“Piths!” the archer cried out as he jumped the last two steps to land heavily on the cobblestones. “They’re attacking!” the man shouted, pointing to the closed doors with one hand, while holding a large bow in the other. I realized it was the first archer we’d spoken to earlier and his face sagged almost comically when he saw us standing over the two dead bodies of the men-at-arms. “But?” the archer said in confusion.
Jebido took two great strides toward him and he ran him through, barely giving the dead man a second glance as he slumped to the floor. On the other side of the doors we could hear the Piths as they shouted their war cries and advanced on the gatehouse. “Get the doors open!” Jebido grunted to me. He glanced up at the second floor. “I’ll take care of the rest of them.” I nodded and Jebido sprinted up the staircase as I ran for the doors. A round iron ring the size of my hand was set into the bar and I pulled on it, drawing the heavy beam backward out of the brackets. I swung the doors open and had just a moment to register what was happening, before I flung myself backward and to the side just as a horde of angry-faced Piths using a thick tree as a battering ram came racing toward me. Eriz and Einhard were at the front of the ram and both of them looked shocked as they plunged past me through the suddenly open doors and into the gatehouse. The Piths momentum took them more than halfway across the width of the building before they were finally able to gain control and stop.
Einhard shouted for them to lower the ram and he turned to face me. “That was something of a surprise,” he said with a laugh. He came toward me and hugged me to his chest. “A little warning next time would be nice.”
“I’ll try to remember that,” I said with a grunt as he crushed me in his arms.
“You’re unhurt?” he asked as he put his hands on my shoulders and studied me.
“Not a scratch,” I reassured him.
“We thought you’d failed,” Einhard said, his face turning serious.
“No,” I said with a smile. “Just delayed a bit.” Behind me Jebido appeared on the stairs and he grinned at us as he descended. I saw a long slash dripping blood along his cheek, but, other than that, he seemed unharmed. More Piths were coming through the open doors on horseback and Einhard and I hurriedly stepped to the side to let them pass. The Piths had abandoned the wagons, I noted, and the wounded were riding as best they could, some of them tied to their saddles to keep them from falling. I saw Baine enter with Alesia, Ania, Megy and the rest of the Pith women.
“Is that everyone?” Einhard demanded.
“Yes, brother,” Eriz said as he stood in the open doorway and peered outside.
“Close and bolt the doors,” Einhard commanded. Eriz nodded and he and Tato slammed the doors shut before Eriz levered the oak bar into place and locked us in.
“I’ll drop the portcullis,” Jebido said, turning to run back up the stairs to the second floor. Within moments we could hear a rattling coming from outside and then a loud crash that vibrated the floor beneath our feet. Jebido returned back down the stairs and nodded to Einhard. “Just in case anyone tries to get in behind us, that’ll make things difficult for them,” he said.
Einhard turned to Alesia as she and the other Pith women dismounted. “Take your sisters up top and keep a look out until we move.”
“Of course,” Alesia said. She was dressed in leather armour with a cloak lined with wolf’s fur thrown casually over one shoulder. A quiver of arrows lay slung over her back and she carried a long bow in her left hand. She gave me a quick glance as she passed me and I was struck again by the rawness of her beauty as she ordered the other women up the stairs. Ania stood with Tato, and I saw her put her hand out and grin as Tato placed several silver fingers into her palm. Ania laughed and winked at me before she tucked the fingers into her tunic and then followed the other Pith women up the stairs. Baine waved to us and flung a leg over his saddle and nimbly dismounted, pausing to hand the reins of his horse to one of several Piths that were trying to corral the animals into one corner of the gatehouse, before he headed our way.
“You two had us all worried there,” Baine said. He hooked a thumb behind him. “Everyone but Tato, I guess.”
“He should have known better than to make a losing bet like that,” Jebido said.
