by Griff Hosker
“Your father is a bulwark against the Saxons but his eye is fixed on Mercia. There is a pass from Northumbria which does not touch Mercia. An enemy could strike at the gap between our fort and your father’s. It was never a weakness when Aethelfrith was king for he held Caestre but now it is and King Edwin is just cunning enough to exploit that.”
I looked northwards. I wondered how my son and my nephew were coping. Was it arrogance on my part which made me think that they might need me? It looked now as though I might need them. Myrddyn was correct, of course, we could never plan for every eventuality. I would have to deal with the problems when they came.
It was when the first of the spring flowers erupted into life that the rider galloped through the gates on his small hill pony. The commander of the guard brought him directly to me. The Prince, Gawan and Myrddyn were with me and we all knew that this could not be good news.
He was a stocky youth, no more than fifteen years old. “Warlord, I have news from King Cadfan. He is besieged by the men of Mercia and he begs you to come to his aid.”
I looked at Myrddyn. “So war has come as you predicted. It is just from a different direction to the one I anticipated.” I looked at the scout. “You have done well. Rest and then I will write a message for you to take back.”
He shook his head vehemently, “No Warlord. I must return to my people. I will tell him that you are coming. I will be needed to defend my land and my king.” With that he sped from the hall and a few moments later we heard his hooves on the cobbles outside.
Myrddyn smiled, “He is keen.”
“And he puts me to shame. My father and my family are in danger and I am not there.”
“But we will be.”
Captain Tuanthal and Captain Daffydd hurried into the hall. “We heard a messenger had arrived.”
“He has. King Cadfan is under attack. Gather the men and send for the men from Ruthin.” The men from the Narrows were already with us so that we were ready to ride.
Tuanthal asked, “And the other two forts?”
“No, if this attack is at Wrecsam then it is imperative that the Clwyd Valley is protected. We shall have to use the forces available to us.”
We were prepared. We had pack horses with spare weapons and the scouts were already champing at the bit. The young boys who were to begin their new role were keen to start their new task.
We left the main gate and headed along the coast road. The men from the monastery would join us at the Clwyd Valley. Hopefully we would reach Yr Wyddgrug by dark. I wanted to spend the night there and see what intelligence they had for us. Our fort at Yr Wyddgrug had been the most exposed part of our defences in the time of King Iago and we had made it strong with a cleared forest of five hundred paces all around and double ditches. In the last six years it had been a less dangerous place to live but the men who lived within had continued to improve the defences. We would sleep much easier within its walls.
I turned in my saddle to see the snake of men who followed me. There were just over two hundred of us and then the handful of boys who would act as scouts and slingers. It was not the largest force I had ever led nor was it the most experienced but it would have to do. At least we were just relieving King Cadfan. Hopefully the Mercians would see our army arriving and assume we had greater numbers.
Prince Cadwallon was silent as we rode along. “Do not worry Prince Cadwallon. We will reach your father tomorrow and then he will be safe; as will your family.”
“It is not that Warlord there is a thought at the back of my mind and it is trying to tell me something but I cannot reach it.”
Gawan and Myrddyn both became interested. “That is how a wizard works.”
I scoffed, “Can it be that important?”
“You speak of magic, Warlord and do not know the magic that exists in all men’s minds; if they choose to use it. The prince knows something which the spirit world thinks is important.” He turned his attention to the prince.”Let us try a game that Gawan and I play.”He pointed to the sky and a particularly fluffy cloud. “Do you see that cloud?” He nodded, “What is it?”
“A cloud.”
“Good but what does it look like? Say whatever is in your mind.”
“I feel embarrassed.”
“There are just the three of us. I know you Prince Cadwallon and we will not mock whatever you say.”
He sighed, “It looks like a wood with trees in the middle and bushes on the outside.”
“What else?”
He suddenly stiffened, “I can see warriors.”
“Good and anything...”
