They Marvel at the Star

by L J Hick

make sure that you do not follow them. You can see why now," said Kauko.

  Thomas nodded his head and got to his feet. As he looked around, he could see that far from grieving for their fallen comrades, the men took the opportunity to drink and eat. He looked down the hill and saw that the cavalry had returned to the rest of its army, and William's men were taking refreshment as well.

  "What the hell is wrong with them?" muttered Thomas.

  "It is a natural break in the battle," said Kauko. "Call it protocol. You should eat and drink as well. You will need all your strength."

  Thomas felt unclean at the thought of taking a break for food after witnessing the slaughter of men who had been telling tales of their homes the night before. Nevertheless, he joined in with the others, never taking his eyes from the floor in silent guilt. When he had finished, he followed Kauko as he retook his position in the shield wall. The calm and the silence were broken by the thundering sound of horses' hooves running towards them. This time, the rest of William's army followed behind the cavalry. The shield wall held firm and the spears that found horses and men once more caused a Norman retreat down the hill. This time, the shield wall broke completely as all the men chased after the fleeing Normans, convinced that finally, William was defeated and the battle was at an end.

  "Here we go again," whispered Kauko.

  Thomas remembered Kauko's words and stayed where he was. He watched as the cavalry turned and regrouped again. William's men followed the cavalry as they hacked and sliced their way through the Norman army. It suddenly occurred to Thomas why the hail of arrows had stopped. He saw the archers advancing up the hill behind the others, retrieving their own arrows as the line advanced. They gathered sufficient numbers to fire over the heads of their own men into the Saxon ranks. Kauko pulled Thomas down behind his shield. The combination of cavalry, foot soldiers and arrows tore apart the Saxon army. As William's men broke through, Kauko sprang into action, killing three men before Thomas had time to draw his sword. He turned around just in time to see a burly man running at him. Thomas thrust his sword as best he could and the momentum of the running man carried him onto the blade. As he looked into the man's eyes, he could see the surprise and shock on his face. Thomas kicked the man in the chest to free his sword and watched as he fell to the ground. Once more, the armoured glove found him and dragged him away. Thomas was still in shock and could barely move his feet, but Kauko literally dragged him through the mud and blood to the back of the battle. Still, the Saxon army fought bravely as the Normans advanced but the cry from the top of the hill finally broke their resistance.

  "The King is dead," yelled the voice.

  Kauko rushed to the scene to find Alfred hunched over the dead body of King Harold. Alfred looked up at Kauko.

  "I couldn't save him. He took an arrow to the chest and then some kid of a Norman found his heart with his sword," said Alfred. "I turned to fight him but he was killed by one of his own arrows. Bloody things just kept coming. One even found the King's eye."

  "Come with us. This is over," said Kauko.

  "I am a Saxon. I will die rather than flee," said Alfred, angrily.

  As he spoke, a line of men charged through the soldiers and one of them thrust his sword into Alfred's back. Thomas reacted but the man punched him in the face, sending him into a semi-conscious world. As he lay there, looking at the sky through a foggy haze, he could see the man's sword raised above him. So now, he would never return home, never see his mother and father again. His head swum as the man's head disappeared from his body. He felt himself being lifted by the arms of another and carried away from the battle. His head swirled as he raced past the bodies of dead men. The last thing he saw were the trees before his world turned black.

  Thomas could hear the voices of men speaking softly as he regained consciousness. He was thankful to be alive, but too bruised and dazed to open his eyes. Instead of making an effort to get to his feet, he decided to keep still and wait for the ringing in his ears to stop. As he lay there and his hearing began to clear, he could hear the voice of Kauko.

  "Did you do as I asked?" Kauko asked the other men.

  "We did," one of the men replied. "We dug the ditch as you suggested and we filled it with wooden stakes, sharpened to a point."

  Thomas opened his eyes and rolled onto his side to look at Kauko's new friends. There were a dozen men, Saxons by the look of them. Thomas noted how clean the men looked, other than for the mud on their boots and trousers. Not one of these men had been involved in the battle. He wondered whether Kauko had stumbled upon a group of deserters and sought sanctuary for himself and Thomas. Kauko slapped one of the men on the shoulder and smiled at him.

