The figure barely breathed a laugh. “I am also called the Blind, and I have nine dimensions to cover. So, what’s your report?”
“The Blood Eagles are rising in numbers.” The priest spread his hands. “I have literally no idea how they’re doing it. The growth is unprecedented.”
“Unprecedented?” the figure asked skeptically.
“1933 can’t hold a candle, jefe.”
The figure heaved a great, irritated sigh. The wind that followed almost knocked the priest’s glasses off his face. “I want them gone.” Its voice was louder now. “I don’t let stupid people use my symbols. They work against me in ignorance. You’d think they would have learned after last time.”
“I’m doing all I can.” The priest cocked a brow. “It’s probably an internet thing. There’s got to be someone I can talk to about it.”
“Good. Look for someone who can help you with the internet, then. Any news of the hellerune? You’ve been keeping an eye on him as I asked?”
The priest sighed. Again with the stupid hellerune. “Yes, but I’m not the only one. I’ve been at this for a long time, but I’m still only one guy. If the Gloaming’s calling in the cavalry, it’s not gonna take them long to close in.”
“Just keep your eye on him.” The figure clicked the butt of its spear on the ground rhythmically, slowly backing up into the darkness once more. A smile appeared in its voice as it said, “I have a very strong feeling you’ll receive some help soon.”
The priest sighed as the darkness melted together, then faded.
Help? More like trouble.
THE END
Thank you for reading! Be sure to turn the page for author notes and a glossary of terms. You might learn a thing or two about Norse pronunciation, too!
And if you’d like to know when Book 3 is available (and get a free short story about Edie and Cal’s trip to retrieve her undead hamster from the emergency veterinarian), be sure to join my mailing list at GenevraBlack.com.
Glossary
I use a lot of crazy words in this book that you might not know how to pronounce, so here’s a small list of all of the Norse words in No Earthly Treason and how to say them.
Some things to keep in mind before you read this guide:
Some words have been adapted from Old Norse rather than taken from Old Norse, so their pronunciations are different. It’s also important to note that any “authentic” Norse pronunciation is reconstructed.
Some words are pronounced different contemporarily, so they aren’t widely pronounced the way the Norse would have said them. In fact, I mix and match a lot—sometimes I use the legit Old Norse words for things, and sometimes I use the more contemporary forms. In the case of valkyrie/valkyir, I literally just made up the plural “valkyir” because it sounded cool.
I’ve had to cobble together words like “hellerune,” etc., from other languages, so their pronunciation is a little fudged. As for the full sentences, I’m absolutely fudging vocab and grammar. If you know someone who can hook me up with an authentic Old Norse translation, I’ll take all the help I can get.
Pronunciation basics: the Norse almost always rolled their r’s. The letters f and v, when they don’t start the word, are pronounced as a v sound and a w sound respectively. The “aw” I’ve written to express the letter á is a round-mouthed almost-o sound like the au in the English word “maul” as opposed to “ow.” The letter j is pronounced like y is in English. The letter thorn (Þ, þ) is pronounced like the “th” in “Thor,” while the eth (Ð, ð) is pronounced like the “th” in “father” or “this.” I’ve expressed the eth sound as “dth” because that’s what it sounds like to me.
CHARACTER NAMES:
Sárr – SAWR-ur (a very hard name to say, I’ve come to find…)
Marius – MAH-ree-us
Eirik – EY-rick
Fiskbein – FISK-bane
Indriði – INDRI-dthee
Hati – HA-tee
Sköll – skohl
Roggvi – ROGG-vee
Ynga – ING-ga
Freyja – frey-ya (Or, with reconstructed Norse pronunciation, “FROY-ya.”)
Odin – OH-din (Old Norse “Óðinn” or “OH-dthin.”)
Skuld – skoold
Sváfa – SWAW-va
Tiralda – teer-AHL-da
Geir – gair (like “air” with a g at the beginning.)
Daschla – DAHsh-la
Hærfríðr – HAir-free-dthir (with “HA” said like you’re starting to say “had,” so it’s really more like “haaihr.”)
Eygísl – OYE-geez-il
Oddfreyr – ODD-froy-r
RUNE NAMES:
Ingwaz – ING-wahz
Perthro – PAIR-thro
Laguz – LAH-gooz
Merkstave – MAIRK-stahv
Thurisaz – THU-ri-sahz
Ehwaz – EH-wahz
Berkana – BAIR-ka-nah
Isaz – EE-sahz
Hagalaz – HAH-gah-lahz
Ansuz – AHN-sooz
Kauna – COW-nah
Raidho – RIDE-ho
Mannaz – MAH-nahz
Algiz – ALL-geez
Othala – OATH-a-lah
Dagaz – DAH-gahz
MISC:
Ván – vawn
Hellerune – HELLA-roona
Vættr – vaa-tur (where “æ” is pronounced like the a in “had” or “mad.”)
