by Griff Hosker
I lay on the bed to wait. I had to admit that it felt better to be clean and the sheepskin, which I had not seen before, felt soft and comforting. Within a few moments I was asleep. I began to dream and the dream was of Erica. Suddenly I found that it was not a dream and I was lying with Erica. She was as naked as I was and we were making love. When we had finished I saw that night had fallen. I cradled her in my arms, “That was a pleasant surprise.”
“You see husband, there are benefits to being married. This is the welcome you will get each time you return from war!” She stood and went to get her dress. “Your mother is waiting for us. She came while you were asleep. There is food on the table.”
I was even more embarrassed than I had been on the boat. The idea that my mother knew what I had just done filled me with horror and I would have to face her and Butar across a table. “I am not really hungry.”
“I think you are but we are going to join them anyway. It would be rude not to.” Erica was a younger version of my mother and equally determined.
As soon as I entered the room I felt that every eye was looking at me, from my mother through to the slaves. Mother and Jarl Butar did not show any shock or embarrassment. They both smiled at me. Mother said, “I am glad you escaped unharmed again my son. Jarl Butar tells me you slew two of the best of Aella’s warriors.”
Erica squealed, “Did you? Why did you not tell me?”
“It seems like boasting. They were brave men and they fought and died well.”
Jarl Butar nodded, “That is the right way to look at it. I am pleased that you are not a glory hunter.”
“No, I just fight for our people.”
“And we shall be doing just that soon enough again. We need to capture some grain for our new mouths. We sail in seven days for the mainland. We will be fighting the Saxons again but this time it will be across the river from where your mother lived and your grandfather died.”
I was going back to Cymri, the land of my ancestors.
Chapter 14
Before we left Butar held a meeting with Olaf, Harald and Eric. All of the warriors were summoned to the great hall to hear the words. Jarl Butar stood on a table so that all could see him.
“Brothers we have achieved our aim. We have conquered our own land and we will fight to keep it.” He gestured to the three men who stood before him. “These men will be my new Jarls and will each be responsible for the defence of one quarter of the island. Bjorn will work with me here at Hrams-a. He too will be a Jarl. All of you will be responsible for a dragon boat and supplying men when we need them for the defence of the isle or to gather what we need.”
The warriors began banging their beakers against the table and chanting, “King Butar! King Butar!”
He waved his hands for silence. “I am not King Butar and I have no desire to be king. I will rule you as I do now, as Jarl Butar. I will pass judgement as each Jarl will pass judgement in his own burg and I will settle any disputes between Jarls. We will make our laws here,” He stamped his foot on the table, “in this building. We will all have a say in those laws.” There was more cheering. “But first, we only have three ships and we need a fourth. Tomorrow we will begin to build another dragon ship and then we will raid the mainland for the food we need for the winter.”
We left the hall in high spirits. Jarl Eric took me to the side. “We tried to persuade him to be king you know. This was his doing. Your step father is a remarkable man. He genuinely cares for his people; even the new ones like me and Harald. I am lucky that we stopped off in Orkneyjar.”
“I know what you mean. I was lucky to be captured by the boat with him aboard. I do not know what my life would have been like otherwise.”
With over a hundred men working we soon laid the keel of the new boat. This would be Jarl Butar’s boat and would be the same size as Sif had been. We needed one big dragon ship at least. We all worked longer and harder than we had ever worked before because this was to be our boat. This would the first one we had built as a free people and it was special. Ten days later and it was ready. We caulked the hull and then the beautiful carved dragon prow was fitted along with her mast. Butar named her after the island; he called her ‘Man’. We had shortened the name Manau and it seemed appropriate that the island which had given us a home should be the name of our ship.
It was six days later when the three ships sailed. We left Harald and his boat to give some defence to the island although he came with us. The men who were chosen to stay were philosophical about the whole thing. They would get to raid next time when the target might be something more exciting than winter grain.
We sailed for the river the Saxons called the Dee. It marked the border between the land of Northumbria and the land of Cymri. My mother had given her husband a great deal of information about what to expect. I had been privy to that information. “There are two estuaries, the Dee and the Maeresea. They both lead inland and will allow you to raid deep into Saxon territory. The Saxons use the old Roman forts and it is there that you will find the granaries. The largest one is Legacaestir which in Saxon means the Roman Fortress. We called it something different, Caerlleon, but they both mean the same. It will be a hard place to capture.”
As the three ships sailed across the water to the mainland I wondered what Jarl Butar’s plan would be. He was never wasteful with his men but I knew that we needed the grain. We had to have bread for the winter and, until our wheat crop grew, we would have to take it where we could. It had been a good summer and we believed that the Saxons had had a good crop. We would reap the benefit of their hard work. My mother had told me how Mona, the island off the coast of Cymri, was also well blessed with grain but she would not allow her husband to raid her kin.
Bjorn and Butar steered the ‘Man’ and she was a fine ship. She was as fast and nimble as the Ran but we could carry fifty warriors if we needed to. We had but forty on this voyage leaving us room for a cargo. We hoped to return with a good haul. Bjorn and Butar spent the first three hours of the voyage in deep conference while they steered. The other two, smaller ships followed dutifully in our wake. Jarl Butar was the leader.
