Chapter 20

Once camp was set, Thomas gathered Alek, Griffin, Jacob, Leif, and Duncan, the Wildling in charge of the band of northerners. Thomas had been talking to Prince Fabian and wanted him to share what they could expect once they crossed the border.

“Can we wait a bit? I want Roland to join us,” Jacob said. “He had a discipline issue to handle before he could get free to join us.”

Like King Edward had done for Thomas in sending Alek along to advise him, Duke Andric had given Jacob Roland to fill that role. Thomas trusted the ‘issue’ wasn’t something serious, or Jacob would have been involved.

“While we wait, how are the men? And do you need anything?” Thomas asked.

Each reported in turn. The most serious was that a few horses needed to be swapped out. Thomas was glad that they’d brought spare mounts so the horses could heal up before battle.

When they were almost finished, Roland joined them.

“Bring in Prince Fabian,” Thomas ordered and then let Alek finish his report.

“I was checking our inventory of arrows, and the more I think about it, the more I wish we had more. I also found we have enough light spears for each ranger. Maeve said that Ava had them made and gave them to her in case we needed them.”

“I don’t know where we can get more arrows at this point,” Thomas admitted.

Before Alek could respond, Prince Fabian was brought in.

“As you know, Prince Fabian has been helping us. I wanted him to give you his insight on what you can expect when we travel into Virden,” Thomas said.

While they had maps of the southern lands, only Leif and his mercenaries had actually been there when they rooted out the slavers.

“Should we trust him?” Roland asked.

Thomas’s lips pinched because he thought they had moved past this when Prince Fabian had unmasked the spies and traitors in Inglewood. While Prince Fabian wasn’t someone he would share anything with, the prince had betrayed his country. Thomas saw the logic, though. If he would betray his own people, what would stop him from double-crossing them?

“If Thomas trusts him, so do I,” Jacob said to defend Prince Fabian.

Thomas noted that Roland and Griffin looked doubtful. He would take them aside and talk to them afterward to let them know that he wasn’t about to completely trust the prince.

“Tell us about what we face,” Thomas said to the prince.

“Once we cross the Grens River, we’ll enter the Greythorn Woods. It will take us about a day to cross into the heartland. It is a vast area of hilly grasslands. From there, we will finally reach the population center on the coast.”

The majority of the Virden population was on the coast, where they both fished and traded with other lands. Their merchant traders had made them very wealthy, while the fishermen kept them fed.

“Tell them about the grasslands,” Thomas said to guide the conversation.

Prince Fabian thought about it for a moment and then began.

“They are dotted with farms that grow many grains: oats and rye for the poor and wheat for the ruling class. Spread out all over are mills that pop up wherever there are streams. This is where small villages have taken hold. My father has placed garrisons in these towns to protect the food supply.”

Food was a primary concern. Generally, food was stored in castles or other fortified buildings. Otherwise, bandits and neighboring feudal lords would steal it, and everyone in the victimized fiefdom would die. Grains were the primary diet of most people.

“Thank you. That’s enough for now,” Thomas said, and Prince Fabian’s guard escorted him out of the tent.

Thomas waited until he was sure that Prince Fabian was out of earshot before talking. He pulled out a handmade map that he’d had Prince Fabian draw and spread it out on the table.

It showed all the mill locations within a day’s march of the central road north.

“Are the road locations correct?” Alek asked.

Thomas had wondered if anyone would notice. The main road from the Virden capital to the bridge crossing at the northern border ran true north-south. It showed that the side roads to the mills ran east-west. Roads in Abingdon were never straight. They followed the contours of the land or the path of least resistance. When roads intersected, it was only by happenstance if they came together at a right angle.

“The roads are that straight,” Leif confirmed. “They’re also smooth. Somehow, they have made them out of crushed stone that compacts to make a hard surface.”

“What kind of magic are we facing?” Roland asked.

Thomas’s Knowledge Stone had shown him how they made the roads straight. The Virdenese were accomplished sailors who used a sun compass to determine where true north was.

Using the compass and a number of tall poles, you could sight where the road went. A pole would be placed at the start of the road. Then they would have someone with a pole stake out a straight north-south line with another man’s help, using his line of sight from the compass to the pole. With those two poles lined up, the man at the start could then direct the downrange man to move left or right until the next stake was lined up. In this manner, they would make a straight north-south line.

