Original subtitles

(IF I HAD A HEART PLAYING)

More, give me more Give me more

If I had a heart I could love you

If I had a voice I would sing

After the night When I wake up

I'll see What tomorrow brings

(VOCALIZING)

If I had a voice I would sing

(MAN YELLS IN DISTANCE)

(HORSE WHINNYING)

MAN: (IN DISTANCE) Steady.

(INDISTINCT CHATTERING)

We followed your orders

and appointed an earl in every district under your control.

They collect taxes and fines,

and each one provides 60 soldiers for your army.

(CHUCKLES)

Blacksmith!

You understand what you have to do?

I do. Indeed. I'm straight to work. Good man.

Good man. (HORSES NEIGHING)

So?

SCOUT: We saw two armies marching together.

One was led by Bjorn Ironside

and King Harald Finehair.

You recognized them?

And the other army?

By a king or earl we did not recognize.

Together with someone we did recognize.

My brother, Hvitserk? Yes, My King.

(SCOFFS)

And you're completely sure?

Yes. Without any doubt.

(LAUGHING)

Well, that is good, huh?

Don't you think that's good, Freydis?

My fellow gods, at last, allowed me to see my fate.

Now, all of my brothers are against me.

Now I know I'm the chosen one.

KING OLAF: Ivar has clearly made preparations for a siege.

And perhaps we should negotiate with him.

HVITSERK: No.

No.

My brother is right.

Never again will we negotiate with Ivar.

It is useless.

(CHILD GIGGLING)

What happened to you, Lagertha?

I almost died.

But was reborn.

You were between life and death.

What did that teach you?

The only thing that I've learned

is that life is about suffering.

There's no escape from it.

That's the truth.

What's important

is how we deal with suffering, how we deal with the truth.

How do I tell my children

that life is all about suffering?

They will find out for themselves.

Soon, we shall reach Kattegat.

And once more, brother will fight against brother.

And the world will be wrecked.

Midgard will be wrenched by wars

for three winters.

Fathers will slaughter sons.

Brothers will be drenched in one another's blood.

Mothers will desert their men folk

and seduce their own sons.

Fimbulvetr,

the winter of winters will grip

and throttle Midgard.

Fenrir, the wolf,

will seize the sun between his jaws

and swallow her.

He will spatter Asgard with gore.

And then the warriors and all the gods in Valhalla will bear arms

and fight against the giants and the serpents

(HISSES)

unleashed against Midgard.

KING OLAF: Odin

and the wolf will be the first to engage.

And the battle will be fearsome.

Though in the end, the wolf will swallow Allfather.

That will be the death of Odin.

BJORN: And then worlds will burn,

and the gods will die.

And the sun will be dark,

and there'll be no stars in the sky.

And the Earth will sink into the sea.

Ragnarok.

It's only a story.

Stories are all we have.

Attack the gates. HARALD: I agree.

We will divide our forces

and attack two of the gates simultaneously

with the greatest violence.

BJORN: If we divide our forces,

we need to be able to know one another.

(HARALD CHUCKLING)

For my brother.

For Halfdan. (KING OLAF LAUGHING)

Ivar, what is it?

I need to know that you've forgiven me.

I'm sorry

for all that I do.

I'm sorry.

I love you, Freydis.

You know that.

And I love you, too.

And I forgive you.

(HORN BLOWING)

VIKING: Man the wall!

(MEN CLAMORING IN DISTANCE)

(GRUNTS)

I have to go.

Take care of yourself.

And you.

Beloved.

MAN 1: This way. MAN 2: Hurry up!

(HORN BLOWING)

VIKING 1: Man the wall!

Come on!

VIKING 2: Be ready.

VIKING 1: Archers ready!

VIKING 2: Defend the towers!

(VIKINGS SHOUTING)

Forward.

Archers,

loose!

Move!

Archers, loose!

Loose!

BJORN: Move! Shield-wall!

Ram!

Back.

Shoot back.

