Hosker, G [Sword of Cartimandua 10] Roman Hawk (25 page)

Once Chief Trygg took control they changed course. The wily pirate knew that he could search the seas and not find his prey but he knew where it was heading; the land along the valley of the Dunum.  Marcus had told the Chief of his home and described, in great detail, what it looked like.  The Tencteri had a good idea where it was. He led, instead, the fleet around the coast of Uiteland.  They hugged the coast for a night and a day and, as dawn broke on the second day found themselves off the settlement known as Cnutstead. Trygg had left Hjarno-by hurriedly and while he had enough men and arms he was short of food. He hove to and signalled to Gurt. “The men will need some rest before we sail across the waters to Britannia.  I am going ashore to re-provision.”

“My boats are well provisioned.  We will rest. When do we sail?”

“We have plenty of time to get across the waters to Britannia  When I return to my ship join me and we will talk more of how I intend to punish the Romans and their allies. I will tell you of their waters and the currents and eddies which catch an unwary sailor.”

Cnut did not like the look of the warriors who waded ashore from the dragon boat.  He wondered why the others were moored offshore. They had been lucky of late and, since the Romans had left their jet gift, they had prospered. This visit did not bode well and Cnut sent the women and children into the dunes and woods to hide.

When Chief Trygg stepped ashore he could see that Cnutstead was a poor place but the racks of drying fish told him that he would be able to stock up. “Hail headman I am Chief Trygg of the Tencteri.”

“I am Cnut headman of Cnutstead and I have heard of you.  You are a long way from home Chief Trygg.  What can my humble village do for you?”

“We have run out of provisions and need your fish.”

“We have little enough for our own people and we can spare you little.”

The normally patient Trygg was tired and still smarting from his humiliation at the hands of the Romans.  He suddenly saw the jet carving hanging from Cnut’s neck and knew that the Romans had visited here too. In his mind that made them allies of the Romans and fair game for his warriors. “You misunderstand me old man.  We intend to take it.  You can get more.” He turned to Snorri. “Search the huts and bring all the food!”

There were only ten men in the village, including old Cnut but they knew they had to defend their village and its paltry supply of food or the women and children would die. It was futile but Cnut roared, “No!” and drew out his short seax.

Trygg had been itching to kill someone since the Roman had fled and he took out his sword, which seemed now, after having handled the Sword of Cartimandua, to be a lesser weapon, and ran the old man through. The others fell quickly to these experienced warriors who had fought Suebi and defeated them.  The fishermen stood no chance. As his men took their ill gotten gains back to their ship Chief Trygg looked down at the despoiled bodies of the stead and regretted his action. He had killed because his heart had been filled with hate and, as Snorri took the brand to burn the settlement, the Chief relented. “No leave the houses.  We will return to the ships.”

Whilst the warriors slept as best they could aboard their ships Trygg took Gurt through his plan.  “The river we will use to take us onto their land is wide but it twists and turns.  When I have been there before I have not had enough ships and men to truly take the plunder that we could.” Gurt looked at him with an intense look of concentration.  He would learn much from this war chief and use it to his own advantage later. “The villages which line the river see our ship’s masts and they lock themselves in their forts. We could take them but we would lose many men. With this number of boats we could send two of the boats along the river while the rest of the ships disembarked at the mouth of the estuary.  Once they had seen our ships pass by and leave them unmolested they would relax and they could be taken when they open their gates.”

“A good plan but I do not know the land and the settlements.”

“That is why I propose that Snorri goes with you and I take one of your boats with me.  That way we have the best of both worlds.”

“You are choosing the most dangerous task for yourself.  Why?”

“I captured a mystical sword which brought us great victory over the Suebi. It was taken by a Roman who lives along the Dunum.  I intend to find the Roman’s home and retake it.”

Gurt chewed on some of the salty dried fish and washed it down with some weak beer they had liberated from Cnutstead.  He wrinkled his nose in disgust.  “You defeated the Suebi?  Were there many of them?”

