[breath trembling]
Freydis!
Romanos told me everything.
You only wanted a child.
It became clear early in our marriage that he couldn't have children.
He had tried with other wives.
We both agreed you were the best choice for the father.
[grunts]
You never wished me to have everything.
And you never wished me for your wife.
I had to use your appetite to get what I needed.
What of my men?
Maniakes has turned your trial over to the Church.
The Patriarch will lead it.
[sighs heavily]
He knows your Varangians won't go against the Church, even for you.
He also knows that it makes me powerless to pardon you.
[scoffs]
I'm sorry, Harald.
I did not mean for any of this to happen.
You did not lead me into this trap.
It was my greed.
[servants chattering]
I want more fires lit.
The place must glow!
[servant] She hasn't seen them in over seven years.
No sign of our future king?
-Hmm? -[sighs]
It would be most fortuitous if the heir was born on Canute's arrival.
It may come as a shock to you, Mother, that you cannot control everything.
Well, I know I can't, but there are herbs one can take to bring on the birth.
You're not serious.
Queen Aelfgifu! Canute's fleet! It is here.
Well, don't just stand there, get on with your work.
-[servants chattering urgently] -He's coming. He's coming.
[sighs]
[servant] Cold water!
[crowd clamoring]
It is good to be back on Viking land!
[cheering]
And even better to be in Kattegat!
[woman 1] King Canute!
-[woman 2] May God bless you all! -[people yelling indistinctly]
-Your Highness. -Thank you so much.
Father, welcome to Kattegat.
Svein, this is Queen Emma
and this is your half-brother, Harthacanute.
Thank you for arranging a warm arrival, King Svein.
It is my pleasure, Queen Emma.
Welcome, Hartha.
Father, this is my wife, Katla.
My lord and lady, I'm honored.
It is nice to finally meet you, Katla,
and maybe I will get to meet a grandson before we leave.
-[chuckles] -[scattered chuckling]
[Katla] I will do what I can, my lord.
Your Highness, welcome to Kattegat.
We are happy to be here, Katla.
And who are the Normans?
They are Emma's sons from her first marriage,
Alfred and Edward.
You brought them here?
I see your visit has a wider purpose.
It does.
Where's your mother, King Svein?
Waiting for us in the Great Hall.
Anxiously.
Perhaps you will show my two boys and Harthacanute around Kattegat
while I pay my respects to her?
Come. We will start in the oldest part of Kattegat
where they say a Völva hides who is over 100 years old.
What's a Völva?
A witch!
A Viking witch? What a terrifying concept!
[horn blows]
[man 1] Steady.
[men yelling indistinctly]
[Erik] Home to feast on fish, huh?
Just wait till they see how much you've caught, little bear.
[man 1] Ready the rope!
You will be the hero of all Greenland tonight!
[man 2] Pitch the oars!
[Erik] Akí, you are a great sea captain.
You remind me of myself when I was younger.
That is the greatest compliment my father can give.
Well then, I am honored.
Where's the other boat?
Your father's men took it.
Who?
Lang and Vilfil, right after you left.
Then it is safe. They know what they're doing.
They had no right to take it without permission.
You said you would help us.
We cannot live on fish alone, we must have goods to trade.
Bear fur, sealskin, narwhal tusks,
so when the traders come, we can stand proud.
And that's all thanks to you, daughter.
Come, Harald! We must tell grandmother
-how you caught the giant fish. -[giggling]
There is something I must show you.
The lock is broken.
Half of our supplies have been siphoned off in this way.
You know who's doing it?
It's everyone.
You can't blame them after all they've been through.
If we wait much longer,
there will be nothing left for us to take.
From now on, we will guard the storehouse.
Tell the others.
It's time for us to leave.
Queen Emma, welcome to my home.
Queen Aelfgifu, I am grateful for your welcome.
My husband will be along shortly.
I asked if I could precede him.
We are honored by your visit.
I'm afraid it is a far cry from London.
It is everything I hoped it would be and more.
Indeed.
Canute is dying.
Is this a fact that is well-known?
No.
You're one of the few.
For you to share this with me,
you're either a very trusting woman or a naive one,
and I know you to be neither.
I have told you so that you can appreciate the full reason for his visit
and not waste it on pettiness.
Thank you.
We both also have sons in line for his throne
and I have no doubt your feelings are as strong as mine for their success.
That is true.
And do you have knowledge of Canute's plans for succession?
No, other than he intends to use all his power to ensure
that no family blood is spilled from his passing.
How like him.
Yes, very much like him.
And how are you?
I'm going to miss him.
-[door slams open] -[Canute] This is the Great Hall…
Come back!
…Home of Ragnar Lothbrok, Bjorn Ironside and Ivar the Boneless!
This is where I brought together the great Viking armies of the North
before we journeyed to London!
Where our ancestors have for centuries shared their stories,
discussed business, politics
-the rule of law, ambition. -[sighs]
Even you, Alfred, have a connection to this place.
