"Great Odin!" "I invoke you!" "Odin!" "Descend!" "Odin, come down to us!" "He spits out the fish bones!" "Odin is now among us!" "In the morning of time, the gods created the world." "Then they forged together man and woman." "Stronger than sinew of bear are those blood bonds that bind you together." "You, Embla, my daughter and only child, and you, Askur Thorgeirsson," "Odin, mightiest of the gods, who is now among us pronounces you one flesh and sworn to him!" "I am a poler bear." "I came floating from Greenland on an iceberg." "Accept my pelt as a wedding gift." "and this shawn, woven for an Arabian princess." "Accept it, too, beautiful chieftain's daughter as a gift from a humble seafarer." "Askur's father, Thorgeir, Lawspeaker of Iceland, asked me and my two companions" "to bestow upon you this likeness of Freya." "This sacred figure of Freya is given to us by my father" "He is a chieftain priest like your father." "Now I shall disclose to you Freya's secret." "Look." "This is you." "And this is our unborn child." "Then it's best that you guard me around your neck and I guard our child around mine." "Hear me speak before you take up arms," "Those who accept baptism into the true faith of their own free will" "Their lives shall be spared." "Those who refuse shall die!" "If your god is as powerful as you claim ," "Let him challenge our god and see who is greater." "No one has seen this White Christ except as a lifeless figure on a cross." "Then show us your god, Godbrand." "Now, where is your god?" "Our god is right here." "Your god is a blind and powerless lump of wood." "You desecrate the altar of Odin?" "You traitor!" "Let's kill him!" "Kill these dogs!" "Kill them!" "Take them alive!" "Agnus Dei!" "No!" "Alive Thangbrand!" "I said alive!" "Baptism is quick." "We pour holy water on you, and then it's over." "Make your choice, Earl Godbrand." "I have brought Askur up as my own son" "We shall go to Valhalla together with our heads held high." "So be it then." "But you shall be the last one to die." "Father, don't give in to them for my sake." "You refuse to see the light of Christ.. ." "so your daughter must burn." "Sacred Freya!" "No!" "No!" "This bearskin is fit for a king!" "Please accept this gift." "Freya!" "Pour water on me!" "Embla!" "Embla!" "I want more." "I want you to create one great kingdom of all the lands the Vikings have settled." "With the cross as your weapon you will save the heathens from the fires of hell." "Look, sacred blood flows from my heart so that you may win your greatest victory." "The White Christ has heard me." "Now let's burn his body and send his head to his father in Iceland with heartfelt greetings from Bishop Thangbrand." "The king must reward his men when they win a great victory" "Now my warriors expect to have your bride." "If you harm a hair on Embla's head, you will wish you had burned me instead." "I swear upon the heart of my saviour that this young man's bride will be placed in your charge and returned to him the day he reports to me that Iceland, belongs to you just as I belong to you." "I baptise you in the name of Jesus Christ, the White Viking who fought with his holy weapon, the cross, in death and life." "Amen." "May your mission be fruitful and successful, my dear brother." "This is my hope - that you return with from this journey with great honour." "Askur!" "I shall return." "I'll be back when I've converted the Icelanders." "What do you mean?" "I shall not be away from you for long." "I'm coming with you!" "Embla!" "Wait for me." "I shall return!" "There is nothing to fear." "You will live to regret what you have done here." "Your daughter, Godbrand, has a temperament fit for any queen." "I do not want anyone to burn in hell." "If you find any more heathens wandering about here, hear their confession, baptize them ..." "... andthenkillthem ." "... andthenkillthem ." "The convent has helped even the worst of witches to accept Christ." "Godbrand's daughter is no witch." "I intend to baptise her myself." "Make sure she is treated according to her rank." "I will do as you say." "Witch!" "Lord Christ, descend from heaven and reveal yourself to these sinners," "to these repentant sinners." "Hallelujah!" "Christ, come down to us and cleanse their sinful bodies in the holy water of the river Jordan." "The king himself will baptize you." "Christ, take these two repentant sinners into your protection and then take them as thy brides for thy name's sake." "May the Holy Ghost appear to confirm your acceptance of these two souls as your brides." "Behold!" "Behold!" "Now, you will put on this habit." "Nothing to say?" "It is good to accustom oneself to silence." "The girls that are brought here usually learn to be silent ..." "... andobedient!" "They will never take my child from me." "My mother spoke these lines to me:" "Purchase proud-oared ship Stand high in the stern" "Scour for plunder Stout viking-steersman." "Hew down a man or two." "Guess who composed these mighty lines?" "My grandfather, Egill Skallagrimsson." "the greatest Viking of all time and the greatest poet." "Did you fast all the way here?" "Yes, I did." "Then hunger will soon help Embla to find her tongue." "Embla remains silent." "She does?" "She's not a deaf mute, is she?" "She didn't say a word when I gave our convent habit to wear." "It makes no difference whether she speaks or not as long as she doesn't escape." "She killed one of my men on the way here." "Special treatment has always caused trouble here." "You lick the king's feet." "I don't need to lick his feet." "King Olaf is like a child in my hands." "I'm just