Viking Legend (17 page)

I held out my right hand as though something was in it. My seax was behind my back.  The proffered right hand would allay their fears.  They all turned and their hands went to their own weapons.  Behind them I saw Aiden slip into the woods.

I shook my head and stepped back as though I was affronted, “If it is not your coin then I will keep it but there is no need for knives.”

“Where did you come from?” The  leader spoke suspiciously. In the dark my black cloak and armour disguised what I was.

I used my right hand to point to the castle but looked at them all the time. “From the town.”

They moved purposefully towards me. “You lie for we did not see you.”

“You watch everyone in the town?”

They were now close enough to see my mail. The leader said, “You are a warrior, where is your weapon?”

I saw, out of the corner of my eye Beorn and Snorri move like cats and I jabbed forward with my seax and ripped it across his throat.  “Here!”Before the other two could do anything Beorn and Snorri had slain them. I grabbed the body of the man I had killed and dragged him into the woods.  We pulled them as close to the camp as we could.  “Snorri, clear away any traces.”

Haaken and the rest of my men appeared as did Aiden. He shook his head, “I am sorry, Jarl Dragonheart.  It seems I am too good a healer, or an actor.  I was paid in silver for my work and these three, who had been watching me all day, followed me. When they said nothing to the sentries at the gate then I knew they were robbers. They would have taken my silver.”

“They are dead now.”

Snorri reappeared, “I have cleared all sign that there was a struggle.  The blood must have gone on their clothes for I saw no sign on the track.”

“Come and tell us all.”

He sat down and took from his bag a cheese and some smoked fish.  “I thought this would improve your mood!”

Olaf said, “Some ale would make me wish to marry you.”

“You are too ugly and, besides, I could not carry any.” He handed around his purchases. “There is a garrison of twenty men.  Magnus has but five warriors with him. I know not what happened to the rest.  It seems he is not popular in the town either. They all know of him.  He rarely leaves the castle but when he does he has his oathsworn with him. They strut around the town as though they own it. The King has a hall on the first floor of the castle.  Below that is his guard room and the kitchens are next to them.  There is a cellar but they rarely use it because they have had much damage from the sea. I could not discover where Magnus stays but I would guess the north tower.”

Haaken shook his head.  I could see he thought this had been too easy. “How did you discover all this?  Did you not make them suspicious?”

“I was healing and I never asked a question, at least not directly.  When I said it was a magnificent castle they could not wait to tell me about it. They volunteered all of the information.  I confirmed some by saying things like, ‘
I expect the King has many fine visitors’
.  That was when they told me about Magnus.  They could not wait to give me the details of his behaviour. They were disappointed when I said I could not stay the night.  I said that I had to replenish my stocks of medicines and that was best done under moonlight.  They believed me. They expect me to return in the morning.”

I, too, was relieved. “When we do break in we can expect most of the garrison to be asleep. That will make our task easier.  We just have to get by the guard room and find this north tower.”

Aiden looked up at the sky.  “We had best search for this entrance. I do not think we will need to watch for Magnus making an escape.  The gate is barred from dusk until dawn.  He would have to fight his way out.”

We left Olaf to guard the horses.  He was not happy about the task. We found it easier making our way to the rocks even though the water was higher. We knew where we were going this time.  The tide was on the way out but we had much work to do.  Aiden and Snorri clambered to the top of the pile of fallen stones. The receding waters had brought more stones down and aided our efforts.  The gods were on our side. Asbjorn and Eystein were up to their chests in the swirling black water.  It would get easier but until the tide receded further they would have to suffer a soaking. I braced myself against the slippery rocks as Vermund passed the stones to me. Soon we got into a rhythm. My back began to ache as the monotonous regular action sapped the energy.  The cold sea did not help either. I was reassured that it was working when I glanced to the beach and saw that my two men of iron were only ankle deep in water and there was a large pile of stones gathered around their feet.

A huge wave struck and suddenly Aiden and Snorri disappeared as the waves sucked the stones from where they were working.  Beorn, Vermund and I were swept from our feet and I found myself flailing in the sea.  A huge hand hoisted me up and I looked into Asbjorn’s grinning face.

Aiden! I scrambled up the slippery rocks.  I could see a large hole at the top.  Beorn beat me to the top and he pushed half of his body through the hole. I began passing stones down to Vermund once more. There was an entrance but it was too small yet. Beorn turned grinning and held up two thumbs; it was our sign that all was well.  He passed two more stones down to me and then he too disappeared into the hole. I crawled up and wriggled through the gap.  I turned to Vermund who had followed me.  “Keep clearing the hole. We need it to be big enough for our bigger warriors too.”

I found myself in the dark cave.  I could see nothing.  I heard Aiden’s voice close by. “Snorri has gone ahead.  Come.  Keep a hand on the side wall and watch for your head on the roof.”

