by Sam Taw
Busying myself with chores, I made some flat bread, cooked the berries and collected more plants and bark for my kit. While I went about my work, Aebba perched on a rock at the far end of the ridge, watching the herd meander towards the valley beneath us. Every now and then, I’d scan the tor where the young warriors had camped, looking for signs to mark the start of the hunt.
When the sun was at its peak, I began to worry that the lads had not spotted the auroch’s approach. Pouring ale into our cups, I carried them down to Aebba’s perch and sat beside him.
“Have I missed anything?”
He shook his head. “I can see the bull from here. Lorden wasn’t joking about him being a big fella.”
My mouth dropped open when my eyes focused on the creature. The trees on the valley floor gave us something with which to compare him. I’d never seen an animal as large as this before, at least double the size of our cattle from the compound.
“I’m starting to think that this is a very bad idea, Aebba.” I said, my mouth drying with panic. Its horns ran straight across his head and bent up at each end with a lethal point. This was the weapon of death for poor Branok. The creature cropped a large mouthful of vegetation and then kept his sight on the grassland surrounding his herd. Nothing escaped his attention.
Aebba watched him lead the other aurochs up the valley between the ridges of our two tors, supping his ale and calculating their speed. While the herd moved slowly, grazing and frolicking, they were unaware of any predators. Where were the young warriors?
“Which direction will Tallack and Blydh come from?” I asked, impatient for the entire affair to be over with.
Aebba nodded his head towards the northern end of the moors. “Wind’s coming from the south. If they remembered their basic hunting skills, they’ll be waiting for them at that end. The valley narrows into a natural kill area. We sat for an age, frozen to our stone seats and anxious for the outcome.
At length, I rose to find a sheltered spot to lift my skirt and empty my bladder of ale, when Aebba whispered, “Wait…”
I turned back to look, narrowing my eyes to where he was gesturing. Tallack lay against the back of his pony, walking him at a steady trot to the southern end of the valley. He skirted behind shrubs and clumps of trees, through streams and past rocky outcrops, keeping high on the slope to avoid his scent wafting towards the herd and spooking them.
“Where’s Blydh and Paega?” I said, forgetting my urgency and returning to sit on the boulder.
“With any luck, they’ll be hunkering down, well-hidden at the farthest end, waiting for the kill shot.” As the Chief predicted, the twins were working well together as a team. From our bird’s eye view, we could just make out Blydh’s stocky frame, covered in tufted grasses, lying in a gully at the northern pass. Try as I might, I still could not see Paega.
Tallack let his horse graze the rough grass and mosses on the western slope. With his body flat against its neck, he was camouflaged from the herd in both sight and smell.
“That’s the way, good lad.” Aebba said, clapping his hands together. The herd shifted closer to Blydh; they were almost in peak position. “Let them come to you, boys, just a little further.” He jogged his shoulder into mine. “Bet you your sharpest knife that Tallack kills the bull.”
I thought for a moment, deciding that Blydh was closer and was lethal with his bow and arrows. “You’re on. If I win, you order a brand-new set of bronze knives for my healing kit.”
“Hey, that’s hardly fair… what in the name of Cernonnus is that brainless kyjya think he’s doing?” Aebba bellowed, jumping to his feet.
From the eastern slope of the valley, Paega appeared on his horse, startling the herd into a run. He whipped and kicked his horse into a gallop as they picked up their hooves and went thundering down the floodplain towards Blydh laying in his low gully. The bull auroch led the charge, kicking up the mud and peat in great clods and trampling shrubs and small trees into the ground.
Panicked, Aebba and I hustled along the crest of the tor to get a clearer view of Blydh’s hiding place. There was no chance he could get out of their way in time. Blydh got to his feet and waved his bow in the air trying to steer them from his path. Tallack saw his brother in danger. He righted himself on his horse, kicked its flanks and tore down the riverbank after the herd. Paega wove between the rocks and boulders, yelling and howling a war cry of pathetic proportions. It looked to me that he’d not even noticed the trouble he’d caused by breaking cover at the wrong time.
