“Perhaps you’re right,” Einhard said with a chuckle, our conversation seemingly forgotten. “I still say six before she’s finished.” He looked at his wife with a raised eyebrow. “And you?”
Alesia pointed. “Priam at ten,” she said. “He’ll be the end of her.”
“Priam eh?” Einhard said. “You seem quite sure of yourself.”
Alesia laughed. “I’ve heard rumours of his prowess.” Einhard gave her a look and she added, “I talk with my sisters you know.”
Einhard grinned at that and rubbed her knee before turning back to me. “So, Hadrack,” he said. “What were we talking about?”
“You claimed The First Pair are false gods,” I said, not trying to hide my anger. Below us the Quarrymaster’s wife had moved on to another man amid cries of glee and disappointment.
“A fact,” Einhard said, waving his hand dismissively. “Not a claim. Another time I will show you the path to the Master and you will understand. But for now, we will talk of other things.” I just nodded and kept my thoughts to myself. “You spoke of honor earlier,” Einhard continued, toying with his mug.
“Yes,” I nodded.
“Honor is a silly notion," Einhard said. "It makes you weak and gives strength to your enemies.” He closed his hand into a fist and held it up. “At the end of the day, the only thing the enemy respects is this.” He opened his hand and held it out palm up. “If you show them this, they’ll cut off your fingers and piss down your throat.”
“You can have honor and strength,” I said stubbornly. I thought of my father. No one would ever have called him weak, even after his leg was ruined. Yet he had been an honorable man. Honor had made him stronger, not weaker in my opinion. I told as much to Einhard, but I could tell he was barely listening to my words now. The Quarrymaster’s wife was one man away from Einhard’s wager and he was now completely focused on that. He nodded absently to me and then started talking with Alesia, so I stood up slowly, intending to go sit with Baine and Jebido. I’d had enough of the Piths and their perversions.
Einhard must have seen me move out of the corner of his eye and he grabbed my upper arm with his calloused hand, holding me back. “I’m not done talking with you, Ganderman,” he said. He motioned with his head. “Sit.” I hesitated and considered pulling my arm away, but then common sense took over and I sat back down, trying hard to suppress my anger. “Did you know that your eyes change color when you’re angry?” Einhard said with a grin. I just shook my head and grit my teeth. “Oh yes,” Einhard nodded. He drained his mug, then called for more beer before turning back to me. “Grey like a wolf.” He chuckled and swayed slightly. “Perhaps that’s what I’ll call you. Would you like that?” I just glowered at him and he laughed. “Hadrack the wolf. I like it.” He made a face. “Well, maybe for now wolf cub would be better. What do you think?”
“Are you going to let us go?” I blurted out just as the grey-haired woman with the beer returned.
She refilled Einhard’s mug, then he grabbed mine and had her fill it as well. He handed it back to me and grinned as I drank. “No, I will not let you go. I have other plans for you.”
Perhaps the beer was getting to me, or perhaps I’d just had enough of these Piths, I don’t know, but I threw caution to the wind and said what I thought. “You’re a bastard!”
“True,” Einhard agreed without breaking his smile.
“You’re going to torture and kill us then?”
Einhard shrugged. “Perhaps. Perhaps not.”
I rolled my eyes and, despite myself, I smiled back at him, my anger suddenly dissipating as quickly as it had come. “You really are a bastard, you know.”
“Yes,” Einhard said. He blinked at me several times and grinned. “I believe we’ve established that.”
“If you’re not going to let us go and you’re not going to kill us, then what are you going to do with us?” I asked.
“Husband,” Alesia said, shaking Einhard’s shoulder. “Orixe is next.”
“Ah, finally,” Einhard nodded. He turned away from me and he and the Piths began to urge the Quarrymaster’s wife on as she started to work on Orixe. I glanced at the Quarrymaster and saw that he was staring down at his wife with a mixture of contempt and wonder. Eventually the Piths cheered and Einhard exploded out a curse beside me and then fished into his tunic and drew out several pieces of silver before throwing them down to a grinning Pith.
