Viking Berserkers, The Seven
Viking Berserkers
What manner of men or beast are these soldiers,
Be they supernatural warriors in a mad rage?
We stood near the edge of a cliff,
Somewhere in the north, a far distance
We had travelled across unknown lands,
Our cloaks billowed out from the winds,
Then would flap and slap our legs.
My blood ran cold as I saw a mighty army,
Their boots stomping in rhythm,
Their swords and shields clashing together
As they approached seven huge warriors
Who kept a great distance between each other.
Stance of The Seven was courageous,
Daring and taunting the army to come closer,
Each of them had an enormous barbed club
In one hand, deadly battle axe in the other,
The Seven wore thick furs shoulder to toe,
Fur boots wrapped in leather thongs,
Helmets with horns on massive heads.
The Seven, be they men or beastly bears,
Gnashed their teeth, ready for the battle,
Their maniacal growling carried on the wind,
Reached our ears in blood-curdling sound,
Surely The Seven would die in minutes.
On the bluff across the gorge
Sat a hundred or more warriors,
On their steeds, behind The Seven,
Calmly waiting, their King in front,
His banner carrier aside him.
They be Viking berserkers,
My traveling companion quietly said.
Why does their army not come down
To protect and fight with them?
No need to, my companion replied.
I could not comprehend why
A King and his warriors sent out
The Seven alone,
Just then the berserkers stepped forward,
Raising their clubs as the army attacked.
We watched in awe as the battle raged below,
Each of the Viking berserkers cut off a section
Of soldiers and clubbed them down,
Wildly each berserker fought with fury,
My sight lay on one huge berserker,
My spirit merged with his for an instant.
In a trance-like state of fury he was powerful,
A fierce warrior with grotesque features,
He charged through the enemy lines, cut them down,
All before him fell, all behind him lay dead,
Adrenaline rushed through his boiling blood,
Pain had no affect on him, like a grizzly bear
On full alert he was possessed with animal instincts,
And had no fear of death.
I was on the battle field but a minute,
Feeling the surge of fury in the berserker,
Seeing the fear in his enemies eyes,
I smelled and tasted the flying blood ….
Then I jerked as my spirit returned,
I saw the battle was over,
And The Seven stood victorious,
The field littered with a dead army.
It was then the King ordered his army
To go down and tend to the berserkers,
The Viking berserkers knew not their own army,
They rushed forward to kill more,
The King kept his army backing up,
Till the berserkers regained their senses,
And coming out of their induced fury,
The bloodied Seven fell to the ground.
They were once again mortal men,
Wounded, dazed, near death,
And in serious need of healing
From the sorcerer.
~~
My companion and I hailed the King,
He lifted an arm to acknowledge us.
We were time travelers,
My companion and I,
And he had more history lessons
For me to learn.
We turned and walked into another era.
~~~~
“I’ll ask of the berserks, you tasters of blood,
Those intrepid heroes, how are they treated,
Those who wade out into battle?
Wolf-skinned they are called. In battle
They bear bloody shields.
Red with blood are their spears when they come to fight.
They form a closed group.
The prince in his wisdom puts trust in such men
Who hack through enemy shields.”
– The poet Thorbiorn described berserkers in his skaldic saga poem in honor of King Harrald
Fairhair who had berserker warriors.
© 2017 Phyllis Doyle Burns
I have always liked to write.It is important to me that writing comes from my heart and soul. When writing poetry, if I do not feel a spiritual connection to what I am writing on, I will discard it and go on to something I can connect with on a spiritual level. I live in the moment, I write from the past or beyond the veil. When writing fiction I go with whatever inspires me at the moment - it could be funny, sorrowful, romantic or sometimes done with the use of colloquial language from mountain folk or other cultural regions.
I began writing content online in 2007, starting with BellaOnline - A Voice For Women, where I was the Native American Editor, Folklore & Mythology Editor, and the Appalachian Editor. I also wrote articles forThe Examiner, Daily Two Cents, and Yahoo. I am currently an author on HubPages.
Most of what I write takes a lot of research and I love it. Even if it is a fictional story, I will research for accuracy in whatever it takes to make my characters, their era, their location, etc. become realistic to the reader.
I hope you enjoy my works. Thank you for visiting.
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A great tale of the truest of warriors, knowing only blood and victory, despite pain and harm. Unstoppable in battle they were legendary and so well told this tale of battle, I can taste the blood and dust. Great work Phyllis. A past life I relate to; to this day I wear a silver Viking bracelet in memory.
That is so awesome, Tony. I would love to see your bracelet. I am a descendant of the Vikings through my father’s side. I often have dreams or past life recalls of living with those ancestors. Thank you so much for your great comment and sharing your past life – marvelous! x