— 14. Tova the Merciful

In Wessex, Tova stood in a field with Floki, Ragnar, King Horik, Athelstan, and the rest of the army. She crossed her arms over her chest, laying eyes on a city from afar.

"What is that place?" Ragnar asked, turning to glance at Athelstan with a curious look on his face.

"It's a Christian church, a minster," Athelstan informed him in a calm tone, "A large one. It may be Winchester."

At the mention of Winchester, Tova turned to Athelstan, her eyes immediately widening in shock. "Winchester?" She asked him in a surprised tone.

"From the way Tova reacted to the name, I assume it is important?" Ragnar questioned Athelstan in a calm tone.

"If it is Winchester, Saint Birinus is buried there. It's a place of Great Pilgrimage," Athelstan explained to them in a calm tone.

"And will there be treasure there?" Horik questioned, causing Tova to chuckle as she turned to him.

"If it is Winchester, there will be treasure and lots of it," She explained to him with a smile on his face, leading to the rest of the men to look just as eager to raid it.

Tova turned, exchanging a look with Ragnar before she walked with him in the direction of Winchester.

____

Nearing Winchester, the group of Vikings immediately heard the bells ring, meaning the Saxons had learned of their arrival.

They entered the city, finding it to be practically empty with only livestock in sight.

Just then, Tova turned her head, watching as a small number of Saxons yelled out as they ran in their direction

Tova wasted no time unsheathing her sword, just before slashing at the first man who came in her direction. Another stopped in front of her and raised his sword. He went to slash at her but Tova quickly raised her shield to block his form of attack.

She yelled out, wasting no time slashing him across the chest. Another ran toward her and Tova stepped to the side. She grabbed him by the back of the neck and with that, she slit his throat with her sword.

She walked forward, slashing at numerous other Saxons that tragically found themselves in her path. She turned her head, smiling as she watched Torstein draw his bowstring back as a soldier came riding toward them on horseback.

He released his arrow, which immediately shot the Saxon soldiers in the chest. Tova watched on, smiling as she witnessed the Saxon's dead body hit the ground.

"Well done, Torstein," She complimented, watching as he shot yet another in the chest.

It wasn't long before all of the fighting men were left dead, leaving them to have free rein over Winchester. Tova turned, exchanging a look with Ragnar before looking ahead at the close doors of the church.

They watched as two men stepped forward and wasted no time making their way over to the open doors. "Could be a trap!" Torstein reminded the group, causing the two men to stop to turn and look at him.

"Shield wall!" Torstein commanded and while the men in front of them got in formation, Tova stood in place with Ragnar, watching the scene occur intently.

The doors were gradually opened and Torstein stood at a high point, his bowstring drawn back, prepared to release an arrow if someone emerged from the church with the intention of attacking.

However, when the doors were opened completely, the group frowned when they found the place to be empty.

The men and Tova soon entered the church, finding the place to be empty. Tova glanced around and frowned, knowing enough to understand that the Saxons wouldn't just abandon Winchester.

"Where have they all gone?" Horik asked the group curiously, not understanding what was going on and he wasn't the only one.

"There should be treasure," Floki pointed out as he turned and walked in the direction of Athelstan and Ragnar, "He said there would be treasure."

Athelstan frowned and gave Floki a weird look, knowing for a fact he wasn't the one who told Ragnar that. It had been Tova. He only stated that Winchester was an important place for the Saxons, nothing more.

"Why do you always listen to him?" Floki asked Ragnar with an attitude, "Tova, I understand, but not the priest."

Floki turned and walked toward Athelstan, leaning closer to him. "Where is it?"

Athelstan turned, exchanging a brief look with Tova before he pointed his ax in the direction of the altar. "It's over there."

Tova smiled, watching as Floki and King Horik were the first to rush over to the altar. "This?! This is not treasure! This is an empty wooden table."

As he walked in the direction of the altar, Athelstan briefly stopped. He turned to Tova, the two of them exchanging an amused smile since they knew better.

"Forgive me, but you are mistaken, King Horik," Tova spoke up, smiling as she turned to Athelstan, "Will you tell them or shall I, priest?"

"The treasure is here. You're standing on it," Athelstan informed King Horik. He crouched down slightly and knocked on the wood, revealing it to be hollow.

Without hesitation, Horik and Floki lunged forward alongside countless others and rushed to push the table out of the way. Floki and Horik knelt on the ground and Floki wasted no time using his ax to break the floor boys.

The men immediately began to laugh and smile in victory, finding countless chests of treasure underneath the floorboards. "You were right!" Horik laughed delightedly, "Treasure!"

