SHE WOLF
— 18. Recovery
It wasn't long before Ragnar decided to send a small army in the night to sneak into Paris. Of course, it wasn't long before Ylva offered to lead the assault and Ragnar was more than willing to allow her, knowing if anyone were to succeed in leading the men and women, it was Ylva.
Before leaving, Ylva traveled to the tent where Bjorn was resting. She walked over to him before kneeling next to him. She placed a hand on Bjorn's cheek.
He immediately woke up and opened his eyes, giving her a curious look. "What's wrong?" He asked her, knowing the look on her face all too well.
"Ragnar has sent a small number of us to try to sneak into Paris. I will be leading the attack. It happens tonight. I just wanted to see you before I left," She explained to him, a soft smile on her face as she glanced down at him.
Bjorn weakly lifted his hand and grabbed hers, squeezing it affectionately. "Be careful," He warned her and Ylva smiled as she nodded her head.
"I will," She assured him and leaned forward, pressing a quick kiss to his lips, "I know I don't say it often, Bjorn, even though I should, but I love you," She told him in a whisper, "More than you could ever know. You mean the world to him."
"I love you, too," He replied, placing a hand on the side of her face, "You are my world."
Ylva smiled softly at his words and leaned forward, kissing her husband once more before she stood up. She let go of his hand, just before walking away.
___
That night, alongside Lagertha and several others, the group swam through the waters and toward the walls of Paris. The water was freezing, but Ylva endured it, knowing it would be worth it. They swam to the watchtowers once reaching it, Ylva was the first to begin to climb up with Lagerhta following soon after her.
Inside, one of the men was looking outwards at the water. However, as he went to turn to follow the others, Ylva suddenly appeared in front of him. She covered his mouth with her hand, just before slicing his throat with her blade.
Being the next to get inside, Lagertha snuck up to another man and killed him instantly by stabbing him repeatedly. The shieldmaidens who had accompanied them on the attack quickly grabbed ahold of the men and lightly placed down them on the ground without any noise.
Without being seen, Ylva snuck over to the last man standing nearby. She made sure not to be seen before rushing at him from the back. She whipped his body around before Lagertha appeared and killed him.
The other shieldmaidens quickly stepped forward, catching him before he could hit the ground. They gently placed him down on the ground while Lagertha walked up to another man and sliced his throat.
The other men began to shout, announcing to the others that they were there. Ylva quickly slashed at two of them, killing them as the bells rang.
Ylva stabbed one in front of her before slashing at the other. Just then, from above, oil was poured and it fell on one of the shieldmaidens, causing her to scream in pain.
Ylva quickly grabbed Lagertha by the arm and pulled her with her to the wall before they could be touched by the oil.
Ylva peeked her head out, looking down the tunnel to see numerous men with crossbows making their way toward them.
The two remaining shieldmaidens braced themselves, wasting no time beginning to shoot arrows in the men's direction. However, it was more than obvious that they were outnumbered.
A crossbow bolt came her way and Ylva flinched, quick to jolt out of the way before it could hit her. It wasn't long before the two archers loyal to them were shot down and Ylva turned to Lagertha, exchanging an uneasy look with her.
The older shieldmaiden glanced around, only to lock eyes on the brazier in front of them. She quickly lifted a lit piece of wood from it before throwing it on top of the oil that had been poured from above.
The door next to the oil immediately erupted into flames, much to their relief. The signal had been made.
Together, as smoke made it hard for the Franks to see, Ylva and Lagertha made their way over to the door that was on fire. They lifted the plank keeping it shut before they kicked it open, which allowed them to come through.
____
The fighting began and Ylva remained at the door with Lagertha, gesturing for the men to enter. She frowned, however, as she turned to see the men running back toward the door.
Just then, her eyes widened, watching as a weapon unknown to her came rolling toward them, covered in spikes that killed any man that was unlucky enough to be run over by it.
It ended up rolling back toward the Franks, pulled by a chain. Rollo ran toward it, climbing over it before he caused tools of their own to stop in its place.
Ylva smiled, climbing over the machine to hold out the second tool needed. "Rollo!" She called out, wasting no time with handing him the second tool.
With that, Ylva climbed over alongside Sihtric, the two of them bracing themselves for their second battle in two days.
They stood side by side, killing anyone in their path. One of the Franks swung at her and as she ducked, Sihtric ended up killing the man.
Ylva swung at the next one, wasting no time stabbing him in the chest before killing another that came her way.
