Baron of the North (3 page)

We had brought lances but this was not the land for their use.  There were steep sided, wooded valleys and crags and hills. We left them at Elsdon with our spare horses under the charge of Oswald.  He had proved himself a good man.  He took charge when he had to and his experiences as a slave had hardened him. We rode faster without the supply horses.

"Aiden and Cedric, scout out Elsdon.  I would know if there is danger before we reach it."

We rode with half of the archers before us and the rest as a rearguard. Edward and I were behind the vanguard with Harold and Tristan behind. It was a tried and tested formation.  Cedric came galloping back when we were just a mile from the castle.  His face was grim. "They are all dead, Baron."

Had this been Aiden I would have had a better report.  I could not blame Cedric; he did not know my ways. "Who is dead, Cedric?  Men?  Men and women?  Who?"

"Just the men, Baron.  We found no sign of women and children."

"Take Garth and rejoin Aiden.  I want the three of you to discover where they have gone and we will remain at the castle."

As the two of them rode off Edward shook his head.  "It is like Norton when you arrived, Baron. An empty manor filled with the dead."

"It is and that makes me angry." I waved a hand at my conroi. "This is enough to frighten a few brigands but the King should come north and teach these Scots a lesson that they will not forget.  He should be as William the Bastard was, ruthless."

We were approaching the smoking ruins of the castle.  Edward said, sadly, "The King is ruthless but Normandy appears more important than England at the moment.  After the marriage that may change."

I had not needed that bringing up but Edward was right.  I liked his forthright honesty. "Dick, secure the castle."

The archers galloped around the far side of the castle.  I could see that it was an old fashioned although well constructed motte and bailey castle. There was a keep on a high hill, the remains of a bridge which connected it to a lower ward and a palisade around the side. With enough men it could be easily defended. Poor Ralph had been a squire with a handful of men.

The heads of what I assumed was Ralph and five of the defenders greeted us as we dismounted.  Their heads were atop spears as a message. "Get the heads down and find the bodies.  We will bury them."

I saw that the six squires were all shaken by the head of the brave Ralph.  He looked to be of an age with them. Edward pointed, "Ten men could not hold each side of that castle. It would have been a massacre."

"And yet what could he do? If he had run then he would have been deserting his people."

"The result is the same, Baron."

Edward had been a man at arms, a sword for hire and sometimes that showed in his practical attitude.  I had been brought up as a noble and that gave me more responsibilities than rights. I left Scout with Leofric and made my way up the slope. In places it was slick with the blood of the defenders. The blackened walls had burned to the ground in places. The hall, however, had had a turf roof and that had saved a little of it. We found two bodies there.  I could see why their heads had not been spiked on spears; they had been badly hacked. The white hair on one of them showed that he was an old retainer.

"Here are two died defending their lord."

"There is no point in surrendering to a Scot, Baron, the result is the same."

There was little left in the hall.  It was a simple affair but there was enough left to show the mark of a woman. Where were the women? We headed for the lower bailey. Tristan and Harold were there already.  "It looks like there was a stable." Harold knelt and examined the ground. "The horses were taken."

We descended to the bottom of the hill.  "Edgar there are two more bodies in the Great Hall." My men were digging graves.  It was not just the heads which had been disfigured.  The bodies of the dead showed that cruel and unnecessary wounds had been inflicted on them after death.  The grim faces of my men told me what they would do to these Scots if they found them.

Cedric galloped in.  He had returned sooner than I had expected. "They did not go towards Otterburn, Baron.  I went along the track over the hills and there was no sign but, to make sure, I rode to where I could see the tower and it was safe yet."

"You have done well."

We had buried the last of the dead when Garth rode in from the south and east. "I have found them, Baron. They are heading for Morpeth."

"How many?  And do they have captives?"

"No captives.  They have at least twenty horses and there looked to be forty men."

There was little point in berating the forester for his faulty information. He might not know the difference between a knight and man at arms.  At least we knew the captives were not there. "And the road, is it a good one?"

He shook his head, "It is little more than a track Baron."

"How long will it take them to reach Morpeth?"

"They will be there this evening, my lord."

"Then we cannot catch them for they have a head start and they will move as swiftly as our column does.  One man might make it though. Garth, could you get ahead of them?  Could you warn Morpeth?"

He nodded, "I could try.  I can take the forest road.  It is quicker for a single horseman."

"Then go and may God be with you."

"You will not pursue them, Baron?"

"Not until Aiden has reported back. I doubt that they will attack this night but the captives are more important right now."

Aiden appeared from the north east. He dismounted and approached, "I have found the captives and the animals, Baron.  They are at Rothbury.  The Scots have taken the town."

"Is it fortified?"

"They are using the stone church as a castle.  It is surrounded by carts on three sides and the river on the fourth."

"How many men?"

"I only saw one knight, Baron, and he appeared to have a wound.  His head was wrapped in a bandage.  There were four men at arms but the rest look to be brigands from Ireland, mercenaries. I counted fifty of them, at least."

"Then we know what we have to do. We ride to Rothbury and rescue the captives."

"And the raiders?"

"It we follow the raiders then the captives may be moved further north." I turned to Cedric, "Ride to Otterburn and tell them that the Scots have moved towards Morpeth.  Then ride to your master and ask him to move towards Otterburn and Morpeth in case this is a Scottish trick."

"Aye Baron."

I waved over Dick and Wulfric. "I doubt that they know we are here.  We will use that to our advantage. I want the archers to get around Rothbury and stop them leaving.  I intend to attack as soon as we get there." John will sound the hunting horn when you are to attack, Dick."

"Do you not wish us to soften them up first, my lord?"

