About
Erik Thurgilson was a Danish Earl. He was the brother of Sigefrid Thurgilson. We are first introduced to Erik when “the brothers” are summoned by Uhtred and the new king to help take down Kjartan’s fortress. Ultimately the deal does not work out and the brothers are run out of the area by Ultred. And does not return to the series until the brothers try to capture Lunden and convince Uhtred he is the “King of Mercia” Along the series he developed certain attraction and strong feelings for princess Aethelflaed while she was in captivity. At first allowing her to bathe in privacy, then rescuing her from Haesten attempt of rape and ultimately taking her to see the stars and breathing "cool air" at night, where they both shared stories. Erik telling her he was to be called Mani like the God of moon which each night was chased by Hati the wolf, his mother then changed her mind since she didn't want him to be chased by wolves, to the amusement of Aethelflaed she then confessed in certain way that the man mistreating her before coming to Beaumflot was her own husband Aethelred. Then they both Erik and Aethelflaed share a tender and passionate kiss.
Erik was killed by his brother Sigefrid when betraying their plan to ransom Aethelflead (daughter of Alfred) in order to finance a vast army to use against Alfred.
Personality
Compared to his brother, Sigefrid, Erik is often seen to be the more reasonable one. He is calm in stressful situations such as when Uhtred held Sigefrid hostage and threaten to kill him, and he took a diplomatic approach without losing his composure. Erik is also shown to be the more caring one of the two brothers when he takes a liking to Aethelflaed when she is taken hostage and they plan to run away together. However, before they can leave he is killed by his brother Sigefrid to protect Aethelflaed.