‘Work with some of the Goths, you mean?’ he said with horror, began to shake his head and stopped himself as Saxa’s hand took a painful hold of his shaggy beard.
‘Yes,’ she said resolutely. ‘Don’t be as stubborn as Father.’
He let her hang on to the beard and nearly lifted her off her feet. ‘He wanted to work with the Goths. He did. I just said “no”. Our supporters will think I can’t make up my mind.’
She shrugged. ‘But you saw how many of Father’s supporters agreed. And if you take over the plan, imagine what you can accomplish. The Goths won’t go away, brother. We must begin to think past our old grudges. I’ll start.’ She eyed me warmly, and I’d sold all our lands back to the Svea right then because of her beauty.
He gave her a long look, and I decided Agin was far from a fool. He had a thoughtful look on his face, and clearly there was hidden ambition inside that thick skull. They had likely spent a lot of time together when growing up, running through the meadows of Snowlake, resenting their father’s intensity, and when Agin had grown into a man and a lord on his own, the resentment had only grown. Every son knows better than the father, I thought and smiled. Agin would go on a shared quest for his sister. He was rubbing his chin and nodded sagely. ‘It might. And we shall discuss how that might take place later. I agree it has possibilities. Goths fighting for us for once?’ I stiffened because I had planned to use the Svearna to fight Bero and Hughnot. Nonetheless, I smiled at Agin, he gave me a grim smile in return, and he seemed to approve of me, for he clapped his hands together. ‘I’ll call the völva for the evening, and we shall have a small, discreet feast. Just us. The few of us. Not many. And they are …’ he pointed a thick, dirt-crusted finger at Ceadda. ‘They are not Goths.’
‘They are thin mercenaries from the south,’ she said with a hint of worry in her voice. ‘Don’t know where they come from. Cannot speak what we speak, I think, or only barely. They’ll need a boat, and that’s what we promised them for their help. Savages they are.’ Ceadda smiled wryly at the payback for calling the Svea animals.
‘You promised them one of my boats?’ Agin said with horror, his fingers twitching.
‘Yes,’ she said and saw the big man was still trying to find clues to the origin of the men. ‘Doesn’t matter, trust me. Come brother. Let’s do what I said. As I asked?’
‘Sure,’ he said, his beady eyes never leaving Ceadda, who was fingering his spear with worry. ‘Strip.’
‘Strip?’ Njord asked, horrified. ‘What? Out of our clothes? Totally?’
‘Not out of your skins, for now,’ Agin growled and nodded for us. ‘Can’t speak what we speak, eh?’ Agin said with a scowl. ‘Sister—’
‘Some can,’ she said with fury and turned to the Saxons. ‘Strip.’ The word snapped with finality.
‘Why do they need to strip?’ Aldbert asked, puzzled.
‘You shall all strip,’ she said with some satisfaction as Aldbert’s mouth shot open. ‘You, them, him.’ She pointed at me. ‘We will take the horses, the clothes—’
‘This is my horse,’ I said, for I loved Scald dearly, but saw her face and she was adamant. ‘But there will be others,’ I amended.
‘Many horses,’ she agreed. ‘We are a horse people, Maroboodus. Ships and horses, and perhaps we are not animals at all. They,’ she pointed at some ten Svear, who stepped up. ‘will take your horses and cross the Long-Lake, leaving the horses behind. They will rush to the north. They will take your shabby clothes, and the dogs will follow, bay at the banks of the lake, and the Goths will have to give chase. Our men will travel that way for some days, visiting villages of our northern tribes, going at a great pace to keep the Goths confused and that might leave the Goths in boiling water should they dare to go there—’
‘Dog-humping Goths,’ Agin agreed, and I decided to agree with a ferocious nod, which pleased the massive man immensely.
‘Keep the dog-humping Goths confused,’ she continued with asperity, ‘and perhaps they shall go home. They would be far from home and hall, and they won’t have the men to fight in the north. We will keep an eye on them from now on. We will hide in Agin’s village for a time.’
‘We will keep our weapons,’ Ceadda said more than asked.
‘Yes, you will,’ Agin said tiredly. He eyed his sister, and she nodded, to his chagrin. ‘We will arm you with shields as well since you Saxons will help us defend the village if the Goths don’t trust their dogs. You will fit in. Saxa wants this, not I.’ He nodded at Saxa, who grinned up at the giant. ‘Strip. And yea, I know you are Saxons. Do it.’
