Viking Shadow Read online

  I shook my head, “Then you do not know Vikings. You cannot make a slave of a corpse!”

  “You would die rather than be a slave?”

  “You saw how hard Sven and his men fought. They would have died with their swords in their hands and gone to Valhalla.”

  “You are a curious clan!”

  To take advantage of the wind from the north and west we sailed with Africa just below the horizon to the south of us. Occasionally the lookout would see it a little more clearly and Erik would adjust the steering board to take us further north. It was a fine line we sailed between success and disaster.

  We rationed all the food and the water. No-one seemed to mind. The men occupied themselves making objects. David ben Samuel, our passenger, appeared almost bemused at the way the mighty warriors he had seen slaying the Moors with such ferocity could carve such intricate combs, love tokens and pins from bones. The goat had provided a much-needed supply. The skin had been cured and given to Sámr. His arrows had saved the clan. The hooves had been retained. When we could light a fire, we would melt them and make a glue and sealant. We wasted nothing. The two horns were made into drinking vessels. Sven kept one and gave the other to Leif. Warriors liked their own ale horn. Even though we were down to water they would still want their own. Siggi’s had been given to Galmr. His spare clothes had gone to Haldi Haldisson.

  It had been five days since we had left the coast. The wind had veered slightly. Erik rubbed his chin and summoned Aiden and David. He needed David’s local knowledge. “The wind is more from the north than the west. Is that a problem?”

  “It could be. It will take us closer to the African coast. Here there are many warlords and pirates. I am no sailor but I would suggest caution. It may add time to our voyage but if we head further north and east it will be safer.” He rubbed his chin. “Melita was part of the Empire but now it is part of the Caliphate. The Abbasid Turks have a fleet there. They have also invaded Sicily. I have been away too long and I know not how much of the island they will have taken but I do know that it will not be a safe place to land. Italy would be a better landing place.” He nodded as though he had just thought something through. “Yes, Captain, my advice would be to sail north and east. It will be slower and may add a day to the journey but it should be safer.”

  That meant another day of pain for me and a day closer to my death. I said nothing. Aiden looked at me, searchingly. “That may harm the Jarl. Let me look at the map.”

  He took the chart. I said, “Aiden, I am one man. It is not worth risking the crew just for me. Have you dreamed my death?”

  “Since we passed through the straits I have not dreamed. In fact, I feel I am losing my powers. It may be that my strength comes from the Land of the Wolf. That would make sense. The caves of Myrddyn are where I see most clearly into the world of the Spirits.”

  “Dreamed?”

  Aiden smiled, “Yes, David ben Samuel, I dream the future.”

  I saw the scepticism on his face. “It is true, David ben Samuel. I can swear to it.”

  Aiden studied the map for a long time. Eventually he shook his head. “I can see no other course. Erik, you need to get all the speed you can from ‘Heart of the Dragon’. I believe that Jarl Dragonheart’s life depends upon it.”

  His words set a sombre mood. It seemed that the winds themselves conspired to harm me. Their power weakened. Olaf Leather Neck was not the most patient of men. He decided to add the power of rowers and the men rowed for part of each day. It was hard to see how much difference it made but I was touched that they did so.

  Chapter 6

  Perhaps it was the extra speed which took us to the brink of disaster or, maybe it was the Norns. I know not. Storm clouds were heading from the north and the west. They were some way away but they were the sign of a storm. The waters had been benign hitherto. Now we might see the Blue Sea at its worst. By Aiden’s reckoning we were just four days from port when Siggi Arneson shouted, “Sails to the south.” Even as Erik looked questioningly at me Arne added, “And sails to the east.”

  “Could they be Imperial?”

  David had taken to spending more time at the steering board than in his shelter. He listened to the conversation and said, “They could be if they were just from the east but the south? That suggests enemies. I would head north if I were you, captain and, Jarl Dragonheart, I would prepare for war.”