When they had decided Bjorn shouted to us, “We head for the Maeresea.” It was all that he needed to say for we knew what the alternative was and none of us relished the thought of trying to take a Roman Legionary fortress.
The wind was in our favour and we soon saw the mainland looming up. To the north it looked like one enormous beach, stretching as far as the eye could see. Behind the sand and the dunes were thick pine forests. We saw no towns. To the south we could also see beaches but there was at least one settlement nestled in the woods. We could see smoke rising. Cnut hazarded a guess that it would be charcoal burners working deep in the forests.
We lowered the sail and headed to the south bank of the estuary. It was another beach with dunes. We leapt from the prow and secured the ropes to some lonely pine trees. The five Ulfheonar were the first ashore and we quickly ran into the woods to see if anyone had spotted us. It appeared empty. There were animals but it was devoid of human life. All of our warriors were well practised in disembarking and soon the seventy of us who would be raiding were assembled. While the majority of the party would capture whatever they could close to the landing site, the Ulfheonar and Jarl Bjorn headed inland to find somewhere that would supply us with grain. We were patient. If we did not find it this trip then we would the next. It was still high summer and we had plenty of time.
We ran along the river using the trees for cover. The four of us with wolf skins went first. With our black armour and helmets we were harder to see. We soon spied a settlement. It was discernible by the smoke rising from the hearth fires. We spread out in a half circle and moved silently through the undergrowth. Suddenly we came upon a village. There was neither wall nor warriors. Sadly there appeared to be no granaries either and few animals. We would not benefit from raiding such a small place. We slipped back into the woods. We headed across land towards the Dee a
nd left the river. The land was fertile and we could see farms and houses dotted around. We had to move carefully to avoid detection. Eventually we came upon the other river, the River Dee. The ground here was marshy with many wading birds but no towns. We could see further up the river the tower of a stone built building. That would be the legionary fortress.
“Let us give our bad news to Butar.”
We made our way back across country towards the boats. We had taken a different route and we suddenly came across a more prosperous looking village. This one had no stockade but there were animals. It looked as though it might be worth raiding and it was close to the Maeresea. When we reached there we found that they had had a little success; there were ten slaves and a few animals. We told Butar about our find. We debated what to do.
It was left to Bjorn to come up with a solution.“My lord, if you sail down the river we can surprise them. I will take the Ulfheonar to the village and we can capture it all.”
Once more we took the same route we had taken before. This time the journey seemed to take no time at all. We reached the western side just as we spied the masts of the three ships in the river. The villagers were blissfully unaware of their doom as they went about their business. We unsheathed our swords and stepped into the peaceful village. As soon as we were seen there was a scream and then the villagers panicked. Women grabbed their children and ran like headless chickens; men grabbed axes and sticks and prepared to defend themselves. It was too easy, we ran at them and they fled towards the river. We did not run quickly for we knew what awaited them.
By the time we reached the river two men lay dead and the rest were captured along with the women and children. Bjorn shouted to four of our warriors. “Go back to the village there are many animals and there is a grain store.” He looked at me. “Find someone to question; one of the men and find out where they get their grain from.”
Haaken and Cnut came with me and we approached the prisoners. I did not choose the greybeard nor the young sullen men but a young man a little older than me who kept looking at a woman and baby. He was a family man. He might have more reason to cooperate. We led him away from the other prisoners and I could see the fear on his face. He thought he was going to be executed. I would let him continue to believe that, he might give us more information.
“What is your name?”
He appeared surprised that I spoke Saxon so well. “Scanlan.” He dropped to his knees. “Please don’t kill me. I have a wife and child.”
“Tell me what I need to know, Scanlan, and you will live and be reunited with your family. I promise you that.” He looked a little calmer. “Now where do you get your grain from?”
He pointed to the east. “The headman and others take a cart and walk to Legacaestir. They have granaries there.”
It was as we feared. We would have to take it from the fort. “How many warriors live at Legacaestir?”
“I have never been sir, but I have been told it is a warband.”
I knew from my father that that could be anything from twenty warriors to a thousand and didn’t help us. “How far is this place?”
He obviously had no concept of distance. “They can be there and back with laden carts in less than a morning.”
“Thank you for your honesty.”
We took him back and I led him to his wife and child. It was one of Harald’s men who guarded them and he said, “I was told to keep them separate.”
“And I am telling you to let the woman and the child go to this man.”
He had seen me but did not know me. “And who are you?”
“I am the warrior sent by Jarl Bjorn to find out some information and this man supplied it. The price I paid was to reunite them. Now I have spoken far more than I wish to. Release them.”
His eyes narrowed, “Or?”
“Or I shall teach you a lesson with my sword.”
I honestly thought he was going to take out his sword when Haaken said quietly. “Before you do anything you will regret, this is Dragon Heart the stepson of Jarl Butar and an Ulfheonar. Look at his sword it is Ragnar’s Spirit and touched by the gods. Would you fight him?” We had both noticed that this young warrior had but one warrior band on his sword. He was a novice..
