Hosker, G [Wolf Brethren 06] Saxon Slaughter Read online

  I saw the twinkle of a smile on my wife’s face and knew that I had done the right thing. Nanna still thought that she could wind me around her little finger. I was too tired and too irritated for that. I had had enough of the spoiled child.

  Prince Cadwallon came to her rescue. “I am sure that Gawan and I can make something which is comfortable for you, my lady.”

  She changed in an instant and became coy with fluttering eyelashes. I thanked all the gods that I had been too busy with war when their age to worry about such things.

  Myrddyn, of course, had already made four rooms in the old Praetorium warm and watertight. The rough furniture which Daffydd had brought saw service that night for my family. The warriors all made a fuss of Nanna. She was the only girl they had seen for months and she revelled in the attention. It made both her and her mother easier to handle and the next days were easier than I could have dreamed.

  Lann Aelle returned in an excited frame of mind. He had travelled as far as the Maeresea and then inland as far as the old Roman fort of Mamucium.

  “There are many villages and all are keen to be warrior farmers. We distributed some of the weapons we took from the Hibernians. I am hopeful we can withstand an assault.”

  Myrddyn was interested in the Roman fort. “Is it worth investing Mamucium?”

  “No, I think that Caedwalestate would be better. It is closer to Caestre.”

  I remembered the town from our journey south. Many of the villagers at that time had fled south with us.

  I pointed to the west. “There is a small stockaded village called Prestune. It is just a few miles downriver. The headman there is keen to be part of your army. I think you have all in place now to rule as we hoped.”

  He suddenly looked nervous and I put my arm around his shoulder and led him away from the others. “You can do this nephew. You have some good men here who will serve you well. The villagers like Osgar will support you and are worth fighting for.” I pointed at a group of men busy building the gate. “There is Miach he is leaving his troop to serve here with you. He volunteered for that service despite the fact that he has ridden with Aedh and Tuanthal since they were children. That is the measure of the confidence the men have in you.”

  He looked surprised, “Miach? He is a fine warrior.”

  “If you take some advice from your uncle I would make him your garrison commander. You need someone here who can be relied upon. Your equites will be happier in the saddle with you.” I shrugged, “But it is your decision to make, not mine.”

  He laughed, “And I am not so foolish as to spurn such good advice. I think he will make a perfect garrison commander.”

  We left the next day and sailed down the river to the sea. I had achieved more than I had dreamed possible in a short space of time. “Captain, take us along the coast of Man. I would see what Aethelfrith is up to.”

  Myfanwy was both worried and intrigued in equal measure as we saw the island of Man to the south west of us. I went over and put my arm around her. “We will not be going close but I must know if he has ships. If he does then we are in danger.”

  She nodded. “I know but it angers me to be so close to the man who hurt our son so.”

  “He is young and he is resilient. He will bounce back from this. Look, he and Cadwallon are laughing and joking.” The two youths were, indeed, at the prow of the ship with Nanna and you would not have thought that they had experienced such horror and so recently.

  I was able to concentrate on the island more than on my first visit. It was daylight and I would not be risking lives in midnight battles. I could see how small the first village we passed was. There were barely a handful of huts. The sheep dotted on the valley sides told me what they did for a living. Higher up the hills were forests and woods. There would be hunting there. I smiled to myself. I was evaluating the land as a home for my people and I had not even driven the Saxons from it.

  The burnt out carcass of the Saxon ship still sat forlornly in the shallow water where she had sunk. Gawan glanced towards me and nodded. He remembered, as I did, the fierce fight. The memory of how close we had all come to death would be fresh.

  Myrddyn joined me. “I see they have not acquired another ship as yet.” I shook my head. I was busily trying to see Aethelfrith’s warriors. There were only a few and when they saw the ship they hid. The bolt throwers had had a profound effect on them. “I am surprised that they did not put a wall around it. You might have had more difficulty had they done so.”

