War and Fire

- Chapter Eleven -

Osferth Pov.

'I love you' was the last thing Osferth heard as he and the men rode through the gates of Winchester.

Osferth rode alongside Sihtric and Uhtred. and Finan was not with them. Uhtred had ordered him to go, and when he returned, he returned with a random man who had led us to a village, his village, as Osferth assumed. However, the sight we were met with was rather gruesome. The whole village was destroyed and burned. Bodies linger across the grounds, burned and bloody.

The sight alone made Osferth's stomach churn.

The only remaining building left standing was a church made of stone and brick.

The man had led us behind one of the burned houses. We all hid and crouched down, careful not to be seen.

"She's there inside the church," the man had informed us. "Am I still needed?

"No, go find your family," Uhtred said to him as he looked around at his surroundings.

As the men left, Uhtred turned to face Osferth. Osferth knew from the look on his face that he was to be the distraction since Uhtred still did not trust time enough to fight. He sighed as Sihtric, Finan, and Uhtred pushed him out of his hiding place. Osfetrh stumbled slightly before catching his feet and taking a look back at them.

Osefrth began to walk slowly towards the church at the end, while Uhtred had stationed his men. He took a deep breath to try and calm his nerves and approached the church, where a few warriors remained outside, chatting to themselves.

The warriors began to laugh as he approached.

"Who are you?" "What do you want?" One of them had asked

"I would like you all to surrender, or I will smite you."

"What did he say?" one of them said, confused by his words.

"Smite?" "What is smite?"

"It's a word, Isn't it?"

"A word from the holy book." "It means to slay or kill." Osferth explained

"I will kill you."

Some more warriors begin to laugh at this.

"Smite." Osferth says softly, looks back, and sees the men.

"You will smite all of us?"

"Yeah, most." "Some of you might run away, hopefully.

The men began to get a little agitated and slowly walked towards him.

"I've got... I've got a sword." "A very sharp sword, but I prefer it if you'd surrender."

"Kill him"

"Now!" Uhtred yells and jumps out of his hiding place, and so do all his men.

The killing had begun, and it took mere seconds, and Osferth had turned his way so he did not see the gruesome act.

You should have surrendered, Osferth thought.

When the killing was over, he followed the men to the church.

"Haesten says she is of the devil."

"Then it might be an idea to bar the door and burn the place down." "why not?"

"To Bloodhair, she will be priceless." Uhtred says this and opens up the church door with the tip of his sword before stepping inside; the others follow behind him.

The sight before them is even more gruesome than outside, and even more gruesome than they could have anticipated. Priests were lying dead—some on the floor, cut open with blood splattered everywhere, and some hanging by the beams with a rope tightly around their arms like a cross. But there was so much blood.