The Marquis (32 page)

The guards opened the doors and Agthora stormed out, the Ancuman wiga behind them. Unarmed and without armour, they looked warily at the dozen bows pointed in their direction.

Agthora looked at Conn and then at Osnoth. ‘So what is the Feorrancund doing here? In my house?’

Cynilda stepped forward. ‘I hate to be picky but it is no longer your house – it is my house. And the Feorrancund is my master – and now Steward of Sinope.’

She looked at Cynilda. ‘And what insignificant piece of dirt are you?

‘I am Cynilda – birth right holder to Sinope – the one that you arranged to be sold as theow, after you had my father killed.’

‘They sold you? I was told that you would be killed.’

‘I know – but I were able to convince them otherwise. They are just men…’

Agthora shook her head in apparent understanding. ‘Men are so useless. Your brother is useless – he couldn’t even keep intruders out of his village. Incompetent fool.’

Osnoth was offended. ‘What am I supposed to do – they travelled across a mountain, a very high mountain, on foot – and arrived in the middle of the night – who was to know.’

She was still seething. Conn could feel the anger that the Gyden pulsated through her. It was not healthy.

‘You are pathetic – pathetic little man in a pathetic little demesne, with all your pathetic little theow running around after you trying to satisfy that pathetic little thing hanging between your legs. And all your pathetic little cotters living their pathetic little lives; but soon – very soon – you will all pay. You will all find your place as theow to a greater master, and you will all bow to Ashtoreth and to the Axum. You will not have a pathetic little Gyden to worship anymore.’

‘I think she is overusing a perfectly good word’, Derryth whispered to Conn.

The four women of Blood in the bailey bristled immediately at the attack on their Gyden. She was after all back.

Cynilda responded with anger in her voice. ‘Do not dishonour Lilith in my house!

‘I will dishonour her as much as I like – she has no power here. Her Cirice will be destroyed, and she is as pathetic as you all are.’

What happened next surprised Conn and the Twacuman – but no one else. In an instance, Agthora gasped and looked down at her chest – four knives protruded from it. The four Mundbora has passed their own sentence on her vilification of their Gyden – death.

The look of surprise on her face was extraordinary – and Ashtoreth screamed in her mind in failure again as her child fell to the floor. She was dead within moments.

‘You know,’ Derryth offered, ‘I always wondered what they carried knives for. Not just to cut meat…’

‘At least’, Osnoth added, ‘that solves the problem as to what I was going to do with her. Besides, it’s not pathetic ... it’s just … average sized.’

Cynilda looked at Conn with concern. ‘Is it true about the Cirice? Is that why Lilith visited us?’

Conn shook his head. ‘No, they were trying to destroy the Cirice but we stopped them and we repaired it. It is safe now. That is why she visited you.’

She smiled gratefully, and then suddenly curiously. ‘So how did they know where to look?’

‘I don’t know, but I have an idea…’ He turned to look at Osnoth, and Cynilda followed his gaze.

Osnoth was immediately starting to wish he was somewhere else. Cynilda went and retrieved her dagger from the dead woman as the Ancuman wiga were returned to the roundhouse. She then wiped her blade clean on the tunic, leaving her bloody body exposed. She then went to Osnoth, still holding the blade.

‘Osnoth, tell me you didn’t…’

He backed away. ‘Beloved sister – you promised. And it may be true that I may have said something about a mountain and a landslide and a Cirice but only once – and she tortured me…’

‘Tortured you?’

‘Her body was heaven – and fornicating with her was like nothing I have ever experienced. She made me beg and sometimes I had to pay with information … I am
really
sorry.’

She shook her head. ‘You would be
really
sorry if I used this knife.’ She suddenly threw the knife past him and it landed embedded into a pole. He went pale. ‘Men! You have FIVE women to fornicate with anytime you want, anyway you want, and you break a sacred oath just so you can do what you want with
one
of them. She was right about you being pathetic.’  She turned away and started yelling instructions for Osnoth’s hird to start vacating themselves from the main roundhouse, so that she could move in.