“The thought has come into my head. That messenger, from my father; why did he neither address nor recognise me? I have only been gone for a couple of years. He should have known me and my father would have sent a message with someone we knew.”
I saw it all clearly. It was a trap. I knew not whether Wrecsam had been attacked by the Mercians or not but this was a trap for me and my men. “What do we do wizard?”
He looked around. We were deep in the valley and half way between our two forts. “I would suggest, Warlord, putting some of Tuanthal’s men on the ridges. I do not think that we are in danger yet for Yr Wyddgrug would have stopped a large band coming down the valley.”
“Unless the fort was taken.”
“In which eventuality then we would be in grave danger for that is the strongest border fort we possess.”
Every warrior was warned and we rode the last few miles in anticipation of an ambush. It never came but I did not regret the vigilance. This was a typical King Edwin trick. I was beginning to see his hand in the twists and turns of his convoluted plots.
We were all relieved to see the walls of the fort still intact and lit by the rays of the setting sun. My banner still flew from its walls. The scouts had warned the garrison of our arrival and they were waiting for us.
As soon as we entered I leapt from my horse and sought out Gruffyd the commander of the fort. “Have you seen enemies in the past week?”
“There have been scouts in the woods; my men found their signs but they saw nothing.”
“Have you heard of any problems at Wrecsam?”
He rubbed his beard. “It is strange but we usually have a rider once every couple of days but there have been none for seven days. I thought perhaps they were busy with the Mercians.”
I felt my scalp being to tingle and I rubbed my head. “Did a rider not come through last night or this morning; A youth riding a pony?”
“No but a single rider can avoid the valley and ride along the other side of the ridge. We patrol it during daylight hours but not the night.”
“Ask your patrols to tell you if they saw such a rider. It would have been a few hours ago and, Captain Gruffyd, we are on a war footing.”
My men needed no explanation. He merely nodded and strode off. “It seems, Prince Cadwallon that you too have some of the sixth sense which Myrddyn and my son possess. We now have to divine what sort of problem we face.”
As we ate a hearty meal of game hunted from around the fort we heard the reports of the patrols. It turned out that they had detected someone riding along the ridge but they had not seen him. His hoof prints clearly showed his outward and homeward journey.
“That alone shows that he was a spy. What we have to discern is his purpose.”
Gawan looked puzzled. “Surely it was to ambush us as we raced to the king’s rescue?”
“Not necessarily. It could be a ploy to pull us away from our fort and this valley; to isolate Caestre.”
“If the Warlord had brought every man he could then the Saxons, or the Hibernians would now be in our castles.”
“But the spy spoke the language of my people.” The prince looked outraged.
Gawan smiled, “Which makes him either a traitor or someone who can pretend to be what he is not.”
I nodded to the prince. “These are all valuable lessons Prince Cadwallon. “ I now knew that I had to be on my gua
rd. “Tomorrow we will proceed cautiously and assume that Wrecsam is under attack. I will just take the warriors I brought with me and leave this fort fully manned. I want riders sending to the other forts warning them that they may soon be under attack.”
Gruffyd did not seem convinced. “But if it is a large warband then you will be walking into a trap.”
“We do not have far to go. We can either send for help or retreat but I will not jeopardise the valley and our heartland until I know what we face.” I was aware how harsh my voice sounded. This was not the way I normally spoke but I only had two of my regular captains and there was no time for debate.
“Daffydd, make sure you have plenty of arrows and, Tuanthal, I want each of your men armed with three javelins. Have two of the scouts bring spare horses with more. We have one advantage and that is that we can hurt them before they close with us and we can run.”
Tuanthal shook his head. “We have sixty warriors who will be on foot.”
“I know and I will be with them. You and the prince can command the horsemen.”
“Are you sure that is wise? It seems risky to me.”
“It is but I need a shield wall that they can attack so that you can thin them out. I want them to bleed on our swords and shields. Besides,” I added with a wry smile, “they want me so they may well ignore the rest of you.”
“And what of us, father?”