  “It is either laziness or overconfidence. The captain tells me that the settlement which faces Hibernia has a wall. Perhaps that was the only place they felt threatened.”

  Myfanwy snorted, “Well, husband, they have learned the error of their ways.”

  Laughing I said to Daffydd, “Take us home captain. We have seen enough.”

  After our journeys through Rheged the monastery, and then my castle looked like formidable structures. I felt reassured by the mountain rising protectively behind it. Then I realised that apart from my archer captain, Daffydd and Tuanthal, I had none of my captains within fifty leagues of me. There were warriors who commanded but I did not know them as well as those who had gone before. Mungo and Garth were both dead and Bors was young. I would have to get to know my warriors again. I still had much to do before I could hand over power to my son. I had not talked of this to Myrddyn and Myfanwy but I had wanted to be close to Wyddfa and my mother’s spirit before I did so. It would be a momentous decision when I finally made it.

  I felt relief when I entered the gates of my home. Here I was secure. More importantly, my family were safe. Myfanwy smiled, almost for the first time since this whole saga had started. It was not just the safe return and the fact that Gawan was home again; Nanna was less argumentative. The attention of all the young men had flattered her. I hoped that the worst was past.

  I stabled Mona and told the stable master to give her as much attention as he could. She deserved it. I then wandered my walls talking to the sentries and getting to know my garrison again. I had been away for almost two years and I needed to become warlord again. I ended up at Brother Oswald’s office. He looked frail now but his eyes were as sharp as ever.

  “Did the two brothers I sent prove to be satisfactory?”

  “They did Oswald and I think that they were a good choice.” I pointed to his lists. “How is our trade?”

  He frowned slightly, “It would have been better had they had more opportunities to sail to Byzantium rather than attacking Saxons but we are in profit. Our stocks of metals and arms are high.”

  “How stand the granaries?”

  “They are full.” He knew me well. “Why do you ask?”

  “We need to send some wagons with grain to Lann Aelle. Arrange it please. Captain Tuanthal can escort them.”

  “It will take a few days to organise the wagons.”

  “The captain will need that time to choose his riders.” I felt sorry for Tuanthal. His best riders were now either dead or in the service of Lann Aelle and the other northern captains. We had to hope that the ones who had remained behind had not lost their sharpness.

  “And how does King Cadfan fare?”

  “He is doing well and his borders appear secure.”

  “These questions are all leading somewhere, Warlord. What do you really wish to know?”

  “You have managed without me for almost two years. Could you manage for longer?”

  “Hmn, “ He put his fingers together, almost as though he was praying. “I am no longer a young man my lord. I now feel much as Brother Osric did towards the end of his life. I can continue to manage affairs but I will need an assistant.”

  I felt relieved. I had hoped the suggestion would come from him. I did not want to offend him by telling him that he was too old. “If you could arrange for one. I am not planning on leaving for some time but we are all getting old and we need to plan for the future.”

  “Hogan Lann, of course, will take over as Warlor
d.”

  “You are becoming like Myrddyn. You can read my mind.”

  “That is a terrifying thought that I should be turning into a pagan.”

  “I doubt that, old friend.”

  That evening as we sat around the table Myrddyn brought up the problem of Prince Cadwallon. “I know that you were asked to be the prince’s mentor but I think we should visit with his father and ensure that he is still happy about that situation.”

  I noticed that the three young people all looked unhappy at the prospect. I fixed Prince Cadwallon with my eyes. “And what are your thoughts?”

  “I agree it would be rude not to visit my father and I would like to see both my parents but I have not yet learned all that I can from you.” He looked at Gawan for help; my son shrugged his shoulders helplessly. He could think of no arguments to help his friend. “I know that we have suffered while learning but I need to know how to create and run an army. My father’s army is a fine one but it does not compare with yours. I would have my army as powerful as that of Rheged.”

  “Well in that case we will visit your father and then spend the winter learning all that there is to know about being a strategos.”