  “Run out the oars. Let us put some sea room between us and this danger.” Erik looked at me apologetically. “I am sorry Jarl, but the Norns are making life difficult for us. I fear this will add a day to our voyage.”

  I nodded, “And I may yet get to die with a sword in my hand. Whatever happens, it is wyrd.”

  I took out Ragnar’s Spirit and Wolf’s Blood. I had sharpened them after the last fight. The crew had their weapons strapped to them as they rowed us due north.

  Tostig hailed us from the top of the mast. “Jarl, I can see the sails. They are lateen sails and they have oars. They are galleys!”

  The sails alone confirmed the identity of the ships. They were from Africa. David came over as they closed with us. He had a sword strapped to his side. It came from the dhow we had fought. I was not certain if he knew how to use it. I suspect we would find out soon enough. “If it is of any use to you I can tell you the name of the man who leads the ships who come for us.” I nodded. “He is Ahmad ibn Muhammad al-Aghlabi. He is emir of the Aghlabid people. They are the ones who are trying to take Sicily. It may well be that we are just unfortunate. They may not even be coming for us. Perhaps they are just sailing to reinforce Sicily.”

  The identity mattered little to me. In a sea fight defeat normally meant death. Sven Stormbringer had been lucky that we had been so close to them when they were attacked. “Either way it makes little difference. They will not allow us to live. This is the Norns at work, David ben Samuel. We can do nothing about it save fight for our lives.”

  It was soon obvious that they would catch us. They had slaves, driven by whips and they had ships closing from two directions. It was difficult to see this ending well. We were in the hands of Erik Short Toe who was a great captain. However, he was not warrior.

  I stepped close to him. “The wind is from the north and slightly from the west. Suppose we turned towards those ships to the east of us?”

  “Then they would turn to close with us and would be sailing into the wind. They would have to rely purely on oars.” I saw a slight smile appear on his face. “And we would have more speed from the wind.” He nodded, “It might work Jarl Dragonheart but we would need to sail close to them.”

  “Would you need your ship’s boys?”

  “I could do without them if the crew was rowing.”

  “Then we use them as archers. I rely on your skill with the steering board.”

  “I will need someone at the prow.”

  I turned to Aiden, “I need you to guide Erik. I intend to sail through the ships to the east of us.”

  “Bold!”

  “Where the Norns are concerned there is no other way!”

  “Ship’s boys, get your bows and line the steerboard side.”

  I saw that the four ships to the east were turning to close with us. They thought we had made a mistake. Perhaps we had but I had cast the bones. We would live or die by the result. There were just three galleys to the south of us. They turned too but, because they were sailing into the wind they were reliant on their oars. I turned to David. “Will these galleys have warriors as well as rowers?”

  “The rowers are slaves. There will be men with swords and helmets. They will fight you. Dragonheart they are fierce warriors.”

  I laughed, “They have yet to meet Vikings.” Turning to Erik I said, “Aim towards the leading ship. Let us see if he is a married man.”

  Erik laughed, “You would make him turn?”

  “He has two galleys in his quarter. Whichever way he turns he might hit one. Either way we will have passed the other two and we just have
to outrun the galleys behind.”

  I suddenly realised that I had not felt pain for a while. I looked to the prow and saw Aiden smiling. He was reading my thoughts.

  They had four ships but there was not one mind directing them. The captain of the leading galley must have thought he had us. I saw the white around their bow. He had increased their speed. They were leaving the others behind them. I saw Aiden wave his arm and Erik put the steerboard over. We were less than a hundred and fifty paces away.

  Haaken had started a chant as he saw Erik put the steerboard over. It was the fast one. Even better, it was the song of the Ulfheonar. We leapt like a greyhound.