Seeing one of the Franks' weapons on the ground, Ylva smirked slightly. She placed her weapons back on her belt before lifting the weapon called a crossbow. She turned to the Frank that Sihtric was fighting and used the crossbow to shoot the man trying to kill her brother.
She stared down at it curiously, impressed by the machine. She picked up another one of those fallen weapons and used it again. It was almost like a bow, but all she had to do was pull a trigger and it shot the arrows.
Dropping the weapon on the ground, Ylva unsheathed her sword once more and began to battle the men.
The fight against the Franks had been easy at first. However, soon enough, more and more Franks piled in, outnumbering them greatly.
Knowing they could not beat the Franks, Ylva sighed in defeat. "Fall back!" She shouted out loudly and Rollo and Floki were quick to repeat after her, "Fall back! Everyone, fall back."
Ylva quicky killed two more men before rushing out of the tunnel alongside her brother and countless others.
____
Days later, at their camp just outside of Paris, Ylva was outside with Bjorn, who was beginning to recover, when they suddenly turned to see Franks on horseback riding into their camp. There weren't many of them, leading to Ylva realizing that they were there to negotiate.
Bjorn had his arm wrapped around Ylva, who was assisting him in walking since he was still weak.
Sihtric, Freya, Rollo, Floki, and Lagertha walked to stand beside them, wanting answers as to why the men were there as well.
Ragnar laid on a blanket of wool nearby, a taunting smile on his face, despite being weak.
Ylva looked ahead, only to smile as she watched one of the Franks bring forward Sinric, the wanderer, who was tied with ropes.
"Sinric," Ragnar spoke up in a mocking tone, "I am saddened to see you a prisoner. After all, you're a wanderer."
The man holding onto Sinric's ropes shoved him forward, causing Sintric to nearly fall before he steadied himself.
"King Ragnar," Sinric called out, trying to hide his uneasiness, "The Franks want to discuss a way to end the siege."
"Why?" Sihtric asked, a suspicious look on his face.
"They believe it would be better for both sides," Sinric answered in a calm tone as he glanced around.
"Why would that be better for us?" Rollo complained as he looked down at Sinric.
"They don't believe you are capable of breaching the city walls," Sinric admitted and Ylva sighed in defeat.
"I say we are!" Rollo exclaimed with a smile on his face.
"What will they give us if we lift the siege?" Bjorn asked Sinric curiously.
"That would be decided at a meeting between you and the commander of the city, Count Odo," Sinric informed them and Ylva looked annoyed.
"And where would we have this meeting?" Bjorn questioned, eying the man suspiciously as he walked closer to the man standing beside Sinric and glared at him hatefully, "Because I know if my father enters the city, he will be captured or killed."
"The Count suggested the meeting take place outside the city walls, with no weapons," Sinric responded and Ylva nodded in understanding.
"Tell them they'll have their answer tomorrow," Ylva answered in a stern tone as she walked to stand beside Bjorn.
Sinric turned to the man Bjorn was glaring at and immediately told him what Bjorn had said. He glared back at Bjorn, just before he began to walk away and drag Sinric with him.
However, just then, Rollo rushed over to them and grabbed Sinric's ropes. The man looked alarmed as Rollo unsheathed his blade, only to watch as he cuts Sinric's ropes to save him from being a hostage.
With that, the Franks left, leaving Sinric with the Vikings.
"Why should we make any kind of deal with them?" Lagertha complained as she walked closer to Ragnar.
"We've lost nearly a thousand men, we can't breach the city, and winter is coming," Bjorn complained to his mother, "Do you need more reasons?"
"Bjorn is right," Ylva spoke up, agreeing with her husband.
"Then why do they offer terms, if they are so sure we can't get into the city?" Rollo argued as he glanced around.
"They have probably run out of food," Kalf spoke up in a calm tone and Erlendur was quick to add in.
"Then we should let them starve," Erlendur suggested, earning a glare from Ylva.
"But then they will hate us even more, you fool," Ylva snapped at him in an annoyed tone, "And that will never end well."
Erlendur began to argue with Ylva, both of them speaking in venomous tones. It wasn't long before Bjorn added in, defending Ylva's statement and soon after that, it was Lagertha, Kalf, and Rollo arguing as well.