The wall had weed upon it and it felt slimy. The sand beneath our feet seemed to suck us down but we moved down the dark, Stygian tunnel.  My eyes actually became accustomed to the dark. I could see the white of Aiden’s hand on the wall.  Once I discerned that then I could make out his body. The cave turned a little and then rose.  The sand no longer sucked at our feet and the walls became less slimy.  When I felt rock beneath my feet I knew we were close to the end of the tunnel. Was there an entrance ahead or was this just another legend of Myrddyn?  I almost bumped into Snorri and Aiden.

Snorri stepped towards me.  He put his mouth to my ear and spoke quietly.  “There is a door.  It is made of wood but it seems rotten.” He held up a splinter of rotting wood.  Had this been the hull of a ship then it would have sunk. 

My eyes grew accustomed to the dark and I saw shapes. Aiden ran his hands all over the wooden door. Seemingly satisfied he turned and waved us outside. It was easier going back for it was now lighter towards the entrance as my men worked to widen the cave mouth. We stayed just inside the entrance.  I thought we could risk speaking there.

“There is a key hole in the door but it is so corroded and rusted that I do not think the lock works anymore. The gate is so rotten that it will not take much to break in.”

“We will go back to the camp and dry off. The tide will be going out for some time.  We will return before dawn and wait inside the tunnel.  That way we can take kindling and make a fire. We will see if we can break in.”

We made our way back to the camp and I explained my plan to them all. Haaken said, “But when the tide comes in we will drown.”

I shook my head.  “The cave near to the door felt dry, or drier anyway.  The cave rises.  I think it may flood but only with a spring tide. It is a risk but we have come this far and I would risk all. If you want to wait with the horses….”

Haaken laughed, “I will be there, fear not.”

“Asbjorn you and Eystein will stay with the horses. If you hear the alarm then bring them to the beach.”

“And if the tide is in?”

“Then bring them to the main gate.  We will have to force that if the cave is under water. Once we are in I will send Aiden back to you so that you know we have not perished.”

We hurriedly ate and then prepared for war.  Aiden carried the kindling and the flint.  We made our way back to the cave. The entrance was quite clear now that the tide had gone further out.  “We will have to disguise this.  Pile stones up so that the entrance is hidden.”

It took a short time and we left just the gap which Aiden had fallen through.  As we put the last stone in place I realised that this could be our tomb.  If I had miscalculated and the tide came up to the door then Jarl Dragonheart and the Ulfheonar would drown in a cave beneath Din Guardi.

It was easier walking down the cave the second time for the water was almost gone and we now knew the height of the tunnel. When we found the door we took our cloaks off and placed them at the bottom and sides of the opening so that no light would be seen. This time we would light a fire and see what we needed to do. Aiden made the fire and after a few abortive attempts he manage to light the dry kindling we had so carefully carried. We had brought plenty. When the cave was illuminated it felt as though we had gone to Hel.  The green slime shone bizarrely brightly in the light from the fire.  The black stones looked like precious jet but it was the red seaweed which looked the most terrifying.  It looked like a man’s intestines hanging from the rocks.  I did not like the place.

Shaking my head I went to the door. We had come here for a purpose. I examined, along with Aiden, the door.  I pointed to the hinges.  They were the weak point. He nodded. I pointed to the entrance.  Reluctantly he took his leave of us. I wanted him safe when we assaulted the castle.  I could not afford to worry about  him. I pointed to the hinges and Haaken began to work at the rotten wood. I went to the lock and did the same.  The wood was rotten but it still took time for we did it silently. I used my seax to tease the rotten shards away. I could have made a quicker job had I hacked but I was not certain what lay on the other side.  The only sounds we made would have been mistaken for rats or mice. Haaken was relieved by Erik who soon removed the wood from around one rotten hinge. He had finished with the second one before I had managed to cut away the wood from around the lock. There was nothing holding the door in place now save the dust, dirt and weed.

Beorn tapped me on the shoulder and pointed.  I looked around and I could both hear and see the sea.  We had been working for hours and the tide was coming in. We stopped work on the door. Everything we could do we had done.  We needed night to fall before we entered the citadel. If the tide was coming in then it was close to dawn or perhaps even morning already.  The fact that we could not see light from the entrance was a worry.  How would we escape our self made tomb?

All of us faced the entrance to the cave.  We could hear the sea coming closer and closer.  With no sun and stars we had no sense of time. The white foamed water would surge and then recede.  It would splash and splatter the roof. Then it would come in again. We had all day to wait. When we had endured the horror of being beneath the sea the tide would go out and we would be safe for a while. By that time it would be night and we could risk going into the castle.  We had a long wait ahead of us.  We could have slept but no one was going to lie down when the tide was rising.

