SHE WOLF
— 11. Battle for Mercia
It didn't take long for them to arrive in Wessex, seeing as though they practically knew the way there by heart now.
Ragnar, Athelstan, Floki, Torstein, Lagertha, Bjorn, Rollo, and Ylva were those who ended up traveling to Ecbert's villa to meet with him.
Upon arriving, the group sat with King Ecberth, Princess Kwenthrith, Prince Æthelwulf, Princess Judith, and countless other Saxons at a table.
"It is my pleasure to feed you and prove the bounty of our Earth," Ecbert announced to the group in a calm tone, yet out of the Vikings, Ylva and Ragnar were the only ones to understand his language thanks to their lessons from Athelstan.
"What has happened to our people who chose to fight for Mercia?" Ragnar asked King Ecbert curiously.
Ecbert remained silent and turned to Princess Kwenthrith for her to answer.
"Unfortunately, the forces of my uncle and younger brother have prevailed," She responded in a disappointed tone, "But if Ragnar Lothbrok, and both of you, Lagertha and Ylva, would join with us, I am sure of victory."
"What does she say?" Lagertha asked, speaking in her native tongue.
"She wants us to fight for her for the throne of Mercia," Ylva answered as she exchanged a look with Ragnar.
"We came here to farm," Lagertha complained, turning to give Ragnar a pointed look, "She asks us to fight and to die, for a quarrel which is not ours."
Ylva turned, noticing how Ecbert was quick to ask Athelstan about what they were saying since he couldn't understand them.
"Um, King Ragnar," Ecbert called out, causing Ragnar to turn to look at the man, "I have given you land. Let me tell you the truth, as God is my witness, some of my nobles do not agree with what I have done. They are afraid. But I am determined to honor our treaty. In return, some of you, at least, must fight for Princess Kwenthrith."
Ragnar sighed, leaning back in his seat. "That is not part of our original agreement," He complained as he pinched the bridge of his nose, "but...in good faith, and in hopes of creating a long and prosperous...friendship, I will fight."
"So will I," Ylva spoke up, using the Saxon's language, "But surely, we cannot speak for the others."
"I will fight," Prince Æthelwulf spoke up, causing Ylva to turn to him, "Alongside these pagans. For Mercia."
"What are you and Ylva saying, brother?" Rollo asked as he turned to Ragnar, speaking in their native tongue.
"I have agreed to fight. So has Ylva," Ragnar answered as he continued to lean back in his seat.
After a moment of hesitation, Rollo sighed and nodded his head. "If my brother goes, then so do I."
"Bjorn?" Ragnar questioned and turned to look directly at his son.
"When the spring comes, and my blood heats up, I want nothing more than to raid and fight," Bjorn admitted, which was his way of saying he'd fight.
"Between the plow and the ax, I will always choose the ax," Torstein spoke up with his mouth full of food, "You know me."
"Mercia is not our quarrel," Floki complained, an annoyed look on his face.
"It is part something much bigger," Ragnar reminded his friend.
"Not for us," Floki argued as he shook his head and turned to look at Ecbert, "Maybe for him!"
"Are you coming or not, Floki?" Ylva asked impatiently as she rolled her eyes.
"Yes, I will come, Ylva," Floji answered calmly, earning a smile from Ylva, "The fly always follows the dead meat."
"Earl?" Ragnar called out to Lagertha as he gestured his hand to her, seeing as though she was the only one who still hadn't agreed.
"In order to establish the settlement here in Wessex, I need the help of one of your leaders," Ecbert informed them in a calm tone as Athelstan walked over to Lagertha to translate, "A strong leader. Someone that my nobles will respect."
After Athelstan had finished translating for her, Lagertha turned to look directly at Ecbert. "I will help you," She announced in a calm tone, "My parents were farmers, Ragnar and I were farmers. I will help my people to plow and sow and harvest and make a place to live."
"She agrees to remain in Wessex," Athelstan spoke up, translating for Ecbert, "To establish the settlement and help farm the land."
"And you also must stay, Athelstan," Ecbert replied in a calm tone, "You can speak for all sides. We need you. I need you."
Ylva glanced around, realizing it was official. They were to fight for Mercia.
"Skol," Ecbert spoke up as he lifted his glass of wine, leading to everyone else doing the same.
_____
Outside, as they prepared to leave, Ylva was standing near her horse. She lifted her head, watching as Prince Æthelwulf walked past her. They locked eyes for a moment and Ylva smiled slightly. "Is there a problem?" She spoke his language, noticing the way he looked wary of her.
