Vikings: Lords of the Ice Sea

Chapter 90 Island of the West

After the interrogation ended, Ragnar went to the riverbank to relax. There, a large iron chain blocking the river was secured with huge stones, and many soldiers had gathered there to discuss how to destroy it.

Soon, someone brought over a pile of firewood, poured five buckets of kerosene on it, and then set it on fire.

Under the sustained high temperature, the surface of the iron chain began to turn red. A tall and strong Viking man wielded a giant axe and chopped repeatedly. When he ran out of strength, another strong man took over the job.

When the moon was high in the sky, the Vikings finally broke a section of the iron ring. Under the influence of gravity, the hundred-meter-long iron chain that blocked the river quickly sank to the bottom of the river, as if it had never existed.

After untangling the iron chains blocking the river, the fleet sailed upstream and arrived in Paris at dusk on April 25th.

Currently, the city is located on Île de la Cité in the middle of the Seine River, and the island is connected to the north and south banks by two bridges.

On the north bank, there were makeshift markets and simple houses. Near the bridgehead on the south bank stood a stone monastery surrounded by a wooden wall.

Before setting off, Vig collected some Latin documents introducing Paris.

Legend has it that two stone bridges were built during the Roman era. Later, the Franks occupied the area, and due to outdated technology and lack of maintenance, the bridge decks collapsed one after another, leaving only the piers standing in the river. Frankish craftsmen then built wooden bridge decks on the existing piers, eventually forming the two bridges we see today.

Furthermore, according to missionaries' records, Paris had a permanent population of 8,000, and if all adult males were mobilized, 1,500 men could be gathered to help defend the city.

Climbing to the top of the mast, he observed the defenses on Oasis.

Thanks to the leak from within, the Franks had ample time to prepare their defenses. A new wooden wall was built outside the existing Roman stone walls, with over two thousand soldiers standing behind the battlements.

"This is troublesome. It's all those damned leakers' fault!"

Vig returned to the deck, pondering how to breach the city, when he suddenly heard thousands of people ahead shouting "Wahalla" in unison. He looked up and saw Ragnar's flagship heading straight for the outer walls of Cité Island, intending to conquer the city in one fell swoop.

What's going on? Why did they launch an attack without even giving any warning?

Vig was both shocked and furious as he watched helplessly as the ten leading longships approached the wall. The next moment, more than thirty burning fireballs were thrown out from inside the wall.

A catapult? The traitor even told the Franks about something like that!
Without a second thought for complaining, Vig waved two small red flags, signaling the fleet to stop and instead rowing downstream.

Before long, a second wave of oil canisters arrived, all aimed at Ragnar's flagship. One canister hit the mast precisely, and the entire canvas burst into flames instantly.

Worse still, many fire ships laden with firewood appeared upstream and were carried downstream towards the Viking fleet.

To avoid a traffic jam caused by boats fleeing for their lives, Vig frantically waved flags to signal all the boats to move toward the south bank.

"Quickly, spread out to prevent the enemy cavalry from launching a charge in the chaos!"

On the shallows of the south bank, Vig had his spearmen set up two rows of gun emplacements on the perimeter. Hundreds of meters away, a group of cavalrymen stood silently on the hillside, debating whether to launch an attack.

From the perspective of the Frankish cavalry, the Vikings had a loose formation and were less able to withstand cavalry charges.

However, with the sun setting and visibility dimming, and the riverbank soil soft and unsuitable for warhorses to run at full speed, they waited for a long time before finally retreating to the bridgehead. That night, pyrotechnic ships continued to drift down the Seine, seemingly without end. The nobles gathered to discuss their next strategy.

Vig looked around but didn't see Ragnar. His voice trembled slightly as he asked, "Where did he go?"

Bjorn was in low spirits and looked listless. "The flagship was under heavy attack from catapults and in the chaos, it drifted toward the north shore. Before the ship was completely burned, I saw several figures escape."

Vig pressed further: "And then?"

"The flagship was found stranded, and five Frankish ships approached the north shore. A large group of enemies chased a few survivors into the depths of the swamp."

After Bjorn finished speaking, the nobles were stunned and remained silent for half a minute. Ivar then proposed a decisive battle with the Franks.

"Whether our father survives or not, we should uphold the honor of the Vikings. Rather than be hunted down by the enemy, we should fight them to the death."

“That’s right,” Vig agreed with him. “Even if we manage to escape back to Britain, once the Anglo-Saxons realize our weakness, they are very likely to rebel. We must quell them with an indisputable victory, or we will never have peace again.”

Gunnar: "What will our Viking warriors think of us if we desert? The only way to preserve our wealth is to fight to the death."

Led by the three, the fighting spirit of many nobles was rekindled. They went back to count their numbers, totaling 8,300, still capable of fighting.

The next morning, after the Vikings had eaten breakfast, their bellies were bulging. Before setting off, they also put some dry rations in their pockets—battles on the battlefield are extremely exhausting, and if the fighting dragged on for several hours, the rations would be just what they needed in case of an emergency.

Following the order devised the previous night, they arranged themselves in formation on the south bank. Learning from the lessons of the Battle of Latworth, each noble family brought more or less spearmen, placing them in the first two ranks and on the flanks to defend against cavalry charges.

On the other side, the same number of Franks left the island of Cité and made their way along the bridge to the south shore.

From a military perspective, the ideal situation for the Franks was to hold their ground, wear down the enemy's strength, and delay the attack for a period of time.

However, Charles the Bald is facing many troubles, including the Vikings, his nephew in Aquitaine in the south, and the rebels in Brittany in the west.

In his view, the most pressing need was time. He should deal with the Vikings as soon as possible, then lead his main force south to eliminate his nephew and prevent him from inciting more nobles to join the rebellion.

"Defending against foreign enemies, suppressing rebellions, collecting taxes, and managing relations with the church—ah, being a king is no easy task."

Charlie touched his bald head, his face full of worry, and let out a heavy sigh.

Half an hour later, nearly a thousand cavalrymen left the bridgehead.

To conserve their horses' energy, they did not ride on their backs, but instead led them by the reins to an open area two kilometers away from the Vikings. They then sat down on the ground and waited for the useless militia to form ranks—based on past experience, these men would dawdle for at least an hour or two.

As both sides waited idly, time ticked by, and a reckless Frankish knight charged to the front of the Viking ranks to challenge them.

Under his leadership, several duels broke out in succession, with both sides winning and losing, until the Frankish militia had lined up in battle.

(End of this chapter)