There was an implied criticism in Gurt’s voice which Trygg chose to ignore. He understood the scepticism; no-one in Uiteland had ever defeated the mighty Suebi before. The Suebi were fierce and uncompromising fighters and their numbers were always superior to the warbands they encountered. “I will be honest with you Gurt.  Had it not been for the Roman we would not have defeated them but it was he who organised the defence of my burgh and the Suebi were slaughtered as they broke against his defence.  He helped to lead the pursuit and we massacred every Suebi who came north.  The trail south is still littered with their bones.”

“I can see why you want this Roman back.”

Trygg snarled, “I do not want him back.  I want him dead.  I learned enough in his time with my people to become a better and a wiser leader and I have been shown how to defeat the Suebi.  The next time they attack will be their last.”

******

The next few days were torture for the crew of
The Swan
.  The fickle winds scurried and flurried this way and that and all the time they were looking over their shoulder for the barbarian boats which they expected to see loom over the horizon each morning as dawn broke. The only three immune from the fear were Frann, Drugi and Furax.  For Frann this was simple, every sea mile took her further from slavery and closer to her home and she had her man with her. The two Brigante girls fussed over the pregnant Frann; Hercules shook his head at the giggling, shrill female voices which seemed strange on his boat.  The only female Hercules cared for was his ship. Frann was oblivious to any criticism.  Since they had lost sight of the Tencteri she had seemed freed from worry. The Mother was truly watching over her and as her belly swelled she felt the new life kicking inside her.  She spent every moment she could on the deck, normally with Marcus but, if he was in debate with the others, she would just stare at him; grateful that she had met him and thankful that he appeared to love her almost as much as she loved him.

For Furax and Drugi it was a mutual appreciation society.  Furax told Drugi of life in Rome and the sea whilst Drugi’s tales of hunting filled the boy with wonder. “I still do not understand what you say about the people who live in Rome.  Do you not know them all?”

Furax laughed until the tears rolled down the street. When he saw the offended look on Drugi’s face he relented.  “I am sorry Drugi.  How best to explain? You know the place we rescued Marcus from?”

“Hjarno-by?”

Furax could not get his tongue around the words and so he just said, “Yes, that place.  Well how many people would you say lived there?”

“Oh too many to count. Many years ago it was small with but two or three hundred but now there are many more.”

“Rome has hundreds of such villages inside its walls and all of them are much bigger than your village. If you stood in the middle, in the Forum, and you counted every person who passed in one day, you would run out of numbers.”

Drugi found the concept incredible but he believed the boy. “And how are these people fed?”

“Ships. Like this one, arrive every day and bring food from all over the world.”

“Where do people hunt?”

“Hunt? There is nowhere close by.”

“The I do not want to live in Rome.  Too many people and not enough animals.” He began to become nervous about Britannia. “Tell me Furax, for I know you will not lie to me, is Britannia like Rome?”

“Like Rome? I have not visited all of Britannia but the Senator,” Drugi looked confused, “the man who owns this boat and an important Roman, a chief amongst Romans.  He told me that you could take every person who lived in Britannia and there would still be more people living in Rome. No, Britannia is like your land but with more forests.  I like it.”

“Thank you my young friend you have put my mind at rest.”

Rufius and Marcus smiled at the two new friends who were totally engrossed in each other’s worlds. Frann nodded to them and said, “I will fetch some food for you two.”

Marcus shook his head.  “You are not a slave any more.”

Indignantly she said, “I know which is why I asked you.  I want to do this!”

As she stormed off Rufius laughed. “This is why I do not envy you and Metellus.  Women are different from us men.  They are hard to fathom.” Marcus looked embarrassed and watched as Frann and the two Brigante girls descended into the bowels of the ship.  “You are much taken with her.”

“I did not intend to be; she grew upon me and the next thing I knew I could not be without her.”

“I think the poets call that love but I am not sure. You and she will be a family but where will you live? Or were will she live for you are still a soldier?”

“I had thought to take her to mother and Decius.  She would be safe there.”

