King Eric and the Outlaws, Vol. 2

by Bernhard Severin Ingemann

  CHAP. III.

  It was near daybreak. The alarm and anxiety had ceased, with which theinhabitants of Kallundborg had seen the night draw on. The peace andstillness which had prevailed the whole night seemed to have lulled theburghers, as well as the men-at-arms, into security. The lights wereextinguished in most of the houses. The men-at-arms nodded over theexpiring watch fires, and reposed on their mantles, in quiet groups,while some paced up and down on guard, beside the piled-up lances. Eventhe gay and vigilant Count Henrik was weary of the strained attentionwhich he now deemed unnecessary: he had sat down to rest, under animage of the Madonna, without the Franciscan monastery, where a lightwas always burning. He had lately inspected the sentries, and foundevery thing in good order. He felt wearied, but kept off sleep, and hiseyes open, while his gaze dwelt on the waning and half-hidden stars.His soul dreamed of warlike honours and proud victories, by the side ofthe Danish monarch, and of the admiration of the ladies of Mecklenborgwhen he should return with merited laurels and tokens of royal favourto his fatherland. While engaged in these reveries, which led himthrough half a life in a few minutes, he was suddenly disturbed by theworking of the balista, and a fearful alarm of fire from the monastery.He started up, and beheld, with dismay, that burning stones were flyingfrom the loopholes and walls of the castle, in different directions,and a high flame shot up from the storehouse of the monastery. In aninstant he was actively exerting himself in the rescue of the town andmonastery. Engines for extinguishing the flames were every where athand. There was a fearful tumult in the town; but the alarm was howevergreater than the misfortune seemed likely to prove. Some single houses,it is true, were fired; but the greater part were protected by thesnow, although the roofs were of straw. Many glowing stones from thebalista missed their mark, many cooled ere they fell. The storehouse ofthe monastery instantly caught fire: it was necessary to sacrifice it,and partly to pull it down; but not a single stone fell on theprincipal building, nor on the guest-house, where the king hadestablished himself.

  Meanwhile the king was instantly astir; none were more zealous andactive than he and Count Henrik; they rode constantly through thestreets, and were always first on the spot where any house was fired.

  The king was highly exasperated--he often cast a glance of menace atthe castle. He halted without the burning monastery, by the count'sside, just as another discharge from the balista took place, and alarge burning stone fell down between their horses, and rolled hissinginto the snow.

  "My liege!" exclaimed Count Henrik, "the burghers may put out theflames, but we can do more; let us sally forth and storm instantly."

  "Not yet," answered the king, shaking his head. "Look," he continued,pointing to the flame-lit copper roof of the principal building of themonastery; "when the sun stands highest, and the tower shadow fallsyonder, then will it be time; then will my patience have reached itslimits--its uttermost bounds."

  As soon as it was daylight the firing from the balista through theloopholes, ceased; but the parapets upon the outer wall were observedto be filled with men-at-arms. The towers of the wall were alsoperceived to be strongly garrisoned, and a numerous array of lances andbattle-axes glittered over the battlements in the grey dawn of morning.The wall before the gate in particular was strongly manned, as well asthe tower above the gate, where they seemed most to apprehend anattack. The great iron portcullis between the gate and the outward wallwas drawn up by strong iron rings. There was great alarm and tumult atthe castle and its garrison: a desperate storm and revenge for thenight's disturbance was apparently apprehended. The fire meanwhile hadbeen put out, as well in the monastery as in the town. The piousFranciscans rang to mattins, as usual, and the king did not neglect toshare in their devotion.

  "But--what is become of Aage?--Where is the Drost?" he asked CountHenrik, as he again vaulted on his horse, without the church of themonastery, in order to inspect the hastily prepared storming machineswith his general. "I saw him not the whole night, nor even justnow at mattins; it is not his wont, however, to sleep when I watch orpray--least of all when danger is impending."

  "I have not seen him since midnight," answered Count Henrik,endeavouring to hide his embarrassment and uneasiness; "After ouradventure beside the sea-tower, I saw him last by yonder watch-fire,"added the count, assuming a gay air. "It was a fine night; all aroundwas so still and peaceful. He must have got love fancies or some kindof visionary notions into his head. He went towards the tower, withoutdesiring my company, and bade me not expect him before noon."

  "Strange!" said the king, "Aage upon a light love adventure, and atthis time! It cannot be. Humph! what became of the spy you captured?Hath he been examined? Hath he confessed?"

  "He hath disappeared, my liege! 'tis a strange and almostincomprehensible tale. I was myself at the sea-tower, two hours aftermidnight, the man-at-arms was dead, but the devil had carried off hismurderer: that, they swore roundly, was the fact. He had lain bound inthe corpse-chamber of the drowned; no egress was possible; at midnighthe was heard to cry and howl, that the devil was carrying him off. Noone dared to enter the chamber, and when I came neither robber or Drostwas to be seen."

