An Unlikely Friend?

Arvid was cut down by Erik and taken away, Erik's eyes were not as hard as they usually were and Arvid noticed this too but he doubted that a beast such as Erik was capable of compassion so he quickly pushed this thought out of his head because he did not trust him.

Despite not trusting him, he was his only hope to regain his chance at Valhalla.

This was a man that took away the honor of his wife, but this same man was the reason for his thread of hope and he bit his teeth into it because he knew he was incapable of anything else.

He was too exhausted and tired to form coherent sentences, the crowd's jeers felt like they were going to burst a hole through his eardrums.

Yet he clung to the man he hated the most, he cried because he realized just how low he had fallen. But Arvid did not regret his decision as he began to see the death of his wife as a necessity for the fall of Askild, this was how he regained his sanity, he had to believe it was or the guilt would be too much to handle.

Erik returned him to his cell but Arvid already had food and ale waiting in his cell, the food was not just scraps either but an actual delicacy. This was the first time he had seen such food and his suspicion of Erik grew even higher.

He did not eat the food nor drink the ale, staring at it like something was wrong with it.

"It would be foolish to save you from torture only to give you an easy death such as poisoning don't you think?" Erik said. He presented a good point and Arvid acknowledged that this would be too easy a death for him considering the gravity of the crime he had committed.

He dug into the food, and he ate like a hungry pig, spilling food everywhere but he did not allow the spilled food to go to waste, licking off the ground as he gulped a cup of ale.

"Arvid, I have made preparations for you to leave Kattegat tonight," Erik said and Arvid stopped eating immediately, he was surprised that Erik was bending so far back for him but he was not one to question it because these things brought back the hope in his heart.

Erik has gone against Askild multiple times already for him, maybe he felt guilty for what he did to his wife and this was his way of making it up to him?

"But it is not for free, of course. I need you to ride to Vestfold and deliver this letter to King Asmund. I trust you will not open it, but this letter will guarantee your safety. I will clear the gates, and get you a horse well-fed with some food." Erik said, it sounded like Erik had some sort of arrangement with Vestfold and this made Arvid suspicious. There was no way the most loyal warrior in Kattegat was working with King Asmund.

This did not concern him, he had found his way out of this hell hole as Erik tossed him the letter he was to deliver, hitting the ground. Arvid's reflexes were too poor to react in time but who could blame him, he has been in pain ever since his capture.

Arvid bowed his head to Erik but Erik did not acknowledge his gratitude and just walked out of the little dungeon.

Asger convulsed, he was fighting for his life and the healers rushed to his side thanks to Ulrik's shouting, they quickly escorted Ulrik out because they needed space.

Ulrik did not argue or resist but he did give one warning that may or may not hold any weight.

"If you let him die, I will kill all of you fuckers!"

Asger kept convulsing and was quickly turned to his side. Luckily, this was not a serious seizure as they were able to bring it under control but they did not know just how serious the next one was. Asger did not look to be getting better, and this concerned them.

They needed to know the kind of poison that was used, and they could only get that information through Arvid, this should help with whatever antidote they needed to use because they only had a rough idea of the kind of poison it was but numerous poisons exist that require different antidotes.

"That poison used on Asger is Cowbane, it is a miracle that he has held on this long but the amount he has in his bloodstream is little or he would have been dead long before now. So there's a chance of survival." A strange lady said, walking into the door.

They looked up and it was their queen, Liv. All the ladies lowered their heads the moment they saw who had graced them with her presence.

"That is fine, now is not the time for honorifics but we need to save Asger at all costs," Liv said and this motivated the healers as they were more active and hopeful.

She noticed that Asger's temperature was not as high as it was when they brought him in, she relayed this information to Liv and Liv heaved a loud sigh of relief.

"Keep a close eye on him, he should be fine" Liv encouraged them.

Liv walked out and confronted Ulrik, who looked worried despite not saying it but she knew he was worried about Asger.

"Ulrik, is it?" Liv asked and his expression softened the moment she asked him this, he immediately got on one knee with his head bowed.

"Hahaha! You can stand, I am not the king," Liv said with heartfelt laughter but she knew what he wanted to hear.

"Asger will be fine, the worse has passed. You are a good friend," Liv said, continuing on her way as Ulrik got to his feet but the relief on his face was evident.