Chapter 37
Outside Hammer Haven
A cool, brisk breeze filled the sails of the rafts guided by the Helsop men. They steered close to shore, examining yet another river mouth for signs that matched Leif's description. Dagon slowed his progress, dragging an oar in the water as they maneuvered past the out flowing stream. Their supplies were dwindling and they were two days past their estimated time of arrival.
Tandor pointed to a jumble of rocks set in the middle of the out flowing water. Dagon kept his eyes fixed on the outline of the rocks. He shouted to Tandor.
"If this is our river, the topmost rock should resemble a bird's head and beak."
Dagon frowned as he studied the highest rocks. He saw no profile resembling a bird, no matter how much he willed it. He took down the sail to further slow their progress. They passed the rock jumble slowly, turning their heads first one way, then another. As they drew parallel to the mound of rocks, Tandor shouted in excitement.
"I see it. I see it. It will be clear in a moment."
They passed the pile of rocks and the bird's profile took shape. Soon all six men were pointing at the rocks and shouting. Dagon continued past the mouth of the river along the shore of Cold Lake, looking for a beach where they could drag their boats ashore. He pointed to a sandy incline up ahead and all three rafts headed toward it.
Dagon and Tandor jumped off as soon as their raft touched bottom. They continued to pull the raft toward shore before they lost momentum. When all three rafts were grounded the six men wrestled them a little further into the sand, then cut down bushes to hide the rafts from anyone sailing by.
Deimos sat beside his raft to rest. "I had begun to wonder if Leif was in his right mind when he told us the story of Hammer Haven. I thought perhaps no such place really existed," he said wearily.
Olaf nodded in agreement. "We could still find a situation different from what he described. Perhaps his people are not really in need of rescue."
Dagon shook his head. "The voyage Leif undertook is not one I would have made if conditions were not dire."
Otto looked out at the lake. "He said it was half a day's journey from here up river against a strong current to reach the castle."
Dagon looked out at the size of the river's outflow, marked by a muddy color quite distinct from the dark blue of the lake. "I expect he is right. We could cover the distance faster walking."
Tandor rubbed the sand from his eyes. "If we wanted to leave in a hurry, we would do better to try to take the rafts up river now. That way the current of the outgoing stream would aid in our escape."
Dagon sat with his chin resting on his fingertips. "That is so, yet we run more risk of being discovered the closer we venture toward the castle. I think we should scout the river between here and the castle before we dare to go closer. We need to see what the situation calls for before we make a plan."
Maki the Scout stood up. "Let me look around first and see where we are."
Maki returned a few moments later. "The trails are little used except by animals. I smell no smoke, I see no signs of any settlements. I believe our rafts will be safe here."
Dagon considered for a moment. "Let us go see Hammer Haven. We will not take the time to cover our tracks yet. If we come across Vagan outposts or guards, we will cover both sets of tracks on our return."
The men made a fire and cooked the fish they had caught on their drag lines. Most of the dried meat brought from Helsop had been eaten. They filled their pockets with what fish they had left and started south along the river bank.
Maki the Scout took the lead, walking ahead of the other men. The remaining five men walked quietly, alert to any signs of Vagan guards. They heard movement on the trail ahead, but could see no men approaching. Dagon signaled a halt and Maki the Scout turned back pressing his fingers to his lips. They all stepped off the trail and hid in the bushes. No one breathed a word. A few seconds passed, then a grey wolf loped by, followed by four others in his pack. They sniffed the air and the trail with their long noses.
The animals had the men's scent and stared right at them through the bushes that screened them. The pack seemed nervous. Their fur bristled and their ears twitched as they passed. Perhaps they had previous experience with men and feared them.
Dagon stood up and whispered to Maki. "It is rare to see wolves during the day."
Maki nodded his agreement. "I could see movement from the high ground but could not make out what was coming. I thought it best to take cover. They might have attacked a single man, but they were afraid of so many together."
The men proceeded with a little more confidence. There was little likelihood of encountering Vagans guards. If there were guards regularly deployed in this area, they knew wolves would avoid coming here.
At a curve in the path, Maki turned back again to join the others.
"I can see the castle in the distance from the rise ahead. It is another two or three miles from here."
Dagon looked up at the sun. It was halfway between its apex and the horizon.
"Let us stop here until dusk. We will go the rest of the way then and arrive at the castle under cover of darkness."
The six men found patches of ground free of bushes and lay down to nap until dusk.
As the sun set over the western horizon, Dagon roused the men and they set off for the castle.
From the top of a hill, Maki signaled them to move forward cautiously. Below them lay the castle at the edge of the wide dark river. They were close enough to see movement within the castle. Torches cast shadows on the walls surrounding the castle and lamps showed figures passing by windows. From the courtyard in front of the castle they could hear loud, drunken voices, singing and shouting punctuated with laughter.
"If they be Vagans, they seem to be enjoying themselves," Deimos observed.
"Mayhap a little too much," Dagon added. "Wait here. I want to go a little closer."
Dagon returned a few minutes later. His expression was hid in darkness but his voice was grim. "It is as Leif described. The women and children are there to serve the Vagans. I suspect we will find the men imprisoned in the village just as Leif said. I would like to make sure, but the village is off to the east and we will have no trail to follow in the dark." Dagon stopped to give his men time to consider whether or not they wanted to go on.
Maki the Scout spoke first. "There is a quarter moon and we have Leif's directions. I think we can find it."
"No reason to delay," Deimos said with conviction.
The men turned east toward Hammer Haven. They reached the village an hour later, scratched and weary from forging a path through thick foliage. They were not aware of the village until they were almost upon it. No lights glowed here and no laughter flowed from the vacant houses. A thorough search of the town revealed no sign of life.
Dagon called his men together. "According to Leif the forges are located just to the south of the village. We may as well go on and see what we find there."
They moved past the village like phantoms, slower and more attuned to any sound than before. As they moved south of the village, the smell of smoke led them to a fire in front of a group of sheds—the forges. A few guards stood outside the forges, grumbling at their bad luck in having to take their turn at guard duty.
Inside the forge sheds all was quiet. Dagon considered the situation.
"The men of Hammer Haven must be imprisoned inside those sheds, just as Leif said. We need to get a message to them somehow."
"Shall we take out the guards?" Deimos asked.
"Not yet. Let us try to circle around the forges to see if there is a way inside from the rear."
The men walked around in a wide half circle. The forges were nestled into the hillside with no hope of attaining entrance.
The tired men sat at the bottom of the hill and considered their best course of action. Maki the Scout joined them. "There is a cave
jutting into the hillside a little ways up. We could take cover there and see what the morning brings."
The men crawled up the hill, ate what little bits of fish they had squirreled away in their pockets and lay down at the far end of the cave to sleep.
Princess Electra Book 4 School of Medicine Page 39