We stripped. I got down and pulled off my heavy cloak. I placed my sword and belt on the side and gazed at Agin, trying to gauge the mood of the great man. He was silent, not the huge buffoon he had seemed, but a shrewd man who let no detail escape him. He didn’t judge me, and I shrugged at him as I stripped, hoping the man would be a great ally. Whether or not I’d honestly rule with Saxa, depended on men like him, and I sensed there was as much honor in him as there was in Hulderic. We were all the same blood, divided into tribes and clans and feuds ages old, but men like Agin could mend old feuds. The Saxons had few scruples as they stripped, used to little privacy in their ships, and were soon standing over heaps of their clothing, holding clubs and spears as if they were all they needed and didn’t even mind Saxa, who was looking discreetly away from them. Aldbert was blushing fiercely, and held his hand before his genitals, as Agin was smiling at us lecherously, whispering to Saxa, who turned to look at me. I cursed the cheeky grin on her face and pulled off my pants and shoes and frowned at her as she arched an eyebrow, hopefully as a sign of approval. I pointed a daring finger her way ‘And her horse and clothes?’
Agin’s face brightened with shock and realization. ‘He is right.’
‘What?’ she asked furiously. ‘I’ll not strip before you mongrels.’
‘Take my cloak,’ he said, ‘and do it in the bushes. Discreetly. If they try to peek, I’ll play dice with their eyeballs.’
‘You—’
‘Do it,’ I chirped and the Saxons laughed gutturally. ‘We are in a hurry.’
‘Fine,’ she whispered, and Agin gave his cloak to her. She ran off to the bushes, and after some time had passed, she came out, swathed in the woolen thing and she gestured in the direction of the village. Our simple band ran that way while the Svea gathered our clothes, horses, and took off for the north. They were fast, so fast, much faster than we were and they knew the land as they galloped with our well-wishes, hoping they would drag Bero’s hounds after them like a bloody haunch of a cow would attract wolves. They were rubbing our clothes on trees as they went, and the dogs would know.
Agin snorted as he saw my lingering look. ‘Don’t worry, my adeling. They will lead the Goths on a merry chase. I’ll start gathering men from the villages, and we will see them off for good if they come this way. I should be able to collect hundreds, given a few days. For now, this is good.’
‘I thank you, Agin,’ I told him with respect and bowed.
He shook his head. ‘So, you and Saxa.’
‘It seems so,’ I said, looking at her back, wishing to see her face.
‘You are Hulderic’s son, no?’ he asked wryly.
‘I am—’
‘You are,’ he said. ‘Never thought his son would rescue my sister from Saxons,’ he eyed Ceadda like a fox would look at an unwary mouse, ‘and then come here with some Saxons, hoping to marry her, and more.’
‘More?’ I said dreamily. ’I came this way because I grew tired of being the plaything for my relatives. I wanted to make my fortune, to become a ring-giver, a warlord, and help my father overcome those relatives who would harm him. And perhaps also—’
‘To rule over your father,’ Agin smiled.
That bothered me, but I didn’t deny it. ‘Perhaps in the future?’
‘Or sooner,’ he chortled. ‘I know Saxa told you it is so with me as well.’
‘It is true,’ I admitted.
‘Partly so.’
He chuckled. ‘She is a Svea princess. You, a Goth adeling. Rarely have there been two people more tied into plays of power. You have been sitting in the back row, seeing how things will unfold but never quite able to affect the future to their liking. She has sat on her father’s counsels, our father’s counsel, that is,’ he said, looking miserable with the fact, ‘for a decade. He considers her precious; all his family has a role to play in his games. But more, he is a Thiuda of our clans. Father’s been plotting with a Goth to kill your father and Bero the Crow.’
‘And to kill Hughnot, as well,’ I said.
He agreed. ‘Him. Others, later. There are many Goths to the south of us. This Boat-Lord hates you rogues as much as we do.’
‘The Crow?’ I smiled. ‘Bero? He does look like a crippled little bird.’
‘He does,’ Agin smiled wolfishly, proud to have named my uncle, but sobered and went on. ‘I’m curious where the Saxons were taking her. Father had agreed to marry her.’
‘To the Boat-Lord,’ I said. ‘Our enemy.’
