the invisible string. Sihtric Kjartanson

Chapter eleven: Lundene

We left then finally and walked to the front of the hall again. Rypere had left our horses to a stable hand. I knew Uthred did not love strange people touching his special stallion Smoca. I put my cloak up on my saddle before following Sihtric into the hall. We sat down next to our men. I slit into the seat next to Finan. A man sat before Uthred with deep golden hair mustering me. I raised an eyebrow. I did not like the way he was staring at me.

"Who is this pretty princess?" The man inquired as he mustered me with a disgusting smirk. I wouldn't even try to comprehend what he was thinking.

"They call her Kendra the Clever" Uthred said as he turned to me."Where were you?" He looked harshly at me and Sihtric with raised eyebrows.

"Taking a piss" Sihtric said from his spot beside me and I nodded enthusiastically in agreement. That was a good enough excuse. Uthred raised an eyebrow but nodded eventually. He must think that we either fucked or that we were up to something weird but by now he was used to it.

"Haesten you knew Kjartan the Cruel?" Uthred asked the gross dane across from him. He made a vague nod. Perhaps Haesten had heard of Kjartan but he definitely did not personally know him. "Kendra bit off his whole hand" Now that was a little dramatic Uthred but I felt pride. This fierceness was surely something to brag with.

"I love myself a fierce woman. Lady Kendra are you married?" This dude was already starting to get on my nerves. Or perhaps it was that the topic of my relationship status was also annoying as fuck. I was sick of people asking for my hand or who my husband was. I surely was old enough to be married and have a family but I was also a warrior. None of my male companions were ever asked such questions.

"She is not married but she's with me" Finan suddenly spoke and sneaked an arm about my shoulder. I was grateful that he'd volunteered to protect me. He had felt how uncomfortable this dude made me. The lord raised his hands in defiance. Finan was frightful enough.

The next day we rode for Lundene. I did not like the plan at all. I did not like this idea that Uthred was to be crowned king by some crunchy Danes that had played him before as I got to know. Gross Haesten used to be Uthreds oath man but he had abandoned him and broken his oath. I did not know why he should be trusted again.

The ride was miserable because the rain persisted. I usually liked riding about the land feeling wild and free like a fairy but riding through rain and going from danish hall to danish hall was horrible. We arrived in Lundene in good time. I had never been before but the whispers told me that it was the greatest city in Britain. I must agree since the Roman buildings were the greatest I had ever seen but the city made me uneasy. It was dirty and had no steward to keep laws. It was just a godforsaken place of trade. The arena we were led to made me even more uncomfortable but I kept quiet. I knew Sihtric, who rode next to me, noticed it and felt similar. There was huge cross erected in the middle of the arena which was odd considering that none of the men here were Christian. Uthred was embraced by a fearful dark man suddenly but I was not going to question any of this. A younger male with a great mass of black hair was eyeing me. I stared back with fierce eyes so he'd know I was not one to play with. The male was introduced to Uthred. I did not like this entire situation. They dragged a skinny priest to the cross and lifted him up to nail us up like Jesus Christ. It deeply shocked me but I kept my face neutral. Then another priest was challenged to fight for his freedom. He was fat and seemingly frightened. A lamb for slaughter. Uthred gave him his sword to fight the huge dark haired man who wore a big bear coat. I've never seen a bear. I doubt any living man ever had but they must be great beasts. The priest held the sword clumsily, letting the tip drag on the floor. The big Dane attacked him. I thought the fight was over before it even started but then the priest revealed that he was a skilful swordsman. Sigefrids underestimation coast him his thumbs. The priest was going to cut him to shreds if Uthred wouldn't have reclaimed his sword. The Dane was angry but the younger male that looked to be his brother held him back before he would lose more body parts. The priest was smirking in victory. He looked to Uthred in a knowing smile.

We left the city sooner than I expected. Uthred got us passage to go down river in a boat called the swan. I did not like boat travel much because it always made me sick. The others were fine. They were Dane's so the love for the sea was more or less in their blood. I was not build like that so I cowered miserably as the end of the boat with my knees pulled in. Uthred and the Priest were having a heated discussion just inches from me but I was to focused on keeping my breakfast down to listen in. Sihtric was sat a few paces from me. He looked casual, of course because the goddamn shaking of the boat did not make him uneasy at all. They were talking about the dead man. Uthred was vehemently arguing that what he had seen was true. The priest said it was bullshit but Uthred did not listen.

"Lord?" I spoke up and looked up. A wave of nausea overcame me but I forced it down harshly.

"Kendra you look paler than a ghost" He said as with true worry as he mustered the miserable lump I was.

"Yes because I hate boat. But the priest is right. We saw it to"I motioned my head to Sihtric. "The dead man got up and walked home after you were gone" Uthred raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"It's true lord we saw it" Sihtric stressed from next to me. He looked completely fine that bastard.

"So you weren't taking a piss at all?" Uthred asked harshly as he put the puzzle pieces together in his head. Sihtric and I shook our at in unison.

"Lord I don't want to sound cocky but I did tell you that it was none sense" I sat softly as he sat down next to me in disappointment.

"You did Kendra. I should listen to you more often" I felt pride at his words but I didn't let it on. Or the seasickness kept me from smiling cockily.  I kept listening to their conversation and it got to the point of the priest telling Uthred that he would have to kill him if he did not keep his oath. I grabbed the sword in my lap ready to attack the priest but Uthred signed that it was fine. He swore that he would not abandon Alfred as he'd planned on our entire journey through Mercia.

"Lord it was God tempting you, testing your greediness. You resisted now and he will reward you" I told him with pride but I was careful. Uthred did accept that some of us were Christians but he did not particularly liked it.

"Amen" The priest agreed and smiled at me. I had little love for a Priests praise but at least it kept Uthred from a remark.

"Perhaps it was also just Loki playing a trick on you lord" Sihtric from beside me cut in from beside me which caused me to violently roll my eyes.

"Who even asked you?" I asked him as I shock my head at how much of a busybody Sihtric could be. His desperate attempt at gaining Uthreds favour were killing my nerves. Or it was just my uneasiness caused by the swaying of the river.

"Who asked you in the first place Kendra?" He snapped back. He became increasingly more cocky everyday.

"Your moth-" I started but Uthred interrupted me with a great laugh.

"You two, always fighting and bugging each other"He shook his head in obviously amusement. "You'll have to get along soon enough" He said quietly before he left us. His cryptic message did not cause my sickness to ease. I rolled the last sentence over and over in my head but I came to no logical conclusion what exactly he had meant.