by Griff Hosker
Haaken and Cnut carried the pot towards the river. We had a procession of warriors behind. Every warrior was armed to honour the dead beast and each carried a lighted torch. When we reached the river Haaken and Cnut placed the pot in the water and stepped back. I reached in and took out the heart. Holding it before me I sang,
“Odin the Allfather,
Take this heart,
Odin the Allfather
Grant us strength.”
I laid it in the river.
“Odin the Allfather,
Take this blood,
Let it flow to the sea,
Let it keep us safe”
I tipped the blood into the water. There were eddies which made the blood swirl around my feet.
I knelt down in the bloody water.
“Odin the Allfather,
Hear my plea,
Protect the Dragon Heart
and all of his people.”
I knelt down to touch the water. As I did so the light from the torches around showed the dark red eddies disappearing and the blood flowing to the sea. I stood and raised my hands. “We thank you Allfather!”
The warriors erupted. It had been a good sacrifice. The river had drunk the blood, consumed the heart and take both to the sea and Odin.
We skinned the boar and buried it in a fire pit. We covered it with grasses, bushes and branches and then earth. While we slept it would slowly cook.
I felt much happier when I awoke the next day. It had been a good blót. Had the blood and the heart remained at my feet it would have been a bad sign but the fact that it had gone to the sea was perfect. The heart of the boar had been enormous and the blood had almost filled the cooking pot.
The men dug up the boar and we ate well on succulent, slowly cooked meat. We spent the morning salting the fish which had been caught the previous day. The boys went, under Aiden’s supervision, and collected wild berries. We foraged when we could for we were going into an unknown land.
The sentry we had placed downstream ran to us, “The ‘Bear’ is here!”
Rolf had made a swift passage; another sign that the blót had worked. He tied the ship to a rock and strode over. His face split into a grin when he smelled the meat. “You have feasted well Jarl Dragon Heart.”
“Aye and we had a good blót. This place shall be known as Blood Pool from now on. Have your men enjoy the meat.”
He did so. We all knew that to eat the meat of the animal which was sacrificed enhanced the powers of that sacrifice. As they ate, Rolf, who had travelled more widely than any of us, said, “I know some Jarls who would have sacrificed a prisoner or even one of their own men to ensure a good voyage.”
Aiden looked up from the berries he and the boys were cleaning, “Did they eat of the flesh?” I knew that the Hibernians had different customs.
Rolf looked at Aiden and said, darkly, “Aye they did.”
There was a pause as Aiden took it in. “And did that work?”
Rolf looked thoughtful for a moment, “You know I never found out. I did not sail with the jarls who did that.”
Aiden was a thoughtful youth. He asked questions which had not been asked before. This was my first blót. I had made sacrifices myself before but they were for me and my family. I had sacrificed this time as jarl and that was much more serious.
I looked ahead at the hills. “Aiden fetch the map we have.”
When I had first begun sailing with Olaf and Prince Butar we had started to draw a map with the places that we knew. At first there was more that was empty than was filled in. Now, however, we had lines showing the coast and there were few gaps, at least on the western side of the island. The older marks were now faded but the red of Audun’ston stood out.
Aiden laid it on the ground and took out the feather he used to make the lines. “I will add the new places, jarl.”
While we examined it he went to last night’s fire and took some of the charcoal which he mixed with water. Then he went amongst the rocks and lifted them. He collected a couple of black beetles and crushed them. He returned to the map and drew the line of the coast from Audun’ston and then the river then he carefully put a red dot and marked it with some letters.
Cnut asked, “What is that Aiden?”
“That is where we are, the Blood Pool.”
I took out my seax and used it as a pointer. “Rolf, we know that up here there is a mighty river.” I jabbed at the river which ran close to the Roman Wall. He nodded. “What I need to know is what is between these two rivers. This one we cannot sail up. Is there one further north?”
“When we sailed in, this morning, I saw a river to the north for the bay seems to sweep around. I do not know if there are any others.”
“Then we make for there. Load the boat with as much as we can. We will take the horses. It will take us longer to reach there but you can have a camp ready on the banks of this new river.”
“Aye my lord.”
We swam the horses across the river, which was lower than it had been, the tide was on its way out, and then Rolf ferried us across. It was easy going as we headed north. The land was undulating and we found that the beach grew ever closer. With our ship carrying the heavy items we made good time. Snorri said, “Jarl Dragon Heart, look!”
He pointed to the sea and I could see that it was retreating before my very eyes. I had seen the tide go out before on flat places but never like this. We stopped and watched as the blue grey water changed to yellowy mud and sand.
“ Look at ’Bear’! She is stuck!”
We all looked to where Beorn of the sharp eyes pointed. Rolf had been sailing towards the northern shore and had been caught out by a rapidly retreating tide. He was going to be stranded on the sticky muddy patch of sand until the next high tide.
“We can do little to help him. We will push on to the river and hope that he is refloated on the next tide.” Perhaps the sacrifice had not been a good one or perhaps the sisters were toying with us once more. All of our food and shelter was on board our ship. We just had the weapons and clothes we stood in. There was little that we could do about our ship. We pushed on.
