After the campaign, Rurik returned to the western bank of the Dnieper.
When news spread that Hulus and his entire force had been annihilated, nearby Rus chiefs arrived one after another to celebrate the hard-won victory.
Hulus had been only eighteen years old.
If he had been given enough time, he might have become the dominant nomad ruler of the middle Dnieper region.
Fortunately, that young wolf had been slain by Rurik before such disasters could unfold.
A New King
"To Rurik—thank him for everything he has done for us!"
"To King Rurik!"
The chiefs raised their cups in celebration.
As the feast progressed and the wine flowed freely, someone proposed a bold idea:
"In recent years, the nomads have become more aggressive. No single tribe can deal with them alone."
"Why not choose a king—someone responsible for organizing all the tribes to defend against the Pechenegs?"
When the banquet ended, twenty-three tribes acknowledged Rurik as their king.
He gladly accepted.
Rurik planned to build a fortress on the western bank of the Dnieper, choosing a strategic location to serve as a base for passing trade caravans.
Suspicion of Nils
At first, Rurik intended to appoint Nils as the commander of the garrison.
However, his trusted advisor Holmren privately warned him.
"Your Majesty, Nils is exceptionally talented—more capable than you and all the nobles under your command."
"You must have heard about what he did in Denmark. His ambition is too great. If you allow him to command troops far from your oversight, he will eventually betray you."
Rurik hesitated.
"Nils achieved great merit in this campaign. If I reward him with nothing, it will damage my reputation."
"And if he grows resentful, rebellion becomes even more likely."
Holmren then proposed a clever solution.
"Last night at the feast I heard something interesting. The Varangian Guard of the Eastern Roman Empire recently suffered heavy losses—the commander was killed."
"Emperor Michael III is urgently requesting new warriors."
"Why not have the Rus chiefs jointly recommend Nils? Send him to Constantinople as the new commander of the Varangian Guard. That would be reward enough."
The Varangian Guard
In recent years, the Eastern Roman Empire had begun hiring Viking warriors.
Vikings were:
tall and physically powerful
raised in a warrior culture
often poor and eager for pay
They made ideal mercenaries.
Impressed by their ferocity, Emperor Michael III spent enormous sums creating a special elite unit:
the Varangian Guard.
The name "Varangian" came from the Old Norse word "Var," meaning oath.
Rurik's Decision
"Nils is the finest commander I've ever had," Rurik said quietly.
"It's a shame to send him away."
He sipped cold mead while Holmren stood silently beside him, like a harmless statue.
The next morning, Rurik delivered the "good news" to Nils.
Nils immediately sensed the hidden motive.
But he did not show anger.
Instead, seeing that Rurik felt somewhat guilty, he made a request.
"If the Varangian Guard has lost half its men, I cannot go alone. I should recruit enough soldiers to accompany me."
"Agreed," Rurik said quickly.
"Except for the palace guard, you may choose whoever volunteers."
He clearly wanted this dangerous subordinate gone as soon as possible.
Recruiting Warriors
The Eastern Roman Empire paid extremely high wages, so both Vikings and Rus warriors rushed to volunteer.
Nils carefully selected five hundred men.
Since the lower Dnieper had not yet frozen, they departed immediately after assembling the force.
Arrival at the Greek Outpost
In mid-December, Nils's fleet reached the mouth of the Dnieper River and reported to a nearby Greek trading station.
At the docks, a middle-aged bureaucrat named Titus greeted them.
"You finally arrived!"
At Nils's signal, the five hundred warriors formed a square formation on open ground for inspection.
Titus walked slowly through the ranks, examining their physiques.
"Excellent," he said.
"Strong bodies—and some discipline. His Majesty will be pleased."
Speaking broken Norse, Titus asked:
"You are their commander?"
"Yes," Nils replied.
"I am Nils, the White Raven of Gnuts, nephew of Ragnar."
Journey to Constantinople
Nils's life story was complicated, and it took him a long time to explain it.
Titus nodded slightly and led the noisy, wide-eyed barbarians—many of whom had never seen such places before—to their quarters.
After five days of rest, favorable winds arrived.
Titus led the fleet cautiously along the coastline.
By the end of the year, they reached Constantinople.
The Queen of Cities
Twenty longships passed through the Bosporus Strait.
The first sight before them was the massive Theodosian Walls, stretching along the shoreline like the spine of a giant.
Under the gray sky, the towering stone fortifications looked solemn and unstoppable.
"By Odin," Nils murmured,
"I never thought I would see this place a second time."
Nothing seemed to have changed.
At the entrance to the Golden Horn, a massive iron chain still blocked the harbor.
The chain was supported by floating pontoons and gleamed coldly in the winter light, guarding the port behind it.
Even though winter was the off-season for sailing, Constantinople's harbor remained busy.
Ships from:
EgyptSyriathe Black Sea coastItalyand distant lands
crowded the docks.
Onshore, people dressed in countless different styles hurried through the cold wind like tireless ants.
Nils shook his head in amazement.
"No wonder they call it the City Desired by the World."
"Even if Londinium, Paris, Oslo, and Novgorod were combined, they wouldn't match half of this city's grandeur."
The Dromon Warships
Suddenly, five massive double-decked warships passed by.
Nils quickly ordered his ships to steer aside.
Titus greeted one of the officers aboard and then explained:
"These are the Empire's largest warships, called Dromons."
"A standard Dromon carries 180 men—60 sailors and 120 rowers."
"The rowers operate on two decks. The ship has two rams:"
an underwater ram to smash hullsan above-water ram to break enemy oars
Nils examined the dragon-shaped figurehead at the bow.
He guessed it was likely the outlet for Greek fire, used to burn enemy ships.
On the stern deck stood a large torsion ballista.
Nils laughed.
"Haha, that's exactly the same as the ballista used by the Britannian fleet."
Titus immediately protested.
"This weapon originated in Greece and has been used for over a thousand years! What does it have to do with those barbarian lands of Western or Northern Europe?"
Nils ignored the argument about its origin and instead studied the ship carefully.
The Dromon was longer than Vig's new sailing ships.
With its dense rows of oars on two decks, the galley could combine rowing and wind power to achieve much higher short-term speed than a sailing vessel.
But it had weaknesses:
the center of gravity was high
it handled poorly in rough seas
the large crew reduced cargo space
After considering everything, Nils reached his conclusion:
"In coastal waters, these ships have the advantage."
"But in the open ocean, they cannot compete with Vig's new two-masted sailing ships."
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