Year 110 A.C.
POV: Denovan
Time passes at an insane speed when you are focused on something.
Hours and days passed in the blink of an eye.
I was on the final details. The Leviathan was laid out on the table, as beautiful as I had imagined it could be.
My Leviathan was slightly larger than Kratos's. It was made this way because I am not a god like him; therefore, a larger weapon guaranteed me more attack area, more weight, and reach.
The handle of the axe was made of ironwood, hard and black, impervious to common flames. The northernmost forests were entirely composed of ironwood. Something I hadn't expected, but which was very good. I needed to find a way to commercialize this... but let's get to the point.
The handle was long and curved. The black wood was sturdy, but its opposite end was coated in steel, both to prevent it from splintering and to accommodate an ornament: a serpent's head. In this case, I drew inspiration from Orochi to make it.
Where the hands usually rest, green Orochi scales climbed sinuously up to the weapon's blade. Leaving the wooden handle and meeting the steel, the scales formed the serpentine design of the naga.
The blade was exactly like the original Leviathan, perhaps a bit larger to maintain the proportions, but extremely similar. The metal had a somewhat bluish, somewhat purple hue, perhaps due to the mixture of Orochi's blood and venom during the folding of the steel. And, like all Damascus steel, it featured some slightly lighter patterns, almost like stains, but so uniformly patterned in the shape of waves that it was impossible to call them that.
This was the Leviathan. I kept looking at it while finishing the polishing. Upon gripping the handle, I felt a slight magical consumption, and a smile broke across my face.
One part is working.
My eyes followed the drawing of the serpent on the blade. It wasn't just a drawing, but a figure largely made up of runes. All of them were prototypes that, after being used on pieces of bone or wood, had proven useful.
The runes that made up the design were: Sharpening, Slave, Cut, Hardness, and Store. They were scattered along the snake's lines; if one looked closely, it was possible to see them, but from a distance, it was merely the outline of an animal.
The Sharpening rune, as its name suggests, sharpens the blade and the material. Slave was the counterpart to the rune now drawn on my hand, Magnar — the second most important one, the one that truly allowed the weapon to be called runic. Next comes Cut. The cut serves to cut, which is different from sharpening. It might seem like the same thing, but in the runic sense, the literal meaning is what prevails. Then comes Hardness, which increases the resistance of the weapon as a whole. Finally, Store. It is a large rune, whose trails form the entire tail of the serpent. Its function is to retain all the magic in the axe for as long as possible when the supply is cut off and distribute it to the other runes.
Beautiful as this Leviathan was, and as great as the attachment I already felt for the weapon was, I knew that to be considered a masterpiece, one of the greatest, I wanted the final Leviathan to be forged from Valyrian steel. Only then would I be satisfied.
I picked up the axe and held it out in front of me. Looking into the clear patterns of the Damascus, I saw the silhouette of someone behind me and, in an instant, I turned around.
"I envy that axe of yours... If you looked at me the way you look at it, maybe you would have already declared me to the world as your wife."
I sighed.
"You almost gave me a heart attack, Melika," I say, placing the axe on the table with a certain regret.
"Tsk... It's been a while since we ate together in peace... Everyone deserves a break," Melika said with a reproving look.
"I'm almost..."
"Denovan... Is one hour of your day going to delay you that much?"
I remained silent, looking into those mismatched eyes. She was right. In recent days, I had spent too much time here in the forge. Perhaps that was one of the reasons I ended up alone on Earth.
"It won't delay me... I was just too focused these past few days," I replied, trying to manage a smile.
The past must be left behind. We must learn from our mistakes to be better people, otherwise, what was the point of everything up to here? To repeat the same slips? I am not that foolish.
Melika smiled.
I reached out to take hers and, with a skip, she linked her arms with mine and started talking:
"Some of the princess's handmaids insisted on making lunch today. They said it was an order from the princess herself."
"Oh... So you'll get to taste a more elaborate meal today."
"The princess asked me if I had ever eaten the food of the Seven Kingdoms. When I said no, she insisted on serving us."
I chuckled softly.
"I think someone has already grown tired of our bland food," I continued.
