Shadow Lands Trilogy

by Simon Lister

  ‘Yes, with some of the warriors that are now camped not far away,’ Arthur replied.

  ‘You have your war band here in the Shadow Lands in winter?’ Another of the Uathach asked.

  ‘We’ve been raiding the Adren from here down to Branque and along the East Road.’

  ‘The Adren?’ the same man asked.

  ‘Yes, the Black Army, the Adren.’ Arthur stopped and signalled Morgund and Ceinwen to join them. He looked around at the gathered Uathach and said, ‘These people aren’t fit to travel to the camp. Go and collect some supplies and whatever spare winter clothing we have and bring them back here.’

  ‘I can wait here, Arthur,’ Ceinwen offered, unwilling to leave their warlord alone in the Uathach band.

  Arthur stared at Ruraidh for a moment then replied, ‘No, you two go back.’

  Morgund and Ceinwen turned and were soon lost in the dark forest. Arthur gazed around at the gathered Uathach.

  ‘Well, you have the hated Wessex Warlord here in your camp. You’ve offered what help you could to Berwyn and Saewulf and now I’m offering to you what help I can. If any of you still think of me as your enemy then now would be your best chance to attack, but first I suggest you go to the edge of the forest and take a look out over the plain.’

  The Uathach warriors looked to Ruraidh and after a moment he sat back down by the fire, gesturing for Arthur to do likewise. The others sat too, waiting eagerly for the promised supplies, all except Gwyna.

  ‘You fools! They’ll bring his war band and slaughter us!’ she said.

  ‘If that’s what he wanted don’t you think he’d have done so already?’ asked Ruraidh.

  ‘Your hatred won’t feed you Gwyna, it will only consume you,’ Arthur said to her.

  Gwyna sat down by the fire, staring at Arthur who gazed levelly back at her until she turned her head to one side. Arthur continued to gaze at her. She was no older than Morveren but even without her obvious vitriol she had a hardness to her. Life in the Uathach lands was not easy. Laws and rules did not exist and one clan was often at another’s throat. The land was hard to farm and stayed locked by ice for longer than the southern country and froze sooner too. With better organisation and cooperation they could produce enough to support themselves during the long winter but they chose instead to raid each other and the more productive lands to their south. Arthur thought that Ruraidh and Gwyna portrayed two Uathach characteristics quite accurately between them, a pragmatic approach to survival on the one hand and a fierce independence on the other. The irony was that one was often pitched against the other. The cold and their hunger had quelled their more violent nature, for now.

  Arthur turned his attention to Ruraidh, ‘You haven’t posted guards.’

  ‘No, they’ve stopped patrolling since your raids. You must have hurt them,’ Ruraidh replied.

  ‘We needed to hit their supplies. We wanted to delay their advance on Britain until after the winter. And we wanted to find out what happened to the Belgae and Cei’s men.’

  ‘We had no warning, Arthur. They just swept across the plain from all sides and slaughtered the villagers,’ Berwyn said his eyes glazed in memory.

  ‘Branque and Eald fell the same way. We didn’t know it was going to happen and there was nothing we could do to stop it even if we had. It will be yours and my land next, Ruraidh.’

  ‘What would they want with our lands?’ Gwyna asked.

  ‘They want everything,’ Arthur answered.

  ‘You’re just trying to drag us into your own war. We’ve nothing they want. We have no lands worth farming.’

  ‘Do you think the Adren will settle down here and farm these lands? Do you think that’s why they’ve slaughtered everyone they could on this side of the Causeway?’

  The force of Arthur’s questions took Gwyna aback and she did not reply. Ruraidh looked uncertain, remembering the way they had watched the Adren army massacre the Belgae. The Uathach fell silent and waited for whatever Arthur’s warriors would bring them. Some feared that Gwyna was right, that the war band would fall on them and kill them even though they knew that if Arthur had wanted it so, he would have waited for his warriors and done so without risk to himself. Berwyn and Saewulf questioned Arthur about Cei and news from home. Arthur was aware that despite their obvious plight neither of the Anglians had told Ruraidh about their own longboats and he told them quietly that he had found and moved them. He told them that Cei and some of his warriors had gone down the East Road to intercept the Adren supplies but that some of Cei’s spear riders had remained with himself and that they would soon meet them.