  "How! the Drost!" interrupted the king; "what hath all this to do withAage? He lay not in the chamber with the murderer."

  "True--excuse me, your grace," answered Count Henrik, clearinghis throat. "I speak at random, I perceive: that comes from thenight-watch."

  "Truly, count! we must be broad awake to-day, especially since Aage isnot here," answered the king hastily, and rode down towards the tower."I will find out what is meant by that devil's story."

  Count Henrik followed the king. The report of the disappearance of thebound murderer, had already collected a crowd of curious persons, whocrossed themselves on hearing the terrific tale, which they repeatedone to another, with still more marvellous and more terriblecircumstances. Place was respectfully made for the king, who heard withwonder from the guard the same tale as that current in the crowd, withthe alarming addition, that the Drost had entered at midnight into thechamber of the raving murderer, and that all traces of him had likewisedisappeared. Various opinions were however entertained of the affair,and some thought it was not the Drost, but the devil, who, in theDrost's form, had entered the chamber of the dying murderer, to carryhim off in person.

  "Tush!" said the king, "lead me to that accursed corpse-chamber! Theremust be some trick in this." He hastily entered the murky stonechamber, and looked around it on all sides with anxious attention.There was no furniture except the bench appropriated to the bodies ofthe drowned, which was streaked with blood, and on which hung some rentand half-decayed rope. From the high iron grating in the wall, whichwas hardly large enough to admit a sparrow, fell a faint light, whichglimmered on a plumed hat lying in a corner. "What see I here?"exclaimed the king in astonishment. "The Drost's hat and plume;and there is his green mantle also. Plundered, murdered, greatGod!--Yet no! a robber would surely have made off with the booty. Thecaptured murderer was certainly sorely wounded?"

  "To the death of the body, most gracious liege, according to thesurgeon's opinion," answered an aged monk, who, with a curious crowd ofthe lower class, had thronged together with the men-at-arms, into thetower after the king. "Ah, yes," continued the solemn Franciscan, in atone of devout exhortation, "it was a fearful end. Here we seemanifestly how the ungodly are punished. This blood crieth not untoheaven, like the innocent Abel's, but it crieth unto hardened sinnersupon earth, from the road to the bottomless pit, that they may beholdthe traces of the damned with fear and trembling. My pious hearers, menmay now-a-days delay _temporal_ death, by means of surgeons andapothecaries, with St. Cosmo's and St. Damian's help; but _eternal_death they never can: when the term is out, lo! then cometh he who haththe bond, and fetches that which is his own, without respect ofpersons. Here hath been given a sign, to the terror and warning of manyin our ungodly time: Sancta Maria! ora pronobis!"

  "It is thou then, monk, who puttest those va
garies into the people'shead?" interrupted the king at last, with impetuous impatience."Believest thou, in truth, that the Evil One hath carried off yonmurderer, both body and soul?"

  "St. Franciscus preserve me from doubting it!" answered the monk,crossing himself. "He who can carry off the souls of the ungodly candoubtless annihilate their sinful bodies. Lo! he hath but left theseblood-drops behind, as a witness of the power which is given him, andalso, though _he_ willed it not, to the honour of the all-righteousJudge. The truth is so manifest in our sight, it were blindness andheretical presumption to doubt."

  "And, my Drost, my faithful Aage, believest thou the same of him?"

  "Be not wroth, my liege?" answered the Franciscan with frankness, andlaying his meagre hand on his breast, "my conscience forbids me towitness falsely on the brink of the grave, to please or flatter thegreat and mighty, or to conceal the wondrous things which have takenplace in our sight, for the conversion of hardened sinners, with fearand trembling. The noble Drost hath also disappeared in anincomprehensible manner, and seeing that we know he had fallen underthe awful ban of the church, and was given over by our most venerablearchbishop to the destruction of the flesh, and the power of the greatenemy of souls!"

  "Silence, presumptuous monk! thou knowest not what thou sayest!"exclaimed the king, in the greatest wrath, darting a lightning glanceat the pale trembling monk; "let the prince of darkness take that whichis his! I will not quarrel either with him or thee for that; but this Iknow, no devil shall injure a hair of my faithful Drost Aage's head,whether he be dead or alive. There must have been a murder here, a foulmisdeed," he continued, "a shameless treachery. So help me God, and allthe holy men, it shall be discovered, and sternly avenged! Hence, monk!hie thee to thy cell, and pray the Lord to enlighten thy understanding.Thy intentions are good--it were sin to be wroth with thee. Go hence,good people; ye stand in our way. Hither, my true men; the floor mustbe broken up; the tower must be pulled down. If the Drost be not found,one stone shall not remain upon another."