‘Likely so,’ he agreed. ‘But the Saxons came and took her.’
‘Cuthbert would have sold her to the Lord. He smelled coin and riches,’ I said. ‘Learnt of the deal from his spies.’
‘Yes, perhaps,’ he said though he wasn’t convinced. ‘Yes, we all have spies all over the place. Mine died in Marka this past year. Snot. Shitting disease. But I thank you. You saved her from a Saxon, then from a Goth and I think, my Lord, that as an adeling of the least loved son of formerly great Friednot and not a very famous young Goth, you saw in her more than a lovely smile. You saw your future in the bosom of her love, and a way out of your dilemmas. Make an enemy an ally, marry high, defy your relatives, and raise yourself above all of them.’ He was nodding. ‘You saw love and power, and I salute you. No, worry not. I doubt you not. I see you have real feelings for her. And if you don’t,’ he said and leaned close to me. ‘I’ll cave your skull in.’
I gave him a wry smile. ‘Is it true,’ I asked, ‘that marriage to her can give me the power to decide on the matters of the Goths? I love her like people love summer.’
He gazed at me, shrugged, and finally, after a long moment of contemplation, ‘You sound like a moonstruck calf, an utter fool, but I’ll allow it since you are a fool for her. And yes, she can give you spears. If I allow it. It’s time to change things, though, she is right in that. The northern clans care little for our troubles here in the south, but there are perhaps ten Svea lords who decide on things around here, and Father’s been trying to subvert the four highest ones to his side. He has promised them Goth lands, to be shared with Goths, as I told you. He has been dealing with the Boat-Lord. Three chiefs follow me. The rest change their mind as often as the wind changes, and if we can topple Father, then we can indeed have a profitable alliance and settle these lands for the benefit of all.’ He smiled as he gazed at me. ‘And you will know that we will want to have a piece of the coast again. It’s not negotiable. Long-Lake is where we dip our toes into the sea, but we want access to the trade, and that means the coast.’
I smiled. There we were, dividing lands. It was intoxicating, making plans like that. It was better than the beadiest of wines.
‘Boat-Lord,’ I said, ‘wants the land as well. We will have a war on our hands, even after we settle the scores with my family.’
He shrugged. ‘I’ve no doubt you are right. This Boat-Lord sent men here last year. I never saw any Goths of this Boat-Lord in Snowlake, because I didn’t go, and Father, Gislin merely informed the absent chiefs this marriage would take place. He told me like that, probably happy I’d suffer because I love my sister well. Then the Saxons came,’ he said and eyed the men with hostility, ‘and took her. Now she is to marry a Goth. You see why I’m feeling an itch for my ax, but I’m happy to see you are much like us. And that you Goths squabble like the Svea do. Of course, you do, but it’s fine to see it in the form of an exiled Goth adeling, chasing after my sister,’ he told me, amused. ‘We have been losing far too many times in battle to your people.’
I braved a question. ‘Since Saxa and I plan to rule—’
‘You are children,’ he reminded. ‘Dreaming of war. Not all dreams come true, just remember that. We shall try, but gods will decide.’
I went silent, dragging my feet, hoping to refute him, but he was right. We were children in the art of rulership, but he was also wrong. ‘The heroes the poets sing of?’ I said, and he cocked an eye at me. ‘The ones who sit by the gods in their golden halls? Were they old when they decided to change things? They carved vast lands for themselves with war. They were young when they began. Those songs began from dreams like ours.’
He gave me an uncertain eye and smiled. ‘I almost went to my knees before you, mighty Maroboodus, since you dream so high the gods would tremble at your greed. And I give you a hint. The songs and poems are mostly paid for by men who did terrible things to reach that far. They sit in their seats, listen to liars like him,’ he thumbed Aldbert’s way, ‘and smile benevolently at the flattery, but some part of their minds will always reel under the weight of betrayed men, foully slain enemies, burnt halls with babies and women, and broken oaths. I’ve never become so high as I wanted, just one of the warlords around these woods, because I am honorable.’ He looked at me uncertainly and brooded as he looked away. ‘I have a hunch you and Saxa will rule us all, but will you ever be truly happy? I know not.’
‘Aldbert,’ I said, ‘how many times do you lie when you make a song of a hero?’
