The Last Viking Queen

by Taylor, Janelle

Alysa remained in her kneeling position upon the bed, but her eyes followed him and remained locked on him. “Dead men cannot raid our lands or threaten me again. At this moment, our forces stand ready to attack this camp tonight. We shall defeat them, slay each one. Victory will be ours and we shall never fear them again.”

  Gavin halted his movements and stared at her. “What rash plan is this? Our forces cannot defeat these Norsemen. All will be slain. For what, Alysa? A dream? An old man’s foolish words?”

  “I beg you, Gavin, sit and hear me,” she pleaded.

  “Hear what? More reckless plans?” he scoffed. “I must find a way to get us out of here safely and to warn off our forces.”

  “Nay!” she stated sternly. “All has gone according to planned and predicted. You must not interfere with fate.” She related their ruse and actions to the shocked male, revealing the motive behind the false contest and treasure hunts. She told him of the preparations in their lands and of the messages which had been passed back and forth. She briefly went over the impending ritual, feast, and attack. “Recall what you have witnessed me do here and on the trail. As Eirik, you admitted I am not an ordinary woman, a simple ruler. You have seen how I can inspire men to obey me and follow me. You said I have courage and stamina and strength, as much as any-trained and experienced warrior. Becoming Gavin again should not alter your opinion. If you remain Eirik today, the Vikings will be dazed with ale and potions tonight and our combined forces can defeat them.”

  Gavin considered her words and recalled all he knew as Eirik. Still, his pride was rankled by the daring deceit, and he had to appease his anger with an enlightening argument. “My father and King Bardwyn have agreed with this wild plan and joined your side?”

  “Our side,” she corrected. “All is prepared. You cannot change things now; you must not or all is lost forever. Our message told them you are here aiding this cause, but they do not know you did it because of Trosdan’s enchantment. There is no need for them to ever know that secret, Gavin. You will lead the attack, not me. I will hide and remain safe. The glory will be yours.”

  “I do not care of glory. I care of your safety and that of our loved ones. Look what you have done here! You have taken great risks by traveling alone with strange men. Perilous foes! Wicked barbarians! During your impulsive game, you challenged Ulf to destroy you, and you dallied in the forest with Rolf. And what of your wanton behavior with Eirik?” he asked suddenly, his mind in a turmoil.

  Alysa stared at him. “But you are… were Eirik! I did nothing wrong by yielding to my own husband. I love you, and needed you. And you know I did nothing wicked with Rolf or with any man here! I explained my behavior to you.”

  Irrationally he accused, “To make this Eirik jealous!”

  “Nay, to protect my enspelled husband! Rolf was jealous of you and I had to beguile him to prevent suspicion. As Eirik, you understood my actions and agreed with them.”

  “What other mischief have you done that I do not know about? You constantly enticed Eirik and repelled him. You kept him in a dangerous state of confusion. He was ready to kidnap you just to have you. What of your wild scheme’s success then?”

  “That is why I had to threaten Eirik and keep him off balance. I could not resist you, Gavin, even though I knew our relationship was perilous. I could not help weakening at times, for you are my husband. I needed your comfort and aid. I needed your strength and courage. I had to mislead Eirik to keep from arousing his suspicions about us.” Anger flooded Alysa. “You are being unfair and cruel, Gavin!”

  He looked surprised by her charge. “After what you and that wizard have have done to me, you speak of fairness and cruelty? What of that message Trosdan compelled me to write? If you knew I was Eirik, why was it necessary?”

  Alysa sank to her seat and sighed heavily. She was as honest as she dared to be, “When you drugged me and vanished, I was pained deeply. At that time, I did not know about Trosdan’s spell over you. I was hurt, frightened, lonely. I thought you were trying to punish me, to control me. I did not know if you would ever return home to me, not after the strange way you had been behaving and what your note said. Yea, I was also angry and bitter! With you gone and the Viking threat drawing closer, I did what I knew I must.”