Tallack’s horse ran at full pelt, its rider poised to deliver a fatal spear to the bull. Three dozen cattle pounded the turf undeterred by Blydh’s shouting and waving. He could not possibly survive a stampede of this magnitude. My heart was in my mouth, tears shot to my eyes as the inevitable unfolded before us. Aebba grasped my arm and tightened his fist, unable to help his son.
They were no more than a boat length from trampling Blydh to his death. Tallack forced his horse to gallop faster, until he drew level with the herd. With perfect timing, he thrust a spear into the bull’s side. The weight of the shaft dragged the blade down, ripping the flesh from its ribs. Blood trickled down the bull’s side as it spun around, dislodging the spear tip. Far from killing the animal, it simply angered it further. Changing direction, the bull set his sights on Tallack. The herd followed.
Blydh was spared. Running towards a clump of trees in the distance, Blydh yanked the grasses from his clothes and mounted his pony. Within a few moments, he was back in the chase alongside his brothers.
Paega made a run at the females in the group. Swishing his short sword, he injured some but failed to kill them. His frantic movements did nothing but scatter the dangerous beasts in all directions, a couple charged towards him to protect their young, while others butted and kicked out at his pony.
The bull was not distracted. In the tangle of cattle and ponies, it maintained eye contact with Tallack and him alone. This was no dumb brute. He was smart and powerful. Blydh took his steed on a circuitous route to gather up those cattle which Paega had dispersed, in order that Tallack should have a clear shot at taking the bull down once and for all.
Tallack backed up his horse and unsheathed his sword. If only he’d kept hold of his spear. I could see it dug into the ground; its shaft snapped clean in two. His only hope of slaughtering the bull was to embed the blade in its neck before it could turn and gore his horse. This would be more than a test of courage and endurance; it would require total control over his horse’s speed and direction while judging the best angle to deliver the killing blow.
They stood face to face some distance apart, the bull roared a deep haunting cry and scraped at the soil with a front hoof. The torn flap of his skin revealed the raw flesh and bones of his ribcage, but it did not slow him down. I couldn’t figure out how Tallack could get himself and his pony in the right position to jab in his sword. Every step sideways his horse made, the bull matched. Behind them, the rest of the herd had found their courage. Some chased Paega around in circles while he swiped at thin air. Blydh steered his horse with his knees, freeing his arms to knock an arrow and draw back the string.
With his patience running out, the bull charged. Panting and snorting, it started slow and gained speed as it closed in on Tallack and his nimble pony. Trotting out in an arched course, Tallack held the sword in his fist ready to stab with downward force. In his left hand he pulled on the reins to alter direction, as the massive beast reached them.
He was less than a man’s length away when his pony reared, slipping in the wet mud and throwing him into the path of the oncoming bull.
CHAPTER SIX
Tallack was defenceless, sitting in the mud with nothing but his short sword. The bull lowered his head, lining his gigantic horns up ready to toss the warrior into the air. Tallack knew there was nothing he could do to prevent death. It was the price of courage, the cost of the hunt. He kissed his blade and looked to the sky, muttering words to the gods.
&
nbsp; Before he could inflict the worst kind of damage on his brother, Blydh came from out of nowhere, raining arrows down on the creature. Three pierced his neck, two more struck his hind quarters. Angered, he gave chase, with Blydh and his pony running the bull into ever decreasing circles. Disorientated and bleeding from several wounds, the bull slowed to gain his bearings. Blydh dashed towards Tallack and held out an arm as he passed, tugging his brother onto the rear of his horse and speeding away.
Without his own steed, Tallack stayed with Blydh, working together to outsmart the bull. Turning the pony about, Blydh swooped around so that Tallack could lean over and grab the broken spear from the ground for another attempt. Pulling back on the reins, the twins took a moment to confer and talk tactics.