Rollo, the first Norman Duke.
Exactly. I have brought you here…
to draw inspiration from this place.
This place of heroes.
Do I qualify as one?
Is she the Völva?
[all laughing]
Well, I suppose that depends on whom you ask.
No.
This is Queen Aelfgifu,
the mother of King Svein
and the Regent of Norway.
This is her hall…
and we will show her our respect.
[Erik] Friends, a great week of fishing
and soon Lang and Vilfil will return with bear fur,
seal skins and narwhal tusks and we can start trading again!
[all cheering]
Thank you, people of Jomsborg, not only for sharing your boats,
but for helping us rebuild our farms and homes.
And I know some of you are getting very close.
[all chuckling]
It brings me great joy to see our two people become one family.
And we will always be part of this family
and we thank the gods we were able to share with you in your time of need.
-[softly] Yes. -That is who we are.
-But we are leaving tomorrow. -[scattered gasps]
[Freydis] We can wait no longer.
[people murmuring]
There are four extra seats on our boat.
If anyone else wishes to join us, let me know now.
[people murmuring and whispering]
Freydis, may Signe come with us?
If she wishes to.
I do! Thank you.
You're asking Greenlanders if they want to leave Greenland?
It is like, uh, asking fish if they want to leave the ocean.
This is our home. We have no desire to leave.
Is that so?
Are you all happy to stay?
I would like to come too.
[man] What are you doing?
I'm an excellent sailor and a hard worker.
I would too.
You would leave your families and your homes on the promise of a story?
I wish to come, Freydis.
-[roaring] -[people exclaiming]
Maniakes has questioned us about your time with the Empress.
And what have you told him?
That we saw nothing.
Good. Continue to tell him that.
It's the truth.
Harald, we have always been loyal to you and always will,
but at some point the truth cannot be hidden.
I have always only asked one thing from you… your trust.
I ask it one more time.
[door closes]
You are a brave man to be this close to me right now.
Please, go ahead and try and kill me.
It will only strengthen the case against you.
What do you want?
I know that you were sleeping with the Empress.
Crime against the Empire, punishable by death for both of you.
You have no proof.
It is only a matter of time,
and when I do, the Empress and all your loyal Varangians
who have lied to protect your secret
will join you at your execution.
You challenged my leadership.
And you ridiculed mine.
You took advantage of my generosity and treated me like a fool.
You know full well if we remain here much longer,
we will have no option but to stay.
You robbed me of my people!
They are not your prisoners!
You should not dictate their destinies or mine.
I'm leaving you my second ship and seeds for the spring.
What is that? Charity?
Yes. I do not wish to see my mother die because of your stubbornness.
[people murmuring in Greek]
[man] Alexius by the grace of God, Archbishop of Constantinople,
New Rome, and Ecumenical Patriarch.
Harald Sigurdsson, you are brought before this court of Christ
charged with the most heinous of crimes:
the murder of our beloved and great Emperor Romanos Argyros.
I did not kill him.
I loved Romanos with all my heart.
I was with the Emperor more than anyone here.
If I wished to kill him,
why would I have done it at a party filled with witnesses?
There was a woman there who killed him.
This woman you claim killed Romanos,
can you describe her?
She was wearing a gold mask that covered her face.
What color was her hair?
Do you know what costume she was wearing, her jewelry,
so that we might track her down?
I have my men hunting for her as we speak.
Holy Father, I have been accused of the most heinous of crimes
by a man who envies my success,
a man who has everything to gain from my downfall.
He is yet to give a reason why I would kill the man
I have protected like a brother for the last seven years.
One word… ambition.
We all have ambition.
Not like yours.
Not like Viking ambition.
He was not satisfied with being Spatharokandidatos.
He strived to be more, to be Emperor.
And he was aided in this quest by a woman who plotted with him
against her husband…
and slept with Harald while they did it.
The Empress Zoe.
[people murmuring and whispering]
[Patriarch] Silence!
You have raised a serious accusation
that places not one, but many lives on trial.
Can you prove this accusation of adultery?
Bring him out.
I present one of Harald Sigurdsson's Varangian Guard.
[all murmuring in surprise]
Tell me, you have served Harald Sigurdsson for seven years.
I have. He's a great leader.
At any time did this great leader ask you
to shield the adultery that he is now accused of?
No. I never saw anything.
Never?
Think carefully.
-[gasps] -[exclaims softly]
[Maniakes] I'll ask you the question again.
Did Harald Sigurdsson have sex with the Empress Zoe?
I will answer that.
I did.
But it was not as described by Maniakes.
It was not an affair of the heart.
It was against her wishes.
-[people gasping] -[Harald] I defiled her!
My men have told the truth.
They had no knowledge of my crime.
And your meeting with the Emperor?
When Romanos learned of the rape, he confronted me and I killed him.
[Patriarch] You understand that you have committed
not one, but two capital offenses,
murder and rape, and have admitted to both?
