Page 7 - SagaOfBarak2

Yes, yes of course a ruse, that was the way of it thought the Norsemen.
With this obviously being the case, well then of course by now doubtless these
great cats were all done in and gone on forever thought the Vikings, well all apart
from Ragnor that was.
As said in truth Ragnor’s crew thought creatures such as these were of course
long dead things by now, thus being so no longer they walked and stalked the
earth upon their great padded paws.
Hell aye, as now in these modern times of the wheel and the great war machines
these big bear like cats were only to be found carved upon ancient cave walls by
long dead slope headed primitives.
Here were merely crude drawings etched many long lifetimes ago into granite
and slate, aye as of course now these felines were no more than a dim memory
of the long distant misty past.
Oh yes, obviously here were only cleverly devised tales put together by the big
Barak, who merely wanted to keep them alert on their perilous ongoing adventure.
Sadly this was not so, and these bold Norsemen were all to be proved so very
wrong in this somewhat hastily drawn out assumption.
Unfortunately this was to be a sad painful fact that these stalwart warriors would
find out at first hand upon once reaching the treacherous towering mountain
pathways.
Furthermore all of this brutal enlightenment would come without having to wait
too long for their harsh grim education at that.
Alas for the travellers these great beasts, just as Barak had foretold, still thrived,
feasting freely, whilst gorging most greedily like upon the feeble bodies of easily
captured and easily killed men.
True it is the bodies of mere mortal men might be killed, then butchered for
meat by these patient cunning hunters from somewhere back in dark prehistory.
But it has always been the way of things and no doubt always will be the way
of things, that brave men die all the harder, aye such harsh stubborn men do take
all the more killing.
Despite these deadly predators and all and everything else impeding their
strength sapping mission, it was the stalwart warriors from the far north who at
length once again won through.
Yes, as at days end it was the big brawny Norsemen who survived this violent
encounter with the huge cats, it was they who prevailed once more against the
savage beasts which sought to destroy then straightway consume them.
Instead it was these huge felines with the foot long dagger like fangs which
eventually ended up as no more than a tasty supper for the jubilant Vikings.

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