by Griff Hosker
I became alarmed, “Why did you not light the beacon?”
“Because the problem was solved by Aelfraed and Aethelgirth. They spied them from the tower and, after raising the other warriors from the nearby towers ambushed the raiders and slaughtered them. And they captured their ship! Now what do you say of Saxon blood!”
“I say what I have always said, a man’s blood does not bother me but his heart does. I told you I trusted your judgement and I am pleased that Aelfraed and Aethelgirth have proved so resourceful. How would you feel if I stole them from you to base them here and train them as officers?”
“I would be delighted for I have the others who came with them and they show the same promise.” He grasped my arm, “Thank you brother.”
“What for? It was your eye and your judgement that picked out the warriors. I should be thanking you.”
The two young warriors arrived at the end of the week. Garth took one and Ridwyn the other. They had shown their prowess in the shield wall and it would have been foolish not to use their skills and talent. Both of my captains were pleased with them. Garth and I were walking along the cliffs looking at the stormy skies to the south and he discussed them both. “They have both fought before Warlord. In fact I can see that they have both led men in battle.”
“Aelle used them as leaders when training.”
“No, Warlord, these men have led and fought in wars. We are lucky to have them. I can see them being commander of ten soon and then commander of fifty. Eventually they could replace Ridwyn and me.”
“Now you are being foolish Garth.”
“No, Warlord, none of us are young men any more.”
“And that includes me I suppose.”
He smiled, “All men grow old and the grey flecks in your hairs are not the salt spray are they Warlord?”
I laughed, “You are right. Give me progress reports on our new warriors.”
We had a festival for the harvest. It was one of those times when pagan and Christian could celebrate together for while we worshipped the Mother, they thanked their White Christ for the harvest. Aelle and Raibeart left a skeletal force watching the towers and brought the rest to the hall. We now had more rooms for, with the arrival of my new family, Hogan needed his own rooms and he and Pol shared a chamber adjacent to that of my family.
It was a joyous celebration and it was only then that I noticed that the other equites had copied Pol and Hogan and were now clean shaven. It marked them as different from the warriors of the shield wall for they were all bearded, some of them, like Aelfraed and Aethelgirth, with braided moustaches. It was the first time I realised the power and effect of my son. He was becoming my heir and I was happy that he would be the next Warlord. I had also noticed a change in the way he conducted himself. The headstrong Hogan of yesteryear had been replaced by a Hogan who was calmer and less reckless. Both those qualities would stand him in good stead when he became leader.
I sat and spoke with him and Pol while the others became drunker and drunker. It pleased me that the two new officers, Aelfraed and Aethelgirth also seemed to handle their intake better and they smiled at me with a slight bow as they withdrew to bed. They would make good officers. Myrddyn came to join us. He, like me, never seemed to drink too much.
“A good celebration Warlord.”
“Aye, they deserve it. We have had a good year and it is right to thank the Mother for her bounty and reward our people for their hard work.”
I looked at Pol who was now a man grown. He had been my squire and then trained Hogan. He had never asked for anything and was as loyal a warrior as one could wish. “Pol I have a mind to find another warrior to carry the Wolf Standard.”
His face looked as though I had slapped it. “Warlord! Have I offended you?”
I held up my hand, “Please Pol, hear me out. You and Hogan were sent to the east to learn to become better warriors. You have both shown that you have learned much. It would be a waste to have you merely guard my back. I would have you as Hogan, a leader of equites.” I looked to Hogan for help.
“He is right my friend. You are a leader. The men have always looked to you. I looked to you when I was growing up. The two men I wanted to be were my father and Pol.”
Myrddyn nodded his assent. “But we have two leaders already.”
“Aye but Pasgen now has more warriors and the only other officer I could give to him would be Aedh who is a fine horseman but he is a scout and he leads my scouts well. The only warrior who can lead as well as Prince Pasgen is you. Will you become a leader of my equites? I would have four companies of a hundred men each. We are short of that number but we are growing and the new mares have produced fine offspring. What say you Pol?”
