Nozbat

The Blood Sacrifice and Those who were Sold There was peace along the Tamyse valley. The war had been short but bloody and destructive. For the survivors there would be a struggle to get enough food and shelter for the coming winter. Food was in short supply all over Cerdic’s Kingdom. The wars had destroyed the growing crops and killed or displaced livestock. Even for those that had silver to spend, the cost of food was high. The Atheling Stuf had told Wulfhere to start re-fortifying Hambladensted and had left forty warriors from his army with Wulfhere to help with the construction and promised to send woodwrights, shipwrights and people who were experienced in building. Wulfhere was aware that the refugee women, older people and children from Hambladensted and Farnhamble would be sent back north and he would need to find food and shelter for them. He was also told to expect some of the refugees who had come from the north side of the Tamyse. Stuf thought it unlikely that Aelle would want them or even allow them to return to their own destroyed villages therefore Stuf was keen to share the burden of feeding them throughout the northern lands. Wulfhere appointed Uthric as Þegn of Hambladensted. He hoped this would then allow him to start to build the alliances in the four nearby settlements while Uthric concentrated on the defensive palisade of Hambladensted. Wulfhere split up his warriors into people who would construct the palisade and shelters, those that would collect wood and oversee seasoning of wood for the building of boats and others that would help with the farming. He sent a fifth of his men out to hunt and fish to supplement the meagre supplies they had. Wulfhere also sent the pack mules south to Wincen Cæster or Pontus Cæster to try and buy grain to cover any immediate shortfall. The Hrothgarsons used their own money hoping this would be an investment for the future. Wulfhere met with the four local Þegns, Issa, Taran, Darwyne and Uthric. They realised the people were going to be hungry at least until harvest and tried to plan to share the available food. Wulfhere thought that they should be fortifying the south end of the Bridge at Pontes but following discussions with his Þegns he agreed that this would have to wait until the next year at the earliest. They decided that they should focus for the present on survival during the coming winter. They hoped that the harvest would be good and therefore there would be less deaths throughout the winter. News came back with the men who had been sent to get food in Wincen Cæster that King Octa had taken his army and attacked and captured Hamafunta. His rapid success had been a surprise and Octa had decided that he would attack and capture Cissa Cæster which he thought would make a better capital than Wihtwarasburgh. Wulfhere was discussing how many people were needed to build fish traps when he was interrupted by an exhausted boy. He had run as fast as he could to tell Wulfhere that some spearmen had attacked one of the outlying farms, killed some of the men and then took off the women. Wulfhere took his brothers and ten men and followed the boy to the fields. The farm was close to the forest and the three men who had been working with the women were lying dead in the field. Wulfhere asked the boy how many spearmen he had seen but the boy said he was unsure. He was certain the women who had been taken had still been alive. Wulfhere ordered his men to look for tracks and they searched up to the forest edge. Wulfhere found some tracks that led into the forest but after a short period lost which way they were going. Eventually Uthric found more tracks and they went down a trail that led to a small house in a clearing. Uthric was positive the tracks led to the house and they watched hidden in the undergrowth as a younger man and older man worked outside. At Wulfhere's signal his men moved forward and the two men tried to run. Uthric threw his javelin and it pierced the younger man through the neck. As he fell the older man escaped into the doorway and the door was slammed shut. They could clearly hear a woman scream from inside and they were in no doubt that they had found the missing women. Wulfhere sent some men round the back of the house to guard against anyone trying to leave. He reminded people that this had been an error they had made at Garm's hall and he did not want the enemy to escape this time. Wulfhere asked the people inside to come out. The old man answered saying that he was not sure this was a good idea and asked why there were armed men outside his house. Uthric told him that they might be better coming out as he thought it would soon get too hot to stay inside. When the man asked why that would be, Uthric said his plan was to set a fire at the walls and door. The man said he thought that in that case he and his wife would prefer to come out provided that Uthric would guarantee that they would not put a javelin in his head. Wulfhere said that they would not kill them immediately and only wished to question them. Dunstan said their safety really depended on the answers they gave. The man and the women came out and were pulled aside and held by some of the spearmen. Dunstan checked out the house but there was no-one else inside and he told Wulfhere that the women were not there. They were both confused as they had thought it was clear the tracks had come this way. Uthric lifted the older man off his feet by his tunic and asked him where the rest of the women were. The man looked puzzled and said that he lived here with his wife and his son who they had recently and unnecessarily killed. He wanted to know why they had killed his son as none of them had ever done anything to deserve this. Dunstan pushed him over and stood over him. He asked the man to tell him where the other spearmen and women had gone. The woman rushed at Dunstan and began to pummel him. Duncan pushed her back and his spearmen held her arms. Wulfhere asked the man again where the others had gone but he only looked more confused and upset. Wulfhere told him that he had tracked raiders to this place and he would think the least the man could do was to say where they had gone. After some time, it became clear that neither the man nor woman could add anything to their knowledge although both Uthric and Dunstan thought they were both lying. Some of the warriors picked up tracks on the far side of the clearing and they left the house. As they walked further into the forest they could hear drum beats ahead of them. They were unsure what the drumbeat signified and some of the men began to get nervous. They came to a steep mound with a narrow cleft cut through it. The walls of the cleft were lined with fist sized stones and periodically there were niches in the stones that held skeletal heads. No-one wanted to enter and Uthric decide he would go around the mound to see if there was another way in. He came back when it was beginning to get dark and reported there did not appear to be any way in apart from the narrow cleft. He said he had thought about climbing the mound and looking down from above, but the sides were too steep to safely climb up and, in particular, come down again. The drum beats grew louder and seemed to reach a crescendo when they suddenly stopped just as it got fully dark. Dunstan thought that the sound came from under the earth and wondered if there were tunnels through which the drummers could escape. None of the men would approach the cleft and no-one wanted to go in. They spent an uncomfortable and cold night shivering and watching the cleft. At one point during the night Dunstan drew everyone’s attention to a huge raven which flew over the mound and was silhouetted by the nearly full moon. At daybreak there was a death scream and no-one knew what it meant and no-one volunteered to find out. After some time Dunstan said that he would go in if someone else would join him. He said there were some captives that needed to be rescued and it wouldn't change things if they all stood outside and shook with fear. Uthric and Wulfhere agreed to go too although Uthric clutched his hammer amulet rather than the spear as they went into the deep cleft in single file. They came into a larger circular region after about thirty paces. There was an mound of rocks and behind it, an ash tree. On the rocks were piled nine severed heads and their eyes shone like they were reflecting rush light candles. A man with a grey beard hung on the ash tree. His face had a fresh wound that still bled where someone had taken his eye. All three men stared at the scene and no-one spoke. There was no sign of any living creature and they thought the five missing women were likely among the heads on the altar. By mutual consent they turned and started to leave but Dunston went forward to take a closer look at the man on the tree before Wulfhere pulled him away. When they got out of the cleft they discussed what the situation could possibly mean. Dunstan asked if they thought they had just seen Woden and he reminded them there had been a large raven flying in the night. Wulfhere said that he was not sure but something had happened here that he now wished he hadn't seen and he feared that it might come back to haunt them further. Uthric wondered about the woodcutter’s part in this and thought he must have knowledge of what happened here because he lived so close. Dunstan said he did not believe the man could have seen nothing and that his worst fear is that the woodcutter might somehow be linked to the deaths. They had only seen one son and there might be other sons and if so, Dunstan thought they might be involved. Wulfhere said that there was nothing more they could do here. The men who took the women were likely on the altar too. He did not understand what had happened but it wouldn't become any clearer by standing around in the forest. They collected the old man and woman on the way back and took them to Farnhamble and Darwyne. Dunstan questioned them further but was no wiser at the end of it. Wulfhere told Darwyne to post some spearmen near the forest but nothing untoward happened over the next few days. Uthric had agreed with his brothers that he would return to Glawmæd to see their wives. They had been away for over three moons and they all feared the consequences. They held a conference and agreed that they would offer their families the option of coming north to live in Hambladensted or remain in Glawmæd until next spring. Wulfhere thought that there was still a danger of war in the north and hunger would be a problem until at least the harvest was gathered. Dunstan asked should the invitation also extend to their mother. He was unsure if it would be a good idea. Uthric said no matter what she thought of them, Hildegard was still their mother. There was also their brothers Sighard, Egfryd and sister ldris as well as Beorthric the baby. He felt he could not in all conscience leave her on her own. Sighard was almost a man but he would not be able to provide for Hildegard. Wulfhere agreed with Uthric and so it was settled they would ask their mother to come north too. Uthric set out the next day for the south. He thought that if he kept to the roads the travel would be quicker and would be reasonably safe. He expected to back in about fourteen days. He stopped the first night with Taran in Dunbriwan and left early in the morning. It took almost two days to get to Taddenlæge and he spent the night telling Tadda of the happenings in the north. He told the tale of the strange mound in the forest and the grey-headed, one-eyed, hanging man. Uthric realised that the people listening to his tale reacted badly and he resolved that he would not tell this tale again. He set off in the morning having bid farewell to Tadda and Rowena and walked through most of the next night to reach Wincen Cæster. He stayed in Stuf's Hall. Cerdic was in the South dealing with Aelle. Stuf said he hoped that they would conclude a peace treaty so that he could go back to fighting Dumnonians. Uthric stayed a day with Stuf but he spent most of the day asleep because he had walked through the previous night. In the morning he set off and spent the night at Old Wincen Cæster Hill. Uthric was amazed to see that there were many new farms built or being built along either side of the road. He stopped to ask one farmer where he had come from. The man said that he had brought his family from Saxony and had been given the land by Atheling Cyrnic. It had taken two days to get to Glawmæd from Wincen Cæster but as he approached he noticed something was wrong. The village had been burnt and he could see no living thing. There were fresh graves alongside the road but although he searched and called out he could find no one to tell him what had happened. Uthric thought that Tæthle or Osberht might have some news of Meire so he thought it was best to go there and ask what they knew. He found Cædering also burnt and deserted. He could find no-one to talk to and he walked on to Cælctun hoping for answers to the mystery. He found more unanswered questions at there. The village was deserted but there was no destruction. Uthric puzzled over what might have happened. It was as if everyone had disappeared and taken all that they owned. He spent the night in Cælctun and resolved to go to see Cerdic in Portus Cæster in the morning. Cerdic was not in Portus Cæster, having gone to meet Aelle to conclude a peace treaty. Some of the Huscarls recognised Uthric and told him the story of what had happened. Octa had attacked and captured Hamafunta and then gone on to attack Cissa Cæster but could not take it due to the high, well-defended walls. Aelle had gathered his army and had surprised Octa outside Cissa Cæster and after defeating the army had then killed Octa. Aelle had decided Cerdic had told Octa to attack him and took his army to besiege Portus Cæster. While part of his army had stayed besieging Portus Cæster the other half had ravaged the county side. He had taken Glawmæd and Cædering killing both Oshehrt and Tæthle. Cælctun had surrendered as there were no warriors left to defend it. All the survivors of the three villages were taken as captives. The Huscarl assumed they had been sold as slaves. Uthric asked if they knew if anyone had escaped but none of the Huscarls knew anything more. They said Aelle had moved so fast that no-one had been prepared for his attack. Cerdic had eventually brought his army south and he and Aelle fought some indecisive skirmishes before Aelle decided to withdraw. Cerdic had threatened to attack Aelle's lands and Aelle had agreed to a peace treaty. Uthric thought he should go back to Glawmæd and from there go to Llys. He hoped that some of the people of Glawmæd might have escaped through the forest and then made their way to Llys. At Glawmæd he thought about digging up the silver he had given Meire but realised that a single warrior with so much silver would be vulnerable and they would need to keep the silver for later. He travelled through the forest of Mœn, visited the Pool of Butterflies but did not see anyone until he got to Llys. He met with the Þegn of Llys, Thorold, and asked for his advice. Thorold told him that as far as he was aware Aelle's Warband had caught everyone by surprise and no-one had time to react. It had been assumed Aelle would have been content with