SPOILS OF WAR
— 23. Healing Wounds

    It was noontime when the Vikings saw a rider approaching. The moment they saw it to be Athelstan, everyone seemed to gather around. Bjorn sighed and walked forward, hoping the man would have information about Tova.

Athelstan climbed off his horse and smiled slightly at the sight of Bjorn walking over to them. "Hello, Bjorn," He greeted the young woman in a calm. He had grown quite a lot since he last saw him, "Do you remember me?"

"Of course I remember you," Bjorn replied with a smile on his face, "I wanted to kill you when I was a child. And then I loved you. Just as I grew to love Tova, too."

"I know how close you and Tova were. You had a bond I could never understand. One moment, you hated each other and wanted to kill each other, the next you loved each other," Athelstan explained in a calm tone before he glanced around at the rest of the group that had formed around them, "I want you all to know that Tova is alive. Wounded, but alive, and being taken care of," He informed them, causing Ragnar to smile widely and sigh in relief.

Athelstan glanced around. He stopped when his eyes locked on Horik and he nodded his head slightly. "King Horik."

"Why have you come, Athelstan?" Lagertha spoke up as she walked closer to the man, "Did you escape?"

"I came here to talk to you," He replied in a calm tone.

"King Ecbert sends you!" Horik exclaimed, making it loud enough for everyone to hear, "You do his bidding. You are one of them."

"He offers you a chance for peace," Athelstan corrected him calmly, ignoring what Horik had said, "He wants to talk of many things with you. Good things."

"Yes, and then kill us," Horik snapped at the man coldly.

"No. He will not, I swear," Athelstan argued and Horik glared at him, "I know him."

"You are his dog. You lick his fingers," Horik complained, earning an eye roll from Ragnar, "You lick his arsehole."

Hearing his words, numerous men began to laugh, even Floki.

"I really like your new clothes, Athelstan," Floki suddenly spoke up as he walking closer to the priest in a taunting manner, "And your hair. Very nice."

"Is King Ecbert prepared to offer us a hostage?" Lagertha asked Athelstan curiously as Floki circled Athelstan.

"Yes. He wants to reassure you, in any way he can, of his honest intentions," Athelstan replied as he tried to ignore Floki's childish antics.

"Then we shall meet him," She decided, causing Horik to turn to her in confusion.

"Who are you to say?" Horik snapped at her with an attitude.

"You do not need to come. Ragnar and I will go," Lagertha answered in a calm tone, "And if Ecbert means to kill us, the end."

"I will give him your answer," Athelstan replied and as he turned to leave, Ragnar approached him.

"I will accompany you," He spoke up, knowing if he hadn't, there was a chance Athelstan would be killed by one of his men on the way back, "Part of the way."

_____

In the cot she laid in, Tova woke up with a groan. Just then, as she opened her eyes, she jumped in fright at the man sitting at her bedside. She groaned, her actions causing her tremendous pain.

"Careful now, I mean you no harm," He assured her and Tova recognized the man to be King Ecbert.

"Do you know who I am?" Ecbert asked her and Tova nodded her head, "How old are you, girl?"

"Sixteen, sire," She answered in a calm tone and Ecbert smiled slightly, impressed by how she knew how to properly address him, despite being a Dane.

"I've heard a lot about you, you know, young Tova. A Pagan girl raised by monks half your life, knowing no person your age nor another woman during that time," He explained, smiling slightly, "Then Ragnar Lothbrok arrived at your monastery and whisked you away, only to learn that you had been one of his people all along. He raised you as his own child and you became known as the daughter of famous Ragnar Lothbrok. A girl who shared his ideals, his ways of thinking, and his wits. You have quite the story."

"Never thought about it like that, but I suppose you're right. I do have quite the story," Tova admitted and the smallest of smiles appeared on her face.

"Athelstan is fond of you," He replied and Tova weakly nodded her head.

"He watched over me at the monastery. I suppose I have him to thank for speaking your language so well. I used to be whipped every time I spoke to the monks in the Norse language. They didn't know what language I was speaking, but they knew it not to be theirs. They thought whipping me would help motivate me to learn their language quicker, but I was stubborn. It never worked," She explained, smiling at the thought, "Finally, Athelstan took it upon himself to teach me his language. He practiced and practiced with me until I finally got it right. The monks never understood how I had gotten so well so quickly but they didn't question it."

"He saved you from future beatings, it seems," Ecbert responded and Tova shook her head.

"No, I was still beaten. Just not as frequently and for entirely different reasons. I had this issue where I spoke when I wasn't supposed to. I still do," She explained and Ecbert nodded in understanding.

"You were a difficult child," Ecbert replied and Tova smiled at the thought.

"I was a foreign girl, raised by monks. I was in need of a mother and father but instead, I had monks who only viewed me to be a slave. I never met another girl until I arrived in Kattegat with Ragnar Lothbrok. Of course, I was a difficult child. And I had reason to be," She explained with a bit of an attitude.

