Derryth and Elva and a dozen wiga were to guide them out of Halani and into Lykia and Tabae; after which they would be on their own. Horses and donkeys with packs only travel thirty miles a day, and it would be at least a seven day ride to the Cotlif of the Eaorl – the last four on their own.
‘But,’ Abrekan added, ‘with all the animals we have, I fear it might take even longer. It will take us hours to load and unload every day.’
‘Are there no villages on the other side?’ Conn asked. ‘Where we could get some help?’
‘No – not for almost two days; the outlying areas of nearly all Eaorldoms are deserted. The populations were never that big to start with but over the last twenty years, they have been devastated by pestilence and famine.’
There was a crowd of people to watch the convoy of animals leave the village, and as they rode past the main longhouse, Brina, with Caewyn holding her grandmother’s hand, waited. Conn stopped and alighted from the horse. Caewyn came to him and they hugged.
‘I will miss you’, she whispered into his ear, ‘but we will meet again soon. You have also given us hope, though my grandmother doesn’t see it yet. When you need me, I will be there, just as you were for me; I’m building a Fyrd for you.’
‘A Fyrd?’
‘Yes, you will need a Fyrd one day – five hundred wiga with your mighty bow, on your horses. They will be magnificent. Oh, and I almost forgot; take special care of any Silekians you find. They need your help, and they will be of use to you. Goodbye.’
‘Goodbye Caewyn; I’ll remember what you said.’ And as she walked back to her grandmother, she turned and waved, and at her heels was the Maremma pup that he had given her. He had only recently found out that her mother had been abducted by Rakians, seven years ago. All the wiga guarding her had been killed, including Caewyn’s father, and her mother and a cempestre had disappeared into Rakia. It made him even more curious why she had not been more distressed when he had rescued them that many months before.
‘Farewell Feorhhyrde’, Brina spoke, ‘Fair travels, until we meet again.’
‘Farewell and thank you.’ Conn said as he rode away, confused. He didn’t know why he was going to need a Fyrd.
CHAPTER 04
On the third day they passed through a narrow valley that provided the entry from Tabae to Halani; around them high peaks still had a covering of snow. The final entrance was a narrow canyon that provided excellent defense against an invasion. Finally in Lykia, they headed downhill into the Eaorldom of Tabae, through an honor guard of wiga who would be going no further.
Derryth was disappointed, ‘It is a long time since we have ridden amongst the Priecuman; so this is as far as we can go today.’ He broke into a broad smile. ‘I think that you will be enough surprise for them all by yourself – I would really like to be there to see that!’
‘I think you have too much fun at my expense, Derryth.’
They laughed together until Derryth got serious and pointed to the forest. ‘Feorhhyrde, do you see the tall trees at the edge of the forest?’
‘I do.’
‘Well, if you need us or you are coming into the great forest, put an arrow in the tree at the highest point. You can see a gap in the branches… at that spot? Then we will come as soon as we are able.’ He looked at Conn suspiciously. ‘Do you think you could put an arrow into that tree?’
‘I can but try.’ Conn responded.
They both laughed, and he hugged Conn and rode away, leaving Elva with him.
Elva smiled. ‘Farewell, Feorhhyrde; until we meet again.’ She reached over and kissed him. ‘It has not been so bad being bed-mate to a Priecuman. I don’t know why everyone complains so much. We will take care of your son.’
Conn was surprised, ‘It is a boy?’
‘Yes, I am told it is a boy’, she replied. ‘In case we don’t see each other before he is born, what name do you wish to call him?’
Conn thought for a while – until the idea suddenly was very clear to him. ‘Jowan. Jowan was my grandfather’s name.’
‘Jowan il Taransay…’ She stopped to consider. ‘Jowan – yes, he is happy with that name.’
Conn laughed, not realizing that she was serious. ‘I’m glad he’s happy. Bid him adieu for me then. And farewell to you as well, Elva, travel in peace; I am truly sorry that we must part.’
