Chapter 10

The young Wolf next to me blinked and swallowed, visibly nervous. Waiting has never been fun when the prospect of immediate danger is near. He played around with his elm bow, which was tough wood, but not as strong as yew. We needed strong bows, so Hajin had acquired the elm bows due to their general availability in Port City. As the training company’s commander, Hajin knew the best craftsmen and trainers in Convey.

I put a hand on the Wolf’s arm. “We have the finest companions anyone could ask for, waiting to ensure this ends well,” I whispered, leaning right over my saddle so only he could hear.

He nodded with a thoughtful smile, accepting the wisdom, visibly shaking off his nervousness. Right then, five men emerged from the forest road, passing two bottles back and forth as they gulped wine and laughed with each other. All of them carried traveling bags on their backs and bedrolls. They were lean and strong looking slavers, a bow over their shoulders and an axe dangling from their belts. Green hats marked them for scouts, but they had clearly over indulged in their drink. Not one of them looked to the left and up the hill, as they strolled down the middle of the King’s Road. They joked about as if they didn’t have a concern in the world.

Without needing an order, the Wolves pulled an arrow from their quiver. They knew the plan. Their bows creaked with tension until the chords twanged from the arrows release. Four of the five Scouts dropped like stones, the last cried out with an arrow in his thigh. By the time I threw my cloak over my shoulder and drew my sword another five or six men stepped out of the woods among the dying scouts. They had large round shields on their backs and were heavily laden with weapons that hung uselessly at their sides; the second flight of arrows struck all of them. The leather shirts they wore weren’t any real protection, so they fell dead on the road. A cry of outrage and surprise came from the wounded scout, who dragged himself away from us and off the road.

We didn’t have to wait long before the gathering horde stepped out of the forest with a wall of shields in front of them. Their large round shields provided a reasonable amount of protection and we all knew it. What began as a ten-man front quickly turned into twenty, with another few lines of Raiders forming up behind them. Our archers didn’t wait for the formation to complete its evolution; they fired arrow after arrow as fast as possible. Thankfully, the wolves remembered their training and they focused on the unorganized ranks that were still putting on their helmets. In those two minutes it was hard to tell how many more wounded we caused. I didn’t see a single arrow fired back at us, but I did see Raiders cranking crossbows, their steel caps shining in the sun.

“Pleasantries aside, I think it’s time for the formal and more impressive introductions,” I thought before saying, “Fall back!”

We turned and encouraged our animals to carry us up the hill with haste, which wasn’t that fast. A wave of curses followed us, as well as a number of crossbowmen, who raced behind us, trying to get into range. It was a steep hill, so my mule struggled with the weight of my armor and weapons. Compared to our archers, I fell well behind. To the pursuers, my slow animal seemed too good to be true. The lighter armored Raiders in the back ranks began chasing after me. After them, the berserkers began chasing me, and then entire ranks of Raiders broke apart and raced up the hill at their best speeds. They were angry and believed someone would slow me down. I smiled to myself about the time a cross bolt hit my mule, which caused me to tumble near the top of the hill. A cheer of exultation filled the air from the bottom of the hill. I was honestly dazed from my tumble; yet I had been able to extract myself in time to miss having the mule trap my leg with its sideways fall. I stood up from one knee facing the nearby crest of the hill, while looking behind me. I saw a swarm of berserkers outrace their crossbowmen, blocking further shots.

Gathering my senses, I shouted, “Forward and fire!”

Fortunately, the Wolves hadn’t waited for my command. I saw Scratch with a sword and dagger, rushing down to me and our other archers were moving into view. Each squad of ten men were arrayed in a three deep formation that permitted every wolf to draw his arrow freely without concern.

Scratch repeated my command. “Fire!”

The three triangular formations loosed, raining arrows down on the approaching Raiders. Without their shield wall they were overwhelmed. The combination of the sudden appearance of the Wolves and the hail of arrows devastated their ranks and sent them into confusion. Bewildered men with arrows stuck in them made a hasty retreat down the hill. Only three face-painted berserkers made it to me. Beside me, Scratch took an axe on his sword. He stabbed the man with his dagger, leaving a mortal wound in his neck that sprayed his face with blood. Spinning he struck a fatal blow under the armpit of the next man that had his two-handed axe raised to kill. I had only time enough to see that before I had to cut, parry and thrust at my only opponent. He carried two swords and a shield on his back, otherwise his linen shirt was his only other armor. He was quick on his feet, exchanging savage blows with me. Nevertheless, I had the high ground and my heavy strokes pushed him back. He surprised me with the skill of his parrying, but my experience overwhelmed him, keeping him totally on the defensive. His confidence turned into surprise when I slashed his leg. He knew it was the end, but didn’t yield. With that in mind, I gutted him, removing the naked hostility from his eyes. With my foe dispatched the Wolves cheered.

