by Griff Hosker
I raised my sword and shouted, “Charge!” I wanted this ending quickly. Haaken and I, with Germund and Erik close behind us, ran at the side of the Danes. We hit the side of the Danes where they held their swords. Our shields took the blows from their blades but they could not defend against our weapons which hacked up and into them. An axe was swung from on high. I moved my head to the left and it slid down my helmet towards my shoulder. It did not reach my shoulder for Germund’s sword lunged over me and slid into the cheek and head of the Dane. My Varangian tore it out sideways. The Danes were doomed but they were not going to surrender and it became a bloody battle which they could not win. They were now outnumbered by over three to one and they all died without hurting any more of us.
“Archers and slingers, to the walls!”
I noticed that the fog had completely dissipated. I saw a huddle of women by the water. They were holding their ears and screaming. I could not see what was attacking them but something was. Glancing to my right I saw that Kara, Ylva and their women were still dancing in a circle and chanting. Their magic was stronger than the Danes.
The sky to the east was lightening. I saw, across the water, flames. Hawk’s Roost was under attack. It was only then I thought to look north and then south. Karl, before he had been slain, had lit the signals. Ragnar and Ráðulfr Ulfsson would know of our danger. I saw no signals to the east. Sámr and his people had not had time to light theirs. Was the fire a sign that they had been defeated? Were they lying dead?
I went to the gatehouse, “Erik, climb into the arrow tower. You have good eyes. What can you see at Hawk’s Roost?”
I clambered up as I looked over at the Danes. Our archers and slingers were now sending arrows and stones at them as some of the survivors of the failed attack on the walls fled south. They held up shields but some were still hit. There were still thirty or so Danes who were close to the walls. I heard a horn and they began to head south.
Erik Shield Bearer shouted down to me, “Lord, they are outside Hawk’s Roost’s walls and they have lit fires.”
The Danes who had been attacking us were fleeing. I saw that the eight fishing boats we used were still drawn up on the beach. The Danes had not been able to destroy them for fear of making a noise.
“Germund, take command here. Haaken, Ráðgeir, Beorn. Fetch men. We will sail the boats to aid Sámr.”
We descended the ladder and unbarred the gate. I could see that at least fifteen Danes lay dead outside the walls. A trail of dead and wounded men lay on the beach heading south. Germund would dispose of them. The sky was becoming lighter and I could see a little better. The Danes had ladders with them. It begged the question of how so many men had managed to get close to us when Eystein Asbjornson and his men were watching the trails from the south and east. The wind was from the south and we had to tack but the boats were quick enough and we drew close to the Danes. I had the leading boat and I headed further south. I wanted to destroy as many Danes as I could and they would be fleeing south to join the survivors of the attack on Cyninges-tūn. Were they attacking my son and grandson?
Only Erik had a bow. I turned to him. “When we land, I want you to send your arrows at the Danes as soon as you can. We must divert their attention from the walls of Hawk’s Roost.”
“Aye Jarl. I am sorry about Karl and Cnut.”
“They died like warriors. Asbjorn wished for such a death. We will not grieve for them but we will honour and remember them.”
As well as Haaken, Haraldr Leifsson and Arne Ship Sealer were in my boat. I said, “When we land the four of us run at the Danes as though we are a warband.” We could now see that there were almost fifty men assaulting the walls. The defenders were giving a good account of themselves but Sámr had less than twenty men to defend his walls. Our only chance was to make them think that the twenty odd men I brought were more.
We landed fifty paces from them. I could see that the fire had been started with kindling and brush but although it had burned brightly it had not harmed the walls for the bottom three paces were made of stone. The timber above would be charred only. We dragged the boats onto the beach and I drew my sword. Even as I was running and screaming, “Clan of the Wolf!” Erik had nocked an arrow and sent it into the mailed back of a Dane who was less than thirty paces from us. The Danes saw us and reacted. They turned and ran at us. There were twenty Danes close to us. Erik sent two more arrows at them before they had covered ten paces and then they hit us. I could hear Sámr shouting for the gates to be opened and I heard Ráðgeir urging the rest of my men on.