bringing you a tasty little morsel." "No!" "Freya, give me strength until Askur returns." "You have desecrated the habit you were meant to wear for Christ." "Heathen witch!" "Don't do that!" "Stop!" "I'm in charge here." "I told you, she is the King's favourite plaything." "What a plaything!" "As long as Christ is on your side there'll be nothing to fear." "Make Christ your weapon as King Olaf has done." "The White Christ brings you news of your daughter." "Godbrand, your daughter Embla is in good health." "I have instructed my humble servant, Bishop Thangbrand to place her in a holy convent." "Holy convent?" "The convent is a place where young maids learn to obey the word of God They become brides of Christ." "Brides of Christ?" "The White Christ himself has chosen Embla as his bride." "It is a greater honour than can be put into words." "She is also descended from Odin." "White Christ, allow me to see my daughter." "You may not know more." "And when I have finished building Christ's sacrificial temple..." "Then I, the king, will come and bless it." "And if it is as magnificent as you say," "I will ordain you myself." "A Christian priest has the same powers as a priest of Odin has among the pagans." "Christian priest?" "What about my daughter?" "The White Christ protects her.. ." "Christ I invoke you!" "Christ descend!" "Christ come down to us!" "Amen!" "When the church is completed, even the most barbaric heathen would balk at setting fire to it." "What news from Iceland?" "Askur met his father and brother." "Then nothing came of his Christian mission." "Is he not with you?" "Or at least, a part of him?" "Your majesty!" "Askur, who tried to kill you, your missionary in Iceland," "has joined forces with his father and brother." "Now he leads the pagans against you." "And that amuses you?" "No!" "No!" "Children are born here all the time." "Why can't I get that young Valkyrie out of my mind?" "I have promised you all the lands in the west that belong to the Vikings" "When Embla becomes your bride, then transform into flesh your Holy Ghost." ".. . be incarnate in me your bravest warrior and your most faithful servant, the king who Christianised Norway!" "Your majesty!" "Your majesty!" "I am not to blame!" "Forgive me!" "Punish me, I am the Lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world" "Agnus Dei ..." "Agnus . .." "You have a visitor." "Murderer!" "You damned witch!" "My orders were that Godbrand's daughter be treated as a queen" "not as a witch!" "I was not told that you were with child." "I did not ask either, so the fault is mine." "Allow me to honour it by having it buried in the name of the White Christ." "My child is already with Freya." "Freya gave it to me." "You are a woman any king would be proud of ..." "... a Chieftain'sdaughter." "Your father is building the biggest church in Norway." "The king needs a fearless woman by his side." "It pains me to tell you that you will never see Askur again." "He has taken over his father's estate in Iceland." "He is not coming back to Norway." "He has betrayed the White Christ.. ." "...and you." "He would never betray me." "If you will accept baptism of your own free will and become mine" "I shall take you away from here." "If not ..." "It was a virgin birth" "Why did you hide from me that she was bearing with child?" "A virgin birth?" "A virgin birth." "How could I know that?" "Babies are born here all the time." "I thought the most important thing was to make sure she did not escape." "And now the true son of God. .." "...has been murdered a second time." "What did you promise me?" "What did you promise me?" "To guard her with your life and soul!" "Why can I never trust you?" "Have I ever failed you?" "Remember what I did for you when you sought refuge in England." "How many times must I pay you for what you did in England?" "I helped you to gain the crown of Christ and made you king." "How often have I had to forgive you your foolishness as recompense?" "I baptised you." "Leave me alone." "One day you will be old and grey and ugly .. ." ". .. and still waiting ..." "Then you will remember how I once offered you the whole world, that I offered you the throne of a queen and all men would have knelt at your feet." "Whatever you desired would have been yours." "I shall wait for Askur." "Remember, you can be queen of all Norway." "Christ is risen." "Jesus!" "Jesus Christ!" "I've seen him." "I've seen him." "Who?" "It's a miracle!" "It's true." "He has risen from the grave" "Who have you seen?" "Jesus!" "He is in there." "Do you swear by the Holy Mother of God that this is true?" "Both in the name of the Mother of God and of God himself." "If you saw a ghost then it was Satan" "Here is neither Christ nor Satan." "She has seen Satan." "I saw Jesus Christ." "Let us all wash away our sins once more." "Then we shall take the holy sacrament together." "Go back to heaven or they will crucify you again." "Jesus Christ is here!" "We are not ready for your return." "They will punish you again." "I am not to blame." "Look, look at my scars." "I have been punished enough." "I have done nothing but serve you." "He is here." "He's coming after us." "Embla, it's me, Askur." "I knew." "I knew you would come back." "I never doubted it for a moment." "Our child is dead." "They took it away from me." "They gave it a Christian burial . .. against my will." "I love you." "I saw him." "Let's leave." "We must leave." "I saw him ." "I saw Jesus." "Now, you'll have to believe me." "I saw Jesus." "I told you I did." "Mother Freya, I give back the child you gave to me." "The White Christ has demanded that