-Hey!
Leave this place in the name of the one true God, Jesus Christ!
Too slow, Pagan.
-Allow me to introduce the Lady Kent.
Mistress of this house.
Tell them.
Tell them!
Your war is pointless.
King Æthelred is already dead.
-She's lying. -Why would she lie, brother?
To fool us. To protect him.
When did he die?
Ten days ago.
His son Edmund is now on the throne.
Where is your husband?
He fled to London.
He meets with the other nobles.
And left you behind.
What a brave man.
This is a good thing.
Edmund is a boy,
and the nobles will not back him to defend London.
It waits for us.
I didn't come here for London.
-I came for Æthelred's head.
Then I promise you… the head of his son.
The sword of my father.
The sword of a king.
Now mine and my son's son's.
Thank you. You did well.
Your Highness. But I barely did a thing.
It was King Edmund who brought Streona around.
Your father would be proud.
When Streona arrives, I will send him to the south,
behind Canute and trap him in the marshes.
And what about me?
You wish me to cower behind these walls until the battle is over?
You may cower if you wish,
but you're far too valuable to England to risk it in battle.
Streona will weaken the Norse and you will accept their surrender.
No.
When Streona arrives, I intend to join him on the battlefield.
Your Highness is still a king-in-waiting.
Then all the more reason to be crowned.
Taking the crown only amplifies the risk.
What risk?
Once crowned, your fate and England's are forever entwined.
If you fall, so does England.
It is better to let Streona take the risk.
And the glory.
Is that not a risk as well?
With success, will the nobles not look to him
as a more suitable option to be king?
I will deal with that.
He seems to have found his voice.
He's hunting for it.
Now we have raided, we are Vikings.
We are lucky.
Odin was with us today.
Odin took our measure for Valhalla, and he saw that we were good.
-Mm.
-What's this? -For you.
You deserve it more than my wife.
Oh.
One battle and Njal became the richest man in all Greenland.
You fought well for your first battle.
Raiding becomes you.
You go that way.
-Now I see why my father was so good…
…at killing.
He had practice.
I thought Christians were supposed to be merciful.
We are.
You're alive.
But I am Viking first.
Do you have a problem with that?
I see little difference.
Not true.
As a Viking, my goal is revenge.
But as a Christian,
I employ the virtues my Savior taught me,
-forgiveness…
…mercy and love.
I forgive this Saxon for following his king into an unholy war.
-I show him mercy…
…by ending his pain.
And what about love?
I love doing it.
I didn't come here to become more like my father.
You came here to make the world forget about him and remember you.
You think that is a secret?
You couldn't hide it if you tried.
Need more water.
Well, if this is the glory you promised,
so far it looks a lot like his.
You will know glory when you reach it, Leif Eriksson.
Trust me.
This is just the path to get there.
More.
Yes, my lord.
-Good, my liege. -I am ready!
Bring on the Vikings!
With all due respect, Your Highness,
you're not ready.
Even your father suffered many failures before he learned how to defeat them.
I have nothing against learning, Godwin.
But I'd rather learn from my victories instead of defeats.
More.
Do you wish to fight me?
Leave us!
You do not wish to be embarrassed in front of…
Can you even remember the last time you were defeated?
What are you doing?
Your soldiers wouldn't dare hurt you, and I don't have that problem.
Do you think the Vikings will give you a reprieve?
I am not your enemy, Your Highness.
Your arrogance is.
How dare you lecture me on arrogance,
when you are its definition?
I control mine.
And if you want to be a successful heir to your father's throne,
you must learn to do the same.
On the road to Mercia,
you counselled me to listen to my instincts.
That advice served me well with Streona.
My instincts now say I should not wait to be crowned king.
The Vikings came here to punish your father.
His head is no longer an attainable trophy, but yours is.
Delaying your coronation is a hedge against that possibility.
It's beautiful here.
Mm.
Ahhh!
-No!
No!
Toke, hold on!
Hold on, Toke!
Toke, hold on!
Come on!
Toke.
Toke's gone.
It's all right.
-Hyah!
They overwhelmed my army in less than an hour.
Hundreds of boats.
To have any chance against them, we need Mercia.
Streona may not agree to fight London's battle.
Then we must send emissaries to the Norsemen
and offer Danegeld to end this raid.
This is not a raid. It is a war.
A war that you brought upon yourselves by the murders of their people.
Yes, they will take your gold,
but that will not stop them from killing all of you as well.
That is what Viking revenge looks like.
This… is your strategy?
How do you intend to get an army across that?
There are roads through.
And on the other side is the bridge and the south entrance to London.
Tonight, we will send scouts to see what's changed.
And who will lead them? You?
No. I was thinking of someone else.
Me?
We need to know the enemy's strength around the bridge.
It is an honor to lead such a mission.
If it is such an honor, why didn't your brother pick you?
Maybe he thinks Greenland is a swamp?