“You and Myrddyn can stay here in the fort. There is nothing that you can do in a shield wall.”
Gawan looked almost angry. “I may not be able to hold a shield but I can carry your banner and I can wield a sword.”
“And I still have a few tricks up my sleeve. We will be with you.”
I nodded. I had expected them to make some objection and both could handle a sword. I knew that I would need Myrddyn’s eyes and his mind. I took comfort from the fact that my son would be behind me. If we died, then we died together.
The night seemed short after we had made our plans but we were ready. The scouts would ride before us and we would have a screen of horsemen protecting the archers and the shield wall.
Chapter 17
As we left, just before dawn, I said to Gruffyd, “We do not go to our death but this is inevitable. Guard our retreat!”
“I will, Warlord, you have my word.” And that was good enough. I knew that they would lay down their lives to enable the survivors to be rescued.
We moved across the col at the head of the valley and the ground suddenly swept west. The land seemed gentler. There were few farms here but sheep grazed the cleared areas whilst few cattle could be seen in the distance. It was hard to see where they would ambush us. I began to doubt myself. Perhaps they had lured us away from the Clwyd Valley and I was doing just what they had predicted I would do.
“Do not doubt yourself, Warlord. If they have deceived us there are enough men in the forts to hold them until we return. We need to see King Cadfan to confirm that he is not under attack.”
Poor Prince Cadwallon was on the horns of a dilemma. He felt he was letting me down and yet he still worried about his father. He was learning valuable lessons for the day he became king.
Suddenly a scout, accompanied by one of Tuanthal’s warriors galloped up to us. “My lord this scout has ridden to Wrecsam. There is a large army surrounding it”
In a way I was relieved. My forts would be safe and the spy had spoken a partial truth.
“My lord, he also says that there is a warband coming from the north to aid them.”
“How many warriors?”
“Two hundred or more.”
“Prince Cadwallon, ride to Captain Tuanthal. We will destroy this warband before going to the aid of your father.”
As he rode away Gawan said, “This could be the ambush.”
I smiled, “You are learning. It is the ambush.” I waved my hand around the landscape. “This is not ambush country. He is luring us with his own warband and then he will attack us from,” I looked around and saw a low ridge to the north west, “that direction.”
“Then why go there? Why not retreat back to Yr Wyddgrug or Wrecsam?”
“If we go to Wrecsam and manage to enter we are trapped. If we return to Yr Wyddgrug then Wrecsam will fall. Our only hope is to make them ambush knowing that they will.”
“Your father is right Gawan. This shield wall of sixty three men will have to hold while our men weaken them.”
We soon saw the warband. They were not in any order; they were just hurrying along the road towards Wrecsam. It looked to me as though there were less than two hundred but it made little difference. As soon as they saw my horsemen they went into a shield wall. Normally that would deter horsemen but mine had archers close by.
“Lock shields!”
As a precaution for the ambush which was coming I prepared my men to receive warriors armed much as they were. Few of my men had mail but each one had a spear, a shield and a good sword. All wore a leather jerkin studded with metal strips. The Saxons would get a surprise.
I saw Daffydd’s men dismount and the scouts held their horses. The rain of arrows was constant until each archer had loosed twenty arrows. Tuanthal and his men charged in and hurled the first of their javelins. Following the arrow storm many of the Saxons broke ranks and tried to flee. It was what my horsemen had been waiting for and they hunted them down.
I heard a cry from behind me and saw that the trap had been sprung. Two hundred Saxons were moving down the slope in a wedge formation. “Turn and face.” I turned to Gawan. “Keep the banner flying. It will spur on our men and dishearten the enemy.” I slid my dagger into my left hand and adjusted my helmet so that it was comfortable. The wedge was making steady progress. “Myrddyn, keep your eye on Tuanthal.” I could rely on Tuanthal not to abandon me but he would ensure that the first warband could do no more damage. We had to buy him the time. My men thrust their spears before them and we presented a wall of steel.