With that, commotion and chaos ensued and Ragnar was quick to stand up from his seated position. "I have something to say," He announced and after a moment, they finally became silent to let him speak, "Like Ylva here, I did not become Earl because I aspired to be one. It came about because of other peoples' actions," He began to explain as he shot Lagertha a look before he continued to walk around, "And I did not become king out of ambition. But once again, I had no choice, as a result of other people's actions. But nonetheless, I am King. King Ragnar! Hmm. That is my name. King Ragnar!"
Ragnar continued to walk around until he stopped in front of Freya and looked down at her. "What does a king do, young Freya?" He asked the young girl curiously.
"He rules," She replied in a calm tone as she stared up at the man.
"Yes! Good!" Ragnar shouted as he patted her on the back, "He rules. And as a ruler, I..." He trailed off as he stopped in front of Lagertha, "have the last say. Me!" He yelled out as he back away from Lagertha and pointed at everyone there that had been arguing, "Not you! Not you! Not you! And not you! You have all had your ideas, and they have all failed! I will not."
Ragnar clutched his stomach and bent forward. He groaned, spitting up some blood on the floor before he stood back up. "Now, with no more discussion, we shall meet the Franks tomorrow."
With that, Ragnar walked away with Sinric and Ylva smiled slightly, exchanging a look with Bjorn.
_____
That afternoon, Ylva was standing in a tent with Lagertha, Floki, Erlendur, and Kalf when Rollo entered, looking uneasy. "Ragnar is not here," He informed them, causing Ylva to frown in confusion, "He's already left."
With that, Rollo walked out of the tent with the rest of them following soon after them. They ended up climbing on their horses and traveled to where Ragnar had planned to meet with the Franks.
Coming to a stop, Ylva was the first to climb off her horse and rush forward, the rest of them following soon after.
Ylva looked ahead and some Franks were quick to step in front of them, not allowing them to go any further. She turned her head, her eyes widening at the sight of Ragnar being baptized by a priest. She watched as Ragnar willingly allowed himself to be dunked in the water before rising once more.
Her eyes widened in horror, feeling betrayed by what he had done as did everyone else. "How could he?" She asked quietly and it wasn't long before Ragnar turned his head, his eyes locking on the group.
____
Days had passed and the Franks had returned. Ylva was standing beside Bjorn, who was wincing as he rubbed his aching shoulder. Rollo, Sihtric, Freya, and countless others walked to stand beside them, eying the Franks suspiciously.
The Franks began to speak to them in their native tongue and Ylva turned to Sinric, waiting for him to translate.
"All the treasure is here, as promised," Sinric told them in a calm tone, "They have met their obligations. The emperor expects that you will meet yours, and leave immediately."
With that, the Franks left and the moment they did so, everyone rushed toward the gold. Sihtric jumped onto the horse-drawn cart, smiling as he grabbed handfuls of gold and threw them in the air for people to catch.
Bjorn smiled, wrapping an arm around Ylva as they watched Freya shove someone without a care in the world to catch some gold coins. They both laughed, shaking their head at her actions.
"She's shameless," Ylva commented and Bjorn turned to her with a knowing look.
"A lot like someone else I know," He retorted, earning a playful eye roll from Ylva.
_____
That night, Ragnar ended up sending for Ylva and Bjorn. After hearing that Ragnar had wanted to see them, the duo wasted no time going to his tent.
They sat together in front of the man, who looked to be getting weaker and weaker, closer to death as each day passed.
Ragnar panted for breath as he lifted his head to look them both in the eyes. He wiped his mouth, glancing between the duo. "There will come a time...when the two of you will be responsible for our people."
Bjorn frowned as he heard his father's words, not knowing what he was trying to say. "Ylva is Ashton's Earl. And you are Kattegat's king."
"Hmm. For now," Ragnar managed to get out, smiling as he nodded his head, "But when your time comes, you must lead with your heads, not with your hearts. You must rule together. What either of you lacks, the other has. You are one together and united, you will a strong leader for both Kattegat and Ashton. These two lands do not just border each other, they are sisters," He explained, smiling slightly at the thought, "They were destined to be united sooner or later and with your marriage, that has occurred. Together, you must rule both lands and you must rule with your head and not your heart. Can you two do that?"
"Yes, Father," Bjorn answered at the time that Ylva responded with a small nod.
"I have something, I only trust the two of you two do for me," He informed them in a calm tone.
"Whatever it is, we'll do it for you, Ragnar," Ylva replied without hesitation as she nodded her head.
"Good," Ragnar stated and with that, he gave them instructions for what would come next.