"And how are things? I know it's a pain to deal with the nobility and..."
"Don't worry. The princess is handling them very well. Aside from a few sailors and soldiers causing a scuffle or two with ours, nothing serious has happened."
"That's good."
"Sig is taking your order to act as her bodyguard very seriously."
An amused smile appeared on my lips and I replied:
"Well... I promised her that if the princess liked her work, I would take her to this war. I'm sure she's trying very hard."
With a few more steps, we were inside the house. The environment was much noisier now. People moved about with life, and the once cold, empty mansion felt a bit warmer and more welcoming.
As soon as I reached the table, I saw Rhaenyra and my sister talking.
"Good morning, princess... Good morning, little sister."
"Good morning, Lord Denovan."
"Brother..." Sig said, trying to look regal.
I sat in the chair at the head of the table and asked:
"And so, princess, how has your stay been here? I apologize for not being able to be your guide, but time is tight and I have many things to handle."
"It's all right... Your sister has been a great guide. The city is quite peaceful, my lord... I was expecting something more..."
"Wild?" I cut in.
"Well... No."
"It's alright," I said with ease and amusement. "As I've mentioned a few times, things are changing fast around here, princess. The raids in the Stepstones, the forges, horses, goats, food, clothes, ships... My people are developing. A few years ago, if you arrived on this side of the Wall, you'd probably be kidnapped."
"Good thing it's not like that anymore, then."
"Yes... That is good. But let's move on to a happier subject. What else caught your attention, princess?"
"Well... Besides the number of wild beasts roaming the city..." she began to think.
"Rha... Princess Rhaenyra liked the ice cream. That's what she told me," Sigrid intervened.
"Yeees!" Rhaenyra said, excited. "It's very good! You mix fruit with milk, it gets soft and it's delicious."
"Haha... A typical food of ours, princess. It's a shame it can't be taken to King's Landing or made there, because it requires ice."
For now...
"It really is a shame... But I genuinely liked it. The bad part is it freezes your teeth, your stomach, and your head, but it's very good," she commented, amused.
"Yes, yes. You just have to eat it slowly."
"But then I die freezing little by little!"
I managed a smile and asked, "Speaking of frozen, what about your dragon?"
"Syrax is fine. The forge is small, but it's hot, very hot. I left there sweating after spending just a little time."
"I liked your forge too. Every time I went to visit Syrax, you were there... What weapon are you working on?"
Even Sig looked at me, curious.
"I will show it when the time comes, princess... You will like it a lot."
"You and your dramatic flair! Just tell us already, we're all curious," Sig complained, already somewhat impatient.
"From what I saw, it's a beautiful axe," Melika said.
With a smug smile, I decreed:
"Leviathan... The beautiful axe has received a name."
"How long until you finish, then?" asked Rhaenyra.
"I'm already finished... I just need... to test it. I was going to do that now, but Melika summoned me for lunch."
"Only way to get you to eat lunch like a normal person."
"Well..." watching the maids approach with the platter, I continued, "Let's eat. I'll call you all later."
Lunch went smoothly. As soon as we finished, I didn't go back to the forge; instead, I called Melika over, as I wanted to talk privately.
We went up to the second floor and entered our bedroom.
"We just ate... You don't want to do anything wild right now, do you?" Melika teased.
"No... Later, for sure, but that's not it."
"So what is it?" she asked, sitting on the bed while I settled into the desk chair, which was full of papers and books written in the old tongue—or rather, in runic language, whose numbers strongly resembled Roman numerals.
"I just wanted to listen to you..." I admitted, a bit awkwardly.
"Awww... What happened to my beast king, wild and brutal, the unifier of the North? All that's left is my needy little boy," Melika murmured, and her last words sounded very close to my ear as she sat on my lap.
"And what would you like to hear?"
"Talk about yourself first. I threw a lot of responsibilities into your hands; you're practically acting as a queen and you don't even get all the recognition for it."
Melika's smile became gentle, her eyes shining with affection as she stared at me.
