Haven Keep (Book 1)

by R. David Bell

  “I don’t know if we should be here.”

  Kaiden jumped again at a voice from behind. This time it was Soren. He needed to pay closer attention to who and what was sneaking up on him. Who could tell what kind of creatures lived down here?

  “Do you recognize those bones?”

  Kaiden scanned the cavern to find what Soren was talking about. Then he saw it. A massive skeleton on the other side of the lake of fire. Great bones that were laid to rest probably a thousand years earlier. Maybe turned to rock from the heat of this place. Its skull was enormous. He’d only seen one like it before. On a wall of bones. A dragon skull.

  “The vyr live in caves like these.” Soren spoke candidly. There was no fear in his voice.

  If there were vyr down here it was more than enough to frighten Kaiden.

  “I think there is a network of caves throughout the Iron Mountains,” Soren said. “I would be surprised if they did not connect to the Rift.”

  “I think you are right,” Kaiden agreed. He hoped it wasn’t his fear talking. He could not get the vyr out of his head and would probably have nightmares the rest of his life. If he couldn’t learn to control his fear he would never be able to lead the North.

  Kaiden called to Von. “We should go.”

  Von stared down the cavern to where it disappeared into darkness.

  “Von...Von?”

  “What? Oh sorry. I was just...never mind.” He started back the way they’d come. “Maybe you are right. We didn’t come here to explore caves. We need to get back.”

  They returned to the keep. The temperature was much more comfortable inside the forge. He stripped off his shirt, it was damp with sweat. He needed a bath.

  “I hope there are some good beds here,” Von said.

  It wasn’t likely, Kaiden hadn’t seen any furniture yet, except for what was in the forge, and maybe they didn’t have time to sleep. They needed to get to his father, to warn him. “Maybe we should leave now, without spending the night.”

  “I don’t think that’s the best idea,” Von reasoned. “We should rest as much as we can. We have a hard ride ahead and I don’t think any of us will want to be sleeping after tonight. We can leave in the morning. Besides, we’ll travel faster if we’re rested. The horses need rest too.”

  Maybe Von was right, maybe it was best to get some sleep. They needed rest if they were to travel fast. He felt a stab of regret for not having time to explore the remainder of the keep, but the keep would always be here. He could come back another time, he needed to come back, return to discover the additional secrets Haven Keep held. Right now he needed a good meal and some long overdue sleep.

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Ky’s words weighed heavily on Flenn. “Be careful on your way home,” Ky had warned. Flenn’s eyes studied the forest surrounding his small company of men. He wanted to avoid walking into an ambush, but he didn’t know how. This forest provided the perfect cover for hiding armed men. He half expected Halfen men to come charging out from behind the trees at any moment.

  Flenn explained to Oded what occurred inside Stone Abbey. Oded listened without giving any reaction. His stone cold expression gave no hint weather or not he feared Ky’s threat. Still, Flenn noticed Oded watched the forest as carefully as anyone else. Maybe more carefully. Oded had survived the better part of a decade watching for enemies at every turn. Flenn was grateful to have the experience of Oded to draw upon. The Halfen would not find it easy to surprise this little band with Oded around.

  Flenn could remember when he thought this forest was peaceful. He recalled his last time through these woods, when he was able to admire the beauty of his natural surroundings. Was that only a few days ago?

  Now he found himself suspicions of every shadow, every tree or hill that might conceal an enemy behind it. The forest was thick and the road narrow. Flenn wondered if he could really consider it a road, it was closer to a dirt track, muddied by the melting snow and nearly consumed by the overgrown forest floor. There could be anything out there, and he would never see it.

  Flenn did not wish to encounter a group of Halfen men before he reached the safety of home, especially not in these surroundings. He needed to get this small fighting force back to Azmark unscathed. The walls of the city could keep a large force outside if the defenses were in place, but they would need every fighting man available. The Halfen could never overwhelm Azmark with the might of the Kailfen clan safely within the city. Unless Ky somehow managed to marshal over half his forces already, or if the military might of the other clans were now joined to him. Flenn found that hard to imagine. Then again, he never believed it plausible the other clans would sway so easily to the Halfen side. Did they fear the Horde so much? Or had the Horde reached the other chiefs with promises as well?

  Flenn again counted the men around him. Twenty-nine. Not a large fighting force, especially since many of their number were young and inexperienced, barely more than boys, but they all rode with their bows ready and their swords close at hand. He wished he would have insisted on them all bringing spears. A strong charge from calvary could easily route a force of superior numbers. Not that these boys could mount a charge. Flenn doubted they would know how. That was not fair. They volunteered for this, knowing the dangers. It was not fair to call them boys any longer either. Before long they would see more fighting than their fathers and grandfathers ever had. If they lived that long.

  The forest was quiet. Too quiet. Flenn scanned the tree line, wishing he could suppress the uneasy feeling that ate at him. This time of year there should have been a variety of birds singing to each other, chipmunks and squirrels chattering away. He heard none. Not even a woodpecker drilling for grubs, which were normally common. It was as if the animals of the forest sensed what was coming and fled. That was a foolish notion. They could not know what was coming any more than Flenn could have guessed the treachery of the clans before traveling to Stone Abbey. Still it was unnatural, as if men had invaded the creatures domain and chased them off. It made Flenn unsettled, and told him there were probably men out there. Waiting.