I blocked the first sword with my shield and deflected a sword with Ragnar’s Spirit. Erik was five paces away and the arrow he sent at the warrior with the axe who swung it at my head tore through the side of his head spattering blood and brains on the two swordsmen.
I swung my sword sideways as Arne Ship Sealer slashed his sword against one of the Danish swordsmen’s legs. I punched with my shield into the other’s face and then brought up Ragnar’s Spirit under his neck. Beorn and the others crashed into the Danes. I stepped over the two bodies before me. I saw Sámr and Baldr leading men out of the gates to attack the Danes in the rear. Erik sent his last two arrows into the bodies of two more men before he drew his sword to join us. It was unnecessary. The last Dane was butchered as Sámr and Baldr’s men hit them from behind.
Sheathing my sword and then taking off my helmet I said, as the first rays of a new dawn lit up Old Olaf, “The women and the children are well?”
Sámr took off his helmet, “Aye, Dragonheart and it was thanks to the bird.”
“The bird?”
“Hunter the Hawk; he began screeching in the night. As I went to see why I spied the Danes and I saw the fog on your side of the river. I remembered what you had dreamed and I woke our men.”
“Good. The hawk was sent by Aiden. I see that now.”
“And you?”
“They managed to get over the walls. They had witches. Had they used them against you then things might have gone badly for us but Kara, Ylva and the other women managed to defeat them.” He nodded. “Karl and Cnut died.”
His face became as cold as ice. “Then we end this. We end this now.”
I shook my head, “We do but we do not rush off. You cannot leave your families undefended. We have lost men. We know not what has happened to the east of us. They have fled south. I believe that means that Ragnar and Gruffyd are in danger. They will have warning for we lit the signal towers.” I pointed south. The smoke could still be seen rising in the sky. If Ragnar knew then Gruffyd would know. They would bar their gates as I had commanded and they would sit tight. If Ráðulfr Ulfsson and Ketil Windarsson could then they would send help. “We have to trust that our men will come from the north but it could be two days before they reach us.
Sámr said, “You are, as always, right. Baldr, have the dead stripped and the bodies burned. Make sure our fires are extinguished.”
I turned, “Arne, fetch two horses from Hawk’s Roost. I want you and Haraldr to ride to Windar’s Mere. I need to know if the Danes went there first. If there is peace then tell Eystein Asbjornson that I need half of his men and they should return with you!”
“Aye, Jarl. And if Windar’s Mere is also a burned-out shell with the people slaughtered?”
“Then we will know!”
We began to pile up the Danish bodies. They would be burned. Sámr had lost men too. We had to bury them.
“Sámr, your family and Baldr’s cannot stay here now. When we go south there will be too few to care for them. You must bring them to Cyninges-tūn.” I saw, from his face, that he was not convinced. “Sámr this was not just a vengeance raid. Sven and Ubba were not here to collect weregeld. There was planning. They were trying to take our land. They attacked two strongholds at once. They had ladders! They brought an army unseen into the heartland of the clan!” Turning to Haaken I pointed to the ladders. “Have you ever known Danes to bring ladders to a raid?”
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sp; Haaken looked at Sámr, “Dragonheart is right. They sent many men to scout us out. They knew that we were prepared and they still came.” He pointed down the Water. “The men who attacked us fled south. These tried to flee south. There are more men there and I suspect that your father and Gruffyd are, even now, under attack. There will be burned out farms between here and Whale Island.”
It was as though scales had been lifted from his eyes, He nodded, “And there may be other bands still at large. We will bury our dead and then I will bring all my people to Cyninges-tūn.”
We sailed our boats back. Arne Ship Sealer had been wounded. He would not be marching south. He was in my boat and I spoke with him. “Arne, you will be one we leave in Cyninges-tūn. Germund, you will also be a guardian of my home. This is one of the most dangerous attacks I can remember. I think Ubba went to see his father for a reason. Ubba Ragnarsson wishes this for his land. I am not a king but I think Ubba sees himself as a king. There may be many more men than we expect.”