"No, I want them demoralised. They will see our small numbers and assume they can win. When the horn sounds and your arrows rain death upon them they will not believe that such a large number of arrows comes from a handful of archers."

He nodded and they rode off.  I could rely on Dick for he had a great tactical sense. He would use the land to maximum effect.

"We will attack on foot. Aiden, John and Leofric will dispose of any sentries and then we will move silently into their camp and begin the slaughter. Leofric will sound the horn on my command when we are deep inside their camp. Tristan and Harold, you will secure the captives."

They nodded.  It was a hurriedly concocted plan and I would not have tried this had we had a larger number or more men that I did not know.  These were my oathsworn and they had been blooded already.  They would not fail me.

We crossed the col above the Coquet and headed down into that fertile, narrow valley.  Ominously there was no sign of any animals on the hillsides. The Scottish scavengers had picked them clean.  I had not been here before but Aiden told me that the road was hidden from view by trees.  We could reach Rothbury unseen. We took our time.  I wanted to reach there by dark.  There was no need to rush and tire ourselves out. Darkness would disguise our numbers and they would be more likely to be off their guard.

Aiden stopped us just half a mile from the town.  Any closer and our horses might have alerted them. We did not have the luxury of any spare men to guard them and so we hobbled our animals. There were not many of us and I hoped that the twenty six of us would be able to frighten over forty wild Irish warriors. Edgar led Edward's men at arms and half of mine on the left. Wulfric had the others on our right. Wulfric hefted his war axe.  I pitied anyone who faced him in the dark.  He was a terrifying warrior. Our three killers slipped off through the dark. All of them were extremely effective at moving through undergrowth and remaining unseen. They were all in their own natural element; the woods and forests. I had confidence in my assassins. The rest of us kept moving forward in a long line. We were no more than a pace and half apart. I drew my sword before I left the safety of the woods which lined the road leading to the town.  The Coquet Valley was verdant and it afforded good cover.

Up ahead I heard the noise of the camp.  It was a mixture of laughter, shouts, squeals and screams.  The warriors were enjoying themselves but the captives were not.  There was also a back ground noise of the penned animals. There was a large fire burning. It gave a hint of what was going on ahead of us. I had seen that when I had left the road.  From the smell they were roasting meat; obviously one of the animals they had captured. We were not concerned with sentries on the river nor on the northern side of the settlement. I could not see them having more than a couple of sentries there in any case and their attention was more likely to be on the camp rather than outside. They had reached here unmolested. They had no idea that we were close.

Aiden materialised out of the dark and held up two fingers. The sentries had died. I nodded and signalled for him to return to the horses. The carts were interlocked but were intended as a defence behind which to fight.  Undefended they were no barrier to us, even wearing hauberks. We crept in a perilously short line and stood behind the carts. Now we could see within the camp. Many of the children and the women were huddled together in terrified groups. Some of the older girls and younger women were the subject of the attentions of the mercenaries.  The wounded knight and the four men at arms were seated away from the deprivations and appeared deep in conversation. My men all looked to me.  I climbed over the cart and nodded to Leofric. We moved forward into the camp even as the strident notes summoning my archers were sounded by my squire.

There was immediate confusion.  The horn's sound seemed to swirl in the air. Those within were disorientated. I slashed at the neck of an Irish warrior who was straddling a young woman. He was straining his head to hear the horn when I decapitated him. I made for the knight and the men at arms.  They were the danger. The mercenaries would be wild fighters but the danger lay in the five professionals. The knight reached for his sword as two of his men at arms advanced with swords and shields. They had grabbed them far quicker than I could have anticipated. Even so we had momentum with us and I punched with my shield as I swept my sword around to strike at the nearest warrior's middle.  Although he managed to get his shield to block my blow my punch made him reel and he began to lose his balance. I pulled back my sword and brought it over my head.  He had to readjust his feet to try to block my next blow. He fell backwards and my sword split helmet and head in one blow. His helmet had been poorly made.

A sword darted out at me.  Had I not had quick hands then the wounded knight would have done for me as he stabbed towards my side.  I swept the blade away and brought the side of my shield around. I hit him in the neck with the edge.  My left arm is almost as strong as my right and the shield tore into his throat. He died spraying blood over the last two men at arms.

Tristan and Harold quickly finished the two remaining men at arms.  I saw huddles of bodies looking like hedgehogs with arrows sticking from them.  Dick and his archers had done their job as well as ever. The last of the mercenaries were being backed towards the wall of the church and Wulfric and his men were relentlessly driving into them.  Wulfric favoured a one handed war axe and I saw it rip through a shield and across the collar bone and chest of a terrified looking warrior who died against the church wall.

One of them shouted, "Quarter!"

I glanced to my left and a mother comforting a girl of no more than fifteen summers. "No quarter!" They were butchered where they stood. They had no armour to stop our blows and they were drunk. It was a job of work. Dick and his men rode in with swords drawn. I looked up at my captain of archers. "Did any escape?"

"None, Baron!"

"Good.  Have these carts filled with the captives.  We start back now. See if there are any boys who can drive the animals.  If not then we shall have to do it."

Tristan said, "We go back immediately?"

I looked at the young knight who had acquitted himself well. He deserved an explanation.  "We have a warband to find and I want these in Otterburn by dawn. They will be safer there than here."

We used oxen and horses to pull the carts and the boys, supervised by Aiden, drove the animals.  We had little time to search for treasure but there was little to be had anyway.  It was just the knight and the men at arms who had been worth searching. The mercenaries must have been promised animals and slaves. I rode next to a cart where the woman who had been comforting her daughter rode.  She was facing defiantly forward.  Her daughter, at least I assumed it was a daughter but I supposed it could have been her sister, sobbed still.