"How do you know our language?" He asked, a suspicious look on his face.
"Ever since I was younger, I didn't like being around people who spoke different languages than me. It irritated me, not knowing whether or not they were talking about me without me even knowing. After my last journey to Wessex, I knew if I were to return here, I needed to know your language," She explained truthfully, "It wasn't that hard, especially when you put your mind to it. Is there a problem with that?"
"Not at all," Æthelwulf replied as he shook his head.
"Good," Ylva responded and before Athelwulf could speak up, Bjorn made his way over.
"Is there a problem?" Bjorn asked Ylva, speaking his native tongue.
"Not at all. He was just wondering how I could speak his language," She replied in her native tongue. With that, she smiled and turned to Æthelwulf, noticing how he was trying to figure out what they were saying.
"You see? It's annoying, isn't it? To not understand what we're saying," She told Æthelwulf as she spoke the Saxon language, "Now if I were you, I'd run alongside. Bjorn tends to get jealous."
Æthelwulf rolled his eyes and Ylva smiled, watching as he walked off.
She chuckled and turned to Bjorn, who was glaring at Æthelwulf as he walked away. He sighed in frustration, turning his attention back to Ylva. "You do not have to come with us," Bjorn complained as he held Ylva's hand, "You can go with Lagertha and the other settlers."
"Now, why would I go and do that? I came here to fight. That is why I intend to do," Ylva argued as she sighed in defeat and cupped his face in her hands, "Bjorn, I love you, but you must stop treating me like I can't handle myself. I thought we were over that already."
"I do it because I believe you are already with child," Bjorn admitted and Ylva remained silent, avoiding eye contact with him.
Bjorn's eyes lit up, knowing it meant that he was right. He laughed happily and wasted no time kissing her passionately. He smiled into the kiss, placing a hand on her belly.
Slowly, Ylva pulled away, briefly placing a hand on her belly before walking away.
As she walked away, Bjorn's smile faded. He began to frown, noticing that while he seemed to be delighted by the news, Ylva hadn't looked the slightest bit happy about it.
He felt uneasy, beginning to think about how over the past year, while he had mentioned them having children many times, Ylva barely seemed interested in the topic. She rarely spoke of it, only if Bjorn mentioned it first. Even then, she seemed disinterested.
Then again, in many instances, she had declared that she didn't like children. Except for his brothers for some odd reason, who she had a soft spot for, especially Ubbe and Hvitserk since they were also close to Freya.
What if she didn't want children?
_____
On the boat ride to where they were planning to set up camp, Ylva standing alone, looking to be in deep thought.
Bjorn made his way over to her, placing a hand on her back. He watched as Ylva sighed before she turned to look at him. "Are you unhappy..." He asked her, a concerned look on his face, "About being with child?"
Ylva remained silent, avoiding eye contact with Bjorn. "I never expected to be with a man, let alone have a child," She confessed, forcing herself to look him in the eye, "I never wanted to be a mother. I didn't think I'd be a good one. I'm reckless. I do many things without thinking. I take risks I shouldn't. I'm unstable. I am unfit to be a mother."
"Every woman thinks such things," Bjorn sighed in defeat as he grabbed ahold of his hand, "You will be a good mother. I know it. Look at how you are with Freya."
Ylva stared up at Bjorn, an uneasy look on her face. Freya practically raised herself and mostly, Yvla only spent time with the girl when they were training.
____
Upon learning where the armies were located, they got back onto the ships. Ylva was standing near Bjorn, finding herself in deep thought when an arrow suddenly glided through the air and found itself into the chest of a random man.
"Shield!" Ylva shouted as more arrows came their way.
An arrow suddenly came her way, but Bjorn quickly put his shield in front of her, saving her. Ylva gasped softly, turning to give Bjorn a thankful look.
As they continued to sail through the river, they found the army of Princess Kwenthrith's brother to be on one side while her uncle's army was on the other. The armies were separated by trees, which Ragnar was quick to notice.
"That is a considerable force, Father," Bjorn spoke up as he turned to Ragnar.
"If you want to change your mind, brother, now is the times!" Rollo called out and Ragnar turned to look at him.
Ylva sighed in annoyance. She pushed past many men, making her way over to Ragnar. "Can't you see the advantage here?" Ylva asked as she pointed to the army on the right, "That army on this bank is much smaller than the other. There is no visible bridge the other army can cross, which means they cannot join together if we were to attack only one."