  They waited, huddled around the fire, the gaunt and haggard faces beginning to fill with hope after the cold death they had thought inevitable only hours before.

  Eventually they heard the approaching members of Arthur’s war band as they neared the edge of the clearing. The Uathach stood warily watching as ten of Arthur’s warriors stopped just inside the cover of the trees. Arthur stood and waved them on. The two groups, enemies all their lives remained watching each other, anticipating the first indication of an attack.

  Arthur strode to his band and hauled one of the sledges towards the fire.

  ‘Winter clothing – what we can spare,’ he said.

  The Uathach gathered around the sledge and started to unpack the bundles stacked on it. Ceinwen led the others into the clearing and Cael set up a cauldron over the fire to start making a broth for the starved group. Balor and Mar’h stood to one side watching the Uathach, finding it difficult to accept or understand why they were helping people who they regarded as enemies.

  As the broth started to cook, the Uathach stood eagerly around the fire, awaiting their first proper meal in weeks. Arthur, unwilling to take any chances, posted guards in the forest towards the Adren positions while the Uathach devoured the hot food put in front of them. Even Gwyna put her pride to one side and ate as greedily as her companions.

  Arthur stood to one side with Mar’h and Ceinwen, letting the Uathach eat undisturbed. As the light around them dimmed, Mar’h looked up at the sky. High clouds shrouded the moon above them and the stars were blurred behind their thin veil.

  ‘Storm coming in,’ Mar’h said absently.

  Arthur looked up at the ringed moon and immediately thought of Seren at their parting in the Winter Garden. He wanted to see her again, soon. He needed to see her soon. He thought of the Cithol City and the warmth and safety it offered. Like the rest of his warriors he was weary, hungry and cold to the bone. They had been cold and tired for weeks now and it was wearing them down. It was time to go home. His thoughts jumped to Cei and Trevenna and their journey east to the Shadow Land City. All he could do was hope Merdynn would guide them soundly and safely. It was not enough and he rubbed the heels of his palms in his reddened eyes.

  ‘Do you think so?’ Ceinwen asked Mar’h.

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘When?’

  ‘Soon.’

  ‘What?’ Asked Arthur distracted from his thoughts.

  ‘Storm coming in,’ repeated Mar’h.

  ‘Do you think so?’ he asked.

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘When?’

  ‘Soon.’

  Ceinwen burst out laughing. The laugh rang clearly across the clearing and people looked around, unaccustomed to the sound of laughter. Arthur looked at them both, puzzled by their smiles.

  ‘What?’ Arthur asked.

  ‘Storm coming in,’ Mar’h said grinning.

  ‘Gods! Not again, please.’ Ceinwen said.

  Arthur understood and said, ‘I was far away, I didn’t catch it first time round.’

  ‘Lucky you. Take me with you next time,’ Ceinwen replied and she realised she was smiling at Arthur for the first time since Sawan’s death.

  ‘If Ruraidh has finished, ask him to come across here,’ Arthur said.

  Mar’h ambled across to the fire and cautiously knelt by Ruraidh.

  ‘How’s his arm?’ Arthur asked, noddin
g after Mar’h.

  ‘As mended as it will ever be. His left hand won’t be much good for anything,’ Ceinwen replied.

  Arthur grunted as Mar’h returned with Ruraidh who was wiping his mouth and beard with his hands.

  ‘It’s a strange turn of events,’ Ruraidh said and Arthur raised his eyebrows in question. ‘We came here to raid the Belgae of whatever food stores we could. These Adren, as you name them, slaughter everything in sight and destroy our boats. We’re left stranded here in the Shadow Lands in winter. We come across two of the Anglian spear riders sent to protect the Belgae from us and help them as best as we can. Then just as hope is gone and we face a slow cold death, the hated Warlord of Wessex turns up with food to save us. The gods are busy with their dice.’