killing Octa but he blamed Cerdic for the destruction caused by Octa and took revenge. By the time the peace treaty was agreed, Aelle had started to see sense and was willing to make peace. Thorold thought that there would be more wars with Aelle but for now both sides were content to shout insults. He said that no doubt that border raids would continue and that might provoke a major fight. Llys had become prosperous. All along the Mœn river, new farms had been built and Thorold hoped if there was peace they would have a good harvest. Uthric said that the land would need a good harvest for in the north there had been so much destruction it was likely that people would starve. Thorold said that he could not imagine how he would deal with losing his wife and children and asked Uthric if lending him a horse would be useful. Uthric thanked him and said it would certainly make the journey more comfortable and save him having to buy new boots this year. However, he was not sure it would be any quicker for he was not used to horses and worried about falling off. Thorold said that he would give him a horse that was of good temperament and as long as he did not try to gallop he should remain safely on its back. It took Uthric another four days of travel to return to Hambladensted and to tell his brothers what had occurred in Glawmæd and the disappearance of their wives and children. The brothers held a conference. The situation in the north was still delicate. They had been tasked with securing the area by Cerdic and Stuf. If they left on a journey they would be going against Cerdic's express orders. Dunstan said equally that he did not have to think too hard to imagine the trouble they might be in if they left their wives in captivity for a whole year. He said that he was not a violent man but the man who had taken her would have to give her over or suffer the consequences. He resolved that he would not offer payment for his wife. Uthric said that he felt he had been reacting to events over the last number of years and would for once he would like to be on the offensive. The more Dunstan thought about the situation the angrier he got. He said he was of the opinion Cerdic was disorganised and did not protect his people as he was sworn to do as the Westseaxacyning. He said if it came to an election he would not vote for him again. He asked his brothers to remember the time when they were in trouble at Taddenlæge and no one knew where Cerdic was. He thought Cerdic might want to improve his communication lines and he was never where he was supposed to be. Wulfhere said that Dunstan would be better to keep his opinions to himself as he thought others might not share such views. He thought it was fair that Dunstan held these views but he needed to be careful before talking too much. Wulfhere told Uthric that while he had been away there had been grumbling that he had not tried to pay the wergild for the son of Wictrum the woodcutter. Uthric said that he was reluctant to pay the wergild as he thought Wictrum and his son had something to do with the deaths of the captured women and the spearmen. However, he used the treasure that he had got from the battles to pay Wictrum. People said that they hoped the new Þegn would not always be so late in paying his debts. Wulfhere said that they needed to go to see Cerdic and ask him for permission to seek their wives and children. Halig said he agreed with this but he thought finding their mother and siblings was also important. Uthric and Dunstan said they were sure that their mother would be fine and Dunstan was certain that she would have likely married someone again. They travelled to Taddenlæge and stayed the night in Tadda's Hall. They asked Tadda and Rowena for advice. Dunstan said that he was not that interested in advice at the present and would prefer vengeance on those who had wronged him and his family. He began to make growling noses and every time someone talked to him he just growled. Rowena said to Wulfhere that she would not be too hopeful that their journey would be successful. Their wives and children could be dead. She said that she had a daughter of marriageable age and she would have no objection to making a match with Wulfhere if they were unsuccessful. Wulfhere thanked her but said that he thought he at least needed to try before thinking of a new wife. They left the next morning and went to Wincen Cæster hoping to meet with Cerdic but were told he was not there. They asked to meet with Stuf and were taken to his Hall. Stuf was with his war Þegns and planning raids into Dumnonia but he agreed to see the Hrothgarsons privately. Wulfhere told him of their problems and their missing families. He asked what Stuf thought Cerdic would say. Stuf was sympathetic to their problems but he did not hold out much chance of success. He thought they could go chasing women all over Britain and will not find them. He advised that there were too many British slave women and it would be unlikely that anyone would be able to remember the difference. He suggested that if they had no clear leads they should take new wives and go back north. Uthric said that Meire was memorable. He explained that Meire had a slight greenish tinge around her temples and he thought people would recollect her. Stuf said that he hoped for their sake it was true but he thought their biggest obstacle might be Cerdic. Cerdic had been annoyed with everyone after Aelle attacked and had not been that approachable about anything. He said things had got that difficult both he and Cyrnic had made sure they had other things to do rather than be in his presence. Wulfhere and Uthric were downhearted with Stuf's news and Dunstan just growled. Stuf looked at Dunstan and was about to ask a question when Uthric said that it appeared to be another fine mess they were in and they were now setting off to heroically buy back their wives. Dunstan growled again. Stuf said that he needed to meet with his Þegns but invited them to stay in his Hall for the night and they would talk more. At food that night Stuf asked the Hrothgarsons to tell him about their meeting with the Bannucman. Dunstan would usually have told the tale but he was in no mood to do so and continued growling when anyone came too close. Uthric told the tale and people who listened were impressed. Some called for an anvil to be brought in as an argument had erupted on the warrior’s benches about who could possibly throw an anvil. Stuf put a stop to the argument by saying no-one would be throwing anvils in his Hall unless a Bannucman appeared. If that happened he said that everyone would be welcome to try and throw anvils. Wulfhere asked Stuf what he knew about the slave markets in Cissa Cæster. Stuf said that unfortunately he had no real knowledge of how they worked so that he could add nothing to what they already knew. He asked Wulfhere about the food situation in the north. He said that he hoped the harvest was good this year and the weather would remain mild. Stuf said he was becoming concerned that if the harvest was bad, or ruined by rains and storms there could be serious famine. He intended to make raids into Dumnonia after their harvest in the hope that he could capture enough food. Wulfhere and Uthric thought that if they were able to they would like to take part in raids to get food. In the morning they bade farewell to Stuf. He wished them luck in their quest and in particular with Cerdic. He also gave them each two silver bars which he felt might be useful for their quest for the families. They went to Glawmæd to recover their buried silver and were surprised that new famines had settled in the ruined village and were beginning to rebuild the houses, palisade and tend the fields. They spoke with the Þegn, Wictred, who confirmed that they had all newly arrived at Portus Cæster from the Eider in Saxony. Dunstan was angry with this new development saying that no one was respecting the law anymore and land rights were being ignored. Wictred said that he had been given the land by Cerdic and was unaware that any other people had a claim on the land. Wulfhere said that they used to have land here but they now lived on the south side of the Tamyse valley and he should not be concerned about Dunstan who was angry for lots of reasons. Dunstan made more growling noises and people moved away from him. Wulfhere told Wictred they would be gone soon but they needed to get their silver that they had buried for safe keeping. Wictred said they were welcome to get it and wished them all the best for their onward journey. At Pontus Cæster they found both inside and outside the walls of the city were packed with new people. Abandoned boats in various states of decay lay on the beaches. It was clear that many new settlers had come from Saxony, Danevirke, Friesland and Jutland. Uthric thought it might be good to advertise the south Tamyse valley as a place to live but Wulfhere thought it best not to invite them north until they got back there. He thought that large numbers of new settlers might not go down well unless they were there to make sure there was no friction with the people already settled there. There was also the issue of a lack of food. Wulfhere asked if Cerdic was in Portus Cæster and when he was told that he was in his Hall he asked to see him. Cerdic was surprised to see them and asked why they were in the south when there was so much to do in the north. He asked if they had already secured a crossing over the Tamyse and rebuilt the damaged settlements. Wulfhere said that work was ongoing on all these projects but they had come to seek advice from Cerdic and permission to find their wives and children. Cerdic was clearly not happy about their request. When Dunstan tried to speak he cut him short and would only allow Wulfhere to talk. Cerdic said that women and children were important but the Hrothgarsons had all been given responsibilities. There were dwellings to rebuild, fortifications to make secure and importantly the harvest needed to be brought in, assessed and preparations made for the next Spring planting. They needed to be there to choose the livestock for slaughter and which should be used for breeding. Cerdic said he had made Wulfhere responsible for that and now he was asking to ignore his duty to his people and go off on a journey into hostile territory. Cerdic said he had heard stories that they frequently wandered all over Britain and were not good about coming back on time. He reminded Wulfhere that he had sworn an oath to him and Cerdic wondered if he was now intent on breaking it. Wulfhere said that he was asking for seven days to try and get their children back or at least find out what had happened to them. Cerdic said he would reluctantly agree to a seven-day period but if they were going to Cissa Cæster they should do nothing to upset the treaty he had made with Aelle. Cerdic said that there would be a reckoning for Aelle but he was not ready for that battle yet. Cerdic said that he would expect them back in seven days. He had over two hundred people that he was sending north with Wulfhere and they needed to be back to collect them. Wulfhere thanked Cerdic and asked if he would object to building a Burgh on the south side of the Bridge at Pontes. Cerdic said that he had no objection but Wulfhere was the KingsÞegn and he had to decide if he could keep and support a garrison in the area. Wulfhere said he thought that having some control of the Bridge would be a good strategic move and would consider it over the winter. Cerdic dismissed them but said that they needed to think how they could balance their responsibilities to him as their Oathlord and to their people who they had sworn to protect against their personal troubles. He had noticed in the past years that people in positions of responsibility had to put the good of everyone ahead of the good of the individual. Dunstan suppressed a low growl which fortunately no-one else heard. Wulfhere said that before they left Portus Cæster he wanted to talk to Hereweard. They found Hereweard in a tavern and he greeted them warmly. Wulfhere told him of the mound with the cleft, the hanged man and the altar with the heads and asked him for his opinion. Hereweard said it would be hard to make any other opinion than someone was completing a ritual to gain knowledge much like Woden had in the sagas. Without examining the site further and looking for signs that only leæces might notice he could have no further views. Wulfhere asked if it could actually have been the All-father himself. Hereweard said that could be possible but again he would have to see the place himself. Uthric asked what Hereweard’s opinion would be if they filled in the cleft from above. Hereward looked at Uthric but did not answer. He asked Uthric what he thought about the idea. Uthric said that when he said it aloud he had immediately realised it was a stupid idea. Hereweard patted Uthric's hand and said he was glad to see that becoming a Þegn had brought some small amount of wisdom. Wulfhere thanked Hereward and they left to travel to Cissa Cæster. Dunstan growled as he left and Hereward looked at him for a long time and remained watching him as he left. Dunstan said that he remained angry and he was of the opinion that someone would lose their head for this. They avoided Hamafunta in case they were recognised but they could see that it was being rebuilt after being burnt in the war. Wulfhere said that they must be careful about telling people who they were and what business they had. He suggested that they call themselves the Coerlsons and say that they came from Wiht. They would keep their first names as that would minimise any mistakes. He reminded them all that they should not do anything to attract any attention. Cerdic and Stuf had said that the peace treaty was fragile and they should not be the ones to start another war. The gates to Cissa Cæster were guarded by four spearman who asked their business. Wulfhere told the leader, Calemund that they were the Coerlson brothers and had come to buy slaves. Calemund asked where they had come from and Wulfhere said that they lived on Wiht. Calemund demanded to know if they were Octa's men as he was aware that Octa had been the Wihtcyning. He said that they should know Aelle might have made peace with Cerdic but they still had an argument with Octa's men who had killed their men and women without pity. The other three guards who had been amusing themselves playing knuckle bones for scraps of hacksilver sensed the increase in tension and picked up their spears and began paying much more attention to the conversation. Wulfhere said that they had never been Octa's men but they were Cerdic's men. Calemund said that it was just as well for they would be dealing with Octa's men like they dealt with Octa himself. They looked up on the walls where a body covered with pitch was impaled on a spear. Calemund explained that they had had to cover Octa's body in pitch to stop the crows eating it after Aelle had flayed him. We wanted to keep him safe for a while and Aelle has a new war banner called Octaferygt which the leæces had told him would bring victory as long as Octa's body did not decay. To stop that happening Aelle had Octa dipped in pitch. One of the other guards, Athmund, was paying close attention to Uthric. He asked what they said their