Journey of Vengeance

Prologue

In a small village about 6 days out from Kilbo, Norway, lived a family of three, the Fredrikson's. Odin and Ingrid Fredrikson had one child, Freya. The family made sure that the people in the village had the means to survive. Ingrid taught the women how to hunt and forge the forest for other resources, whereas Odin taught the men to cook and take care of the children.

Ingrid and the women of the village left to go hunting at dawn, and in just a few short hours, life in the village would change.

Freya was 12 when the Viking Clan came. They ransacked homes, and if you dared to defy or fight back, you were stricken down. Odin hid Freya under the floorboards, telling Freya that no matter what she heard, she needed to stay put and be as silent as possible. Just as Odin laid the floor board back in place and stood to turn around the door smashed open to reveal a monstrous man. "I am Calder, bow down and show your allegiance to your new leader." Odin refused and spit in his face, telling Calder that no matter what he tried, he would never bow and show allegiance to him. Calder became furious, drawing his sword, slicing Odin's head off in one swift movement, watching his body crumple to the floor. Freya covered her mouth and tried to stay silent while tears streamed down her face. Calder tore through the house, finding nothing of value. While he stood over the floorboard, blood from his sword dripped down onto Freya's face, as she tried not to scream. Calder turned on his heels and headed out of the house barking orders at his clan and the villagers.

Ingrid had finally returned home to find her husband dead and her daughter nowhere to be seen. She started to panic, dropping her hunting equipment. "Freya! Where are you?" She screamed, searching the house. She heard a creak and spun around, sword drawn to find her baby girl climbing out of the floor. Rushing forward, she crushed her Freya into a hug, thanking the gods for saving her only child, she didn't know what she would have done if something had happened to Freya as well.

Ingrid sent Freya to take care of the animals she had brought home from her hunt. Once she left the room, Ingrid cried over her husband's body before preparing him for the burning. She rolled Odin's body and head in cloth and carried him out of the house. As she walks to a spot to set him down, she noticed all of the clothed bodies people are carrying, there's even a few small bundles, that she assumed to be children. She breaks, sobs rake her body so violently that she loses her grip on Odin's body and he tumbles to the ground unrolling. Ingrid sinks to the ground and lets out a heart wrenching scream. How could someone be so monstrous that they kill children? Villagers put down their loved ones and kneel before Ingrid, taking turns paying their respects. When Ingrid finds her voice she says, "This day will be remembered as a tragedy, but we will keep pushing forward for the loved ones we still have."

Later that evening, the villagers gathered in a clearing in the woods to burn their loved ones. The clothed bodies of men and children were laid in a circle and one by one, they were lit on fire as the families watched the smoke carry their loved one's souls to the afterlife.

As time passed, the Viking invaders took rule over the village. Calder was disgusted by how weak the men were. He banned the women from hunting and fighting, that was a man's sole duty, the women would tend to the children and other traditional roles. Non-compliance with this law would result in public execution by hanging. Then the remaining men were rounded up and subjugated to build Calder's family fortress that would loom over the village. When the fortress was completed the men would report straight to training camp to learn fighting and hunting skills. This ban infuriated Ingrid. She decided that she would train her daughter to fight so that she would never be defenseless. Then with the help of Freya, over the next four years, she would offer secret training or practice to women who wanted it.