Kingdom Come

XXII. Medicine Man

"No!" Shouted Jaehaera and Uhtred as Whitgar fired at her brother. Jaehaera moved to step in front of him, but Beocca beat her to it. He took the arrow for her brother, and Jaehaera froze in fear and shock. She could hear herself cry out as Sihtric caught her in his arms. Rickon and Finan stopped Beocca from falling. Everything seemed to move in slow motion and the world went silent. She watched Rickon and Finan hold him through blurry tears.

"Beocca!" She heard her father shout painfully, and she turned her head to him. She pushed Sihtric from her as she moved with her father. They both screamed and began to fight. She moved in fury as she sliced through the belly of the first saxon that moved to stop her. She heard the shouts of her lover to tell her to stop, but they fell on deaf ears as she dodged the swing of a saxon sword. She swiped the legs from underneath the man and stabbed him through his throat as he fell. Her father's men now sprung to action as well. Rickon caught the sword of a saxon that Jaehaera threw him, and he used both swords to decapitate a man. No man stood a chance against her, not now. Pure, white-hot rage and grief burned through her. Her gaze found Whitgars and he blinks in fright at her. You, She thought, you are mine. She cut off the head of a man as she moved to where she saw Whitgar leave to join the battle.

"Jaehaera, no!" She heard Sihtric yell at her, but she ignored him as another head fell from its shoulders. She stepped on the man's dead body as she kept moving forward. "Make for the ship!" Sihtric yelled at her. He cursed her and Whitgar in his mind as he went for her. They heard her father wail as he found the body of his priest and father figure.

She roared as she felt all the emotions as her father felt them and magnified them. Sihtric grabbed her from behind, and she swung at him before she could realize it was her heart. He dodged her swing and batted her sword away from him. She blinked when she saw him, and froze. "Jaehaera! Whitgar's gone to the walls! They'll try to sink the ship!" She shoved past him and killed another saxon. "Jaehaera! Lord!" he called to them both. Sihtric quickly grabbed her around her waist and lifted her as she spat curses at him.

"Sihtric, watch out!" She commanded him through a pained wail. She sliced through the man coming for her love as he placed her quickly back on the ground. She kicked the man in the chest as he fell, and cut off his head like the others. "We can't leave him! Not here!" She shouted at Sihtric. Sihtric killed the saxon coming for Jaehaera while she was distracted by him.

Uhtred looked at his daughter as she fought with Sihtric. She and her son couldn't die too, he couldn't lose them too. "Jaehaera! With me! Now!" he shouted at her. Finan stood with him and moved him back toward the way they had entered.

"Jaehaera please," Sihtric told her.

Jaehaera groaned and yelled at a man coming towards her. He froze as the girls scared him and in that second she killed him. She glared once at Sihtric before doing as her father commanded and followed him and Finan. Sihtric knew she wasn't angry with him, so her attitude toward him didn't bother or faze him. He understood it. The rain finally fell around them. They all moved toward where they had left the ship, and she caught sight of her baby brother with Osferth. She ran to him to help protect her brother. Sihtric and Rickon close behind her. They all killed the guards that stood in their way. "Untie the ship!" Sihtric yelled at Osferth as the others came up behind them. "Osferth, untie the ship!"

From above a boulder came down on their ship. Jaehaera kept her brother up when he slipped on the wood. "Osferth, start bailing, where is Uhtred?" he called to them.

She saw an archer ready the bow like Whitgar had once had and aimed at Sihtric. "No!" She yelled as the archer fired and she jumped in front of him. The arrow landed in her shoulder and she slipped. She braced herself to hit the wet wood, but it never happened.