The day was still early and Urimenor had just come back from foraging for more herbs and medicinal plants. As she entered the village she paused and looked around, it was quiet. She could see the fishermen down on the docks and men coming back from morning hunts. Uri looked to her left and saw that the metal-smith was awake and getting his fire warmed up. When she looked to her right she saw the mountains and at the base of them was the witches' home.

Most girls got betrothed between the ages of 13 and 15 and got married after they turned 16. Well, for witches it was rare to become betrothed, so they normally lived together. Since Uri had just recently turned 17 she was being forced to move into the witches' home with the other 2 witches that lived there. One was an older woman, old enough she could be a village elder, and the other was a middle-aged woman.

Urimenor shivered before she turned right, headed towards the witchs’ home. The path beneath her furry leather boots changed to a more uneven path, proof the path wasn’t taken very often. Once Uri reached the door she knocked and then entered, no one said anything as she entered. She simply went to the stairs and climbed up.

Her space would be the small paper floor of the house since she was the only one able enough to get to it. She was in the process of moving her stuff, thankfully she had already moved most of it and she just needed to get furs and blankets before winter hit. She looked around her small space and stored the herbs in a safe place before she went back down the stairs and left. The house was dead silent and no one ever said anything to anyone anyway.

When Urimenor left the house she looked around and froze, in front of her, in the distance she could see a group of fishing ships bringing in a whale. With a sigh, she headed for the docks. Certain parts of the whales were useful, like their bones, they made excellent braces.

As she walked closer to the docks the fishermen were seen hauling it on land and they had begun gutting the large beast and hauling its guts out before throwing them back out in the ocean. When she got closer villagers made way for her. One of the perks of being a witch was that if something was that no one ever questioned what you were doing because they knew they wouldn’t understand anyway. They just made way and allowed her to get right up to the whale.

“ᛁ ᚾᛖᛖᛞ ᛒᛟᚾᛖᛋ” (I need bones) She said in a monotone voice, seeing that they had cut enough meat away already to expose the bone. One of the fishermen glared at her for a moment then let out a huff and he took the back of his axe and struck the large bone several times until it broke. They cut the rest of the meat away from it before making a pile of large bones.

“ᛁ ᚹᛁᛚᛚ ᚾᛖᛖᛞ ᚻᛖᛚᛈ” (I will need help) she said as if it wasn’t obvious enough, the irritated fisherman motioned for his sons to help Uri. Once they picked up the bones she led them back to the witches’ home where they dropped them outside and left. With a bored sigh, Uri watched the young men walk away before she began bringing in the bones one by one. The other witches stared at her wide-eyed.

“ᛏᚻᛖᚣ ᚳᚫᚢᚸᚻᛏ ᚫ ᚹᚻᚫᛚᛖᛳ” (They caught a whale?) The middle-aged woman said in an arrogant tone. “ᛏᚻᛁᛋ ᛚᚫᛏᛖ ᛁᚾ ᛏᚻᛖ ᛋᛖᚫᛋᛟᚾᛳ” (this late in the season?)

“ᛈᚱᛟᛒᚫᛒᛚᚣ ᛋᛁᚳᚴᛧ ᛗᚫᚴᛖ ᛋᚢᚱᛖ ᚫᛚᛚ ᛟᚩ ᛏᚻᛖ ᛒᛟᚾᛖᛋ ᚫᚱᛖ ᛋᛏᚱᛟᚾᚸ” (Probably sick, make sure all of the bones are strong) The oldest witch said, motioning to one bone and prodding it with her walking stick.

“ᛁᛏ ᛏᛟᛟᚴ ᛏᚻᛖᛗ ᛗᚫᚾᚣ ᛋᛏᚱᛁᚴᛖᛋ ᛏᛟ ᛒᚱᛖᚫᚴ ᛏᚻᛖ ᛒᛟᚾᛖ” (It took them many strikes to break the bone) Uri said and the oldest one nodded, concluding their conversation.

What I use to get the Nordic translator

ᚢᚱᛁᛗᛖᚾᛟᚱ- 17 - 3ᚱᛞ ᛈᛖᚱᛋᛟᚾ

(Urimenor - 17 - 3rd Person)

ᚢᚱᛁᛗᛖᚾᛟᚱ- 17 - 3ᚱᛞ ᛈᛖᚱᛋᛟᚾ

(Urimenor - 17 - 3rd Person)

Urimenor walked towards the lake that her brother had arranged for the two to meet at. Thankfully, her dragon counterpart allowed her to stay awake for days on end without issues. Her pink eyes glowed in the darkness, if a light was to shine on her eyes they wouldn’t reflect yellow, instead, they would reflect pink.

