by Griff Hosker
The sight of two warriors wearing wolf cloaks and no armour told them all that they needed to know. We were wolf warriors and to be feared. As Olaf’s axe took one warrior in the head I fended off a sword thrust with my seax and stabbed over the top of the shield. The tip of my sword wormed its way through the mail and into the warrior’s chest. I pushed him hard and he fell into the path of another. Three more fell to arrows as Olaf’s axe took his third victim in the thigh. The warrior had been struck by his mortally wounded comrade as he tried to rise. I lunged at him and Ragnar’s Spirit took him in the throat, as Olaf swung his axe at the last three. One fell into the river and one was pierced by four arrows. Olaf killed the last one.
I could hear fighting further downstream. It was my other three warriors. Pausing only to yell, “Cast off the drekar and moor them midstream!”
I heard Erik shout back, “Aye jarl! You came just in time. Bolli has been grievously wounded.”
It made me more angry. These Vikings would pay. We ran to the sound of fighting. It was closer to Úlfarrston than the river. I saw now that my three warriors had seen the greatest danger and headed to it. The enemy had sent men to try to destroy the drekar but the stout defence had upset their plans. More men had been sent and it was these whom my men were now fighting. I stepped over the first body and saw that it was an enemy and he had had his throat cut.
I heard the enemy shouting to each other and then at my men, “Come from the shadows, shape shifters and fight us man to man! Are you cowards?”
I cupped my hands and I began to howl like a wolf. To my right I heard Olaf do the same and then, from the forest ahead, I heard three more wolf cries. I quickly moved before they could identify where the noise came from. I slipped behind a tree and then out from behind it. A warrior was just three paces from me and he shouted, “Come out you skin changers! I am Beorn the Fearless and I will fight you all!”
In two strides I was behind him and I rammed my sword with all of my power into his mail byrnie. My sword struck his backbone and I twisted it to the side. He gave a primeval scream which sounded like a wounded wild boar. It echoed through the trees and was every bit as terrifying as our howls. I heard more cries and shouts as the other four wolf warriors slipped into the darkness of the woods and slew our enemies.
The silence was punctuated by a single shout. “We cannot fight shape shifters! Back to the jarl!”
I heard the sound of feet rushing through the woods. There was the sound of branches breaking and the clatter of shields on branches. Then there were other sounds. There was another cry and another. My young Ulfheonar were not letting them get away without more pain. The enemy were being slain as they fled. I kept moving south. I had to step over bodies as well as tree roots. My men had done well. The night was our world and the enemy had paid the price.
Olaf Leather Neck ghosted alongside me. His teeth were a white grin in the trees. “When they find there were but five of us they will be angry with themselves.”
“I care not for they have hurt us grievously already. Our work here is not yet finished. The enemy still holds Úlfarrston.”
I glanced over my shoulder and saw that the night was less dark. The sky, to the east, was becoming grey. Had our enemy had more resolve they might have seen how few we were. I saw shapes in the shadows and Rolf and Rollo appeared.
“Aðils Shape Shifter has gone ahead to scout out the enemy. The edge of the woods is close. We fooled those warriors but if we show ourselves then I fear, Jarl Dragonheart, that we will bring about our own destruction.”
“You are right Rolf Horse Killer and we have done all that I wished. We have saved our drekar. When our men come we will see if we can drive them hence.”
As we walked south Rollo asked, “Will he not have brought his whole army?”
Olaf Leather Neck said, “If he has then he is a fool for he cannot leave Dyflin unguarded.”
“I believe you are right Olaf. He thought to catch us napping and he has. By destroying Úlfarrston he thought to hurt us. Had he destroyed our ships then he would have. Without drekar we would have been allowing him to rule the seas. The Allfather watched over us this night.”
“How so, Jarl Dragonheart?”
“Had Aiden and I not been looking south as we took the air and if the night had not been so clear then we would not have seen the pinprick of light in the south. We would have gone back to bed and our ships would be burned wrecks. The Allfather is still our ally even if the Norns are not.”
