Who out there hasn't seen the Thor - Dark World - Ragnarök trilogy? Who could have failed to notice Heimdall (be still, my beating heart) and that sword, which is the key to the Bifrost. Incidentally, the sword has one, if not two names. I've heard it called Gultoppr, and also Hofund. I'm no specialist, nor an Asatruar (not quite yet...), so I couldn't tell you which is the proper name. But I was looking through images a while ago and couldn't help noticing...
...I have a 3D sword prop that's awfully like it. Not a dead ringer, but enough like it to give me ideas. So here's the plot:
Asgard falls (kind of sounds like Gallifrey Falls No More!) and many objects of power are scattered across the cosmos. Some fall to earth, and occasionally are found -- like the Weirdstone of Brisingaman (which you can get as a free download in pdf right now. You're welcome). Enter our Viking warrior, who stumbles across a relic of incredible power:
Call him Ragnar. He doesn't realize at first what it is, and then weird, and wyrd, thing begin to happen. Oh yes, he's found Gultoppr, Heimdall's lost sword. It's far too powerful for Ragnar, he wants only to be rid of it before it utterly consumes him.
So our young Ragnar takes it to the last of the Asatruar priests, perhaps in Iceland, and offers it: " 'Tis the Bifrost sword itself," he says, "take it from me, now, for I've no wanting for it!"
But the priest won't touch it. Instead, he -- or she (and she would be much more interesting: anyone remember the witch, the rune-caster, Kitala, in The Vikings? --
-- yes, definitely a priestess) says it must go back to Heimdall, who is the only one who can handle it, since the passing of the All-Father.
Now, by what magic does one raise Heimdall? And what happens when Gultoppr, the Bifrost sword, is returned to him? Whooo!
I do love to spin stories. I just very seldom write them (though I have sold three to magazines in the last year or so, as it happens; and won an honorable mention in a competition on top of that).
Thanks for indulging me as I tell stories in a thimble here, almost like extended captions to the images I dream up along the way! 😎
I was rather pleased with the pony. It's the fabulous mane that makes it:
And I'm not going to tell you I painted that. The process takes way too long. Believe me. However, I was digging through old, old files and stumbled over buried treasure. A set of "manes and tails for horses" packed as Photoshop layers, pre-painted by a phenomenally talented artist about ten years ago. I just now touched down on Renderosity and yes (thank gods!) you can still get them, and a whole lot more than were available the last time I looked. Soon as I get my computer upgrade, I feel a shopping spree coming on! These days the artist, CWRW produces the most outrageously gorgeous fine art prints you have ever seen (or not seen). They're expensive, but ... phew. Google on "CWRW horse art," and see what comes up.
Last thing for today is the "Minutes Before Dawn" Terragen render, which took 90 minutes last evening. It's the longest Terragen render I've done so far, because that sky took 90% of that render time. I'm working my way to thunderheads ... think I know how it's done! We're getting there. The last things I need to figure out are how to properly handle power fractal terrains ... I'm doing far too much guessing right now: the penny ain't quite dropped yet. Then, I must get the depth of field function worked out. Then (gulp) working with objects. I might chicken out and read the tutorial before I start trying to feed objects into the program ... then all bets are off, because if -- if -- if -- it looks like it's going to burn out this poor, skinny little HP laptop, the rest will have to wait. But not for too long! 😁
