Bloodlines of the Ancient Pantheons

Dag noticed with joy that the renovation of the Temple's main door had now been completed.

The high steel door was closed.

Dag approached, looking up, waiting for someone on guard to recognize him from the observation towers.

"It's Dag, open the gates!" someone yelled from inside the walls.

"Wow! You're so famous!" said Karl, looking around.

Dag did not answer, waiting for the door to open completely.

"Hello, Dag. You're back. And you got a company as well… I was sure you'd come back alone" Egill said, approaching the two travelers to welcome them.

"Master Egill" Dag said, bowing his head slightly out of respect.

Karl watched Dag and did the same.

"Did you get what you needed?" asked Egill, who looked closely at both Dag and Karl.

Dag touched the axe wrapped in linen towels and slamming his knuckles on it, the hard steel of its blades rang.

"Well. I'm glad you did it without any difficulty. Come in, let's go into the library and tell me everything" Egill continued, nodding to Dag, who followed him.

"Wait for me here, Karl. I think the Master wants to talk to me alone. I'm going to be with you again soon. Take a walk in the Temple in the meantime" Dag whispered to Karl, winking at him.

Karl nodded, obeying Dag's orders, who entered the library.

After entering, he closed the door behind him.

Before saying anything, he got rid of the heavy load he carried behind his back and uncovered the axe, placing it on the table.

"I think you remember this weapon. Am I right, Master?" said Dag with a satisfied air.

"I don't believe my eyes. It's Brann's axe. Amazingly, Asa has been able to guard it so thoroughly all this time" said Egill, who began to touch the blades of the axe slightly with his fingers.

"My mother, in addition to handing me the axe, also told me something. Something very important: the true story of this weapon and Eirik, Brann's brother" Dag continued, sighing.

"Eirik? I vaguely remember him. He died when bandits attacked him and Brann during one of their first expeditions. His body was never found".

Dag looked Egill in the eye, with a look of understanding.

"You know something I don't know... right, boy?" asked Egill, sitting at the table.

Dag sat in front of him, saying: "For all those years, my mother Asa never told me the truth about Brann. But she didn't do it out of malice, no... she did so as not to dishonor his name, which is still remembered today by the warriors of the most feared Clans of Skjold".

Showing Egill the red crystals embedded in the eyes of the metal deer head, Dag detailed the story of Eirik and the Soul Fusion that tied his spirit to that weapon.

"This is shocking. I didn't know anything about this. Brann lied to all of us, this explains why he never wanted to talk about his brother. I thought he felt too much pain for his death" said Egill, touching his forehead with the hand and looking closely at the red crystals.

"As I explained to you, my next goal is to go to Vegard, who has direct ties to our Gods, maybe he can tell me a little more about my powers" Dag said.

"As you wish, the choice is yours. Do you think your dark powers are tied to the Gods? In that case, your reference God would be Hel, the only one with such a dark power... or maybe the great wolf Fenrir..." continued Egill, trying to surmise what the source of Dag's powers was.

"No, Master. I don't think so. I believe that my dark powers do not belong to this Pantheon or even to the Earth. They come from much farther away. In any case, I need to know more about them".

"So be it, Dag. I trust your judgment. In your heart, you know what you have to do. But don't forget what we said. I hope you're still willing to reunite the Clans and prepare for the great battle".

"In that regard..." continued Dag, pulling the n° 10 emblem from his pocket and resting it on one of the Red Executioner's blades.

"How do I know the location of the other emblems? It wouldn't take a lifetime to research them all, I wonder how King Einarr did it".

"Mh... that's a good question. There must be a way" Egill replied, taking the necklace.

He clasped it in his hands and closed his eyes.

"Interesting..." he said softly, as Dag watched his movements carefully, not understanding what he was doing.

"Can you track down other artifacts like that?" asked Dag, hoping for a positive response that would make his job easier.

"I got it!" exclaimed Egill, opening his eyes to Dag.

He left the emblem on the table and went to the other side of the library.

Dag followed him with his eyes.

He moved a ladder that stood near the wall, leaning it against a tall solid wooden closet.

After climbing the ladder to the upper levels, he pulled out a key and opened one of the highest doors.

Dag approached him, continuing to observe.

"Where did that thing go..." muttered Egill, with both arms and head tucked into the closet's door, looking for something.

"Ah! I found it!" he exclaimed, pulling out a dusty little chest.

He closed the door of the closet and got off the ladder.

After blowing on the chest, the dust rose in a small cloud that dissolved in the library.

"What is that?" asked Dag, intrigued.

"You must know that, before me, the Clan's Master Of Healing was Olav, the chemist. In addition to being my mentor and life teacher, he tried to teach me some of his notions of chemistry" said Egill, who walked to the table and placed the small chest on it.

The lock of that metal box was not locked but closed with two tight straps.

"I remember him talking to me at length about the particles that compose the matter and the energy they emanate. Objects such as these weapons, Brann's axe or Magni's hammer, exude strong energy, as they are sources of power. But there are other objects, which give off weaker energy, a single, imperceptible to the human ear vibration" he continued.

Dag did not say a word, he merely listened.