Looking down the road, I was satisfied there was no imminent danger. We had slaughtered the Raider’s force. The blood-bathed road was covered with dead and dying men. Perhaps a dozen had escaped north, following their intended path rather than turning back towards the fishing village. That made no sense to me, but men full of fright don’t think; one man takes a route and the rest follow him.

Scratch moved in front of me with a wide smile and a face dripping with blood. “A wonderful victory Lord Solon!”

“Indeed,” Julie answered behind me.

I saw her holstering her pistol. “Your bright idea to tease them with your slow animal worked up to a point. The poor animal.”

My mule was struggling to breathe, its legs kicking. “Oh,” I responded, quickly darting over to end the beast’s misery.

Both Scratch and Julie followed me, holding their tongue while I did my duty.

“That could have been you,” Julie said in an unpleasant tone.

“Lucky shot,” I answered, “the ambush worked didn’t it?”

“Tell that to your dead Wolf,” Julie answered, while placing her hand on my shoulder.

“Oh,” was all I could think to say.

“Cross bow bolt in the eye,” Scratch added, “Moon Father called him home. It must have been his time.”

I felt disappointed about his death. “Warriors die,” I thought, “we were doing the right thing.”

Scratch wiped his face with a rag from his pocket. “I’ll take care of his burial.”

I waved my understanding, turning my mind to my responsibilities. “Sergeant. Send a squad to the bottom of the hill to secure the road and send the six wolves that were with me down there too.”

Scratch immediately bellowed his orders to the center squad, while marching over the hill to find the other six Wolves. With the sergeant’s attention elsewhere, Julie hugged me tightly. In addition, Zetia ran over the crest of the hill and down to us, making it a group hug.

“That was nerve racking, not knowing what was happening to you,” Zetia sighed.

“Yes,” Julie agreed, following up with a kiss.

The six mule-borne Wolves trampled by us chanting, “Lord Wolf, Lord Wolf.”

The rest of the men on the hill joined in. It was a satisfying feeling, even as I heard the crying and pain of the wounded Raiders. I disentangled myself from my women and pointed to the squad on the left. “Dispatch the wounded and then drag the bodies to the side of the road, retrieve what arrows you can.”

The men thumped their chests and slid their bows over their shoulders to pull knives out. I didn’t want to watch so I led Julie and Zetia back over the hill. Scout was still at the trailhead watching it. Under the circumstances, he was the best one to stay there, so I left him alone.

Approaching lancers made a compelling sight.

“Here come our noble friends,” commented Zetia with a harsh attitude. “By all means let the commoners deal with their problems.”

I wagged my finger at her playfully, which made her smirk.

Two lancers trotted up to us on their dust covered horses. They were well in advance of the others, stopping just short of the crest of the hill.

“Milord, why is there a body at the top of the hill,” the junior officer asked, referring to our dead archer.

“Go look over the hill,” Julie answered with a straight face. They were the lancers from the inn that had extended the breakfast invitation for Count Vee before we left Conquest Point’s territory.

The unfriendly junior officer kicked his horse and spurred it to the top of the hill and looked over the battlefield, his companion followed. Scratch and two other men picked up our dead Wolf and moved the body to the west side of the hill. By the same token, the rest of the lancer column rode up to us with the carriage. Still unaware of the gruesome sight over the hill, Count Vee dismounted and greeted us with a slight bow.

“Lord Solon and Lady Julie, what a wonderful sight you are,” Count Vee announced with warmth. “The weather has been dreadful and uncooperative, I am surprised you got ahead of us.”

“We pressed on through the rain,” Julie responded with little humor.

“It wasn’t much fun,” I said, trying to answer politely.

“Of course, no inns in the forest,” he joked.

“No one left to worry about there either,” Julie added with a smug lie.

“Indeed, that is fine news for a boring journey,” the Count commented. “I knew we sent the right sort of people to deal with our problem.”

“Milord!” the junior officer shouted, trotting down to the carriage. “There has been a battle.”

“I know the forest has been cleared, surely it wasn’t a battle, Lord Solon?”

“Count Vee, you are right,” Julie quickly answered.

“No, no, on the other side of this hill,” the lancer insisted, while his horse danced around.

“Yes, he is right about that,” I chimed in. “We could use your help. About a dozen Raiders are running north towards Heraldsburg. If your lancers are quick they could run them down.”

The escort commander who had dismounted when the Count jumped from his carriage, looked surprised and even eager. “Sir?”

“If you think it’s best,” Count Vee answered, adding a dismissive wave, not taking things seriously.