  ‘The dice haven’t finished rolling yet, Ruraidh,’ Arthur said.

  ‘I have no doubt of that but I’ll be harder to surprise in future.’

  ‘How are your band?’ Arthur asked.

  ‘Fed. Warmer. Alive. I didn’t ever think I’d be thanking the Warlord of Wessex for saving our lives.’

  ‘And I hadn’t thought to be saving them. But everything is now changed. The Adren won’t see a difference between Uathach, Wessex or Anglian. They want us all dead.’

  ‘You name us Uathach, we don’t call ourselves by that name.’

  ‘What name do you use?’

  ‘We don’t, each clan is separate from each other, and each clan has its own name.’

  ‘And there lies your downfall and perhaps our own. When the Adren come you’ll stand and fall individually.’

  ‘If they come for us. As Gwyna says, why should they?’

  ‘If you believe nothing else, Ruraidh, believe this; the Adren will destroy your homes and land and they will slaughter each and every one of you. They spare no one,’ Arthur said.

  Ruraidh looked away, back to his warriors around the fire. Arthur stared at him and the watching Ceinwen saw his eyes become unfocussed and dead. Arthur blinked and the life came back to his gray eyes as he said, ‘Say what you will, you know the truth.’

  Ruraidh looked back at Arthur and nodded slightly.

  ‘Now, you came here to get stores for your clan. We came here to take or destroy the Adren stores. Do you know where the Adren have their main supplies on the plains?’

  ‘Yes. We hoped to raid it but it’s too well guarded,’ Ruraidh replied.

  ‘Good, then perhaps we can do together what we came here to do individually.’

  ‘Raid the Adren on the plains? You’re mad. There’s thousands of the black army down there.’

  ‘Yes, raid the Adren. Yes, I am mad and yes, there are thousands on the plain but if you want your winter supplies and passage home on our boats then you will help. Talk to your warriors. You can stay and starve here if you prefer, it won’t disturb my sleep,’ Arthur said and walked away.

  Mar’h and Ceinwen followed Arthur and as Mar’h passed Ruraidh he said quietly, ‘Can you hear those dice?’

  *

  They left the Uathach to discuss the proposed raid among themselves. Arthur would return to the clearing with his warriors to learn their answer before commencing with the raid. They left the Uathach with enough food for another meal and returned through the forests back to their camp under a winter sky robbed of its myriad stars by the snow-laden clouds rolling in from the West.

  When they reached the camp the news of their encounter with the Uathach quickly spread among the others. Morgund was highly suspicious and suspected that the Uathach would either plan an ambush or somehow betray them to the Adren. He said as much to Arthur who told him it would not be so but that they would in any case send an advance scouting party to be sure.

  As Morgund was voicing his doubts, Gwyna was trying to persuade Ruraidh to do exactly as Morgund feared. Ruraidh pointed out to her that Arthur’s war band would number over a hundred and that they were only twenty. Even if he had known Arthur’s war band was only half that number he still would not have decided to try an ambush for they had no way home without the help of the men from Wessex. Gwyna tried briefly to argue that they should barter with the Adren, Arthur and his warriors in exchange for enough food for the winter but she did not really believe the Adren would barter for anything. She had seen the way they had massacred the Belgae.

  Berwyn and Saewulf, who had stayed with the Uathach until Arthur’s return, assured Ruraidh that Arthur was a man who could be trusted to act as either a friend or an enemy and clearly he regarded the Adren as the enemy not Ablach’s clan whom he had, after all, provided with food and winter clothing.

  Ruraidh finished the argument by saying that their only way home was with Arthur. The only way they might be able to take winter stores back to their clan was with Arthur. Whether they liked it or not this was the only way. As if to reiterate the conclusion he had reached they made their second meal from the supplies left to them.

  Arthur’s war band struck camp and made their way towards the plains where the massed Adren army was busy securing their sprawling encampment from the gathering wind and increasingly heavy snowfall. When Arthur’s warriors had covered the fifteen miles, their scouts found that the Uathach had not set an ambush, nor were the Adren waiting for them. The Anglians among Arthur’s band greeted Berwyn and Saewulf joyously, thinking they had been killed and were eager for news of the others who had gone to help the Belgae. Ruraidh came out to meet Arthur.