  Gawan looked relieved as did Nanna. Myfanwy had a strange look about her as did Myrddyn. I was obviously missing something but I could not see what it was.

  Daffydd and Tuanthal were set the task of selecting warriors to form their new companies. “We need forty archers and a hundred horsemen.”

  Both captains looked unhappy at the number. “Archers take time to be created my lord.”

  “You are right. Tomorrow we will visit my brothers and see if they have any.”

  Daffydd brightened visibly. Both of my brothers had many archers and slingers. Tuanthal, however, was not going to be able to get horsemen there. “Our problem, Warlord, is that this land does not breed natural horsemen. Our best ones were the ones who came from Rheged when we moved south.” He sounded bitter.

  I put my hand on his arm. “I know how you feel Tuanthal. I did not give away your men recklessly. Lann Aelle and my son will need those men to control the vast distances in the north. Start with the scouts. They are horsemen and you can give them the skills of fighting warriors.”

  He looked happier at that. “Thank you, Warlord. I know you are right. It just goes hard to see the men you have trained using their skills for another captain.”

  He was right and I could do nothing about it. I was Warlord of Rheged with huge responsibilities. I had to think of the kingdom but I felt for my men.

  I left Gawan with Myrddyn and took only Prince Cadwallon with me and Daffydd. The island of Mona was as safe as any place in the land and I feared no ambush. We did not even ride in armour. Aelle was now a greybeard and his hair had almost gone. My little brother had aged. He had grown more portly too. That was to be expected. He was not a warrior and he did not live an active life. His face showed the joy in my presence.

  While Daffydd and Prince Cadwallon went with Aelle’s captain to select warriors. I told my brother all that had happened. He had heard of Aethelfrith’s despicable act and it sickened him as much as it had us. “I do not like the thought of spies in our land. I will set my shipwrights to building another ship. The trade will come in handy and I would like to keep an eye on Man.”

  “You are wise, Aelle. Your son now rules a huge part of Rheged. It is the country south of Wide Water.”

  His face showed his pride in his son. “I am pleased. You have done well by my son and trained him to be a great warrior. I thank you. And how is Wide Water these days?”

  “We have rebuilt it and Kay, one of Prince Pasgen’s equites commands there. It is safer now that your son protects the south. We have also reinvested the fort where you lost your arm.”

  “That seems a lifetime ago.”

  “We were different then. We had few responsibilities.”

  “Aye, think of all the dead comrades we have buried.”

  “I would rather think of the people we have saved.”

  “You are right and we will hold on to this land. Neither the Saxons nor the Hibernians shall have it.”

  My brother Raibeart was just as welcoming and we rode back with the forty archers. Daffydd was as happy as I had seen him in a long time. He confided to me that they were as well trained as his own men. He had little work he needed to do with them. “I just need to train them to ride and then we can be a force to reckon with.”

  Tuanthal had managed to gather twenty trained horsemen and, with a dozen scouts and Daffydd’s archers, we headed for Wrecsam and the court of King Cadfan. As we approached his town I could see that he had improved it in the years since we had captured it from the Saxons. The ditches were deep and the gatehouses were both strong. I saw the pride on Prince Cadwallon’s face as he saw the changes wrought by his father in his absence. The prince had grown too. He was almost a man now and he carried himself with the easy confidence borne of a warrior who has fought for his life and lived to tell the tale. I was just grateful that there were no scars on his face to upset the queen.

  We had with us Myrddyn, Gawan, my wife and Nanna. I wanted all of my family as close to me as I could. When I thought I had lost Gawan it had made my family even more precious to me. King Cadfan, too, had filled out. He was no longer the boy I had taken under my wing. He was a king who had increased his kingdom at the expense of the Saxons of Mercia. I was looking forward to seeing him again.

  We were greeted like royalty and shown more respect than a mere warrior could expect. The king was grateful for all that we had done. The women left us to sit in the Great Hall and tell each other of our information.

