You can run on for a long time

[thralls]

Who: Athelstan (thralls), Roland (ka_sera_sera)
What: Drinks!
When: The day after Athelstan's post
Where: Freyr disctrict!
Rating: PG-13? It's a viking and a cowboy idk.

Athelstan isn't going to say no to someone offering to buy him a drink. He'd lived with the Northmen for seven years, and in that time had developed a healthy taste for alcohol and the ability to throw it back with the rest of them. The liquor here in Asgard is different from what he's used to, but for the most part, it's nothing that he can't stand.

Either way, the former priest is pretty sure that drinking wasn't the reason that Roland invited him out. To tell the truth, he's not sure what the reason was; their conversation hadn't been too terribly long. Regardless though, he'd been invited and he's here, sidling up to a barstool.

Athelstan looks- well, he's put a small effort into his appearance, pulled his hair back, slipped on a fresh tunic, cleaned his hatchet before locking it into his belt, but he still looks... well, about as out of place as a Viking in a modern bar. Regardless, he's here and he's currently looking around curiously for the man he'd seen on video the previous day.

Comments

[ka_sera_sera]

"Oh," Roland says, because he recognizes that particular combination of beliefs and deities, but Athelstan's moved on before Roland asks. "Is it really so different," he asks instead, "from willing anything else to work for you? I can will my hand to grip this glass, to lift it to my lips, and-" He does so, taking a demonstrative drink. "I can will myself to pick up my gun, to aim and fire it, and it'll happen."

He shrugs. "But it may be easier for me, as my 'power' is one of the less overt ones. For someone who used to worship the Man Jesus," he nods toward Athelstan, gesturing at him with a hand, "I guess something like, say, control over fire would be a particularly hard thing to get used to."

[thralls]

Athelstan pauses when Roland mentions his beliefs, looking over toward the other man in a long, calculated pause. He's not sure exactly what to say here- the justification has some merit, he knows, but it still doesn't quite sit right with him and he doesn't know why.

Slowly, he sets his glass down and taps a fingernail thoughtfully against the wood of the bar.

"It would be. The lady Sigyn has granted me the power to heal my allies with magic; a power that Christ demonstrated in the bible, and no man in my world has seen since." There's a pause, and Athelstan's jaw tightens slightly, before continuing. "My days as a follower of the one God are behind me now. Whatever these deities want, I will give them."

[ka_sera_sera]

Roland watches Athelstan carefully, not missing the change in mood. "As will I, for so long as they prove themselves willing and capable of the task with which they called us here to help." He thinks a moment on Athelstan's mood, his words. "Certain things, once learned, can be hard to shake off, as I may have said to you yesterday. Maybe all you need is more experience with your power. To become familiar with it, as you would any other weapon someone'd handed you."

[thralls]

There's a moment as he considers Roland's words carefully, moving to pick up his drink again. In truth, he's not sure if he can believe such a thing- but he has to, doesn't he? There's not an option to let his guilt swallow him whole, not in the face of this coming storm.

"I've used it hen necessary. It's- it's not like anything I've seen. In truth, I'm not sure what it means, what the implications of it are."

He sighs quietly, before tipping his head toward his companion.

"And you? What gift has been granted to you?"

[ka_sera_sera]

"I strengthen other people's 'gifts'." He shrugs a shoulder. "Seems a useful enough thing. Certainly was after the flood when all the refugees arrived." Then Roland tilts his head, frowning at Athelstan curiously.

"What implications can there be? We have these powers because these gods are capable enough in magic to grant them to us. What other meaning is there?" Guess who's a very literal thinker? Two hints: his name starts with R, and he is sitting in front of you.

[thralls]

"Well, there's- meaning to it. Why take me in the first place? My former master, he was far better in combat than I, an accomplished leader, a good man. There has to be a reason I'm here instead of him, doesn't there?"

Athelstan just shrugs, taking another deep drink. "Perhaps they wanted to strengthen my conviction. Perhaps they wanted to laugh at me. Perhaps they're trying to tempt me further away from the Christian God by offering me the power to save the people I care about. I don't know. Either way, it's either- it's either a blessing or a damnation."

[ka_sera_sera]

Roland sets his elbow on the counter, thinking on this a moment. Mostly, he spends that moment thinking about how to be at least a little bit tactful. "It seems many who hold tightly to their gods spend a lot of time worrying about what their god is thinking. But surely if they're going to do something they'll do it, regardless of how we interpret matters."