  ‘Have you decided?’ Arthur asked.

  ‘Yes. We’ll join your raid on your Adren if we can keep some of the stores we take and if you’ll give us passage across the sea on one of your longboats.’

  Arthur shook his head and walked into the midst of the Uathach band.

  ‘Understand this. It’s not a question of you doing something for us and then we help you. We don’t need your help to raid the Adren, with or without you we will do this. With or without you we will return across the sea. This is a question of whether we can put aside our hatred and fight together against our common enemy. You and your people have cause to hate us. Likewise we have cause to hate you and your people. We were enemies. We were. The Adren have changed this. The question is, are we enemies still or are the Adren our common enemy?’

  Both the Uathach and Arthur’s warriors were silent and uneasy.

  ‘Is there anyone here who is my enemy?’ Arthur asked, searching the faces around him and settling on Gwyna.

  ‘Is there?’

  The question rang through the clearing as both bands stood facing each other in the falling snow. Still no one answered.

  ‘If the Adren are our enemy then we are allies. If we are allies then we help each other. If we are enemies then let’s finish it now. Here.’

  Ruraidh had no other option but to step up to Arthur and hold out his hand.

  ‘Allies,’ he said.

  Arthur took his hand and both groups took their hands from their weapons though neither would ever trust the other. Arthur began to discuss the raid and the Uathach began to pack up their scant belongings. As Mar’h massaged his left hand, made useless by an Uathach arrow, he recalled Talan lying dead in the mud with his sister weeping over him. Gwyna watched Ruraidh and Arthur, poisoned by her own memories, then spat in the snow and turned away from them.

  Chapter Ten

  The falling snow was beginning to sweep horizontally through the trees as the wind strengthened further. Ruraidh had pointed out to Arthur where the main Adren stores were located and both groups were struggling through the edge of the forest that ringed the plain as they made their way round to the far side.

  They were about ten miles from the coast and the cove where Arthur’s raiding party had hidden and secured the Anglians’ longboats. It had puzzled Arthur that the Adren had not searched for the boats that Cei’s men had used to reach the Belgae and it was not until Ruraidh had revealed that his own boats had been destroyed that he understood. The Adren had assumed that they were the only boats to have made the journey and the Uathach ra
iding party must have thought the Anglians had come across the Causeway.

  Arthur planned to send half his war band and half of Ruraidh’s band straight to the cove to prepare the boats for the crossing. They would take the horses with them and the remains of their winter supplies and load and secure both onto the boats. The other half of both bands would raid the Adren camp under the cover of the snowstorm. Arthur would have preferred to burn the Adren stores but in this storm and with the amount of oil they had left it would have proved impractical if not impossible. He decided they would use the last of Merdynn’s poison instead.

  They battled against the elements as they forged their way in a long half circle to the point nearest to the Adren stores. Retreating some way into the forest they set up their main tent and crowded inside to shelter from the developing blizzard. Arthur divided the group into two as they set about preparing a last meal before the raid. He decided that the Anglians among them would all go to the cove as his Wessex warriors had little experience of handling the boats. Ceinwen would lead them to the cove then come back, making sure she could find the way easily for she would need to lead the raiding party back to the boats with the possibility that the Adren would be following hard at their backs.

  Once they had eaten, the coast-bound party departed with the horses and sledges that carried the supplies. They left the main tent for those that remained to shelter in as Arthur planned to allow several hours for them to reach and prepare the longboats and they also had to wait for Ceinwen to return to lead them to the cove after the raid. It meant that they would leave the tent behind which some were reluctant to do as it had served as their home during many winter campaigns but it was either that or wait exposed to the blizzard.

  They spent the hours warming themselves by the fire and discussing the raid. Once again Arthur stressed the importance of not being drawn into a battle that they would only quickly lose. It was to be done as stealthily as possible, their aim was to poison as much as they could of the Adren food stores and only that.