The King and Queen Of Kattegat

Chapter two

Ivar kills one of his men in anger, the blood spills all over and onto Ivar as the man drops dead onto the floor. He throws the knife to the floor and screams.

"I was tricked out of my own home by a woman!" He shouts as he turns to his brothers.

"It's no one's fault but your own!" Hvitserk said.

"Is it?" He sneered. He approached Hvitserk and came close to his face. He growled, turning around.

"I want to know who she is!" He demanded.

"Ivar, she is Yrsa." A young warrior said, coming forth.

"Yrsa? How do I not know her name but she knows mine?" He questioned. His voice softened remembering their first meeting on the boat.

"She is a raider and a Pagan like us..."

Ivar could not understand why a Pagan, a Viking, would attack her own kind. It is just as confusing as Ragnar having a love for the Christans.

"Well, if that is the case, she will not have Kattegat for long, we will regroup and attack and claim back Kattegat."

The men cheered in excitement. Except his brothers, they never supported Ivar in anything he did. He is the most unloved son of Ragnar, and Ivar carries it with him everyday.

Later that night, Hvitserk approached Ivar. Ivar sat on his bed with his head down. His expression is mellow, as it always has been.

"How do you not know about Yrsa?" Hvitserk said.

Ivar looked up at him, "I wonder myself."

"She is a lot like you, Ivar. She is a cunning warrior and swift-" Hvitserk smiled, "I'm sure you saw her in action today!"

Ivar sneered through his nose. "She is like a fox," Ivar mumbled.

Ivar went to sleep that night with a heavy heart. He even sometimes cries to sleep. No one knows of this except Ivar.

Tonight he dreams. He is crawling on his arms through a pool of blood. There is fire around him and screams. He lifts his head up to see Yrsa holding a pile of heads in her hands and her axe in another. Her back is turned to Ivar until she turns around. He is frightened at first, but then everything turns different. The blood turns into warm water. The fire vanishes and the screams and heads are nowhere to be seen.

Yrsa is in a white gown with flowers in her hair. She bends down to Ivar and lifts him up. He towers over her as she smiles. Then all his hate and anger goes from him. Ivar looks down to see dead foxes and snakes around his ankles.

Ivar jumps from his bed and falls to the ground. He hits his head, but he is alright. He cries a little bit from the horrible dream, and realizes that Yrsa is a menace to him. She has to be stopped, before she does something worse besides killing him and raiding neighboring towns.

Ivar pushes himself back up and goes out into the early morning. He is on his way to the neighboring town next to Kattegat. He has to remain unseen through the pass or risk getting caught. He will ask help from that village to take back Kattegat. It's his only chance of hope. Although Ivar is not a favorable person, he multptive and he could persude the people to help him.

--

I ready my horse with food and small supplies. Today I'm going to see the countryside of Kattegat. I figure they have good soil to farm. Forde approached me and took my hand,

"Where are you going?"

I removed my hand from him quickly, "I'm going to the countryside to explore some more land."

"By yourself?" Frode questioned.

"I need a little me time."

"Me time?" Frode questioned.

I got on my horse, "I'll be fine, I promise." I patted my back which laid my two swords. In some way I wanted Frode to come with me, in another way, for his protection I wanted him to stay behind. I find he is the only precious thing to me. We looked at each other for a couple of seconds before I took off.

The air going up the mountain was much fresher than in the village. It brought comfort to me. Spring time is almost here. I stopped at a small garden, perfectly intact. Despite my being depicted as a monster, I enjoy the beauty of nature. The smell of blood can sicken me sometimes.

I bent down to the flowers and began to pick them. I ruffled them up and stuffed them in my pouch. They will be perfect for medicines.

I suddenly heard the noise of a horse clapping against the ground. It was close, too close for comfort. I got up very slowly and turned. There he stood. His eyes narrowed down to me and a devious smile. Although foolishly, he is hardly armed. I gasped softly.

"You are Yrsa, yes?"

"And you are Ivar the Boneless?" I asked, steadying my voice.

"Yes." He cocked his head to the side.

Quickly, I drew my swords from my back and pointed them to him. He laughed menacingly.

"You are a foolish woman."

I lowered my swords slightly, as he continued to laugh, "Is it true they say you are crippled?"

His smile disappeared as he got off his horse. He struggled slightly reaching for his walking stick. He looked as though he was in great pain standing up, but he was determined nonetheless. I admired it. I will admit that. I scoffed, letting my guard down.

"How can you be alive still?" "You can't even stand!" I exclaimed.

"I've been crowned King of Kattegat!" He said,

"Yet, you allowed me to take it!"

"I DID ALLOW YOU TO TAKE IT!" He screamed, the vibrations ran through my body shaking me.

He withdrew his sword and pointed it to me. "You will give me back Kattegat!" "It is my home not yours and you have no right to take it from me!"

He tried hard to maintain himself, he looked as though he wanted to cry, but he hid it well behind his raging anger.

I laughed, climbing back onto my horse. "I must confess I was worried about how to deal with you, but now that I see you close, I now know you are not a threat to me!"

An arrow suddenly went past my head and into the tree behind me. It shocked myself and Ivar. It gave me the notion he is truly alone. Three men rode up on the hill in front of us. Three men with black horses and wearing crosses around their necks.

"Christians!" Ivar said, struggling to get on his horse. For the first time I'm truly afraid but I do not show it. The three men slowly removed their swords. I removed my sword at the same time.

"Ah, how lovely!" I said, I narrowed my eyes at them, "Fertilizer!"

I attacked swiftly, although I was quickly knocked off my horse. Ivar stood and watched until then.

He growled in frustration. He withdrew his sword and attacked. "Where did they come from?" I cried.

"I've been fighting with them long before you came!" Ivar shouted. I killed one.

I got back on my horse and that's when the bells tolled in Kattegat. We both looked at each other and began to run off to Kattegat.

I must not allow him to reach it. Because when he is done with the Christans he will come for me. I took my sword and swung it at him. I missed him. He swung at me, but I stopped him with my sword. He suddenly fell off his horse and onto the ground. I scoffed. He then cut the ankles of my horse, causing him to collapse.

I stood on my feet quickly, and looked at him, "Kattegat deserves someone who is able to defend it!" I shouted. The bells still tolled in Kattegat, I picked up my belongings and began to run down the mountain. I left Ivar behind. I let him live for another day. Running down the mountain, I could hear Ivar's frustrating screams. It made me stop in my tracks. Screams have never done that before. They are not screams of frustration, they are screams of pain.