The Sage of Einar

Chapter 17: The power of Tensegrity

“Einar, you are not kidding; how can you make a table that can only be held using ropes.

That is not impossible, or will you use something magical to do it? “

Max started laughing as he saw Kassia’s puzzled face and shook his head. “I’d like to tell you that magic doesn’t exist, but I died and came back to life.

That shows that the world is much bigger than I can imagine, but answering your question is not magic, even if it seems like it. “

Max’s handheld a bit of thread in his hand and stretched it out. “What I’ll show you is called tensegrity; it’s a structural principle.

My daughter liked that I made some figures in my spare time. “

Kassia sighed and took the thread from Max’s hand. “I want to see what you can do, but I’ll take this thread as I have some wounds to stitch up.”

Max smiled and wiped his hands using boiled water and a little alcohol. “Kassia, you know where I can find the monks we captured yesterday? I think they can help us take care of the wounded.”

Kassia, who was sewing a silver needle wound, nodded. “When you get out of the tent, just walk towards the largest building in front of the bastard’s corpse.

Inside, you will see a large room where they will possibly be tied to the large pillar in the middle; inside should also be Felipa, so I don’t think you have any problems communicating. “

Max left the tent and began to walk towards the building; on his way, he could see that some women were cleaning up captured swords and armor with water.

He was also able to see more calmly the warriors’ scaled armor, which he was able to identify as those used by the Byzantine cataphracts.

‘I suppose my grandfather on his trips to Constantinople was able to buy those armors, but that leaves me with a bigger question.

This world belongs to my timeline, or is it a different line. ‘

Max watched for a while longer and ducked his shoulders. ‘There’s no use thinking about it because I’m already in this place, and I’m sure I’m going to change the future.’

When he reached the wooden building door, the guard who was guarding the entrance greeted him.

“God morgen ung mester Einar”

Max, without being able to understand, only moved his hand and entered the building, once inside he could see a large room, where at the back there was a wooden throne that had the skin of a bear on the floor and in the middle, a wooden pillar adorned with some carved.

The place was also lit with lamps that seemed to use grease to maintain their flames; on the floor, he could see different woven rugs superimposed on each other.

Another thing that also caught his attention was the large table on the left side where he could see a group of warriors eating what seemed to be a large piece of burned meat; at that table, he could see Felipa, who seemed to be tired.

Max, not seeing the slaves on the pillar, decided to walk towards Felipa for search help to find them.

Felipa, who was eating a piece of mutton, did not notice Einar’s presence because she was more busy biting her meat, so she almost choked on hearing someone speaking to her in Latin.

“Nos paenitet vestri prandium interrumpere Felipa.

Sed ego postulo vestri auxilium “

Felipa took her wooden jug with mead and took a long swallow to be able to pass the piece of meat that threatened to stay in her throat.

After a few drinks, she exhaled and looked at Einar, who seemed to see her with some concern. “Don’t worry, Einar. I’m better now.

Just wait for me to finish eating, and I will gladly help you with whatever you need. “

Max took a seat in one of the chairs at the large table and could see how the warriors ate their food using bone cutlery; one of the warriors cut a piece of meat and from a bag took out a small cloth that had salt.

After sprinkling a little salt, he lifted the piece of meat and took a bite; Max put his hand on his chin “Felipa, how little salt is in the town.”

Felipa looked at Einar for a few seconds, and from a brown bag, she took two cloths that were tied by a bow. “There are two types of salt in the town.”

Max watched as Felipa opened the two small clothes and inside he could see two kinds of salt, one completely white and the other a little yellowish.

“We can only get white salt through trade with Diflyn merchants who come in April, and yellow salt is what we get by boiling seawater.

The white salt you should have tried at my mother’s house but the yellow you should try. “

Felipa looked at how Einar’s face grimaced after tasting the yellow salt. “As you could prove, the salt we have from boiling seawater is horrible, so we can only depend on the white salt of the merchants.

I could say that it is quite scarce, but why the question. “

Max, who was frowning, used as much saliva as he could to wash off the bitter taste of the salt, “I plan to make white salt on a large scale.”

Felipa, who took the last bite of her flesh, was surprised by Einar’s words for a moment before her face returned to normal.

“I suppose the rumors that you are Odin’s herald are true, but since I’m done, tell me what you need help for.”

Max scratched his chin. “I want to find a group of slave monks to help us with the wounded.”

Felipa got up from the table and signaled to a slave, “Come with me, we will go with your father, he will know where they are.”

After getting up and starting to walk into the great hall, the slave went to the table where he began to clean the table and, in the process, ate the shadows that Felipa had left.

In the inner courtyard of the great hall, Sven was talking to Eskol as they watched a training battle between two children.

The two boys no more than 10 years old were fighting each other using wooden sticks that were covered with cloth.

When Max and Felipa arrived at the courtyard, they could see the intense fight between the two children, who were unaware of what was happening around them.

For them, the only thing that existed was the enemy that they had in front of them; Max, who walked to his father, only looked with some sadness as the two children hit each other.

“Good morning Father, I would like to borrow the three monk slaves that we recovered yesterday from the Drakkar to help with the wounded.

I’d also like to ask you for some woodworking tools, a rope, and some wooden planks. “

Sven, who heard his son turned his body and hugged him for a few seconds, “Good morning Einar, I will gladly ask Eskol to take the slave monks with Kassia.

As for the tools, let me call a slave to take you to our warehouse, but tell me what you plan to do. “

Max scratched his chin. “I plan to make a table that is supported only by rope.”

Sven, Felipa, and Eskol looked at Einar quite curiously; Max, who felt their gazes sighed, “How about I make the table in the center of town so that everyone can see how I do it.”

Sven scratched his beard and, with his hand, ordered the two boys to stop their training. “Brats, it’s break time; bring the tools for cutting wood, a rope, and some wooden boards from the warehouse.

Take them to the center of town, and Eskol leaves some warriors on guard and brings our people.

If Einar is going to build something with Odin’s knowledge, I think it’s only fair that all the people can see it. “

Max, who heard Felipa’s translation, only pretended to be surprised and prepared to introduce his people to the power of tensegrity.

In the center of the village, a large number of people gathered due to the call of the Jarl Sven; many were just watching curiously while others were looking to check if the rumors about Einar being a herald were real.

Max, for his part, was calm, cutting a wooden board with a primitive chisel; what he planned to do was create some grooves in the boards so that they were joined without using nails.

After a while, he built two triangular wooden bases, which had a diagonal plank protruding that had a small protrusion as if it were a letter L, then he proceeded to create the magic of tensegrity.

The first thing he did was to place a ring on each corner of the bases, including one on the protrusion of the triangle, then he joined each corner with a rope, and finally, he joined the two protrusions with a piece of rope.

Everyone in the center of town wondered what Einar would do with two wooden bases and pieces of rope.

Even the two monks and the nun were looking doubtfully at the red-haired young man who seemed to be looking at the ground with a smile.

After doing some mental calculations and checking the strings, Max only raised one of the wooden bases a little, causing something magical to happen.

The entire town was silent as they watched in disbelief as one of the wooden bases floated in the air, only supported by ropes.

Without much hurry, Max sat on the table, causing the strings to deform a bit, but they seemed to ignore their weight, then taking advantage of the fact that everyone was silent, Max stood on the triangular base and spread his hands.

The most believers in Odin got on their knees, looking at Max as if he were a god, the warriors for their part began to shout the name of Einar.

While Christian slaves prayed to their god, asking for the pagan in front of their eyes to suffering a misfortune.

Max raised his head proudly as he enjoyed the screams knowing that he had won the support of his people.