by Griff Hosker
“There have been three hundred men who volunteered. We have not begun to speak with them properly yet, we have merely put them in the warrior hall which is a little overcrowded.”
“You are telling me. Some of my equites wish to sleep in the stables. It is warmer and less crowded.”
“Aye well they have come from all over. There are four from Gaul, three from the Rhenus, three from Italia and the rest from Britannia. There are many from Gwyr and they are doughty warriors who hate Iago.”
“I hear there are some Saxons too?”
Myrddyn nodded at Aelle’s question. “Not full Saxons but much as you Lord Aelle, they have a Roman or Celtic mother and a Saxon father. It seems they heard the story of the brother of the Warlord and feel that if he could make the change then so could they.”
Aelle looked at me with his most serious expression, “If I can help with the training of those half Saxons I would be pleased. I think that I would understand them more than some others.”
Miach snorted, “Meaning gruff old buggers like me might upset them.”
Aelle smiled, “I would never dream of saying that.”
“But you are probably right. I have the habit of calling a spade a shovel!”
Miach’s bluntness was legendary. “I am sure that will prove useful once we have assessed each warrior and made sure that their intentions are the right ones.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, Raibeart that it would be the perfect opportunity for an enemy to slip some of their men into our ranks as spies. Myrddyn here did just that once before.”
“Yes my lord and it is not just Saxons who are joining us but men from Gwynedd and Hibernia. Many will be genuine but it is up to us to weed out the rest.”
“That is a large number to train. How will it be done?”
“The equites will be taken by Tuanthal and they can stay here. Half of the warriors will remain here with Garth and I was going to divide the others between you, my brothers for some of the warriors can serve as your garrison. Miach will train the archers.”
“And what of slingers?”
I smiled, Aelle had been the leader of the slingers and they had been a potent force. “They will come from our people anyway and you can train those if you have a mind.”
“I would. Raibeart and I became aware that we needed to pull our weight more. You have to save us all the time and that is not right.”
“No Aelle, my job is to protect all of the people.”
“Then we can share the burden for we are your brothers.”
I spread my arms around the solar. “You are all my brothers, my brothers in arms!”
In the cold, crisp days of the midwinter we spent many days speaking with the volunteers. Ten of them were patently not suitable and were brigands and thieves looking for plunder. Aedh and his scouts escorted them to the Narrows and sent them on their way. The others were divided into the three groups based upon their size and their skills. My captains could train them to become more skilled in weapons but it was an attitude we were looking for. The fewest were the equites for we tended to get those from the young scouts who grew up in the saddle. It was hard training a grown man to be an equite. Many of the scouts acted as squires to family members who were equites and they became the best of warriors. The warriors who had the most strength of arm were selected for the archers but they were fewer than the warriors for they needed skill as well as brute strength.
They were hardened up and fed well. In the early spring they were sent throughout the island to help the farmers to plant crops and build walls. It made them work as a team as well as building up their strength and when that work was done they were assigned to their trainer. I enjoyed a couple of months with Nanna and my wife. For the first time with one of my children I had the chance to watch them change each day as they grew and acquired those quirks which made them individuals. Nanna was also lucky in that both Myrddyn and Oswald took a keen interest in her and she would be well educated as she grew. Andronikos had told me of the powerful eastern women who controlled and ruled countries. I wanted the same for my daughter. She would be her own woman and not dependent upon a man taking her for a wife.
Hogan and the others would be back from Constantinople at the end of summer and I took the opportunity of riding with Lann and an escort of Aedh’s scouts to visit with the settlements on the island. By the time I returned I would only have a month to wait to see my son. I had missed him; more than I thought I would. The trip would take my mind off the empty space in my heart. As we were about to leave, Myrddyn, decided that he would come. I was surprised but he said, “I have a mind to visit Wyddfa on midsummer’s eve. It is a special place at that time of year.” He grinned at me, “When you are Dux Britannica and have conquered the entire province we will visit the ancient stone circle in the south of Britain.”
I shook my head. Myrddyn liked to tease me. He was the only one save Myfanwy who would have dared to do so and I did not mind. “Let us just make this island strong enough to withstand another invasion and I will be happy.”
Raibeart was happy with his new warriors and wanted to retain all of them. “The men from Gaul are ferocious warriors. They look a little terrifying but they would make a solid shield wall.”
“You may retain twenty for your garrison but we need a bigger army if I am to reconquer the province for the Emperor. Are there are whom you mark out as potential leaders?”
“Aye, Bellatrix is a natural leader.”
“Good then I need him for Garth and Ridwyn need good subordinates.” I could tell that Raibeart had planned on keeping him for himself.
I laughed, “You are too honest for your own good brother.”
When we reached the Narrows I visited Mungo first. “I am glad that you have come, Warlord for I was going to send a message to you.”
I was intrigued. “Why?”
He smiled enigmatically, which was a little disconcerting for he had teeth missing which made it like looking into a graveyard. “I will let Prince Pasgen tell you. It was he who requested you.” He noticed Lann besides me. “And when do our boys get back from the east?”