“A good thing he lost,” Einhard said. He gestured to the battering ram, which was as thick at the base as my waist and perhaps as much as thirty-feet long. “I’m not sure our ram would have survived trying to break through this gate and the one on the other side of the river as well.” I noticed the Piths had notched the end of the ram like an axe head and they had trimmed the branches all along it, cutting them off two feet from the stump to give them handholds. It was crude, but to my eye looked like it might be effective. Einhard cupped his hands around his mouth and he called up to the battlements above us, “Anything, Alesia?”
Alesia’s pale face appeared at one of the murder holes. “Nothing to the north, but I can see some troops moving around behind the gatehouse on the other side.”
“How many?”
“No more than twenty I’d guess.”
“Are the gates closed?”
“Yes,” Alesia said. “They know we’re here.”
“Can’t say I’m surprised,” Einhard muttered. “Are there archers on the battlements?” he asked Alesia.
“Ten or so is all I can see,” Alesia confirmed.
“Excellent!” Einhard said with a satisfied grin. Eriz and Tato joined us and Einhard removed his winged helmet to scratch at his scalp, then he thrust it back on his head determinedly. “Eriz, when we attack the other gatehouse with the ram, you and the others will follow behind us on horseback. The moment we break through the doors, you charge in and kill the defenders.”
“And our sisters?” Eriz asked.
“They’ll follow behind us on horseback as well,” Einhard said. “We’ll need their arrows to keep those Gander archers at bay so we can get to the doors.”
“There’s a small armoury up top,” Jebido said, gesturing with his thumb above us. “Some swords and shields and plenty of arrows the women can use.”
“Good,” Einhard nodded as he gestured to the southern doors. “Open them up. I want to see those Gander bastards.” Two Piths ran to the far doors and unbarred them as we followed Einhard to stand in the opening and peer down the length of the bridge at the other gatehouse. Heat shimmered across the rough cobblestones of the bridge and from where I stood, I could see archers watching us from the upper battlements. The heavy yellow stag banners were now hanging limply along the ramparts in the still air as Einhard took several steps out into the blazing sunlight. His golden helmet and armour instantly gleamed like a brilliant beacon and when the Ganders saw him they started to yell, waving their bows above their heads and encouraging us to come out. Even from where we stood, we could clearly hear the insults drifting across the bridge.
Einhard turned to us and smiled wryly. “Bastards are eager to die, I see,” he said with a chuckle as he glanced at Tato. “Hadrack will take Eriz’s place on the ram.”
Tato just nodded as Jebido, Baine and I moved to stand beside Einhard in the sunlight. Curious, I crossed to the side of the bridge and supported my body with my hands against the rough stone as I stared down at the surging water fifty feet below me. A wooden dock rose on the southern shoreline, jutting thirty feet out into the river and was supported by heavy wood pilings stained dark from the water. A narrow road of rounded stone wound its way up the embankment and then curved behind the far gatehouse before leading to a massive garrison that stood dominating a hill half a mile to the south. I studied the fortress, noticing that the entire northern and eastern walls were incomplete and rose no higher than a man’s eyes. The Gander’s had reinforced the unfinished walls with a wooden palisade, which seemed quite flimsy to me compared to the heavy stone; stone I realized with a grimace that I had probably dug
from the earth with my own two hands. A wide ditch bare of any trees or shrubs and almost full with murky brown water surrounded the garrison. The road ended in a high ramp at the edge of the ditch that sat facing the open gates of the garrison. A heavy timber drawbridge supported by thick chains lay open in invitation where it spanned the ditch and rested on the ramp.
“You’ll be in range of their arrows before you even get halfway across,” I heard Jebido mutter as he studied the far gatehouse critically. I turned back and joined them as Jebido suddenly frowned and shielded his eyes. “Mother’s tit!” he cursed. “They’ve dropped the portcullis.”
Einhard shaded his eyes and stared at the gatehouse, and then nodded. “So they have. Is that going to be a problem?”
Jebido grimaced and glanced back at the battering ram. “Breaking through those doors with that is one thing, but the portcullis is designed to withstand a battering ram.”
“Are you saying it can’t be done?”