He takes a sip of his drink, then continues. "That said, though, soon after I came here I was told Asgard's different gods took people for different reasons. She said Odin took the curious, I remember that much." Roland runs the two fingers of his right hand over his brow, thinking back. "I think... Yes. There it is. Hemidall takes the loyal. Thor the strong. Loki takes tricksters. Those are all she mentioned, but she said the library had books on the matter, if you care to look for them." Still a little strange, going there and being around so much paper at once. Especially when he can suggest just anyone walk in and they'll be allowed to, easy as that. But the place's been invaluable to him so far.

[thralls]

Athelstan isn't sure how to feel about what Roland is saying- he understands the sentiment, but it's not exactly a train of thought that he's comfortable going down, so he remains silent, his lips pressed tightly together.

Still, all of that changes at the mention of the library. While he doesn't brighten entirely, part of him definitely perks up and his shoulders lose some of their tension, nodding eagerly at the words.

"I've found all manner of works in the library. It truly is an amazing place- I'll search more for the information on these gods." There's a pause, and he pulls back, looking slightly abashed. "-though, I have been told that Sigyn takes those she empathizes with: the kind and the gentle. I don't quite know how much I am of either, but... it's an honor to be chosen by her, all the same."

His pride at being chosen seems to directly contrast his conflict at having these powers, but to each their own. His situation is complex enough without him having to justify his feelings on the matter to himself.

[ka_sera_sera]

He nods. "I haven't heard much from Sigyn. Odin, most recently - you know about that. Thor and Hemidall. They seem the ones most likely to speak to travelers. Freyr I spoke to a little. He seems... Kind." Roland's expression is thoughtful, a little confused. The idea of a god who may genuinely be so invested in the wellbeing of each of them is an odd one.

"What is he like in the tales of your world? To those who worship him? I'm sure I should go to the library and research it myself. It's only - the place is so grand. More paper there than I'd seen in all my years, before coming here. Yet it's treated so casually." He shakes his head, taking another drink. Different cultures have different customs, Roland's well familiar with that, but this is one he hasn't been able to get used to.

[thralls]

"You want to know of Freyr?"

Athelstan glances up- and while the comment on the library would have put him on another tangent altogether, the question of the god is enough to distract him from such a thing. The former monk finds himself flushing, turning in his stool so he faces Roland entirely. He doesn't know this man very well, but he thinks that Roland could be a friend, and he seems like a decent enough man to confide in.

He presses his lips together, leaning forward just slightly, conspiratorially. When he speaks, it's in a furtive tone, like a schoolgirl sharing some dark secret.

"...Freyr is seen as a chief fertility god. He, ah... he is associated with images of male- pleasure. The statues they make of him, he has parts that are... well, obviously exaggerated. The Northmen sacrifice pigs to him on their wedding nights, with prayers to bless them in their consumation."

[ka_sera_sera]

The reaction is an interesting one to what had seemed such an unremarkable question, so when Athelstan leans forward Roland finds himself leaning forward, too.

Roland blinks.

"...Ah." He thinks of what little he's seen of the god. Freyr, with his delicate features and concerned, almost solicitous manner. "...He doesn't really seem the type. Do you think the books in the library would have mentioned that?"

[thralls]

He shrugs at the question, pursing his lips in thought.

"I don't know. Many gods here are different, but Freyr's affinities with the... phallic things are generally his chief purpose. If things were different here, I would be surprised."

[ka_sera_sera]

"Many things here are different. But I've only got my world to compare with - and maybe a little of one other. What of yours, where people worship these gods? Is it much different?" He thinks on the exchange of messages that'd brought the two of them here. "Is it as brutal as you'd've expected?"

[thralls]

Athelstan pauses at that, turning back to his drink with a soft sigh. He takes a moment to form a response, busying himself with draining the rest of his glass.

"It's very different. My world is- well. It's the eight hundredth year of the Christian God. I've never seen anything like this place in my world." He shrugs. "I suppose... if you asked me to describe Valhalla in my own world, I would have thought of something far more brutal. It's a warrior's afterlife, is it not? The rafters were said to be made of spears, and men made at war every day, dying only to return to the feast that night."

[ka_sera_sera]

"Are you dead, then?" Odd that he can honestly ask such a question. Or, it would have been once. But he's been eased into 'odd', like that old saying about boiling a frog in a pot, and questions like that now seem only a little more out of place than asking about the weather. "Because I'm not. Before coming here, I was laying down to go to sleep. If someone'd killed me, even quickly, I'd have known it." There's no wishful thinking there. Only certainty. He'd know. "Maybe your Valhalla is somewhere else."

[thralls]

The question gives him pause, and Athelstan's light expression fades at the bluntness of Roland's question.