names were. Wulfhere told him they were the Coerlson brothers but Athmund said that this was not the truth. He said that he had been at Cœlfrith’s Moot and in Anderida when Uthric and his brothers had brought a case against Cœlfrith and had humiliated him. Wulfhere said that this was true and they had only said that they were Coerlsons to stop any possible trouble while they bought some slaves. Calemund said that there was peace between Aelle and Cerdic so he would not be stopping them coming into Cissa Cæster however he thought it only fair to warn them that Octa was lonely. When Wulfhere looked confused, Calemund said that if they caused any trouble they would be joining Octa on the walls. He said he doubted that their flayed skin would make a good Battle banner but he would enquire of the leæces. Wulfhere thanked him for his advice and said that he would be mindful of it when they did business at the slave market. Dunstan had not said anything in the entire exchange but only emitted growling sounds. Calemund warned Wulfhere he would also be telling Cissa they were here and they might hear more from him. He thought that it might also be useful for Dunstan to be put on a leash as he seemed to be acting like a dog. The two men that ran the slave market were Guthmaer Sleddeson and Grimwold Frithowulfson. When Wulfhere explained that they were looking for particular slaves both men expressed surprise. They said that one British slave was much the same as another and there would be no way they could possibly be of help. Uthric said that his wife was memorable because she had a greenish tinge at her temples. Guthmaer said that Uthric was right, she was noteworthy and he had no difficulty remembering what had happened to her. She had been bought by Hrof's daughter. Uthric looked puzzled and Guthmaer said he was happy to enlighten him. He told him that Hrof’s daughter was called Ealhwyn. He thought that most of the other slaves brought in at that time were bought by the army which meant they could be anywhere in Ceint. Wulfhere thanked the two men for their information and declined their invitation to buy some slaves. Dunstan was angry and said that he would not be wrong in predicting a dark future for the two slave traders. Wulfhere warned Dunstan that they must do nothing to bring them any attention. They walked through the market to find somewhere to talk without other people hearing. Dunstan suddenly saw Hildegard. She was buying fruit and vegetables and handing her purchases to a younger woman. She looked well cared for and was wearing a rich and costly cloak with gold ornaments at her throat and wrists. She suddenly saw her sons and screamed. Dunstan went over to Hildegard. She was shocked to see them. Hildegard spoke quickly to the young woman she was with and gave her the purchases she had made. The young woman then left. Hildegard wanted to give Dunstan a hug but he stopped her with a motion of his hand. Dunstan said that he was surprised to meet her in a market in Cissa Cæster and he thought she was obviously doing well for herself. He said he could see that her clothes were of good quality and she wore gold and silver ornaments at her neck and wrists. Hildegard said she would explain all this in good time but asked him why he was here and where were her other sons. Dunstan pointed to Wulfhere and Uthric who had been watching from a distance. Hildegard began to cry and said that she would explain the situation to the best of her ability but they should go somewhere to talk rather than stand in the busy market. Dunstan refused her offer to go to her house but said he would wait to hear her explanations before making any judgement. Hildegard took her three sons to a tavern and ordered food and drinks. She asked her sons what they had been doing and Wulfhere gave a short explanation of how they had secured the north at the expense of losing their families. Hildegard said that the attack on Glawmæd was so swift that if they had been there then they would likely have been killed like most of the other warriors. She said there had been no warning and no time to prepare. Aelle’s army has descended and killed anyone who had resisted. Uthric said that this was why they had come to Cissa Cæster in order to find out what had happened to their families. Hildegard said that she would expect no less from her sons. She said they might not be strong on timekeeping but they were dogged about tasks and would keep going until they succeeded. She said that Hrothgar had the same virtues and he would have been proud of them. Dunstan growled when he heard this and said in his opinion his mother had forgotten their father very quickly. He said he was interested to know how come Hildegard was dressed like a noblewoman when he knew the survivors of Glawmæd, Cædering and Cælctun had been sold into slavery. Uthric said while he was glad his mother seemed to be doing well, he would be interested in her news about her daughters-in-law and her grandchildren. He said he thought it might be interesting to hear if they were doing as well as his mother. Hildegard said that Aelle's army had taken Glawmæd by surprise. Many of the warriors were killed trying to protect their families and there had been no organised defence. There had been a lot of confusion and captives had been allocated to different warriors. She knew that all three of their wives had been alive after the attack and had managed to talk to them briefly on the journey back to Cissa Cæster. There had been so many slaves after the war that not all were kept at the pens of the Slave market. She knew for sure that Meire had been claimed by Ealhwyn Hrofsdotter and she had seen her being taken away with her children. She did not know what had happened to Bronwyn or Gwenith, but she might have more news soon. Wulfhere said this was all well and good but he would really like an explanation of why Hildegard was dressed like a noblewoman having been sold into slavery. He said as far as he was aware slaves might be treated kindly by their owners but he had never heard that kindness extended to giving gold jewellery, but he was keen to learn if he was wrong in his assumption. Hildegard began to cry and said that she had left the most difficult news to the last. Dunstan kicked a chair across the tavern causing other customers to stare and the Taverner to come over and ask if everything was all right. Uthric assured him that it was and that Dunstan sometimes reacted to difficult news this way. The Taverner said that if they had more bad news to share it might be best that they should hear it outside. Wulfhere calmed the man down and offered to pay if the chair had been broken. The interruption had enabled Hildegard to compose herself. She said she had been bought by a benefactor who had known her and she had benefitted from that. She told them that her benefactor had spent silver trying to find out where their wives had been taken. Dunstan kicked another chair and said that once again she had disrespected their father and her dead husband. She had even forgotten Beorthric who she had professed to love. Uthric asked who this benefactor was and what he had found out while Wulfhere promised the now angry Taverner that there would not be any further kicked chairs. Hildegard said that she knew that they would not like this but that they must start to live in the present rather than the past. Uthric asked again who the benefactor was and Dunstan had to be restrained by Wulfhere when Hildegard said that it was Beorthric who had rescued her. Uthric asked why he had not also helped their wives but Hildegard said that they had already been sold by the time Beorthric had found her. She said he had tried to find out what happened to their families and hoped that there would be information in the next few days. Wulfhere asked what had happened to their brothers Sighard, Egfryd and sister Idris. Hildegard said that they were all safe with her and they were welcome to come and visit. She said she noticed that Wulfhere did not ask about the whereabouts of their other brother Beorthric. Wulfhere said that this should really not surprise her as they were still intent on killing his father. Hildegard begged them to come and make peace with Beorthric. She had sent a messenger and he would be expecting them. Uthric was angry that she had told Beorthric that they were here as he was likely to make trouble for them. He asked if Winfrith was with Beorthric and if there would be an ambush if they went to meet him. Hildegard said that as far as she knew Winfrith had gone north to Lundenwic but Beorthric was keen to make peace. Uthric said he was not going to listen to this anymore and said to his brothers that they should leave now. All three left Hildegard crying and waited until they got a safe distance away from the tavern before stopping to agree a plan. Uthric said that in his opinion they were in danger and needed to leave immediately. He thought that either they or Beorthric would begin a fight and if they were caught by Cissa they could only expect death by flaying and thereafter decorating the Westgate until the crows ate them. Wulfhere said that this was not the fate that he had in mind and agreed they should leave. Dunstan said that he could not believe what their mother was doing. Beorthric was a sneaking, conniving arschloch and that he thought they should go to Lundenwic to get their wives. He said he felt let down by Cerdic and blamed him for not protecting his people. Wulfhere said that he thought Cerdic had been taught a lesson by what happened. Uthric said that the problem had been Octa and then Aelle's interpretation that Cerdic had been supporting Octa. Dunstan said that he would still blame Cerdic. A king is meant to protect his people and, in his opinion, Cerdic had failed to protect all three villages. The Hrothgarsons left through the Eastgate and travelled east along Stane Street before striking north and then northwest through the forest to the ridges that led to Cælctun. They were concerned that Beorthric or Cissa would send men after them either to kill them or force a return to Cissa Cæster. They did not see anyone except for some woodsmen and charcoal burners until they got to Cælctun. They introduced themselves to the new Þegn of Cælctun, a man called Seirhead. He welcomed them and they told them about Cælctun's history. Seirhead said that he was sorry that they had suffered so much and he hoped that they would find their families. Uthric said that he understood the situation and it was difficult to blame anyone. Wulfhere said that they could blame the gods for their capriciousness but that would probably only bring further bad luck. They took their leave of Seirhead and went to Portus Cæster to tell Cerdic they were back. He had been doubtful that they would return on time and Wulfhere wanted him to be clear that they were now heading north. Uthric thought that if their mother was lost to them by remaining with Beorthric, then Cerdic might be a good substitute as he did not have much faith in their time keeping either. Portus Cæster was full of families and warriors from Saxony, Friesland and Jutland who had arrived on the last days of sailing before the Autumn and Winter storms made travelling by boats too dangerous. Uthric spoke with some of the farmers, encouraging them to come north. He told them there was plenty of spare land and they could have farms in return for swearing an oath to Wulfhere as Þegn. Wulfhere told Uthric to tell any families that wanted to come north that they would need to wait to travel with the Hrothgarsons. He was not keen that people just picked land themselves as he would rather allocate it in a strategic manner. He said he was also not keen to have warriors wondering around aimlessly in sensitive borderlands. Cerdic listened to their report as Wulfhere told him that he had learnt his wife had been sold in a slave market and they were unaware where they had gone. Uthric also told Cerdic that they had talked to their mother who had been living with Beorthric. Cerdic was interested in that development and asked about their thoughts. Wulfhere said that he had no thoughts except sadness. Cerdic said that to lose a wife and children was difficult but it might be time to move on and that there were plenty of other women. He said that he had lost his own wife to childbirth and while he had never taken another wife, he had always had a woman. He gave each brother a gold torc as compensation for the loss of their wives and children and then turned to other business. He had over 200 people that he was sending north to repopulate the Tamyse valley. Wulfhere thanked him for the torcs and they left Cerdic to go and find the families that were to come north. Wulfhere discussed what had happened with his brothers and all decided to get drunk before meeting with their new settlers. As they were drinking Hereweard the leæce came to join them. He said that he had been thinking about Dunstan since their last meeting and had been worried about him. He was keen to know if Dunstan had had any changes in personality and if he had been making any animal noises. Uthric said that Dunstan had not stopped growling since he left the north and had been particularly angry for some time. Hereweard said that he thought that maybe Dunstan had had his soul stolen when he stayed too long in the ritual mound. Dunstan thought that Hereward was talking nonsense and that he only growled so that he didn't say anything stupid or people didn't talk to him. Hereweard said that he would give Dunstan a potion to preserve his body because sooner or later he was going to burn up. His body would not survive without its soul for long. Dunstan was still sceptical but Wulfhere said it might be best to let Hereweard make further investigations. Dunston was suspicious about the potion. He thought that Hereweard was only trying to relieve him of his silver but relaxed when Hereweard said that there would be no cost for the potion. Hereweard asked Wulfhere if he could travel north with them when they were going. He thought he might find it useful to understand the situation better if he was closer at hand. When Hereweard left them drinking, Wulfhere said to his brothers that they were facing lots of problems. They had to rebuild Hambladensted, find enough food until harvest so that people would not die, find their wives and children, find enough land for their new settlers and finally find Dunstan's soul. He thought that this was a depressing list and made him feel that he'd like to buy a horse just to cheer himself up but with the luck that they had had recently it would be likely they wouldn't have enough food and the horse would die. The next days were spent in Portus Cæster buying supplies, oxen and carts and arranging for the families who were going north to get equipment to build new farms. It took almost ten days to travel back to Hambladensted but they did so without major incident. Wulfhere then spent a week allocating land for new farms in the bend of the Tamyse. The Harvest was good despite the war over the growing season and Wulfhere was content that no-one would starve. He sent thirty men to Stuf to help raid the Dumnonian harvest. Dunstan spent time with Hereward and Uthric continued to supervise the re-construction of the stockade at Hambladensted.