“I am not so sure.  The Legate told me that he had read many reports about the increasing raids from the east.  We did not know of them because they were at the coast but it may be that something needs to be done to defend the Dunum from the raiders.”

“I cannot keep her at Rocky Point; the frontier is even more dangerous.”

“I know but that is where we will be heading first.”

“Not Morbium?”

“No the Legate will need the three of us.  We have been away too long.  He will need to know that Hercules is safe and then give him his orders.  He can drop Frann off after.”

Marcus shook his head.  “No I will ask the Prefect if I can take Drugi and Frann with Hercules.  It is not right that they arrive unannounced.”

“I am not sure that your wish will be granted.” Rufius wondered if it was something in the blood of Marcus and Macro which made them believe they had a destiny outside of the ala.  For Rufius the ala came first.  Perhaps that was the effect of the sword, or the Brigante blood. “This fellow Drugi, he will live at the farm as well?”

“I don’t know.  I feel obligated to him but he is a free spirit and I would not want to tie him down.”

“He reminds me of Gaelwyn and Gaelwyn was free in the valley of the Dunum.  Perhaps Drugi will be too.”

The two former inhabitants of Hjarno-by peered anxiously over the bow to be the first to see Britannia.  The strangely shaped rocks to the south of the Tinea looked to them both as though the gods had carved them.  To those returning they seemed commonplace, having viewed them often. Drugi shook his head in wonder. This place must be special to the gods that they have carved such objects from the land. All of them were surprised by the progress on the fort which now stood at the south side of the Tinea Estuary.  There were many ships moving between the stone jetty and the northern shore where the eastern end of the wall was clearly visible. There were three triremes of the Classis Britannica moored there as well as other merchantmen busily offloading their wares.

“This has come on since the last time I was here.”

“The Emperor was keen to secure and defend this end of the wall.” Rufius pointed to the huge vicus which had sprung up.  “That was but two huts when we set sail.  It is growing at a prodigious rate.”

Drugi turned to Furax. “This is the biggest town in Britannia?”

“No Drugi.  When we left it was but a small fort.  All these people have come since the waters and the land warmed.  They will be traders such as us.”

Drugi looked across the river at the line of what looked like ants labouring up the path to the fort which stood at the top of the low ridge. “Are they people?”

“Yes Drugi, they are offloading the ships and then they will be taken by road to the forts.”

“What is a road?”

To the Roman boy Drugi’s question made no sense but then he realised that what was familiar to him would be foreign to the former slave. “Imagine a trail but ten paces wide, covered with stones and straight, with no turns, that is a road.”

“I should like to see one of those.”

“Don’t worry you will.”

Just then a small sailing boat belonging to the Classis Britannica left the trireme in the estuary. When it drew close the officer in charge shouted, “Welcome Captain.  The Legate asked that we tell you, when you arrived, that you should land your charges at Coriosopitum.”

“Thank you.  Tell your captain that we were pursued by some dragon boats for part of the voyage.  There may be raiders and pirates about.”

“A little early in the year for pirates isn’t it?”

“Not these.  They are annoyed that we sank two of their boats.”

“This sank two dragon boats?” The incredulity in his voice made Hercules redden.

“
The Swan
may be graceful but when she bites you had better watch out!”

As the captain ordered half sail Furax turned to Drugi.  “You will have to wait to see your road.  We have a few more miles to sail.”

Drugi did not mind for he had never seen as much activity nor so big a river.  Little boats scurried from one bank to the other, each one seemingly laden with goods of once description or another. For the first couple of miles there was much evidence of building until the river took a turn north west and the gentle banks became quieter. Drugi was fascinated by the wealth of wildlife which proliferated in the water and on the shores. As the river slowly turned to give him a new vista he asked more and more questions of Furax about the wildlife they saw. Furax struggled to come up with the answers and Old Hercules found himself smiling.  “It makes a change for the lad to have to answer questions.  Usually he is pestering the life out of folk with his constant interrogation.

When the boat began to slow and the sails were lowered, Drugi looked at Furax. “We are here.  You see that bridge there…”