“I would be honoured Warlord.”
He took my arm, “Good and now I too will retire for my days of carousing until dawn are long gone.” I headed for my bed and the arms of Myfanwy who would I knew be waiting for me. She had had that twinkle in her eye and I knew what it foretold. When I opened the door to the bedchamber she was sitting up in bed.
“The children are with the servants tonight. I thought that we could celebrate the harvest too.”
Chapter 19
I was not asleep when I heard the birds on the nearby cliffs already waking. Myfanwy was asleep in the crook of my arm and I was loath to move her. She had a contented expression on her face. Suddenly I heard the clash of arms outside the door and the noise of violence. I jumped, naked from the bed and grabbed Saxon Slayer. I flung open the chamber door and saw Pol and Hogan with bloodied weapons in their hands. At their feet lay Aelfraed and Aethelgirth. Aelfraed still lived although for how long I knew not as the wound in his chest was bleeding and pouring blood over the wooden floors.
“We heard a noise and when we came out of our chamber the guard at the end was dead and these two were approaching your door.”
Aelfraed gave a coughing laugh and blood seeped from the corner of his mouth. “Wyrd! We would have had you and my uncle would have had his revenge, Roman!”
“So you are not the son of a daughter of Elmet then?”
“No! And I have fought against you ere now! Would that I had succeeded. You will not hold on to this island for long Roman and it will become Saxon soon enough!” He coughed again and more blood came up. He looked at Hogan with hatred in his dying eyes. “I will see you in the Otherworld Roman and we will finish this.” And then he died.
“Quickly wake Garth, Raibeart, Myrddyn and Aelle and bring them here. I will get dressed. We have little time to lose.” I could see the questions in their eyes but they obeyed me. When I returned to the chamber my wife was awake. “Assassins came to kill us but they are dead. I must dress. We are all in danger!”
She helped me to dress and she kissed me tenderly. “So long as you are our leader the danger will soon be over.”
My brothers and my advisers arrived quickly and without dressing. Aelle paled when he saw the bodies and he looked at me. “I am sorry brother!”
I waved my arm in irritation. “This is no time for recriminations. Tell me Aelle, did any other of the Saxons who came with Aelfraed to join attend them here?”
He looked relieved, “No they all volunteered to stay on duty at two of the signal stations.”
He looked perplexed at my suddenly serious face. “It is as I feared. The Saxons will invade tonight.”
“How can you be sure father?”
“Remember his dying words. Soon he said. As soon as Aelle said that the rest had remained behind I knew that they would attack. The two stations will be close together which means they can attack and the people will have no warning. Add to that the fact that most of the garrison is here and…” I suddenly became angry. “I have no time to argue here! Just obey my orders. I want the equites ready to ride. Aelle you will come with us for you know where these signal stations are. Raibeart return home and light your beacons. I need Miach and the archers with me. Garth you can retain one hundred warriors, the ones who are s
uffering the most for the defence of the castle. Leave them with Ridwyn and then bring the rest to Aelle’s Burgh. That is where they will attack. Myrddyn, take charge here. It will need a calm head and a quick mind.”
“Yes Warlord!”
Lann Aelle had heard the commotion and he had my armour ready as soon as I had finished. “Well done Lann.”
“Did my father do wrong Warlord?”
“No Lann. He trusted someone and they let him down. It can happen to any man. It is just that when you are a leader the consequences are more damaging for your people.”
We rode from the castle with Aedh and his scouts ahead of us. I knew that there would be spies in Aelle’s Burgh and I needed to destroy the ones at the towers first and then take out the other traitors. We had over a hundred and fifty men with us and I knew that would be enough to deal with the spies but I was not sure that they would be able to deal with the invasion.
