Chapter 171: The Three Decisions

Three parchments. They lay before Helga neatly, and a tense air lingered amongst those who stood before her. Reaching out Jarl Egil, a man who wholeheartedly followed Helga, pointed to one of them. "Of the three, Jarl Sven was the only one who accepted your terms. The other two were foolish enough not to see the truth. But, he wishes to see you. He says he has things to discuss before you make a move."

Helga scoffed hearing his words. "Does he think he can negotiate a better deal or something?" Before she could wave away the offer, Egil spoke.

"No. He said he wishes to show his sincerity and would like to offer a plan to help with the conquest." Egil didn’t falter under Helga’s annoyed eyes as she played with the dagger in her hands.

"Is he on his way at least? It’s not polite to keep me waiting."

"He is a couple of days out. He left after he sent the message. As for our soldiers, they have all begun marching West. They await your arrival before they begin." Egil was calm as he said everything and those who were more terrified of Helga wondered how he could remain so in front of her.

With a loud thud, Helga slammed the knife into the parchment of one of the Jarls who refused to surrender. "Perfect." Throwing herself out of her chair, a wide smile blossomed. "Those pathetic Jarls we have conquered so far were nothing, this will be the true test. Prepare for his arrival. I want to meet him quickly and be ready to head west within the week."

"My Lord," Ivar called out stopping him before she left. The rest held their breath wondering where he got his bravery to stop Helga after she had said her piece. "There is a matter I need to discuss with you. Alone." His head was bowed deep but Helga nodded seeing it was Ivar. She brushed it to the back of her mind, but when she remembered his plans, she was equally excited to hear about it.

"Of course. Everybody leave us." They gave polite bows leaving the two alone, even her personal guard exiting the room. "Speak." Retaking her seat, she watched as Ivar lowered his head to make himself smaller.

"Everything has all but been prepared. I just need to know how much freedom I will have to deal with these traitors whilst you are gone."

"Ahh." Helga let out an exaggerated noise as she fell into thought. "These soldiers you have gathered. Have they been tested?" What she meant by it was unspoken, but Ivar understood fully and smiled.

"Many of them have been taken from the Wings of Steffen, the banner under Frode, which was in charge of clean up after any of his battles. They were the most faithful I could find, and they all have... experience in the actions I would need to take when dealing with the traitor elements." His voice carried a hint of cruelty and Helga’s smile grew wider hearing that.

"Good. Good. How many men have you recruited?"

"300. I can have them split into squads of 20-50 and spread across all the main settlements. The commanders under me have all been thoroughly tested on some of Knut’s remnants and they passed with flying colors. Loyalty and faith are not a question for them."

"Perfect." Helga stood up and walked to his side. Grabbing his chin, she forced him to look into her eyes. "When I am gone, wait for those who are unhappy to reveal themselves, and deal with them in a way that no one will dare to follow in their footsteps."

"Of course. But another matter has arisen amongst the Jarls. One they are too afraid to bring up." Ivar’s voice became more cautious as he spoke. It didn’t go unnoticed by Helga who let go of his face. "They wonder who will take your place whilst you are away."

Her lips lowered as she looked into his eyes. Ivar could see a sharp chill deep within them and took a deep breath. "They vie for power so openly yet dare to bring it up." Ivar took a deep breath, realizing it was an opportunity.

"They spoke about it in a hushed voice hoping for it not to reach your ears. But nothing escapes mine." Ivar smiled mysteriously, "I have a list of people who are trustworthy if you wish to know it."

"No," Helga said quickly, taking the dagger stabbed into the table. Pointing it at Ivar she walked forward. The tip hit his chest and Ivar could feel it fighting to pierce through his chest. "Let them wait. I will decide after Sven has come. That way I will know for sure who is faithful and who is not. But keep your ears open and tell me everything."

More pressure was applied to the dagger before Helga took it away. Skillfully playing with it in her hands she flipped it around and returned it to its place on her back. "I live to follow your command." Ivar bowed his head respectfully.

"Good. I have things I must do. Leave." Ivar nodded, quickly leaving Helga alone. She took a seat back down on her chair and snorted. "Traitors everywhere." Saying that she snorted once more. "Fools, who dare challenge the Gods."

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Finn pulled down the wool mask that protected him from the harsh winds. The small village in front of him had small walls but he knew that the stay here would only be temporary until Helga arrived. "Finn." A warrior came up alongside him. He was a brutish-looking man but his voice was high-pitched, not matching his appearance.

Finn looked at him and recognized him instantly. He could only click his tongue, wondering why Ivar had sent this man of all people with him. "Ketil. What is it." The man Ketil was known wildly in Frode’s Old Kingdom. ’The Soft Berserker.’ It was a great joke to Finn. Nothing about the man was soft other than his voice. The tale of how he killed ten men himself was well-known to anyone who prided themselves on being a warrior.

"The men are anxious. We have not given an offer to the Gods in a couple of days. They wonder when you will do it." Danger. Finn could feel all over his body hearing his voice but he gave a smile to hide it.

Ivar had warned him, but it was something he tried to brush off for as long as he could. "When we arrive." Finn looked towards the village. "I did not want to delay our Queen’s orders for marching west, but it appears I have neglected the other duties entrusted to me."

He chuckled hearing his words. "As long as you understand. Our Queen’s orders are absolute but the war will be lost if we do not respect the higher authorities." Finn gave a small nod, his eyes never leaving the village in front of him.

"How are our provisions looking."

"Enough for another week. We shall be able to restock here, however."

"Use what we have before we do. The village is a frontier and we can’t drain it off resources."

’Caw’ The sound of a raven cut through the air as the two looked up at it. Seeing it land in a birdcage on one of the horses Finn quickly went over, grabbing the small note from its leg. Ketil came over behind and looked over his shoulder at it. Smiling he handed it to him.

"Rejoice. We shall be at war soon." Ketil read it and instantly a suffocating aura came from him as he smiled joyfully.

"Those fools can’t see the truth in front of them." Ketil clenched his fist in anticipation as he looked into the far West. "Then it is our job to enlighten them."

’Fucking fanatics.’ Finn quietly spoke in his head looking at the man before him, but kept his thoughts to himself. He had seen them before but it was scary when these feelings were directed to someone living, especially for someone like Helga.

It made him wonder what truly happened on the Great Raid. He wondered if he would have turned out like them had he gone. Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, Finn focused on the mission ahead. Right now all he had to do was keep his own neck. Whatever thoughts he had could wait. Maybe Ivar was right and he would become like them over time. But it was a worry for the future.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

End of Chapter: Hi everybody I’m sorry for the patchy uploads this past four days but things will return to normal now. I hope you will all read the Author’s notes to help me decide what to do going forward.