In which Ragnar Lothbrok raids England for the first time and in the process, he not only spares a monk named Athelstan, but a slave girl he ends up naming Tova. However, he soon learns that things involving the girl are not what they seem and she i...
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The following day, Tova joined Bjorn, Ragnar, and the others, including Athelstan, as they traveled to Uppsala on foot. They were walking up a cliff when Tova slipped on a piece of rock.
Bjorn quickly grabbed her by the waist as he stood behind her, steadying her before she could fall. "Tova, you must step up carefully. Be careful," He warned her and she nodded before cautiously stepping up without slipping this time.
It wasn't long before they reached a waterfall and when they did, Tova looked across it to lay eyes on Uppsala.
Her eyes widened and she smiled at the sight of it. It was just as wonderful as she had pictured it when Ragnar told her about it.
Moments later, they arrived at Uppsala to find it already crowded. Children laughed as they ran around and played.
Tova remained beside Ragnar alongside Bjorn. Ragnar smiled, wrapping an arm around the two before they entered Upsala.
They stopped in front of the temple and Tova looked upwards, smiling at the sight.
"Does he know?" Lagertha suddenly asked Ragnar, causing Tova to frown as she turned to them.
"No," Ragnar replied in a calm tone before they entered together.
Tova continued to frown, however, wondering what Lagertha meant. What did who know?
Together, the group stood together as one of the priests stood in front of them, holding a paintbrush and a wooden bowl of blood. "Hail to the Aesir and the Vanir," He began to say as he walked past each of them. He flicked the brush at them as he did so, leading to each of them having droplets of blood hit their face, "Hail to the gods and goddesses. Hail to Odin, Thor, and Frey. Hail to Vali, Sif, and Heimdall. Hail to Balder, Bragi, and Eir. Hail to Freya, Floki, and Frigg. Hail to Lin and Mimir."
As the blood splashed onto her face, Tova flinched slightly as she closed her eyes. She gradually opened them, a small smile forming on her lips.
"Hail to Njorn, Ran, and Tyr. Hail to Odin's spear, Thor's hammer. Hail to the mighty fecund earth. All..." The priest trailed off, freezing in place when he made it to Athelstan. He stared at him for a moment, just before doing the same to him as he did the others, "All hail."
"All hail," Tova spoke up alongside the others before they walked away to visit each of the Gods.
While Bjorn and Athelstan went on their own to see the gods, Tova ended up joining Gyda and Lagertha, whose first stop was Freya.
She walked toward the goddess' statue, placing her hand on the wood. "Freya, Lord, fill me with seed and give me a son," She whispered in a desperate tone, and Tova couldn't help but feel saddened, "Do as you will with me, make me blind or deaf if you want to, but give me a son before it's too late."