By nightfall they had, and it had also been cleaned from head to toe, everything was to Conn’s standards. They then held a huge feast to welcome Cynilda home. With the conclusion of the feast, earlier than usual, Cynilda ushered Conn up to his upper room. She stripped him and pushed him back on to his bed.

‘You are so lucky that Wilenda and Wukilda are pregnant – otherwise you might not live to see tomorrow.’

‘It can’t be that bad, surely.’

She then took off her clothes quickly. ‘It is. You go and release Lilith after eight hundred years without warning us; while I are stuck on a ship for three days in torment without you to ease my needs. Every Steward in Meria has had the best three days of his life and I’ve had nothing except Kelinda. There is always a consequence for such inconsideration. Now what should we do first? Oh, and don’t forget that Eowen will want some of your time when I’m finished with you.’

~oo0oo~

When Conn arrived for breakfast the next morning, Cynilda was happier but he was exhausted. It had been a long night – extra-long because a lusty Gyden in bed with you provides unseemly vitality and endurance to match up to two very lusty women. Unbelievably enjoyable but potentially life threatening – a human form of
semelparity.

Derryth laughed at him until Conn reminded him that he saw Hallvi go with him to his room.

He leant forward and whispered. ‘The Iladion women have no temperance. She is insatiable…very week she wants me to fornicate with her. It’s unseemly.’

Conn was bemused. ‘Did you say every week or every day?’

‘Every week! No Twacuman couple would stoop to every day… that would make us as bad as … well… Priecuman or Ancuman. Once a week is considered excessive by many. Once a year is ideal. I
once went through five winters
before I felt the need to fornicate again.’

‘When did that end?’

‘When I met Hallvi. She is very alluring.’

Cynilda brought him food. ‘So’, she asked smiling as she massaged his shoulders, ‘what is my Steward going to do today? Whatever you do, make sure you are back early tonight, feeling energetic. And eat lots to build up your strength.’

‘I thought I’d go and visit the Ancuman Steward of Tanais; he might need a career change.’ He was reportedly a two week ride away.

‘Of course, but definitely not this week. You can go next week. We need you here. If of course you have any excess energy during the day, I’m sure we can find a way to help you release the tension.’

As it turned out Conn had plenty to do; and he even ate down at the docks. Going back for lunch was obviously dangerous. When Brandur arrived with his prisoners, and when Godhart arrived on his boat, the Commodore asked to be relieved on his ship faring duties. He wanted to create a company of Pontian wiga for Conn’s fyrd. Conn agreed and appointed him Captain with Brandur as his Corporal.

Brictdred had already returned to Kerch to assemble a fyrd of three hundred wiga and six hundred horses, and to bring them to Sinope by road. As it was a forty day journey, and Conn had to wait for their arrival before he could deal with Tanais anyway. He was stuck in Sinope for the moment.

Conn had Egwahl visit all the Mundborak along the coast tell them that the fyrd was on its way. He didn’t want any surprises. The fact that they, and their grey horses, were on the road again was enough for most people. They let them pass. They had been last sighted eight hundred years ago.

The wiga in Sinope were not yet up to an acceptable standard. Osnoth wanted to redeem himself so he was appointed Captain of the Sinope fyrd, and under Derryth’s watchful eye, the Merians and Pontians worked hard every day. By the time the Kerchians arrived, they were almost presentable, and with new Kerchian greys to ride, and new equipment to use, they were more than adequate.

He also couldn’t leave because he had two bedda heavily pregnant – they had made it to Sinope and they were due in weeks. Wukilda had twin girls as expected but Wilenda didn’t; not even a single girl; she had a son. Whilst she was not as delighted as she could have been, Conn was. In Sytha, it seems that sons were not impossible, though he did wonder why. He was now very suspicious of anything that didn’t happen as “usual”.

~oo0oo~

With Brictdred no longer requiring his cog, Conn decided to let the Ancuman prisoners go, after determining that they had enough sailing experience amongst them to make their way back to Kishdah safely.

The man they appointed Captain was the last to board.

‘You remember my conditions?’

He nodded. ‘Direct to Kishdah. No stops in Sytha – and if we turn around, your ship will sink us.’

‘You have enough food and water?’

‘We do.’

Conn had Njil escort them until they were well outside of Sythan waters, just to make sure.

