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"CIRILLA!"
Sigtrggyrs hand were bound togther by ropes. He had been caught. His men had been caught. It was over. He watched as his wife was roughly dragged by the arms, her hands also bound, by two Saxon men. The sight of her being detained, angered the man who tried to push past the guards only to be pushed back.
"Let me see her!" He exclaimed, still struggling against the guard. "Let me see my wife!" He yelled. He had not seen Cirilla since before the battle, and it was clear everything was about to change now.
"Sigtryggr!" She gasped as the guards dragged her over to her husband, allowing her to stand in front of him. His electric blue eyes were no longer bright. They were a full colour, holding sadness and regret. His face was littered with scratches and mud as he stood tall in front of the love of his life.
"A king should always heed the hood counsel of his queen." He said, his eyes trained onto her teed stained face. He never wanted to make her cry. He hated seeing her cry. "I should not have forgotten this." He admitted.
"You still have time to make it up to me." She smiled through her tears. "We are one, remember?" She reminded. "Your ideas are my ideas, your thoughts are my thoughts, your mistakes are my mistakes. We are one, my love." She told him. Cirilla could see in her husbands face that he beloved he had let her down, but there was nothing he could ever do that she wouldn't be proud of. Although his plan may not have worked, he still stood with his head held high, accepting deafest. That was more than most men could do.
Uhtred approached the separated couple. The girl he considered a daughter and the man he thought to be a son, prevented from each others comfort by Edwards men.
"Aethelhelm provoked this." He explained to them, his voice low. "The massacre in Rumcofa was his doing." Sigtrggyr listened as Uhtred spoke, his words processing slowly in his head. "Edward was never your enemy." The Dane blinked rapidly. Edward was never your enemy. All of this was for nothing. He let out a breathy 'no' in disbelief, shaking his head.
Cirilla let her eyes fall to the ground. This miscommunication had cost hundreds of men their lives. All thsi war was at the hands of one man and one man only. Aethelhelm had destroyed years of peace between Saxon and Dane and yet he was no where to be seen. He was responsible for this, not her husband.
"I was riding to tell you he was calling for a truce." Uhtred explained to Sigtrggyr. "In the midst of battle, Aethelhelm escaped."
"It is over for us then?" One of the Danes questioned. Sigtrggyrs men knew they were about to knock on deaths door. Edward would never let This crime go unpunished.
Sigtrggyr met the eyes of Cirilla. Both faces held a look of fear and uncertainty for their future together. They both still had so much to do and yet they may never get to experience it.