I liked the way that all of my officers regarded my family as an extension of their own. “At the end of the summer; it seems a long time since they left.”
“But it will be good to learn what the new Romans know.” He patted the bolt thrower on the wall. “These make all the difference. I have my men making new bolts in their quiet time and they are happy to do so. That shows you how effective they are.”
As we crossed on the pontoon bridge I was intrigued by Mungo’s comments. What was the surprise to be? Myrddyn did his mind reading act again. “Wondering what the surprise is will not give you the answer. We have a short time to wait for look, there is Prince Pasgen himself.”
We rode from the bridge and he greeted me. He smiled, “I can see from your expression that Mungo has told you that I wished to see you?”
“Aye and he has me intrigued as do you.”
“Indulge me Warlord, until we reach my castle. You will see why when we reach it.” He spread his arm at the burgeoning site. “We have made many improvements since Iago’s last attempt to destroy us.”
“I can see and I have some news for you. We have many new volunteers. I am thinking of building another fort at the head of the monastery valley. It will give advance warning to us of an attack and afford some protection for Bishop Stephen.”
He shook his head. “With respect, my lord, there is a better site a few miles along the coast from us here which is even better than this site. The mountain comes down to the sea and the gap is the same as the size of Castle Perilous, a Roman fort. I had though of this myself but I lacked the men.”
“You must show me and you shall have the men by Yule.”
We passed through the gates and I saw that the bases had been strengthened and the drawbridge and bridge were now studded with iron bolts. Axes would not destroy them the next time the
y were attacked. The whole castle now had a more permanent feel about it. The wall which had been created by the land slide had been tidied so that it looked as though it was made by man and not nature. While Aedh saw to our horses Pasgen led Lann, Myrddyn and me to his quarters.
We sat in his comfortable chairs and sipped his excellent wine. “Come on Prince Pasgen. You cannot keep me in suspense.”
“Just a little while longer. While we wait perhaps I can give a little preamble. As you know we have received many volunteers and Mungo and I have sent on all the ones we thought suitable.”
“And they have been excellent. Is this about another volunteer?”
“Sort of…” Just then there was a discreet knock and then the door opened. “May I present Prince Cadfan of Gwynedd.”
My mouth must have dropped open for both Pasgen and Myrddyn burst out laughing. The prince smiled and gave a slight bow, “I am pleased to see you again, Warlord.”
“And I you, but I am at a loss to know the reason. Do you wish to fight for me?”
“Yes but I also seek sanctuary. Let me explain.”
“Pray sit, Prince Cadfan.”
“Thank you Prince Pasgen. My father remarried some years ago and his new wife has borne him a son. She is little older than I am and she hates me.” He shrugged. “I spurned her advances once and women never forget. Anyway she has gradually turned my father against me. When the prince defeated us last year I was blamed.”
“Why?”
“My warriors did not fight to the death when surrounded, they fled.”
“A natural thing to do and understandable.”
“But it was the excuse my step mother wanted and she poisoned my father’s ear. I was imprisoned in a cell. Luckily I still have some friends and four of them broke me out. Three died during the escape and I arrived here with Dai, the last of my friends.” He paused and looked me directly in the eye. “Will you give me sanctuary and let me serve you?”
One of the qualities men like about me is the ability to sum a man up quickly. I was the one who first saw the flaws in Morcant Bulc, Ywain and Bladud. I was the one who identified Miach, Riderch and Tuanthal as great leaders. I closed my eyes and listened to my voices. There was silence and then a small voice told me to trust him. I opened my eyes and saw that all but Myrddyn were staring at me. “I will, Prince Cadfan, for I feel obligated to you. I rescued you once and it seems that the gods or wyrd wish me to continue to watch over you. Will you swear loyalty to me, become an oathsworn?”
He knelt on one knee and said, “I so swear. Lann Warlord of Rheged and Dux Britannica.”
We left for Aelle’s Burgh the next day. Myrddyn left us to visit the mountain but he told me, in a quiet moment, that he agreed with my decision. I know that if he did not he would have told me and so it meant a great deal. Dai was about the same age as the prince and seemed to be a quiet affable youth. He and Lann got on well as we rode north. I rode next to the prince to ask more of him and his father while Lann and Dai exchanged stories of their own lives.
“I think another reason he has turned against me is because I told him that the Saxons were our enemies and not our neighbours. I think the fact that our army drove them away from yours made him believe that we were better. Before then he had been a little afraid of your warriors and now, having been defeated twice he blames you for those defeats as though you instigated the war. I did not like the way he hired the Irish to attack you. They are nothing more than pirates and brigands and they have enslaved many of our people before now.”
So he had paid the Hibernians, that, in itself, was interesting. I wondered where the money was now? If Felan was wise, and he was certainly cunning, then he would have left it at home and he could now hire another army for there were always Irishmen for hire. Already I had gleaned much from him.
Aelle’s Burgh had the same busy feel as Raibeart’s and the people looked happy while the men being trained looked industrious. Like me Aelle was intrigued at the presence of the prince but he made the youth feel welcome. That evening while Lann and the two youths strolled around the burgh I spoke with Aelle.
