A Hearth, a Horn, a Cry... and Valhalla Answers, Part One
Posted on Tue Feb 23rd, 2021 @ 7:28pm by Commander Magnus Morgensen
432 words; about a 2 minute read
Within the holosuites of Deep Space Nine ran a program designed by Morgensen that none had ever been priviledged to see to date. Inside, the air was dense with wood-smoke, the dark sky lit only by twilight above, and firelight below. Kneeling at the fire, dressed only in furs and adorned with blackened ink over all exposed flesh was Magnus, staring upwards to the heavens, his eyes ablaze with fire and rage. He spoke aloud, though he felt as though his words would fall on deaf ears, as they have of late. His native tongue, the Old Norse in which he grew up on, shouted gutteral and piercing to the midnight sky above.
"Time and time again I challenged any who dare tell me that following my heart above my heritage would deem me exiled from Valhalla! Now I need not challenge those who hide within their Halls, warmed by their hearths and in such drunken stupor that they have lost sight of who we are! I have proven by my actions that I am more a warrior... More a Viking... than any of those who cower away from their legacies! Valhalla, the Hall of the Honored Dead! I laugh! Valhalla is no different than Helheim! You wander, lost, blinded, and remembered only as fools!"
Dumping a horn of mead to the ground before him, letting it spill intentionally to symbolize his disdain to his now false idols, rather than offering it to them, he spat upon the pool of liquid on the ground before him. Lowering his head, he let out a deep sigh, and turned his back on the fire... but this time was different. This time, the fire grew cold in an instant. Thunder clashed the air around him, and lightning streaked across the skies. Trees shook and shivered as the cold Norse wind rushed through their leaves. And yet still, Magnus kept his back to it all. A voice on the wind called out, but Magnus refused to listen, standing to his feet.
"You had your chance to speak, and you chose to remain silent... Now it is your turn to watch. To listen... and maybe you will learn what it is to be a Viking once more..."
Once more the wind howled, the sky cracked, and lightning struck the Earth, splitting trees and igniting the ground with fire. Still, Magnus kept his back turned.
"No matter your rage, your pain, your admittance of failure... we all pay a price for ignorance! You turned your backs on me... and now I turn mine to you! Computer... End Program!"
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