Actual ninety-degree corners were made using another device. They created a wooden cross and put a hole in the center. To the wooden cross, they tied ropes with rocks at the ends. They then lifted the cross up and set it on a pole. They had to sight along the existing road and line up one arm of the cross with the direction of the road. This would be done so that the pole and the opposite stone were behind the nearest stone.

They would then move to the side and look at the other rocks. It would allow them to start placing stakes east and west.

This made Thomas wonder if the Knowledge Stone was right, that there really wasn’t such a thing as magic. Raven had said that people often attributed a mystery to something magical instead of thinking there might be a logical explanation. Before he got too deep into his musings, he had to tell them what he was thinking.

“This grassy area is primarily rolling hills, with lush, well-watered grass. The soil drains away the surface water, meaning there are no major rivers or lakes in this region.

“King Hector’s army will have to branch off the main road to find food and water. They’ll head to the mills to find manmade ponds to hold water to drive the waterwheels. These locations are fortified, and if we can get there first, we can hold off his army for a time,” Thomas explained.

“That would be suicide because you would be trapped inside. Our greatest strength is our movement,” Roland pointed out.

“If we remained mounted, we could slow them down and frustrate them,” Griffin offered.

“Think about an army of a thousand men. They will need food and water in greater supply than they can get at one well or millpond. I would split them up and have men travel to different locations if I were leading them. Split into multiple columns, they will travel at different rates of speed based on the makeup of their force,” Thomas pointed out.

“We could slow one down and then switch to slow another,” Jacob said.

“Better yet, why not deny them the water and grain completely?” Alek asked.

“How would you do that?” Leif asked in return.

“If you drain the millpond, the soil will become swampy but drain quickly, denying them a plentiful water source. You could put the grain and other foodstuffs to the torch or foul it somehow. They will have traveled all that way and gotten nothing,” Alek suggested.

“The problem is that we don’t have the tools to quickly hole a dam,” Roland pointed out.

Thomas smiled because he knew they would come up with ideas. Roland was just worrying about the details. They could figure that out as they went.

“When we leave the Greythorn Woods, we’ll send out scouts to check out the mill sites and see what is possible,” Thomas said to end the meeting.

The following day, they rode into Virden. On the other side of the bridge, they were greeted by a large stone arch over the road with the Virden eagle carved into its face at the top. As reported, the road was straight and made from compacted rock chips. Thomas noted that there weren’t the usual wagon ruts common on the roads up north.

The forest was dense and full of life. When they came out on the other side, they found the Wildlings waiting with a wide-ranging bounty of food they’d hunted and foraged. The men were in good spirits, envisioning the feast they would have that night.

Thomas rode ahead so he could get a better feel for the grasslands. He didn’t know quite what it said about the Virdenese that their road sliced straight through the hilly land. He had no doubt that it would make wagon traffic easier, not having to travel up and down the hills, but somehow it felt wrong to him.

Why cut through the hills? It would give bandits a place to ambush unsuspecting travelers. It would be almost impossible to turn a wagon around once it entered an area like that.

In the back of his mind, Thomas worried that if the Virdenese could do this with roads, would they have some kind of advanced weapon that would catch his troops unawares?

Thomas sighed. He had to remain clear-eyed about what he knew and didn’t know with every task he undertook, given everything at stake. Thomas had to strive to uncover the unknown because that was what would kill him and his charges.

He was prepared for this whole endeavor to go wrong to a degree that surpassed anything they’d planned for. It wasn’t that people were going to die—that was a certainty. Instead, Thomas had come to the uncomfortable realization that attempting to delay King Hector—if indeed that became necessary— would more than likely cost his own life.

What Thomas had a choice about was how he spent his death. He was about to find himself in a more precarious position than any he’d ever been in before. Thomas had to make sure his death and the deaths of his men counted, and he had to make sure he didn’t do anything reckless with that responsibility.

Frost whined to get his attention. The direwolf had been with Catherine all day, so he was surprised to see her.

“What’s up, girl?” Thomas asked and then chuckled because she wanted him to go back with her.

That could only mean that the food was ready. He guessed that Catherine had told his wolf that she couldn’t eat until Thomas returned.

Frost led the way back. When Thomas arrived, one of the men took Fury and promised to rub him down and feed him. He walked to the cook fire, and Maeve handed him two bowls of what looked like rabbit stew. Thomas set one down for Frost and went to sit next to Catherine.