‘But part we must; though I don’t believe that it will be for that long. I’m sure that we will see each other again soon. Perhaps you will need to fornicate again – your werhad certainly is large.’ She broke into an even bigger smile. She kissed him again. ‘Travel in peace.’ And with that she rode away. They all waved, rode into the canyon and were soon out of sight.
‘Well, that is not something you see every day.’ Abrekan stated, as his sons led the long horse and donkey train down the hillside through the trees, on a winding but clear path, into the now surprisingly cold and windy Lykia.
It became so windy so quickly that an hour later they decided to make camp for the day, three hours earlier than normal. They found somewhere that they could get protection for the animals from the cold wind that raged up the mountain – and given that it took some time for the four of them to unload the large numbers of pack animals – both donkey and horse – they were almost frozen by the time they settled for the night. They huddled around a fire to get warmth back into their hands and legs. Abrekan was confused.
‘Lykia is usually windy, but this is ridiculous. It’s spring and yet my hands are almost frozen. I had hoped to travel further today.’
After a meal, Conn went to stand watch. The wind had just as suddenly dropped considerably, and despite the animals corralled behind rope and bamboo, they had decided to keep a lookout for a wolf or bear attack. Unlike Halani, Conn could hear wolves off into the distance here in Lykiak, and although they were protected by the dogs, Conn felt inclined to provide some backup. Most were pups and wouldn’t stand much chance against a fully grown and hungry wolf.
It was after midnight when he was just about to retire when he sensed something amiss. A couple of the pups also responded with pricked ears and a small growl. Conn was well hidden in a grove of trees so he stayed still until he noticed shapes starting to move in on the camp from the north. These were not animal shapes – they were humans and they were not very good at it.
He told the dogs to stay and leaving his bow behind, he crept up the hill and away from the camp until he got behind the intruders. There were six of them, all Priecuman, and young; they didn’t have bows, but were armed with short swords. Conn watched them silently split into three and he crept up behind two males who had suddenly decided to argue.
‘You go to the right side’, one demanded in a whisper, ‘I’ll go to the left.’
‘Why am I going left, when we already sent Peig and Rab that way? I should go with you.’
‘No, they are going straight ahead; they are going to scare the horses.’
‘Why would they do that – that’s a stupid idea? We need the horses. They told me they said they are going to the left side and get the jump on those by the fire in their beds. We need to go to the right to get the guy on guard.’
‘I though Wilgar and Shona were going to do that? He’s the best one with a sword.’
‘Oh, this is ridiculous’, the first said, ‘we are going to get ourselves killed. So where is the big guy now anyway?’
By this time Conn was a yard behind them. This was his opening.
‘Right behind you...’
The two young men spun around in shock, to see in the moonlight, Conn with his Katana ten inches away from their throats.
‘Now, I wouldn’t say anything if I were you. Not if you want to stay alive.’ Conn beckoned to them and they handed over their swords. ‘Lads, your plan is full of flaws; you would have gotten yourselves killed. Lesson one; never lose sight of your enemy. Lesson two; make sure everyone understands the ‘plan’ before it is implemented. Lesson three – never bite off more than
you can chew. Now, let’s call in your troops before they get an arrow for their troubles.’
Conn whistled, and some of his dogs came bounding over; ‘Guard them’, he said, and they gave a deep growl just to let them know they were listening. They had never seen a dog of this size before, so they weren’t going to argue.
‘Call them in’, Conn instructed again.
‘Rab, Peig, Wilgar, Shona, come here!’ the elder one yelled. There was no answer, so they yelled again ‘Rab, Peig, Wilgar, Shona, come here - it’s all over, they know.’
One yelled back, ‘I can’t, there are two big dogs watching us.’
Another yelled, ‘I can’t either, there is a sword in my back’
Conn smirked; ‘Let’s go to them then.’ And he followed the two boys down to where the Maremmas had two more cornered up a small tree. Conn whistled off the dogs, who returned to their jobs, and he then followed the four into the camp, where Abrekan had the other two, including a girl, sitting around the fire. They were cold and looked hungry.
Abrekan started the conversation by saying; ‘They are Silekians, and they are a long way from home.’
