The Founding of Rumble.

Chapter 23: Íss Vargr

"You, tamed, a dread wolf?" Ericson asked in disbelief, after all Dread Wolves were known for being powerful and deadly monsters as well as being rare.

"Yes," Cait answered.

Ericson's eyes then focused on the young Cave Lion who was playing with Sol. "Is that a Cave Lion?" he asked in shock.

"Yuki is a Glacial Cave Lion," Leeanne answered.

Ericson blinked for a moment, the higher variant of Cave Lion, going by Leeanne's reaction she had tamed the young monster as he had seen Cave Lion young, even so, that was the biggest youngling he had seen. He placed a hand on Leeanne's shoulder, "I heard about Ivor." He said and Leeanne nodded. "I would have loved to sit and listen to his stories." He told her honestly and Leeanne knew it was the greatest compliment a Barbarian could say about another, to sit and listen as another wove the stories of their life. Even though Ivor had been in the group to collect him it had been a quick trip, so he hadn't gotten a chance to chat with them all.

"And he would have exaggerated them greatly," Leeanne replied with a grin.

"As he should," Ericson said as he patted her shoulder before he released her.

Ingrid pushed off the fence and went around to the gate to let herself out. "Here for your tidings?" she asked, generally the Thane would come but she understood that Ericson was probably going a little stir crazy after a successful season of raiding.

"Yeah, I needed to get out." Ericson answered as they both walked away from the area the young beasts were playing in.

"You know you are going to get weathered in," Ingrid asked, her nose told her another storm was on its way and that Ericson would not be able to get away before it came in.

Ericson lifted his nose and sniffed the air; it took him a few moments before he too detected that a storm was coming. "Shit."

"Hilda!" Ingrid called when she saw her aunt.

"Already preparing the spare longhouse for lodging, we have firewood and basics being delivered." Hilda called over her shoulder as she walked off to finish preparing the longhouse they kept vacant just for this purpose.

"Wulfgar," Ingrid called.

"Already getting people to beach the ship," he called back even as he went towards the docks.

"Your dock looks different," Ericson remarked, and Ingrid nodded. During a calm period, they had made use of their newest clan members to expand and improve their ship dock, it had started with Cait designing a dock system they hadn't seen before. They had started small, with the fishing docks and when her dock system showed that it not only worked but was better than what they were using it was decided to expand to the other docks. The docks also were ice free as they had enchanted thin ice to the docks and moors which prevented the port from being frozen solid.

"Yeah, Cait and Jayda lent their strength and their knowledge to rebuild our fishing dock, eventually our entire dock system will be like that." Ingrid explained as she walked him to the side of the main long house and to an opening that led down to a storeroom. Ericson frowned as he realised this storeroom was deeper, pass the permafrost that was normally the floor of storerooms and was firmly set into solid ground and stone.

Ericson frown deepened as he noticed that there were tunnels which connected to this one as Ingrid turned them towards a door. "Jayda?"

"Yeah, it started with her just connecting her workshop and barn to their longhouse so she could move between them during storms. I then asked her to do the same with all the longhouses and she did then she sunk all the storerooms deeper and connected them." Ingrid explained as she unlocked the door and opened it. For the most part the clan didn't lock general storerooms, but this was the strongroom, it was where they kept their precious things.