The hollow lies quiet beneath Freyja’s lingering light. Clean snow settles over the standing stones, covering the brazier’s ash and leaving The Robed Practitioner beyond the circle’s center.
The Shieldmaiden crouches beside the nearest rune, tracing its fading edge without touching it. The Wolf Spirit Spirit rests at Asbjorn’s side, pale body tense, blue tether faintly aglow.
The Shieldmaiden
The darkness is broken, but the old marks still remember what passed here.
She rises and looks from the cleansed stones to Asbjorn’s Mjolnir, then toward the narrow trail leading back to the distant fire.
The Shieldmaiden
You gave Odin’s sacrifice, and Freyja answered. Tell me what purpose you believe this bond serves.
The Wolf Spirit
The path is open. The stone remembers the hand that marked it.
The Shieldmaiden
Is the wolf a guardian, a guide, or a chain? Speak plainly, Asbjorn. I would know what the gods have set beside you.
✓ Quest Accepted
Give the Shieldmaiden a clear account of the wolf bond
“I hold The Shieldmaiden's hands as we kneel then the Wolf Spirit makes itself known to her as I speak "He is more of a guide and a chain. He seems to be guiding me, after the Ulfhethinn's ritual the wolf spirit now bound itself to me. Whether he is from Odin or any of the other gods I know not."”
SUCCESS (Good Theology, rolled +0)
Asbjorn kneels beside the Shieldmaiden and takes her hands. The Wolf Spirit settles close, pale breathless form angled toward her as Freyja’s gold fades from the stones.
Asbjorn Bjornulfsson
He is more of a guide and a chain. He seems to be guiding me. After the Ulfhethinn's ritual, the wolf spirit bound itself to me. Whether he is from Odin or any of the other gods, I know not.
The Wolf Spirit lifts its head. The blue tether brightens between its chest and Asbjorn, then extends faintly toward the Shieldmaiden’s joined hands.
The Wolf Spirit
The chain is a road. The guide walks where the marked one cannot yet see.
The Shieldmaiden’s eyes widen as the words reach her. She feels the spirit’s presence through the tether, though the connection leaves the question of its divine master unresolved.
The Shieldmaiden
Then I accept your reading, Asbjorn. Guide and chain, both at once. But the gods’ name behind it remains hidden, and we must spend time reading what the stones still remember.
She keeps hold of Asbjorn’s hands, steady and solemn. The Wolf Spirit lowers its muzzle between them, and the faint blue line holds without tightening.
Quest Complete
Give the Shieldmaiden a clear account of the wolf bond