“Warlord, look at the banner. It is Aethelfrith!”
I had been wrong. It was not Edwin. It was the man I had maimed. His thirst for revenge must have been strong. I could see him as he limped down the hill. His hatred of me worked in our favour for his men came at his pace and that meant my horsemen would have more time to come to my aid. Wyrd!
“Keep your shields together and don’t let the bastards push us down this slope!” They all cheered. Most of them had never fought alongside my wizard or me and I think they felt it an honour to do so. I looked at the faces of those around me and they were smiling and appeared eager to come to grips.
“With your son and the Wolf Banner, we will destroy these pirates!”
The greybeard who spoke those words had scarred arms and I saw the many warrior bands on his sword. These were the kind of men you needed to be alongside you. We might be outnumbered but we had spirit.
“Tuanthal has rallied his men and Daffydd is mounting his archers.”
Myrddyn’s voice meant that we had some hope. Aethelfrith halted his men just thirty paces from us. It was a strange thing to do but I think he thought they were going to slaughter us and he wanted to gloat.
“I told you that I would return and I have. We will kill you and feast on your heart. When you are dead and the men of Gwynedd are destroyed I will make your women my playthings.”
The greybeard mumbled, “If he thinks our women are playthings he is in for a shock!” My men laughed. They were in good spirits
I too laughed. Aethelfrith and his threats were pitiful. “My son and I could kill you and your oathsworn with no more trouble than swatting a fly. Do your worst but this day you die!”
My men roared, “Wolf Warrior!” as Gawan swung my banner above our heads.
He roared his war cry and he launched himself at my thin line of warriors. He was in the second rank of mailed men and his injury made him wince. I brought Saxon Slayer down overhand at the lead warrior, who was much shorter than I was. His sword struck thin air as I split his helmet and head in tw
o. When Aethelfrith’s men closed with mine they were met by spears and they could not bring their weapons to bear. I felt Gawan’s sword slice down at the warrior to my right and, as he fell, I stepped into the gap and faced a snarling Aethelfrith. I stabbed forwards and he flinched as his shield barely moved my sword. At the same time I stamped forwards as I punched him in the face with my shield. Their wedge was no longer a wedge and their best warriors were falling. I found some space and I swung the sword at Aethelfrith’s head. It caught the side of his helmet with such force that the straps broke and it flew off into the crowd of warriors behind him.
“I have killed many kings with this and today I will kill one who was a king.” I swung my sword again and he tried to parry it. Sparks flew as the blades met but he recoiled. His weak leg gave a little and I stabbed down into his chest. Blood spurted and he dropped his sword.
“My sons will avenge me.” There may have been more he intended to say but that was all he managed and Aethelfrith the King of Bernicia died.
His men were oathsworn and they hurled themselves at us to avenge their lord. Our spears began to be whittled down and then I heard the sound of wind as sixty arrows dropped from the sky on to the Saxons waiting to get at us. Then the sound of hooves drumming along the ground marked the arrival of my cavalry. Tuanthal led half around their right flank and Prince Cadwallon the other half around their left. This was the first time the prince had led warriors and, as the shield wall collapsed, I was able to see what a great warrior he would become. He laid about himself with his sword and none could withstand him. He and a phalanx of horsemen drove a wedge into the Saxon lines.
“Shield wall, push!” Our locked shields enabled us to push the Saxons into the blades and arrows of the horsemen. They died to a man; the loyal oathsworn of King Aethelfrith of Bernicia died protecting his body.
There were many wounded amongst our men but not as many dead as I had feared. Daffydd had lost none and Tuanthal only three. I had suffered fifteen dead. I mounted one of the spare horses and surveyed the field from its back. As I climbed on to the back of the small pony I winced for my wound ached. I had not fought since it had healed and my body was complaining. I was just happy that the fighting might be over for the day. The ambush had failed but King Cadfan was still besieged. I made my decision and rode back to Myrddyn.