Prøven | Part 2

A dayhad gone by, and the young ewe lay buried beneath the great oak right next to the sheep pasture. Kettil just couldn’t get it over his heart to take her down the farm and still prepare her meat for the winter to come. Gerolf would kill him, if he knew the perfectly good meat had gone to waiste, but everything in Kettil screamed that it was just not right to do. Now she was put to rest and could spent her afterlife in the pastures of Valhalla. And that thought was well enough to sooth Kettil’s mind for a bit.

There were many indications that pointed to the fact that it had been a wolf, who ripped apart the sheep’s throat. When Kettil had buried the ewe, he had also stumbled upon some footprints that clearly came from the forest and perfectly aligned with the wolf footprints he had found nearby the pack. But why? Why was this wolf lonely? Why did it come towards the village and hunt on livestock? As far as he knew the people from Skagerrak stayed away far enough from the pack, they had not invaded their territory. Nothing made sense, and even though the wolf had killed one of his sheep, he worried a bit about the animal itself. Was it sick? On a certain level it had peeked his interest, and now he had realized there was nothing to do about the ewe’s death, he started to focus on the beast that wandered on the edges of the village. This wolf was a potential thread, if not for the livestock or the people, then for himself. Kettil knew there would be many who’d want to kill him if they knew there he was coming closer towards their houses. There were plenty children in Skagerrak, and Kettil didn’t wanted te keep the information for himself, when there was a chance that people could get hurt because of it. But he had to take cautious steps in this progress, there he did not want that the wolf was killed. First he wanted to see the beast, and look what was wrong with it. He had spent many days in the forest, observing, to know what normal behavior was. And this was definately not.

It was quiet in the great hall when he entered. He remembered how he had faced Rigas, the last time he had been here. And the realization that he wouldn’t be facing the earl again, gave him a strange feeling. His eyes were pointed towards the empty thrones as he stepped forwards. Nobody to be seen. Until there was a creaking sound, coming from the side of the room. Kettil’s heart made a jump when there doomed up a person from the dark. Steinar. The man had always given him the creeps. There was this strange vibe around him, but at the same time he had never seen anybody so loyal to the earl and countess. ”Steinar.” Kettil greeted him politely and bowed his head a little. ”I have come to see Gunnvor. There is some important information I need to share with her. It involves the safety of the people from Skagerrak.” For a moment Steinar stood there dead quiet, observing the young boy. ”You can share your important information with me.” Kettil frowned his eyebrows,  not really understanding why he couldn’t speak to Gunnvor herself. But then he saw the piercing glance in Steinar’s blue eyes, and understood immediately. Now with Rigas gone, the countess probably had other things on her mind. ”Speak.” Said the old man, and walked in a circle around Kettil. ”There was an attack on the livestock yesterday.” He spoke softly and watched how Steinar took place on the edge of a table, pulling his foot upon the bench and leaning on his knee. At least he was truly interested about the thing that was going on. ”An attack?” He said, with his deep, calm voice. ”Why do I hear this today if the attack was yesterday?” The frown that had appeared on the elder man’s head made him nervous. For a second Kettil was quiet, and thought about his actions. Had he been wrong to come to this man today with the issue? And not yesterday? ”There was a lot going on on the farm yesterday, and now my brother Gerolf is gone, I felt like I could not leave the farm in that state alone. One of the sheep was attacked, all the other animals were out of control and needed my caretaking.” Steinar stroke with his fingers over his stubbled beard and gestured him to continue. ”And who exactly do you think attacked the sheep?” – ”Not who. What.” Kettil swallowed away the small lump that has appeared in his throat. Speaking towards the man was harder than he had expected. ”You are talking about an animalt?” The interest on Steinar’s face only grew stronger by the second. Kettil nodded to give his words more meaning. ”I think there is a lone wolf lurking from the edge of the forest. There are many indications, I have even found some plucks of fur of him hanging in some bushes. Never have I seen this behavior before, and I am afraid that this will not be the last we have seen of him.” Steinar raised from the table and turned around, thinking about the news that Kettil had brought. He had spent many years in the nature and also had some knowledge of animal behavior. Enough to know that a sick wolf could cause some real danger towards the people of Skagerrak. ”Are you talking about a sick wolf?” In a strange way the question gave Kettil more confidence. He was really being asked about his opinion in this case, he was allowed to speak freely and not being pierced into the ground like his brother always did to him. ”Sick, maybe. But I am more thinking about an outcast, a young wolf disowned from the pack. The kill was not precise and there were more sheep who had smaller bite wounds. It was not a very targeted hunt if you ask me. And in the end the buck was able to chase him of.” Steinar hummed in approval and thought further about it. ”So the wolf still has not eaten a thing. He will be back.” – ”My thoughts exactly.” Steinar now stood in front of Kettil when he spoke again. ”What have you done with the dead sheep?” With his eyebrows frowned he waited for an answer. ”I have buried her.” And with that answer, there appeared a smile on Steinar’s face. ”You will hear from me soon. Keep an eye out, and make sure that the sheep are locked in for the night.” With those words the old man turned around and started to walk towards the back of the great hall. ”You are not going to kill it?” Kettil softly shouted at him. There was this smile on his face that he did not could control. The man didn’t wanted to kill the animal. ”Not for now. Sometimes a lone wolf is just misunderstood and labeled to be dangerous. Before we can make a judge and play as the Gods we think we are, we first need to see through our own eyes what we are dealing with.” Kettil nodded and made another small bow towards the man. ”I will see you tomorrow.” And with those words Steinar disappeared behind the curtains on the back of the great hall.

Mention of: @Gerolf Hagensson, @Gunnvor Skaeringsdóttir