Utterly Mad

Time: 6 years after the cataclysm
Characters: Anton, Gunnar
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The wind howled through the hills as the pair pushed through the thick snow. Anton followed the tracks as Gunnar kept an arrow nocked on his bow. The white cloth of their cloaks made them blend with the snow as they weaved along the trail of tracks towards the treeline. There the tracks became muddled with wildlife as Anton kept a hand on his knife.

Stopping for a moment at a campsite that was an hour old Anton looked around to see if he could spot anything before sighing. Giving a quick look to his companion Anton received a nod before reaching up to pull a piece of cloth down over his eyes.

You are blessed by Ullr, god of hunting. Rely on all that he has given you child.

Anton always hated the first part of this. His vision was gone and his ears and nose were yet to fill in the gaps as he sat in darkness for a few moments. Then came the sounds. Gunnar’s breathing, slow and deep as he held the bow at the ready, the sound of a bird not so distant fluttering hither and to, then the sound of a twig snapping beneath a metal boot. Drawing his knife Anton motioned and heard Gunnar nod in response as the pair started into the woods.

One of the men they were after had fallen behind and was moving to catch up with his compatriots as Anton rushed through the woods. The noise of a tree branch whistling by his head, faintly scratching the side of his helmet, caused him to adjust course as the smell of polish guided him towards his target.

A grunt from Gunnar let him know he had the man in his sights and the sound of wood tensing as the arrow was drawn back. A bodkin arrow sung a whistling tune through the air as it thudded into a tree beside the man. At the same time Anton had jumped and then pushed himself through the air off of a nearby tree. Lifting a shield as he turned the waster only caught sight of the upside down head of Anton before the dagger dove through his eyeball.

The two hit the ground hard and Anton found himself disoriented for a few moments as he pushed himself to his feet and ripped the knife free to bring it back down through the balaclava of the waster again and again. A hand placed on his shoulder by Gunnar calmed him long enough for him to get control of his breathing again and stand.

Soon they were on the move again. Gunnar’s hood had fallen back as they rushed along the tracks of the other men they were sent for. The smell of fire and sizzling meat confirmed what Anton had thought as he and Gunnar stopped outside of a clearing. Nodding to his comrade Anton moved off to the side as Gunnar replaced the arrow in his quiver and pulled one that he’d pushed off to the side.


Remember my child when the time comes be ready. Prey will fight to preserve its own life. Never hesitate.

The arrow vibrated as it impaled itself on the front of a shield. The men in the camp turned as Gunnar let loose another arrow that made its home in throat of a second waster. As Anton rushed through the snow like a wild man he lifted his hand axe and hurled it into the back of one waster while he slammed the knife into the skull of another unwitting victim with enough force to bring both the body and himself to the ground.

As he ripped the knife free the first arrow Gunnar had fired exploded. The shield became deadly shrapnel that tore its bearer to shreds and knocked one of his allies onto their back. As a waster lifted his weapon to finish off Anton he found a knife stabbed through his genitals. An ear piercing shriek of pain erupted from him as Anton pulled himself up and pulled the knife free.

As he turned Anton found himself tossed to the side by a strike from a man bearing a large club. “I’M GONNA DRINK FROM YA SKULL!” shouted the man as he started for Anton.

Rolling out of the way of the first strike Anton scrambled to his feet while Gunnar sent an arrow into the man’s shoulder. Shrugging the wound off he continued towards Anton as a second arrow flew past his head and into a waster that had been sneaking up behind Anton. Throwing the knife in his hand Anton then turned to run towards the axe that was still sticking out of a wasters back.

His opponent followed close behind and let loose a war cry as he began catching up with Anton. Reaching a hand down he caught the axe and ripped it from the now stiff body. Turning to block the first swing Anton was sent stumbling backwards from the force as a second arrow struck his opponent in the back. Then the second swing struck.

His helmet bent from the force but his skull was intact. The nose piece had bent and he could feel it stabbing into his left eye. Rolling up to his feet he reached up and removed the helmet tearing the cloth from his eyes as he did so. Even the waster stopped in his tracks at the sight of Anton’s now blood red eye as blood poured onto his face.

The smell of iron clouded Anton’s senses for a moment. Long enough for the final waster to prepare another swing. Lifting the axe to block it Anton rolled with the blow this time and let the axe fall from his grasp. Instead he grabbed the arrow and pulled it from his foe’s shoulder. Ducking the next swing Anton drove it up through the man’s jaw into his skull.

Gunnar moved carefully over as he scanned the treeline for any more wasters that would try and kill the two. Once he had assured himself and gotten close enough he slid a packet of gauze from his bag and forced it into Anton’s hand. “Where’s my knife?”

Gunnar shook his head as he grabbed Anton’s hand and pushed it up to his head to try and stop the bleeding. “We’ll get your knife in a minute. Right now you need to deal with the bleeding aye?”

Anton blinked as he heard a distant twig breaking and the smell of fresh blood pouring out of his now dead foe’s skull. Pressing the gauze against his eye of his own volition he almost appreciated the smell of silk as Gunnar wrapped a piece of cloth around his head to hold the makeshift bandage in place. “Aye, but I need to find the knife Gunnar.”

Stepping back his friend said “I know. I just wanted to get that in place for you first.”

The two soon began the search and Gunnar quickly produced the knife from the ground. “Bounced off his armor. Even a stop sign bent around a man’s chest helps it would seem.”

Anton took the knife and cleaned it on his pants, staining part of them crimson. Stopping to admire the blade he smelled the copper of the blade. Motioning for his companion to follow they started back towards the village as he said “I need to see the shaman.”

Gunnar took a guess as the pair walked “The gift of Ullr?”

Anton merely nodded as he led the way back out of the woods. The mixture of sight from his one eye and the overwhelming sounds and smells of the forest were beginning to give him a headache. A steadying hand on his shoulder from Gunnar almost startled him before he gave his friend a smile and said “I’ll be fine. Just need to talk with the shaman.”

Several days later and Anton found himself awake at night. Tossing the knife from hand to hand to distract himself he sighed. The smell of burning wood and the sound of men practicing with blades kept him awake. Everynight he failed to sleep until the early hours of the morning. Stopping for a moment and mumbling to himself “One two three. One two three.” before tossing the knife again on three.