Mirza Aaqib Beg
In the seventeenth episode of ‘Vinland Saga’ season 2 titled ‘The Road Home,’ Snake manages to stab Gardar despite Thorfinn’s best efforts. However, Gardar somehow still wakes up and manages to choke his unconscious. Luckily, Arnheid manages to convince her husband to let Snake go of his grip otherwise he could have potentially murdered him. After he comes back to his senses, Gardar and Arnheid leave the farm on Sverkel’s cart. However, Gardar’s injuries are so severe at this point that Thorfinn fears that they won’t be able to go that far.
Gardar Sustains Serious Injuries
After Thorfinn confronts Snake, he knows that he cannot allow him to get closer to Gardar as the guard would not flinch before killing Arnheid’s husband. Without a weapon, Thorfinn shows incredible athleticism and fighting prowess to not only evade some close sword attacks but also land several blows on Snake’s body.
Unfortunately, their fight does not last long as Snake eventually manages to get closer to Gardar and stabs him with his sword after reminding everyone that he had killed several of his men. But just when he is having a discussion with others, Gardar somehow leaps from behind despite his injuries. Even in his terrible state, he grabs Snake by his neck and lifts him off the ground.
Gardar holds him in such a tight grip that Snake becomes unconscious soon afterward and Arnheid has to intervene to save his life. When Gardar comes back to his senses, Sverkel agrees to give him his cart and horse so that they can escape. However, Thorfinn fears the worst and tries to explain to Arnheid. But it turns out that she already understands everything but still goes with her husband willingly.
Is Gardar Dead? What Happens to Arnheid?
Shortly after taking Sverkel’s cart and horse, Gardar and Arnheid flee for their freedom. However, Gardar’s injuries are so severe at this point that he is not completely in his senses and is having strange delusions. He has visions of being brutally beaten as a slave and also recalls the birth of Hjalti. Gardar always wanted to give his son an ideal life and was willing to work hard for it. Unfortunately, things do not eventually turn out as he would have liked. Still clueless to the dark reality that his son is dead, Gardar asks Arnheid how old Hjalti is at this point.
It turns out that the slave life has had an adverse effect on Gardar’s conception of time as he has forgotten that his son would have been only 6 years old at this point not 9 as he wrongly guesses. He shares how he ended up getting into trouble for putting a horse’s tail on fire when he was young and then mentions how he would never let his Hjalti go on an adventure when he grows up. This is understandable considering the fact that Gardar ended up becoming a slave and lost his family for years after deciding to leave them behind to go on an ill-planned adventure.
Gardar’s injury slowly makes him so weak that he could barely sit straight, so he lies down on Arnheid’s lap. It is obvious at this point that Gardar is dying. Before he passes away, he has visions of the moment when he decided to leave his wife and son behind which eventually led to years of torment, and regrets it very much. Then he has a vision of reuniting with his son and sharing a warm hug which he calls home- moments before he takes his last breath.
Arnheid has already been weeping at this point as she was well aware that her husband won’t last long with the kind of injuries he had sustained. Shortly after Gardar’s death, the cart and the horse that Arnheid and her husband have been traveling on get surrounded by horsemen, and the episode ends. Since Arnheid is pregnant and does not really have the desire to run away anymore, she will get caught and subsequently get punished for betraying Ketil. Unfortunately, the severe beating will be so bad that it would lead to another tragic twist in the story.
Read More: Vinland Saga Season 2 Episode 16 Recap and Ending, Explained