"I'm fine, my lord. Things in Scalebay are progressing quickly. The conflicts between the clans have been decreasing considerably. Now that all the warriors have returned from the raids and are present, the friction is almost at zero. Your pets, along with Sigrid, help me a lot to keep them in line... And who said I'm not recognized?" she laughed. "You may not have formally acknowledged me as your wife or queen, but everyone here knows. Everyone, even that little princess, knows you belong to me. I don't think she liked it one bit when she found out..." she finished with a predatory smile.
"They know how much you trust me, they know my importance and, better yet, they know I have power. They don't dare make a mess. But, if you really want to reward me, then we should get married. In front of a heart tree, say our vows... Proclaim me as your wife. It will be the greatest reward you can give me."
"I will reward you, then. Wait for this war in the Stepstones to end, and then I will summon all the jarls from Norway, from the Thenn Valley to Skagos, I'll invite the king of the Seven Kingdoms himself. My father, my mother, and my brother will be present. We will marry in the eyes of gods and men... And then I'll put a child in you, no matter what it takes," I stated, firmly.
A radiant smile lit up Melika's face. She gave me a kiss, fierce and full of desire... But then quickly pulled back.
"I will wait patiently," she whispered. "But, until then... You will not have me. Not until you fulfill your promise," she teased, even more amused.
My smile vanished instantly.
"Hey... hey... You wouldn't do that to me."
"Oh, I would... How many years have you made me wait? Perhaps it is fitting that you be punished."
"I doubt you can resist riding me not even once during these two months," I said jokingly.
"I keep my promises... My king."
Just as I was about to drop another provocative line, her tone turned deadly serious:
"And if... I see, hear, or even find out you've been with another woman, I will cut off your little friend."
"You know I wouldn't do that. And weren't you the one who didn't care about exclusivity?"
"Now I care. You asked me to marry you, now it is our obligation to be faithful to each other."
"I prefer it that way," I declared, looking deep into her eyes. "A possessive and jealous Melika awakens something very deep within me," I said, pulling her in for a kiss, but I was quickly pushed away by a smiling Melika.
"It won't be easy to win me over, Denovan. Not even a tiny bit."
I sighed, defeated, but amused.
In the end, we had always been faithful to each other... well, my eyes are everywhere, maybe I was a bit cautious, or was I paranoid? Well, that doesn't matter.
"So tell me about the rest, about our preparations. I haven't spoken to my ravens yet, and they haven't alerted me to anything important. I'm in the dark."
Melika was now also a warg. Her companion was a snowy owl, a fitting choice that perfectly matched her personality.
"Well... Starting with the ships, we have 14 galleons and 22 longships. But, as always, we don't have enough sailors to navigate efficiently in all of them."
"Now, about the royal army... the jarls, as you instructed me to call them."
I had drawn inspiration from Viking culture. A jarl was a captain, a commander. He led one to three ships, commanded the men on them, and answered only to me, his lord and king. The jarl is usually the smartest and most lethal warrior; the wildling culture has always operated on the basis of respect for strength, and I intended to keep it that way. The majority consisted of men I strictly trusted. After all, who would grant power to someone they didn't trust? My runes vastly increased power, I wouldn't hand that out like bread.
"The jarls have already summoned all the men. The ships are fully loaded. Even with few experienced sailors, we will be able to reach the Stepstones peacefully, or even Dorne."
The plan was simple: although the fleet did not have a 100% veteran sailing crew, my men were training and learning in practice. Our 36 vessels would set sail for the Stepstones. There, the most experienced warriors would sail with the main fleets, while the rest would split up to hunt pirates around the islands or capture fleeing vessels.
"As you instructed, none of the wargs will go to this war," Melika continued. "They are honing their skinchanging, and in the meantime, they watch over and report the location of any other isolated wildling settlements."
"Besides that, we are already nearly a hundred thousand inhabitants here in Scalebay. We have reached a very significant number and the work doesn't stop. The ironwood forest is being protected, and other common trees are being prioritized for logging."
I nodded, satisfied. Ironwood was an invaluable material. It could be sold for absurd prices, and ships made from it, even more so. It had everything to be the greatest source of wealth for my people.