Jebido shook his head. “No, it can be done. It’ll just take a lot longer is all.”
Einhard just shrugged. “It can’t be helped.”
“Einhard!” Alesia shouted down to us. Einhard frowned at the note of urgency in her voice and he stepped back into the gatehouse. He looked up at her face thrust through the murder hole. “Riders coming from the east!” she said.
“The Master is surely testing us today,” Einhard muttered to himself. “Are there many?” he asked his wife.
“Plenty of the bastards,” Alesia confirmed, “and still more coming behind on foot.”
“Archers too?”
“Could be.”
Einhard nodded his understanding. “Keep them back from the doors.”
“It will be done,” Alesia said grimly before disappearing from sight.
Einhard turned to Jebido. “It looks like our ruse was only halfway successful. You said there were shields in the armoury, if I recall?”
“Yes,” Jebido said.
“The big Gander shields like we saw at the quarry?”
“The same,” Jebido agreed with a dry smile. I realized why he was smiling, as the bigger, heavier Gander shields would instantly offer us better protection on the ram than the small, round Pith shields we all had strapped to our backs.
“Good,” Einhard said. He gestured to Tato. “Go upstairs with your brothers and get the shields.” Tato nodded and Einhard cupped his hands around his mouth. “Alesia?” Within moments Alesia reappeared. “What are they doing?” he asked her.
“The same thing we did,” Alesia said with a snort. “Making a battering ram.”
Einhard nodded, not looking surprised at all. “Leave three of your sisters up top to give them something to worry about. Bring the rest down.” He glanced at me as Alesia’s face disappeared. “At least they’ll have the same problem here as we do with the other one.”
I nodded to him as Tato and the other warriors reappeared with the big Gander shields on their arms. Tato silently handed one to me and one to Einhard. I glanced out the doorway at the far gatehouse that seemed to be swaying in the distance, though I knew it was just an illusion from the heat. For just a moment one of the banners flapped weakly as a momentary gust of playful wind toyed with it before disappearing, leaving the banner to hang limply. I was thinking about us running across the bridge carrying the ram and trying to break through the portcullis and gatehouse doors while arrows rained down from above, when suddenly an idea began to form in my mind. I glanced at the long battering ram, then back to the gatehouse. Would it work? I wondered. I felt excitement rise in me as I again looked down at the ram. It just might, I realized.
“I have an idea,” I said, causing Einhard to pause in mid-step as he moved to the front of the ram. He turned and stared at me, waiting calmly with a look of interest on his face. Thinking back on it now, these many years later, one of the things that always struck me as surprising about the Piths was the deep respect they had for every member of their tribe. Each man or woman was listened to seriously, regardless of their stature or the situation, and rarely if ever ridiculed for their opinion. I didn’t know that at the time, of course, and I felt a moment of anxiety, hesitating to put into words my idea as the Piths just stared at me in expectant silence.
“Well?” Einhard finally said with a smile. “Am I to guess or will you make it easy and just tell me?”
“My father once told me to use my brain first and only use my fists when all else had failed,” I said, trying to gather my thoughts.
“Sound advice,” Einhard nodded. “Your father was a wise man.”
Behind us the women came hurrying down the stairs, most, if not all of them, with two or more quivers of arrows slung over their shoulders. I noticed Ania wasn’t with them and I felt a momentary jolt of fear for her, as I knew she’d offered to stay behind and guard our backs. I saw Megy move to stand off to the side near the wall with a look of uncertainty on her face and I gave her a quick smile of encouragement.
Einhard glanced at the approaching women and then turned back to me. “I don’t see how that sound advice can help us today, though, my friend.”
I pointed down to the battering ram. “What if instead of using this like a fist, we use it like wings?” Einhard frowned, while around him the other Piths were muttering among themselves, clearly confused.
“What are you jabbering about?” Baine whispered beside me out of the side of his mouth.
I ignored him and turned to Jebido. “Will we be able break through the portcullis with this on the first rush?” I asked him.