When we reached my walls, I saw that Atticus and Kara had begun to organise our people. The Danish ladders had been used to make a pyre on the place where the witches had stood. The Danish bodies were already there and, as we stepped ashore, I saw the first flames lick the bodies of the enemy dead. Our dead were laid out at the cemetery. Kara and Ylva were tending to the wounded. Even as we walked through the gate, I saw Aðils Shape Shifter and his family coming from Lang’s Dale. He led other warriors too. From the south came Rollo Thin Skin with his family and the bondi from the south and west.
I could not expect Ráðulfr Ulfsson until the middle of the next day at the earliest. I had a dilemma. Did I wait or did I march south to save my family? Aiden’s voice came into my head. He told me that which I knew, I had to wait. I had done all that I could to impress upon my son and grandson the dangers they faced. If they were unprepared, as Windar had been all those years ago, then it was wyrd.
I went over to Kara and Ylva. The ones they tended had a chance of life. Those who had had no chance had already been given a warrior’s death. They looked up as I approached. Kara said, “Had Karl remembered your words about the fog then he might be alive and many of these would not have been wounded.”
Ylva shook her head, “No, mother, for this was the work of the Norns. Why did we not see the threat? The witches cast a spell across our Water. We have destroyed their power but they were clever. They brought enough witches to break down our defences.” She looked north, “We should have been in the cave of Myrddyn. There we could have harnessed the power of Úlfarrberg and the land.”
Kara looked sad and weary, “You may be right Ylva. I am loath to leave my hall and my home.”
“Yet one day we will have to leave and the cave will become our home. Perhaps not yet but,” she looked at me, “when Sámr rules then that will be the time.”
I did not know what their words meant and, perhaps, I should have questioned them more, but I was too concerned with planning the battle I would have to fight; the battle to save the land and the Clan of the Wolf.
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Chapter 23
I could see that Atticus was shaken. I was in my hall preparing what we would need for the battle to come. He shook his head, “This is a strange land! Fog moves and then disappears! Where is the logic?”
“It was not logic, it was magic.”
For the first time he did not argue with me. I had glimpsed him during the battle. He had seen my volvas chanting and he had clutched his cross. He did not understand it. My granddaughter had explained to me what she had meant by breaking the power of the witches. The Danish volvas had underestimated the effect of the spirits. The chanting of Ylva and Kara had summoned the dead and they had entered the minds of the witches. They would not flee south. They would head home to the east and hope to mend their shattered minds.
“We will be leaving as soon as Ráðulfr Ulfsson gets here. I will leave enough men to guard my walls but you will need to arm the women and yourself. There is a chance that this is a ploy to draw me hence and then devour my home. I leave it in your hands.”
“I am not a warrior.”
“No, but, since Aiden’s death, you are the cleverest man I know. My men trust you. You can lead, for Kara and Ylva will help you. They know magic but, with your knowledge of tactics you can help the men to defend. I give you and Germund full power to do as you see fit.”
He bowed, “I am honoured. Come, Erik, you have much to prepare.”
Haaken, unusually, looked worried, “My family live south of here.”
“Aye they do but they live on the fells south of Old Olaf. They will only be in danger if we lose and I do not intend to lose to a warband of savage Danes.” Haaken nodded. The Danes were not here to raid and take slaves. They were here to conquer a land, my land.
Sámr arrived at noon. He had used wagons to carry the women and their babes. I saw that he had brought Hunter with him. The hawk had saved my great grandson and his family. Like Úlfarr the Wolf, he would be honoured. He was now part of the clan. The women were housed in Kara’s Hall. Sámr and Baldr would spend the night with me.
As we shared a most welcome horn of ale with Rollo and Aðils Shape Shifter I said, “We do not have enough horses to take us all but we have enough to send you, Aðils Shape Shifter and you Rollo Thin Skin to scout out the enemy. We are blind. I would have you leave as soon as you can. I cannot see that we will be able to march until the day after tomorrow. Ráðulfr Ulfsson will arrive tomorrow and there are still bondi who saw the signals and are joining us. We need all the men that we can get.”
“Then we leave when we have supped this ale. I will take my son, Beorn Aðilsson. He has seen nine summers and he has skills. I will send him back with news.”