I'm just wondering what kind of women you keep company with Joerg?

I just found this @HierophantX... did you @Belgath ever collaborate on the map?

The Battle for the Thames In the first year of Cerdic's reign the Yule feast was held at his new capital of Wincen Cæster on the banks of the Itchen. Looking back over the year Cerdic was pleased with how things stood. He had taken land from the Dumnonians and had captured Venta, renaming it Wincen Cæster. The siege and battle had been costly in men but those that had survived had been richly rewarded with silver and lands. Cerdic had made a treaty with Octa having killed enough of his men to make him think about who held the real power in the land. He had not wanted to expend more troops in an assault on Whitwarasburgh which would have been bloody but would have been of little value either strategically or in treasure. Cerdic wanted to weaken Aelle and the price for the treaty was that Octa would need to be active in keeping Aelle busy. Aelle did not seem overly concerned that Cerdic had declared himself Westseaxacyning but he was demanding that Cerdic acknowledge him as Brytenwealda. Cerdic had not done so yet. He informed Aelle that he had important tasks of pacifying the land between the Moen and the Itchen and would not be able to visit him. Cerdic had raided across the Itchen into Dumnonia and the Dumnonians had raided his new lands. Both sides had been content with raiding but it was rumoured that the Dumnonians would try and take Venta back. Cerdic was also keen to push north and secure a way to get over the Tamyse River into Mierce. He had spoken to Wulfhere after the taking of Venta to sound out his views on an undertaking to the Tamyse valley. Cerdic was aware that Aelle was also keen to establish more settlements along the Tamyse valley and that meant they were likely to come into conflict with Guercha One-eye, the Angelcyning. Guercha had long been a rival to Aelle and had been annoyed that Aelle had claimed to be the Brytenwealda. This year Guercha decided that he would challenge Aelle and his supporters had acclaimed him Brytenwealda too. The Yule festival was not as extravagant as the previous year. Cerdic had put a lot of effort into repairing the damage to Venta after the city was sacked. It had been a frontier fortress for years and many of the buildings had fallen into ruin before the city was partially burnt during the sack. Cerdic had repaired the walls and had taken over the barracks as his feast hall, digging a fire pit down the centre of the main hall and building benches for his warriors to eat at and sleep after a feast. Cerdic called the Hrothgarsons to see him in his private chambers to hear Wulfhere's reply to his suggestion about securing the north. Wulfhere had talked it over with his brothers and had agreed that it would present a good opportunity to gain land and wealth. Cerdic told him he was pleased with the decision and made Wulfhere a KingsÞegn. He was keen that they use their knowledge and relationships to scout out the Tamyse valley and try and secure a bridge or at least a passage across the Tamyse into Mierce. He also was keen that they develop more alliances and eliminate any hostile settlements. Wulfhere said that he was honoured by being made KingsÞegn. Cerdic reminded Wulfhere that this task was important to him and he was keen that it did not fail. He gave Wulfhere eighteen warriors, five pack mules and five bars of silver and one of gold to help complete the task. Cerdic said that since Wulfhere was likely to remain in the north the situation in Glawmæd needed to be resolved. He therefore made Lucnot the Þegn of Glawmæd as he had been loyal and he thought it a good thing that Britons also got promoted to positions of responsibility. They all returned to Glawmæd to prepare for the trip into the north. Wulfhere made a list of things that he thought might be useful and paid for it with the silver Cerdic had given. Dunstan wondered if they were expected to build a fortification and thought that perhaps they did not have the right skills to do it properly. He did offer to make withies for the settlement but Wulfhere thought that if the area was hostile that he would prefer the gates to be of something more solid than withies. Uthric said that solving that problem would be Wulfhere's task. He was now a KingsÞegn and Cerdic would be asking Wulfhere why their mission had failed. Wulfhere said that this was not an individual task but one that they all had a responsibility to fulfil. Uthric disagreed. He said that in his opinion Wulfhere had accepted the responsibility and as far as he was concerned Wulfhere was also the buffer between himself and Cerdic. So it would be Wulfhere that Cerdic would be asking if they failed in their task. They all thought that they would be in a relatively good position to achieve their task as they were held in high esteem in the north. They had restored Tadda to health, eliminated the threat to Taddenlæge from Cœlfrith and helped the Artrebates get justice. Wulfhere thought that Orin would he useful contact. He was not only likely to know the area but would have contacts with local settlements and people. The major concern that all had was how they would tell their wives that they were going away. This was always a point of contention and always fuelled by their mother, Hildegard, who had no faith in their timekeeping. Halig who was going north with them was keen to remind them that they had not been generous to Hildegard when they had gone to Ratae which had had negative consequences for their lives and relationships. Dunstan thought it was unfair of Halig to bring up their failure again. Halig said that he could accept that they had not meant to let their mother starve to death but he found it upsetting that they were still intending to kill Beorthric. He said he had only fond memories of Beorthric and particularly since he had paid with his own money to provide Halig with weapons and armour. He did not feel it was appropriate that has three elder brothers intended to kill Beorthric when they were the ones that had been negligent towards their mother and siblings. Wulfhere said this was an old argument and that it was his opinion it was not important at present. If and when they found Beorthric they could decide on the proper course of action. Dunstan agreed but said that he still intended to kill both Beorthric and Wilfrith. Wulfhere stopped the argument by sending Dunstan to get some dry firewood for the trip that they could load on the mules. Uthric told Meire that he was likely to be gone three or four moons and gave her silver that would last for a year. Wulfhere told Bronwyn that it was likely that he would be back within one and a half Moons and Dunstan told Gwenith he would be home inside a moon to be on time for the birth of their child. Both Wulfhere and Dunstan left their wives silver that would last half a year. All three woman discussed the Brothers intended absences with Hildegard. Hildegard said that in her opinion her sons had no intention of being back either in one moon or in four moons. Why else would they have given them so much money? She said it was her greatest regret that she had not been able to breed sons who were able to keep to their word and were good at time-keeping. She thought that they had taken after their father in this and had not inherited her nature. Hrothgar had frequently left her and never returned on time. Wulfhere met with the warriors that Cerdic had sent when had arrived in the morning. They were led by Mærleswein, a veteran of many Shieldwalls. He has tall and his face was covered with scars from fights he had had over the years. Five of the others were also veterans and the rest had arrived from Friesland either last summer or had just come with the opening of the seas after the Winter. Wulfhere asked if they had any other skills other than fighting. Helpric said that he was a Smith in Jutland but had given that up to get land and silver in Britain. Most of the others were farmers or hunters. Eadbald said that he had trained dogs for an Ealdorman but when his lord was killed in a fight with another Ealdorman, he left and came to Britain to seek his fortune. The journey to Taddenlæge was without incident. They had stayed the night in Wincen Cæster and had been surprised how much repairs had been completed since Yule. Cerdic was not in Wincen Cæster but had gone south to meet with Stuf. At Taddenlæge they met with Tadda who had recovered from the sickness spirit that Dunric had sent to him. Tadda had not met Wulfhere, Uthric or Halig. Dunstan had been the only one to see Tadda after his recovery but he had been told how the others had thwarted Cœlfrith's attempt to kill him. He welcomed them and asked for their news. Rowena was also glad to meet them again and told them that she had gone back to being a merchant. She thought that her warrior days were now finished. Tadda held a feast and afterwards discussed how he could help them with Cerdic’s task. Wulfhere had already talked to Uthric about asking Orin ap Brinn if he could be of help and Tadda also suggested that this could be a useful idea. They thought it was better not to arrive at Orin's village with a Warband and left Mærleswein with twelve of their warriors. They took five warriors with them in case there was trouble but nothing of importance happened on the journey. They found Orin helping to re-construct his ruined village. He was welcoming particularly of Uthric for Uthric had saved his life when he had been imprisoned. Wulfhere told him of their task and asked Orin for information. Orin told them that the people who lived in these parts were fiercely independent. Most had chosen to live here because they did not want to be tied by oaths to some distance Ealdorman or King. Orin felt that Wulfhere would have his work cut out for him. Nevertheless, he explained to Wulfhere about the closest settlements that he knew. Some of them were friendly and others would be neutral to any proposal of alliance. Orin told them that in the north the old peoples road split into two. One branch went north until it came to the river Cunnet that in Saxon was known as the Kinnete. The river was the boundary for the Kingdom of Gwent and the bridge was guarded by a fort called Brige. If they had followed the north-west road they would have come to Spinae, a town that also guarded the crossings of the Kinnete. The Kinnete was a long and wide river and flowed into the Tamyse. If the Hrothgarsons took the road east from Calleva they would come to Dunbriwan. The Chieftain there was Taran and his Hillfort guarded the ford at the Bourne. Taran was friendly to Tadda and paid taxes in previous years. If they followed the Bourne to the Tamyse then they would come to the wide marsh that protected Duromagus. Issa was the Chieftain and he was friendly with Tadda. His marsh people were famous for eels and fish which they traded with Taddenlæge. He had heard Rowena packed the eels in salt and sent them south. Further to the west of Dunbriwan were two Saxon villages. Farnhamble had a Thane called Darwyne. They were fiercely independent and had not paid any taxes to anyone in years. They worked a salt mine and made charcoal for the smiths of Venta. On the banks of the Tamyse was the village of Hambladensted. The Thane of Hambladensted was a man called Aart. It is a strong village that made their living from fishing the river. They too are independent and pay no taxes. Wulfhere asked if they had boats that could carry people across the Tamyse but Orin said that he thought it unlikely as their boats would be small and light. The villagers lived by fishing and were unlikely to be interested in wars. Another half day march from Hambladensted they would come to Pontes. Pontes had a large bridge that stretched across the Tamyse. Dunstan asked if Pontes was occupied by anyone but Orin said he thought it was unlikely. Pontes was difficult to hold without a big Warband because it had no fortifications. Uthric thought that whoever had built Pontes had done a poor job if they had not fortified such a strategic point. Orin said that he had not been there for many years. but when it was built by the Romans, people had not needed fortifications. Dunstan asked who the Romans were and where they dwelt. Uthric said that he had heard that they lived near Kernow and were allied to the Dumnonians. Orin said that the Romans had left Britain years ago to go back to their city called Rome. They had lived in Britain for hundreds of years and all that was left of them were their buildings and roads. Wulfhere asked if they would come back in the future but Orin said he did not expect them to return. Their cities were being attacked and their kings were fighting each other. He thought it was likely they had been defeated by their enemies so Wulfhere did not have to worry about having to fight Romans. Wulfhere asked Orin if he could travel with them to be a guide and help with the people they met. Orin declined. He said that they were trying to rebuild their destroyed villages and make sure the fields were planted. He said that Tadda had helped getting more livestock but it was going to be a hungry year. He needed to be sure that the people had proper shelter for the winter. The Hrothgarsons returned to Taddenlæge and got their men ready. They were heartened that Orin’s son, Brinn, had come to join them. He was keen for some adventure and told them he had persuaded his father to let him travel as a guide for the Hrothgarsons. Brinn was a tall, well-built 14-year-old. He said that he had experience in fighting when Cœlfrith's men had attacked their villages and had fought at the battle of the Calleva Road and at the taking of Venta. Wulfhere said that despite his experience in recent wars he would prefer if Brinn didn’t join in any fighting as he was unsure how he could tell his father that Brinn had suffered a misfortune. They discussed how they might achieve Cerdic's aims. Dunstan thought it would be best to go directly to Pontes. He was keen to see a bridge that the Romans had built. Uthric said that one bridge was much the same as another and it was unlikely that it was as impressive as the bridge at Lundenwic. Tadda had told them what he knew of Pontes. He was of the opinion that no-one had tried to hold it because there was no hinterland to grow food. Any Warband stationed there permanantly would need others to supply them so it would be costly. Wulfhere was unsure how they should proceed. He was keen to visit all the villages to find out how things stood but was rather pessimistic about finding a bridge if they could not hold Pontes. Halig said that they might not be able to eliminate hostiles but they could make alliances. After more discussions they agreed that Pontes should be their first