Making sure the zinogre was dead I sighed in relief. Ratatoskr popped up onto my shoulder, he'd been hiding while the battle was going on. "Hey, there little guy glad you're alright" I affirmed with a smile, he was good at blending in and going unnoticed, which was reassuring to me, I didn't want him to die.
Getting up I flexed my left arm, it felt like it hadn't been torn off at all which was delightful, all be it the pain it caused to regrow and be torn off. I looked at the zinogre and thought about how I could use the materials it had, but first I wanted my arm back even if I didn't need it anymore. It was mine and the bone was uru in a sense.
Reverting back to my human state I got out my axe and seax and began dismantling the corpse of the monster, I could use a lot of things from the beast as armour materials but I didn't really have a need for armour.
'maybe I could use its heartstrings for a wand core? It is kind of a dragon, plus if I add my wolf fur it might synergize it's called the thunder wolf wyvern, maybe use my humerus for my wand? I can carve runes into it as well' I considered, dragon heartstrings were one of the ultimate wand cores, and my own bone would harmonize with my magic it seemed perfect.
After I gutted the beast I travelled a bit and buried the parts I didn't want, I collected its blood, horns, harvested it's hide and scales and took out its whole heart, it was the size of my torso.
'hmm, how should I preserve this? And Carry it around?' Ratatoskr had disappeared again but I couldn't sense or smell anything around, I was on the lookout for anything now. I remembered the Isa rune basically ice, I could preserve the heart with it but carrying it around was another problem, 'maybe make a backpack from its scales? Add the extension runes?' I was in thought when Ratatoskr returned holding a crystal antler looking thing.
"Where do you find these things?! What's that from anyway?" I raised a question that I would get no answer to. 'I really wish we could communicate' i thought with a sigh as I watched him stuff it into my pouch. I gave up trying to find out anything the tiny kleptomaniac did.
I got to making the Isa rune and a pack made of its fur and scales, it was a basic design, just a backpack with some straps for my shoulders made from some rope I had with me, it wasn't permanent, I didn't want to stay around here for too long, the smell of the corpse would eventually attract other creatures.
I etched in some extension runes to the scales that lined the backpack, it could hold the heart at least. I kept everything else in my pouch, I also kept some of its meat wondering what it would taste like.
After getting my arm back I dismantled into the separate bones I would use the humerus bone for my wand, the ball joint of the shoulder would make a good handle if shaped properly. The problem was shaping it, my bones were basically a metal I would need extreme heat to mould it to shape.
"I'll think about that later, I want to get back to the normal dimension staying here alone isn't a good idea," I confessed looking at Ratatoskr perched on my shoulder. Slinging the backpack on, I looked at the carcass of the Zinogre there wasn't much left of it, just some bones and some meat the other animals around would eat them. I didn't know what else to do with it I could use some of the bones for tools but I didn't really need them.
"Ah, the rune entrance! I better make some security for it! A few bones would come in handy!" I exclaimed in realisation. Making my way over to the cadaver I took out my axe and swung at its ribs, breaking through the bone joined to the spine separating them I wrapped a little bit of rope around them and began to carry them over my back towards the flat stone surface where the rune was embedded.
When I got there I stabbed the ribs into the ground around the rock in a circle, the bend of the bones allowed them to touch at their peak, creating a teepee sort of frame. Taking out my rune crafting knife I began to make indents into the bones supplying them with magic along the way, the runes I was going to use were; protection, longevity, endurance, strength, divine energy and safe journey.
These runes were interlinked with each other, set up in a way that each one would provide the one adjoining to it with the energy it needed to run indefinitely. The longevity rune is interlinked with the divine energy rune and they fed each other, creating a constant flow of magic that wouldn't ever run out. A self-reliant network that relied on the magic in the earth and the air.
When it was all finished a hum reverberated from the bones signalling that they were running smoothly. I sighed in relief, at least no magical creatures would get through accidentally.
Passing back through the veil of the dimensional border after supplying the rune with magic was different this time, the glow emitted from the rune was a bottle green not red. And felt like parting through a bush instead of water.
'Hmm must be because of the dimensional power? Or the laws governing each? Anyway, I don't really understand it even with my increased comprehension, must be divine in a way' I thought as I entered back into the forest id had my awakening, it wasn't as grand as Pangaea, Ratatoskr seems to agree as he looked around like he was watching something boring, the trees weren't even half the size or vibrant.
I made my way to the stream nearby to wash off all the blood on me as well as my clothes and get changed, it began to run a dark red when I stepped inside, it was only up to my ankles when I sat down fully clothed and began to scrub at them a torrent of blood gushed out downstream. I didn't realize that I was this drenched in blood, even my hair was red.
After a vicious washing, I got some clothes from my pouch and got dressed in black trousers tied up in wrappings around my calves and a belt around the waist, a Brown tunic and threw a mantle of fur over me. I washed my pouch as well, I was careful not to get it full of water, didn't want a geyser to spray out when I wanted to get something from it that would be a pain.
After gathering my items and the makeshift backpack I made my way towards the coastline, my next destination was England in hopes the Ollivander would make me a wand from the materials id gathered, the stasis rune was holding up keeping the heart frozen. Why I hadn't made it before I don't know, it would have come in handy with meat I had gathered while hunting.
I was going to process the fur hide into leather when I could get rid of the heart from it. Maybe make a new mantle, the one I had was begging to wear down from battles, the wolf broach was still in good condition though.
I ended my journey to the coast at a town called Sarpsborg, it would be a short journey across the North sea towards Northumbria to the coastal settlement of Witby (Whitby). Then travel south to Wessex to find Ollivanders wand makers, I wasn't sure if he had a shop yet or if it was just a stall but I knew he would be in Lunden as the Vikings called it.
When I arrived at the port I inquired about the passage to Northumbria from an old wrinkled bald man who walked with a cane, he told me there would be a ship in a few days and that was waiting for able men, he told me about the ship crew and where I could find them. They were staying in a local hut just outside of the port, they had a sigil of Ravens hanging over the door.
As I arrived at the door I could hear a crowd of men rambling about conquest and taking back the lands of Danelaw.
'Hmm seems like King Eric Bloodaxe has already been driven out of Northumbria, seems like the massacre of the Danes will happen soon, the Norse men still have little settlements around England but no Norse kingdoms. Its a shame I never got to meet the sons of Ragnar, helping Ivar the boneless capture York would have been a historical moment to experience, it seems my guess was right in around 960ad' i understood now what time in history I was. 'I must have loved Viking history because I remember a lot of it' i reckoned with a chuckle as I banged on the wooden door with a thud.
Standing there as a short man with a brown ponytail opened the door with a stumble, he was drunk, I could smell the stench of alcohol permeate throughout the small hut. The gang of men stared at me with questioning gazes through clouded eyes.
"Hello I hear you are heading for Northumbria and would like passage with you I can provide assistance in travelling the sea but I have an enterprise to attend to when I get there," I announced as I looked at a man sat upon a chair above the rest of the crew, he seemed to be the leader of this party.