Signy was barely keeping it under control in the city of Vestfold, he was to hold the capital should any invader slip through the cracks of King Asmund's defenses.
But he feared that these men were taking it far too lightly as bets were being placed about if the enemies would even make it past King Asmund.
Kattegat was strong but Vestfold had time to prepare for this war and this was evident in the attendance of Earls all around, these were men overlooking their portion of land that they made into their kingdom.
They had more experience than Signy could ever have and that was why they found it strange a child would be put in their place of them and the tension was rising.
"Young lord, you should get some rest," Kjell advised the young prince of Vestfold, but Signy did not want to leave because he knew that an attack might take them by surprise.
The look in Askild's eyes, that look in his eye was something that made him want to quite literally shit himself and he knew those eyes brought nothing but death.
He knew that if Askild came here, they had to be at their best to even think of touching him.
"I cannot rest now! This is just the second day and I can smell the death dance in the air. Can you not feel it too, Earl Kjell?" Signy said and Kjell did not understand what he was saying.
He was speaking in parables, parables he barely understood.
Earl Aksel's men were watching the walls, even though Vestfold had been termed an impregnable fortress but that was partly because of their seas and the lack of invasions on their lands.
"Signy, we need to talk. You too, Kjell…" This was the voice of Aksel as he knew they needed a united front to withstand whatever was coming. He felt the same thing that Signy had just spoken about, and that made him uneasy.
"The patrol, they have not reported back." Aksel started, he looked worried by this otherwise negligible detail.
"This is a problem?" Kjell asked with an indifferent tone.
"Now is not the time to play the protector, Kjell. My patrol unit always reports to me on time, that is their only use." Aksel said, focusing his gaze on Signy.
"You wanted to prove you are worthy of leading us, right? What do you think this means?" Aksel asked the son of Asmund and Signy was lost in thought for a few seconds before muttering.
"They are here." Signy's head shot up the moment these words left his lips.
"Who is, young lord?" Kjell asked, and Aksel looked to be impressed by this reaction from Signy because that is exactly what crossed his mind.
"King Askild is in Vestfold…" Signy reiterated and this information took Kjell by surprise because if a patrol's unit report time was disrupted at such a crucial moment. It could only mean that they were impeded in one way or another from reporting the findings of their group.
This was a basic thing that everyone knew, Signy more than most as he knew these things due to his training for months outside of Vestfold. He had learned the theoretical aspects of war but now he wanted to see if he could apply it in real life.
This was why his father left him in charge, it was not because of his battle prowess but rather his analytical mind for battle as he saw things that most don't even know existed.
Vestfold had recorded defeat today but they had all but depleted the forces that were responsible for it. And the men that died were not seasoned warriors despite the reputation of Vestfold breeding stronger warriors. But what did they do with fathers and sons with no experience that wanted to create a name for themselves?
They toss them at the frontlines to act as cannon fodder and it paid off because Erik and co were severely weakened.
Erik's unit was wild, they could easily fight 5 Vikings simultaneously while alone so this was a major blow to Kattegat. What everyone saw as certain death, King Askild saw them as the perfect force to begin the battle because Erik always somehow came out on top.
But even Kattegat would feel this loss of his forces and Sven had lost his men as well.
Signy was at the helm and for the first time, Earl Aksel showed him the respect he was due by bowing his head.
An act that his men saw as they all followed the gesture of their Earl, he had relinquished command of his forces to Signy with that gesture because this either meant that the forces at the frontlines were defeated or they had managed to slip past them but it did not matter which it was. Because neither outcome was good.
"Gather at the walls! I do not know what has happened but something tells me we will soon be receiving guests. Archers! I want you all to assume your position for we do not know how close the enemies are but they are coming!" Sigyn rallied the troops and everyone listened.
They ran and took their positions because reality dawned on every man present that this might be the last battle to fight.
Signy excused himself from the Earls with proper etiquette and this brought about a surprised look from Aksel because this was a strange gesture he had never seen before.
"You see why he was put in charge now? He has a sharp mind." Kjell said to Aksel but Aksel shot him a glare and said.
"Or you are just too stupid. It is a miracle you became Earl in the first place but I guess that is where daddy's money comes in," Aksel said with a scoff as he left the presence of Kjell, who had a sickening grin on his face because he found it humorous.
But one thing they all knew was, the main battle was going to begin tomorrow and it felt like the forces that were meant to stall them did nothing of that effect.
Asmund planned to use numbers to incur fear into Kattegat forces and force them to plan their moves more carefully because he knew the men at the frontlines were just numbers with no actual skill exempting a few. But it was unfortunate that the person they met was Erik the Berserker.
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