goal and they could visit the villages along the way. Wulfhere thought that the settlements in the north in Gwent were unlikely to be helpful in their fulfilling their task and he did not think Cerdic would be pleased if they invaded Gwent. Dunstan remembered that he had heard Aelle's son, Cissa, was in Aeglesburgh and he asked Tadda if he had heard any news of his visit. Tadda said that he had not had much time to listen to the news but he had heard that Cissa was hoping to secure the area for Aelle. Dunstan said that they would need to be careful. Wulfhere agreed and said that he did not see their job as starting a war between Aelle and Cerdic. Brinn proved an interesting guide. He was able to tell them stories about this land they walked through. When they came out of the forest they could see the valley slope down to the river Tamyse. They all felt a bit exposed by the open lands. Smoke from villages’ cooking fires could be seen to the west, north and east. Dunstan thought that a lot of people lived in this area. Brinn said that previously more people had lived along the banks of the Tamyse but war and plague had reduced their numbers. People had moved away from the river and into the forests where they could be safe. At evening they came to Dunbriwan. Their approach caused concern and they could see the villagers running to the safety of the Hillfort. Brinn said that this was a usual reaction if armed men approached. People were suspicious and with good reason. Most Warbands took what they wanted without paying. Wulfhere took his brothers and Brinn forward. They laid down their spears and shields and went forward signifying they wanted to talk. Four men left the village and walked towards them. One of the men introduced himself as Taran ap Gweir, Chieftain of the village. Wulfhere introduced himself and his brothers. Taran knew Brinn and he gave them welcome for his sake. Wulfhere explained that they had been sent by Cerdic who was King of these parts. Taran said that he was surprised by this news and that he had not heard of Cerdic. He said that he usually paid his taxes to Tadda and he was sure that Tadda was not called Cerdic. Wulfhere had to spend some time explaining the new political situation. Taran said that in his opinion it didn't change his situation as he would continue to pay his taxes to Tadda and what Tadda did with his own oath was of little concern to him or his people. He did invite the Hrothgarsons to spend the night in his Hall. He would not allow eighteen warriors inside the Hillfort but made room for them to sleep in one of the outhouses outside the palisade. In the morning Wulfhere gave Taran a silver armring as a gift from Cerdic. Taran was impressed. He had not been given an armring from a King before and asked them to send his gratitude. He said that he would keep his oath to Tadda who he knew to be a good man despite the recent troubles in the area. From the hilltop they saw the valley better in the morning light. Their initial impression that the valley was well populated was confirmed. To the west they could see the border fortress of Brige on the banks of the Kinnete and further off the town of Spinae. They bade farewell to Taran and went to the north along the Bourne to talk with Issa in Duromagus. Duromagus was built on a hill in the middle of a marsh. They could not get closer than five bow shots. Dunstan thought that there might be a path through the marsh and pointed to the withies that seemed to mark out a hidden way. If there was a path it was under water and none of them wanted to attempt a passage without a local guide. Uthric and Dunstan waved until they saw one of the marsh boats come toward them. The Warband moved back at Wulfhere's request and he rest laid down their weapons to signify they came in peace. The boat stopped a bow length away and a man who named himself as Issa ap Arryn asked them for the news. Wulfhere told Issa that he brought messages from Cerdic. Issa agreed to come closer and Wulfhere explained why he had come. Issa was obviously an experienced warrior but he said that that life was now behind him and that now his goal was to protect his people. He confirmed that he would continue to pay his taxes to Tadda and when Wulfhere gave him an armring he was pleased. He did not offer to take the group to Duromagus and none of them pressed the issue. Issa bade farewell and told Brinn to tell his father to visit when Orin had time to do so. The Warband returned to the Roman road and went north-east towards Pontes. On the way they passed numerous ruins of houses. Dunstan thought that the Romans must have needed lots of space. Their houses were larger than most Saxon or British houses and were constructed with stone. Some of the houses still had colourful pictures on the walls but most were ruins which had been scavenged for stone. Wulfhere decided that they should press on to Pontes and visit Farnhamble and Hambladensted on the way back. He thought otherwise they would arrive in Pontes after dark and he thought that could make for a difficult situation. Pontes is dominated by a huge stone bridge that crosses the Tamyse. There is another tributary river that joins the Tamyse from the north and there is a lesser bridge there too. Nearly all the buildings on the south bank were ruins but the bridge remained. There were two towers on either end of the bridge that must have at one time been able to stop people crossing. They could not see any sign of life on the buildings of the north bank. They crossed the Bridge and searched the buildings. There were recent signs of occupation but whoever had lived there had left. One of the large buildings had been used as a byre for cattle and they found difficulty exploring it because of the dung, the smell and the flies. Dunstan thought the smell of byre reminded him of Kernow and he shuddered at the thought. In other buildings there were signs that people had cooked but the ashes were cold. Ingeld and Brynstan told Wulfhere that they had found a large building that was defensible which they could all sleep in. The floor had been tiled but someone had broken sections in the middle to make a fire pit. They brought their gear into the building but when a strong gust of wind lifted dust and swirled it around several of the men thought that Old peoples’ ghosts were coming to haunt them and wouldn't go in. Wulfhere had to re-assure them that they would be protected from ghosts but many of the men did not sleep well. In the morning they continued to look at the buildings. Alongside Roman buildings there were halls that had been built by Saxons and British. Dunstan thought many different people had lived here but it seemed none could hold it for long, Uthric thought they should maybe track the cattle who had been here recently as that might lead to a fruitful encounter. Mærleswein had posted guards on the north bridge and the guards alerted Wulfhere that there was a warband coming from the northwest. Wulfhere told his men to withdraw across the bridge to the south bank. He and Dunstan climbed the tower on the north side of the bridge. They could not recognise the badge on the shields and left to re-join their men. Dunstan told Uthric that the men coming towards them had bulls on their shields. Uthric said that he was sure Cœlfrith had a bull on his shields. He wondered if Aelle had really killed Cœlfrith after all and that the rumours of his death had been just rumours. The other Warband stopped on the north side of bridge and a man walked forward. He laid down his spear and shield. Uthric said that he was surprised that neither Dunstan nor Wulfhere had recognised Cissa's charging bull that was on the man's shield. Wulfhere went forward to the middle of the bridge to where the other man had stopped. He named himself as Sæwine Godwinson one of Cissa's Þegns. He asked who Wulfhere was and why he had a Warband in Aelle's lands. Wulfhere acknowledged Sæwine and told him he was Cerdic's Þegn. Sæwine said he was surprised that Cerdic had men in the north and was keen for Wulfhere to explain his purpose in being here. Wulfhere said that they were viewing the bridge as they had been told it was a marvel. Sæwine did not believe that Wulfhere was merely viewing bridges and he said that he had two options. He could either leave immediately or come with him to Aeglesburgh and swear an oath to Cissa. Wulfhere said that he was happy to withdraw as he had no wish to antagonise Cissa. He said he was oath sworn to Cerdic and therefore sadly felt unable to go to Aeglesburgh. The Conference ended and both men returned to their Warbands. Wulfhere took his men along the Roman road and stopped at Farnhamble. He met with Darwyne and told him his purpose. Darwyne said that he was not presently interested in what Kings did or said. In his opinion kings wanted money for wars and the ordinary people got little benefit from these conflicts other than violent death, their farms destroyed and their women and children enslaved. Besides he said Kings come and go and they are only interested in taxes, he was keen that his village was left in peace. He said that Cerdic was welcome to spend as much time around here as he wished but Farnhamble would not be paying taxes. Wulfhere said that he thought Darwyne had a short-sighted view and there were other things to consider when it came to Kings but he said he would accept his decision and discuss it with Cerdic. He gifted Darwyne an armring and left. The Warband travelled to Hambladensted and met with the Thane, Aart. Aart gave much the same answer as Darwyne. He said that he and his people valued their independence and while he would not be hostile to Cerdic he did not see any benefits in swearing an oath to him. Wulfhere said that in his opinion these were dangerous times and that situations could change quickly. Aart said that in his experience the world around here changed slowly like the passing of the river but he had no difficulty in accepting Cerdic's gift of an armring. It was getting toward evening and Wulfhere said that they needed to find a camp. It was too far to return to Dunbriwan so they decided to camp in the ruins of a Roman villa. Dunstan wasn't keen to stay the night. He said that ever since the ghosts had been disturbed in Pontes they had been unlucky. Wulfhere said that he was concerned that recently Dunstan had become superstitious. Dunstan said he had still not got over the horror of Kernow which was making him have evil dreams. Besides he thought it unwise to provoke more ghosts. In the morning they awoke to see people coming down the Roman road from the north. They were a large group of woman and children and when they got closer they could see that all the warriors with them were wounded. All four brothers went to find out the news. The people were led by a warrior called Wulfroth and they had come from a place called Wealdnathorp, on the north side of the Tamyse. Wulfroth explained that they had rejected Cissa's offer to swear an oath to him and several days later their steads had been attacked and burnt. He believed that they had been allowed to escape but did not know for what purpose. Wulfhere gave them food because none of them had eaten for days and offered to escort them somewhere safe. He thought that he could take them to Taddenlæge but they were moving slowly and travelling with them for any long distance was going to be slow. The children needed rest and the wounded warriors could hardly stand. While he was deliberating about what was best with his brothers, Eadbald drew their attention to smoke that was visible in the north. Eadbald said that he was sure the smoke came from burning thatch, which he thought would mean more villages burning. The Warband escorted the refugees back to Dunbriwan and agreed with Taran to let them stay the night. Wulfhere gave Taran another armring as payment and then took his brothers to see Issa in Duromagus. They discussed how things stood and warned Issa that it was likely trouble was coming his way. Issa said that he thought Duromagus would be safe because the marsh protected it from attack and unless someone spent time and effort to understand the twists and turns of the marshes. He acknowledged that Aelle's men seemed to clearing the area of any settlements that would not swear oaths to him. Wulfhere gave him another armring as he felt that Issa might need silver in the near future. They spent the night in Dunbriwan to allow the woman and children to rest and get food. Wulfhere fretted that any attempt to move fast would be thwarted by slow moving children and he was in a hurry to make sure the settlements were protected. The next day it became clear that the refugees would not be able to travel. Many of the children were unwell after two days of travelling and the old people were still exhausted. The fires on the north side of the river continued to burn throughout the day and Wulfhere warned Taran that he could expect more refugees coming south. Uthric thought it unlikely that the refugees could be absorbed by Taddenlæge and its surrounding villages. The death, destruction and ruin of the crops last year had put a strain on the available food and shelter. Dunstan and Halig thought it would be better to send them to Wincen Cæster but all wondered how many would die on the way, They stood on the fighting platform and watched to the north throughout the day. In the late afternoon, more refugees could be seen coming down the Roman road from Pontes. Wulfhere took some of the Warband north to help the refugees and find out information. They were led by Stranebeorg. He had three injured warriors and fifty-two children, woman and older people. Stranebeorg told of sudden attacks by Aelle's men and destruction of their village. They had been driven south by Spearmen until they crossed the bridge at Pontes. The Hrothgarsons wondered at the strategy behind the refugees. Dunstan said that he thought it was a simple answer, Aelle was clearing the north of people who would not support him. Wulfhere agreed and said he suspected if the positions were reversed Cerdic would be doing exactly the same. They discussed what they should do about the refugees. Wulfhere was quite forthright in his view. In his opinion it was not possible to look after all these people. He said that he was prepared to give them what food they had left and then they must make a decision to either go to Wincen Cæster and seek help from Cerdic or to continue down the Roman road and found a new settlement on Old Wincen Cæster Hill. The people were not happy with Wulfhere's decision. They pointed out that many of the children and older people would die on such a journey. Wulfhere said that this was the way of Miðgarðr and that he had done what he could and could do no more. Stranebeorg said that this was the reason that they never