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"Your Majesty!"
I dismissed the council who bowed to me with a wave of my hand, Saga and my father's guardsmen, amongst them. "Why was I not informed sooner?"
"We have just received word," Saga replied calmly, "your spies were within the walls of Eforwic, only one lives to tell us of what has befallen them."
I clenched my hands into fists, storming to the top of the table and sitting down in my throne, "Who?"
"My son, My Queen," Aegir bowed his head, "Thorin."
A pang of sympathy shot through me for the other men of the council. This meant that two of them had lost sons. "A weregild will be paid for the fallen sons." I turned my head, looking around, "Where is Thorin?"
"I am here, My Queen," the young man, blonde and lean, shuffled out of the shadows, bowing uncertainly.
"What have—"
The doors to the grand hall opened, and Emil and Rúna burst inside, dressed in their royal garments, their faces flushed from running. They stopped to bow to me and the council men before hurrying to flank the side of my throne, their hands clasped in front of them.
I cleared my throat, turning back to Thorin, "What have you seen? Has Eforwic truly fallen?"
Thorin shuddered, bowing further so I could not see his face, "It was chaos, My Queen. Warriors came in the night, and they killed everyone they could."
My nails dug into my palm as my anger grew, "What of the Jarl Sigtryggr and the Lady Stiorra?"
Thorin sniffed, glancing up at me slightly before looking down again, "The Lady Stiorra could not be found by the attackers but... Jarl Sigtryggr was banished from Eforwic."
"Who dares to banish a Jarl of Northumbria?!" I snapped, and behind me, my children tensed, "Who dares to challenge Daneland?"
Thorin's heart beat rapidly in my ears as he shifted from one foot to another, a grown man who towered over me, withering before me like a child.
"My Queen," Saga drew my attention to her, rising from her seat at the head of the council table, her face serious, "Eforwic was attacked by Danes."
Rúna let out a quiet gasp, turning to her brother, "But how—"
"Danes?!" I demanded, pushing myself up out of my throne, "We have been at peace for years! What sort of foolish Danes would seek to break that, and not only that, but they broke peace with their kin!"
Saga bowed her head, letting out a slow breath, "Brida."
I had not heard that name in fifteen years. I had not thought of that woman in fifteen years. I had cursed her, and I had been done with her. Yet, why was she reappearing before me again?
"Brida," I spat the name, taking a step down from the steps of my throne, "how? She was said to be dead."
"It is believed," Durin spoke up, "that she fled to Iceland, and now, she has returned."
"Returned and attacked Eforwic," I hissed, my hand falling to the dagger I always carried at my side.
"Wessex and Mercia remain silent," Saga piped up again, "I sent your spies ahead to Bebbanburg, but Uhtred was there no longer when they arrived."
"Uhtred will have gone to find Stiorra," I decided, removing my hand from my blade, "he will ride for Eforwic."
"What are we to do, My Queen?" Aegir asked carefully, motioning for his son to return to the shadows.
I turned to Emil, staring at him calmly, "My son, what are we to do?"
Emil swallowed, wringing his hands together, "We are to attack."
"Attack who?" Saga asked him, not harshly but testing him as I was.
Emil flushed under the attention of the council, "Attack Brida?"
"We have to devise a plan to get into Eforwic," Rúna blurted out, stepping forward slightly, her hands going behind her back.
I forced my smile down at the confidence in her face, "Why?"
Rúna did not falter, "Eforwic is a fortress. They have high walls and a strong gate. We can not simply march towards it. Our warriors would die if they did because Brida is likely to have archers."
"Very good, Princess," Torben praised her softly, the council sharing delighted smiles as Rúna led the conversation.
Rúna trained her eyes on me, determination burning, "We have to find Jarl Sigtryggr on the road before we march onto Eforwic. He will know a way to get into Eoforwic without using the gate."
I let myself smile this time, "You are clever beyond your years."
Rúna took another step towards me, down from the platform the throne resided on, "I wish to serve you, My Queen." She bent her knee, shaking slightly from the unfamiliarity of it. "I wish to serve Northumbria. Let me fight."
Saga sucked in a sharp breath behind me, as did many of the council.
Rúna was playful and young, but she was also cunning and strong when she needed to be. She was better than me when I was twelve, and she had a natural born talent for leadership.
"Rúna," I sighed, stepping towards her and extending my hand for her to take, "you are too young to lead warriors into battle."
"But—"
"No," I told her simply, helping her stand, "but, I will let you watch the fight," I glanced over to Emil who picked at the skin around his fingers, "with your brother."
Emil snapped his eyes to me, a smile growing rapidly on his face, "I am allowed to witness the fight?"
"And only to witness it," I emphasised sternly, turning back to my council.
"We prepare for battle?" Torben and the others all stood.
"Yes," I agreed, "Eforwic belongs to Northumbria, and I will not wait for Mercia or Wessex to aid it. We will send seventy warriors."
"And who will lead them?" Isleif asked me calmly, writing down notes in a thick tome he carried everywhere. He had taken an example from Alfred of Wessex.
"I will," I spoke plainly, "they are my men, and this is my feud. I will lead my warriors."