I turned and watch the excitement on the faces of the mounted men. The escort’s commander mounted, and then ordered his column forward, leaving only four riders and the junior officer behind with the carriage. The majority of the lancers trotted over the crest of the hill before Count Vee could think of what to say next, which surprised me. He had his eyes on my back.

Zetia tugged on the bottom of my cloak for some reason, which made me turn around.

“Von!” Julie scolded. “Zetia was trying to help you.”

“With what?” I asked.

“A crossbow bolt,” the Count answered, pulling it out of my cloak with a firm pull.

“Lucky shot,” I responded, shrugging and looking at the disapproving eyes of my wife.

With the offending bolt in his hand, the Count walked towards the crest of the hill. We followed him, while hoping Julie would let the near miss go without another comment. At the top of the hill the Count went pale, bent over and hurled his lunch. Once he recovered, he looked over the battlefield again.

“Not much of a battle,” I commented.

“Lord Solon tricked them,” Zetia interjected. “His men were marvelous.”

“Yes, they were,” Julie added.

To his credit, Count Vee offered us the use of his carriage while we waited for his escort’s return. Julie grabbed Zetia and they joined the noble inside. I wasn’t totally sure why my wife felt it necessary to confer with the Count, but my duties weren’t over so I rejoined the Wolves. In fact, we buried our dead comrade, and I said a few words over his grave. I felt the nagging guilt of bringing this man here and placing him in a poorly marked grave. He was someone’s son and my name would forever be associated with his death; however, I knew it was a Raider that took his life, which was the only relief I could manage for my conscience. Each Wolf said their own words over the man too. It pleased me that he was well liked, but that equally pressed down on me, too. My men had lost a good friend, adding a small scar to our happy memories together.

After the burial, I released the men to loot the bodies of our enemies. It wasn’t long after that when a pair of lancers with bloody weapons trotted up to the crest of the hill with big smiles.

“We caught up to them alright,” one of them announced, tipping his lance a little.

The coachmen cheered them on, which caused the Count to step down from the carriage. “Report.”

Julie and Zetia jumped out in time to hear the news.

“Sir, we caught the slavers still on the road and dispatched them. Also, we connected with one of the provincial companies from Heraldsburg. They are on the way to check on the nearby coastal villages,” the lancer answered deferentially to the Count. “A local had alerted them to the Raiders.”

“The rest of the troopers will return shortly,” the other lancer added.

Count Vee just waved them away and shouted up to his driver. “We’re moving to the other side of the hill, stop before you connect with the coastal road.”

With that, the Count jumped into the carriage and closed the door himself, which was out of character. The carriage jerked, and then the horses pulled them over the hill and out of sight. His remaining escorts followed directly behind in pairs with their lances pointing to the sky. The Count was right, in so much as there was no longer a reason to remain here. Scratch seemed to realize that because he appeared on the crest of the hill.

“Time to mount up,” I declared to the sergeant.

He immediately bellowed the order to the men, who rushed to comply. Scout looked to me from the edge of the woods. I simply nodded to him, and then waved him over. Julie and Zetia went to their mules and mounted. As we all gathered, it was clear the Wolves were all in a bright mood. “Realizing you are alive after a fight will do that,” I thought.

We left the dead Raiders for the locals to bury; looking at them, I could see there was a fair amount of loot on the corpses, since the Wolves hadn’t really stripped them. I suspected the warriors took all the coin pouches, the better weapons, and a few personal items. In addition, it was obvious, our men had collected the arrows that could be used again or at least repaired. Otherwise, I didn’t see any of the bodies missing any armor, which wasn’t surprising since my men had superior armor.

Julie shouted, “See you at the bottom of the hill.”

With that Julie raced Zetia over the crest of the hill. I must have had my mouth open, because Scout walked his mule over to me. “You never know how people are going to react after seeing bodies sprawling everywhere.”

“You’re right, Scout. Maybe I’m numb to it. That didn’t occur to me.”

He grinned. “Should we just walk and spare the animal? We worked them hard today.”

“That we did, let’s walk.”

When I realized my mule was dead, I laughed. I wasn’t sure Scout hadn’t just made a funny. When I looked at him he shrugged, as if saying what other choice is there. Somehow that hit my funny bone and I laughed again. Scratch walked over to us with his animal and another, when I realized whose animal it was I stopped laughing.

“We transferred your things over to your new mule,” Scratch announced, while handing me the reins.

“Thanks.” It was the only thing I could manage to say. My good humor instantly left me.

We all walked our animals down the hill on the bloody road. By the time we gathered near the Count’s carriage, the rest of his men returned. Not all of them had blooded lances, probably because there hadn’t been enough victims to go around. Count Vee just stuck his head out the window. The escort’s senior officer pranced his horse over to him.