“Aedh, I want you to ride to Mungo. Explain what has occurred. I want all of Pasgen’s equites and half of his warriors to meet with me at Aelle’s Burgh.” He threw me a questioning look and I snapped irritably, “He needs to be told by someone he knows and trusts. Get back as soon as you can!” He grinned as he galloped off. “Prince Cadfan, please take charge of the scouts until Aedh returns.”
He looked shocked. “You trust me still?”
“I told you all before that I trust every man until he lets me down and when he does he had better flee to the ends of the earth for my reach is long!”
He nodded and kicked his horse on as he and Dai led the scouts in a semi circle ahead of us. I did not think that the Saxons would have launched their attack yet. They would need to secure the towers first.
Aelle rode next to me. He was subdued. “The first is just a mile over there.”
“Cadfan!”
The prince was next to me quickly. He had been listening for the order. “Take the scouts and ride in a loop to the beach. Stop any of the Saxons escaping and warning the ships.”
“Tuanthal, take Pol and half of the men and go to the tower to the east. We will take the tower to the west. One prisoner is all we need but I do not want to risk any more lives. Hide the bodies of the dead.”
“Yes Warlord.”
“Hogan, these are your equites you know how to use them. You give the orders.”
“Thank you Warlord.” He turned and passed on his instructions to the men nearest him.
“Aelle, take Miach and go to your burgh. Have your men seize the spies and find out the details of this plan.”
“I will not let you down again. My Saxon blood will not betray me more.”
“You have not let me down. It was just wyrd! Now go.”
I drew Saxon Slayer. He would soon be drinking deeply once more. We rode quickly towards the tower which was clearly visible, rising high above the stumpy wind blown trees. We knew they had seen us when the arrows flew at us to smack harmlessly off our armour. They must have known it was a hopeless situation they were in and would die but they were brave. They rushed to the bottom of the tower just in time to be speared by Hogan and his equites. Hogan had heard my words and his spear lanced into the thigh of a warrior. He quickly dismounted and disarmed the man. I reined in next to him. We crouched close to the man who was badly wounded. “How many ships are coming?”
“Enough to kill all of you Romans. You are too late. You will all die.” He pulled a dagger and lunged at me. The blade almost struck my armour but Hogan’s mace smashed into the Saxon’s skull making it unrecognisable.
“Thank you son. When you have finished off the rest get Tuanthal and meet me at Aelle’s Burgh. Hide the bodies, I want their leader to think they have gone to the fort.” I turned to Lann Aelle who held Scout’s reins. “Let us find the prince.”
There were two dead Saxons near to the twenty scouts. Prince Cadfan pointed out to sea. “There are ten ships, at least, out there.”
“Come with me. We have work to do.”
We headed towards Aelle’s Burgh some two miles away. I hoped that we were in time and that the traitors had not had time to capture the settlement. When I saw the bodies at the open gate my heart almost stopped. Had I sent my brother into a trap? I was relieved when he and Miach greeted me. “We were just in time. These traitors had killed the night guards and were about to slaughter the rest of the garrison when we arrived.”
“We have no time now to feel smug, there are ten ships out there. Get the garrison roused and seed the ditches with caltrops. Load the bolt throwers. This is where Myrddyn’s Greek Fire would have come in useful.” I know there was no point in wishing for what we did not have but it annoyed me that we had a superior weapon and could not use it. “We must hold on until Garth can reach us.”
Soon the ramparts were filled. We alternated archers and slingers with warriors. “We will leave the gate open and hide below the ramparts. I want them to think their spies have done their work.” I heard the galloping of hooves and went down to the gate to meet the horsemen. I waved to Hogan, Tuanthal and Cadfan. “I intend to tempt the Saxons into attacking. We will leave the bodies of the guards here. There is a ridge a mile away to the south. Take the horsemen there and await my signal. When you see the Wolf Standard raised then charge them. I hope by then that they will be occupied with us. If Garth has arrived by then he can attack on your left flank. Remember when we fought the Hibernians, it was small charges which weakened them. Repeat that tactic now. Miach’s archers and Aelle’s slingers will harass them but it is you, my equites, who will defeat them. Now go!”
