by Griff Hosker
It could have been comical for the ten sentries looked in awe at the wraiths that appeared from the fog. Without my wolf skin, helmet and shield I was not recognisable as the Warlord and Myrddyn’s fame was known throughout the land. I was no different from Lann Aelle beside me; save a little older. The leader of the sentries quickly recovered his composure and a spear was thrust at Myrddyn’s throat. “I am Myrddyn the wizard. I appeared without you seeing me as did my companions. Do you not think, had I wished you harm, that I could have materialised inside the fort?”
“Dai, get their weapons.”
I nodded to the other two and we handed over our swords to the man called Dai. His eyes widened when he saw Bear Killer. I still had a dagger in my boot but I hoped that I would not need it.
“Dai, you stay here. Gareth, come with me.” We were prodded, none too gently in the back and pushed towards the gate. When we reached it our captor rapped on the gate and said, “Captain of the guard, I have four prisoners.”
We heard the beam being moved from the gate and it creaked open. In the dim light we saw a wall of spears appear. “He says he is Myrddyn with news from our king.”
“Return to your post and leave them with me.”
I was familiar with the layout of the fort. It was identical to Civitas and I knew that we were being taken to the Praetorium. We had got further than I had expected and I hoped it was a good sign. The captain of the guard went inside the office and we heard the murmurings of a conversation. Then the door was opened and we were pushed inside. The commander of the fort was a squat and tough looking warrior. I seemed to remember seeing him many years ago when we had fought Iago. I had had my helmet on then and he would not have recognised me.
“I am Llewellyn ap Daffydd and I command here. Before I order your deaths tell me the story you told my men so that I may judge the truth.”
“I am Myrddyn the wizard!”
“I should kill you now as a liar for I know my king will have nothing to do with you!”
“King Iago is dead!”
“You lie! This is a Saxon trick.”
“To what end? Besides when did you ever hear of Myrddyn working for the Saxons?”
I stepped forwards, “Or Lann, the Warlord of Rheged.”
He suddenly recognised me and his sword came out in a flash and pricked my neck.”
“Why should I now not kill you and receive great honour from my king?”
“Because your king is now King Cadfan and he defeated his father in battle outside Wrecsam.”
“You lie!”
“You know I am the Warlord. Has anyone ever heard me lie? Even my greatest enemies know that I speak the truth. But King Cadfan gave me something to prove that I speak the truth.” I reached down into my pouch and drew out a golden dragon with a red ruby for an eye. “You know that this was worn around the neck of King Iago. If I have it then…”
I saw his shoulders sag and the sword drooped. “You speak the truth but I do not understand. Why are you here? Why risk death?”
“Because I am Warlord and we now have an alliance of three kings in Cymri. The men you command in here are too valuable to King Cadfan to lose. We are here to rescue you.”
He laughed. “That is a good one. How? Will Myrddyn fly us out?”
“First of all there is to be an assault by the Saxons in force the day after tomorrow. The fort will fall. Of that I have no doubt. I am here to offer you and your men a way out.”
Llewellyn sank into his seat with his shoulders slumped. He looked into my eyes. “The king is truly dead?”
I nodded. “I killed him in single combat.”
He gave a rueful smile. “He always thought he was the greatest warrior in the land. He was foolish to take on Lord Lann, the killer of champions. He kept promising that he would relieve us but in my heart I knew that he would not.” He sighed and then sat upright. “So tell me your plan and I will decide if I we escape or die at our posts.”
“King Cadfan is waiting close to the bridge. My warriors are with him. Tomorrow morning we loose three fire arrows. They will then attack the bridge. When we see the standard of King Cadfan on the bridge then we cross and escape.”
“As simple as that?”
“Can you see a flaw in it?”
“Will they be able to hold the bridge?”
“We just defeated King Iago and his army. I have seen their camps. There are less than three hundred close to the bridge.” I pointed west. “There are more than fifteen hundred ready to attack from the west the day after tomorrow.”
He looked at Myrddyn. “Can you use magic to help us wizard?”
He smiled, “I got us in here did I not. We crossed through their camps, and the river, to reach the fort.”
He nodded, “Very well. There seems little alternative.”
“How many men do you have?”
“One hundred and fifty fighting men and forty wounded. There are another fifty refugees.”
“Any horses?”
He shook his head. “We ate them.”
He looked at me to see if I was disappointed. I was not. This was all that I had expected. “We need everyone ready to leave as soon as we see the standard waved. Keep all of your soldiers on the walls but I want everything that will burn putting next to the north, west and east gates. We will fire them when we leave. The smoke will aid our escape and the flames will deter the pursuit from the north. We will burn the gatehouse before we cross the bridge.”
“We?”
“My warriors and me.”
“And I will aid you. You are a strange one, Warlord. You are putting your lives in jeopardy for an enemy.”
“No Llewellyn, King Iago was my enemy never the people or warriors of Gwynedd. Remember he attacked us. I was his ally as I was his father’s and now his son. The Emperor of Rome gave me the title of Dux Britannica. I swore an oath to protect this land and its people. My only enemy is the Saxon race.”