Ram!

IVAR: Welcome home, Bjorn. Ram!

Welcome home. Loose!

Open.

(LAUGHING)

(HORN BLOWING)

Charge!

Move!

(SCREAMS)

Open.

Oh, my God! Oh, my God!

Why hast Thou forsaken me?

Why art Thou so far from helping me?

Thou hast led me into the dust of death.

Forward. Move.

Forward.

IVAR: Loose.

To the wall. To the wall. Go, to the wall.

IVAR: Loose.

Shoot them.

(LAUGHING)

(GRUNTS)

You can't help me or hear me, can you?

Because you're not there.

No, you don't exist.

IVAR: Loose.

BJORN: Go, climb the ladders.

Climb to the top! Go, go.

Come on! Come on!

Come on!

My brother. You've come too late. BJORN: Go.

Much too late.

Just get us in. Just do it.

(LAUGHING)

(HORN BLOWING)

BJORN: Push!

Go to the other gate.

Now! Burn them alive.

(SCREAMING)

(SCREAMING)

Push! Ram!

(SHOUTS) Come and see.

Come and see the death of humanity

upon a shore of corpses.

Broken heads.

Spilled guts.

Scorched flesh.

Come and see the young tearing each other's throats out.

Rivers of poison will flow through the halls.

Oath breakers, philanderers,

murderers will wade through those rivers.

Come and see. Come and see.

(GROANS)

We're beaten. We have to retreat.

No, what if Bjorn is winning?

What if he's already inside the gate?

We cannot run away now.

(GROANS LOUDLY)

MAN: Archers, draw.

Back! Ram!

Back! Ram!

Again.

Again. Bring it in.

Ready?

Hit. Pull.

Hit.

(VIKINGS SCREAMING)

(YELLS)

Again.

Again.

Hit.

Hit.

Back. Hit.

Back. Ram.

Down.

BJORN: Shield-wall.

Archers.

VIKING: Draw!

Loose.

Close in.

IVAR: Loose. VIKING: Loose.

IVAR: Loose. VIKING: Loose.

Draw! IVAR: Loose!

VIKING: Draw. Loose. Draw.

VIKING: Draw!

BJORN: Break.

Push through.

Shield-wall. VIKING: Shield-wall!

(GROANS)

GUNNHILD: Bjorn.

Go! Go!

(YELLS)

(BOTH GRUNT)

Call the retreat. Call the retreat.

Go, call the retreat.

Sound the retreat.

Retreat. Retreat.

Retreat. Retreat.

GUNNHILD: Retreat. Retreat.

ALL: Yeah!

(HORNS BLOWING)

VIKING: Retreat.

Odin is with me.

I'm Ragnar's son.

Odin is with me and you cannot kill me.

I'm Ragnar's son.

Get down, you fool.

VIKING: Retreat. I wonder about you, Magnus.

I always have.

At first, I thought you were a Saxon spy.

I was never anyone's spy. I never was.

I was just unlucky.

I didn't know who I was until right now.

You know who I am.

(VOICE BREAKING) I'm Bjorn Ironside, son of Ragnar.

I grew up with many of you.

You were my neighbors. My friends.

We played together when we were children.

I'm not your enemy.

Ivar is your enemy.

(LAUGHS)

He rules over you with tyranny and cruelty.

He wants to destroy everything my father did.

He's lying. Kill him, he's lying.

You know me.

(SPITTING)

What are we to do now, huh?

There's no point to us attacking the gates again.

We will never get in that way.

(COUGHS)

KING OLAF: We have lost a great many brave warriors.

The crows are probably feasting

with their hearts and livers right now.

If it was me, I would walk away from this battle.

I do not see a way to win.

Ivar is clever.

Everything you all think, he has already thought.

Bjorn and I are sons of Ragnar Lothbrok. We don't give in.

HARALD: That's fine.

But Ivar is a son of Ragnar as well.

So what?

(CHUCKLES)

"So what?"