  Alysa licked dry lips and continued rapidly. “I did not know you were Eirik until we were here for a time and the ruse was in motion. At first, I almost believed you were Eirik, perhaps a trick by Evil to entrap me, or a ruse by you and Trosdan to force me to play my role convincingly. But our bond is so powerful that I was drawn irresistibly to you. And there were many clues to your true identity. You called me ‘M’love,’ and I recognized your kisses and caresses, and the way you moved and spoke. Eirik appeared right after you vanished. I caught your friends here in lies about Eirik, about your past and that scar. I knew the wizard had the skills to enchant you and alter you. I knew you must have gotten the drugged wine from him. He supplied me with strange garments and tales, so why could he not do the same for Eirik? I honestly believed you were my love and I forced the truth from Trosdan after he tried to fool me with that false letter to keep us apart. I am sorry if you are hurt and angry, but I agreed with his actions and went along with them. As Eirik, you trusted me and allowed me to do my duty. You believed all such things were a part of me, and accepted me as I was. Eirik did not want to change me, control me, suppress me, as Gavin does. As Eirik, you had no doubts in me or my prowess. Eirik needed and wanted me when as Gavin you did not. As Eirik, you wanted me at your side at all times and believed I could face and conquer any peril beside you. As Gavin, we quarreled, and I was excluded. With Eirik, we loved and worked together. Knowing such things, can you blame me for wanting you to remain Eirik a while longer? You were never in any danger, for Trosdan was protecting you with his magic.”

  “As with when I defeated Ulf?” he demanded.

  Alysa wanted to cry, but controlled that weakness. She blamed it on her condition, something she could not tell Gavin until the danger was passed. “You would have won that match on your own prowess, as you did with all the others without Trosdan’s help, but we could not take a chance on him wounding you.”

  Wondering and dreading what others would think of him when the shocking truth was exposed, he accused resentfully, “You and the wizard have made a fool of me, Alysa.”

  Alysa quelled her fury and gently refuted, “Nay, my love, we have made a hero of you, a legend for the bards to tell of for centuries.”

  Gavin looked at her, this stranger who was his wife. He had witnessed her fight with Thorkel, her many clever speeches, her easy guile. Yea, she had played her role with alarming conviction! Just as she had beguiled him as Thisbe not long ago! How could he tell when she spoke the truth and her behavior was real? Did he know this artful pretender at all? “Why, Alysa?” he asked again, as if he did not understand, as if he were intentionally shutting out the truth.

  Tears welled in her blue eyes, but did not spill forth down her flushed cheeks. “Because challenging adventures are what you seemed to need and want more than what I and our life together could offer,” she replied, sadness tinging her voice and expression. “Because you could be here with me at this special moment, but only as Eirik. Because I could prove myself to you and open your eyes to the truth about yourself and about us. You needed to understand for yourself your tangled feelings and confusion before you could relent to your new existence, which this task has helped you do. You have lived for your own pleasures and desires. You have come and gone as you pleased. Now, I am half of you, and you must learn to think of us and our land first. I was compelled to do this task. What more can I say to make you comprehend?”

  When Gavin simply stared at her, she added, “Trosdan will be here soon to go over the plan, so I must bathe and dress.” She reminded him of what was in store for them later. “The ruse will work, Gavin, even if you do not agree with what we have done. For the survival of everyone and all of Britain, please aid us. While I am gone, t
hink on this crucial matter and what is at stake. I beg you, release your anger and pride. You are a prince, a ruler, a future king. Do what is best for everyone concerned. When I return, we will discuss it further.” Alysa gathered her garments, the Viking Valkyrie outfit which Trosdan had given to her, and headed for the eldhus.

  Trosdan knocked upon the door and called out his name, stalling her bath with his arrival. She quickly pulled on a kirtle as her husband yanked on a tunic. Gavin let the Druid inside and barred the door behind him for privacy. The two men looked at each other.

  Trosdan stated, “So, she has told you of my deeds.”

  At the old man’s nonchalance, Gavin’s eyes narrowed. “Yea, she told me everything. Now I wish to hear your explanation. For what you have done to a ruler, you could be put to death, Wizard. Convince me why I should not slay you for this wickedness.”