Once Urimenor got there her eyes scanned the edge of the lake, looking for her brother. It didn’t take long for her to find Ragnar, as he was just on the other side of the lake. He looked to be cleaning his weapons. Her boots didn’t make a sound in the grass as she approached him. Knowing Ragnar, he probably sent his wolf out to hunt while he waited.

“ᛋᛟ ᚹᚻᚫᛏᛌᛋ ᛏᚻᛖ ᛈᛚᚫᚾᛳ” (so what’s the plan?) Uri asked Ragnar, causing him to jump and look at her bug-eyed.

“ᚹᛖ ᚹᛁᛚᛚ ᛒᛖ ᚸᛟᛁᚾᚸ ᛋᛟᚢᛏᚻᛧ ᛞᛟᚹᚾ ᛏᚻᛖ ᚳᛟᚫᛋᛏ. ᚩᛁᚱᛋᛏ ᚹᛖ ᚻᚫᚡᛖ ᛏᛟ ᚳᚱᛟᛋᛋ ᛏᚻᛖ ᛗᛟᚢᚾᛏᚫᛁᚾᛋ ᛒᚢᛏ ᛏᚻᛖ ᚡᛁᛚᛚᚫᚸᛖ ᚹᚫᚾᛏᛋ ᛏᛟ ᚴᚾᛟᚹ ᛁᚩ ᛏᚻᛖᚱᛖ ᚫᚱᛖ ᚱᛁᚳᚻᛖᚱ ᚻᚢᚾᛏᛁᚾᚸ ᚸᚱᛟᚢᚾᛞᛋ. ᛁᚩ ᛏᚻᛖᚱᛖ ᚫᚱᛖ ᛏᚻᛖ ᛗᛖᚾ ᛗᛁᚸᚻᛏ ᛋᛏᚫᚱᛏ ᚸᛟᛁᚾᚸ ᛟᚾ ᛚᛟᚾᚸ ᚻᚢᚾᛏᛁᚾᚸ ᛏᚱᛁᛈᛋ ᛁᚾ ᚫᚾ ᚫᛏᛏᛖᛗᛈᛏ ᛏᛟ ᛈᚢᛋᚻ ᛏᚻᛖ ᛞᛖᛖᚱ ᛗᛟᚱᛖ ᛏᛟᚹᚫᚱᛞᛋ ᛏᚻᛖ ᚡᛁᛚᛚᚫᚸᛖ ᛟᚾᚳᛖ ᚫᚸᚫᛁᚾ.” (We will be going south, down the coast. First, we have to cross the mountains but the village wants to know if there are richer hunting grounds. If there are the men might start going on long hunting trips in an attempt to push the deer more towards the village once again.) Ragnar explained in a serious tone.

“ᛋᛟ ᚹᛖ ᚫᚱᛖ ᛖᛪᛈᛚᛟᚱᛁᚾᚸᛧ ᚾᛟᛏ ᚻᚢᚾᛏᛁᚾᚸᛳ” (So we are exploring, not hunting?) Urimenor said in a teasing tone, crossing her arms.

“ᛁ ᚴᚾᛖᚹ ᚣᛟᚢ ᚹᛟᚢᛚᛞ ᚹᚫᚾᛏ ᛏᛟ ᚳᛟᛗᛖ ᛖᛁᛏᚻᛖᚱ ᚹᚫᚣᛧ ᚹᛖ ᛗᛁᚸᚻᛏ ᚩᛁᚾᛞ ᛋᛟᛗᛖ ᚾᛖᚹ ᛈᛚᚫᚾᛏᛋ ᛟᚾ ᛏᚻᛖ ᛟᛏᚻᛖᚱ ᛋᛁᛞᛖ ᛟᚩ ᛏᚻᛖ ᛗᛟᚢᚾᛏᚫᛁᚾᛋ. ᛁ ᛟᚡᛖᚱᚻᛖᚫᚱᛞ ᛏᚻᛖ ᚡᛁᛚᛚᚫᚸᛖ ᛖᛚᛞᛖᚱᛋ ᛏᚫᛚᚴᛁᚾᚸ ᚫᛒᛟᚢᛏ ᚻᛟᚹ ᚣᛟᚢ ᚹᛁᛏᚳᚻᛖᛋ ᚻᚫᚡᛖ ᛒᛖᚾᛖ ᛋᛏᚱᚢᚸᚸᛚᛁᚾᚸ ᛏᛟ ᚩᛁᚾᛞ ᚣᛟᚢᚱ ᚻᛖᚱᛒᛋ. ᛗᚫᚣᛒᛖ ᛋᛏᚫᚱᛏᛁᚾᚸ ᚫ ᚸᚫᚱᛞᛖᚾ ᛟᚩ ᛏᚻᛖᛗ ᛟᚱ ᛒᚱᛁᚾᚸᛁᚾᚸ ᛋᛖᛖᛞᛋ ᛒᚫᚳᚴ ᚹᛟᚢᛚᛞᚾᛌᛏ ᛒᛖ ᚫ ᛒᚫᛞ ᛁᛞᛖᚫ.” (I knew you would want to come either way, we might find some new plants on the other side of the mountains. I overheard the village elders talking about how you witches have been struggling to find your herbs. Maybe starting a garden of them or bringing seeds back wouldn't be a bad idea.) Ragnar explained and Uri shrugged.