Or maybe he wants you dead.
I will be going as well.
I came here to repay a debt.
I'll do what is ordered.
Then we… will be with you.
Give me a boat and the stars any day.
Me too.
Who is he?
Our guide. He's local.
Don't worry.
His mother was a Dane. Murdered on Saint Brice's Day.
Prince Harald.
Why do we need torches?
The tide and fog are coming in.
You will need them to see the path.
Oh, Freya.
You have seen me through much.
I know you hear me now.
I don't know why I am here.
Or what this strange land means for my future.
But give me courage.
Guide my friends to Valhalla.
And if it is your wish…
guide me.
Keep them low.
How close are we?
You'll know you're near the bridge when you can hear the bells of London.
We need to keep going.
Get down. It's a trap!
-Where are they? -On the water.
Get rid of your torches. It's how they see you.
-The light! -Move!
-Targets!
-Stay low!
-Move! -Ulf!
Fall back!
-No! No! -Liv, help me.
Fall back!
-We have to leave him. -No!
Fall back!
Retreat!
-Don't leave him! -We have to go!
-No! -Liv, he's gone.
No! No!
-Leif! -No! We have to go!
Keep going.
Come on, Liv!
What happened?
We were ambushed.
More likely you ran across a rearguard.
These were not guards. They were waiting for us.
I think you're exaggerating.
Am I, brother?
Let's go ask the dead, see what they think.
Stop.
Did you make it to the bridge?
No. We learned nothing.
Except perhaps that they are smarter than us.
Come on!
Hyah!
What is that?
It's the King's banner.
It's more than that.
It's a dare.
The Vikings are going nowhere.
I beg your pardon?
I want them to remain right where they are.
But why?
Because that is my plan.
It is time for me to speak.
On my trip to Mercia,
I convinced Streona not to come to London
and to trap them in the marshes.
And you have secured Streona's promise?
I have.
But as you know, inviting Mercia into our fight comes with risks.
And after we have defeated the Vikings,
I will need your support to help mitigate those risks.
Long live King Edmund.
Unifier of England.
-Hear, hear. -I agree.
The Bretwalda!
With Your Highness' permission, I ask to bring forward your coronation.
-To the Bretwalda! -To the Bretwalda!
You have made a grave mistake.
By giving Edmund the crown, you risk the lives of all of us.
You have saddled yourself to an impulsive child.
I disagree.
I have saddled myself to the future King of England.
It will be up to us to make this work.
Us?
You expect me to help you?
I'm afraid you have very little choice, Your Highness.
You have much to gain by Edmund's success, but even more to lose if he fails.
Excuse me, I have much to do to prepare for the coronation.
No sign of him?
You should get that seen to by a healer.
You aren't good to anyone if it gets worse.
We are going back for him.
No.
If he was alive, he would be out.
If he's not, you'll be risking your lives for a dead man.
He wouldn't want that.
If he's dead, we have no reason to be in this stinking country.
You are free to leave whenever you want.
I will pay Freydis' debt.
Come on. Almost there.
I need help.
You're a healer?
-Where are you hurt? -Not me. My friend.
I think she's dying.
-Watch her.
Easy.
That's it.
I thought I died.
But you didn't.
The Gods must have a plan for you.
How many did we lose?
Six.
Including one of your friends, Ulf.
Canute thinks the Saxons are daring us to attack London from the south.
And what do you think?
I don't know.
But I want to find out.
Yrsa.
There's a chance.
Thank you.
-Now you. -I'm fine.
I'll be the judge of that.
Turn around.
You are a Christian.
No.
A man put it there against my will.
A Christian man. A long while ago.
Who attacked you and your friend?
A man on the road to Uppsala.
A warrior with a mark on his forehead?
Yes.
He attacked us without warning.
Who is he?
He hunts pilgrims.
Where is he now? Did he follow you?
No. I killed him.
Go to Uppsala now.
And the priests will help you.
I will wait for my friend.
Leave your horse behind and take the steep path.
The main road is not safe, and a horse is easily spotted.
What are you afraid of?
Believe me. Go.
And I'll watch your friend till you return.
God crown you with a crown of glory and righteousness.
And may you obtain the crown of an everlasting kingdom
by the gift of Him whose kingdom endureth forever.
Stand firm and hold fast from henceforth.
Amen.
This way!
Unload the food, it must be shared.
Look at all the food.
They're preparing for a siege.
What happened to you?
Why are you covered in mud?
What's wrong with your friend?
Doesn't he speak?
Not since the Vikings burned down his village,
killed his children,
stole his animals,
-and took his wife. -Oh.
What did she say?
-She said you need a bath.
This way to the bridge.
Incoming!
Keep moving!
Move that cart!
You. Hold right there.
Lift!
Release!
Right. Straight on.
No pushing!
Pagan.
There are two trails of blood. They lead this way.
Find them.