  “A rider approaches from the east,” Oded spoke quietly, quiet enough so only Flenn and Berkler heard him.

  “Halfen?” Flenn asked.

  Oded shook his head. He had only spoken when necessary since leaving Stone Abbey. Flenn tried to take his lead and told the men to remain quiet also. No point in announcing to the world they were coming when they wanted to remain hidden.

  Flenn couldn’t see anyone through the tangle of foliage. He wondered how Oded knew someone was out there. Flenn couldn’t see or hear anything. He peered through the thick branches and shadows, searching for a sign Oded was speaking the truth. Maybe Oded was mistaken.

  Then Flenn saw the rider. He would never have noticed the man if Oded hadn’t first alerted him to the rider’s presence. Whoever it was, he was not making an effort to remain hidden, though he continued to be obscured by the forest. No one else gave any sign they’d yet seen him. A fact that reminded Flenn of how susceptible they were to an attack.

  The man continued to ride closer, but still within the cover of the trees. Flenn finally recognized the rider. A moment later he was seen by some of the younger men.

  “Who’s that?” someone called.

  Flenn couldn’t tell who cried out. Some of the younger men jumped in surprise and bows rose into firing position.

  “Put your bows down,” Flenn ordered. “He’s friendly.”

  Tostig ignored the men with the bows, rode out of the trees and up to Flenn and Oded, matching their pace.

  “Tostig, it’s good to see you,” Flenn said. “Do you have news?” Good news Flenn hoped.

  “None you’ll be happy to hear. There is a small force of men waiting for you in the trees, just over the next rise.”

  “How many is a small force?”

  Any amount was more than Flenn wanted to encounter. They must be Halfen, sent to keep Flenn from reaching Baiden with news of what hap
pened at Stone Abbey.

  “Fifty or sixty,” Tostig answered. “I didn’t get very close.”

  Flenn let out a wearied sigh. There was no way his untested little band could stand against so many. Most of them he’d brought hoping that just their numbers would be a deterrent against attack. He didn’t expect Ky to have already moved so many of his men this far west.

  “Is there any way we can avoid them?”

  “I do not think so, but I have men with me. If you go to the top of the rise and stop we will drive them into the open and you can use your bows against them.”

  “If they know we are here they will not retreat in our direction.”

  “They are inexperienced. When we attack them from behind they will run.”

  Flenn nodded in agreement to the plan. Tostig was a veteran of battle. The man knew what he was doing much more than Flenn did. “We will do as you say.”

  “There is more. The Halfen have gathered an army and are marching toward Azmark. They will reach it in a matter of hours.”

  “Impossible. The meeting of the chieftains has just concluded today.” Ky had declared war without any warning. “He could not already have brought them this far.”

  “I”m afraid he put his plans into motion before he even came to Stone Abbey,” Oded said. “He is an ambitious man. That ambition makes him dangerous.”

  “How large is this army?”

  “The division marching on Azmark is four thousand strong. The main body is a few days back and has over twelve thousand men.”

  No wonder the Hywel and Whaleren turned so quickly to Ky’s side. They must have known of this. A force that large could rival anything the six remaining clans could gather. Ky would have had to march through the Hywel lands and could have easily crushed any resistance.

  If Baiden had warning he might possibly gather three thousand fighting men from the surrounding farms and villas. Hopefully he was doing that already. Behind the walls of Azmark he could easily hold out four thousand, but not sixteen. The walls were not that strong. Once the main army reached Azmark it would be a slaughter. Even if Baiden armed the women and young boys they would still be overwhelmed in a matter of hours, probably sooner.

  Flenn couldn’t imagine the situation being worse, but with the way Tostig was looking at him he knew there was more. “What else?”

  “The Hywel are gathering their forces, so are the Kragen. I cannot tell what their intentions are.”

  “I have learned this day their intentions are not good.” Flenn had left Azmark to try and cement the clans behind Baiden and the Kailfen. Instead the Kailfen may be extinct in a matter of days. “If we fight now against the other clans we will be doing the Horde’s work for them.”

  “We will fight along side you,” Oded said.

  “You will spend your strength in our civil war and the Horde’s victory will be complete.” Maybe the Hywel were right. Maybe it would be better to make peace with the Halfen than be exterminated. No, it was better to fight. Better to die with honor.

  “We will not fall to the Halfen,” Tostig said. Flenn was amazed at the calm and confidence Tostig radiated. “The Horde is mightier than Ky,” Tostig continued. “We have not fallen to them. He will learn the price of treachery.”

  “I would not turn away your help, but then how will you fight the Horde?”

  Oded spoke more cheerfully than Flenn thought possible. “There are still the city states to the south. Not all of them have bended knee to the Horde, and we have learned well how to fight superior forces and win. We will do so here.”

  Flenn hoped that were the case. He knew his best chance for survival was to trust these men, trust their plan. He saw no other way to get his band of men home safe.