~oo0oo~

Despite the temptation to add Osnoth’s theow to his hird, he decided, against Cynilda’s desire to punish her brother, that he wouldn’t. He let Osnoth keep any that he had children with, and the rest were sold if they wished. Conn had no need – as well as the Merians, he had three lusty Folgere after him every time he sat down, and in any other available moment five others. He told himself that he really didn’t need any more, often.

He also sought to understand how Osnoth came to be Steward. Osnoth was apologetic.

‘Firstly, I had nothing to do with my father’s death or your disappearance, Cynilda. I did learn later what happened and it is true that I am guilty of overlooking several …umm… indiscretions on the part of others and not doing anything about it, but I did not kill him – nor did I arrange it. I have to admit I did not feel sad at his untimely death.’

When Conn looked confused, Cynilda filled in the background.

‘As you know you can gain enough value to become a Steward by winning enough theow in a bout tent to challenge an existing Steward desirous of improving his status. Or you can be sponsored to purchase one of Blood. Our father would only sponsor Osnoth to an amount that allowed him to purchase a Mundbora in Bata.’

Osnoth agreed. ‘I am no master of the bout tent. I lost the first three theow my father gave me. And Bata is Gyden forsaken. It is poor and it is isolated, and the women of Blood in Bata have a reputation for being plain. That was an understatement. The daughter of the Mundborak that I purchased – the only one I could afford – was in fact so short and ugly that I have to drink excessively to be able to service her. I felt that my father was laughing at me. I wanted to be Steward of Tanais but that is an expensive demesne and he refused to pay.’

‘Isn’t she of your house?’

They both nodded. ‘But not so close to prevent a match. The Casere’s rules was that one had to be a fingertip length from anyone before one could be bedda.’ They demonstrated and Conn understood; 3
rd
cousins.

‘So how did you get back here?’

‘I was visited by an Ancuman from Kashgar in Pontia a couple of years after Cynilda had disappeared and they made me an offer.  They would help me become Steward of Tanais if I helped one of them, Angatur, to become Steward of Sinope. If we were successful, we would then swap.’

‘Why couldn’t he become Steward of Tanais by buying her?’

‘The Mundborak had refused. And she is not so old as to need to sell. But she would sell to me. Agtha, her daughter, was always very fond of me. They seemed to know this.’

For all of his failing Osnoth was extremely good looking and irresistibly charming. Conn could understand his winning ways with the girls.

Cynilda punched him on the shoulder. He flinched. ‘And then you betrayed her... you took her demesne and then threw her away.’

He held his hands up in surrender. ‘As I said, I have not done the best by everyone. And Agthora was part of that group that visited me – and they gave her to me – they said that she was a theow, and after the Mundbora in Bata, it was like being blessed by the Gyden. She drained me of my free will by draining me of my seed. I was drunk with lust. So after I became Steward of Tanais, I visited your mother here when our sister was passed twenty. She had to do something because she had no Steward and Kytha was of the age where she could no longer refuse all offers. I convinced her to sell Kytha to Angatur. Soon after that happened, we swapped, and he is now the Steward of Tanais.’

Cynilda looked at him sharply ‘How did you do that? Did you seduce my mother into agreeing with you?’

He nodded sheepishly. ‘She is no relative of mine. And she is fine looking woman. It was not hard to do. I did agreed to sell her at auction after, however…’

‘Which you didn’t – because you sold bother her and Eowen to a theow raider – illegally.’

When Eowen arrived in Sinope, she also slapped him, and yelled at him for some time about how he had betrayed her. He tried to avoid her as much as possible.

‘Agthora made me – your mother was bossing her around. I sold Eowen – I didn’t want to – because I was offered a lot of money for her. Someone seemed to want her gone. But I did the right thing by Agtha – I sold her to Angatur. She is in Tanais.’

‘And our sister, Kytha?’

He was suddenly ashamed. ‘That was not my doing. I could not buy her – and I found out later that Angatur had sold her to the Steward of Bata. He is an Ancuman. He purchased the Mundborak of Bata soon after I left.’

