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In her life, Alfild had wished death upon many. Though none had eluded her prayers as Ivar had. All those upon whom she wished death, were swiftly dealt with. But the sons of Ragnar were not drunken mothers or foolish girls. Killing them would cause uproar and an unnecessary war. As fond as Alfild had been of her plans of revenge, she knew that if she did not think her actions through carefully then she would likely lose her crown and/or her life.
So, she had to think carefully. Would anyone question the sudden and untimely death of a cripple if she made it look like an accident? No one would have to know. However, such a death would mean Alfild would never get to see him suffer. And wasn't that the point of vengeance?
So, what if she turned the brothers against eachother? Then they'd do all her work for her. All she had to do was back the side that fought against Ivar. She'd already seen how he and Sigurd fought so terribly. It would surely be easy to do.
But a war was what Alfild was trying to avoid.
As much as she adored storming into battle, her kingdom could not last throughout a war. The previous harvest had been fruitless, leaving much of the land without food. Not to mention the rapidly rising population. How could she feed her people if all her money and time was spent on a war?
"I'm sorry about your mother." Sigurd spoke for the first time of the voyage.
Alfild's shot up to the Prince, questioning his motives for a moment before deciding she didn't care, "And I'm sorry about yours." That was a lie.
"I'm not." He shrugged before staring back out to sea.
These words intrigued Alfild. She hadn't previously noticed Sigurd's malcontent toward anyone but his younger brother. Now she'd heard him speak however, many of his actions began to make sense. Aslaug appeared to dote on her youngest son and remain fond of Ubbe and Hvitserk. Meanwhile, however, Sigurd seemed pushed to the side. Though he could, at times, seem obnoxious and many of his comments towards Ivar (although deserved) were far over the line, Alfild began to sympathize with the boy. She'd felt like that once too.
Upon arriving in Kattegat, Alfild made a main line straight for the Great Hall. She was here to speak to Lagertha, and that goal she would accomplish. When the young queen stepped inside, all eyes fell on her. Lagertha, however, was the only one to speak.
"Queen Alfild. I didn't know you were coming to Kattegat." She rose an eyebrow.
Alfild had always admired Lagertha, and that's why this hurt her so. The two of them had agreed to take Kattegat together and Alfild even wished to place Lagertha on the throne. So why betray her? Was she getting weak in her age? Weak, perhaps, for the sons of Ragnar who reminded her of her ex husband? Or did she just not wish to share any power with her so called ally? Either way, Alfild saw no good answer.
"Queen Lagertha." She responded, that familiarly cold smile sprawling over her lips. "I didn't know you planned to betray our agreement."
At this, Lagertha cleared the Great Hall so that the two women could talk. However, Alfild would not have minded an audience. For, as they sat alone, the temptation to kill the other queen was overwhelming.
"I did not betray you." Lagertha stated calmly.
Alfild took a seat, her eyes burning into Lagertha's. "Really, then what did you do? To me, this seems like an act of war. But do enlighten me, my queen."
Lagertha smiled fondly at the young girls fire. She reminded her of herself many years before. "The sons of Ragnar were away. I saw that Kattegat was undefended and I took that opportunity. Our arrangement still stands, I just did the work for you. Should you not be happy about that?"
"If the arrangement still stands then why are the ragnarssons still breathing?" Alfild roared.
"My quarrel was with their mother, not with them. Why would I kill them?" She shrugged, taking a sip of mead.
At this, Alfild fumed, "Because that was our agreement!"
"Actually." The elder queen began. "Our agreement is that you will kill them."
"And I will." The girl yelled.
"Will you? I wouldn't think that was a wise decision." Lagertha responded.
Alfild pondered this statement for a moment. She thought about how the other queen raised a good point. That being said, with Lagertha's years of experience, Alfild wanted to know what she advised. "Then what would be?" She asked calmly, the rage disappearing from nowhere and being replaced by cold logic.
"Our kingdoms are allies. Sometimes, a queen must rely on her allies. Watch the sons of Ragnar. Follow them to England. Gain information so that you can kill them. I will remain in Kattegat and share out food and supplies with your people. And, together, we will take Norway back." She proposed.
Alfild had to admit that that Lagertha's words made sense. However, that did not mean she was comfortable with them.
After hours of pondering, she decided that she would meet the brothers.
"Is she joining us or not?" Alfild had heard Bjorn ask from inside the cabin. The other brothers muttered in agreement before Sigurd could even respond.
Alfild lay her hand flat on the door. If she chose to do this, there was no turning back. Her people would be left to the mercy of Queen Lagertha, and all that she had built would be entrusted in her protection. But Alfild wasn't entirely sure if trusting Lagertha was the right decision. Brunhilde always had, but Brunhilde and Lageetha had history. This was different. She was different. Could she really trust the other Queen?