[breathing heavily]
I do.
By my decree, the Empress and all others are exonerated,
but Harald Sigurdsson, I condemn you to the most horrific of deaths,
an execution in front of your peers.
May you spend eternity paying for your sins in Hell.
[people exclaiming]
-[man shouting indistinctly] -[horn blowing]
So this is the famous Kattegat?
Where I arrive a prince and depart a king.
[crowd clamoring]
I knew by his boots that he was lying.
[all chuckling]
Father!
Son, it is good to see you.
Look at you, you've grown into a strong young man.
Fighting the Wends does wonders for one's strength.
Hmm.
Queen Emma, as a young boy I saw you and thought
you were the most beautiful woman I had ever seen.
It would appear my memories are all accurate.
I see he takes after his father.
[chuckles]
Harefoot!
[laughs happily]
Mother, I'd like you to meet…
Earl Godwin of Wessex.
Your mother and I are already acquainted.
Yes, sadly so.
My lord, my lady.
How was Denmark?
[Godwin] Enlightening.
I see my children are blessed with their Viking heritage.
I learnt a great deal that will stay with me forever.
And Gytha?
She's returned to England with the children, milady.
And where is my father? Did he not travel with you?
Your father is dead, my lord.
He passed just before we left for Norway.
Forkbeard is dead?
Was he ill?
No. No, he was…
It was sudden, Your Highness,
but expected given his age and the circumstance he found himself in.
He was not alone, however.
He had his grandson's company right up until the last breath.
Well, thank God you were with him.
Both of you.
May his soul rest in peace.
[all murmur along]
Amen.
[sighs]
I trust this chamber is adequate for a man of your status.
Given our history, I'd expect nothing more.
I never forget a betrayal.
Another thing…
while you are my guest,
I order that you keep your distance from my son.
I'm afraid you cannot order me to do anything, Aelfgifu.
I'm not a servant any longer,
I'm a member of the Royal Family by marriage.
Furthermore, I could not do what you requested
because it runs counter to a unique skill I possess.
And what is that?
That of always backing the winner.
Edmund could never beat Canute, thus I backed Canute.
You could not beat Emma, hence I backed the Queen.
But Harefoot, given the correct guidance…
could beat everyone.
And you are the man to provide that guidance?
I do think I'll change rooms.
[sighs deeply]
[sounds of battle echoing]
-[Young Canute] You are here… -You are here…
…for your families!
…for your families.
-[Young Canute] You are here… -You are here…
…for your honor!
…for your honor.
You are here…
[Leif] You are here…
because you are a Viking.
[sighs]
I became a Viking that night.
[sighs]
It is good to see you, Greenlander.
'Tis good to see you, King Canute.
Hmm.
Without you, things might have turned out very differently in London.
For us both.
And what became of your sister, uh…
-Freydis? -Freydis.
I'm not sure.
She went from here to Jomsborg, but the settlement is now deserted.
What happened?
The plague or some sort of attack.
I'm sorry to hear that.
She saved my son Svein's life after she killed Olaf.
She killed Olaf?
You did not know that?
Where have you been these past years?
Uh…
The Rus. Constantinople.
Africa. Sicily.
I served in the Varangian Guard with Harald.
Oh.
[panting] So, he's forgotten his ambition to become the next King of Norway, huh?
-I'm afraid only he can answer that. -[sighs]
What brought you back here?
I'm in search of a ship and a crew to sail west
to find the land I believe is out there.
I remember you wanted nothing from me for bringing down London Bridge.
Ah…
[grunts]
[breathing heavily] Let me now gift you a ship
and a crew in my name.
And may you bring glory to all Vikings with your discovery.
It would be an honor to travel in your name.
And, uh, what about you? What brought you back to Kattegat?
You remember that conversation we had about our father's shadow?
Yes.
I have brought my sons here to see who can step out of mine.
No.
[Harald struggling]
Did you see your friends?
You thought you were so clever, but soon you will be killed
and the name Harald Sigurdsson will be forgotten.
I strongly suggest that you kill me now,
because if you wait for my execution,
I promise I will take you to Hell with me.
[clicks tongue, chuckles]
[yells]
[grunts]
I can wait.
[scoffs]
[exclaims softly]
Not yet, my friend.
Not yet.
[people chattering indistinctly]
Are we all ready for tomorrow?
Ah, yes.
[Akí] Erik?
Preparing for your voyage tomorrow?
Yes.
[sighs]
I have come to ask a favor.
I was hoping you would be able to convince Freydis
to stay here a little longer.
We both know the weather will change soon
and the longer we stay the harder the journey will become.
Spoken like a true sea captain.
You have a notch in your hull.
What?
You must have damaged it when you docked.
Where?
[grunts]
Shh.
[Haraldsson] Where are we going, grandfather?
We're going on a journey to save everyone. Are you ready?
-Yes. -[Erik] Good.