We reached the edge of the woods and the ground became covered in scrubby growth. Pasgen’s people had cleared the forest there years ago and now it had begun to regrow. In the half light of dawn it would give us good cover.
We crept through it and lay down in the lower ground close to the river. I saw the sad sight that was the burning town. I could see some of the prisoners being butchered by Harald’s warriors while others were looting the wealth that had been Coen’s. All his gold and treasure had been for nought. The two Holy Books we had brought back would not be Harald’s and the profit his. There were three drekar at the quay which confirmed what Olaf and I had thought. This was not his whole force. He had taken advantage of our lack of vigilance.
I heard a noise and looked around. I saw mail at the edge of the woods. I saw that it was Haaken and my Ulfheonar. “Stay here and watch for Aðils Shape Shifter.”
“Aye.”
I crept back to the woods. Apart from my Ulfheonar there were just twenty men. “Where are the rest?”
“Ketil and Ulf took them down the road. Asbjorn was following and he has the rest running down the road. We brought all the horses that we had. Ragnar said that this way we could make the enemy think there were more of us than there actually were. We could approach from two directions. Your grandson is clever, Jarl Dragonheart. It is a good plan.”
“Aye it is. Wait here.” I went back into the woods and took a helmet and shield from a dead warrior. I covered my wolf cloak with the dead warrior’s.
Haaken asked, “Why?”
“This way he will not recognise me. I want him to think I did not come. I want him to think that I no longer have the skills I once did. You will speak. You will be recognised.” Just then I saw the enemy turn and look up the road. My men had arrived and drawn their attention there. It was Ragnar and Raibeart with Ulf and Ketil. “Come let us announce ourselves.” I turned, “One line and today Haaken One Eye is jarl!”
We stepped from the wood and I heard a shout from the enemy. I could not hear what they said but I knew orders were being given as they formed a shield wall. I turned and saw Olaf lift his head and look at me. I shook mine. I wanted them to remain hidden. We moved forward in a loose line. With my borrowed helmet on my head and my cloak behind me I did not look like Ulfheonar. To add to the illusion I joined the warriors from my stad. Glancing to the right I saw that we had less than a hundred warriors. The three drekar crews we faced could have up to a hundred and thirty men. We had slain some. This would be close.
We had not planned an attack this way but we had fought together so many times that we did not need a plan. We began to move closer to each other. I saw that one of my jarls had put the three of them and their hearth weru into a wedge behind which the rest followed. Haaken saw it and shouted, “Boar’s snout!”
I had to resist the temptation to go to the front. I was not wearing mail and I was trying to stay hidden. I joined in the fourth rank and was next to Mundi Mundisson, the warrior we had rescued. It was like walking next to the wall of my hall. He turned to me, “This is an honour, jarl. I am proud to fight alongside you.”
“We all fight together Mundi. Let us wreak some revenge eh? We may not end the war this day but we can let them know that they were in a fight.”
Somewhere deep in the forest I heard a horn. It had to be Asbjorn. He was a clever warrior. He was letting us and our enemy know that reinforcements were coming. It might dishearten some of them. A disheartened warrior died much easier tha
n one who thought he could win.
I saw a flaw in my enemy’s strategy. Instead of bringing all of his men to face us, he had a third who were still loading his drekar. He was greedy and he was overconfident. My warriors began to chant.
Ulfheonar, warriors strong
Ulfheonar, warriors brave
Ulfheonar, fierce as the wolf
Ulfheonar, hides in plain sight
Ulfheonar, Dragon Heart's wolves
Ulfheonar, serving the sword
Ulfheonar, Dragon Heart's wolves
Ulfheonar, serving the sword
Ulfheonar, warriors strong
Ulfheonar, warriors brave
Ulfheonar, fierce as the wolf
Ulfheonar, hides in plain sight
Ulfheonar, Dragon Heart's wolves
Ulfheonar, serving the sword
Ulfheonar, Dragon Heart's wolves
Ulfheonar, serving the sword
All of my warriors chanted and I joined in, banging the hilt of my sword on the borrowed shield. It had an immediate effect. The enemy line recoiled a pace or two and I heard voices ordering them back into line.
