He was the conqueror. She was the sacrifice.
He was powerful. She was unexpected.
He was certain. She was uncertainty.
He formed a nation. She formed his world.
Together they would make history.
▪︎°▪︎°▪︎°▪︎
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xxxvi. Fragile Pawn
"What did you say to him?"
Kari shook off a wave of nausea as she looked over at Harald in confusion. Once they had reached their campground, everyone had gone in their own separate ways. Everything had been much, too much for all of them. Fighting with your family was one thing but declaring war and burning down all ties was another.
Ivar went off to stew in his rage and meticulous strategies while Hvitserk decided to go on his own to ponder on his own thoughts. It was dangerous to be alone but being with each other only reminded them of what they had decided on, what they had already lost before the battle even begun.
They all had some thinking to do. Today proved that anything could happen, that anyone could turn against anyone. It definitely put things into perspective and made one question just about everything about a person they knew.
Tomorrow would be a day of fighting but perhaps the night before could feel just as worse. The waiting, the anxiety, the anticipation would be enough to drive the most courageous warrior insane. The idea of not knowing and not being able to predict what would happen is a concept that would forever run through everyone's minds.
The tides of war could change in a single second. A steady terrain could crumble. A victor can be defeated. A general can be outsmarted. A king can be dethroned. It was too simple. Just like that.
Maybe that was the reason why she was feeling so awful with herself, why every single fiber of her body seemed intent on punishing her. Being a part of all this, with others relying on her and having to carry the weight of their trust, was substantial.
"What?" Kari sighed tiredly. Her head was pounding and she wanted nothing more than to be alone with silence yet it seems that was not to be.
She and Harald had retired to their tent when they had all split ways. Both of them had much on their minds which was why not a lot of words were exchanged between them. For a time, they had been distracting themselves with trivial things like polishing armor or sharpening their blades.
But now, Harald wanted to talk. It was as if he had been holding back the words he wanted to say from the moment they had entered their own solitude, only now were they breaking free after the abyss of his own mind was too much for his conscience to bear.
"You said something to Ivar. Something that made him change his mind. What did you say?" He spoke, his tone questioning as he turned to face her.
"I hardly said anything to influence him. We talked about our father, that's all." She shrugged nonchalantly, returning to sharpening her sword.
"Liar." He muttered, almost mockingly. He could not believe that she would hide whatever it is she said from him. Most of all, he could not believe that she could still stay silent after all that has happened.