He walked on behind us, uncomfortable in his nakedness, reacting ridiculously to the stinging twigs under his bared feet, but finally shrugged. ‘Mostly.’
‘If you made a song about me, would you lie?’ I asked.
He frowned. ‘Would you like people to know how I dug that hole?’
Agin didn’t know about the hole, but he did chuckle, and I frowned. Then I shook my head stubbornly. ‘I’d not feel bad about the lies, if the purpose serves greater good.’
Agin chortled. ‘You should, no matter what you build. But yes, I’ll help you two. I have power. Father and I split up, but as I said, at least three chiefs follow me, some others will come to our side. It will be an even struggle. And while father has a great following, he has been a ruler for a long time, many of the smaller Chiefs hate him. Father has enemies, and men often look at me to solve an issue he has caused. Should there be a high Goth on our side, be that a youngster like you, married to a grand lady like Saxa? It will probably ruin Father’s plans. It will bring us followers. It will mean men will die here, instead of in the lands of the Goths,’ he said and frowned, ‘but next year we might solve the issue between Father and me, and then we shall solve our issues with the Goths, and men will die there as well until everyone is sated, eh? Hope you can stomach seeing a shieldwall of Goths falling under our attack. It will cost you a lot, though. The coast, parts of it. Perhaps Marka.’
‘I’ll stomach it. There will be Goths in our shieldwall as well,’ I said dubiously. ‘We will change things.’ Back then, I believed it was possible, to build a nation of Svea and Goths, and Agin looked severe as he stared at me.
‘You are surprisingly steady and dedicated, Maroboodus. I think we will try to build something out of this mess, indeed. And Father did lose many men of his warbands. Fifty splendid men are gone thanks to the Saxons. He was well weakened this past summer by that lot.’ He nodded at Ceadda and leaned on me. ‘Do I have to give the murderous bastards a ship?’
I chortled at his outraged tone. ‘Give them a fair boat, but do give them one. A fast one. They have kept faith with us, and they only followed Cuthbert as oaths men do. We could have made it here on our own, probably, but they helped us along like oath-bound men should.’
He chortled. ‘They were your hope of escape if I turned out to be less than amicable? Yes?’
‘Yes,’ I agreed.
‘In that case,’ he said, ‘I’ll marry you tonight and
send them on their way when the Goths are gone, with weapons and a boat fast enough to make them cry with joy. Tomorrow, we shall send the Goth bastards on their merry way, chase off your Crow Bero and begin to plan for the Spring, and we will decide on many things during this winter.’ He eyed me and asked a question. ‘Will Hulderic, your father, help us?’
‘I don’t know,’ I said glumly. ‘But perhaps he shall not stop us, at least. Perhaps he will not fight us. And if Bero and Hughnot are weak and divided and fight each other, then we can see where we shall turn when things have been settled with your father and the Svea lords.’
‘We have the winter to plan, if you can manage to tear yourself from my sister, you Goth mongrel,’ he said and slapped my back with what I took as a friendly gesture, even if I bit my tongue by the force of it.
We marched on, cursing the lack of shoes, and Svea scouts ran back and forth, reporting on Goth movements and finally, as evening arrived and the lazy wolf Hati chased the glowing Mani to the sky, we were rewarded by a chorus of dog barks going far to the north, for the Long-Lake. The sound was ominous, dangerous, and close, but at least the enemy was going the wrong way.
I looked at Aldbert, who nodded, visibly relieved and Saxa and Ceadda gave each other grins. Nothing like the common fear of death to make true enemies the best of friends, I thought.
We hiked the final stretch to the northwest, passed homesteads hidden in small valleys and fields of barley, and arrived at the village.
It was dark, but Mani revealed the shore of the Long-Lake, the surface of the dark water rippling with cold wind, and our teeth were chattering because we had no clothes. There were many fishing boats, some made for war, and Ceadda and Njord were admiring them, the clinker-built things giving them hope to reach their homes one say soon. We were led forward through trails that meandered past tall oaks and thick pines, and earthy, moldy halls nestled in the trees. The village had a name, Wolf Hole, and it felt home-like as we were led to a tall and long building with a yellowed doorway, from which poured the smell of fish and meat and the unmistakable aroma of good ale, and Njord grinned like a wolf indeed, hoping to hole up inside.
Maroboodus: A Novel of Germania (The Goth Chronicles Book 1) Page 23