"Why aren't you over there with them, claiming your portion of the treasure?" Ragnar spoke up, looking directly at Tova, "They would not have found it if it weren't for you. You deserve some of it."

"I have no interest in gold and riches," Tova confessed as she shrugged her shoulders, "It means nothing to me."

"Then why come with us?" Ragnar questioned, eager to know what her answer would be.

"I came because I want to live freely and without limits. I want an adventure. I want to travel. I want to see lands I've never been to. I want to fight and I want to win," Tova explained and Ragnar smiled, beginning to look proud of the girl.

"How did you know?" Ragnar asked, referring to the treasure as he turned to Athelstan and Tova with a questioning look on his face.

"It is a habit for Christians to bury the bones of the revered dead beneath the altar," Tova informed him in a calm tone, "While I may have convinced Father Cuthbert I learned nothing in Lindisfarne, it was not true. I soaked in everything he told me, even if I didn't care about any of it at the time. Now, it has proven useful, it seems."

"It has," Ragnar confirmed as he proudly patted her on the back.

Just then, one of the men called out Ragnar's name, causing Ragnar to turn and immediately catch the skull that was tossed to him.

___

Later that day, Tova was traveling with Floki through Winchester when they came across Athelstan standing in an establishment in front of a Bishop. The Bishop was snapping at Athelstan, who seemed to look ashamed of himself.

The moment Floki entered, Athelstan's eyes widened in alarm while the Bishop looked uneasy. "Ooh!" Floki spoke up tauntingly as he walked over to them alongside Tova.

He stopped in front of the Bishop, eying him intently. Just then, he latched the blade of his ax around the Bishop's neck as if it were a hook. He turned to Athelstan next, leaning closer to him. "He's coming with us," He announced, speaking in Old Norse.

With that, Floki walked away with the Bishop and Tova turned to Athelstan, an aggravated look on her face. "You idiot," Tova growled at Athelstan in a low tone, "You can't be seen getting close to them. It will not end well. Floki is already suspicious. What were you thinking?"

"I am not like you, alright?" Athelstan asked, letting out a large sigh in defeat. He gave her a look, just before walking away without another word said.

Later on, in the church, Tova sighed in defeat when she found numerous nuns and other women being dragged around, some of them being killed while others were being raped.

She flinched, trying to maintain composure. She turned and looked ahead, finding Floki and King Horik harassing the Bishop. He ended up speaking to them in Latin, only to have Horik punch him in the face.

"Tie him up! Let us have some fun with him!" Horik announced loudly and Tova sighed in defeat.

She watched as they stripped him of his clothes, just before tying him to a pillar at the side of the room. "What will happen to him?" She suddenly asked, a concerned look appearing on her face.

"What do you care, Tova? These are our enemies," Floki reminded Tova with a smile on her face, not suspicious of her and affiliation with the Saxons in the slightest. He never had been. He assumed Tova didn't care about the Saxons.

After all, the moment she arrived back in Kattegat with them as a girl, she immediately embraced their Gods. She spoke their language fluently and she never once cared about what they did to Saxons.

She was nothing like Athelstan and because of that, she was always accepted by everyone, despite being raised a Saxon for half of her childhood.

Athelstan never understood that. While he was shunned by some for formerly being a Christian, Tova was never treated differently. People adored Tova. Perhaps it was because she was, in a way, Ragnar's daughter and everyone loved Ragnar. He didn't really know and perhaps he never would.

Tova looked ahead, watching the men cheer as Horik nock an arrow and drew the bowstring back. He released an arrow and the Bishop groaned in pain as he was shot with it.

He closed his eyes, quietly groaning in pain as he continued to pray in Latin.

As he was shot once more, Tova flinched. She closed her eyes and sighed, unable to take the sight anymore. She turned her head and left the church, refusing to watch the scene occur any longer.

She soon found Ragnar and joined him and some other men in searching through a kitchen for treasure. The men frantically searched for gold but didn't seem to find any.

Ragnar picked up a piece of dessert from the table and took a bite of it. He stopped, his eyes widening in surprise when he found it to be more delicious than he had expected.

He turned and walked over to another part of the kitchen. He opened the door to the oven, revealing all of the treasure to be inside.

The men began to cheer in victory and Tova turned, exchanging an annoyed look with Ragnar. "Idiots," She muttered under her breath and Ragnar smiled in amusement.

She picked up a piece of bread off the table and took a seat at a nearby table. As she was on the verge of taking a bite, she froze in place as she looked ahead to lock eyes on a young girl hiding from the men in the room.