Askur die." "The day you kill Askur, I will join him in Valhalla." "I have begged Christ to spare his life." "but if you do the same, he might listen to you." "His heart is generous and bleeds." "You have used me to break my father's and my husband's will but you will never break mine." "Your father is here." "He, too, demands that you become the bride of the White Christ." "Godbrand, here is your daughter, as I promised you." "Embla!" "Remember the will of the White Christ." "I give my consent." "With great pleasure." "I have never been more joyous." "Only if she returns with me along with the White Christ." "Father, let the king neither force you nor fool you." "It is your daughter who has to accept the White Christ and become his bride of her own free will." "Otherwise Askur will die." "Now you can go home and continue to build the church." "Continue?" "The bell tower!" "If I agree to become the bride of the White Christ ..." "... onwhatconditionswill  you spare Askur's life?" "Askur shall return to Iceland." "And you must convince him that this is your will." "He will go at your command." "And your sworn oath to him concerning me?" "The king's oath is law." "Then I shall do this." "Embla!" "The king is willing to spare your life." "That dog will spare no one!" "Say nothing." "These walls have ears." "Promise me you will go back to Iceland." "You must return to your mission." "He made it a condition." "I will go ... butonly if you go with me." "I am his hostage until you return and tell him Iceland is Christian." "But I am an outlaw in Iceland, so anyone there has the right to slay me." "I am the one who is asking you to go." "You are going at my behest." "Promise me you will go back to Iceland." "If you want me to do the impossible and that is the only way then I have no choice." "The king has a generous heart." "He said if you agreed to go, he would allow me to spend your last night here with you because tomorrow you must set sail for Iceland." "No!" "No!" "Never!" "Never!" "Don't touch me!" "Don't touch me!" "Go away!" "Stop touching me!" "Embla!" "Askur." "It's you." "It's you." "It really is you." "We must never give up." "Never!" "What is that?" "It's a talisman that will bring me victory." "This is a likeness of Freya, Odin's wife ... yet the White Viking proudly wears it around his neck." "The ways of the lord surpass man's understanding." "Give me your hand." "Why do you want with my hand?" "So that you may witness the miracle." "Can you feel it?" "Can you feel the power?" "The heart of the White Christ is bleeding for your soul." "You are my blessed bride." "You will rule as my queen, on earth and in heaven until Doomsday." "Come to me." "My heart is bleeding for you." "If you try to take me by force I shall kill myself." "You say you want to make me queen." "Then treat me like a queen and not like one of your slave women who you rape here on the floor when you desire." "Now, you are finally behaving like a queen." "I should never have taken you to the convent." "I should have brought my queen here from the very beginning." "You shall have the finest apparel ever seen in Norway, and a bed chamber hung with Arabian silk." "The finest apparel in Norway the finest dresses in Norway." "King Olaf, when he was merry found the girl that he would marry ..." "Where is Godbrand's daughter?" "I bring you tidings from Iceland." "From Iceland?" "Your missionary, Askur ..." "So, you have brought me his head?" "I can bring you something better than his head." "Embla." "Now, let's set fire to the church." "No, we'll convert it to a temple for Odin when we return." "It has been very costly, and it is one of the fairest temples in the whole of Norway." "But what if the King pursues us to Iceland?" "Then we will drive him and his army into the sea." "Askur is there." "His father will help us to win the chieftains over to our cause." "I have no wish to eat rotten stockfish and sheeps' heads for the rest of my days." "I have done nothing to offend the king" "I shall stay here." "No, I was only jesting." "I have always stayed at your father's side and I shall follow him now to Iceland." "Fortune is with us." "No, fortune is not with us." "I saw her." "She is there." "Show me now that this token speaks as clearly as you have led me to believe." "Embla." "For once in your life, tell the truth whatever you have been bribed to say." "I shall tell you the truth." "But you will wish that I had lied to you instead." "I saw it with my own eyes." "How?" "He died at his father's hand." "a hero's death." "I don't believe you." "Askur lives." "And I shall go to Iceland." "No!" "Embla!" "Embla!" "Embla!" "Embla!" "I bring glad tidings." "Askur succeeded." "Iceland is now Christian." "Like our greatest heroes, he gave his life to the cause." "He will become the first Norwegian saint." "He will sit at Christ's side in heaven." "If Askur has been slain then he must be in Valhalla." "It's a tedious occupation being the widow of a martyr." "But you and Askur shall be reunited when you die and go to heaven." "If you consent to becoming Queen of Norway in this life" "I gladly consent to you becoming Askur's wife in the next." "You would never consent to my being with Askur in the next life even if you could." "In heaven, a saint ranks higher than a king." "But, right now, we are on earth." "So, you will enjoy the best of both worlds the best of both worlds." "Give me a dagger." "I did not save you from the flames so that you could burn in hell." "You will never have my body on this side of death." "Odin!" "Askur?" "Askur!" "Embla!" "Embla!" "Embla, I'm here!" "Askur!"