The Son Of Ragnar

The moon was up, it took a crescent as it watched over the earth from above, the warriors welcoming the last day of peace as they were certain that they would be engaged in combat the next day.

King Asmund received reports about Gustav's defeat but he did not look worried as Gustav was a very meticulous man so the fact that he was their prisoner must be part of his plan.

"Get some sleep, Gustav is still alive. They are keeping him alive because he is of use to them," King Asmund instructed his men, but he wondered if King Askild somehow ambushed them.

No, this was too cheap a ploy to be a plan birthed forth by the king of Kattegat.

The camp of King Asmund was calm despite them losing close to 150 men in a failed ambush because he knew Kattegat suffered casualties as well, reducing their already little numbers.

The camp of Asmund called it a night with a few warriors staying awake to scout the area because they knew a surprise attack was not above their enemies.

-

King Askild smartly traversed the seas at night because he knew under the cover of the dark, the size of the ship could at least blend with the darkness as it was painted black for this sole purpose, it was a camouflage that was proving effective so far as they had made it through the roughest part of the sea, with enough food to keep them energized.

Bjorn puked multiple times due to motion sickness, Asger helped him through it as Ragnar was thinking about his wife and hoped she was alright.

"Brother…" Ulf called out to Ragnar quietly, getting the attention of his younger brother because it felt like it has been ages since they spoke.

"Ulf, I see you are making a name for yourself," Ragnar showed his support for the accomplishment of his brother but he was also curious about where he got this knowledge from.

"Hahaha! This is nothing compared to your success, brother." Ulf quickly rebuffed the praise he was getting from his brother.

"Do not do that, Ulf," Ragnar said with a disappointed sigh accompanying the end of his sentence.

"Do what?" Ulf asked, confused as to what Ragnar meant.

"Do not belittle your accomplishments for mine. What you did was something no one but you could have done. Anyone could kill but not everyone can build," Ragnar praised his older brother.

This had to be the first time Ragnar had said such words to Ulf and Ulf was taken aback that he had gotten the validation of his brother with such a simple act.

"T-Thank you, brother," Ulf stuttered, trying his best to maintain his cool but he could not contain the smile that crept up on his face.

"You have always been the smarter one among us but I am curious how you came up with that," Ragnar said, he wanted to know the inspiration for the genius of his older brother.

"A wise man never tells his secret," Ulf responded with a wink and this made Ragnar chuckle.

It has been a while since he had spoken to his brother like this so this much was very refreshing as Ulf was still the same man he had known all his life despite their brief time apart.

"What are you doing with that man, brother?" Ragnar questioned Ulf as he did not like that he was with Birger, the mask Birger had on at all times was very uncomfortable for everyone involved as it felt like he was not even real.

"I am watching him under the orders of King Askild," Ulf responded to his brother, taking a seat beside him.

"King Askild?" Ragnar repeated. That did not look like he was just watching over Birger as he noticed that Birger only communicated with Ulf.

"Yes, it is strange because I cannot help but feel he was sending me to my death," Ulf whispered and this drew a curious look from his brother.

"I am sure you are exaggerating," Ragnar said, trying to dismiss the claim of his brother but it was not until Ulf explained what happened to those he had sent previously that Ragnar knew this was not an exaggeration but he kept quiet and did not let out his true thoughts.

"We really should get some sleep. Tomorrow will be a long day," Ragnar told his brother, getting to his feet as he walked away from Ulf.

-

In Kattegat, Herfjötur was keeping law and order as criminal activities had increased around the city but this was to be expected as cowards existed even in a city such as Kattegat.

They were abruptly dealt with because they mistook this all-female unit as lesser than the men that had left but they did not understand the training that Herfjötur put every one of them under as they did not only build their body but their mind.

Liv admired Herfjötur because she did what most women could not do in their lifetime and that is gaining the respect of fellow Viking warriors despite being a woman.

Lagertha did this too but she could not keep up with the blood-stained path that awaited her down the road, she gave it up for the sake of her family.

A decision she was yet to regret.

The gates were locked, not allowing anyone passage or exit because they understood that despite their presence, Kattegat was still highly susceptible to attacks.

There was no escaping this so they had to be responsible for such things.

Nighttime was here and the number of criminals that had been detained in just those hours was exponentially higher.

Standing on top of the walls, serving as a watchtower, Lagertha met an exhausted-looking Herfjötur and encouraged her to get some rest.

"You know Lagertha… I do not think we can afford to res-!" Herfjötur was cut short by an arrow that flew past her and hit Lagertha, sending her tumbling over the watchtower.

"LAGERTHA!!!"