by Griff Hosker
Viking Wolf
Book 5 in the
Dragon Heart Series
By
Griff Hosker
Published by Sword Books Ltd 2014
Copyright © Griff Hosker First Edition
The author has asserted their moral right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988, to be identified as the author of this work.
All Rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, copied, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior written consent of the copyright holder, nor be otherwise circulated in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.
A CIP catalogue record for this title is available from the British Library.
Cover by Design for Writers
Dedication
Thanks to all the Time Team programmes! You keep me straight on most things. And thanks to my readers who also make sure that I am as accurate as possible.
Prologue
Cyninges-tūn
It was the coldest winter we had ever known. It was even colder than the harsh winters of Norway. Some of those who had chosen to live beyond the walls of our settlement were found frozen to death. When my hunters went out they discovered cold and empty halls filled with the frozen dead. And it was the year of the Wolf. We heard them howling in the long winter nights and Kara and her mother were fearful. Their noises seemed so close that they sounded as though they were in our walls. The snow was so deep and frozen that, at times, we could not open our gates. We were trapped within our wooden walls. We were in a prison of snow and ice. My wife, Erika, was a good wife and a good provider for the people. We had laid in plenty of supplies both food and firewood and we ate. We did not eat well but we had food. Those beyond the walls did not. Those beyond the walls who did not freeze, starved to death.
We had two walled settlements which were separated by the Water. Within our walls we had shelter from the wind and my men cleared the snow so that we were snug behind our wooden defences. The turf on our roofs kept us warm but we could not hunt and food ran short. When my people did not eat they succumbed to many small illnesses. My wife, Erika, was a good wife and a good provider for the people. We had laid in some supplies and we ate. Those beyond the walls did not. Those beyond the walls, who did not freeze, starved to death.
My wife was the heart of our people. She had been teaching my daughter, Kara, to become a volva like her. They had visited all those who had been sick inside both our villages during the winter. I only allowed them across the frozen lake when the storms had abated and I sent them well escorted. They saved many lives in Cyninges-tūn. Had they not gone then I fear that we would have become the villages of the dead. Kara was becoming as skilled as her mother although she still wished to have the second sight her mother had. That was the sign of a true volva. Erika had cuddled her, “When you are a woman then it will come. In the spring or the summer you will dream and when you wake then you will have the sight.”
Our two settlements had been built to the east and west of the Water. I lived in the smaller one which was on the hill and restricted by the ground. The larger one was to the west and had much flat land. The ice on the Water aided us for we could walk between them and ensure that all of our bounty was shared. If it had not been so then many more would have died. When there was a slight thaw and we were able to open the gates and move around I took Arturus and my Ulfheonar to find those who lived beyond our walls. It was the worst journey of my life. I had been a slave and taken from my home. I would relive that journey a thousand times before I would repeat the walk to Lang’s Dale and Windar’s Mere.
Arturus had grown considerably. Soon he would be old enough to become a warrior although Erika thought not. Indeed there were many youths the same age as Arturus who were not as big and they had taken the sword. He was desperate to impress me so that I would allow him to join me on my next raid He made sure that he obeyed Haaken and Cnut and he emulated them in every action. He had many skills. He was almost as good at tracking as Snorri and he could handle a sword with the best of them. Haaken and Cnut had taken to aiding Snorri with his training. They were my oldest friends and the ones I trusted the most. This would be his last winter in my home. Come the spring he would join the warriors in the warrior hall.
We found Lang and his family or, rather, we found the remains of Lang and his family. We had saved them some years earlier from a wolf attack. We had thought that we had destroyed the nest of wolves but we were wrong. It was a sign from the gods. The wolves had returned. They had descended again to feast on flesh. They had somehow gained entrance to the farm and the fur and pieces of bone told their own story. Lang and his son had defended themselves and their family but they had perished nonetheless. The tracks of the pack led east towards the wide water that was Windar’s Mere.
We found no living person between our home and Windar’s Mere. There were dead, frozen corpses now and there were carcasses or parts of carcasses showing the trail of the wolves. When we reached there, Tostig Red hair was so cold that he was actually blue. Windar refused to let us leave until we had eaten and warmed through. He told me tales of those around the mere dying; some frozen to death and others devoured by wolves. When we had warmed through, a day later and tried to leave we were trapped in his hall by a snow flurry for a further two days. When the storm abated we left, and headed home. We hurried to avoid the icy wind and sleet which chilled us to the bone despite the layers we all wore.
I had no idea if we would survive in our newly conquered home. Had we made the right decision when we had left our island in the west? I doubted it. There the winters were gentle and there were no wolves. The gods were playing with me and the Norns were spinning their webs. I could not even begin to envisage the plans they had for me.
We huddled in our turf roofed hall by the Water of Cyninges-tūn and we heard the wolves howl in the hills. Death now stalked our land. We were no longer the hunter; we were the hunted. The land and the wolves were conspiring against us. We had fought our enemies and now we had to fight against Nature herself.
