IX century, a harsh time, the time of the Vikings and the time of the struggle of Great Novgorod for the right to live and trade... This story began in the cold waters of the Northern Sea, where a storm-tossed Viking drakkar was returning from whale hunting. The Vikings saw a man in the sea, swimming among the wreckage, and picked him up. It can be said that it was from this moment that the story of the Viking named Rurik began. There would be battles, campaigns, a calling to Rus', and — many enemies, to defeat whom required not only courage and military skill, but also intelligence, cunning, and capable companions.
He made his way from the adopted son of an earl to a legendary Russian prince, the founder of the dynasty of Russian rulers, great Russian princes and tsars. The Rurik dynasty built the Russian state. It ruled the country for several centuries, defending it, expanding its borders, creating cities, roads, and laws. But that will be later. Right now, a wet and tired man is being hauled onto the drakkar, and one of the Vikings says: "He will make a good slave"....