“The Master thanks you, brother,” the Pith said, laughing as he caught the silver pieces nimbly.
“I should have known better than to bet against a woman with a belly like that,” Einhard grumbled.
“There, there,” Alesia said, laughing at her husband. “Perhaps the next time you’ll get it right.”
Einhard shrugged at her and turned to me. “Have you sworn an oath to the King of Ganderland?” he abruptly asked me.
I nodded cautiously, surprised by the question and wondering where it was going. “Well, yes, sort of. But that was a long time ago. We were peasants and actually gave the oath of fealty to the Lord of Corwick.”
“Not the king?”
“The Lord of Corwick is sworn to the king, which means so are we.”
“Ah, I think I understand,” Einhard said. “I have heard of this Lord Corwick,” he added. He took a drink of beer and belched. “A good man with a sword, they say.”
I shrugged. “I saw him once when my father took the oath and then again one other time.” I held my tongue about what had happened at Corwick. I didn’t think a man like Einhard would show much sympathy.
Einhard rubbed his temple thoughtfully. “This oath. You say your father took it?”
“Yes,” I nodded.
“But not you?”
“I was just a boy,” I explained. “As head of our house my father took it for us all. I was there, but all I did was watch with my sister.”
“And this oath is important in Ganderland?” Below us the Piths roared and I could see the Quarrymaster’s wife was still going strong and had moved on to the next man. Einhard ignored what was happening now and he stayed focused on me. I imagine having lost the bet, his interest in the outcome had faded somewhat.
“Yes, very important,” I answered. “In exchange for land to work, we give our liege lord our solemn oath to be faithful to him and to The Mother and The Father and to never cause the lord harm or be deceitful.”
“And if you break that vow?”
I shrugged. “Then our lands and lives are forfeit.”
Einhard stroked his beard. “When we fought your king, we captured some of his men. Some of them were clearly soldiers, but many others appeared to be just simple men such as you, untrained in war. Does this oath include taking up arms for your king?”
I nodded. “Yes. We’re bound to our lord, who in turn is bound to the king. When the king summons the lords to battle, we are expected to join if needed.”
“And if you refuse, your oath will have been broken,” Einhard said, seeming to understand.
“Yes,” I nodded. “The choices for peasants are few.”
“But surely the rewards must make it worthwhile?”
“What rewards?” I asked.
“Why, plunder and women of course,” Einhard said in surprise. “What else could I mean?”
I shook my head. “Not for peasants. I suppose an occasional ring or such pulled from a body might be hidden but, other than that, peasants are not allowed to profit. Only their liege lord is.”
“Your king is a fool!” Einhard stated bluntly. He waved absently at the cheering Piths below. “Does he not know what drives a man? Does he not know what makes a man stand shoulder to shoulder with another man in a shield wall and laugh at death?” Einhard fumbled in his clothing and produced a brown leather sack and untied it. He spilled the contents on the furs
before me. “That is what drives a man!” Einhard cried. I looked down at the pile of silver and glittering gems and I swallowed in surprise. Never could I have imagined such wealth even existed. And there it was, lying casually in front of me. Einhard picked up a red ruby and held it in the palm of his hand for me to see. “A man will fight for this, Hadrack. He will charge a shield wall and battle like a crazed beast and not stop because he knows victory is not only for our king and the Master, it is for him as well.”
“You share the plunder equally?” I said in wonder.
Einhard grinned and scooped the silver and gems back into his bag. “There is no such thing as equal, my friend. As Sword of the King, I get a quarter of all plunder. Half goes to our king and the rest is divided among the men. It is a fair arrangement.” He winked at me. “Compare that to your king, who offers you nothing for your life except what you already have. You have everything to lose and nothing to gain. That is madness. A man who is forced to fight and risk everything for no gain is no match for a man who wants to fight and has much to gain. Wouldn’t you agree?” He studied me closely as I thought, my eyes unconsciously following the arc of silver and gems in the bag as Einhard casually tossed it in his hand.
