Till Death Of A Viking Prince

• Celine Colefax, Grade 11, Kormilda College
• Short Story
• 2013

Excellence Award in the 'Dream Big 2013' competition

Asdis swung her sword just as another blade came down above her. With a stroke of luck she was able to block the sword with her axe and shove the man back into another of her comrades. Asdis turned to see Eirik cut down a tall man, laying his axe into the man’s head and tearing it out again. “Asdis!” he yelled as another man stepped in front of him and being drilled with Eirik’s sword. Asdis ducked and weaved through the wearing men, swords clashing against swords while axes clashed with the hard bone of numerous skulls. “Asdis!” he called again, seeing Asdis weaving through the fighting men to reach him. “Eirik, the ship!” Asdis pointed to the burning beach where in the distance sailed a small ship with a flag beating in the wind. Eirik nodded towards her and started hacking at the men who went against him, fighting his way down the beach and into the water. Asdis followed on his tail only to be struck from behind. With blood soaking her blonde hair, Asdis turned to face the man who struck her. The man smiled as he raised his axe, his cold smile sending shivers down Asdis’s spine. “Pretty girls shouldn’t be fighting” he said as he kicked her foot and stepped closer. “Pretty girls must know their place”, the man was ready to split Asdis’s head when a sword flew straight into his chest. With a loud howl the man fell backwards, his blood covering the red sand that was once white. Eirik grabbed at Asdis’s shirt and pulled her against him; placing a hand on her waist he lifted her from the ground and raced back to the water’s edge. “Stay with me Asdis, just stay with me” he said as he walked her deeper into the water. Asdis’s vision started to blur and fade, darkness slowly creeping at the edge of her eyes. “Eirik, my head” Asdis leaned into him as he leant down into the water, wrapping his arm around her chest and swam towards the boat. The salt water stung at his eyes as he dragged Asdis through the moving water, trying to keep her head above as he inched closer to the boat. Eirik looked back towards the beach to see several men line the water’s edge, knocking their arrows and drawing back the bows string. The men aimed their bows towards the sky and released their taught strings. The arrows shot up into the air and rained around Eirik and Asdis, missing them by mere metres. The men shot more arrows into the sky, raining down and embedding themselves into floating bodies. Eirik cried out in pain as arrows struck his back. Asdis glanced at Eirik, their blood slowly filling the sea. “Eirik” Asdis closed her eyes and let go of Eirik's hold, sinking down into the depths. “I’m sorry Asdis” Eirik said, diving down and reaching Asdis’s body, grabbing her hand, forever holding it till his death. “Asdis”.