Our two shield walls joined up. We had a continuous line of warriors. As I peered over my shield I saw, on the extreme right of their line, a warrior fall and then another to arrows which came from the greying skies of dawn. That had to be Aðils. The effect was astonishing. Fearing an attack on the right flank, which was close to the river, Harald sent men from his left flank. It was a mistake as it gave Raibeart and the others fewer men to attack while those who had joined the right flank had fewer foes. It was then that Olaf and my other warriors rose from the undergrowth.
Raibeart yelled, “Charge!”
A heartbeat later and Haaken yelled the same. We began to walk quickly. Our chanting had given us the rhythm and we moved easily over the ground. It felt strange not to be in the front rank. I had to try to remember what to do. Leading, to me was always easy. Here I had to keep Cnut Gunnarson close to me as well as Mundi Mundisson. It was not as easy as I remembered. I kept my shield high and overlapping Cnut’s. I saw the enemy line and the waiting warriors. It was harder to see which warrior I would hit. The three Ulfheonar at the front were powerful, mailed warriors. They would punch a hole in the enemy ranks and then the third and fourth ranks would expand it. I was in the fourth rank. Behind me were the warriors from the settlement who did not always fight in the shield wall.
From our right I heard a crash and a clatter as Raibeart, Ulf and Ketil smashed into the enemy left flank. The decision to move men had been a disaster for, above the men we would fight, I saw warriors from the rear of their line streaming towards the ships. And then there was the sound of thunder as we hit their shields. They might have held had not their comrades fled. As it was one or two joined the others who fled and we had more weight pushing against their shields. I saw Cnut thrust his sword over his shield to stab a warrior. The one next to the stricken Viking raised his sword. I lunged forwards and upwards. Ragnar’s Spirit entered his right armpit and I drove it up into his body. As I pulled it down his body slumped to the ground.
Raibeart’s wedge now turned and our two snouts met as we butchered our way through the enemy. It was easier to hit flesh than to miss as Harald’s Vikings tried to fight on two fronts. As they turned we found it even easier for we were facing their sword sides. Without shields to protect them they were stabbed and slashed.
I turned to my left. I saw that the enemy were breaking but the last twist was that they were driving the captives they had taken towards the drekar. I yelled, “Haaken! Left! They are taking captives.”
Haaken shouted, “Ulfheonar! To the ships!”
I do not think there were many warriors who could have done as mine did that day. They wheeled into the right flank of the Vikings and began to scythe through them. I slashed left and right to slay two warriors who wore no mail. I realised that one had been Eystein, the sour faced warrior from Dyflin. He had failed to find a mail byrnie and had paid with his life. As he died I think he recognised me. I had no doubt that he would await me in Valhalla!
Even though Haaken had managed to wheel us around I think they would have escaped with the captives had Olaf and my three Ulfheonar not raced from cover to attack the men who tried to take the captives aboard the drekar. The women and children were not cooperating with their captors and I saw them biting, kicking and scratching as they fought to avoid captivity and slavery. Olaf and Rolf had axes and they carved a path through the Vikings. Aðils’ arrows picked off those who presented a threat and, even as we reached them, the guards fled to race to the drekar. The captives raced towards us.
We had seen this once before but this time our enemy did not panic. They kept their drekar close enough to the bank for their men to be able to reach them. Many discarded their byrnies rather than risking drowning. Some braver warriors kept fighting until they were slain. They formed a wall at the shore and my jarls and Ulfheonar slew them.
I saw the one they called Harald the Great. He stood at the stern of a dragon ship. The prow was crudely carved; Bolli would have been appalled if his shipwright had made it. But I marked it. I would remember the drekar. Harald stood at the stern and shouted to Haaken One Eye. Haaken had taken off his helmet and his one eye and white hair marked him for who he was. He pointed his sword, “This is not over, Haaken One Eye! I hoped to fight the one they called Dragonheart. If he is dead then you are next! If he was afraid to face me then he will die for I will have his land. I will have his home and I will sport myself with his Welsh bitch and the whore of a witch who is his daughter!”