Paega had managed to slash and wound an older, slower auroch and a calf, but both had run off to the furthest reaches of the valley. Now he rode in a vast arc watching the bull get weaker and tire from blood loss. The twins saw it too, altering their plans and trotting closer to deliver the final thrust. As the twins approached, the auroch bull fell to his knees, his head spinning about. Blood pooled in the boggy ground. Tallack raised his spear and pulled back his arm. Blydh kicked the horse into a canter.
Paega jump down from his pony, gripped his sword with both hands, swung it over his head and down onto the sagging bull’s neck. It cut less than halfway through. With his foot against the dying bull’s neck he wrenched out the blade and tried a second time. Blydh and Tallack dismounted as soon as they reached him. The bull was dead. His tongue lolled from his mouth into the dirt. There was no congratulating Paega’s moment of triumph. They were furious, pushing and thumping Paega about and calling him every name under the sun.
I felt a mixture of relief and deep regret. This auroch was the courageous, valiant one. He did all he could to protect his herd, and died a cruel and unnecessary death. He will be remembered in songs as the most vicious beast of the moors, his skull will be hung in the Long Hut for all to see. No one will tell tales of his supreme intelligence and cunning. His meat will grace our tables, his pelt will line Paega’s bedding. It was a pitiful death.
Aebba said nothing. He watched the scene play out beneath us, frozen still and silent. I suspected that his thoughts were similar to mine. It was Tallack’s rightful kill, and the flagrant disregard for honour turned it into Paega’s victory. Tallack had every right to take out his aggression on his half-brother. I certainly wouldn’t stop him from giving the little kyjya a good beating. It might knock some sense into him.
I walked away from the rock stack to give Aebba some time to absorb what had happened. There was no way of telling if he would find a way to rectify the injustice or whether he would allow Paega to keep the credit.
Packing away all the camp things took a long time without anyone to help me. Aebba did not move a muscle for a long time. He just sat and watched Paega hacking the bull into worthless pieces. The twins grew tired of screaming and punching him. They left to search for the missing pony, and then went after the wounded aurochs to dispatch them cleanly.
Eventually, with the cart horse strapped to the wagon, the fire put out and the provisions stowed away, I returned to Aebba’s side. “Come, Nephew. That beef will need salting before we can take it back to the compound.”
Still he said nothing, but he followed me along the ridge and mounted his horse. He rode on ahead while I descended to the wagon and followed the less steep path to the valley floor. When I caught up with Aebba, he was standing over Paega, who knelt in the mud with a blade trying to skin the beast.
The new warrior gabbled on in an excited rush. He was, perhaps, the only one proud of his actions. I looked at the lad with fresh eyes. We held him to the same standards as the twins, who both admired and respected their parents and their tribal Metern grandparents. Honour and loyalty were bred into their blood. Paega was a spawn of the Priest Sect. Their philosophies revolve around how they can best deceive and cheat as many people as possible without detection. They prize material wealth above all else. This outcome was less surprising than disappointing. Paega could sit by Aebba’s side for the next twenty or more summers, but he could never change his blood.
“Isn’t he the biggest bull you’ve ever seen in your life, Father?” Paega boasted, wiping his blade on his tunic sleeve.
Aebba nodded, but his slack face showed me his thoughts. With a lauded kill under his belt, Eseld would not settle for a fabricated title in the compound with virtually no status for her to trade on.
I could have climbed down from the cart and helped Paega butcher and skin the kill, but I couldn’t bring myself to lend him a hand. His disgrace reflects upon us all. How much of the truth will Aebba force the boys to conceal?
Driving the cart horse on to the narrowest part of the valley, I told Paega I would return to pick up the meat once he’d finished carving and slicing. I wanted to reassure myself that the twins were well and unharmed. Glancing back over my shoulder, I thought Aebba might use the same excuse and follow me, but he didn’t. As far as I could tell, he stood immobile and as silent as when Paega first swung his sword.
