Once upon a time, there lived a people that loved to roam the seas. After countless days at sea, they sighted land. They had sailed so far up north that they thought they must be close to Osgard, the home of the gods at the top of the world. They found the land young and lovely, just newly uncovered from the vast tracks of ice that had covered it for so long. Not long after, clusters of homes dotted the land where before there were only forests and dark granite mountains. Family farms rang with lively children’s voices and the homely sounds of women making butter and cheese. Everyone young and old helped to dry and smoke the meat and fish that their men brought home for the long harsh winter. In the evening, the family gathered around the fire listening to stories of gods and heroes. Always, there was a story of long voyages and almost forgotten lands. On some rare nights, there would be a guest, an itinerant merchant that would tell of wealthy towns with harbors where big ships brought merchandise from foreign lands.

For many years, life was full. There was land for everyone. Fish abounded in the fjords, the winding rivers and the wide lakes. Houses were built larger as the families grew bigger. Soon, there were more families than houses, and more people than the land can sustain. The land was more beautiful than bountiful. Even as their souls feasted on Nature’s loveliness the pangs of hunger crept more insistently.
Eldest sons had to grow up in a hurry when their fathers died, for they have to take over the farm to support a large family. Sisters and daughters seldom stayed long in the family house becuse a marriage was arranged for them when they are 15 or even younger. The young wives set up and managed their own household. Younger brothers who wanted to marry were forced to search far and wide for a piece of land they can call their own

It was clear that the land was no longer big enough for everyone. Once again, the sea beckoned and the wind murmured with the voice of their ancestors telling of lands beyond the farthest horizons. The day came when there was nothing else to do but to go a-viking, to cross the seas in search of a better life. This is their story.