That annoyed my men who began to move forward to try to swim out to reach the Vikings. Haaken shouted, “Stay! He blows empty wind.” He took his own sword out, “So it begins, Harald the Blowhard! And I promise you that it shall end when we butcher you and feed your corpse, little by little to the magpies, foxes and crows. They shall eat you alive and there will be no sword in your hand! You will serve Hel from now until the end of time!”
As the last of his men dragged themselves aboard his drekar they hoisted sail and rowed south. I knew we had hurt them. Their oars were now singly rowed. The pile of corpses they had left was testament to their losses. They had lost a huge quantity of mail and weapons but, as I turned to survey the charred ruins of Úlfarrston, I knew that we had lost and they had won. The treasures which Coen had accumulated were now in the holds of the three drekar which headed south. The knarr he had used to make his coin were now burnt out shells lying on the beach and Coen himself? His butchered body lay scattered before the gate. I watched as Raibeart knelt close by. It was a defeat and a bitter one for I had been warned!
‘There is danger coming. The enemy is growing. They will come closer. Your friends grow fewer. They are dying. They seek what is yours. Keep close what is ours.’
I had not ignored it but I had not spent enough time debating what I should do. I had learned my lesson. My next move would be decisive. First we had dead to bury and a town to rebuild.
It took a long time. The enemy dead were simple. We made a pyre and we burned them. We counted eighty warriors who had died. There were others who laid unburied. They had fallen to our knives and blades in the forest. Hunters would come upon the piles of bones and weapons for years after. The dead of Úlfarrston took longer. We laid them all in a barrow by the river. It became a sort of monument. Coen and all of his family had died. Raibeart was the last of his line. Coen and his family were placed at the south end of the barrow. It was Raibeart who gathered his brother’s remains and reverently laid them to rest.
It came to my mind that I would now not need to speak with Coen about the shipyard. We would have to move the shipyard to its new place. Harald the Great and the silted up river had decided that. Perhaps it was meant to be. We would move Erik and his family there, along with Bolli and his family. I would put Erik Ironshirt and his Angry Cubs close by. We would defend what was ours.
I then sent Asbjorn, Keti
l and Ulf home. We would not need them; not a while. They understood exactly what they had to do. They had to prepare their men for a war with other Vikings. They knew it would not be easy. They would need well-armed men who wore mail and knew how to obey orders. They had seen our enemy at close hand. We had underestimated him once but we would not a second time.
The rebuilding, however, would not be quick. Aiden brought back the people of Úlfarrston to rebuild their home. Enough had survived for it to be viable and all wished to be back in familiar surroundings. The ancient people liked being close to their dead and the barrow was a memorial and a connection to their dead. The difference was that it would be a smaller town with fewer people. Raibeart had grown up, almost overnight. He was now the headman. His choice of wife, Yngvild, proved to be a wise choice. She was of Viking blood and had strength. She chivvied and jollied the women when they began to despair and her efforts alongside her husband put many men to shame.
Aiden used more stone in the rebuilding. The ditch and the mound were now topped with a stone wall and a palisade. Raibeart moved into the heart of his new domain and we built a hall for him which was half stone. It took until Ýlir for us to finish but it was worth it.
I spoke with the survivors and, from their words pieced together how the disaster had befallen us. Harald had used Coen’s own knarr against him. He had captured them, one by one and sailed them in together, as evening had fallen, into port. At the same time his drekar had landed half of his men to the west of the town close by Whale Island. In the half light of dusk, the men who came from the knarr managed to hold the gates until the rest had joined them. Coen’s routine caused his death. He had always gone to meet his captains and he had died first. With their leader gone the people fell apart. As Harald and his band had fallen upon them they had fled. The fire, which had alerted us, had not been started deliberately. When the raiders had entered they had killed the man who was carrying the burning brand to light the torches on the walls. He had fallen into the seal oil. If they had not killed him then I would not have seen the flaring of the flames and my ships would have been destroyed.