“ᚣᛟᚢ ᚻᚫᚡᛖ ᚫ ᚩᚫᛁᚱ ᛈᛟᛁᚾᛏᛧ ᛒᚢᛏ ᛚᛖᛏᛋ ᛋᛏᚫᚱᛏ ᛟᚢᚱ ᛏᚱᛖᚴᛧ ᛖᚡᛖᚱᚣ ᛗᛟᛗᛖᚾᛏ ᛁᛋ ᛈᚱᛖᚳᛁᛟᚢᛋ.” (you have a fair point, but let's start our trek, every moment is precious.) Urimenor said and the two were on their way.

When the two reached the timber-filled base of the mountain they came across a cave that both of them recognized. The cave where Ragnar got his wolf, who was still nowhere in sight, that was until Ragnar whistled.

The white wolf trotted up with fresh blood still on its maw. Uri glanced at it before looking back at the cave.

“ᚫᚱᛖ ᚣᛟᚢ ᛋᚢᚱᛖ ᛏᚻᛖ ᚹᛟᛚᚩ ᛈᚫᚳᚴ ᚻᚫᛋ ᚱᛖᛚᛟᚳᚫᛏᛖᛞ ᚫᚾᛞ ᚾᛟ ᛚᛟᚾᚸᛖᚱ ᚢᛋᛖᛋ ᛏᚻᛁᛋ ᚳᚫᚡᛖᛳ” (Are you sure the wolf pack has relocated and no longer uses this cave?) Urimenor said with a hint of unease in her voice, turning to her brother she looked him dead in the eyes but he stared forward.

“ᛈᛟᛋᛁᛏᛁᚡᛖᛧ ᛁ ᚢᛋᛖ ᛏᚻᛁᛋ ᚳᚫᚡᛖ ᛏᛟ ᚸᛟ ᛟᚾ ᛗᚣ ᛟᚹᚾ ᚻᚢᚾᛏᛋ ᛟᚾ ᛏᚻᛖ ᛟᛏᚻᛖᚱ ᛋᛁᛞᛖ ᛟᚩ ᛏᚻᛖ ᛗᛟᚢᚾᛏᚫᛁᚾ. ᛁ ᚾᛖᚡᛖᚱ ᛏᚱᛖᚴᛖᛞ ᛏᛟᛟ ᚩᚫᚱ ᚩᚱᛟᛗ ᛏᚻᛖ ᛖᚾᛏᚱᚫᚾᚳᛖ ᛏᚻᛟᚢᚸᚻ.” (Positive, I use this cave to go on my hunts on the other side of the mountain. I never trekked too far from the entrance though.) Ragnar said it calmed Uri a little bit as Ragnar led the way inside and the two slowly made their way through the mountain. To think that the village once went over it to bring the deer back was almost unimaginable. It was tall enough to reach the clouds, but here they were, going through it, the only thing that stopped their ancestors from going through here was the stories that a dragon lived in this cave system. Of course, by now it would be dead, that was over a century ago.

The cave was dark and wet, the two made little noise as they made their way through the cave. Ragnar still leading the way through the pitch-black tunnels. Uri walked on Ragnar’s left while the wolf walked on his right. When the two came out of the cave on the other side of the mountains Uri glanced at the moon’s position.

“ᚹᛖ ᛋᛏᛁᛚᛚ ᚻᚫᚡᛖ ᚫ ᛗᛟᛗᛖᚾᛏ ᚢᚾᛏᛁᛚ ᛋᚢᚾᚱᛁᛋᛖ” (We still have a moment until sunrise). Uri said quietly to Ragnar and he nodded. The two made their way towards the coast. They walked right inside the treeline so that they still had some cover as they walked. They could see sharp rocks all along the coats for a while, jutting out of the water as far as the eye could see. It would be impossible to cross through water on anything more than a simple fisherman’s boat. The fish here would be plentiful though.