“Yes,” I said finally.
Einhard tucked the bag away and nodded in satisfaction. “Good. Now tell me. You spoke of honor earlier. Do you still feel honor bound by the oath your father took?”
I thought about that for only a moment. The Lord of Corwick and his men had murdered my family and all the villagers in Corwick. The oath of fealty was a two-sided pledge, with the liege lord promising on his end to protect his vassals at all times. Lord Corwick had broken his oath as far as I was concerned and so it was an easy answer for me. “Absolutely not.”
“Good, good,” Einhard said with a lopsided grin. He clapped me heavily on the shoulder. “Then I have decided that I’m not going to kill you after all. The Master has been clear about His wishes, and we, His servants, will be taking the fight even more to these men of Ganderland. Today’s battle was just the first step.” Einhard looked at me. “As warlord of my tribe and Sword to the king of Piths, I need men to fight this war. Men I can depend on.”
“You want us to join you and fight against our king?” I asked in bewilderment as I realized what he was saying. I felt my pulse flutter at the idea and I couldn’t help but glance at the bulge in his tunic where I knew the bag of silver and gems lay.
“You and the older one with the big nose and watchful eyes,” Einhard nodded. “I have a use for the both of you. The little one I have no interest in.”
I frowned and shook my head. “No. He stays with us.”
“He’s too small,” Einhard said dismissively. He swept his arm around the hall. “Any of my sisters could beat him. I don’t want him. He’d just get in the way.”
“He may be small,” I agreed. “But Baine is fast and stronger than he looks, and he's very good with a bow. It would be a mistake to underestimate him.” I kept my face neutral as I told the lie. I didn’t know it then, but as time would go by my words would become all too true.
“And if I still say no?” Einhard grunted.
“Then I won’t join you,” I said as I held Einhard’s green eyes with mine.
“I could just kill you all and be done with it,” Einhard growled, his eyes hardening. “I’d be no worse off than before I met you.”
“You could,” I agreed. “But if you planned that you would have done it by now.”
Einhard sat back and regarded me coldly. For a moment I thought I’d gone too far, but then he threw his head back and laughed. He drained his mug, slurping to get it all, and then looked at me, his face serious now. “You interest me, Hadrack the wolf cub. Give me your oath that you will fight with us and not run away the moment no one is watching and I will let you live.”
“All three of us?” I demanded.
Einhard glanced at Baine, who was, I was shocked to see, rutting away quite happily with one of the Pith women. The woman was naked except for leather boots on her feet and she was straddling him, her large breasts bouncing wildly as she rode him. Somehow the naked woman managed to take a great gulp of beer from a mug she held in one hand without missing a stroke or spilling any before with a whoop, she threw the empty mug over her shoulder. I couldn’t help but smile to myself at the look of wild-eyed glee on my friend’s face as he looked up at her.
“Yes,” Einhard grimaced as he looked back at me. “All three of you.”
And that is how Baine, Jebido and I came to join the Piths.
Chapter 6: Calen
Three days of hard riding later, my ass still hadn’t gotten used to the unforgiving saddle beneath it or the jerking gait of my horse, and I winced as pain shot up my spine. In front of me the Pith men rode three abreast in a long line while scouts appeared and disappeared like wraiths through the trees in the distance, guarding us from ambush. The women rode behind Baine, Jebido and I and were armed with short swords and light bows and, from what I’d seen already, I knew they knew how to use them both. Behind the women, heavily-laden packhorses carrying plunder and the bodies of the Pith fallen brought up the rear in a solemn column, the corpses flipped over the horses face down and tied wrists to ankles. At the rear of the procession of the dead, several heavy wagons carrying the wounded and drawn by oxen plodded along. The Piths had found the wagons in the compound and had taken them as well as all the horses, though I thought they might be regretting it by now, as the slow-moving oxen had reduced the entire company to a crawl.
