OOM: Returning Eunuch

[bigarmy_strangepants]

It is late in the day, and Ragnar is lounging in his room, talking to Athelstan.

He could spend eternity just talking to Athelstan, and then an eternity again with all the other Athelstan-related things.

But they never run out of things to talk about, it seems.

"... will turn seawater into potable water, like making salt, just the other way around," he is saying.

Comments

[athelstanthescribe]

"I suppose the men must reward the birds with a share of the kill, to keep them compliant?"

[thewidewideworld]

"Just so. I understand when first caught, the hunters pluck the flight feathers from the eagles' wings so they must rely on the hunters for food. So once dependant, they learn to trust the hunters. I'm told it doesn't alwdy work and met one man who lost his eye to an eagle he failed to tame."

[athelstanthescribe]

He winces.

"They take them as fledglings? And that in itself would be dangerous."

Where there are baby birds, there are protective parents.

[thewidewideworld]

"Something. But it seems to be a point of honour to tame the biggest bird they can catch." He grins slyly at Athelstan. "The Mongols do much for the sake of seeming bold. Much like the Vikings in some ways."

[athelstanthescribe]

He chuckles. "Some things seem the same the world over."

[thewidewideworld]

"True enough." Sinric laughs and shifts to take his other hand. "I wonder if I will find such people the world over or if such men spring from hard lands and desolate places."

[athelstanthescribe]

"It may be", he agrees. "Your eagle tamers being desert dwellers, and there are few green and fertile places in the North."

[thewidewideworld]

"Hard places make for hard men." He shift, stretching against Athelstan's side. "That would explain why I'm so soft." He smiles self-deprecatingly.

[athelstanthescribe]

"Perhaps." He brushes fingers over wherever he happens to touch. "But I think you're more resilient than you give yourself credit."

[thewidewideworld]

The skin of Sinric's shoulder is still smooth and soft as most of him but the touch and Athelstan's works make him aware of his scars.

"Perhaps, now that I'm no longer a papered pet and visiting these wild places."

[athelstanthescribe]

"It's a process", he agrees. "But look how well you are, after everything."

[thewidewideworld]

"All things in their times." He nods, leaning in to kiss Athelstan's cheek. "And thanks to the care and comfort of you and Ragnar."

[athelstanthescribe]

He cant help comparing them, and unfavourably to himself.

"In part thanks to that."

[thewidewideworld]

Sinric cups his cheek and brushes a kiss over his lips softly. "More than I can ever thank you for."

[athelstanthescribe]

"There's no need", Athelstan assures him.

[thewidewideworld]

"Still." He smiles and keeps massaging Athelstan's hands. "What is news with you?"

[athelstanthescribe]

"Nothing much", he admits. "Except for our young friend Jay and his inventions."

[thewidewideworld]

"Forgive me, I drifted off before you spoke more of that. What's he building for you?"

[athelstanthescribe]

"He's already made and put in place devices to let us feel one another's heartbeat. Next is the machine to make pure water from brine, and he has also spoken of a compass that can point directly to the heartbeat device."

[thewidewideworld]

"Are you sure he's not a child of Hephaestus? The way he builds things."

[athelstanthescribe]

Athelstan chuckles quietly. "It would explain a great deal."

[thewidewideworld]

"We could ask him. Or do you think it might offend him?" Some people dislike that sort of heretical talk. "Who is the blacksmith god amongst the Vikings?"

[athelstanthescribe]

"I don't think he favours any religion. The Norse crafting god is Weyland, though there are many figures in the tales with that skill."

[thewidewideworld]

"Weyland." He repeats, testing the shape of the name. "What is he like, Weyland the maker?"

[athelstanthescribe]

"They say originally, he was an ordinary family man with an exceptional skill. But a god heard of it, and wanted Weyland to work for him exclusively."