As they walked Uri occasionally would step out of the treeline to inspect something on the beach, occasionally she would see planks from wrecked boats and ships. She paused seeing something in the distance just floating amongst the sharp rocks. She looked to her brother and silently motioned that she was going to go deeper into the timber and shift the retrieve whatever she saw. Ragnar nodded before Uri went deeper into the treeline and out of sight. Suddenly overhead her large draconic form could be seen flying and landing on one of the large rocks that was protruding from the water’s surface. Her head nudged something around in the water before she jumped into the air snatched what looked like a boat and brought it to the shore. Her claw marks were in the boat’s haul as it was upside down. After she threw it down she flipped it over and then went back into the woods. She came back in her human form to find Ragnar scavenging through the little rations it had.

“ᛏᚻᛁᛋ ᛁᛋ ᚡᛖᚱᚣ ᚱᛖᚳᛖᚾᛏᛧ ᚾᛟᚾᛖ ᛟᚩ ᛏᚻᛖ ᚩᛟᛟᛞ ᛁᛋ ᛋᛈᛟᛚᛁᛖᛞ ᛟᚱ ᚱᛟᛏᛏᛖᚾ” (This is very recent, none of the food is spolied or rotten). Ragnar said, which made Uri uneasy. “ᛚᛖᛏᛌᛋ ᚳᛟᚾᛏᛁᚾᚢᛖ ᛏᛟ ᚹᚫᛚᚴ ᛁᚾ ᛏᚻᛖ ᛏᚱᛖᛖᛚᛁᚾᛖ ᚩᛟᚱ ᚾᛟᚹᛧ ᚾᛟ ᛗᛟᚱᛖ ᛁᚾᛋᛈᛖᚳᛏᛁᚾᚸ ᛏᚻᛁᚾᚸᛋ ᛟᚾ ᛏᚻᛖ ᛒᛖᚫᚳᚻ ᚢᚾᛚᛖᛋᛋ ᚹᛖ ᛋᛖᛖ ᛋᛟᛗᛖᛏᚻᛁᚾᚸ ᚹᛖ ᚻᚫᚡᛖ ᛏᛟ ᛁᚾᚡᛖᛋᛏᛁᚸᚫᛏᛖ.” (let's continue to walk in the treeline for now, no more inspecting things on the beach unless we see something we have to investigate.) Ragnar said with a serious tone, looking Uri dead in the eyes.

“ᚫᚸᚱᛖᛖᛞ” (agreed) Uri said and the two continued to walk. As the sun rose they came up to some plains where the trees would no longer cover them. The two paused and scanned the area. That was until Uri aggressively nudged Ragnar in the side and immediately pointed towards something on the shore. Ragnar saw what she was pointing at and jogged over his axe in hand just in case. Once on the beach he quickly motioned for Uri to approach. Once she got over she saw a young man, probably around her brother’s height on the sand unmoving. Her brother quickly checked his pulse, and he silently nodded, confirming that the man was alive.

“ᚸᛖᛏ ᚫ ᚩᛁᚱᛖ ᚸᛟᛁᚾᚸᛧ ᛁ ᚹᛁᛚᛚ ᛚᛁᚸᚻᛏ ᛁᛏ” (Get a fire going, I will light it) Uri said as she immediately began checking the man for wounds. There was a nasty scar on his leg that surprisingly enough wasn’t bleeding all that badly but the cold water must have slowed down his blood. He probably had hypothermia so they wouldn’t be able to put him right next to the fire.

Once Ragnar built the fire Uri had her brother remove most of the man's clothes except for his shorts. The wet clothes would make it nearly impossible for him to recover. Uri’s brother set up a branch system that would block the wind as they put the man right up against it so that he would slowly warm up. Ragnar sat next to the man with his wolf as Uri Scavanged and foraged, setting up simple traps.

Uri was currently standing on some of the rocks protruding from the surface, throwing out nets she would pick up later before they returned to the village. As she looked out she could see a large herd of elk over the hill. She quickly made a bird whistle which caught her brother’s attention and put little finger horns over her head to signal deer before pointing over the hill and Ragnar nodded. The two continued what they were doing in complete silence, not wanting to spook the elk as they sat and relaxed, waiting for the man to wake up.

Once again, I will go overboard with fillers sometimes...