“Are any of these warriors going to be wanted by you for your garrison? And are there any would be potential leaders?”
He grinned, “I would say all of them if I did not know that you wanted a large number yourself. There are some twenty or so, a mixture of archers and warriors who would make a good garrison.” He drew me close. “But there are some interesting warriors who I think will make good leaders but, two of them are Saxon, or like me, half breeds.”
“Do not denigrate yourself. Your Saxon blood does not stop you being a Roman does it?” Since the visit of Andronikos we had thought of ourselves more as Romans than as Britons.
He shrugged. “It does no bother me but I know there are others who sneer. Not to my face and certainly not to yours but they are out there.”
That annoyed me. I would have to discover who they were and let them now what I thought of that. “So, these leaders, can I meet them tomorrow before I leave?”
“Of course. I will show you the men training and you can judge for yourself. I will not identify the leaders and we will see if we agree.”
The next day Aelle brought out his forty would be warriors and divided them into two teams; one slightly larger than the other. He would act as referee and decide when some one was dead or incapacitated. They were using the wooden swords the Romans had used to avoid serious injury but having used one myself I could attest to the fact that a blow from one of those was not easily forgotten. He gave the smaller team the task of holding a small dune. This was one of those times that others would say I could read men’s minds or do as Myrddyn did and see into the future but that was not so. I just knew my brother. I knew that the potential leaders were in the smaller group who had the harder task of defending when outnumbered.
Lann was quite excited to be watching while I think that Cadfan and Dai were bemused. As the two teams planned their strategy he sidled over to me. “Warlord, do many of your warriors practise like this?”
“All of them. We have done so since we were in Rheged. It is the Roman way.”
He looked puzzled. “But does it work?”
“Oh yes Prince Cadfan. The warriors can find out how their comrades perform in almost battle conditions and they can try things out which may work or may not.” I wondered if I ought to go on, this was a potential spy but that little voice in my head was still there. “Do you remember in the battle I fought against your father when we came upon you suddenly and had to retreat?”
“I remember. My father thought that he had you.”
“But we escaped because we could turn and move swiftly. That does not come accidentally. We had practised that in games such as this. What do your warriors do when they are not fighting?”
“They fight against each other in practice bouts.”
“With real weapons?” He nodded. “And they get injured?” Again he nodded and then smiled; he was beginning to understand it. “A battle is not fought man against man, it is men against men. You can have the finest warrior in a battle but unless he has good warriors around him then he will lose. We win more times than we lose because we fight together and we know each other.” I turned to Lann. “Look at Lann here; he stands behind me in the shield wall and I know that he will, with my other warriors protect my back. Lann here has slain warriors who were about to strike me and has saved my life. Is that not so squire?”
Swelling with pride my nephew said, “I am oathsworn. It is my duty.”
“Ah, I will watch this combat with new eyes. Thank you for explaining it to me Warlord. This is the first real lesson in war I have had.”
The combat was about to begin and I saw that both groups had been trained well and knew how to use the shield wall but the ones standing on the dune were directed by two blond haired warriors who organised their men into two ranks. Even though this meant they could be outflanked I knew why they did it. I knew, just
by watching them, which were the two potential leaders. One placed himself in the front rank and the other stood behind the second.
The larger group were using their superior numbers to outflank the enemy. Suddenly the sand dune band charged down the dune. They struck the middle of the larger group and knocked them from their feet, striking down with their wooden swords as they did so. Then they turned to make two lines back to back and attacked the two flanks of the enemy which they outnumbered. It was all over in less than a heartbeat. The group on the dunes had two casualties and all of the rest were eliminated. My three companions clapped enthusiastically. “That was well done was it not, Warlord?”
“It was indeed Prince Cadfan. Those two blond boys have fought before.”
We wandered over to speak with the warriors. Those who had been struck were nursing bruises, grazes and even cuts. The blond boys were retelling the story to each other. I had experienced that myself. When you won you could not wait to tell others, even if they were there at the same battle, what had happened. Aelle gave me a sly look as he approached me. “Well?”
“I confess that I knew who they were before the battle began but they are impressive leaders. That was as comprehensive a victory as I have ever seen. Introduce me please.”
As soon as we approached they all stood and bowed their heads. They had seen me when they joined and were a little in awe of me. “The Warlord would like to speak with you.”
“I like the way that you fought, even those who lost.” I saw rueful smiles. “We cannot win every battle.”
One of Aelle’s bodyguards who was close by blurted out, “You do Warlord!”
Aelle silenced him with a nudge and my three companions all laughed. “Even when you lose you should fight as hard as you can for there will always be another battle. I look forward to the time you join my shield wall and go to war with me and my warriors, my Wolf Warriors!”
They all began banging their wooden swords against their shields and roaring. Aelle held his hand up for silence. “You may go with Tadgh here for more training but Aelfraed and Aethelgirth, can you stay behind to speak with the Warlord.”