“Well?” Count Vee asked.

“We ran them all down,” the captain responded. “We happened upon the Princess’s 1^st Provincial Regiment, all three companies. They chased those smart enough to duck into the woods when they saw us. This might be a good place to wait for them to pass.”

Count Vee sighed. “Very well, will it be long?”

“Of course, that is what he had intended,” I thought. “He is humoring his guard commander.”

The escort commander ordered his men to rest their horses, following our example. Scout and Scratch gave each other a knowing smile, feeling a little superior to the horsemen. I didn’t blame them, the lancers looked pretty and could run down defenseless men well enough, but I wasn’t sure of the steel in their backbones. While we waited, all we could hear was the lancers talking to each other about running the Raiders through the back. I quietly resolved to never run from a horseman when on foot. “It’s better to die with a sword in hand, facing them,” I thought. “Even better, roll out of the way at the last moment and cripple the mount,” I advised myself. “Without his horse, the lancer is just a man.”

I begrudgingly relented to Julie and joined the Count in the carriage with Zetia, until the sound of marching feet could be heard. We actually had a real conversation for once without any pretentiousness. I found the Count very complimentary about the Wolves, perhaps that is how he got me to tell him how we sprang the ambush. Julie listened more than anything, it was Zetia’s bubbly interruptions that I thought would spoil the visit, but the Count was overly gracious to her. Julie’s influence was clear in Zetia’s behavior, and perhaps the Count had sensed we favored her.

“These are the people we want to see,” Count Vee said, as he stopped Zetia in mid-sentence, opening the door and stepping outside.

The column of men marched five across and it stretched around the bend out of sight. I estimated we were seeing two hundred men. At the head of the column was an older man in fine chainmail armor on a splendid warhorse kitted out in armor too. His regiment’s white flower banner had a field of black. Each man carried a long spear with serrated blades. They wore a simple bronze breastplate, bronze shield, open-faced helm, belt dagger, and greaves for additional protection. “Light infantry that can march fast and far, but without any archers or crossbowmen,” I thought, “an old school approach to warfare.”

The warrior on the steed flipped up his visor and slowly took off his leather gloves, resting them on the horn of his saddle. He looked past us to the hill, which drew a smile to his dark olive tan face. His thick fingers stretched, and then clutched his horse’s reins while he briefly surveyed the recent battlefield.

He turned to Count Vee and looked down upon him. “I suspect we have you to thank.”

Count Vee bowed deeply. “I am just a humble envoy with his escort.”

“Nevertheless, I see Conquest Point’s crest on the halters of your steeds. Our princess is expecting you, but we didn’t know when, and you offer us the finest gifts,” the warrior announced, while pointing at the dead Raiders. “My lady will be pleased.”

“We are all honored to assist our neighbors,” Count Vee responded.

The warrior looked at Julie and me with an odd expression; in fact, the commonly unspoken ‘aren’t you two strange looking,’ was plainly going through his mind. Our diminished looking stature and pale features were hard to overlook.

“I am Captain Tear Minetos, commander of this regiment,” he continued, talking to Count Vee. “We are on an urgent mission because of a warning from one of the village chief’s sons. He rode in with a half-dead draft horse, claiming Raiders had landed during the storm. With these villains this far north, I fear we will discover a tragedy.”

“They have become bold,” Count Vee answered.

The captain stopped himself from saying something, his eye brows straightened and eyes tightened. I suspected he was going to point out Conquest Point’s neutral port was part of his problem.

Captain Minetos sighed. “We are as vigilant as we can be, again thank you for your assistance.”

He ordered the column forward and the men immediately responded. His horse danced in place when his men started to pass.

“Sir,” I shouted. “May I boldly suggest you send scouts north of the bay to see if more of the Raiders are there?”

His tall, brawny frame leaned over the warhorse, which towered over me. He paused, while looking into my eyes. I decided he was normally the strong, silent type. Left to his own devices, he thought before he talked. The captain forced a smile, which made me believe that I’d stepped over some delicate line.

“That isn’t my district in the province, “he commented. “I am only one of three district commanders.”

“Perhaps you can send him a runner with a message,” I added.

“Captain, we don’t mean to intrude in the internal affairs of your kingdom,” Count Vee interjected stepping closer to me. “My guest is not versed in the correct protocol for your land. As Envoy, I apologize.”

Dutifully, Zetia defended me. “Moon Mother has blessed this Wolf with insight when it pleases her. You should listen to him.”

His horse danced some more as more men passed behind the captain. Count Vee put a hand on my arm with concern in his eyes, so I didn’t attempt to warn the man any further. The captain’s eyes softened, perhaps captivated by what I might say next.