Summer had been good but that day the sisters decided to be particularly precocious and sent a sharp summer storm complete with black clouds and torrential rain which made seeing further than a few hundred paces ahead impossible. The men’s spirits sank and we trudged on, heads down watching each footstep as the only marker of our progress.
And then, as suddenly as it had sprung up, the storm stopped. The clouds fled towards Man as rapidly as they had come from the east and the sun began to dry our sodden clothes. I saw that we had reached the point where the bay headed west. Out to sea there was no sign of the ’Bear’ and I began to fear for her safety. Then I remembered that Rolf was a good captain and that it had been a good blót. I had to have faith in the gods. So far we had not lost a man and I had no reason to believe that the Allfather had fallen out with us.
“Come we will push on. The river cannot be far ahead.”
Suddenly, just half a mile ahead Snorri shouted, “A river!” However when we found it we realised it was not the river of which Rolf had spoken. It was shallow enough to wade. We trudged on as the sun began to sink towards the west. We found Rolf’s River just when the sun began to dip slowly beyond the horizon. We could see that this was a bigger river. We could have moored six or seven boats in its mouth.
“Make camp!”
The men threw down their shields and began to build shelters. If the rains came again we would need them. The food we had last eaten at noon was now just a memory and I knew that the pangs of hunger would be gnawing at the insides of the others as it was with me.
I sent the boys to the sands to dig up shellfish. We could, at least, make a fire and bake them. They would not satisfy us but they would, perhaps, make us feel as though we had eaten. The chewy cockles and limpets did not lift our spirits much but the fires which dried our clothes and the presence of something warm inside, did,
at least help us to sleep.
Chapter 8
When we awoke there was no sign of the ship and I sent the scouts out to see what the land around was like. Haaken and Cnut led men to go hunting.
Beorn and Snorri arrived back before the hunters and they brought disturbing news. “Jarl Dragon Heart, there is a fortified settlement on the other side of the river. It is just on the opposite bank. They have armed warriors there.”
“How many warriors?”
“It looks to be a warband of over fifty.”
“Are they Saxon?”
“I do not think so. If I was to take a guess then I would say Hibernians.”
Snorri nodded his agreement. “Aye, there were bare chested men with tattoos and lime in their hair.”
I needed my ship. I needed to be able to cross this river. When Haaken and Cnut returned I set the men to cooking while I took the Ulfheonar to investigate this Hibernian fort.
We found a low rise on the eastern bank of the river. We chose a place where the river narrowed from the wide estuary to just a few hundred paces. The village was a mile or so away from the water. There was a small hill which gave us some cover and we watched the settlement. The wooden wall around the huts was not intended to keep out man. It was intended to keep animals in and wild animals out. It would not prove an obstacle. They had one gate and it looked to be the type that you dropped into place. It would be broken easily but it would stop the Hibernians fleeing once the wolves were in the hen house. “You are right, they are Hibernians. But look, in the fields beyond. What are they doing?”
Beorn’s eyes came to our aid again, “There are thralls working in the fields. They have yokes about their necks. There look to be over sixty of them.”
I led the Ulfheonar down the bank so that we would not be seen. “Well that explains the Hibernians. They have taken the village and enslaved the people.”
“Then why not take them and sell them?”
“I think, Haaken, that they might well do that when they have harvested the crops which are growing. The Hibernians are clever people. They know how to make a profit.”
Tostig nodded, “Then we can travel up this side of the river and when we return they will be gone.”
I shook my head. “No, we will destroy these Hibernians and free these people.”
Most of the Ulfheonar, with the exception of Haaken and Cnut, stared at me as though I had the moon madness. “But why Jarl? They are not our people!”
“You are right Einar but I am not of your people. I am half Saxon and half something else. I told you before we left Man that I was seeking answers. I wish to find out about my past. The box I found in the monastery was another pointer. We are being led here.” I looked at them. “You are Ulfheonar and you have all sworn an oath to me but I will have no man bound to me when he does not wish to follow. Any who chose to leave may do so. I release you from your oath.”
There was a stunned silence and then Tostig and the others began to clamour. Haaken held up his hand, “Do we want adventure? Do we want riches?” No one said a word. “Then we follow Dragon Heart. I, for one, wish to see where this path we tread, leads. It may be to death but at least there will be great glory and we will be seated close to the Allfather in Valhalla.”
They all nodded their agreement. I was riding the storm clouds and my wolves were with me. We feared no-one.
It was noon when a battered ‘Bear’ limped towards us. Rolf edged her close to our camp and the boys raced to tie her securely to the shore. “Get the mast down, Rolf.”
Rolf knew better than to question my orders and the mast was quickly taken down. He came over to me. “What is the matter Jarl Dragon Heart?”
“There are Hibernians across the river. We are going to attack them tonight. I do not want them to know there is a dragon ship on the river.” He nodded. “What happened?”
“It was my fault. I thought to take the short route across the bay and the outgoing tide caught us out. It took some time to refloat her and when we did the storm drove us away from the shore. But we are here now.”
