
Eivor cast her eyes down in thought, then spoke with calm.
- Eivor: It was your right to pledge your crown to another. And I know you did what you thought best, for the safety for our clan.
- Styrbjorn: As Harald's forces advanced, I knew we did not have the strength to oppose him. We were too disorganized, too weak. With a son ever absent, always off raiding in some far-flung land, never concerned with the duties of kingship... what choice did I have but to pledge my allegiance to him? A man with ambition and an army to match it.
- Sigurd: Absent? I only acted as the son of a king must! To earn your riches! To bring you glory! To praise your name!
- Styrbjorn: The people of Constantinople had no use for my name, Sigurd, I needed you here!
- Sigurd: Listen to this weeping old goat!
- Eivor: There was nothing sensible about your betrayal. Sigurd should have been king. You robbed him of that.
- Styrbjorn: Who did I betray? A son was never home? A selfish boy with no sense of leadership? An arrogant drengr!
- Sigurd: You lie! I have led numberless men into battle! And countless ships on raids across all the known world!
- Styrbjorn: You talk of kingship as if it were a matter of counting the notches on your axe. But to lead means so much more. I passed my crown to Harald because he was a man who understood the challenge put before him. Unlike you...
- Sigurd: You pathetic worm...
- Eivor: Sigurd! This is not why we came.
- Sigurd: Plans change.
- Styrbjorn: As do hearts.
- Sigurd: Not this one.
- Styrbjorn: And you, Eivor?
- Eivor: And what you have done with yourself since? Drink heavily and weep for what might have been?
- Styrbjorn: I have... I have worked hard to broker peace across our land. To spread Harald's message of unity.
- Sigurd: I heard you sleep beneath Harald's bed, always at his beck and call. And that he uses your gaping mouth as a chamber pot.
- Styrbjorn: You make light of my service to a great and powerful man. Is that how you treat those who serve you, Sigurd?
- Sigurd: You pathetic worm...
- Eivor: Sigurd! This is not why we came.
- Sigurd: Plans change.
- Styrbjorn: As do hearts.
- Sigurd: Not this one.
- Styrbjorn: And you, Eivor?
Eivor read the temperature of the room and chose her next words with purpose.
- Eivor: I wish you whatever peace you may find in this new life you have found.
- Styrbjorn: I did not find it, Eivor. I chose it... the only way forward that did not lead to more violence and death and grief. Your father would have understood. He died to avoid a similar fate. To save his family, at the cost of his reputation.
- Eivor: No. My father... he... he was...
- Styrbjorn: He loved you. That is all.
- Sigurd: Argr (Cowardly) nonsense! I've heard enough.
- Eivor: You are a coward. And I have no room in my heart for cowards.
- Styrbjorn: I find it hard to believe you have a heart at all, Eivor. Ever reckless, ever foolish, you could have been the one to guide my son to a better and wiser course. But you could hardly control yourself. Always putting your own glory above the welfare of your clan.
- Sigurd: You're leaking piss and vinegar, old man! Can you not smell your own bitterness? Coming here was a mistake.
- Eivor: You should have told us of your plan to bend the knee to Harald.
- Sigurd: And spared me the shame of seeing my father debase himself like a gutted pig.
- Styrbjorn: Y-you are right. I owed you the truth, and for that I am sorry. But I will not apologize for what I did.
- Sigurd: Then I have nothing left to say to you.
The conversation came to an end, depending on which words the family said.
- Styrbjorn: Sigurd... From the day you were born, I wanted nothing more than to pass on my title, my land, my people... to you. But one year is never like another. And with the passage of time, certain truths appeared... unavoidable. Ours was the last kingdom in Norway to resist Harald's advance. To oppose him would have been our deaths.
- Sigurd: You do not know that. We could have fought back.
- Styrbjorn: We could have, yes. And suffered countless deaths for no other reason than to protect our pride.
- Sigurd: We will never know the truth because you were too afraid to risk it.
Sigurd walked out, while Styrbjorn and Eivor had a more amicable farewell.
- Styrbjorn: Look after him, Eivor. And if you have the chance, lead him back from the edge of the abyss.
- Eivor: He is my brother... not my dog. Be well, old man. And serve your king with honor.
Sigurd started to leave. Styrbjorn walked next to Eivor and called out to him.
- Styrbjorn: My son, please...
- Eivor: Sigurd, wait...
- Sigurd: I have spoken my words and he has spoken his. And from this clash came bitterness. What more need be said?
- Styrbjorn: I wish you well, Sigurd, in spite all that has happened. I hope you find what you seek. And that it brings you peace.
- Sigurd: It will. Our destiny awaits. Do not linger long.
Sigurd walked out, leaving Eivor to bid farewell to their father.
- Styrbjorn: I know you love him, Eivor. I know you trust him. But don't follow him blindly into darkness or despair.
- Eivor: You have spoken your words and Sigurd has heard them.
- Styrbjorn: What happened to my son? What turmoil did he see that took his arm and darkened his mood?
- Eivor: He saw his father for what he truly was. A coward who faced his enemies with more honesty than he did his family.
- Styrbjorn: I was a father to you, Eivor.
- Eivor: I have no father.
