The Poor Fellow-Soldier

The Poor Fellow-Soldier was a virtual representation of one of Eivor Varinsdottir's genetic memories, relived by Basim Ibn Ishaq in 2020 through the Portable Animus HR-8.5.
==Description==
Eivor travelled to Athelnay to meet the "Poor Fellow-Soldier of Christ".
==Dialogue==
Eivor arrived at Athelnay, finding nothing out of the ordinary besides the villagers hard at work. A man called out to her.
*Anglo-Saxon Man: You alright there?
Eivor approached the villager.
*Eivor: Yes, hello. I do not mean to intrude but... I am looking for someone.
*Anglo-Saxon Man: And who would that be, then?
*Eivor: I... do not know exactly.
*Anglo-Saxon Man: Well, that'd be why you en't found him. But you're free to pass the time just here if you like.
*Eivor: Thank you.
Having not found what she was looking for, Eivor walked towards a nearby tree and took a nap. She was later woken up by a conversation.
*Anglo-Saxon Woman: These are soul cakes, love. Do you know soul cakes?
*King Aelfred: I do. I enjoy them.
*Anglo-Saxon Woman: They're small things, size of a lumpy fist, so they'll bake fast. Keep your eyes sharp!
Eivor stood up and approached the figure she recognized as King Alfred.
*King Aelfred: And the butter? Do I... baste them?
*Anglo-Saxon Woman: No need, love. We'll leave the butter for mealtime.
*King Aelfred: I look forward to it.
*Anglo-Saxon Woman: Right then, I'll leave you to this. If you need me, I'll be doing the washing up next door.
The woman left, leaving Eivor to speak to Alfred privately.
*Eivor: Quite a step down from your former work, lord.
*King Aelfred: As their guest, I volunteered to help with the daily chores. They offer me a bed. I tend the cakes.
*Eivor: Do they not feel strange giving orders to their king? Or do they know?
*King Aelfred: That knowledge would benefit no one.
*Eivor: I read your message. You went through a great deal of trouble to obscure yourself as this Poor Soldier of Christ. As I remember, you even sent yourself one of these letters in Wincestre. A clever touch.
*King Aelfred: The Order wanted me dead. I had to be careful.
*Eivor: You said you knew nothing about The Order then. Plead ignorance. But you knew everything. Their names, their schemes.
Alfred turned to look at the cakes at the oven, then looked back at Eivor.
*King Aelfred: Would you join me for a walk?
Eivor accompanied Alfred as they walked for a bit.
*King Aelfred: You look well, Eivor.
*Eivor: I am. The wars have ended, and my settlement thrives.
*King Aelfred: The wars have not ended. You have simply stopped fighting. But men are brewing plots in meadhalls and bedrooms. You will see.
*Eivor: And how are you, Aelfred? Getting used to the idea of being unremarkable?
*King Aelfred: I am well. Better than I expected. In this exile, I have found a somewhat nourishing peace. Each morning, I am awakened by the sun and growing cormorants, I bathe in the chilly water of the marsh, I eat from shrubs and drink from buckets. It is a good life. Simple. Blessed.
They stopped to look at the nearby river.
*King Aelfred: I have never been so far west. I find it quite peaceful here. Calming.
*Eivor: I traveled a long way to hear one name, Aelfred. Who is The Order's Grand Maegester?
*King Aelfred: Tell your shadowy friends that England is swept clean. Your work is done.
Alfred took out his silver medallion and passed it over to Eivor, revealing his true identity as the Grand Maegester.
*Eivor: You?
*King Aelfred: Grand Maegester was not a title I desired. It passed to me on the death of my brother, from my father before him. Defilers of God's majesty and grandeur. I was their master, and I loathed them. With Goodwin, I set a plan in motion to destroy The Order from within. But my troubles with the Danes delayed that plan.
*Eivor: But your trouble with this Dane is what led to their demise.
*King Aelfred: You are Norse, are you not?
*Eivor: You have a good ear.
*King Aelfred: I owe you my thanks, Eivor. For that, I give you this, the key to my study. That you may better understand the good you have done.
Alfred handed over a key to Eivor.
*King Aelfred: With The Order all but destroyed, you have made room for a greater idea, one to take its place. A universal, divine order. Inspired by God for the betterment of man.
*Eivor: With a Poor-Fellow Soldier at its head.
*King Aelfred: You have saved England, whether or not that was your intent. Now, let England save you.
*Eivor: England is no more, lord. You are the last of her kings, and yet you have no kingdom.
*King Aelfred: Look around you. God's works are wondrous, they cannot be ignored, nor resisted. In time, all those who accept God will flourish. And all those who defy Him will fall away. Should you remain in England, you too will one day be her subject.
Their conversation was cut short by the returning Saxon woman.
*Anglo-Saxon Woman: O, bloody crumbs! The cakes are burnt! Where is that man! Young man? Where have you gone?
*King Aelfred: Damn. That may have earned me a night of washing linens. I do not know if we shall meet again, Eivor. God willing, we will.. as one lord to another, perhaps.
Alfred bid Eivor farewell and returned to his duties.
*King Aelfred: I'm coming, my lady. I'm here.
Eivor held up the key, pondering her thoughts while looking at the nearby river.
*Eivor: Aelfred gave me a key to unlock his study. Somewhere in Wincestre.
Eivor travelled to The Old Minster in Wincestre, suspecting Alfred's study to be in the building. She approached the second floor and unlocked the door to the room.
*Eivor: This is it, Aelfred's study. What secrets has he kept hidden away?
Eivor read a letter on the left table.
She moved to another table on the right, reading one of Alfred's commentaries.
Eivor approached another table behind shelves of scrolls.
Eivor commented on her findings.
*Eivor: Rantings and ravings, not unlike Fulke's delusions. Is there more to all this that I understand?
==Outcome==
Eivor met the Poor Fellow-Soldier of Christ, revealed to be King Alfred, who was simultaneously the Grand Maegester of the Order of the Ancients. He freely gave her his medallion and the key to his study that contained his research into the Order.
==Behind the scenes==
The words used in the last paragraph of Alfred's commentaries when describing his goals are similar to the ones said by the Caribbean Templars' Grand Master Laureano de Torres y Ayala in the memory "Mister Walpole, I Presume?" when introducing an undercover Edward Kenway to Julien du Casse and Woodes Rogers.
The memory takes inspiration from the legend of King Alfred and the Cakes, a story told to children about Alfred's refuge in Athelnay whilst on the run from the Vikings.
==Gallery==
ACV The Poor Fellow-Soldier 2.png|Eivor arriving at the village
ACV The Poor Fellow-Soldier 3.png|The villager welcoming Eivor to spend her time in the village
ACV The Poor Fellow-Soldier 4.png|Eivor taking a nap by the tree while waiting for her contact
ACV The Poor Fellow-Soldier 5.png|Eivor spotting a familiar figure in the distance
ACV The Poor Fellow-Soldier 6.png|Eivor spotting the former king Alfred speaking to a woman
==References==
*Assassin's Creed: Valhalla
Category:Memories relived using the Animus HR-8.5
Category:Memories of Eivor Varinsdottir