gave their oaths to kings. In the end, ordinary people were left to find their own way unless the king wanted taxes. Wulfhere shrugged and said that he had done all he could. He gave Taran another armring to help look after the refugees until they were strong enough to continue their journey. Towards late afternoon a shout came from the guards on the fighting platform. They had seen smoke rising from the direction of Hambladensted and people went to the walls to see if they could see what was happening. The smoke was definitely from south of the river and there was a discussion on what that portended. Wulfhere agreed that the most likely explanation was that Aelle had sent troops over the river and was now attacking villages that would not give him their oaths. Wulfhere said that he had invested an armring in Hambladensted and that in order to protect that investment they should see what had occurred. Wulfhere told Uthric to take the men to Hambladensted and use this as an opportunity to make friends and alliances. Wulfhere sent his brothers and sixteen warriors to see what was happening at Hambladensted. He kept two warriors to accompany him to Wincen Cæster. He was of the opinion that Cerdic urgently needed to understand what was happening in the north and send more men. He thought that it would be best to argue the case himself rather than just send a messenger. He delayed his departure while he talked to Taran about his thoughts for the refugees. He was interrupted by one of the guards who told him there were more refugees on the road. Wulfhere and Taran went to the walls and watched the crowd of people moving down the road. There appeared to be spearmen behind them who were marshalling them toward Hambladensted. It was too far to count how many spearmen there were but their red and black shields identified them as belonging to Aelle's son, Cissa. There was no sign of the troops Wulfhere had sent to Hambladensted so he assumed that they must have got there and would probably be trapped by the force behind the refugees. In Hambladensted, Uthric was discussing the situation with the Thane, Aart. Aart had allowed them inside the palisade and Uthric's men had helped extinguish the fire in the storehouse where the boat supplies were kept. Uthric asked Aart what had happened and Aart told him that they had been attacked by people from boats who had come ashore and killed a few villagers and had then set the store house on fire and had gone away again. He thought they might have been Aelle's men but could not be sure. Uthric and Dunstan discussed the raid. Dunstan thought that the purpose might have been to calculate the defences. They were interrupted in their discussion by shouts from the guards on the wall. A crowd of woman and children had appeared out of the forest and were asking for entry. The women were saying they had been forced to come here by spearmen. Aart refused to open the gates as he feared that the spearmen were hiding in the woods and would use the opportunity of the open gates to force an entry into Hambladensted. He was forced to reconsider when his own people appeared running out of the forest and demanded entry. They appeared to have been forced from their steadings by spearmen. Dark clouds of smoke rose behind them. Aart ordered the gate to be opened and got his warriors to form a shield wall outside the gate to protect the people as they were going in. In the end no spearmen appeared out of the forest and the people were bought inside. Aart tried to get information from the people who had seen the spearmen but no-one could give accurate numbers. Most people said there were hundreds. Aart admitted he was at a loss about what to do. Uthric said that he and his men would support Aart in the defence but he should remember that they were Cerdic's men and that without Cerdic’s help they would likely be overwhelmed. Aart said that he was mindful of such connotations and if they survived this then they could talk about it more. In the meantime, they calmed the distressed people who had fled the spearmen and gave the northern refugees food and water. Many of those that fled had not brought weapons and Aart feared that their defence was severely reduced. The arrival of spearmen on the northern road forced Wulfhere to rethink his plans. He decided that he would gather what warriors he could from the surrounding villages and defend their settlements. Wulfhere left Taran to gather the warriors. Taran was willing to commit to the actions Wulfhere proposed but he was not willing to leave Dunbriwan undefended. They eventually agreed that the nine wounded warriors would stay in Dunbriwan and would be supported by the fyrd. Taran armed his fifteen warriors and awaited Wulfhere's return from seeking help in Duromagus with Issa. Wulfhere did not find Issa hard to persuade but like Taran he was not willing to leave his village undefended. He left five warriors and the fyrd to defend the village. He did not think the risk great as no Warband could easily attack Duromagus because of the surrounding marshes and wetlands. Wulfhere was disappointed that Issa could only give a further nine spearmen but he did not make his disappointment known and only grumbled to himself. Issa was an experienced spearman and had led Warbands in his youth and was only too keen to get involved in fighting. Now that he was going to war again Issa was of the opinion that life had been too tame recently. Wulfhere had now twenty-six spearmen which he thought formidable but he did not know the number of his enemies. He thought it wise to talk to Darwyne and ask his views in joining an alliance against Aelle’s forces. They set off along the Roman road but their scouts reported that there were spearmen on the road on the south side of the Pontes Bridge. It was too far away for the numbers to be counted but it looked like there were more than forty spearmen. Taran asked one of his hunters to take them through the forest game trails to Farnhamble so that they would not been seen by the enemy. Darwyne had seen the burning steads in the south and had withdrawn his people and their animals behind the stockade. The arrival of spearmen caused a panic but Wulfhere identified himself and Darwyne came out to meet him. Darwyne was not at first interested in Wulfhere's proposal to join forces to fight the invading Warbands but when he saw the Warband that had come over the bridge at Pontes and he listened to Wulfhere's views that Aelle would not allow any independent settlements remain in the area. Wulfhere said that they had two options that they could either all fight together or get destroyed individually. He pointed out that Issa and Taran had also had to make decisions to fight. Both could have stayed behind their walls and been safe. Darwyne recognised the truth in Wulfhere's words. He agreed he and ten warriors would join Wulfhere's alliance. Darwyne sent the old, the women and children into the forest. He kept some men of the fyrd to guard the walls so that they would have a fortified place to retreat to if they were overcome by Aelle's men. The battle took place on the Roman Road south of Farnhamble. Wulfhere, Darwyne,bIssa and Taran met with Bryning and Mearcred before the battle. Bryning was an Ealdorman of Aelle and offered to accept their surrender. He said that they would be treated well if they swore allegiance to Aelle. Wulfhere declined his offer and suggested that Bryning might want to go back north of the River. Wulfhere thought it might be a pity that Bryning and his men would leave their bones on the road. He said he would try to make sure they were buried but he said he could not be sure it would be his priority as he was busy at that moment. Bryning laughed at Wulfhere and pointed out that he was outnumbered and faced hardened warriors whereas his force had spent their time farming for the last number of years. He was also dismissive of the Artrebates who he declared to be an effete and weak force. Issa, when it was translated for him, spat at Bryning’s feet and promised he would use his head as a standard. The conference was finished and both sides separated to marshal their warriors into a Shieldwall. Wulfhere encouraged his men by telling them that they were fighting for their villages and the right not to be dictated to by Aelle. He told them they had worked hard to build their farms and their children deserved peace and should inherit their hard work. His men cheered him and were strengthened in their view that they would win the battle. Bryning was confident of victory but his men were not keen to close the Shieldwalls. They knew they were going to win but they would rather not have to fight and risk injury or death. As they advanced they did not lock shields properly and advanced slowly. Issa was an experienced Warleader and although it had been many years since he stood in or commanded a Shieldwall, he organised it well. He recognised the reluctance of the enemy and shouted at his troops to advance quickly. The Shieldwalls met and pushed and shoved each other. Greater numbers began to tell and the wings of Wulfhere's force were under pressure. Issa roared at his men in the centre to follow him into a gap in the enemy wall where the fighting had become ferocious. Issa speared Bryning in the throat and the enemy recoiled when they saw their Warleader die. Issa encouraged the men forward again and the enemy centre broke and started to flee. Issa however did not see his victory. An axe caught him in the helmet and while he was stunned one of the enemy rear rank stabbed him with a spear in the eye. The force of the blow was stopped by the cheek piece of his helmet and although he lived he was known from then on as Issa One-eye. Darwyne too was seriously injured defending the right flank, taking a spear wound to the thigh and it would be weeks before he would be able to walk. Taran had also suffered a serious wound from an axe in the shoulder. Afterwards he developed a fever and spent several days close to death before he eventually recovered. Wulfhere allowed his men to pursue the broken enemy but called them back as he was keen to go to the help of his brothers in Hambladensted. He could see smoke rising in the forest and thought it did not bode well. Wulfhere's decision to recall the men from the pursuit allowed many of the enemy to escape over the Pontes bridge but he thought it would carry the message to Aelle that taking the south of the Tamyse would be difficult. He took their wounded back to Farnhamble and took Bryning's head and put it on a spear for his standard, just as Issa had promised. He thought it might discourage the enemy if it came to another battle. At Hambladensted the village was overcrowded by the people driven in by the spearmen from their scattered dwellings outside the palisade and by the refugees from the north. From the fighting platform they could see spearmen in the forest watching the defenders. Dunstan thought they were in trouble. They had about forty warriors and it was unlikely they could hold the palisade if the enemy had large numbers. Three men came out of the forest and laid down their weapons seeking a Conference. Aart, Uthric and Dunstan went out to meet them and introduced themselves to Edric, Sæwine and Wynsig. Edric who was an Ealdorman, asked Aart to surrender and spare his men and their families slaughter. Edric said that Aelle was a good Brytenwealda and would support them if they agreed to swear an oath to him. Aart said that he had not been keen to swear an oath to any king. He said he wanted to be clear that he was not particularly against Aelle but his people had come north to avoid the wars that kings always brought. Edric said that unfortunately this was a time to choose sides and that independence was no longer an option. Aelle was asserting his right to these lands and they could choose loyalty or death. He said that it didn’t matter to him what they chose. Dunstan offered to fight Edric in single combat but Edric just laughed at him. Edric said that it was beneath his status to dispatch young boys. Dunstan would have pursued the matter but Uthric told him to let the matter go. Dunstan complained to Uthric that he just did not want to see him triumph again. Uthric pointed out that Edric was a battle-hardened veteran who looked like he had spent his whole life fighting. While Dunstan’s victory over Anyon had been impressive he was like a lamb in comparison with Edric. Halig said that despite their differences about Beorthric and their mother, he would prefer Dunstan to be alive. and he was glad Edric had refused the fight. Aart arranged fifteen men on the palisade either side of the gate. Uthric commanded the left side of the gate and Aart took the right. A small force of ten warriors under the command of Dunstan and Halig were left in reserve in reinforce either palisade if they became overwhelmed. Their plans went array when they saw five small boats approaching the shore where there was no protecting palisade. Dunstan and Halig knew that they would have to beat the men landing from the boats or they were doomed. Outside two separate Warbands formed up to assault the palisade. The war band in front of Uthric's section made an assault against the palisade. His men met the assault by throwing a hail of javelins and rocks. They repulsed the attack and one of his men wounded Edric with a javelin. Edric’s men dragged him out of range of more missiles. Uthric saw that Edric looked badly wounded and thought that he was unlikely to participate in further fighting. Dunstan and Halig had told some of the woman to collect rocks and asked for volunteers to pelt the boats with missiles. There was thick mud on the shore and the boats grounded before they reached solid ground. Two men jumped out of the two lead boats but were immediately struck down by a hail of javelins and rocks. The next two men floundered in the deep mud and could not move toward the shore. One was injured by one of the hunter’s bows and their comrades pulled them back into the boats. They rowed off seemingly having no appetite for a landing. The men on the bank jeered at them and made obscene gestures. Halig said that if he had been attacking by boat he would have checked that the river was higher before trying to land. Dunstan acknowledged Halig's view and said that it is definitely hard to fight if you are up to your knees in mud. Their jubilation was short lived when they heard screams and warning calls from behind. Aart had a larger section of the palisade to defend than Uthric. Some of the Warband outside engaged his men in throwing javelins and making feint charges against the wall while others went to the far side and climbed over the undefended palisade. Aart had tried to warn the Uthric and Dunstan but they were already engaged in fighting and did