Tväre - A History

Fendal was a Tvären-born Viking who was the first elected leader of Tväre since it was founded. Leaders were often chosen after visiting the Heralds of the Northward Tower, but since the Tower’s abandonment and ruin, Tväre had started choosing their leaders for themselves. 

There are many defining moments for Tväre in Fendal’s short lifetime, including:

- The erecting of the statues of Alaf and Olaf.

- The first rebuilding of the Town Hall

- The construction of Tväre’s secret sanctuary

- Several notable victories against the Danish Raiders. 

During the battle of Eilise Valley, over twelve raiders were slain by Fendal’s hand, including the self-proclaimed Warlord Ejnord, whose death made Fendal and his axe famous in Tvären history. 

Fendal’s demise came at the hands of the lake itself. It is not known how or when he died, only that he was last seen venturing out onto Lake Tväre, never to return to his hometown. 

With a decade of harsh winters occurring consecutively in the fourteenth century, the townsfolk of Tväre (what was left of them) gathered together and agreed they should emigrate south to escape the freezing temperatures. 

Only Isgard’s family remained behind. Seven members, led by the stubborn female, chose to remain in their ancestral home, asking the Spirit of the lake for protection. The lake provided them enough fish to survive, along with successful crops grown near the shoreline. 

The family rebuilt Tväre, with some help from a few travelling traders, completing the second rebuilding of the Town Hall and repairing the roof of the Church.

Isgard died in the year 1384, leaving a legacy of eleven children, and thirty-two grandchildren. 

During the years of the Black Death, Tväre did not suffer one casualty. It wasn’t until a messenger came through twenty years after, did the locals learn of the plague. 

In 1883, Tväre was visited by Avarson, an Industrialist from Stockholm. Avarson invested in connecting Tväre to the rest of the country via its first railway, with the station additionally being built. Avarson also set up a logging factory on the north shore of Lake Tväre, which came into operation from 1885. 

Records fail to state what happened to the industrialist past the year 1885. His absence indicates that he opted to remain in Tväre until his death. 

Tväre’s most well-known folklore story is the “Ice-Wraith”, a being from ancient times that fell beneath the ice of the Lake, permanently caught in that strange world between life and death. The being was said to be the protector of the Lake, emerging only once a year, on the darkest night of Winter to scour its territory. 

Many Tvärens over the years have claimed to have seen the emaciated Ice-Man. Notably, many of them didn’t dare set foot on the ice of the Lake again for the rest of that season, having taken the sight as an omen or warning that the same fate could happen to them.. 

The tale resulted in offerings being made to the Ice-Wraith each year, in the hope that it would be satisfied by the gifts and protect the town in addition to the Lake. Over time, this custom merged with pagan offerings to the Norse Gods, and became the first in a line of annual celebrations named “The Carnival of the Fires”. 

Other stories from Tväre include those of Alaf and Olaf. Two Viking warriors (brother and sister) who conquered much of the surrounding territories with their exploration and experience in battle. Stories tell of the two Vikings leaving for the coastal regions of the land that is now called Norway, in an attempt to cross the vast ocean beyond and discover distant secrets. Nothing was known of their fate for many years until Sigmund in 1885 put forward the theory that they had been shipwrecked in a Norwegian fjord, though there is no evidence of this occurring. 

Further folklore can be found in Tväre’s own library, including the first conquering of the Thorhorn peak, and the tales of supernatural magic found at Northward Tower.