We had much to do. We reclaimed our weapons and began to build our pyres. The mist hid dawn for longer than usual and we had to wait to make sure that our arrows would be seen. Llewellyn summoned one of his archers. He loosed the three arrows in succession. They arced towards the south. I wondered what the Saxons would make of that. They could do little about it now anyway. All the people and warriors who were not on the walls were gathered behind the southern gate close to the bridge. Llewellyn had his best forty warriors on the bridge ready to support his new king.
“Myrddyn, can we do anything about damaging the bridge?”
“Fire will weaken it. I will build a couple of pyres beneath the northern pillars. There is plenty of wood.” He pointed at the crude huts first the Saxons and latterly the men of Gwynedd had erected. They were bone dry and would burn quickly. He ordered some of the defenders to follow him. Such was his power that they did so without question. I stood with Llewellyn and Lann by the bridge as Myrddyn and his men beavered away beneath our feet. The Saxons at the other end of the bridge were eyeing us suspiciously but we did not appear to be doing anything belligerent. It was a hiatus and I could feel the tension in the fort commander.
“How will we know when the King is attacking?”
I pointed to the men at the other end of the bridge. “I suspect they will form a shield wall but they will be worried about an attack to their rear. My men will be charging with the equites and it takes a brave man to stand up to a mounted, armoured man on an armoured horse. You have faced a wedge,” he nodded, “imagine facing that on horseback. There will not be many of them but they will be led by the king and my son. I guarantee that they will clear a way to the bridge and then my shield wall will hold the enemy back until we escape.”
“You are that confident about your men and the king?”
I said simply, “I trained them all; the men and your king. I have fought besides all of them and I know how good they are. Do not worry; your new king will forge and army ten times better than that of his father. He has a sound mind
and a good heart.”
“Meaning that Iago had a poor mind and a bad heart?”
“I have learned never to speak ill of the dead.”
Our conversation was interrupted by a roar from the Saxon side and we heard the first clash of battle. It was easy for me to visualise as I knew what would be happening. The scouts would have cleared the sentries; the archers would have showered the camp with arrows and then the equites, led by those wielding long spears would have charged. Poor Llewellyn had no concept of that type of warfare. I saw the worry etched into his face.
As I had expected they formed a weak shield wall to stop our escaping. “Come Lann. Let us introduce the Saxons to Bear Killer.”
“Yes my lord.”
“You would attack them, just the two of you? There are twenty of them.”
“There are twenty men looking over their shoulders. When I shout my war cry and we run at them they will think the whole fort is charging them.”
Without further ado I drew my sword and we ran at the shield wall. “Wolf Warrior!”
I heard a roar from behind me and knew that Llewellyn and his men had joined us. I was correct only three men had the courage to stand against us. Bear Killer took one, my shield punched a second over the bridge and my borrowed sword killed the last. We held both ends of the bridge. I grinned as I turned to face Llewellyn.
“You did it! That was mad, glorious, but mad.”
“You can start the fires and withdraw your men now. “ I pointed down the road where the standard of Gwynedd fluttered above the charging equites. The Saxons were not ready for battle and few had mail. I could see them throwing themselves away from the hooves. “Come Lann, let us find Aedh.”
Aedh was at the northern gate supervising the fiercest of the fires. The men were streaming down the stairs and joining the rest across the bridge. He pointed at the east gate, “We started those two fires first at the east and the west. It made the Saxons to the north head for the northern gate. It has delayed them.”
I heard the crash of axes on the undefended gates but it was too late now; the flames had caught hold. Not only were the gates on fire but the walkways and some of the wooden ladders were burning. The building had wooden beams in their roofs and they were burning. Deva would need to be completely rebuilt.
“Time for us to go.”
Llewellyn was waiting at the southern gate. “There are just us left. The rest have crossed the bridge.”
“Aedh light the last fire.” I turned and shouted, “Now Myrddyn!”
“You had better be quick then!”
The gates caught, it was open but we couldn’t help that. We reached the top of the bridge and Myrddyn and his men scrambled up. “I would run Warlord! I used some Greek Fire mixture!” Behind us we heard the screams of anger as the first of the Saxons burst through into the fort. We ran on to the bridge. Lann, Aedh and I turned to see how far away the enemy were. They were racing towards the southern gate.
“Warlord! Run!”
Chapter 18
We sped to the middle of the bridge. Suddenly, just as the first of the Saxons approached the end Myrddyn’s flames leapt into the air. There was a strange sound as though every wind in the world had blown all at once. The wall of flame leapt higher than a warrior on a horse and the three of us were knocked from our feet. Myrddyn raced to help me up. “I did warn you my lord.”
I stood laughing, “Am I complaining? That is a good fire; now let us get back to Ruthin.” We ran down the line of equites who withdrew behind us. I could see the squires were armed with bows and they were keeping away any of the Saxons foolish enough to show themselves.
Hogan had my horse for me while Pol and another equite each had one for Lann and Myrddyn. I was about to ask about Aedh when I saw that he was mounted and with his precious scouts. He inclined his head, “My men were ready Warlord!”
