The events of a chaotic day finally came to an end, the sun was done witnessing the atrocities of the Vikings and switched places with the moon.
Tyr and co were in a secluded place, a place he had never been to but he was certain that it was not in Kattegat, he could discern this much because of the reduced security.
Bjorn was stable and the bleeding had stopped somewhat, he was going to be fine but he was with two commanders and did not know what to do or say.
Tyr told them everything that happened in the war, right down to the minute detail and so did the commanders. Herfjötur and Ulrik returned the favor and Tyr did not understand why Ulrik did something so drastic because of a woman he just met despite her saving Lagertha but he did not dare say it.
"We have not thanked you, Tyr. If it was not for you and your brother, I cannot imagine the fate that awaited us," Ulrik said, he had regrouped with his men, and Herfjötur regrouped with hers as well. They were once scattered but now they were together but in no condition to launch a counter-attack.
"H-Ha! It is fine! I am glad you are alright!" Tyr could barely maintain his excitement but Tyr could not believe their incompetence, there was no point leaving them behind if the end goal would be the same but once again, he dare not say it.
"If Ragnar is King, why can't we request to help of Vestfold?" Ulrik suggested, but the answer to this question was obvious. Birger had not only seized the boat that brought them there but closed off travel routes to Vestfold. Their silence allowed him to come to this conclusion himself.
"Vestfold does not have the manpower to come to our aid if what Tyr told us is true," Herfjötur pointed this out, it was far too soon for that to happen.
"I need to get my mother out of Birger's grasp," Tyr said out of the blue, he did not even know if she was still where Reidar told him she was and that was the most troubling thing.
"Lagertha… I am sorry I could not protect her," Herfjötur apologized to Tyr but he could not fault her. Lagertha is a renowned fighter and if she was bested, Herfjötur being there would have made no difference judging from what they told Tyr.
The attack was not random, Birger was certain he could take Kattegat at that moment and the only person to blame was Liv and her father for imprisoning Ulrik, handicapping his men, and cutting down their fighting power drastically.
Tyr did not regret his decision for prioritizing his mother over her because they now held the same title meaning she was not more important than his mother. It could be said Lagertha's life held even more value.
"You can apologize to her when we save her, I know where she is. She is with Birger," Tyr said and Herfjötur's muscles instinctively tensed the moment she heard Birger.
He had done so much damage to Kattegat with so little effort, and only the worst-case scenario came to mind when she thought about what Birger could be doing to her right now.
"I am in! Tell me what you need me to do!" Herfjötur was eager, and one could not blame her but Tyr was skeptical because he knew what could happen if they were found out, but he was partly surprised that Ulrik did not volunteer.
"Um… I guess," Tyr was uncertain but he had one thing on his mind and that was using Herfjötur as bait, she was apologetic so surely she would not mind giving up her life for the woman she could not save.
"... Only if you come alone," Tyr said and Herfjötur accepted instantly. Ulrik found this suspicious but he swallowed his words because there was no way Tyr had any nefarious intentions.
"That is fine by me, Ulrik will watch over here," Herfjötur said as both of them got to their feet.
"I will tell you the plan on our way!" Tyr exclaimed and Herfjötur concurred as both returned to Kattegat.
-
It took them a couple of minutes to arrive and Tyr noticed the amped-up patrol, it felt like they were searching for someone. Herfjötur noticed the erratic behavior of the guards supposedly guarding the gate, they were restless but this created a loophole for them to exploit.
Herfjötur suggested they use the path they had used to sneak out of Kattegat but Tyr was against it, partly because he was aware that these paths would be watched a lot more closely now than the more obvious routes.
They managed to gain entry because of this very reason, Herfjötur was fascinated because it looked like Tyr could predict their movements, he had a keen eye for these things and this only made her curious as to where he came from. No one knew anything about him, only that he washed up on their shores but he was not new to combat.
Thanks to Ulf being chased up and down in Kattegat, they had narrowed down his position and allocated more men away from Birger's and Lagertha's positions.
"Are you sure she is here?" Herfjötur questioned, they were hiding but had already seen a few guards walk past their position.
"I am positive, that is what I was told," Tyr reassured her, he understood Herfjötur's skepticism but Reidar had no reason to lie to him.
Tyr began removing his clothes and Herfjötur was surprised by this development but she was indifferent regarding this development because she knew he had a plan.
He began covering himself with the mud around him, and it hit Herfjötur, Tyr was about to use his dark-skinned complexion to his advantage as he intended to camouflage himself with his surroundings, even with lights she knew they would not be able to see him.
This was an ingenious idea but she wondered what plan he had for her, was it to back him or be his watch out? Whatever it was, she did not give it too much thought.