A Viking Birth Sigrid's son is born while the Valkyries ride across the sky.

A Viking Raid  Sigrid's father is killed in a punishment raid by the future King Hakon of Norway.

 Shield-Maiden

Chapter 1.

 

I had seen eight summers when my father gave me my first sword.

‘Here you are, Sigrid, it’s about the right size for you.’ he said. ‘I don’t know who it belonged to but it is forged from best Frankish iron. I’m sure it served somebody well until he was unfortunate enough to meet me in battle.’ I drew the blade from the fleece-lined scabbard and turned it so it caught the sunlight. It had a pattern of trefoils on the grip. The top of the hilt had broken off and my father had our blacksmith replace it with a silver disc with a picture of an eye on either side.

‘That way she can see in both directions and your enemies won’t take you by surprise,’ he said. I nodded. It made sense. I named her Snakebite and I treasured that sword above all other possessions.

I grew up among the Cumbrian fells where I rode my small mare Whitefoot and hunted deer and hare with bow and arrows. I swam in Loweswater and tickled trout in the small beck. When unable to escape, I also helped with the work on our farm Becklund. It seemed a perfect life and I saw no reason for it ever to end. But in AD 933 it did. My whole world changed with the arrival of a stranger who had violence etched in the lines of his face.

 

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