Cynilda stood and glared at him. ‘You are so lucky that I’m not allowed to kill you. She is your SISTER!’ So she slapped him again before storming out.

Osnoth rubbed his face as they watched her leave the room. ‘Do you think she will ever forgive me?’

‘I do not think that chapter has been written yet.’

~oo0oo~

After the birth of his children Conn decided to deal with the Ancuman in his demesne. Since his “takeover”, nothing had been done by way of proclamation or declaration to indicate that there was a change of policy. Osnoth had advised him that the agreement was that he wouldn’t visit them and they wouldn’t visit him. He had sent boats to all the Merian Stewards in Sinope to sit tight and do nothing.

With the arrival of the Merians, Conn was ready. He sent Osnoth counter clockwise while he went clockwise around the mountain. He left all his bedda behind except for Oselda il Malla; the Larsan girl had been was feeling quite neglected though she did manage to lure him into a hay loft or two for a romantic interlude every now and then.

It was not a quick ride; they headed north for a couple of days before crossing the mountains into the demesne of Dilba, and as they crossed they were met by the Steward and Mundborak who insisted they stay for a day to celebrate.

A day later they were back in Sinope, with his three hundred horses marching behind the Sinope vexillum, cottar stood and waved, while Mundbora and Stewards of the multitude of small villages they passed came out to make their vows of loyalty.

He imagined that Osnoth would be in Nyssa by then; his task was to rid every town along the coast of Ancuman; and to put out the “Not Welcome” sign; by orders of the new Steward. Sir Njil would be out at sea flying the Golden Sun sails with a fleet of vessels making sure that all vessels leaving, didn’t, and instead headed to the port of Tanais.

After four days they were finally outside of Tanais, where they encountered the first show of opposition – a troop of perhaps a hundred Ancuman horsemen that had come out to oppose them but turned and ran when they saw the actual size of Conn’s fyrd.

They were finally met by an envoy from the Steward. He was Merian and his name was Ceolyn. Conn identified himself as the Steward of Sinope, and he was demanding that the Steward of Tanais pay homage and vow loyalty.

Ceolyn cleared his throat. ‘I doubt that my Steward Angatur will agree to such a thing. He has an agreement with the Steward that he not have to do that; and that he has free rein over his demesne.’

‘Osnoth is no longer the Steward, I am. And agreeable of not agreeable, he now has no choice if he wishes to stay as Steward. Alternatively, he can surrender his demesne and I will grant him and his men safe passage out of Sinope. That is a fair deal. I will camp here tonight and arrive in the village tomorrow; if a single house is burnt or person treated unfairly between now and then, I will personally sever his gonads from his body with a blunt knife.’

The envoy cowered with the ferocity of Conn’s words. ‘I will pass on your message to the Steward.’ He then turned and fled.

The next morning they were joined by Osnoth and the Pontians, and leaving half the fyrd behind, they headed into Tanais with three hundred wiga. They met no resistance outside of the village. Balios however stopped and Conn halted the troop just as they got into the buildings.

Conn looked at Derryth. ‘Surely he would not be so silly?’

‘There is always a rouge element.’

Conn reorganized his fyrd so that all the vexillum were in the lead; he had quite a few; Pontian, Kerchian, Taransay and Sinope, and their presence shrouded the identity of those that marched behind. It would buy time. Conn and Derryth then peeled off and travelled through the back street until they left the horses and continued on foot. Very few people were out and about here as they were all watching the procession. Any that were very happy to help; one young girl rushed out the back door of an Inn. Conn grabbed her and told her to be quiet. She had been crying.

‘What is the matter?’

‘Same thing that is always the matter – Ancuman. There are inside. They didn’t like the beer so told me to go and get more.’

‘How many?’

‘Six.’

‘Are they armed?’

She nodded. ‘Bows. They don’t usually carry bows.’

Conn gave her a kiss on the forehead and sent her on her way.

Conn and Derryth watched her run off and they looked at each other. Derryth was first to speak. ‘I agree, very strange.’

Conn led Derryth slowly into the inn via the open back door, until they were behind the Ancuman as they stared out into the street, bows in hand. Conn’s procession of horses was about to arrive.

‘Excuse me gentlemen, but are you looking for me?’