Prologue
DURING the period of history that we now know as the Dark Ages, the borders of many North-West European nations were in almost constant flux; being drawn and re-drawn due to repeated conquest, migration and commercial pressures.
The story we are about to relate to you takes place in the year of Our Lord 1019AD. It was, surprisingly, a time of relative peace in the world. The brutal, bloodthirsty raids of earlier centuries, now replaced with aggressive political manoeuvrings. Indeed, the crowns of England, Denmark and Norway had recently been merged under the single rule of one leader—the great King Cnut.
However, in some areas—particularly on the northernmost fringes of the new realm—the petty rivalries of neighbouring Chieftains occasionally escalated into poisonous envy, blind hatred and violent bloodshed…