Eivor walked out to rejoin Sigurd.
- Sigurd: This sad business is finished. And good riddance. And now we sail for further shores... to my true purpose. To my destiny. To the end of my road.
- Eivor: I will follow you as far as you wish in this world, Brother. But if you mean to take us further... I may reconsider.
- Sigurd: I do not think you will, Eivor. I think you will marvel at what I have to show you.
Both siblings arrived back at the docks.
- Sigurd: Mm...
- Eivor: Still dwelling on your father?
- Sigurd: Not at all. I was only reflecting on my visions. Wondering at them... how present they are, like memories of yesterday.
- Eivor: Describe them for me, your visions.
- Sigurd: My earliest was of a large door, embedded in ice, far north of Hordafylke. The Saga Stone, embedded at the top of its arch. As the visions grew stronger, the door opened, revealing many things. The life tree Yggdrasil. The golden fields of Valhalla. And the faces of our gods, all of whom called me friend, brother, warrior. I felt at home among them. Warmed by their love.
- Eivor: You suffered so much pain at the hands of Fulke. It may be your visions are only dreams or... hallucinations.
- Sigurd: No, no. My visions began long before Fulke. Before England even. And it was Basim who told me to heed them. They are real, Eivor. And this is no mere foxhunt. Where I take you now, few men have ever seen.
- Eivor: We have come a long, long way in search of a hazy vision. Sigurd. Be careful.
- Sigurd: Good, Eivor... I would not lead you blindly into the unknown. Have faith that what I know is true, and where we go is real.
- Eivor: You should know... you are not alone in this. I too have had visions.
- Sigurd: Have you? And what did they foretell?
- Eivor: It is hard to say. I've seen Odin leading me into shadows. I've seen spinners weaving wild destinies from pools of blood. I saw the great beast Fenrir, the branches of the world tree, and a man with...
Eivor trailed off and stared at Sigurd's arm stump. Sigurd caught the direction of her gaze and looked at his own arm before meeting Eivor's eyes.
- Sigurd: Go on...
- Eivor: Valka warned me of a great betrayal. But what form it takes, I cannot say.
- Sigurd: I see...
- Eivor: I hold to my oaths, Sigurd, you know that. Betrayal is not in my nature.
- Sigurd: Of course not. You are as stalwart as a pillar of stone.
Eivor nodded.
- Sigurd: Come now. My destiny awaits.
Both siblings rode on their longship.
- Sigurd: The Daughters of Ægir bless our passage.
- Eivor: Yes. I feel a great calm as we cross these waves.
- Sigurd: This ordeal with the Elf King, Aelfred. How far have you pushed him? Does he bend? Will he break?
- Eivor: Guthrum's army will be chasing him across Wessex now. With luck, he'll push Aelfred into the sea.
- Sigurd: Strange how these earthly concerns seem so distant to me.
- Eivor: But we've gained so much in England. And we stand to win even more.
- Sigurd: The Christians are hardy foes. They see one man above who holds the axe. One man higher than us all. That is a powerful fuel.
- Eivor: We hold our own axe. We swing it where we may.
- Sigurd: The woman, Fulke... in my time with her, as painful as it was... she showed me things. Things so strange and wonderful, I am almost grateful for her treachery.
- Eivor: What she did to you was cruel beyond measure.
- Sigurd: Yet, with every snap of the flail, with every scar, with the loss of my arm... my visions grew stronger.
- Eivor: If you can find the good in that, fine. But she was as mad as the ocean is wide.
- Sigurd: Even the mad ones can offer wisdom. Their Jesus was an odd fellow. Now half the known world loves him. And no one believed us when we were young and we chiseled our plans under table in meadhalls. Not even my father.
- Eivor: There is the Sigurd I know well. Can we not return to England and finish together what we began?
- Sigurd: No. Forget all that. The future is forward. A great wealth awaits us.
- Eivor: I am with you, Brother. Until the end.
As they near the destination, a blizzard emerged against them.
- Eivor: A white rage stands in our way.
- Sigurd: Keep moving forward!
- Eivor: Do you know the way?
- Sigurd: As I know my own mind! We will cut through this winter sheet like swords through straw, do not worry.
- Eivor: To perish on a lonely fjord, we'd be the shame of our clan.
- Sigurd: Ha! That we would.
Outcome[edit | edit source]
Eivor and Sigurd sailed to the fjord that the latter had envisioned, traversing a snowstorm in the way.
Behind the scenes[edit | edit source]
The conversation with Styrbjorn follows a hidden "approval" system, not unlike the one with Harald at the end of the prologue or how the flyting games work. The first options have the most positive weight, the middle options are the most negative, and the last choices have neutral weight. A score that weighs positive will result in the "good" outcome, which does not result in Sigurd moving to walk out. A total score that weighs negative will cause the "Sigurd, wait..." choice to fail and result in the same outcome as letting him walk out, with Eivor disavowing Styrbjorn as Sigurd does. A score that weighs neutral will allow "Sigurd, wait..." to work as intended, and results in the corresponding parting words.
Gallery[edit | edit source]
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Eivor and Sigurd speak to a depressed Styrbjörn in Norway
