[ video 01 | @68 ]

[sixtyeighth]

[ A video comes on, and what's most clear is that on the right side of his face is covered in blood, and there's a crack in the corner of his orange-glasses. It's pretty clear right away that he's been off fighting or doing something. ]

Oh my, oh my - just when I get a new pair. Already. What a waste. I'll have to go out and find new and be more careful next time!

[ As if he will be. ]

So - can anyone recommend a good tailor and dry cleaner? I --

[ He shifts the camera, and pans it down the front of his suit. On his chest, there's several holes and dried blood. Several of the holes seem to go clear through the shirt underneath, too. ]

Ruined my favorite suit. Ran into a little trouble.

[ Hah - yeah - a little. He seems amused by this, so he starts to laugh a little. ]

Just a little.

Comments

[ragnarsson]

Sometimes in life, you have to get what you want through perseverance and hard work. It's the only way I've ever gotten anything myself.

[Every scrap of respect had been earned the hard way, proving that he was just as good as any other Viking, deserving of being called a warrior.]

[sixtyeighth]

Sometimes it's a prize for surviving when others couldn't.

[ He was never stronger, really. Or better. Just...he happened to be lucky enough to live. ]

[ragnarsson]

I know that feeling well.

[No one had ever suspected Ivar to live more than a few weeks. When it became apparent he was going to live, many thought he wouldn't make it past childhood. But always, he'd been tough enough to defy everyone's expectations. The only way he was going to die was a proper Viking death on the battlefield.]

[sixtyeighth]

Survivors are always the best at living.

[ He finds, at least. They appreciate and don't waste time away. Or - at least - survivors like himself, and apparently - Ivar. ]

[ragnarsson]

Of course. They're generally the toughest and smartest people, so of course they make it through when no one else does.

[sixtyeighth]

Or the luckiest, and they simply appreciate it.