"Your brother reported that the bronze and tin mines... and the recently discovered iron mines are proving extremely promising. According to him, the gathering of iron sand has been canceled, as the mines not only supply our demand, but are also generating surplus stock."
That was perfect. The North is full of minerals, but most are hidden under the snow or in places of extreme cold, where the workers wouldn't withstand the conditions. But, with the magic of the runes, the logistics completely changed.
"Your brother has also maintained a lot of contact with the giants, and the relationship between them and the Thenns is improving. He asked again if you are sure you don't want the Thenn warriors joining us in this war."
"As we've discussed, it won't be necessary."
"Well... Going back to the wargs report... We have a total of..." she dragged out her voice while flipping through the ledger, "fifty-seven wargs. More than half of them can already control more than one beast. As you instructed, most have bonded with direwolves." She smiled slightly. "Fenrir's siblings have all been claimed and have real companions now," she said with a smile.
"Speaking of which, how is Fenrir?" she asked, curious.
"That was one of the reasons I wanted to talk. I'll be leaving for about three weeks, and I'll return exactly on the eve of our departure for the war. I'm going to meet with Fenrir and the remaining beasts to establish my bonds."
Melika shot me an 'are you serious' look.
"Very professional of you. And perfectionist."
Ignoring the irony, I continued my line of thought:
"As we already talked about, a large mammoth to influence the migration of the giants is vital. We could establish continuous trade routes, transporting large amounts of ore with mammoths from the Thenn Valley to Scalebay. In the future, we could even build settlements at the Bay of Ice. If we form a stable commercial triangulation between these points, the giant population will grow. Some of them will certainly feel the desire to live in our cities... And then, the North will, at last, be unified."
"It's a grand ambition, my king. And something that will take time."
"We have time, Melika. You, more than anyone, know that we won't die anytime soon."
"You kno..."
I cut Melika off before she could finish the sentence. We shared a tacit understanding about my prolonged vitality.
"Immortality is a curse, not a blessing. I don't intend to live forever, but at least double that of a normal man. That's not much, is it? Even turtles live longer," I joked, despite carrying a certain anguish.
It was true: living 200 years with my current constitution was probable. Maybe more. The future is unpredictable, and this longevity was something I feared. Not knowing when my end would come bothered me, but it wasn't something I liked to think about.
"Leave the future for the future... Continue..." I asked, focusing on her eyes.
She sighed.
"Try to be quick on this trip of yours."
"It will be..."
"Continuing: the wargs. We are integrating them more into the combat ranks. As you instructed, those who control three beasts have been named Jarls, even if they have little tactical experience."
"It's a good start. Imagine, Melika... a light cavalry mounted on direwolves. It would be legendary," I said, feeling my eyes shine.
"And, finally, Skagos. The construction of ships that we used to buy from them has decreased, per your request. In return, the amount of imported wool has increased almost fourfold, as well as the unicorn horns. We are also stockpiling obsidian en masse. Three hundred Skagosi warriors are already camped in Scalebay."
"As we agreed, half of them will go to the Stepstones, and the other half will stay here to reinforce the patrols and integrate into our culture."
"And that's it," Melika finished, closing the book and looking at me with a calm gaze.
"You did an excellent job, future wife. Thank you."
"Now it's your turn," she demanded.
"It's very little compared to everything you've done," I admitted. "Well, aside from all the logistics of the fleet and the military raid, I did a few things in the forge. First: I created two runes of my own design, and I figured out a way to make a weapon—in this case, my axe—able to house functional and interactive runes."
As soon as I said that, Melika's eyes sparkled with fascination. She wasn't considered a witch for nothing.
"I haven't tested it in practice yet, but the theory is incredibly promising."
"That is spectacular! It opens infinite doors for our people. Congratulations, my king..." she said, hugging my neck a little tighter.
"As for the rest... you already know everything, and the reports confirm it."
Melika's eyes kept shining with expectation.
"So show me the axe... Leviathan, right? You've made me curious," she asked, excited. She jumped to her feet and grabbed my hands.
"Now?" I asked, already being dragged by her toward the door.