  "You and your men have done well, Alwin. You have my thanks," said Kauko.

  "There is no need for your thanks. You paid us generously," replied Alwin.

  Alwin was a tall thin man. His long hair and unshaven state partly obscured the diagonal scar on his face. This was not a deserter; this was a man who had fought in many battles. Whatever fear he had of war had left him long ago. Kauko had referred to the others as your men, so his friends were probably every bit as hardened in battle as Alwin, but if that was the case, what were they doing here? As Thomas shuffled around to get more comfortable, Alwin watched him out of the corner of his eye.

  "The boy is awake," said Alwin.

  Kauko ran over to Thomas and knelt down beside him. Thomas flinched as Kauko examined the cut on Thomas's forehead.

  "It's okay," said Kauko. "You have your first battle scar. It will be a little sore for a while, but that's all."

  "Who are these men?" asked Thomas. "Are they friends of yours?"

  Kauko laughed.

  "I would not call them friends. They are more like temporary employees," said Kauko.

  "They did not fight, did they?" asked Thomas.

  "No, I paid them to wait here for us and make some preparations," said Kauko.

  "Preparations for what?" asked Thomas.

  "One last fight," said Kauko. "The Normans are not done with us yet."

  "We're not safe here?" asked Thomas.

  "We have no horses and they are mopping up what is left of the Saxon army. They will see our tracks and send a group of riders after us," said Kauko. "That is why we are prepared."

  "So you plan to wait and fight them with your employees?" asked Thomas.

  "After we have thinned their numbers out a little," said Kauko.

  "Is that what the ditch is for?" asked Thomas.

  Kauko smiled and pulled Thomas to his feet.

  "You have been awake longer than we thought," said Kauko. "Yes, that is what the ditch is for."

  Kauko and Thomas walked over to the ditch, whilst Alwin and his men took some time to rest, eat and drink. The ditch was obscured by a lining of leaves, carefully spread across a supporting net to hide the cruel wooden stakes underneath. Thomas thought that given the width and length of the ditch, Alwin and his men must have been here well before the battle, preparing it. The leaves merged with the leaves on the forest floor in such a way that Thomas could not be sure where the ditch ended and the forest floor began. Only a very close inspection would uncover the strands of netting staked to the edge of the ditch.

  "Come. Let's get something to eat," said Kauko. "You must be hungry."

  Thomas sat with Kauko and the others, hungrily devouring the bread that was on offer. As he looked around, he noticed that two of the men were missing.

  "Where are the others?" asked Thomas.

  Alwin spun around and screwed his face up at Thomas.

  "The others?" asked Alwin.

  "When I woke there were twelve of you. Now there are only ten," said Thomas. "Where are the other two?

  "Do you miss nothing?" asked Alwin, sighing. "I am beginning to understand why you are so important to our friend here."

  "It's more than that," said Kauko.

  "The other two are on watch," said Alwin. "We need eyes in the trees to warn of us of a
Norman approach. Unless, of course, you can tell us when that will be."

  "I can," said Kauko.

  "Really?" asked a smiling Alwin. "And when might that be?"

  "Round about now," said Kauko, nonchalantly chewing on a slice of bread.

  As he spoke, the two men came running through the trees.

  "Normans," one of the men shouted. "Arm yourselves."

  Alwin and his men jumped to their feet and took their positions on one side of the ditch, whilst Kauko took Thomas to the rear of the group. The sound of the horses' hooves became louder together with the sound of men bellowing instructions to each other. Thomas felt he should be at the front, helping the others, but he knew from experience that it would be futile to try to escape the grasp of Kauko. If Thomas was troubled by his enforced impotency on the battleground, there was not much time for him to ponder on it as the mounted Normans came crashing through the trees. Alwin and his men formed a similar shield wall to the Saxon army that fought on the hill. The first line of the cavalry urged their horses on as they caught sight of their prey. Their intimidating cries turned to screams as the ground gave way beneath the horses. Men and horses writhed in agony as the merciless racks of stakes tore their flesh apart. Those behind their fallen comrades tried to turn and avoid this pit of death, but most of them were too late. They crashed into each other and fell over the bodies of the fallen. Those who survived were left incapacitated by their wounds, struggling to free themselves from this deep