I could see that he was both annoyed and angry with the events. He hated letting me down but it was not of his doing. Had he sailed successfully to the shore then the Hibernians would have spotted him and would know that we were in the vicinity. The sisters had been spinning and they had approved of the sacrifice.
“Will she float?”
“Of course Jarl but I would not like her on the open sea.”
“All I want is for you to transport the warriors across the river after dark so that we can attack when they do not know we are here. The longer we delay the more chances there are of them seeing us.”
“Then I will take us across.”
We chose ten warriors to row the ship back. We attached ropes so the boys could use the horses to help pull the damaged drekar back. The last thing we needed was for us to be stranded. We had the rest of the afternoon to prepare. We sharpened weapons. We used seal oil to protect our amour. My Ulfheonar donned their red paint and chose their weapons. We would take just shields and swords. The bows could be used by the others.
My plan was simple. The Ulfheonar would go to the far side, the side nearer to the sea and scale the small wall. We would infiltrate the village and kill the guards. As soon as the alarm was raised then Rolf would lead the others from the river side. It was a variation of the plan we had used the last time.
Having made sure we had all eaten well we left as soon as the light left the sky. We moved swiftly across the water on the overloaded drekar. We had three men to an oar. After scrambling ashore we watched as the dragon ship was hauled and rowed back to the other bank. When it reached safety I was relieved. I led the Ulfheonar along the river and left Rolf and the rest to secrete themselves along the bank and to wait. There were no discernible trails but the ground was relatively flat and without obstacles. We could smell the smoke from the stockaded town and we could see the glow from their fires. It was easy to find the far side.
We hid behind some low bushes and stunted trees. I knew that we were as hard to see as it was imaginable. Dressed from head to toe in black there was no flesh to be seen. Even our hands were blackened. Our eyes were darkened within our helmets and our bright swords remained sheathed until we needed them.
We could see beyond the low wall and we saw the Hibernians moving around. We heard a scream; it was a woman and she was in trouble. I hoped that Rolf would realise that this was not our attack. The screams reached a crescendo and I heard the rough cruel laughter of drunken men carrying across to us. This was the time to attack; they were preoccupied. I waved my line of eleven warriors forward.
I drew my sword as we moved slowly across the rough ground. It was littered with small stones and the rubbish discarded by the village. It meant we had to be careful to avoid making the noise of a slipped footfall. We reached the ditch which surrounded the wall. It was mercifully dry. Pausing to listen for noise I lifted my head to look over the top of the rough wooden wall. There was a large fire in the middle around which sat some of the Hibernian warriors drinking. Just to one side was the woman who was being assaulted by the drunken Hibernians. She was lying still. I could not see any armed guards but I knew, from Snorri, that there were at least another thirty, in addition to the twenty, I could see. I raised my sword and slipped over the wall.
There was barely a sound made by the twelve of us. Any slight noise was covered by the noise from the men close to the fire. We ran in a wide circle. I wanted our attack to have an instantaneous effect. It did. One of the warriors on the far side of the fire must have seen us for he stood and shouted, “Wolf!” I had almost reached the line of warriors whose backs were to us. They turned. I sliced the head from the nearest warrior and backhanded the one next to him. Ragnar’s Spirit sliced his ribs open. A warrior stood and tried to grab me. I punched him in the face with my shield and he tumbled backwards into the fire. He ran, like a spectre with the lime in his hair on fire.
The ones near the fire had been easy to kill. They were drunk and they were surprised. The ones who emerged armed from the huts were prepared and would not be easy to kill. I sensed movement behind me and turned just in time. A huge warrior swinging a two handed long axe aimed at my head. I ducked beneath the blow and stabbed forward. My sword stuck him high in his thigh. He gave an angry roar and reversed the swing. He had quick hands and I stepped backwards to avoid it. I was holding my shield high and did not see the dead Hibernian over whom I tripped. Although the axe missed me he screamed in triumph and lifted the axe high to split me in two. I kicked hard at his good leg and he fell, I rolled to avoid his body and, leaping to my feet, fixed his body to the ground with my sword.
I took the opportunity to regain my breath and I stared around. I could see many dead Hibernians but my Ulfheonar all stood. I saw Rolf and the other warriors fighting on the far side of the fire and they were being forced back to the wooden wall.
I hefted my shield around and slipped my seax into my left hand. I ran to the aid of my men screaming, “Ulfheonar!” I knew that any of my warriors, who could, would come to our aid.
I hurled myself at the back of a heavily tattooed warrior wielding two swords. He was quick. He must have heard me coming for he swung around and both swords sliced towards my head. I saw his grinning face and noticed that it too, was heavily tattooed. I held my shield and sword up. They took the blows of the two swords and I head butted him. I heard the crack from his nose and his forehead. He slumped to the ground and I stabbed him through his throat.
The Hibernians are a wild people who will fight amongst themselves if there are no enemies for them to kill. They fought ferociously. We were better armed, better protected and better prepared and yet they continued to fight long past hope. I had to admire their courage; futile though it was. They fought to the last. None asked for quarter and none was given.