As I mounted I asked. “Have you an ambush site?”
“No Warlord but there is a marshy area with small lakes about four miles away. We will hold them there while the King and his people escape to Wrecsam. Mungo and Daffydd are preparing the defences now.”
“Good.”
I could see that we had caught the Saxons unawares. The men whose bodies littered the land around us were lightly armed. They were not the shield wall. Ardal had spoken true, the attack would come the next day but it would not be attacking Deva, it would be attacking Ruthin. We began to trudge down the road to safety. When we were a mile or so from Deva I asked. “Have we enough men in Ruthin?”
“We sent to Rhuddlan and Mungo’s Burg. We have stripped them of defenders but King Arthlwys and King Cloten took their warriors that way home and they will garrison the fort at the Narrows until we return. Mona will be safe.”
“Reading my mind son?”
“Lets us just say I know the way that you think.”
“Well Aethelfrith and his Eorl Aethelward have fifteen hundred men. I hope Aidan is prepared?”
He is. Brother Oswald sent over extra bolts and arrows while we were in Wrecsam. It seems he knows our plans better than we do.”
“You need to keep your horsemen out of the fort. Take them to Rhuddlan. When they are rested you can harass their supply lines. They will be using ships.”
“I ordered Daffydd to anchor off Rhuddlan. The Saxons are wary of the bolt throwers.” He pointed in the distance; there we could see the shield wall. “Keep to the road. There are traps and marshes to the left and right. I will leave you the squires. We will take our horses and go along the coast road to Rhuddlan. It should confuse the Saxons. They will think we are fleeing.”
“I will be glad when I am within Ruthin’s walls.” I knew that we had another fifteen miles to go and the last five would be over hilly ground.
“The squires have plenty of arrows. They might not be able to use them when riding but they can stop frequently and annoy them.” He handed me Saxon Slayer and, after I had sheathed it he clasped my arm. “Take care, father.”
“I will. And King Cadfan and his men?”
“We made sure they were safely on their way. He wanted to stay and fight as did his commander, Llewellyn, but I insisted. They were in no condition to fight.”
“And are we?”
“There are a hundred warriors and fifty archers ahead of us. They are all desperate to avenge Garth and Miach. They are ready.”
Mungo grinned when I reached him. “This will see how fit the men are. Fight run and fight some more!”
I waved to Hogan, Pasgen and Tuanthal who took their place to our left. When the squires arrived they lined up to our right. The archers were already behind the shield wall. “Now Mungo, no heroics. We want them to bleed all the way to Ruthin.”
“Of course Warlord.”
The Saxons had formed a crude wedge. I could see them as they ran along the road. That suited me for it would tire them out. As soon as they were two hundred paces away the equites suddenly galloped off towards the west. I knew there was consternation amongst the Saxon ranks for they halted, unsure of what to do. They did not know if the horsemen were riding to attack their flank. They had no way of knowing they could not charge again. There also appeared to be twice as many of them as each equite was leading a spare horse.
The Saxon leader compromised and detached a wedge to follow them. The rest came on. Suddenly the detachment set up a wail as they found the traps and the marshes to the west of the road. I doubt that any died but they were out of the battle at any rate. The rest came on. They tried to spread into a larger wedge but they found marshes to the east of the road and they were forced to keep a narrow wedge. When they were a hundred paces from us Daffydd shouted the orders to the squires and his men. A hundred arrows soared into the sky. They kept loosing until the sky was black with them. The front of the wedge was so badly cut up that the thirty warriors who reached us were no match for our well armed and well trained warriors. I did not have to unsheathe Saxon Slayer. The enemy halted.
Mungo gri
nned at me, “Now we can go.” He waved at the squires who waved back. They formed a thin line before the Saxons as we moved along the road to Ruthin. We ran for five miles and then halted. We were not tired but I wanted the pursuing Saxons to be. The squires were enjoying themselves. Every time the Saxons ran to within fifty paces of their tormenting arrows they turned and rode out of range of the weary warriors. Aedh and his scouts were watching the Saxons and reporting to me.
“They are becoming weary my lord. There are about six hundred of them in the first group and another three hundred who are lagging behind.”
“And they will have sent some by sea.”
“True, Myrddyn. Aedh, send a scout to Aidan and warn him of our proximity.” I turned to Daffydd. “You can best be used to ambush them close to the fort. Use the bushes and hedgerows close to the road. Five arrows each should do it and then join Aidan in the fort.”
“Will be you be able to hold them off, Warlord?”
“We do not have to do that. We just have to draw them on to our walls and we can manage that.”
It was late afternoon when Ruthin hove into view. The climb up the Clwyd hills was brutal even for my fit warriors. For the Saxons it must have been unbearable. The leader of the squires rode up to me. “My lord we are out of arrows and the horses are weary.” He gave me a rueful look. “As are my men.”
“You have done more than I could have hoped. Join the equites in Rhuddlan. My son knows what to do.”
Aedh grinned at me. “We are not tired.”