(SIGHS)

When I tell you to kill Bjorn, you kill him.

You have to understand one thing,

that Bjorn is not your friend.

He is your enemy.

If he and King Harald succeed in their ambitions,

then what future do we have?

They have great plans. Yes.

But those plans do not involve you.

You, the ordinary folk of Kattegat,

I'm the only one who speaks for you.

And I swear that I will live and die for any of you.

All that I ask

is for your absolute loyalty.

Otherwise,

we shall all perish together.

What are you thinking?

About everything.

About Kattegat.

About Ragnar.

About how I've been a poor father.

I have thoughts, too.

I had dreams.

I lost a husband.

And I have never had children.

Do you want children?

It's what my body was made for.

Except to give pleasure to me and to men.

You're an extraordinary woman, Gunnhild.

I'm just like any other woman.

Don't want to have to do anything.

Don't want to be trapped.

I want to fight.

And I want to ride wild horses.

And I want to be unknowable to you,

even though I want us to be in love.

I'm crazy, right?

I had an idea you might be.

It didn't put you off?

Listen.

I want to have sex.

I might die tomorrow.

Or you might die tomorrow.

But in any case, if possible,

I should like to be with child.

(BOTH MOANING)

To have life stirring inside of me.

Yes!

(BOTH CONTINUE MOANING)

(INDISTINCT CHATTERING)

(SPEAKING INAUDIBLY)

Halt! Who are you?

Freydis, what are you doing here? I had to come.

I have things to say.

Thora is dead.

Ivar burned her alive.

Along with many others.

I am so very sorry.

He killed our baby.

He's a monster, you have to stop him.

How?

There is a secret way into the town.

Ivar created it for his own escape.

It's how I got out.

I will show your scouts where it is,

and I will open it for you in the morning.

Be ready.

Thank you.

I want to see Ivar strung up in a tree.

(KING OLAF CHUCKLING)

Do you trust her?

What choice do we have?

(HORN BLOWING)

They are attacking the walls again.

I'm not sure I even need to get out of bed.

(CHAINS RATTLE) (IVAR GRUNTS)

(ALL GRUNTING)

(YELLING)

Enough! Enough!

People of Kattegat.

We've come for Ivar.

We have no intention of killing our friends.

Stay inside. Don't fight us.

We are here to set you free.

Ivar!

Freydis, my love. Where are you?

FREYDIS: I'm here.

IVAR: Come here.

I need you.

Someone let them in.

What do you mean?

There's no other way they could have gotten inside the walls.

Someone betrayed me and let them in.

Are you going to deny it?

No.

On the body of our dead son, no.

I let them in.

I love you.

You're the most beautiful thing

that ever happened to me.

And there's a part of me

that will always love you.

(CHOKING)

Later, when I have time,

I will sit and weep for you.

I love you, Freydis.

I love you, Freydis.

I love you.

VIKING: Ivar!

Ivar!

(WEAKLY) Thank you.

(BOTH PANTING)

(YELLING)

(ALL CHEERING)

Ivar.

Ivar, where are you?

Surrender.

Here's to the new year

of all our lives, Bjorn Ironside.

You're alive.

And here's the sword of kings.

Hail King Bjorn, King of Kattegat.

Hail, King Bjorn!

ALL: (CHANTING) Hail, King Bjorn!

(ALL CHEERING)

RAGNAR: Why do you want to fight?

And what are you fighting for?

What do you seek?

Power.

RAGNAR: Power is always dangerous.

It attracts the worst and corrupts the best.

Power is only given to those

who are prepared to lower themselves to pick it up.

SEER: And so, it has come to pass,

the future foretold.

The dark raven, the eagle

and the wolf have laid bare the bones of corpses.

Here is the story of the world.

Make what use of it you can.

What of my rule?

What is to become of me?

No one will ever forget the name of Bjorn Ironside.

Greater than Ragnar.

But the war is not over.

Is any of this real?

(MUSIC PLAYING)