  At the king's stern command the monk and all the idle spectatorsdeparted. The spearmen came with spears and boat-hooks, and whateverwas at hand, and began to break up the stone floor. It was not long erethey discovered the loose stone in the corner by the little irontrap-door, which was hardly discernible in the faint glimmer ofdaylight from the grating. "Look, look!" was the cry; "a trap-door! apitfall!"

  "Ha! the murderer's pit! Here we have it!" exclaimed the king. "Torcheshere, quick! I will go below, myself.

  "Let that be my business, my liege," said Count Henrik. "Here isassuredly the secret entrance to the castle," he added in a low voice;"perhaps it might be used for our attack."

  "No, Count! a king's path lies not through a fox's den"--interruptedthe king, proudly: "bring me but my faithful Aage!"

  Torches were quickly brought, and the passage was searched. The kinghowever suffered himself to be withheld from descending. Count Henrikhasted forward with eagerness and curiosity, holding a torch in hishand, and accompanied by three men-at-arms. The torches were oftennearly extinguished by the subterranean air; they found however andrecognised the robber's body, which was immediately borne off by two ofthe men, while Count Henrik and the third pursued the search. At lastthey reached the great iron gate, which they vainly attempted to burstopen. Within, the sounding of horns and the clash of numerous weaponswere heard, and Count Henrik considered it advisable to hasten back.

  The king had meanwhile obtained information of every circumstancerespecting the Drost's nocturnal visit to the tower, and was in somedegree tranquillised by the sight of the robber's body, when CountHenrik returned and acquainted him with what he had discovered. "Thedaring Drost is assuredly alive, if not quite in safety, my liege,"said the Count, as he ascended from the secret passage, quite spent andbreathless. "As the murderer was found dead and alone, he cannot havemastered the brave Drost; but it is plain they have had a hard struggletogether. Here is the Drost's sword; it was found close to the body.There is actually a secret passage to the castle; but it is stronglyguarded, and we were near falling into the enemy's hand."

  "Well, now we know where Aage is," said the king; "he meant well; but'tis an arch trick he hath played us. Ere the sun goes down he shall befree, by God's assistance," he added. "Woe to the traitors, should theyinjure a hair of his head!"

  The king left the tower, and the preparations for storming werecontinued with increased zeal.

  Towards noon the king, mounted on his white steed, stationed himselfwithout the eastern rampart of the castle: he was stern and silent. Heoften looked with uneasy expectation and rising indignation towards thegate of the town, where, in a few moments, his brother the junker wouldappear, did he purpose taking any measures to effect a reconciliation.Some horsemen, who were placed on the look-out on the hill by St.George's hospital, returned at the time appointed, at full gallop, andannounced that the expected party was not to be seen on the road.

  "Now then, in the name of the righteous God," exclaimed the king in alow voice, but greatly incensed, "I have no longer a brother; themeasure is full--Let them sound to storm, Count Henrik; let thetrumpets thunder forth my wrath!"

  Hardly was the command uttered ere the trumpets sounded to storm. Thesun stood highest in the heaven, and the tower shadow fell upon theroof of the monastery. The whole force was instantly in activity. Theattack was made according to the plan concerted with the Drost, fromthree sides at once; but on two sides feignedly, in order to misleadthe enemy, while the principal assault, in which the whole force of thetroop combined by degrees, was directed against the eastern wall, bythe tower gate.

  The outermost drawbridge was speedily pulled down by the boat-hooks ofthe brave boatmen and seamen. With the aid of all the fire laddersbelonging to the town, the outer wall was quickly mounted. No leaderwas here present, and the junker's Zealand peasants, as well as theSamsoeers, fought unwillingly against their countrymen. A braveresistance was indeed made against the German Count Henrik, butwherever the king himself appeared, the weapons dropped from the handsof the Danish defenders of the wall, while they fell at his feet andimplored mercy. The outer wall came thus speedily into the power of theking, who was himself one of the first who mounted it; but the mostvigorous defence was made from the tower, over the fortified gate.Within was heard a powerful voice of command, and from the loopholesand battlements rained a thick shower of stones and javelins. CountHenrik saw the danger, and hastened to form a roof of shields for theking's protection, while it was vainly attempted to tear down the greatportcullis which served as a sort of raised iron drawbridge over themoat, between the outer wall and the gate.

  "Fire the gate!" commanded the king, with wrathful impetuosity.

  "Fire! fire, here!" was echoed from mouth to mouth, and crowds soonflocked from the town, with torches of pitch, with fire and splinteredtar-barrels, which they threw in over the portcullis. The gate and thetower were soon shrouded in smoke and flame, amid the shouts of thebesiegers.