Conn remembered Caewyn’s warning. He addressed the girl. ‘Have you eaten?’
‘Not properly for days’ she answered, staring at the goat stew still cooking on the fire. She was shivering as well. Conn fetched a blanket for her. She looked cautiously at him as he offered it. She finally took it from him and wrapped it around herself.
‘Abrekan, do you think we can spare them some food?’ Abrekan was startled at the request, but soon complied. It seemed to come naturally – following Conn’s ‘orders’. They fed them bowls of bread and stew, as well as a mug of ale. They ate ravenously, but nervously and guiltily.
‘Are there any more of you?’ Conn asked curiously.
The girl responded again, ‘Yes, about a dozen and they haven’t eaten properly for days either…’
Conn then organized more food to take away – bread, cheese, dried meats, and asked one of the boys to volunteer to take it back to the rest of them. He should then return with the entire group in the morning.
‘I’ll do it.’ The young man raised his hand.
‘What is your name?’
‘Wilgar’.
‘Ok, Wilgar, Don’t make me regret this decision.’
‘Sir, you will not. We’ll be here at first light.’
With that he saddled and mounted one of Conn’s ponies and trotted off over the hill. Abrekan was standing at his shoulder. ‘Will he come back?’
‘I don’t think he has any reason not to. Why are there Silekians outlawing in Lykia? Surely that is not normal?’
‘No, because it’s normally a death sentence; and Octa will certainly have no mercy if they have harmed any of his people, or stolen from them. But as to why they are here, it is a good question. Perhaps we need to find out.’ With that, they both turned back to the fire where the youths were still eating under the careful eyes of the Maremma pups.
Abrekan addressed the group. ‘I’m sure that you all know that you are in a lot of trouble. Brigands are normally hanged, and when we get to Tabae, you will need to have a very good reason why you are in the Eaorl’s lands without his permission.’
The girl had settled into to being the spokesperson of the group, and as she started to talk, Conn observed the group observing him. In the moonlight, they thought they saw that he had golden hair, but now they knew he did. They clearly didn’t know what he was – but the other three were normal Trokians.
Of the four kinds of Priecuman he knew about, it seemed that the Silekians were the least Asian in complexion, and thought they still had the black hair and a deep olive complexion; their eyes were larger and browner.
‘My name is Shona and my father is the Burhgerefa for Sighard, Eaorl of Melnik, or at least was. That is Dodi, Rab, Broch and Peig. Their parents were Tilia at Lugia. Two months ago, our keep was attacked by the Rakians. Our keep is close to the border with Rakia, and despite the best effort of the Eaorl and his wiga, it fell. The old were killed, including the Eaorl and his sons except for Wilgar – you met him earlier – he is the Eaorl’s youngest. The men and females were branded as theow’, the boys showed the burn mark on the arms, ‘and, well, you know what else happens to girls…’ She trailed off; the sadness in her voice still there but now hardened by living on the road for two months.
‘So how did you get here?’ Conn asked, interrupting, ‘I’m not being insensitive to your plight; I’d just like to get the big picture first.’
‘Wilgar was able to avoid capture, so he hid and when he had a chance, he collected as many as he could while the new ‘Eaorl’ were still unaware as to how many people were in the domain. When the group was getting too big to hide, we left our friends and family behind and started our walk to Lykiak. We are hoping for sanctuary there, as we have heard many of our kindred have travelled that way; when the road to Silekiak is dangerous.’
‘Are there twenty in your group?’ Conn asked.
‘Yes, fifteen boys and five girls. It was harder to rescue the girls.’
‘Why did you not follow the road to Tabae and the Eaorl?’
They didn’t answer immediately, but Abrekan answered for them. ‘Because of the brands – and Eaorl is required by law to return any theow that he finds, or if he cannot, he is to punish them as if they are his own escapees – with imprisonment, a flogging or death.’
With Conn looked at him strangely, Abrekan continued, ‘It’s true, that’s how the law is written.’
‘That seems a bit harsh. They haven’t done anything wrong, have they?’