Her eyes widened and the girl stared at her, clearly afraid of being caught. Tova turned, sighing in relief when she found the men too busy stealing all of the treasures to pay attention.

She leaned closer to the girl, smiling softly as she placed her finger over her lips. "Shh. Do not say a word," She whispered to the girl in Anglo Saxon, "They will not find you. I'll make sure of it."

The girl fearfully nodded and Tova stood up, picking up a nearby blanket before she tossed it on the girl's head. With that, she waited for all the men to leave, just before following after them.

Soon after leaving, Tova arrived at the chapel to find that the Bishop was still alive. She watched as Floki picked up the bow, releasing yet another arrow into the bishop.

"Is he still talking?" Floki asked, an amused look on his face as he noticed that the Bishop was still praying quietly to himself, "Tough old goat."

"Erlendur, quiet him. Right in his mouth," Horik told his son as he handed him the bow.

Tova watched on, unable to bear the sight. She briefly closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

Without even realizing what she was doing, the moment Erlendur went to nock his arrow, Tova ran forward, stepping in front of the Bishop before he could be shot once more.

The chapel fell silent and everyone there stared at Tova, each of them confused by her actions. It was something they would have expected out of Athelstan, not her.

However, as Ragnar watched from the door, he knew it had nothing to do with her being loyal to Saxons. She just hated cruelty. She believed if someone were to die, it should happen quickly. She didn't think someone, especially a bishop, deserved to be tortured solely because of what he believed in.

She was merciful and understood that people had other beliefs that weren't like hers and she accepted that. Ragnar was the same in that aspect. However, the same couldn't be said about the people they surrounded themselves with.

"No," Tova ordered in a low, stern tone, causing the men to stare at her in confusion. She turned on her heel, unsheathing her sword before she walked toward the Bishop.

She placed a hand on the side of the man's face and the man weakly opened his eyes to stare up at her. "Deus tibi benedicas," She spoke to him softly in Latin, which was the only phrase in that language she had ever learned, "May you go to Heaven and find peace with your God, Bishop."

She stared at him sympathetically, continuing to hold the side of his face as she swiftly slit his throat. She took a deep breath and slowly turned to face the men in the room, who all gave her an annoyed look.

She turned and exchanged a look with Athelstan, who was surprised by her actions.

____

Days later, at where they set up camp, the Northmen immediately stepped out of their camp when they spotted a large number of Saxons riding toward them on horseback. A bishop and another man climbed off their horses, immediately walking toward them.

"Who can speak to us?" The Bishop asked in his language and Tova exchanged a look with Ragnar.

"I can," Ragnar answered as he took a step forward.

"I have been sent here by Ecbert, King of Wessex," He informed Ragnar, clearly trying to hide his uneasiness, "The King regrets your attacks on the Holy Church at Winchester. He wonders how much longer you intend to remain in his kingdom?"

Tova found herself staring at the Saxon man who was standing beside the Bishop. She narrowed her eyes at him, noticing how it almost seemed as though he was counting how many were in their camp.

"Well, that depends," Ragnar answered in a calm tone as he walked closer to the Bishop.

"Upon what?" The Bishop questioned as he nervously cleared his throat.

"Upon what he'll offer us to leave...Or what he'll offer us to stay," Ragnar informed the Bishop, who looked just as confused as Tova after hearing his words.

"Stay?" The Bishop asked, a puzzled look on his face.

"Yes, we want to make peace with the King," Ragnar replied, earning the smallest of smiles from Tova.

"Peace," The Bishop repeated after Ragnar, who smiled at him.

"So we don't have to kill any more of you," Ragnar continued on and Tova continued to smile at the look on the Bishop's face.

"I will relay your message to the King," He responded, trying to hide his uneasiness.

Ragnar smiled, jokingly making the form of the cross on the Bishop twice before clapping.

Floki and Tova laughed, exchanging an amused look with each other.

"Wait! Wait!" Horik called out in his native tongue and despite not understanding the language, the two Saxon men caught the gist of what he was trying to get at.

Tova frowned, watching as King Horik stepped forward. However, much to her shock, she watched in disbelief as Horik raised his ax before slashing the man across the face with it. The man dropped to the ground and Horik continued to hack at his body as the Bishop ran back to his horse.

Floki giggled at the sight, alongside countless others.

Ragnar and Tova, on the other hand, looked annoyed as they walked away from the group. "Idiots," She muttered under her breath and Ragnar nodded in agreement as they walked away together.