Page 52 of Alien Viking's Plunder

“Ranged?”

“Weapons that are used from a distance. Like arrows can be shot from many paces away, so that the shooter can’t look into the eyes of the man he’s aiming for.”

Josie held up her hand with one finger extended. “Imagine an arrow that’s half as long as my little finger coming at you, ten times as fast as the tip of your sword moves when you swing it as hard as you can. Imagine that little arrow hitting you right between the eyes and coming out the other side or your head. Now imagine twenty of those being shot at you in one heartbeat. Would you be coming home after that?”

Bragr shook his head. “Such an honorless way to kill. Where’s the skill in that? The art?”

“Most of us think that the art and the honor are less important than winning the battle. Yes, I know we lost. But next time you go there, your ship will be met by a hail of ‘arrows’ of all kinds long before it can get close toUnity. We call them ‘missiles’.”

He smiled tightly and held the spear up so the new sharp point caught a blue sunray. “Then I better not go back. And when others come, aliens who are not as nice as me, your old planet will be ready for them. See what a favor I’ve done for them? Here, yourmissileis finished. It needs a name and a battle chant.”

Josie scratched her head. “It’s the first time I name a stick.”

“This is much more than a stick! It’s a spear and a club. A weapon that you have already used to great effect. How about ‘Skrymtir-piercer’?”

Josie shuddered. “I don’t want to be reminded of those things every time I look at it. What about ‘Rose’?”

Bragr frowned. “Too short, surely. What does it mean?”

“It’s a red flower we have on Earth, very beautiful.”

“Aflower?This is a battle weapon!” Bragr protested. “It should have a fearsome name. It will be famous, and other warriors will know its name and chant it. Like ‘Skull-cleaver’!”

“Roses have thorns, you know. Anyway, it hasn’t cleft any skulls. How about ‘Violet’?”

“Another flower?”

Josie crossed her arms over her chest. “Maybe.”

Bragr just scoffed. “Dfergir-hammer.”

“Mustthe name contain all the bad monsters? How about ‘Willow’?”

His eyes went narrow. “More flowers?”

“No, it’s a tree.”

“Is it a war-like tree? A battle tree?”

“Oh yes. The willow tree is in all the wars. It’s fierce.”

“Wiwow,” he tried. “It doesn’t sound hard enough. It must be a name with an edge! Like ‘Bone-crrrusherrr’!”

“I don’t think so.”

“‘Blood-brrringer’!”

“That has to be a joke.”

“Vettir-killer’!”

“Again with the monsters. Wait.” Josie examined the new flint tip of her spear. “When I fight, I feel like atornado. Spinning fast, impossible to stop.”

“What’s a tornado?”

Josie moved the tip of the spear in quick circles in the air. “Big wind that does this.”

“A whirlwind,” Bragr pondered. “That’s what you looked like to me during the dfergir battle.Tornado.An alien word, but easy to say and with a ferocious meaning. And it is reminiscent of Zhor, the god of war. Not bad. I think you have it.”

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