‘Yes they have; they were on the losing side. There is never much right about being on the losing side’, Abrekan commented sadly.
‘Are there alternatives to death or being returned?’
‘They can buy their freedom as they have escaped their domains and are seeking sanctuary in another’s – but they would have to prove that the money is not stolen. And that is of course impossible.’
‘What is the fine?’
‘The current purchase cost of a theow. Plus a penalty of half again. A young male is around three, while a young female is two thousand Ryals. So for this this group the wergild would be a lot of money.’
Conn addressed the group, ‘So, do you have – what – eighty thousand Ryals?’
They shook their heads; Shona added ‘We had intended to find sanctuary in Lykiak.’
There was silence and Conn looked at them silently, watching the fear shine in their eyes.
‘Do not worry,’ Conn stated matter of factually, ‘you will not be executed if I have anything to do with it.’
‘But how…?’
‘Let me worry about that. Now get some rest. We have a big day tomorrow.’ They gathered more wood for the fire, branches to cover themselves with, and as everyone settled to sleep, Conn sat and stared at the blazing fire. He wondered if this was what Caewyn meant when she said to take care of the Silekians.
With the light, Wilgar returned as promised. This group was younger, a lot of them under fifteen. After they had been fed, they were put to work loading the pack animals – work they were grateful to be doing on a full stomach, and reassured that they were not going to die. Despite the late start, the extra hands had them quickly on the road to Tabae, everyone now riding horses.
It was just after midday when they encountered a small Lykian Fyrd, a dozen men on horses armed with swords, shields and spears. Their horses were similar to the Rakian’s – tough and wiry ponies. The Folctoga, the youngest man in a group of aged wiga, quizzed Abrekan, who he greeted on sight, and the Silekians, and then decided to escort them back to the Cotlif, sending the rest to continue their patrol.
As they travelled, Conn commented that the Fyrd didn’t look very battle ready; the riders were fairly old and grizzly, not dissimilar to their horses.
The Folctoga, who introduced himself as Oswald, smiled grimly. ‘True, they are not.
It is a long time since there has been a war in Lykia – but there are some issue with incursions of Rakians or Silekians from the north so we patrol to keep an eye on things.’ He nodded to the ragged group that walked or rode along behind. ‘We need our young men to work in the fields.’
Conn commented that they didn’t seem to be going downhill anymore; since coming out of Halani, it had quickly levelled out. And it was still quite cold – although the wind had died down significantly.
‘That is because it doesn’t – Lykia is all high country until the coast. And it goes down very quickly there.’
‘So there are no seaports?’
Oswald nodded. ‘Yes – the Eaorl of Sabatah has the biggest seaport – but you need to ask the Eaorl – I have yet to see the sea.’
‘And the eastern border – into Silekia?’
‘It is mostly a sheer escarpment down to a river, and there are few places that riders can travel down into Silekia or up to Lykia in safety. That is why we have had no wars for hundreds of years.’
Conn continued to quiz Oswald as they travelled; not that he was very worldly. He was able to tell him that Lykia was once part of Moetia, but a successful uprising a two hundred and sixty years ago led by the Eaorl of Lykia had resulted in it getting its own Aebeling. Unfortunately the position was currently vacant as the male line had died out, and whilst there were many pretenders to the position, the Witan had been unable to decide on a replacement – and had been unable to do so for a generation.
The broadleaf woodlands opened up into intermittent rolling hills and forest clumps, and there was little sign of farming activity though abandoned cottages did appear from time to time. It was explained that a decade of very bad seasons had resulted in some of the more marginal and outlying domains becoming unviable, and consequently deserted.
It was evening when they arrived at a collection of empty buildings that sat on the top of a small hill and overlooked the road west to Halani and north to Tabae.
‘This,’ Oswald explained, ‘was once the Thane fief of Hama. It is the closest Burh to Halani and two hundred years ago was the most important transit point between Halani and Lykiak. Today the family is long gone – all dead – and its inhabitants moved to other domains.’
The Aebeling Page 6