Chapter 1
It was a sombre spring. And it proved to be a late spring. Normally it would be a joyous time for the new growth and new births made everyone feel alive. The only animals which had survived were the few that we had kept within our walls and they were perilously small in number. Although the snow had gone the ground was still hard. No crops could be sown. This would be a late, hard spring.
“I will take my drekar and we will raid. I will feed those for whom I am responsible.”
My wife, Erika, was a wise woman. “The people are hungry but they fear the wolves more. If we are hungry then they will be too. The wolves are the greater danger. We can live on the food we still have.”
It made sense. We thought that we had destroyed the pack in the hills above Lang’s Dale. They had returned. “I will take my Ulfheonar and we will hunt them.”
My oathsworn were all as eager as I was to do something. We were in our prime and it did not sit well to rest, eat and drink while outside our walls women and children were dying of starvation, disease and now wolves. It was not our way. We could not fight nature but we could fight the wolves.
Haaken rubbed his eye socket. It was a habit he had and it showed he was concerned. “We need to know where the wolves are. Windar said that many of his people to the east of the mere suffered. We should first go to Lang’s Dale and see if they are there and if not we can track them and hunt them elsewhere. I agree with your wife, Dragon Heart. If we are hungry then the wolves will be too. We need to find the wolves.”
Others banged their ale beakers to show their agreemen
t. We spoke openly in the warrior hall. We had no rank.
Beorn stood. “Jarl Dragon Heart, there is still snow on the hills. Snorri and I will seek tracks above Lang’s Dale. We can leave now and be back before dark. If they are not there and have moved further west it will allow us to prepare better.”
I nodded. We would need time to gather weapons. Snorri and Beorn were the two best trackers and hunters that we had. If they found tracks above Lang’s Dale then we could eradicate this threat quickly.
They returned, chilled to the bone, with the news that there was no sign of the wolf. There were neither tracks nor spoor. We would have to seek them closer to Windar’s Mere. This was a different pack.
We had spent the day preparing supplies for a week. I took only four of my Ulfheonar and Arturus, my son, and our dog, Wolf. We had kept alive six ponies which also determined our numbers. The others had been eaten during the exceptional cold.
I knew my family would be safe as we left to go hunting wolf. We took spears, bows and arrows. I had Ragnar’s Spirit strapped around my waist for I needed the comfort of the blade touched by the gods. Over my shoulders I placed the wolf cloak from my first kill. I wore it, always in combat, and when hunting wolves. It told my enemy who I was. I was Ulfheonar.
My trackers had decided that, as there had been wolf tracks heading north from Windar’s Mere, we would begin our hunt there. “The settlement at the Rye Dale will be a good place to begin. There is high ground to both sides and that seems to us like wolf country.”
I would not argue with such wisdom and Snorri and Beorn led us north east. We would bypass Windar’s mere and save time.
Arturus had grown. He was now almost a man. He stood as tall as my shoulder and he had filled out. He would come with us on my drekar when the summer came. He had been the ship’s boy but he was now old enough to row. I knew he wished to speak with me when he kept looking at me and then looking away.
“You will learn, as you grow older my son, that it is better to say the words in your heart and not keep them imprisoned within. If you do so then the words will change and they will eat you up. Let them out; they need their freedom.”
“I was thinking of the treasure at the Roman fort, when will we go for it?”
We had discovered, in a chest, a message from the past which directed us to a hidden place in the old Roman fort far to the north. It had eaten Arturus up all winter. “We have more important tasks before that one, my son. We have a responsibility to our people.”
“What of us? When do we think of our needs?”
“When the people are happy.”
That did not please the impetuous youth. “That does not seem fair. If it was not for us the people might be slaves or dead. They should be grateful.”
I heard Haaken snort. “Your son has much to learn, Dragon Heart.”
I nodded, “As we had to learn.” I turned to Arturus. We had spent the winter making a shield for him to use. It had taken a great deal of care and attention to detail and I knew he would understand what I was to tell him. “We are like your new shield. We are a circle. Each part is as important as the rest. The Ulfheonar and I might be the metal boss in the centre but if the rest of the shield is destroyed then we cannot survive. We all depend upon each other.” I could see him reflecting on that. He was a thinker. Aiden, my Irish mystic, had seen to it that he learned to think. “We will deal with the wolves and then take to our ships. When we have fed the people then we will journey north.”
He seemed satisfied and then plagued Snorri and Beorn with questions on the hunting of wolves. We followed the little bubbling stream which would lead us to the small group of huts that was Rye Dale. It was the place we grew our rye and also guarded the entrance to the valley of Windar’s Mere. Further north there was the water of Rye Dale and then the Grassy Mere. Rye Dale was the furthest north we had settlers.
The lack of smoke and noise told us, long before we reached the halls, that there was nothing left alive. Two of the smaller homes had gaping doors and, inside we saw the remains of gnawed bones and shredded clothes. The families had died. The main hall had a barred door. We banged upon it and shouted, “Dargh!”
Dargh had been with me since we had left Hrams-a. He was an older warrior but he had come to this dale to be a guardian of the valley. He did not answer.
“Break down the door.” The door was well made and it took us some time but eventually we broke it down and were greeted by a sad sight. Dargh and six warriors lay dead. Their bodies, although partly decomposed were thin and emaciated showing that they had starved to death. There was neither water nor food within.
