Bards - Tag Tale Part 2

Ulf Gunnarsson ulfie at mmcable.com
Tue Jan 9 22:13:58 PST 2001


You're a sick man, FitzMorgan.

> Tag Tale
> Part 1 by Robert Fitzmorgan
>
>     Sven stood at the prow of his longship.  The rolling of the ship a
match
> to the rolling in his gut.  The sun was peaking over the horizon like a
giant
> bloodshot eye.  He had drunk a great deal of mead the night before,
everyone
> had.  Not enough though.  Not enough for them to forget ...  Was there
enough
> mead in all the world to make them forget that?  The oarsmen were intently
> studying the sunrise, the sea or the backs of their companions, looking
> anywhere but at him.  No one dared to look at him.
>     It was time to decide on a destination.  It would have to be Ireland.
No
> one knew him in Ireland.  He would have to do something very impressive if
he
> was ever to show his face at home again.  He would have to build a
reputation
> so fierce that know one would dare to so much as smile behind his back.
Not
> that they would forget.  They would never forget.
>     If only it hadn't been Gunther's pig.
>


  Already the other men on the ship were making little "nooff-nooff" sounds
like pigs when they thought he couldn't hear.  Seven days of this might find
his temper too short for the ribbing of even the best of friends.
  The casks and bales had been loaded the day before, and all was ready.
Sven curtly ordered the steersman, Olaf, to put them out of this Danish bog
and onto the clean road of the horse of the sea.
  "Where to, sea-king?" asked Olaf.
  "Dublin." he answered.  "The furs and amber will fetch fine prices there,
and we can take on some linen.  Maybe the land of the Franks after that, or
even the Moors.  Irish linen should fetch a fine price there."
  Not that he needed the silver.  Not now.  Gunthar was good to his word,
and had paid up on the bet.  But the bag hanging at his side was not as
heavy as the stone in his stomach.  His reputation turned to foolery for one
foolish bet.  The High One warns of too much mead, the godi say.  He should
have been specific about kissing pigs.

Next...
Ulfie

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