“Not a chance,” Jebido said with a quick shake of his head. “It’s made of solid oak and reinforced with iron. Because it’s set into the walls of the gatehouse, you can’t just burst it open like you would the doors. We need to bash it apart, and that will probably take four or five tries. That’s if we’re lucky.”
“I thought as much,” I said, feeling confident now in my idea as I turned back to Einhard. “And how many men will we lose trying?”
“That can’t be helped,” Einhard said as he glanced around the room. “We all know the risks. If we don’t get through, then we all die anyway.”
The Piths were nodding in agreement with Einhard, but I pressed on regardless. “What I’m suggesting is we rush the gates just like we planned.” I gestured to the female Piths who were listening intently. “The women will support us, also as planned, but when we get to the gate, instead of ramming into it, we flip the ram up on its end.” I showed them what I meant, using my arm as the ram and holding it out and then flipping it up at an angle. I turned and pointed to the far gatehouse. “You see that banner hanging to the right of the gate?” Everyone turned and looked. “We head for that and lean the ram against the wall right below it and use the cut branches as steps. If we can reach the banner, we can pull ourselves up it and over the ramparts while the Ganders are hiding from our arrows. They won’t know what’s going on until it’s too late.”
“Will the banner hold?” Jebido asked doubtfully.
“There’s only one way to find out,” I said.
The room fell silent as everyone digested the idea and finally Einhard’s face broke into a wide grin. “Not even the Master himself would have thought of that!” he exclaimed. He came forward and wrapped me in his arms in a giant bear hug as the Piths cheered. Einhard let me go after almost squeezing the life out of me and he put his hands on his hips. “We will do as Hadrack suggests!” he said confidently. He glanced at Eriz. “As soon as the ram is in place, you and your men will go up and clear the top floor.” He turned to Jebido. “How is the portcullis raised?”
“There’s a small room off the armoury on the top floor that houses the winch. You’ll need at least two men to turn it.”
“Good,” Einhard nodded, turning back to Eriz. “Get that portcullis up and the gates open as soon as possi
ble so we can get the horses inside.” Eriz merely nodded his understanding. “Alesia,” Einhard continued, turning to his wife. “Follow them up and guard the ramparts. As soon as we have possession of the gatehouse, send someone back here to get the others. Once we have everyone inside we’ll drop the portcullis again to slow those Gander bastards down.” He looked around at our faces. “Any questions?” When no one spoke, he grinned and nodded his head. “Then let’s do this!” he cried as he moved to the front of the ram on the left side, while I moved to take the right.
“Be careful, Hadrack,” I heard Jebido call out as he, Baine and the other Piths mounted up.
I nodded my head, but said nothing as Einhard gave a sharp command and we bent and lifted the ram. With twelve men to lift it, the tree seemed to weigh nothing at all and we surged forward, out into the sunlight. I squinted at the brightness and lowered my head as we started across the bridge at a fast trot, while in the distance, the men on the far ramparts started to jeer at us. My Gander shield was on my left arm and I found if I angled my arm with my elbow jutting up at the sky I could grab the branch fairly securely from above with my left hand while I wrapped my right hand underneath it. This way the rectangular shield was covering most of my body and face and I was just able to peer around the corner to see. Behind us the women and Baine rode their horses in a jagged line across the bridge, while behind them the rest of the able-bodied Piths and wounded followed with the remaining horses in tow. We were almost halfway across the bridge now and several impatient archers loosed arrows at us, which fell well short. The arrows cracked against the cobblestones and ricocheted crazily in all directions and I made a mental note of where they’d landed, knowing that once we reached that spot we’d be in their range.
For the first few moments of the attack I knew we’d have to take the brunt of those arrows, as Einhard had told Alesia to let the Ganders shoot at us until we were closer. Once we were in position, the plan was the women would rush forward and rake the ramparts with arrows to force the Ganders to take cover. We knew they wouldn’t stay under cover for long, and that’s when we would flip the tree up against the wall.
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