"I... I don't know. I haven't told any of the others of this, but..." He bites his lip for a moment, before glancing off toward the far wall.

"Before I arrived here, my people were ambushed. I ran as men died all around me. I managed to escape the initial attack and ran for hours, but- then I fell asleep in the fields and woke up here. I had thought- well." Athelstan manages a wry smile. "I had thought that coming here meant that they found me after all, that they murdered me in my sleep, but I suppose there's no way to be sure, is there?"

[ka_sera_sera]

Roland listens closely, his expression changing the more he hears. Softening a very little bit. It's not pity that changes his face, but some small measure of empathy. "Not on your own. I know most come here in the middle of something. Some even go back. The god who took you might know - they have 'inboxes' on the network, same as we do, though I guess there's no guarantee any of them will answer."

[thralls]

He nods slowly, taking the advice with a grateful look and flagging the bartender down for another drink.

"Thank you. I fear contacting them sometimes, but I suppose matters like this are important to me. Perhaps an answer will be of some comfort, no matter what sort of answer it is."

[ka_sera_sera]

"I don't think there's anything in particular to fear, as far as the reactions of the gods are concerned." He lifts the wrist with his bracelet on it, shaking it pointedly as he takes another drink. "Especially not for travelers. These gods claim to need us, though Odin himself seems to think otherwise. I think we get a little more leeway with them than the natives. And if Sigyn can be judged by what you've said of the type of people she takes, she may be especially likely to be sympathetic."

[thralls]

[[ooc: sorry for the wait! I've been on full hiatus :( ]]

Athelstan manages a little smile, glancing toward Roland's bracelet with a nod.

"I appreciate that. I just- I have worshiped these gods as abstract deities. Seeing them, speaking to them... it's somewhat overwhelming." But then he takes a deep breath, looking toward his own bracelet, wrapped around his wrist just above his torc.

"Still, I have spoken to Sigyn. She seems... kind. I can ask her, if I truly desired to know."

[ka_sera_sera]

(ooc: no worries!)

Roland looks Athelstan over, sympathy easing into his expression. "It'd be a hard question to ask," he says, then shakes his head and leans back a little. "But this was only meant to be a friendly drink. Could I buy you something else, as an apology for turning talk toward such dark matters? Food, or another drink?"

[thralls]

He finds himself smiling again at that, somewhat bashfully, and leans forward to rest his elbows on the bar.

"I wouldn't say no to another drink. And yourself?"

[ka_sera_sera]

"In a few minutes, maybe." He leans forward, ordering another and waving a hand toward Athelstan to indicate who it's for. "Asgard's drink isn't much like the beer in the last few places I've passed through, but that's probably a good thing."

[thralls]

The sentiment makes Athelstan laugh.

"Where I come from, the ale is stronger. But- where I come from, the men also believed that the cows in Asgard would produce beer instead of milk. Perhaps these cows are underfed."

It's a joke, and Athelstan grins to prove it, nodding his thanks as the bartender serves him his second drink.

[ka_sera_sera]

Roland snorts, ducking his head over a smile. "The shortages affect us all differently," he says, half-hiding his dry expression behind his drink. "Fighting all day, limitless beer... I think I'm beginning to get some idea what your people are like. What else do they like? What stories do they tell?"

[thralls]

His smile brightens a little at the questions as they offer him the opportunity to reminisce about his time spent in Kattegat.

"The land they live on is rough, infertile. They must take what they can to survive, and so they go on raids to nearby countries, take their riches, and return home to sell them. That is how I came to be with them, many years ago. Their religion is... spiritual, and yet earthen. They believe, as the old Christians did, that spilling blood earns them favor with their gods. They sacrifice to them, hold feasts in their honor, make pilgrimages for them. The stories of their gods- well, the gods here can speak for themselves." He shrugs. "Their stories are of tricksters and warriors, wise men and lovelorn fools. Contests, skirmishes, and crafting the world from the bones of their fallen."

[ka_sera_sera]

"That last sounds like a story I'd like to hear someday," Roland says, setting an elbow on the counter and leaning on it. "Is it literal?"

[thralls]

He nods solemnly, taking a deep drink from his new glass.

"Ymir was the first jotunn. When he was slain, Odin and his two brothers created the world of man from his body. From his skull, they created the sky that hangs above us. From his bones, they crafted the stone and mountains that we climb. His hair became the trees that we see in this world; his blood the oceans that we cross."

[ka_sera_sera]

Roland listens closely, then nods. "That fits with what some books in the library say about the giants being tied to the spirit of the world itself. Does the rest of what the library's books say fit with what you know? Or have you not looked over them yet?"