On Magic

 “You said Erik gave me to you. That I’m to be your slave.”

“That’s right.” The idea still made Leif’s belly squirm.

Ragnar cocked his head. “Then how can I serve you, my alpha, if I’m locked up in the dark down here?”

A reasonable question, one Leif had been pondering for the past month. What good was a war prize chained to a wall for the rest of his days?

Erik had been the one to suggest they proceed by the old ways, but it had been Náli who’d offered the solution for such an approach. A pure silver, magicked torq, he’d said, would fit around Ragnar’s throat and prevent him from shifting to his wolf form, as well as mark him as Leif’s property to every Northerner. Once it had been applied, Leif could, in theory, bring him into his household and, as a strong alpha wolf himself, never need to worry that Ragnar could overpower him.

A tidy fix. But, still, Leif had hesitated to proceed, uncertain, Ragnar’s betrayal fresh in his mind.

Even as he brought him food, and worried over him, and sat here for hours, his wolf taking comfort in the presence of another of his kind.

Gods.

Leif took a deep breath. “I’ll talk to Náli, then.”

Ragnar grinned nastily. “Your little necromancer going to leash me?”

“Yes,” Leif said. “And if you don’t mind me, I’ll cut your throat.”

A beat passed. Leif swore he could hear the leap of Ragnar’s pulse as his expression slowly smoothed. A low, wolfish chuff. Then: “Yes, alpha.”

Demon of the Dead dropped on Tuesday, and it's the most magic we've seen in the series so far. I won't spoil it for anyone who hasn't started reading yet, but we learn a lot more about the origins of the North's magic through Náli's adventures in the "Between," beyond the veil of the living. Origins that - at least in part - shed some light on his death magic, the Drakes' ability to communicate with dragons, and Leif's newfound - or, er, new-forced-upon-him - shapeshifting abilities. For the most part, it's all magic inspired by that of the Norse gods, most of whom I've named using rare-form, or Danish versions of their names. "Val-Father" for Odin, for instance. Control over weather, and beasts, and death, and shapeshifting can all be found in the Prose Edda, twisted here for our series' universe. 

Drake Verse?

DLU - Drake Literary Universe? 

I'm up for suggestions. 

On Insta earlier this week, I mentioned my love of Tolkien, which has led to my love of Norse mythology, which has thus in turn provided the inspiration for this series (as well as much of what's to come in SoR if I ever get back to that). Middle-Earth is a fantasy realm in which the magic is fading. As the Elves depart for the Grey Havens, as men step forward into the leadership role, magic is shrinking and bleeding away, the landscape studded with old ruins, and ghost stories. We as the audience know that the future of Middle-Earth is a future populated by mortal beings with mortal, non-magical worries. 

I've taken the opposite tack with the DC, one that's common in the fantasy genre: in Aeretoll, magic is returning. In Aquitainia, it's learned that the country's rulers hid the old magics. But with the Sels attempting an invasion, and the drakes appearing, we're seeing a surge of magic across the board. I liked the idea of the series beginning with only the faintest touch of magic, and letting the audience experience its awakening alongside the characters. I'm also dead-set - in this series, and in every fantasy-themed story I write - on depicting magic as having a cost. As taking a toll its users. Just as physical exertion drains a person's energy, so too does magical exertion. Magic is at its most interesting as a story device when it's a challenge for the characters: skills that are ingrained and which much be honed through practice. There's a risk involved. The greater the power wielded, the greater the obstacle it becomes. I want the use of magic to be an integral component of the character's growth and journey, and not merely pretty decoration sprinkled on top of the plot. 

Things will get - you guessed it - even more magical as we continue. Expect Leif and Amelia to step forward with much more page time in book five, Fortunes of War. Oh, and Ragnar. He'll be there too 😏