  He was intrigued by Aethelfrith’s raid. “I have heard that his sons, Oswiu and Oswald are still in Hibernia trying to carve out a kingdom there.”

  “I would have expected them to be with their father on Man?”

  Myrddyn shook his head. “Aethelfrith is too cunning for that. He spreads his eggs about. He would regain Bernicia. He cannot do that with the men that you saw on Man. He needs a bigger army than that. He is up to something.”

  “And you, King Cadfan, how goes the campaign against the Mercians.”

  “We did have great success; especially when Edwin went to war with you but I think that the alliance of Mercia and Northumbria is at an end. He is now building up his forces against us.”

  King Cearl had been an ally of King Cadfan’s father but he had turned against him. He was as cunning as Aethelfrith and I did not like this news. The buffer against Saxons from the east was Gwynedd. We could not afford for it to fall. I had committed too many men to the north to be able to withstand an attack. Myrddyn saw my concerned expression and he gave the slightest of shakes with his head. I knew that look. He would speak with me in private.

  The politics finished with we drank wine and the king asked about the capture of our sons and their escape. “I would not have wished that on either of our sons but I am pleased with the outcome.” He held his chalice to Cadwallon, “I salute you my son, you have become a powerful warrior which was my hope when you left us.”

  The prince inclined his head. I heard the unspoken question. “I believe your father is asking if you are ready to return to help him to rule the kingdom.”

  When the king nodded the prince looked at the table as though he was trying to read an invisible message. “I still feel that I have much to learn from the Warlord. Grant me the winter to finish my education and I will return in the spring.”

  “Very well. I do not blame you for your decision. I still remember, fondly my times with the Warlord and his wizard.”

  Prince Cadwallon took a deep breath and launched into a speech he had obviously rehearsed. “It is not just that father,” he looked at me. “Warlord, I would like to marry Nanna.”

  I think that I was the most surprised at that. The thought had never crossed my mind but I could see that Gawan was in on the secret and, of course, Myrddyn had divined the answer himself. My silence
must have made them think that I disapproved.

  “I will make a good husband, Warlord.”

  I shook myself. I was giving the wrong impression. “No, I do not doubt that but I am trying to take it all in. How does my daughter feel about this?” I looked at King Cadfan, “She can be a little moody.”

  “She approves of it.”

  “Then we just have to convince my wife.”

  Myrddyn laughed, “Warlord she is more than happy about this, believe me.”

  Gawan nodded, “You mean I am the last to know?”

  Prince Cadwallon said, “You have had much on your mind, Warlord.”

  The arrangements were made for a Yule wedding. It would appeal to the Christians and Pagans alike. The ceremony would be held at my castle for all of the families wished Wyddfa to bless the union.

  Chapter 15

  There were fewer guests at the wedding than we might have hoped but Lann Aelle, Prince Pasgen and my son could not leave their lands in the middle of winter. Our watchword was still vigilance. But the ceremony went well and they both seemed enamoured of each other. I know that my wife hoped for more grandchildren but I was just happy that my daughter had taken such a wise course. Cadwallon would make a good husband. The prince stayed with us when the guests left. He was still as keen as ever to learn how to be a strategos but he spent every moment of the long dark evenings with my daughter in their quarters.

  The days were becoming a little longer and Myrddyn brought Gawan to me. “Warlord, if we are to make your son into the wizard he wishes to be then we need to visit the cave.”

  I knew this had been coming. The cave was integral to Myrddyn’s magic. His grandfather had first taken him there and he had lived there before seeking to serve me. Gawan had to experience the power of the cave. I shivered in anticipation. Would my mother come to speak with him too?

  We left one early, chilly morning with snow flurries dancing around the forest. It would not lie so close to the sea but it made riding up the trails a magical experience. Gawan was as excited as I had ever seen. He knew of the power of the cave and he had heard, second hand, of what had happened to us but this would be a unique occasion. He would be sleeping in the heart of the mystical mountain.