not hear his warning in time. By the time the others realised what had happened there was already an enemy shield wall forming inside the palisade. Aart withdrew his men from the palisade so that they would not be attacked from the front and the rear. He formed them up in a thin shield wall hoping to protect their woman and children. He shouted for others to join him. Uthric saw the Warband in front of him running to the right and guessed that something must have happened on the other palisade. He brought his men to strengthen Aart’s thin wall. Dunstan and Halig brought their men too and added to the line that protected the children and woman. The two Warbands faced each other only briefly before both Shieldwalls clashed. The sounds of battle drowned out all other noise with the grinding death of the Shieldwalls. The defenders although outnumbered, were fighting for their lives and fought fiercely and their ferocity at first seemed to take them forward. However weight of numbers began to tell. No matter how many of the enemy they killed, their Shieldwall was getting bigger as more of the enemy climbed over the palisade and the defender’s wall grew smaller as men fell wounded or dead. Despite their loses the defenders did not give way until both sides became exhausted and the Shieldwalls drew apart, separated by a wall of dead or dying. By this time many of the woman and children had escaped out the now open gate. All or most of the enemy were now inside the palisade and their escape was unopposed. Both sides had fought themselves to a standstill. Aart had been killed trying to rescue his son who had been wounded and the remaining warriors looked to Uthric for leadership. Uthric knew that if the enemy charged again their end would be swift. Dunstan said that he thought that they had given a good account of themselves and despite being outnumbered they had outfought their enemies. He said he was content to die knowing that he had sent many warriors to their deaths. Halig said he had a different opinion. He said that while he was not afraid to die, he had only begun to enjoy seeing different lands and that this had encouraged him to do more travelling. He also thought that if they tried to escape now most of them would likely make it as the enemy, in his opinion, did not look up for more fighting. Uthric agreed and on his command, they ran out of the gate. The enemy warriors only half-heartedly chased them. They seemed content that they had won the battle and not particularly interested in putting themselves at further unnecessary risk. Uthric led his few warriors south hoping to find safety at Farnhamble. He did not think that the men would make it to Dunbriwan without being overrun by the enemy. As they came out of the woods they met Wulfhere coming north with the remnants of his army. Wulfhere discussed if they should go back to Hambladensted and attack when the enemy thought they were safe. Uthric said that he was unsure how many of the enemy were left but he knew that none of the men he had brought could fight again without a rest. Wulfhere only had thirty-seven warriors but both Dunstan and Halig estimated the enemy still had twice the numbers. Wulfhere agreed reluctantly to retreat to Farnhamble. They collected the woman and children who had fled and were scattered throughout the woods and took them to Farnhamble. Wulfhere and Halig inspected the fortifications at Farnhamble and decided that they could not be held against an overwhelming attack. They reluctantly thought that they would need to retreat to either Dunbriwan or Duromagus. Dunbriwan was a hillfort and had steep embankment with a palisade and fighting platform. To assault it the enemy would suffer significant loses. Duromagus was built on a hill in the marshes, and would be almost impossible to assault either by land or by river. Both were good sites for defence but in the end, they chose Dunbriwan so they could control the road coming from the south. Wulfhere still hoped that Cerdic would send warriors north to support them. It took almost a day to get everyone ready to leave Farnhamble. They collected everything of value that they could carry and buried whatever they couldn't take in the hope that they could return to get it. Wulfhere asked that the hunters who knew the trails through the forest, to mark out a path that the people could take so they would not be seen by the enemy. They could see the enemy watching them from a distance. It seemed that no-one was really intent on fighting at present. Aelle's men collected their dead from the battle on the road and buried or burnt them on pyres. They were content to watch Farnhamble and did not come close enough to see the preparations to leave. Wulfhere kept as many men on the palisade as possible to keep the pretence that they were prepared to defend the village. The battles they had fought had been vicious affairs and not many of either his own warriors or seemingly the enemy wanted another battle. When darkness fell, Wulfhere got the villagers to leave in small groups and make their way through the forest. The distance to Dunbriwan was not far but they were encumbered by food, livestock, children and the old. It was just before dawn when the last people left Farnhamble. Wulfhere hoped that the enemy would not notice they had gone and that by the time they did it would be too late for pursuit. Wulfhere did not want to fight a running battle through the forest. He knew his men would not keep in any order as they would want to protect their families. Fortunately, either the enemy had not noticed their departure or were not interested in pursuing a retreating enemy. It took most of the day for all the stragglers to make it to safety. The warriors were exhausted in trying to move so many people and there were lots of grumbling but not within Wulfhere's hearing. Wulfhere called his brothers and Issa to make plans for defence. Taran was still feverish and did not take part in the conference. Darwyne was equally too hurt to attend and his daughter told Wulfhere that she feared he would die of his wounds. Issa was keen that Duromagus be reinforced with some more warriors. He had only left five when he had gone with Wulfhere. He was willing to stay in Dunbriwan to help organise the defence and help with the Artrebate warriors who might not be keen to take orders from a Sais. They also made a decision to send the women and children to Taddenlæge and Dunstan volunteered to take them. The plan was to get all non-combatants out of Dunbriwan and also ask Tadda for some help. If the northern villages fell to Aelle it would be likely that Taddenlæge would be next. Dunstan set off in the morning and by midday an enemy army had encamped outside the walls of Dunbriwan. Uthric and Wulfhere counted the warriors and estimated there were at least 150 of them. Halig was of the opinion that even with an army that size they would be safe inside the walls. They had food to last several months and the army outside had a long supply chain. Over the next few days the besiegers tested out the strength of the defences by feinting attacks but they did not press any attack home. It was clear that climbing the bank to the palisade would end in death and whoever commanded the troops would likely not risk it. The besiegers spent the time making shelters on the other side of the ford. They did not seem worried about surrounding the village and Wulfhere thought it would be possible to get men in and out. After two day of slow travel, Dunstan arrived in Taddenlæge. He spoke at length with Tadda and Rowena, explaining what had befallen the settlements on the Tamyse. Tadda said that he was willing to send men north became both Taran and Issa paid taxes and he was obliged to help them. He was not that thrilled by the number of refugees Dunstan had brought. Food was still in short supply and Dunstan had added almost 200 hungry people. Dunstan was apologetic and gave Tadda two armrings to go towards some of the cost. He thought that Tadda might want to send some of the northern Tamyse refugees on to Wincen Cæster in the hope that Cerdic could feed them. Tadda agreed that if they were to have a chance of survival he had no other option but he thought Cerdic might equally not be impressed as he was aware there were food shortages until the harvest was gathered. Dunstan was keen to return north as soon as possible and asked Tadda how quick he could have men ready. Tadda said that ideally he would like three days to get the men equipped and make thrice-baked bread for trail rations. Dunstan thought that if they didn't hurry they might arrive too late and all they would be able to do would be to bury the dead bodies. Tadda agreed that this could be a possible outcome but he thought that Aelle would have difficulty assaulting either Duromagus or Dunbriwan. Dunstan asked if he had seen the messenger Wulfhere had sent five days ago. Tadda confirmed that Heathbeorht had passed through four days ago and would have been with Cerdic two days ago. Tadda asked Dunstan how large Aelle’s army had been but Dunstan said that he could not be sure. The fighting had been ferocious and they could not rule out that Cissa had not sent reinforcements. Dunstan left at first light with twenty warriors. He asked Tadda to tell Cerdic to hurry if he did not want to lose the south side of the Tamyse. As Dunstan approached Dunbriwan he could see that his brothers still held the village. He came along the road hoping to get inside before the besiegers on the other side of the ford noticed. Wulfhere was told by some of the guards that Dunstan was coming along the road with reinforcements. Wulfhere sent Halig and Uthric to guard the east walls with ten men each and some of the fyrd. He took forty men outside the walls and formed a Shieldwall outside the west gate. Aelle's men noticed the newcomers and sent over a hundred warriors across the ford to intercept Dunstan's force. They did not see Wulfhere's force hidden behind the hill of the fortification and where surprised by an already formed Shieldwall. Their Þegn shouted at them to move toward Wulfhere’s force to engage them. It seemed that it was a race for Dunstan's men to get to the gate before Wulfhere's force was engaged by an overwhelming greater force. Uthric could see that Wulfhere's force was in danger from the east wall but he could not move to help because two smaller forces had moved to their section of the wall and if he took his men to the west gate they would climb over the palisade and the fortress would be lost. He and Halig had to content themselves with exchanging javelin throws with the enemy. Outside Wulfhere knew he had misjudged the speed of the enemy reaction and the numbers they had sent. The enemy was coming fast over the corn fields and was likely to engage him before Dunstan arrived. Wulfhere had never claimed to be lucky but that day his luck was there for everyone to see. The front ranks of the enemy force ran into an irrigation ditch and tumbled over. The following ranks either fell or jumped their comrades. Either way their momentum was stopped and they could not reform in time to engage Wulfhere's men. before Dunstan got to the gate and Wulfhere was able to withdrew and close the gate. He did say afterwards that he had considered charging the enemy but if he did not break them then he would have been heavily outnumbered. His men jeered at the enemy from the safety of the fighting platform. The next day three men came forward and laid down their weapons looking for a Conference. The leader introduced herself as Aethelstan Dycgheorhtson. Aethelstan said that he had decided to offer the defenders terms. If they surrendered then Aethelstan would allow them to leave unmolested. They could take their weapons and any goods they could carry. Wulfhere thanked Aethelstan for his offer but he felt compelled to remain in his place. Dunstan momentarily thought about challenging Aethelstan to single combat but decided that he would need to be very lucky to beat the Ealdorman. Aethelstan noticed Dunstan had been paying him close attention and asked Dunstan what had been on his mind. Dunstan was surprised at the question but decided to be forthright in his answer. He said that he had been weighing his chances if he challenged Aethelstan to single combat. Aethelstan laughed and said that he was more than welcome to try but Dunstan should be aware that he had fought twenty-three single combats and won them all. He said he admired Dunstan's thinking and if he would consider joining Aelle's men, he would be made very welcome. Dunstan thanked him for his offer but thought he should remain with his brothers. Aethelstan said that his offer to leave remained open until nightfall. He would come back tomorrow but the offer would be reduced and that every tenth man would be killed. The offer would remain open but increase by a tenth every day. Wulfhere said nothing in reply and left. Wulfhere called a conference and discussed Aethelstan’s offer with the other Þegns and his brothers. He said he thought the offer was to scare them. Wulfhere reckoned they had enough food for a month and it was unlikely Aethelstan could take Dunbriwan by assault. He hoped that Cerdic would send help within that time. Aethelstan met Wulfhere and Dunstan for three more days. He and Dunstan grew to respect each other in their exchanges and Aethelstan said he would exempt them from being killed when they eventually surrendered. Wulfhere said that he was expecting Cerdic to send help any day and then they could have a proper battle to see which King would rule south of the Tamyse. Aethelstan was amused by the boast and said he was confident that the King would still be Aelle. On the fourth day the defenders could see a Warband coming up the road from the south. The men on the wall cheered which alerted the besieging warband. They could see Aethelstan ride out alone towards the new warband and he had a conversation with the leader. He then rode back to his men and they began to leave and went east towards Pontes. A short time after, they could see Stuf's Wolf Standard approach and Wulfhere and his brothers went out to meet him. Wulfhere thanked him for coming. He told Stuf that they had been heavily outnumbered but had managed to hold unto most of the territory. Stuf listened to the news and praised their actions. He said he had agreed to meet Aethelstan in Pontes in two days to conclude a treaty and they were welcome to join him. He told them news from the south that Octa had declared war on Aelle and had besieged and taken Hamafunta and was now besieging Cissa Cæster. He thought that might attract Cissa’s attention back to the south. The peace of Pontes was concluded two days later. Aelle would hold the north of the Tamyse and Cerdic would hold the south Tamyse as far as Lundenwic.