His eyes widened and he stuttered, “I am sorry. I was only obeying orders.”
I smiled to make it easier. “And I was doing the same. Thank you for your help.” I turned to Scanlan, “Keep your family close and I will try to keep you together.”
We went to Bjorn who was speaking with Butar and the other Jarls. “The grain is in Legacaestir but we do not know how many warriors are there.”
Butar looked at the prisoners and the plunder. We could not fight a battle and guard the prisoners. Bjorn said, “If I might suggest? We send two boats back with the plunder and the Ulfheonar scout out Legacaestir. When the boats return we will know what we have to do.”
That decided Butar. “I will return with Eric and Olaf and the prisoners. You keep the ‘Ran’ and take it closer to Legacaestir.”
Bjorn’s smile told us all that he was happy about this. As they turned to leave I said to Jarl Butar. “I promised the man who gave us the information that I would let him be reunited with his wife and child.”
“We do not normally do that.”
“I know but I gave my word and I would not be foresworn. I will have the three of them as my part of the plunder. They can be the thralls in my home.”
He smiled, “You have your mother’s heart and I will grant you your wish. Which ones are they?” I pointed them out. “They shall be in your home when you return. Take care, Dragon Heart.”
And so when the other two ships sailed west we rowed the ‘Ran’ a few miles down the river seeking a quiet and safe anchorage. The wolves would be hunting again soon.
It was dark by the time we found a suitable place. It was sheltered by a low bank and some trees. We put guards out and slept aboard our ship. Jarl Butar would not return for a day at least and we had much to do. Bjorn divided the sixteen scouting warriors into four groups; each would be led by an Ulfheonar. We were there to find and not to fight. We would be best placed to discover what treasures there were.
We left well before dawn. I led my group south east. We would approach the fort from the east and we would be the furthest group out. From what Scanlan had told me I estimated that we would be between five and seven miles from our target. We had plenty of time to get there. The important thing was to stay out of sight. If the Saxons knew that raiders were in the vicinity then the fort would be packed with the civilian population and every warrior who could wield a weapon. It would make it impossible to take.
We found the tiny village soon after leaving the boat. There were six huts. I heard the sound of animals but saw no-one. I ghosted back to the rest of the group and we skirted the village. It was a difficult land to traverse as it was flat and there was a great deal of cultivation. The woods and hedgerows we normally used for cover were absent. It did bode well for the size of the grain we could capture. Just before the sun came up I smelled smoke. I had the other two warriors hide themselves in the woods and I took Egill’s son, Alf, with me. He was small and quick witted. I had promised his father that I would teach him my skills. “You two need to keep watch for when we return. If we have pursuers then you will be the trap.”
We found a track between two hedges and we ran down between them quickly. It would soon be dawn and we would be forced to hide. We turned a corner and suddenly the walls of the fort loomed up two hundred paces ahead. We dived into the hedgerow. We now had to find somewhere from which to observe the fort. The other side of the hedgerow was scrubby land with bushes and stones. It looked to me as though there had been a house here a long time in the past and it had been abandoned. If it was made of stone then it would have been Roman. They liked to plant gardens. This one had become wild in the last few centuries; a perfect hiding place. A tumble of stones which had been a building afforded us a good vantage p
oint. I took my seax to cut some branches from the hawthorn bush and used those to cover us. I took some mud and smeared both my face and Alf’s. We then peered out. We could see but we would not be seen.
As we chewed on some dried deer meat I began to work out how we could find out the numbers. The best way would be to get inside the fort but that was ridiculously risky. The first rays of sunlight touched the upper levels and towers of the fort. We would soon be able to see the defenders. We needed to count. I looked around our den and found a straight piece of hawthorn. I cut two lengths of it and handed one to Alf.
I began to whisper to him. “When you see a guard make a mark on the stick. Only count a guard once. You will need to remember what they wear. If you see anyone giving instructions or wearing mail then put a mark on the line.” I did not explain to Alf but that would tell us who the better warriors were and how many of them were within the walls.
Just then I heard a noise close to my right. I slowly swivelled my head. To my horror there was a hut less than a hundred paces away. It had been hidden in the dark. I touched Alf and held my finger to my lips. We would now discover if my hiding place was secure. I could not see the speakers but I knew them to be men by their voices. After what seemed an age, but must have been a short time, the voices receded as they walked away. As I turned I could see the four of them heading along the track, the way we had come. They had bows and were obviously hunting. I hoped that we would be long gone before they returned.
The sun was now illuminating the whole of the wall and I could see the sentries on the walls. I quickly marked my stick. When the time the sun was fully up I saw twenty warriors emerge from the walls to a flat area before the gate. They began to spar with each other. These were the real warriors for they trained. As soon as they went back inside I tapped Alf on the shoulder. We would not see any more and we needed to return to the ship. It would be a longer journey back as we would be moving more slowly now that it was daylight. We backed out from our den and walked hunched over. Now that I knew there was hut nearby I did not want us observed; that would have been a disaster. I led us along the field side of the hedgerow. I did not want to stumble upon the four hunters.