Bloodlines of the Ancient Pantheons

"Those don't promise anything good..." Karl said, pointing to the menacing, rain-laden clouds over their heads.

"The journey will be quite short. Thor and Freya are on our side, they will protect us" exclaimed Dag, who did not really believe those words, but found them very useful to encourage his companions, doubtful about the future outcome of the mission. 

The waves immediately began to slam on the sides of the boat, trying to counteract its gait, but it did not change significantly, thanks to the reinforced and stable layout of the Brass Arrow, the spearhead of Runar's naval engineering.

"If we get out alive, I swear I'll buy this boat, at the cost of losing all my money!" continued Dag, to dampen the tension of the moment, prompting laughter among his companions, who looked at the Island in front of them, whose contours became more and more wide and sharp.

"Captain! I think those are observation towers! Up there!" shouted Reidar, pointing to three high towers rising on the island from the steep, high rocky shores.

Just then, a heavy downpour broke out, which combined with the sharp wind, created a real storm, complete with lightning and thunder.

"Perfect! I'm sure they won't see us now! Seeing a boat so small from up there, in this weather, is practically impossible!" replied Reidar, happy with that lucky coincidence.

"Did you see? Thor listened to our words! He's helping us!" said Dag, trying to hold the rudder bar still, which was shaking under the force of the waves. 

"Where the fuck are we going?! Can you see a safe place to leave the boat?" asked Gridd aloud, to counteract the sound of wind and rain, slamming into the boat causing a loud bang.

"That way! I see an inlet and a cave! I think from there you can climb avoiding the port, which seems to be that way!" exclaimed Dag, squinting and sharpening his eyes, managing to get a complete picture of the situation, despite the very poor visibility in the middle of the storm.

"Hahaha! I'm never going to figure out how the fuck you do that, bro! Come on, take us there!" replied Gridd, chuckling, full of adrenaline. 

"Dag, that cave will definitely be guarded, we have to be careful, otherwise our cover will break immediately!" shouted Karl, terrified of what they were going to do. 

"I'll handle this! When we're close to those rocks, I'll be more sheltered from the rain and I'll be able to aim!" said Reidar, pulling out the Failnaught.

Dag said nothing, continuing to steer the boat to the inlet, focused, and rabid.

"I'll find you, my love! If you're still alive, hold on! Your man is coming to get you! I'm going to kill these sons of bitches from the first to the last, nothing and no one will stop me!" he thought.

Approaching the rocky coast, the advance of the boat became even more difficult, due to the sharp rocks protruding from the water, lower than in the open sea. 

"We're almost there, Reidar, get ready! Gridd, come here, take the helm!" shouted Dag, arranging the attack.

"What?! I've never ridden a boat like that! I'm not sure I can! Why can't you continue?!" she asked, who stood next to him, fearful of not being up to the task. 

"You have already driven other boats, for me this was the first time! You'll see Gridd, you'll be great! I will help Reidar, we do not know how many enemies are hiding in the cave! Take the helm and point in that direction... when you'll be just a few feet away from the rock, turn it completely and bring the side of the Brass Arrow closer to the cave. We'll jump down and find a way to dock! All clear?" replied Dag, explaining to Gridd the whole manoeuvre, in detail.

"Uhm... But... But I..." Gridd stammered, when he left the rudder in her hands, without giving her time to think.

Holding it firmly, she too managed to maintain the course of the boat more or less stable.

The storm continued to rage undauntedly over their heads, and the rain became even more intense, so much so that it made it difficult to even distinguish the rocks a few meters in front of them.

Suddenly, the amount of water raining on them again decreased, due to the inlet on the rocky coast, as Dag had predicted.

"Reidar, keep your eyes open!" he said, pulling out only his hammer, as Reidar leaned on the bow of the boat, to aim as soon as he had a good field of view on his enemies.

The loud sound of the waves slamming on the rocks near the cave, favored their approach, making the Brass Arrow even quieter. 

When they were close enough, they noticed that a faint light came from inside the natural cavity.

Considering the fact that, reflecting on the walls of the cave, the glow was not continuous, they sensed that it was a bonfire.

Reidar charged an arrow over the Failnaught, and two other magical arrows of a shining yellow sprang out of nowhere, shimmering in the rain.

Gridd, as Dag suggested earlier, pulled the rudder lever and then pushed it to the other side, causing the boat to perform a kind of drift, positioning its right flank towards the rock face, full of sharp edges, brought to that state by the continuous action of the swell.

In the darkness of the faintly lit cave, three men sat by the bonfire, chatting to each other, oblivious to what was about to happen.

Reidar, without thinking twice, fired all three arrows: two of them scored, hitting two men on the back, while the other missed the target, due to the abrupt movements of the boat, which rose just before the shot.

"Fuck!" shouted Reidar, who immediately grabbed another arrow from the quiver and charged it on the Failnaught, that this time did not generate the additional magic ones, because the archer's cover had dropped: the enemies had spotted them.