“We will not let you down. You can count on us!”
They rode away and I suddenly felt alone. Lann and I walked slowly back into the fort. “For today, you shall raise the standard but you must wait until I say.”
Aelle strode over to meet with us. “Everything is in place.”
“Good. I want your ten best warriors here ready to slam shut the gate on my command. I want the Saxons committed to the charge before we launch our horses.”
Aelle looked doubtful. “It is a risk brother.”
“Life is a risk but we are trusting Tuanthal and Hogan and I believe they will not let us down. The Saxons have not met us with our lances and maces yet. They will get a shock.”
Aelle shook his head. “I still cannot understand how this has happened. The recruits never left the island.”
“They did not need to. The date was the key. We hold the festival at the same time each year. Aelfraed and his confederates would have been ordered to eliminate the guards. They would not have known about the towers; that was Aelfraed being clever. The Saxons would have known that many of the guards would be drunk on this night. They have planned this carefully but, with the help of the Allfather, we will prevail.”
Dawn was not far away when I saw a shadow moving from the east. I knew that it was the Saxons. I hissed a warning. “It is the Saxons. Await my signal before you show yourselves.” They moved quickly and it was strange to see the sun begin to peep over Wyddfa and show the enemy, almost as though the mountain was now on our side. I took it as a good omen. There looked to be well over five hundred, perhaps even a thousand warriors who came across the rolling land quite quickly. There was no order to them. They thought that the Burgh was theirs for they could see the gaping gate. “Lann Aelle, take off your helmet, stand and wave them on.”
Lann had blond hair and might be taken for Aelfraed. Certainly it would encourage them. He played the part well and I saw a wave in return.
“Steady!” I waited until they were forty paces from the gate and I roared, “Now!” The gates slammed shut and then the eighty slingers and archers stood and began to thin out the Saxon lines. The two bolt throwers cracked and whooshed into action cutting swathes of men down. I would not summon the horses until whoever led them had committed them all to the attack. Once the equites had begun the charge then we would not be able to use the bolt throwers. The slingers, archers and bolt thrower crews were already lathe
red in sweat as they sent missile after missile at the enemy. They had now reached the ditch and I heard the screams as they found our traps. The men on the walls now began to hurl down the huge rocks we had readied and they killed any who survived the arrows, stones and caltrops.
Aelle rushed over to me. “They have surrounded us on three sides and the ships are approaching the fourth.”
“Then shift the crews of these bolt throwers to the ones on the seaward side. We will launch the cavalry soon. You take charge of the seaward side brother. Destroy their ships!”
“With pleasure! The sea shall run red with Saxon blood.”
I turned to Lann Aelle. “Ready nephew?” He nodded eagerly. “Unfurl the banner but keep it hidden until I tell you and then wave it from side to side until you see Hogan.”
I drew Saxon Slayer. I wanted the enemy to know who they fought and to focus on the banner and me. I did not want them to see the line of horsemen who would be hurtling towards them. I could see that there had been about a thousand Saxons but it was now less than eight hundred and I decided that the time was right. “Now Lann! “ As he stood I roared over the ramparts. “Saxons flee or die! I am your nemesis, I am the Warlord of Rheged.” I thrust my blade into the air. “I am Saxon Slayer!”
It was like Myrddyn’s Greek Fire. The Saxons seemed to erupt like a volcano in an attempt to get at me. Miach, who was next to me, said, without taking his eyes from his target. “Let’s hope your son gets here before they tear the walls down!”
It was then that I both saw and heard the equites as the silver line galloped towards the unsuspecting Saxons. The dragon wail attracted their attention first but by the time they had turned Tuanthal and his horsemen were less that fifty paces away. Hogan and his lancers were at the centre, leaning forwards and the leading Saxons seemed to be transfixed with terror. “My lord!”