"Then, I will ride with you," Saga blurted, her face aged by time but her spirit still as quickfire and sharp as ever.
"Your Majesty," Aegir sighed before turning to Saga, "Commander, you can not simply leave Dunholm unattended."
"It is not unattended," I tilted my head to the side, "Torben will rule as regent until I return, with Prince Hrafen beside him."
Some faces on the council soured at the mention of my youngest, but Torben beamed at me.
"I will take him fishing," the man boomed happily, "he loves reeling them in!"
I returned his smile, nodding, "Then I am entrusting you with my throne, and my child."
"I will not fail or falter," Torben swore, thumping his chest twice. His armour had been worn down in the area across his heart from how often he struck it there.
"Very well," I moved to leave the hall, the council following after me in two lines, five on either side.
"Mother," Emil caught up to my side as Rúna appeared at my left, "am I to have a sword?"
I let him take my hand and hold it as he tried to wear me down, "You will not need it, but you may have one."
"I will take Jora with me," Rúna informed me, deciding she did not need my permission, "and I will ride on my own horse."
I pushed down my smile, reaching to stroke her hair as the doors of the hall opened and we stepped through the corridors, walking hastily. "You may ride Vali to the outskirts of Eforwic, and you may take Jora for protection."
We stopped at the end of the corridor, and I turned back to my council, "Go and prepare the warriors and the horses. We leave in an hour."
Thumping across chests echoed, and then, they all darted down the right side of the corridor, all except Saga.
"I will bring Leif with me," she mused, "he learnt a lot from the last battle."
I nodded, relaxing a little as the council vanished from my sight, "He can stay with Emil and Rúna."
"And they can protect each other," Saga agreed, glancing at my children and winking at them. "You two did well in council today."
I pushed Rúna to her brother, stepping away from them, "Go and find your father, let him help you prepare for battle."
"Is he to ride with us?" Emil asked, taking Rúna's shoulder and leading her away with him.
"Was there ever a time he did not ride with us?" I teased, waiting for them to scurry away, their heart beats growing faint before I turned to Saga.
Her smile had long since fallen, and as we walked down the left corridor, tension hung in the air. "Brida has to pay for her crimes."
"I do not understand how this could have happened," I snapped, "how could she get into Northumbria without anyone seeing her? And with an army no less?"
"They must have hidden in plain sight," Saga spat angrily, pushing the doors to my quarters open and letting me enter. "I sent a bird to Henrick, and he responded that the spies saw nothing. No one in Wessex, Mercia, or Scotland knew of her arrival."
"What do they know of her now?" I demanded, making for the end of my room where my armour was proudly hung up.
"She is angry," Saga revealed plainly, "and she has a seer."
I paused, my fingers running over the chainmail of my armour, "A seer?"
"A child," Saga continued, "her daughter."
My curse had been strong, so I knew Brida would not succeed in her vengeful quests, but perhaps her child had been able to counter my power somehow. It was not unheard of.
"When we arrive in Eforwic," I returned to pulling on my armour, "you will find the child."
"Yes, My Quee—"
"It is the two of us," I sighed, "I wish to hear my own name before I forget it."
Saga snorted, her heart beats steadying, "Yes, Gyda, I will find the child, but what do you want me to do with her once I have her?"
I thought, pulling on my armbands that caught the light of the sun; I was not heinous enough to kill a child. Adults had no war with children.
I turned back to her, lowering my arms, "Deliver her to Rúna."
Saga raised her brow slowly, "Not to Emil?"
I shrugged, reaching to fasten my armour around my chest, "Emil is not ready to kill."
"And Rúna is?"
I nodded curtly, "She has my father's bloodthirst and cunning inside her but her father's skill of appearing innocent. She is ready."
"But Emil?" Saga frowned sympathetically.
I shrugged, "He is too impatient," I met her eyes to smile, "he would do well under Uhtred."
"The boy king's babe thrives under Uhtred," Saga mused, tilting her head a little, "it could not hurt to have a spy watch him."
I snorted, finishing with my armour and taking my sheath and sword, "I will not make my son a spy, especially not for Edward's child."
Saga pulled a face, "Leif could go. Finan is in Bebbanburg more than he is here, so he would not be alone."
I pat her shoulder, walking around her, "Athelstan is of no concern to me. He is just a boy."
"He will be king one day," Saga countered, turning with me as I walked out of the room again.
"And I will pray to Vör that when he becomes king, he is wiser than his father," we moved down the marble floors, "but until then, I do not care for him and I do not wish to care for him."
We moved down to the courtyard, guards flocking to my side as we went, warriors preparing themselves rapidly around us. We made for the stables.
"Will we retaliate on Mercia for this?" Saga wondered after a moment of silence, "They swore to Sigtryggr that they would help keep the peace."
I approached Helios, who was older now but still strong and abled, reaching to stroke his back before I placed my foot into the stirrup on his saddle. I sat atop him, looking around the courtyard.
Sihtric helped our children onto their horses. The wolves barked and howled in delight. The warriors spoke fondly of the battle to come, having missed the rush of blood and smell of death.
I looked down at Saga, smiling coyly, "Their dues will come in time."
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