Brunnmigi – BROON-me-gi (hard g, short “ee” sound.)
Wight – white
Griss – grees (Translation: piglet. Used as an insult.)
Dvergr – DWARE-gur
Dís – dees (longer “ee” sound than in “griss.”)
Heimdyrr – HAYM-dyur (the y sound makes a rounded “ee” sound like the u in “tune,” but it’s difficult to say.)
Vanaheim – VAH-nah-hime (Old Norse “Vanaheimr,” or “VAH-nah-haym-ur.”)
Landvættr – LAHND-vaa-tur (where “æ” is pronounced like the a in “had” or “mad.”)
Mimir – MEE-meer
Andi-stelari – AHN-dee-STEL-ah-ree
Valkyrie – VAL-kur-ee (in reconstructed Old Norse, “valkyrja” or “VAUL-keer-ya.”)
Valkyir – VAL-kyeer
Alfheim – AWLV-hime (Old Norse “Álfheimr” or “AWLV-hay-mur”)
Aesir – ICE-eer (Old Norse “Æsir” or “ASS-eer,” which for obvious reasons doesn’t sound as cool…)
Vanir – VAH-neer
Valhalla – VAL-hal-la or VAHL-hah-lla (Old Norse “Valhöll” or “VAHL-holl.”)
Niðavellir – NEE-dtha-vell-ear
Yngvi – ING-vee
Fylgja – FYULG-ya (where the y almost makes a rounded “ee” sound like the u in “tune”. Plural “fylgjur” or “FYULG-yur.”)
Gátt-krít – gawt-kreet
Fuglfolken – FOOgl-vole-ken (plural “fuglfolk” or “FOOgl-volk.”)
Sjóvættr – SYO-vaa-tur
Seiðkona – SAYdth-conn-ah
Seidr – SAY-dur (Old Norse “Seiðr” or “SAY-dthur.”)
Njord – n’yord (Old Norse “Njörðr” or “N’YOAR-dthur.”)
Ljósálfr – LYOES-awl-vur
Valmey – VAUL-moy (Translation: “Maiden of the battle-slain.”)
“Fúna í Náströnd” – FOO-nah ee NAW-strohnd (Translation: “Rot in Náströnd.”)
Náströnd – NAW-strohnd
“Ég mun finna þig í fjöru” – yea mun FIN-ah THIG ee FYur-oo
Tyr – teer (Old Norse “Týr,” where the y makes a rounded “ee” sound like the u in “tune”)
NON-NORSE WORDS
(I’m not an expert on any of these languages, so take these with a grain of salt!)
Zaedicus – ZAY-di-cus and ZAI-di-cus (I made this name up and use both, which I’m sure he’d despise.)
Izem – EEZ-im (Berber/North African; I always imagined some of Satara’s ancestors being from there.)
Ardelean �
�� ar-DELL-yan (being Matilda’s last name, this is Romanian, of course, not Norse.)
Antoniu – ann-TONE-eoo
Lylirion – lie-LEER-eeyun
Khenbu – KEN-boo
Inuutsuttoq – inoo-oot-sutt-ok
Kolya – COAL-ya
Mulțumesc – mool-tzu-MESK (also Romanian, translation: “Thank you.”)
Kalaallit – kahla-al-eet
Takanna – tahk-ah-NAH (Greenlandic. Translation: “Enjoy your food/dig in.”)
Suaasat – SOO-aah-ahh-set (A Greenlandic stew.)
Pe dracu’ – pe DRA-ku (Romanian. Translation: “On the Devil! / No way! / Bullshit!”)
About the Author
Genevra Black is an author, a video game and movie nerd, horror buff, and lover of all things odd. She lives in Maine with her partner and her pitbull. She has always been enamored with mythology, folklore, and the paranormal. Her favorite pastimes include playing Dungeons & Dragons; gaming; watching slasher films; and designing and creating costumes/cosplay. She loves spending time in epic, exciting worlds, and each and every one of her stories is a personal invitation for readers to join her!
Find her at:
genevrablack.com
fb.me/GenevraBlack
twitter.com/GenevraBlack
genevrablack@gmail.com