  “We will stop at the to top of the rise,” he agreed. “I’ll pass the word back to the men.”

  Tostig turned his horse and rode back into the trees. Flenn realized he hadn’t asked Tostig how many men were with him. It didn’t matter. Flenn was sure Tostig would do as he promised, even if he needed to do it alone.

  The men behind him took the news of an ambush with mixed reactions. Some, mostly the older men, possessed looks of quiet reservation, as if facing an unpleasant task. Many of the younger boys, no, men he had decided to call them, appeared too eager, almost excited. They would soon learn better.

  Flenn plodded his horse along, slower than his earlier pace. Whatever the mood of those following him, he was not anxious for this to start any time soon. He would have avoided it if it at all possible. Curse that Ky.

  He reached the top of the rise and halted. His men fanned out as instructed. The Halfen must be able to see Flenn’s band by now, and would know they’d been discovered. They would either be abandoning their attack or working their way around the flank of Flenn’s men. Where was Tostig?

  * * *

  Anger boiled inside Tostig. He schooled his thoughts, refusing to let his fury show. Allowing your emotions to rule your actions was a good way to get yourself killed. His storm dreams revealed to him the need to come to the north. That it was key in their fight against the Horde. His father said the same. They needed the north to fight along side them if they were to ever attain victory, yet the north was willing to destroy itself in a civil war. The Halfen were a problem he never foresaw. He often wondered if the Demon Mage could foresee more than he or his father were able to discern. The Horde was almost always one step ahead of them. How could that be? Tostig refused to believe there were spies within their own ranks. The only other explanation was the Demon Mage’s eyes were further seeing than he wanted to believe. He needed to believe not everything was subject to that dark sorcerer’s black magic. If it was, they would have been crushed years ago.

  Time enough for that later. The Halfen needed to be dealt with now, and he would start with this bunch who thought they were hiding in these trees. They were grossly unaware of what was about to fall upon them.

  Tostig retrieved his spear from where he had left it with his men. It was nearly long enough to be called a lance, terminating with a foot of solid steel at the end. A spear was a formidable weapon in the hands of someone who knew how to use it. He did, and so did his men. They all carried similar weapons, if not quite identical. Their weapons and armor were mismatched, pieced together as best as possible. They appeared to be a ragged bunch of mercenaries, but that was not how they fought.

  Tostig spent only a few moments explaining to his men what he wanted them to do. They were battle hardened and could see the plan unfold in their own minds as soon as Tostig began explaining it.

  The Halfen were hiding themselves on either side of the old dirt road, waiting for Flenn to ride into their trap. They planned to attack Flenn from both sides. Tostig would disabuse them of that idea. He would divide his force just as the Halfen had and come up behind them. Victims of an unexpected attack from behind, they would run were Tostig pushed them.

  Tostig had brought nearly thirty men with him. There was no doubt his small force could take care of the Halfen themselves, even being outnumbered more than two to one, but there was no need to risk their lives. This plan was better and would not allow for the chance of many survivors escaping to tell Ky what happened. It also gave those young boys following Flenn a chance to blood themselves with little danger to their lives. Tostig always thought it best to ease young men into battle before throwing them to the wolves. This was an opportunity to do just that. He would enjoy this. The Halfen deserved no mercy, and he would give none.

  Tostig put Morten in charge of half the men. He gave Morten just enough time to put himself in position then started his own men forward. It would take more than a few minutes to swing around through the thick growth and underbrush. Tostig was confident Morten could do it without being seen. These Halfen were so consumed with what they were doing they never even thought to look behind them, nor to set guards. Foolish. They were extremely overconfident. Even after scouting this whole area for miles around Tostig still sent out rearguar
ds and scouts. The rearguards would stay in place up until the time the fighting actually started. The scouts would then take over the duty of alerting them to any threat from behind.

  The Halfen were in sight now. Those fools were not trying to hide themselves from behind. One volley of arrows and then a charge from horseback would send the Halfen running. Morten must be about in position now. He would not wait for Tostig. Tostig made sure he understood he was not to. There was nothing to make Tostig wait either. He raised his bow and gave the signal. Shouts arose from the other side. Morten had started his attack. Tostig let his arrow fly. The snap of his bow string was echoed by a dozen others. He raised his spear and charged.

  * * *

  Flenn was sure that at any moment the Halfen would realize they were discovered and come charging out of the forest. Could his men withstand a charge like that? They might only have time for one volley of arrows before the Halfen were on top of them, maybe two. That was if the Halfen came from the direction Flenn expected them to. Despite his nervousness, he would wait. He needed to trust Tostig. He did not know what else to do. If he turned the other way, they might be pursued from behind. He would wait for Tostig.

  Shouts arose in the forest from the west side of the road. Flenn stood up straight in his stirrups, trying to get a better look. Half a moment later shouts arose from the east of the road as well. The shouts turned to screams and cries, then men spilled out onto the road only forty paces in front of Flenn. Some were in the act of fleeing, others faced the forest, defending themselves from attack. Tostig was correct in his assessment. These men broke easily and forgot the threat from the road.