The valley floor was rough and ridged. The cart horse was not pleased at my insistence that he pulled a heavy wooden cart over such soggy ground. A short way ahead, I could see that the trail was a massive mud patch from the stampeding aurochs. Rather than get the wagon stuck, I climbed down and walked along the slope edges to the other side of the trees. Tallack and Blydh were a little further ahead, both knelt next to their kills with a knife in hand.
Blydh saw me first, rising to his feet to speak with me. “Did you see what happened, did Father see?”
I gave him a slow nod. “We both did, Blydh. I have no words of solace or comfort. I don’t know what your father intends to do about it. He’s not said a word since it happened.”
Tallack saw us talking from his position. He wiped his hands on his leggings and walked back to join in the conversation.
“Your father will want the entire hunt explained to him on the way home. Did you include Paega in your plans and preparations?” I asked them. Both twins stared at the floor.
Blydh answered. “We tried to, but he refused to speak with us about strategies. He claimed that we were ganging up on him, pushing him out on purpose. He even built his own fire so that he could sit further away from us at our campsite.”
“Your father and I saw how you handled the wolf pack. He was so proud of you both.” That response elicited a smile from each of them, however brief.
“Well, we can’t claim the auroch’s horns, but we do have plush wolf pelts to take back with us.”
“And the knowledge that you brought down the biggest bull in the land between you, even if Paega gets the credit for the final kill stroke.”
Tallack wrinkled his nose in revulsion. I didn’t want the despair to spiral into further conflict so I took out my knives and got to work, helping Blydh, then Tallack with the messy job of butchering the carcasses ready for transport.
When the three of us had cleaned off in the stream and loaded all the meat and pelts, they mounted their horses and trotted alongside the cart towards Paega and Aebba. The bull was a shredded mess. The offal had attracted the crows. Most of the valuable organs were thrown out to one side or mashed with his ineptitude. How has this boy lived in our compound for fifteen summers without learning a thing about curing the meat from a hunt?
Aebba was almost in the same standing position as when I had left him earlier and equally quiet. The twins passed the great slabs of bloodied beef up to the rear of the cart.
“Kyjya, Paega!” Blydh moaned, his arms were covered in thick blood. “You are supposed to drain all the humours out before butchering the meat. Such a dumb, Kyjya.”
“That’s enough!” Aebba snapped. We all stared at him in surprise. It was the first thing he’d uttered for most of the day. He said no more. Mounting his horse, he grabbed the reins and turned to face the trail home. “Blydh, Tallack, come and ride al
ongside me. We have things to discuss.” They cantered ahead, leaving Paega to witter on at me about his achievements.
***
It was a long ride home. I did try to hurry the cart horse along the track to eavesdrop on Aebba’s talk with the twins, but every time I got near, they cantered ahead. I guessed that he needed to discuss terms with the boys without Paega hearing them. They talked all the way to Doccombe, where we made camp for the night. Paega wanted to roast a big slab of the bull, but Aebba talked him out of the idea. I was glad, eating that noble creature would make me sick to my stomach. From the twin’s expressions, I guessed that they felt the same way.
We ate meagre rations of salted pork and fresh bread. It was all that we had left and none of us could face another hunt for hare or deer. The twins made noises about sleeping beneath the cart, until they saw the amount of blood still draining from the bull. It stank something awful, drawing scavengers to our camp from all around. Blydh and Tallack lit several fires around the cart to keep them at bay, but I did not sleep well. Every sound had me alert to the possibility that the wolves had returned for a rematch.
The men slept outside my shelter next to the fire, but I heard no talking nor jollity. It was a sombre evening, and it did not improve come daybreak. The last of the cheese and a couple of wild apples each were all we ate before setting off on the last leg of the journey to camp.
Paega had a fancy to ride ahead and warn every one of our return, but Aebba growled at him, denying his permission. We all knew his game. If he could get back to camp before the rest of us, he could spin the tale however he chose. The champion auroch fighter, warrior and leader of whichever clan he fancied. At least our Metern put a stop to that. Tallack and Blydh would be riled to a murderous level in those circumstances.