  Ulfheonar, warriors strong

  Ulfheonar, warriors brave

  Ulfheonar, fierce as the wolf

  Ulfheonar, hides in plain sight

  Ulfheonar, Dragon Heart's wolves

  Ulfheonar, serving the sword

  Ulfheonar, Dragon Heart's wolves

  Ulfheonar, serving the sword

  Ulfheonar, warriors strong

  Ulfheonar, warriors brave

  Ulfheonar, fierce as the wolf

  Ulfheonar, hides in plain sight

  Ulfheonar, Dragon Heart's wolves

  Ulfheonar, serving the sword

  Ulfheonar, Dragon Heart's wolves

  Ulfheonar, serving the sword

  Our manoeuvre and increased speed had an immediate effect. The captain of the leading ship pushed his tiller to the steerboard side. Erik had quick reactions. He headed to the larboard side of the ship. There was one galley to the south of the ship which had just turned. If we could disable that one we had a chance. It would leave the last galley to stop us. The captains of the galleys all saw the same manoeuvre from us but each took different actions. They did not use signals. Two galleys were closing with each other. I looked to the larboard side and heard the crash as the two galleys collided. The lading one was struck by the second galley. They would take no further part in the battle for they had sheared oars and become entangled. The other ship could not turn to attack us for fear of fouling the other two.

  “Ship’s boys! Now is your time. Take out the steering board and there is one dinar for each of you!”

  A golden dinar was beyond the wildest dreams of all of them but even more valuable would be the knowledge that they had done that which their jarl had asked and saved their drekar! Sámr had the best bow and I saw his arrow arc before the others were in range. He hit a crewman clinging to the backstay. The effect was dramatic. The galley shifted to the south and a gap opened. When the rest of the ship’s boys sent their arrows at the steering board then the turn became more obvious for the steersman tried to avoid the deadly arrows. We had not hit the sailor at the tiller but five men lay dead or wounded. When the next flight struck the ship turned savagely south to avoid the hail of arrows.

  I looked astern and saw that the three galleys who had been to the south of us were now following in a line astern. I shouted, “Now, Clan of the Wolf, it is a test. Can you row better and faster than three crews of blackamoors?”

  Their response was immediate. Haaken and Olaf increased the rate. Aiden came back to the steering board to join us. He was grinning, “That was an attack that they did not expect!”

  I watched the leading galley. It was closing. Aiden had tempted the Norns. Their web was complex. Their captain was not going to allow us to escape. He could afford to have his galley slaves die. He would make them row until they dropped. We did not have that luxury. I was not certain if there were more ships over the horizon. We had to disappear and to do so we had to lose the ships behind.

  “Haaken slow the rate!”

  “We can out row them Dragonheart!”

  “No, we cannot. We row until they close and then we fight them. The other two ships are falling back. Let them close with us.” I waved Sámr over. “Sámr can you organise the ship’s boys? When they close their men will gather at their prow. They will try to board over our steering board. I would have you slow down their attack with arrows.” I held his shoulders in my hands, “I cannot direct you. This will be your decision. The crew depend upon you.”

  “I will not let you down great grandfather.”

  As we slowed, imperceptibly, I saw the leading galley close. The other two had almost given up. I could discount them. “David ben Samuel, how many warriors does a galley hold?”

  “To speak truly I do not know. It could be anything from thirty to sixty.”

  “Thank you! That is all I needed to know. The odds are in our favour!”

  “You have less than forty men!”

  “I know! They do not know the trouble that is coming their way!”

  Haaken was close to us and he shouted, “Slow down the beat. The jarl wishes them to catch us.”

  I turned and saw that the eager Arab was desperate to catch us. He had seen us outwit three of his companions. He was driving his men hard and I knew that he sought the glory. I had met captains like him before. The others had given up the chase. The four we had confused were dots on the horizon and the other two were turning to rest their rowers and to take advantage of the wind which had changed direction.

  “One in two leave the oars and arm yourselves.” I turned to David ben Samuel, “It will be hot here. There will be much fighting and blood. I would go to the bows. It will be safer.”

  “I can fight.”

  “Not like a Viking. You may be in the way here. Aiden will also be at the bows. If men are hurt then you can tend to them.”

  Aiden nodded and put his arm around our passenger. “Come. These are warriors and they know what they are doing.”