Cnut pointed to the door. “They barred the door against the wolves. They must have been close to death else they would have faced them and died as warriors.”
“Aye. They were loyal and faithful warriors. They deserved a warrior’s death. Come we will send them to Valhalla. Find some firewood.”
There was none within the hall. That had been another cause of the death; the cold. Nature was extracting a terrible vengeance for our settlement. We gathered the old wood from inside the huts and made a pyre. As we stood around, saying goodbye to our friends the smoke spiralled to heaven taking the spirits of the dead with it.
Haaken looked angry. “Come let us avenge our dead and kill these wolves!”
Snorri put his arm on Haaken’s shoulder. “Never hunt with a hot head, always use a cool mind. We will find these wolves but we will be careful.”
“He is right, Haaken. Lead on Snorri. We obey you.”
“We leave our ponies here. They will alarm the wolves and tell them that we are coming.” We tied our ponies to the trees which ran along the river. They could eat and drink safely. If the wolves were ahead of us, as I thought, then they would have to pass us if they smelled the ponies. Snorri knew how to hunt. He turned to Arturus. “Tell your dog to hunt. He will pick up any scent.”
Arturus and the dog we had named Wolf were inseparable. He was as intelligent as any animal I had ever seen but had a stubborn nature. The only one who could always make him obey was Arturus. “Wolf, hunt!” he waved his arm north of us and the dog raced off to the undergrowth. We waited while it sniffed here and there. It darted to a bush and sniffed again. Then the sheepdog went to a patch of dead bracken and turned, its ears erect. It gave one shrill bark.
“He has found something,” said Arturus proudly.
We ran to the dog and while Arturus fussed him Snorri knelt down and sniffed. “He is a good hunter. There is wolf spoor.” He nodded to Arturus.
“Wolf, find!” He waved it away again and the dog ran to the north west. There was a craggy ridge which ran alongside the two waters. He went unerringly up the trail through the trees.
I loped along at the rear. It allowed me to see ahead. The others could worry about the trail I wanted to see what was ahead. I saw that the trees ended some mile or so ahead. It was the steep black crag which showed me the direction we would take. It loomed up above the trees and, as we climbed steadily, I saw a dark shape beneath. It was a cave of some description. The others were all focussing on the ground beneath their feet and none were watching for danger ahead.
“Halt!” I hissed.
Arturus whistled and the dog stopped too. They all looked at me expectantly. I did not want to shout and I walked towards them and spoke quietly. “There is a cave a mile or so ahead. I have seen it. It may be that the wolves are some way ahead but I remember the last wolves we found had a lair such as this one. I think we proceed as though this is their home. If I am wrong…”
Haaken gave a quiet chuckle. “I have yet to see you make a wrong decision.” He slipped his bow from its case and strung it. “Better to be prepared.”
Cnut, Arturus and Beorn had spears. Snorri, Haaken and I had bows. Our arrows were the barbed ones. These were wolf killers. I strung my bow and gave it a tug to test the tension. I held an arrow in my right hand and we set off again. My caution was justified for Wolf suddenly went do
wn on his haunches and his ears went down. There was something ahead.
Arturus hissed, “Stay!” to the dog. A wolf would soon take down a sheepdog.
We spread out in a half circle. Beorn was in the centre. I stood next to Arturus and we moved towards the tumble of rocks which lay just ahead. We could all see the dark mouth of the cave above us. We would have to climb up the jagged teeth of rocks to reach it. Snorri held up his hand and disappeared around a rock to our right. He came back and said, quietly, “There is a path to the right. Those with bows can use the path. Beorn, you and the others climb the rocks slowly and watch the cave mouth. Your spears should protect you. Try to give us time to get into position.”
He nodded and I turned to my son, “Be careful, my son and if you have to strike then strike true.”
We followed Snorri and when we began to climb we could smell death. The wolf lair was close. The path gradually rose to the level of the shelf on which the cave lay. When Snorri reached the top he turned around quickly and waved us up. We were at the side of the cave. The entrance was twice the height of a man. It opened some forty paces from us. Snorri gestured for us to spread out. I notched my arrow.
Suddenly I saw a Beorn’s spear head rise from the cliff and I heard growling echoing in the cave. We had found the wolves, or at least, some of them. The question was how many were there? A second and a third spear head appeared. We moved a little closer. We could not see the entrance of the cave that was hidden.
Two things happened at once: Beorn sprang on to the rock shelf and two wolves hurtled from the cave with slavering jaws and a roar which echoed like thunder from the cave’s roof.
Snorri had the fastest reactions and his arrow thudded into the side of the nearest wolf. Haaken and I were a heart beat later. My arrow flew into the head of the wolf wounded by Snorri and Haaken’s struck the rump of the second. The first wolf fell and tried to get up. The second hurled itself at Beorn who threw himself at the wolf with his spear held before him. The spear went down the open mouth of the wolf. The beast tried, even as it was mortally wounded to reach Beorn. Its dying teeth clamped onto Beorn’s hand.