  Trosdan took a seat at the table and calmly revealed why he had deceived Alysa and why he had enspelled Gavin. “Since your memories have returned, Prince Gavin, surely you realize what a great task we have performed here. And surely you realize such desperate and daring actions were necessary. Yet victory over the Norsemen was not my only motive. There were things which you needed to discover and accept, things about Alysa and about yourself. You needed one last great adventure to calm your restless spirit so you can be content with your new life. Damnonians needed for you and your friends to become great heroes to them. Surely you know that many there are disgruntled by your takeover of their land and queen. You have not hidden your childish feelings from them; your misbehavior spoke loudly to them and to your wife. I changed nothing in your character and personality. I simply commanded you to expose your innermost feelings, for I was aware of them. They needed to be brought forth and resolved for all time. What you did and said in Damnonia was not of my doing. It lived within the dark recesses of your mind and needed to be excised; I have helped you do that. You will be a stronger, wiser, better man and ruler for your personal victory. This glorious deed which you have aided, however unknowingly, will evoke the Damnonians’ acceptance, fealty, and admiration forever.”

  Prince Gavin Crisdean did not want to believe such terrible things were true about him. “If not for your intrusion, Wizard, I would never have left Alysa and home for any reason, no matter how bored or restless I became. I am not a man without honor and strength. Why enspell me so I was a helpless slave to your plans?”

  “Otherwise you would not have agreed and joined us. In fear of her safety and doubts of her skills, you would have halted Alysa’s participation. You would have prevented this cunning plan because you would not have believed in it. No prowess, not even the superior skills that you possess, could have defeated the Norsemen so quickly and easily, without great bloodshed and sufferings. Has Alysa not proven herself and her destiny to you? Recall what you have learned and witnessed here as Eirik,” Trosdan urged. “Has all not gone as the Runes predicted, as they commanded? Alysa is a queen and must live as one, but you have prevented it. You did not understand and believe in the forces of destiny. In your blindness, you would have found a way to thwart us. I had to intercede and change your mind, the only way I knew how, with potions and magic. Admit it, Prince Gavin would not have played a pagan Viking as convincingly as Eirik has. Without Gavin’s fears and worries and doubts, you have carried off your role perfectly. What are your pride and anger compared to survival and peace? We are here now, so you must aid us to the end.”

  “Do you realize what enormous danger you have placed her in?”

  “None, for I am here to protect her and you.”

  “From over seven hundred savage foes!”

  “Seven hundred or seven thousand, it makes no difference while fate is guiding and defending us. Do not blame Alysa for my daring deeds. I did not tell her of them until we were here and it was too late for her to resist.”

  “She went along with you, even after learning the truth!”

  “She had no choice. The ruse was under way and succeeding. She is wise. She knew that to flee or to risk discovery would have imperiled all lives and lands. If she had awakened you, you would have made a slip and exposed us. She knew she could trust Eirik here, but not Gavin Crisdean, for you had made that clear to her many times. She knew I would let nothing happen to you, for she has faith in me, in our gods, in our fates.” Again the Druid urged, “Do not blame her for what I forced her to do.”

  Alysa refuted, “You did not force me to do anything, Wise One. I agreed and acted of my own free will. I am sorry if Gavin does not understand or believe us, but I would take the same path again. What he does from now on is of his own free will.”

  Trosdan told Gavin that her dreams tell her what to do, that she is compelled to obey them.

  “Dreams which you create and control with your brews and skills!”

  Incensed, Trosdan scoffed, “Nay! I have not enchanted her! She is truly a Seer. She was chosen and guarded by the gods. In a way, she was as much enthralled by this matter as you were.”

  Gavin focused his gaze on his beautiful wife. “Why did you not awaken me last night to give us more time to talk?”

  “You mean, time to quarrel. I needed you, needed our closeness, before this matter was revealed and this argument took place. I love you, Gavin, and I never wanted to hurt you or deceive you or embarrass you. Back home I tried to explain everything to you, but you refused to listen, to discuss our peril with me. You excluded me at every turn as if my words and thoughts had no value, as if our threat was not partly my fault. You have lived as a warrior; you saw this threat through a warrior’s eyes; you believed only a warrior’s prowesses could defeat it. Your mind was closed to other solutions. Trosdan knew we could defeat our foes in a safe and cunning manner, and I believed in his plan. Once we were here, there was no turning back.”