A huge wave rushed in and threatened to engulf us. I realised the fire was dying and so I put another piece of wood on it.  I did not want to be here in the dark. I wanted to be able to see the water and not feel it slowly rise to choke and drown me.   I found it hard to breathe and it seemed to me that the roof and the walls were closer to me than they had been before. Beorn was at the end and when he shuffled closer to Snorri who had a higher perch then I knew the water had reached him.  I pointed to the rocks and we climbed.  It was only a pace higher than where we had been but it felt safer.  We were now tightly packed around the fire and the wooden door.  Suppose the water doused the fire? That would be a nightmare to end all nightmares. We were, for the moment, safe from the waters but how much higher would it come?  I looked at the door and saw a mark half way up.  At some time it had almost filled the cave.

The sea reached far higher than I had anticipated.  Haaken said, quietly, “We are beneath sea.” He looked up, “Above us are the waves crashing on the shore. It is as though we are dead and yet we live and we breathe. Have any other men done as we have done?  Have they lived beneath the sea without drowning?” He nodded to me, “You are right, Jarl Dragonheart, we were meant to come here.  This has been another test and we shall pass.”

Erik said, “We will drown.”

Haaken said, “No we will not. I feel it in my bones. We have to be strong and endure.”

Beorn and Snorri had their feet under water for what seemed an age but then the sea slowly started to recede. We could not cheer but the relief on all of our faces was evident for all to see. When we descended to our original positions I smiled for the first time in a long time. To celebrate we ate our rations and drank half of our precious water. We took it in turns to doze. We knew not what hour it was or how long we were there. I slept fitfully. When I awoke I walked to the end of the tunnel to peer out to the cave entrance.  The sand was damp, the rocks were slippery but the tide was well on its way out.  I saw the light at the end of the tunnel. I had no way of seeing the height of the sun but I knew we were on the shorter end of our vigil.  I returned to the others and I waited. And then fire, built as high as we could manage it began to die.  We had used all the wood.  It was like watching the end of the world as the flames died and then the embers glowed.  The glow became bluer and bluer until finally there was just a warm patch of ash which we could feel.

I whispered to Beorn, “See if it is dusk yet.”

He appeared to be away an age but when he returned he put his mouth to my ear and said.  “It is coming on to dark. The tide is on its way in.”

I put on my helmet.  I felt the others doing the same. It was so dark that we could only see shadows moving in the Stygian black. It was time. Soon we would be leaving this place which was neither land nor sea and re-entering the world of man. It was as though we had been to Hel and were now returning to the land of the living. Hoping my words would not be heard I said, as quietly as I could.  “It is time. Let us move the door and find Magnus. We have to be out of here before the tide returns.”

I put the blade of my seax in the hole close to the corroded lock. I gave Haaken and Olaf time to do the same at the hinges and then I began to lever out the rotten door. It sprang open so quickly that it took us all by surprise. Beyond the door appeared empty but there was a faint glow which showed us that this was a corridor. Snorri handed me my shield and I stepped through the door. I held my seax for the corridor was narrow.

I moved cautiously down listening all the time for sounds and sniffing for any smells which would alert me to guards.  Snorri would have been better suited to the task but I was Jarl and this was my idea.  I would shoulder the risks. We passed through a large chamber.  The walls were covered in slime and I guessed that this had been the cellar they had abandoned.  The floor began to rise and I saw a step. I turned a corner after ten paces and spied a door.  There was a glow around which showed that there was a light behind it. I waited until my men bunched up behind me and then put my left hand on the metal ring that would allow us entry. I pushed and nothing happened. I turned it and, reluctantly, it turned.  I heard the slight creak which told me that it had not been turned for some time. I pushed again and nothing happened. Was it locked?  Then I pulled and there was a movement.  This time the creak seemed as loud as a crack of thunder.  I swung open the door quickly and stepped into the kitchen.

Two thralls were asleep before the fire which they used for cooking.  One of them began to stretch.  I waved Haaken and Snorri.  With two blows from their hands the men were laid unconscious. I saw a door at the far end.  That could be the guard’s quarters. When my men were all within I detailed Erik to remain in the kitchen.  We needed an escape route. Erik would ensure that we would have warning if the guards emerged before we had finished. Aiden’s information said that we needed to be in the North tower. I opened the kitchen door. It looked to be the corridor used by the servants to serve the King. There were two rush brands burning in holders along the corridor. I took one. After four paces I found a stair to the right and I began to ascend. It was well worn and confirmed this was the route the servants took. It had a faint smell of stale food. If Aiden’s information was correct then there would be the King’s hall and quarters on the floor above. I sheathed my seax and drew Ragnar’s Spirit as I climbed. I place the rush brand in a holder on the wall of the stairs.