Jebido rode easily to my right, his great hawk-like nose jutting out from beneath his new helm, his eyes half-closed as the sun warmed him. Once we’d sworn our oath to Einhard in a completely informal ceremony before a crowd of drunken and mostly sleeping Piths, Einhard had allowed us to take what we wished from the dead Gander soldiers. Jebido now wore a conical metal helm, a mail tunic with a black cloak, and heavy leather trousers. He’d found a pair of hob-nailed boots that fit him perfectly and he carried a short sword on one hip and a long sword on the other. He had a round Pith shield on his left arm and he looked every bit the soldier, I thought with pride. I glanced to my left where Baine rode just as easily as Jebido and I frowned. My friend had taken to riding as if he’d been doing it his entire life, and I can’t say that I wasn’t just a little bit jealous.
Baine saw my look and he snickered at me. “It still hurts?” he asked in mock surprise. He was dressed in a black-dyed padded leather jacket two sizes too big for him over a white tunic, as none of the armour we’d come across had been small enough for him. He’d also scrounged up some black trousers and black leather boots and I had to admit he looked quite impressive. He reminded me a lot of the small, but lightning-quick black rock snakes we used to see near Corwick. Baine’s shield was hung over his saddle and he held a well-used knife in his hand and was flipping it in the air end over end so fast that it was hard to focus on it. His hands weren’t large but they were very dexterous, something he told me had helped make him an excellent pickpocket.
“Is it that obvious?” I grumbled.
Baine laughed again. “You look like you could rip a bear in half with your hands right about now.”
“As long as I’m on my feet and off this cursed horse, I’d consider it a bargain.”
Baine flipped the knife in the air, then stuck his hand out, palm down as the hilt reversed and sat balanced on his hand. He flicked his hand back up and the knife twirled away before he caught it again almost casually. “You’d think with that big soft backside of yours that you’d have enough cushioning.”
“Keep talking and maybe I’ll rip you in half instead of the bear,” I growled at him.
“You’ll never catch me,” Baine said with a grin. “You’re way too slow, what with that giant ass holding you back.” I grinned at Baine despite myself and shifted in the saddle, suppr
essing a groan at the pain in my buttocks. Thankfully, we’d just entered an area of hilly terrain that slowed the horses and wagons even more, making the jolting almost tolerable. I turned and glanced back at the three women riding directly behind me and they all grinned at me. Two of the women were Piths, both with the familiar blonde hair, while the third was plump and had long black hair. Not long ago, the plump woman, whose name was Megy, had been the Quarrymaster’s wife, though she’d get mad now if you called her that. As things turned out, Alesia had been right all along and Priam had been Megy’s undoing. She’d tried her best, everyone agreed on that, but Priam had just kept going and going until Megy couldn’t take it anymore. The poor woman had finally gagged and fallen to her knees, where she’d heaved the entire contents of her stomach onto the floor of the great hall. Megy’s failure had prompted the Pith women guarding the Quarrymaster to poke and prod the now terrified man out of the hall at the point of their knives. I never did see the Quarrymaster again, but for hours after you could hear the man’s screams echoing across the compound. I had no love for the man, but even now, all these years later, I still shudder when I think about what those last few hours must have been like for him. As for Megy, the Piths had become surprisingly enamoured with her. I suppose they admired her determination and bravery, not to mention her enthusiasm once she got the hang of things. After she’d purged her stomach and stood up, clearly expecting to share the fate of her husband, the Piths had taken a vote and had unanimously decided to let her live. Having nowhere else to go, Megy had decided to come with us and had become a favorite nighttime companion of Eriz, of all people.
“You look very dashing dressed in that armour, Hadrack,” Megy called to me with a grin and a wink. “It suits you well and you look happy.”
I felt myself sit up straighter in my saddle at her words and I adjusted the shield on my left arm before I smiled back at her. “As do you,” I said. And it was true. Megy’s hair seemed shiner now and her eyes sparkled with a kind of inner joy. I noticed she’d even lost some weight as well, courtesy of her nightly escapades, I thought with a grin.
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