  Her troubled blue gaze fused with his troubled green one. “I know you have been miserable and doubtful as Gavin. But as Eirik, you believed in me. You accepted me. You wanted only me and our happiness. As Eirik, you had returned to the man I first met, and I wanted to spend time with him before my restless husband was returned. As Eirik and in the beginning as Gavin, you claimed I was the most important thing to you, that I gave you joy and meaningful existence, that I disspelled your restlessness. You vowed you would do anything for our happiness, that you would change as neccessary to share a quiet life with me. Last night, you were ready and eager to settle down, to carry out even monotonous work. You said that if we needed adventure and stimulation, we would seek it side by side. As Gavin, why can you not feel and think the same way? If you wish to leave me forever after we defeat these Norsemen, I will understand, and accept your decision. When this challenge is met, if you get restless and bored again, you must ask yourself which you desire and need most, our life and love or brief adventure. If you cannot be happy and content there … Do as you must, as I did,” she finished.

  Trosdan and Alysa looked at Gavin and awaited his decision.

  Prince Gavin Crisdean of Cumbria paced the room again as numerous thoughts and feelings plagued him. He remembered everything of his life before coming here, everything about his life as Eirik, and everything about last night. He bravely searched his mind, heart, and soul for the truth. He had to admit, though it was painful, that Alysa was right, about everything. He reflected on her words last night, and comprehended their meanings. He had been selfish and fearful, but she had proven herself to be more than a woman, more than his wife. He had doubted her destiny and Trosdan’s words, but all had come true. He had wanted his new existence to be a certain way, perfect, but had resisted the only path which led in that direction! Eirik had been right; she was no ordinary woman. If not for the spell, impending victory would not be in sight. Before them would still loom a vicious war with bloody and bitter consequences.

  The ruse was cunning and effective. There was no reason why it would not work in their favor. But what if something went wrong; she would be in peril today. Nay, his keen
mind argued, she has proven she is a warrior queen. He recalled how she had behaved here and with Eirik. Now he grasped the strain she had been under for weeks. She had been clever and brave and steadfast, and loyal. And, despite her courage and strength and resolve, she had turned to him as Eirik because she had loved and needed him. She had agreed to the ruse because he had left her no choice except to dupe him. Truthfully, their life as Eirik and Queen Alysa had been wonderful. They had shared all things, as she had craved to do with Gavin. Yea, there was no time or place in which she could not stand at his side.

  Gavin’s moody silence tormented Alysa. If he did not understand all things by now and accept them… She sighed heavily. “While you two talk further, I will go for a walk. I need fresh air and quiet.”

  Gavin commanded softly, “You cannot leave this dwelling. Your expression and mood would give us away. You are a new bride and should not look so sad or be out wandering alone the morning after our wedding. What you said to Eirik last night is true. And what you have said this morning is true. Perhaps I have been too proud and stubborn to admit to such flaws and weaknesses.” He confessed uneasily, “I was feeling bored and restless, but only because my entire existence had changed so swiftly and completely. Suddenly I was responsible for many lives, for the prosperity of our land, for your happiness. I was used to being free, wild, adventurous. Suddenly I was a husband, a ruler, and one day certainly a father. I was compelled to remain in one place with too much leisure time. There were many confusing and intimidating things which plagued me, Alysa.”

  He lifted his hand to caress her pale cheek. “I understand what you two-did, and I agree. You are wise and correct; if I had known, I would have tried to stop you. I love you, Alysa, and I cannot bear the thought of losing you. I am sorry you had to handle matters this way, but that was my fault. What I said to you as Eirik last night is true. You are more than an ordinary woman. It has been hard to comprehend my good fortune, but I do now. Truly you were destined for greatness, and you have achieved it. I am glad we have shared this last adventure together. It has taught me many things about you and myself. When we return home, all will be fine. Whatever happens in the future, you will be at my side in all times and places.”