There was no doorway at the top but I saw the glow of rush brands again. Ahead of me was a large door.  It was a grand door and I deduced it was the entrance to the King’s Hall and his quarters which would be beyond. I peered around and saw a guard whose back was to me. He appeared to be alone.  My shield was around my back and I advanced silently with my left hand out.  I should have kept my seax but it was too late to change hands now. He must have heard something, for he half turned. I pushed my hand into his mouth as I forced my sword up through his ribs and into his heart. Snorri was with me in an instant and he helped me to lower the body to the floor.

I pointed to Asbjorn, Eystein and Vermund and indicated that they should keep watch. I was now disorientated. Which way was north? Snorri pointed to my right. I headed down the corridor and found another door. It was on the side opposite the King’s quarters.  I guessed it would lead either to the battlements or a tower. I opened it and found myself on the castle walls.  Ten paces to my left was a tower; it had to be the North Tower.  I stepped back inside and waved Snorri and Beorn forward.  They would have to deal with any sentries.  I gave them a few moments and then stepped out into the cold night air.  From the skies I guessed that dawn was not far away and we needed to move swiftly.  Leaving my two scouts to deal with any sentries I led Finni, Ulf and Haaken towards the door of the tower.  Even as I approached I could hear words being spoken within.  They were harsh words too.  That meant they were awake. If Aiden’s information was correct then soon I would be face to face with my enemy.

I reached the door and listened. The words sounded muffled which indicated to me that there was another door within. Even though I had but four men behind me I took the chance and, after swinging my shield around, I pulled open the door. I was relieved to see a second door and a stair leading up to the battlements. The voices were still muffled but I could hear occasional words. ‘Honour….wolf….hiding…women.’  Then there was a blow and the sound of something falling.

I nodded to my men and, opening the door entered the chamber.  It was a large guard room with pallets along the side.  Magnus stood facing one of his men and he had his sword drawn. We must have terrified them for they just stared.  There were six of them and three had weapons drawn.  Ignoring the others I swung my sword at Magnus. He rolled out of the way and, as he rose grabbed his shield.

“Now I will have that fine sword, Old Man!” He hissed.  I could see the hatred in his eyes.

As I brought my shield tighter around me I knew I had to keep a cool head for Magnus had shown that he had improved his skills since he had sailed with me. He swung his sword at me.  We were both restricted because the ceiling was low and we had to use horizontal rather than vertical strokes.  In the confined space you were as likely to be struck by a friend as a foe. I caught the blow on my shield and stabbed forward.  It was not a favourite stroke of mine for the edge was better than the tip. He tried to move away from the blow but I scored a hit against his side.

“The gods do not like a faithless warrior who is foresworn.  You have no honour Magnus the Foresworn and you have nowhere else to go.  You cannot run from here!”

He had grown somewhat since he had followed me and he ran at me with his shield.  As I went back I found myself falling over the dead body of one of his warriors. Magnus saw his chance and stabbed down with his sword. Even though I was falling I brought my shield around and, at the same time swung my sword.  The shield stopped the blow and my sword bit into his calf. He stabbed at Finni’s back and, pushing him out of his way, ran from the room. I was on my feet instantly.  He would not escape again. I opened the door expecting a sudden sword strike but there was none.  I saw a puddle of blood on the stairs leading to the top of the tower and I ran up. 

Here he would  have the advantage for the maker of the castle had ensured that the stairs favoured the defender.  I almost slipped on the blood at one point but Magnus did not wait for me. I saw the door at the top was open and I sprang through it. A seax was hurled at me, striking me on the side of the helmet.  It made my ears and head ring. I swung my sword blindly and was rewarded when I heard it strike his shield.

I turned and saw him. The glow in the sky behind him told me that it would soon be dawn. He rushed at me and swung his sword hard at me.  I  pivoted on one leg so that he spun around.  I now had my back to the sea and the breaking day.  I hacked at his head and he blocked it with his shield.  He tried to stab me in the middle but my shield was too fast.  I could see more blood oozing from his wounds and his left leg was trailing behind.  I could see his face as he calculated what he needed to do to defeat me.  He put his shield before him and ran at me. With the battlements less than a pace behind me he intended to knock me over the top of the tower. I dropped to my knee and as he hit me I rammed my sword into his groin and pushed up with my shield. His momentum and my left arm forced him over the tower.  I rose and looked over.  There, on the rocks, lay his spread eagled body.  The surf broke over it even as I watched.

I saw the white line which was growing on the horizon.  Dawn! Glancing down I saw that the tide was well on its way in.

I ran down the stairs to find my men waiting on the battlements.  I did not say a word but ran towards the door leading down.  My three men looked relieved to see me.  I pointed to the stairs leading to the kitchen and they headed down. We had done it.  I was just about to follow them when the door of the King’s chamber opened and a warrior stood there.  He gave a sudden shout and although he was slain by Haaken the damage was done and the alarm had been sounded.