Chapter 33: Betrayal

Rattled that Thorkell could pierce several men with a single distant throw, the band starts to unravel. Askeladd urges them to forget the spear, since the enemy remains far off and the ruined bridge will slow them. Torgrim snaps that the stream is shallow enough to wade, making the demolition pointless, but Askeladd insists the delay will pay off if they stay alert one more day, because supplies dictate an army's pace and abandoning them means starvation. Torgrim retorts that survival for even a day is no sure thing, and Askeladd calmly declares that this is where their paths divide, since he will waste no breath persuading them.

The men advance on Askeladd and the cart with weapons drawn. Torgrim reminds him of their long years together, says he has no wish to see him killed, and asks only that he surrender the prince and walk away. Askeladd sighs and asks to say one final thing. He recalls the years they laughed, drank, and fought side by side, then admits there is one truth he never shared after more than a decade as a band: he has despised every single one of them with all his being, spitting a foul insult to close the speech. Before the words fully register, he draws his blade and takes the head of the man closest to him.

Torgrim screams for the others to grab the prince as Askeladd calls out to Thorfinn, who begins hurling throwing knives into the men nearing the cart. Bjorn cracks his crop across the horses and bolts away with Canute, Thorfinn, and Willibald aboard. Realizing Askeladd anticipated the whole thing, several traitors mount up to chase the sled. Askeladd keeps cutting down attackers but cannot stop the riders, and remarks with grim humor that he trained his men too well. In the distance Thorkell notices the band turning on itself, and Asgeir observes that cornered men often do exactly that. Enraged that they would start the fight before he arrived, Thorkell quickens his advance.

The pursuers close on the cart and aim for the horses despite Atli's pleas that the prince's value hinges on keeping him alive. Bjorn, loyal to the end, warns them that anyone who tries to take Canute must be ready to die. An axe fells one horse, then the other, and the cart topples. Willibald and Canute are thrown into the snow, while Thorfinn launches himself clear, kicks Atli from the saddle, and rides off toward Askeladd, terrified the captain will be killed before he can claim that kill himself. The men find Canute alive and prepare to carry him back, but Bjorn heaves the wrecked cart off his body, bites down on a berserker mushroom, and promises to send them all to Valhalla. Meanwhile Askeladd, bleeding from a gash above his eye and hemmed in by dozens, mutters that age has caught up with him.

Askeladd refuses to hand over the prince and confesses his lifelong hatred for the band before beheading the nearest mutineer. Bjorn escapes with Canute, Thorfinn, and Willibald as riders pursue. Thorfinn's thrown knives thin the chasers before he leaps from the crashing cart and rides to reach Askeladd. Bjorn survives the wreck and consumes a berserker mushroom to fight the remaining pursuers. Thorkell, spotting the infighting, presses forward while a wounded Askeladd remains surrounded.

Part of Volume 5, this chapter spans the end of Episode 16 and the bulk of Episode 17, carrying the Japanese title Uragiri. Its centerpiece is Askeladd's farewell speech, a bitter inversion of a comrade's sentimental goodbye that reveals the depth of his contempt. Bjorn's use of the berserker mushroom introduces the drug-fueled rage that drives the following chapters and his fateful confrontation with Canute.