Arne Ship Sealer and Haraldr did not reach us until after dark. They came with Eystein Asbjornson and thirty warriors. They had used every horse from Windar’s Mere and the farms nearby. While the warriors went to the warrior hall Eystein came into my hall. There were four faces with questions on them and they all examined Eystein. Atticus poured some ale and then whisked Erik away, “Come, we have food to bring in and the jarl has words he wishes to say.”
I looked at Eystein, “The Danes came from the south and east. Why did we not have warning?”
He looked up at me and I saw that he had aged. “Because my men were not good enough. I was not good enough. I had grown complacent. In all the years I was growing I never once had to endure an attack on our home. Our men lost the edge which a good sword needs.”
“You have not yet answered me. Oathsworn died on my walls and their spirits and your jarl need answers.”
“My men who were watching the trails were ambushed and slaughtered. They did not return by dusk yesterday. I led men out to discover the reason and we were ambushed. I lost another twelve men before we made our walls and by then we were under attack. We were surrounded.”
Haaken shook his head, “You should have sent word when your men did not return. You should have barred your gates and prepared for an attack. Those twelve men you lost would still be alive.”
I waved my hand to silence Haaken. Recriminations would help no one. “Did you defeat them?”
“No jarl, we stood to all night and we saw their fires burning but when we woke, they had gone. Arne and Haraldr saw their trail heading south.”
As I mulled over his words Sámr said, “And thirty men are all that you bring to the aid of the clan?”
Eystein looked sad, “The thirty men are the best that I have. The ones who were watching for the Danes and the twelve I lost were my best men. Five of my thirty have mail and the rest have none. Sámr Ship Killer, my mother and my people need protection too. We come to the aid of the clan knowing that it is likely that we will die. We are a sacrifice and I am willing to make that sacrifice but I will not sacrifice my people.”
I smiled, “There will be no sacrifice. We will not go berserk! The three attacks were all a diversion. Perhaps the one here
was prosecuted a little more forcefully because they thought to end my life.”
“How do you know that great grandfather?”
“Because they used witches and they had Skull Taker warriors with them. That clan does not forget that I took their leader’s head. It now makes sense to me. Their real targets are Whale Island and Gruffyd’s stad. If they have those then they have our fleet of drekar. We know that Bergil Hafþórrsson in Dyflin has few ships. This would give Sven the Boneless Dyflin too. Ubba Ragnarsson could then sweep north and take all of this land. He is like his father, he is devious. He does not waste his men. He uses superior numbers to win! Ubba thinks that we will hunker down in our homes for he has hurt us. We will show him otherwise.”
Sámr said, “Then let us leave now! We need not wait for Ráðulfr Ulfsson. How many men does he bring? A handful! If we get there too late then my father and my people will all be destroyed!”
“Do you not remember your father’s words as he left? He told us that he could hold out for ten days. They could not have attacked them before they attacked us or we would have seen the signals. They attacked on the same day. Ubba Ragnarsson is a clever warrior. His father, Hairy Breeks, is a cunning man. They will have planned all of this. We still have time. My fear is that all those who live south of us will have suffered. The clan will have paid the price for our lack of vigilance.” I did not look at him but Eystein knew that it was his mistake and, perhaps, his father’s. One did not speak ill of the dead.
Ráðulfr Ulfsson arrived after dark. He had with him Ketil Windarsson and forty men from Ketil’s Stad. Altogether we had more than a hundred fresh men. After the disasters of the last two days it was uplifting. Sámr had underestimated my jarls. He had learned another lesson. He had learned to trust.
“Ketil?” I wondered what had brought my jarl from the north. I was pleased he had come but there were still questions in my mind.
“Windar caught two Danes the day before yesterday. They were not far from the head of Úlfarr’s Water. He questioned them before he slew them. They had been sent to keep watch on our men. They told us of the attack on Cyninges-tūn. Windar sent to me and I brought my men as soon as I could. Windar will guard my land. I met Ráðulfr north of the Grassy Mere. We saw the signal fires and came as quickly as we could.”