The Epic of Crossed Axes
The Epic of Crossed Axes is one of the most important folk tales passed down in The Fylkirate. It tells the story of two rival warriors, Asbjörn Sigurdsson and Kjartan the Bloodaxe.
Asbjörn, unsatisfied with this response, offered Kjartan a challenge. They would duel to the first blood. If Kjartan won, Asbjörn would help him towards his goal, and if Asbjörn won, Kjartan would tell him why he had to become the strongest. His interest piqued in his fellow warrior, Kjartan accepted the offer. They went back to the village to gain witnesses, and began the duel. It would be the first of many. With their axes crossed at the beginning of the first duel, Asbjörn took advantage of his more defensive setup to examine Kjartan's fighting style more thoroughly, waiting for an opening. Kjartan fought with all his body and rage, the axe alone becoming almost an extension of his form. In a rare moment of reprieve from behind his shield, Asbjörn found a striking angle at Kjartan's leg, and swung with all his might, putting a relatively deep gash into his thigh. Asbjörn won the duel, but this had only upset Kjartan. Decidedly, his goal was now further from his reach. Though not without honor, he still regaled his reasons for wanting to become the strongest mortal man. He sought to tame Otti, the Dread Wolf himself. He would use Otti's power to conquer all of Tascallon, and then shape the world itself to his desires. Asbjörn saw this as a fallacious plan. Otti was hunger and cruelty incarnate, and could never be tamed, regardless of how powerful one might be. He made a vow to Kjartan to convince him that it was a fool's errand, or die trying. To Asbjörn, a warrior of Kjartan's caliber was not worth killing over a foolish ambition. Kjartan, however, viewed Asbjörn as an obstacle to his goal. The two parted their first duel, their rivalry now established.
Since this incident, the two crossed paths on several occasions. Battle after battle, Asbjörn and Kjartan would fight nearly to the death, revealing to each other more and more of their stories to each other. An odd form of friendship formed between them. In one case, the two did battle on an island to the east of Saede. They fought restlessly for almost a day, when a draconic servant of Otti appeared. It had been attracted by the chaos of the duel, relishing in the angry energy of a rivalry culminating in such fashion. The dragon wreaked even more havoc across the island, forcing the two to work together to bring it down. In the aftermath, a group of warriors inspired by the affair approached Asbjörn and Kjartan, asking for training. This event was the founding moment for the Holmsgarðr, who still revere the two warriors as founders.
The two disappeared after helping the Holmsgarðr form their organization. Some say, they ventured into The World Tree for a final confrontation, where they would finally settle their differences. Others say the two had a final duel, both dying at the hands of the other's axe. Fewer still claim the both of them still live, finding the strongest entities throughout Tascallon to fight, attempting to compete for the greatest kills.
Synopsis
Asbjörn, in his search for a battle worthy of the gods' recognition, encountered a village deep in the northern mountains. Here, he heard of a frost giant who was harassing the village, stealing their goats and wrecking their mead stills. He sought the giant out, only to find someone had beat him to the lair. Kjartan and he meet for the first time here. Asbjörn congratulates Kjartan for his success, and is eager to bring him to the villagers to give Kjartan praise alongside them. Kjartan refuses, as he did not kill the giant for the village, or even for the sake of any glory. Kjartan sought to become the strongest man in all Tascallon, for a reason he would not tell Asbjörn immediately.Asbjörn, unsatisfied with this response, offered Kjartan a challenge. They would duel to the first blood. If Kjartan won, Asbjörn would help him towards his goal, and if Asbjörn won, Kjartan would tell him why he had to become the strongest. His interest piqued in his fellow warrior, Kjartan accepted the offer. They went back to the village to gain witnesses, and began the duel. It would be the first of many. With their axes crossed at the beginning of the first duel, Asbjörn took advantage of his more defensive setup to examine Kjartan's fighting style more thoroughly, waiting for an opening. Kjartan fought with all his body and rage, the axe alone becoming almost an extension of his form. In a rare moment of reprieve from behind his shield, Asbjörn found a striking angle at Kjartan's leg, and swung with all his might, putting a relatively deep gash into his thigh. Asbjörn won the duel, but this had only upset Kjartan. Decidedly, his goal was now further from his reach. Though not without honor, he still regaled his reasons for wanting to become the strongest mortal man. He sought to tame Otti, the Dread Wolf himself. He would use Otti's power to conquer all of Tascallon, and then shape the world itself to his desires. Asbjörn saw this as a fallacious plan. Otti was hunger and cruelty incarnate, and could never be tamed, regardless of how powerful one might be. He made a vow to Kjartan to convince him that it was a fool's errand, or die trying. To Asbjörn, a warrior of Kjartan's caliber was not worth killing over a foolish ambition. Kjartan, however, viewed Asbjörn as an obstacle to his goal. The two parted their first duel, their rivalry now established.
Since this incident, the two crossed paths on several occasions. Battle after battle, Asbjörn and Kjartan would fight nearly to the death, revealing to each other more and more of their stories to each other. An odd form of friendship formed between them. In one case, the two did battle on an island to the east of Saede. They fought restlessly for almost a day, when a draconic servant of Otti appeared. It had been attracted by the chaos of the duel, relishing in the angry energy of a rivalry culminating in such fashion. The dragon wreaked even more havoc across the island, forcing the two to work together to bring it down. In the aftermath, a group of warriors inspired by the affair approached Asbjörn and Kjartan, asking for training. This event was the founding moment for the Holmsgarðr, who still revere the two warriors as founders.
The two disappeared after helping the Holmsgarðr form their organization. Some say, they ventured into The World Tree for a final confrontation, where they would finally settle their differences. Others say the two had a final duel, both dying at the hands of the other's axe. Fewer still claim the both of them still live, finding the strongest entities throughout Tascallon to fight, attempting to compete for the greatest kills.