Ragnar patted Ylva on the back, looking proud. "We attack your uncle," He spoke up as he turned to look at Kwenthrith, "Now, stay out of our way. Sound the horn! Concentrate the full attack on the right bank."
Rollo immediately yelled the commands and all of the ships began to row in the direction of King Brihwulf's army.
"All to the shore!"
As they neared the shore, King Brihwulf was quick to prepare his archers. "Shields!" Rollo and Ragnar shouted and Ylva was quick to protect herself with her shield as arrows came down on them.
A Saxon soldier near her ended up being shot through the throat with an arrow since he didn't have a shield. She rolled her eyes and without a care in the world, she threw him over the ledge and into the ocean.
The arrows came down on them again, but before it could happen a third time, the army was quick to prepare themselves to head onto the shore.
Exchanging a look with Bjorn, Ylva was one of the first to jump into the water. She yelled out, slashing three Saxons near her with her sword as she reached land.
She continued to kill any in her path, straying away from where she previously stood side by side with Bjorn.
Ylva crossed paths with Æthelwulf, who was in the middle of fighting a Saxon, which made him unable to see the one about to attack him from the back.
Without a care in the world, she stabbed the Saxon man, causing Æthelwulf to turn and stare at her in shock when he saw that she had saved him.
She simply nodded at him, just before continuing to kill any Saxons she laid eyes on.
Two Saxons appeared in front of her and Ylva dropped her shield, picking up an ax that was lying on the ground. A weapon in both hands, Ylva killed the two men at ease.
However, just then, an arrow glided through the air and embedded itself in her arm. She looked down at her and grunted, snapping it in half as she felt the tip inside of it.
Another Saxon ran toward her and Ylva quickly lifted her ax, slashing him.
Much to her annoyance, Bjorn rushed over to her. He grabbed her by the arm and pulled her closer to him, allowing them to fight side by side now that her sword arm was injured.
She continued to fight the Saxons, but was now only able to use one arm.
It didn't take long after Floki butchered King Brihwulf, though, for the battle to be over.
Ylva then took a seat on the ground, smiling widely as blood covered her face.
"Are you alright?" Bjorn asked worriedly as he looked down at her injured arm.
"I am more than fine," She confessed without a care in the world, "I really needed to spill some blood. Now, I've done it."
"But your arm—" He began to complain and Ylva sighed as she placed a hand on his chest.
"...is nothing I can't handle. I am fine, Bjorn. I was raised to endure pain and continue fighting no matter what. This..." She trailed off as she pointed down at her injury, "is nothing compared to the injuries I endured during my training as a girl."
Bjorn remained silent. He looked uneasy, always forgetting about Ylva's training. He had heard about it from Sihtric. Before Sihtric and Ylva were born, Sigefrid, their father, had actually favored Erik. He had trained him to fight the way he had and in return, Erik taught Sihtric and Ylva. Now, Ylva was training Freya.
What the training process consisted of was horrific and the worst part was that it all started at the age of eight. For Freya, though, it was started at nine, but it made no difference. It only meant Ylva was even harsher in training the girl.
It started with them being blindfolded and struck with staffs. They continued to be struck until they learned how to listen to their surroundings and defend themselves without being able to see.
After that, they learned to use staffs without blindfolds and sometimes even with one hand tied behind their back.
It only got worse from there and by the end of it, they bore scars they'd have for their entire lifetimes. From what Bjorn had heard from Sihtric, Freya had already broken an arm, her nose, and injured her ankle during Ylva's training, but still, she was forced to fight on and Freya was willing to.
That was how they were taught, to never give up. It made Bjorn feel uneasy, to say the least. While he had to admit that Ylva was one of the best fighters he knew, it was quite terrifying to know that while he was being a child and playing with toys at ten-years-old, Ylva was already a feared and formidable warrior, rallying an army to rise against her father.
It was as though Ylva never knew what it was like to be a child. Neither did Sihtric, Erik, or even Freya.
They all grew up without the love of a father. Their fathers hated them and while Sihtric, Erik, and Freya vaguely knew their mothers, Ylva didn't know hers at all. She never knew what it was like to have one. She never felt what it was to have a mother's love nor a father's.
Was that what Ylva was so afraid of? Was that why she didn't want to be a mother?
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
Ylva's pregnant and clearly, she's not happy about it. 😬