  The Arab was now catching us quickly. I wondered how the rowers would be doing. I guessed that many would be dead as a result of the captain’s efforts to catch us. Their warriors would be fresh. I saw them at the bow. Aiden had told us that they used something they had copied from the Romans. It was called a corvus. It was a bridge which was at their bow. It was not elegant and beautiful like a dragon. It was ugly. There was a spike at the end and that would bite into our stern and hold us. The warriors would then run across the bridge. Knowing how they would attack helped.

  The rowers we had released took their shields and formed up behind me. The enemy was just four lengths behind us and there was little point in using our oars. “In oars. Clan of the Wolf, we fight.”

  There was a roar from the men who were behind me. They banged their shields with their swords. I saw Erik’s son, Arne, and Sven Stormbringer each take a spear and stand protectively close to Erik. They were in a good position to fend off any attack on our captain. Olaf had his shield across his back and he carried his two-handed axe. The Moors would never have seen the like. The galley now raced close to us. I heard Sámr shout, “Release!”

  The four warriors who had the ropes ready to lower the beak to bite into our stern were thrown into the sea. As the bow came even closer I saw men with shields run to protect the next warriors from the arrows. Sámr had done what I asked of him and now he did more. I saw him aim, not at the men on the bow of the Arab but at the helmsman. It was a well-aimed arrow and flew straight and true. It hit him in the chest and threw him from the stern. As he fell his arm jerked over the steering board and the galley lurched. Two of those trying to lower the corvus fell into the sea. A huge warrior stepped forward and hacked at the ropes securing the bridge. It fell with a crash. As it did he was hit by four arrows and he too fell into the sea. We were now bound to the galley. Erik drew his own sword for we were now in the hands of the Allfather. He made the wind and our drekar would follow his course.

  Olaf took advantage of the fact that the men who had intended to board us first had fallen into the sea. Their commander was busy trying to have the ship steered once more. Olaf Leather Neck leapt onto the bridge and, swinging his axe before him, ran towards the Moors. It was a move worthy of a berserker and it worked. The Moors had thought they were the hunter and we were the prey. In one move Olaf had reversed the posit
ions. I followed him. It was mad but it was also totally unexpected. We were no longer the victim. We were the attacker. The first two Moors who attempted to face Olaf lost their heads as his axe made a figure of eight swing. He jumped from the bridge and landed amongst the Moors.

  Holding my sword and dagger I emulated him. The half-naked Moors were interspersed with Arabs wearing robes and helmets. The helmets would not stop Olaf’s axe. Ragnar’s Spirit darted forward and struck a warrior in the gut. As I pulled it out I twisted and a mass of wriggling intestines came with it. The front of the galley was narrow and in three blows Olaf Leather Neck and I had made a bridgehead. We waited for our men to follow. Haaken One Eye led the rest of my men aboard. Where Olaf and I had been briefly isolated we were now surrounded by shield brothers. I saw a curved sword rise to strike Olaf on his blind side. The swordsman fell to an arrow. Our ship’s boys, under Sámr’s direction, were protecting us from dangers we could not see.

  The Norns had spun. My plan had been to stop them taking my ship. Now that had changed. I shouted, “Haldi Haldisson, take your men and release the rowers!” We could increase our strength by letting the rowers get back at their former masters.

  “Aye jarl!”

  We were tightly pressed together and Wolf’s Blood was a deadly weapon in such a battle. Olaf and I were at the fore. Haaken was on my right and Galmr on Olaf’s left. Any flesh before me was a foe. I used my sword to block the enemy weapons as Wolf’s Blood sought flesh. The Arab who faced me with a grinning mouth and foul breath suddenly opened his mouth wide as my blade tore into his side. I pulled it savagely towards me and felt hot blood gush. His eyes rolled into his head and he fell dead. As I stepped forward I punched with Ragnar’s Spirit. The Arab before me had a helmet but he had not seen the blow coming his way. The guard on my sword took out his eye. Instinctively he lifted his hand and Wolf’s Blood ripped across his throat.