"You are a complicated person," He commented and Tova tilted her head slightly since she couldn't shrug.

"I suppose," She answered in a calm tone.

"Do you know that means?" He asked her with a smile on his face and Tova shook her head, "The more complicated a person is, the more interesting they are, but at the same time, the more dangerous they are."

"I don't believe I'm dangerous," Tova confessed and shook her head.

"You are an orphan raised by Saxons and then by Danes. Of course, you're dangerous. You understand both cultures as much as Athelstan, if not more. You are knowledgeable about both sides of this upcoming war. You are an asset," He explained, causing Tova's face to fall.

"I know where this is going," She replied, beginning to smile.

"Do you?" He asked her curiously.

"Yes, and I will not help you gain information on my people," She argued in a calm tone as she shook her head in disapproval.

"Athelstan said you would say that. It was worth a try though," He told her, gradually beginning to smile, "As we speak, Athelstan is making negotiations with your people. They will exchange hostages."

"Hmm. And who will you give up? Yourself?" She asked him curiously, despite already knowing the answer.

"Now, why would I do that?" Ecbert asked her with a smile on his face.

"Hmm. You're too smart for that. And you will not give your son up either. You did that last time. So I suppose you will give up the next best thing," She explained and Ecbert tilted his head curiously.

"And why would that be?" He questioned as he raised a brow at her.

"King Aelle," She answered calmly, causing Ecbert to look impressed.

"You are smarter than you look," He commented and Tova smiled.

"I get that a lot," She admitted, causing Ecbert to laugh.

____

A few days had passed and at their camp, Ragnar watched impatiently as a horse-drawn cart rode toward them. Tova's wounded body laid on it, along with the gold promised to them. Ragnar ran over to her as fast as he could, sighing in relief when he saw that she was still breathing. "Hello, my daughter," He spoke to her and despite her eyes being closed, when Ragnar grabbed her hand, she lightly squeezed it back.

The moment they arrived back in Kattegat, many people in the crowd wept and gasped at the sight of Tova's wounded body having to be carried off the boat.

Siggy ran forward, a worried look on her face when she saw everyone's mood. Her eyes widened at the sight of four men carrying the stretcher Tova's body laid on. She felt uneasy, seeing that Tova looked practically dead. They might not have been close of late, but Siggy couldn't bear the thought of losing her. Her last child.

"What happened? Is she alright?" She asked in a worried tone and Rollo walked over to her.

"She'll live. Her wounds will heal within no time," He assured her calmly, but Siggy continued to look uneasy.

Once visiting his sons, Ragnar ended up arriving at Siggy's cabin. After all, Siggy had decided that Tova could heal there, where Siggy could tend to her.

Ragnar stood, watching uneasily as a healer tended to Tova's wounds while Siggy handed her any material she handed.

The healer thanked Siggy when she handed her a scorching hot knife and wasted no time pressing it on the wound on Tova's chest.

Tova cried out in pain as her eyes closed and Ragnar sighed, one hand placed on her shoulder while the other was placed on the side of the girl's face.

Now that she saw Tova's wounds up close, Siggy felt more uneasy than ever before. She looked over at Ragnar, who couldn't bring himself to look her in the eyes as he stared down at Tova's wounds. Wounds like that should have killed her, but they didn't. She was lucky to even be alive at that moment.

"Ragnar," The healer called out, handing him a piece of cloth.

"Bite on it, Tova," He told his daughter softly, placing it in her mouth as she groaned in pain.

"The leg, Siggy," The healer told Siggy, who lifted Tova's leg as the girl yelled loudly in pain. The healer placed a blanket underneath Tova's leg to keep it elevated.

Tova's chest began to heave as she lifted her head to see what they were about to do. "Please, no—" She struggled against Ragnar, who was pinning her arms down in preparation for what was about to happen. "No! No!" She shouted, her voice muffled due to the cloth in her mouth.

"It's alright, it's alright," Ragnar assured her and as he did so, the healer snapped Tova's leg back into place, causing her to let out a loud, pain-filled scream in agony.

Ragnar shut his eyes as Tova screamed. It broke his heart to see her in such pain. She was still just a girl. And now, she might never get the chance to walk again.

   Siggy placed her hand over her mouth and looked away, unable to bear how much pain Tova was in either. She didn't deserve it.

"Splint," The healer instructed and she and Siggy ended up tying the splint to Tova's leg to help it heal.

    However, in the process of all the pain, Tova ended up passing out, causing Ragnar sigh as he looked down at her. He sighed, removing the cloth from her mouth. He looked down at her, trying to contain his own sadness. He felt partly to blame. He should have been watching over her on the battlefield. Though unlike when Bjorn risked himself on the battlefield, Ragnar didn't feel anger toward Tova for being reckless. It was as though he could never bring himself to be angry with her. He didn't blame her, either. She couldn't have expected Æthelwulf to attack her on horseback.

  However, Ragnar couldn't help but feel uneasy about the whole ordeal. Would she ever recover?