Sorry... it means 'Maximum Game Fun' I would always rule punching type damage as bruises, dead arms etc.. unless it's a single damage that does double the amount of HPs in a location .. then you have broken limbs, concussion, ruptured muscles, etc. Bruises are recovered quickly unlike weapon damage. I still think what it comes down to is... if you don't like a rule .. change it.. we are not bound to RAW.. It is really about having fun.. mechanics are there to assist, not to take over

70s Californiaesque

Could not resist...bought it

I suspect that the manner of death is kept from them and is a closely guarded cult secret As an example if we conflate the myths of Agamemnon and Lleu Llaw Gyffes both were likely told as a solemn oath that they would not die as long as he was 'neither clothed nor unclothed, neither in water nor on dry land, neither in the palace nor outside and neither fasting nor feasting'. As that oath was pretty foolproof and it seemed impossible to break, the sacred King would likely think they were the chosen of the goddess and they would not be sacrificed at Midsummer. Sadly they were unaware that the situation could be fulfilled by being in the bathhouse annex, being given an apple and setting it to his lips, being entangled in a shirt that was sleeveless and had no neck just as you step out of the bath. Who would have thought? Interestingly, Clytaemnestra used an axe to behead Agamemnon which was the Cretan symbol of sovereignty and also of the Goddess I suspect Maran's Doom is couched along similar lines with a seemingly sacred oath that seems unbreakable. They just keep lining up...

Sadly... Flashing Blades took itself seriously..

That would certainly be true of yearly sacrificed kings who had oracular hero shrines dedicated to them after their deaths in Greece

Jajagappa has given you the Gloranthan examples and there are plenty of examples in our world too From the Middle East where human sacrifice was the last resort to some national emergency and often required the death of the king or one of his children. The Carthaginians and Phoenicians probably made child sacrifices but it is unknown for what purpose. Human sacrifice is mentioned in Judeo-Christian texts where as I remember the King of Moab sacrificed his eldest son to Moloch to lift the Israeli siege of his capital. Also I think two Kings of Judah sacrificed their sons and 'angered the Lord' in times of emergency A lot of Greek heroes interestingly suffered very ritualistic deaths (pricked by a poison arrow in the heel, flung off a cliff, gouged in the thigh with tusk, ripped to pieces by Orgiastic women, etc). Agamemnon suffered a ritual death which is similar to how the Mabinogion explains how to kill Lleu Llaw Gyffes (the sun god) which I suspect is not an accident. Of note Odysseus escaped his ritual sacrifice. In Ireland and in Scandinavia we have ritualistically murdered people (strangled, garrotted, hung) which were nobles and were quite often mutilated (tongue, nipples or eyes). The Year Sacred King is hinted at in lots of mythology and is probably been expunged from the record as societies became more 'civilised'. (Romans denied they sacrificed Vestal Virgins or walled up two Gauls and Greeks under the Forum during the Hannibal wars. There is mention that the Vestals threw straw people into the Tiber which were probably originally human sacrifice). They attributed human sacrifice to their enemies (those nasty Gauls, druids, Germans, Celt-iberians, Carthaginians) who were not civilised and deserved conquering. Blood sacrifice was always very powerful and the agrarian (possibly matrilinear) peoples needed to ensure that their crops would grow and they would not starve. What better way to do it than to kill the King since he is associated with the sun and dies yearly? That's a few examples off the top of my head but there are lots more..

I had to look that up and found you were referring to an RPG as opposed to where my thoughts went when I read it.. or in other words, the French 1960's TV programme Flashing Blades (Le Chevalier Tempête in the original) which involved a catchy song about 'fighting for what you want', jumping on horses to speed to some besieged castle, jumping on more horses and getting chased by the entire Spanish army while fencing with everyone. Great fun but probably not linked to Damage bonuses. For those that want to remember... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F5Sb9AoirSU&t=26s On a more serious note this might work well if you want to stop increasing the amount of one-limbed people who must inhabit most of the places that PCs move through with lethal intent but, it does make it more complicated and does it not take away from MGF? I have never run or played a combat heavy game since the early days of D&D and only briefly AD&D so perhaps it is not as important to me. Surely combat should carry a certain amount of risk? Otherwise the power balance shifts too much to the PCs?

Just bought it... I'm an Interested Cultist working out what the 'normals' do to try and stop me destroying the world... Glad to support you Cream

But that is the great thing about BRP... if you don't like the RAW.. do some home ruling... graduate the DB (like in Mythras) .. change the way stats are rolled for PCs.. make sure people wear armour or make it cheaper.. make the damage with weapons less Fighting with weapons is deadly.. it may not always chop off bits but it certainly kills you Punches can come off general hit points.. and in general it should not kill.. home rule it so when people have zero hit points they are unconscious but recover the lost HPs quicker than they would from a weapon I GM Mythras and CoC... play RQG and CoC.. combat is lethal and you don't enter into it unless you know you have an advantage (bigger, better, more armour, better spells, or (and possibly the primary thing) you have a strategical and tactical advantage ie there's two of you against the enemy The important thing is that it works for you and above all it's fun.. there's really no point in doing things that aren't fun or else it's known as masochism

The Death of a Ring-giver and the West Saxon King In the morning there was more news that Ealdorman Cœlfrith had arrived with a strong Warband. The Hrothgarsons thought it best that they did not go abroad and stayed in Rowena's Hall. They created a small hiding place in the undercroft by stacking sacks of grain and flour so that it would take a lot of effort if anyone was searching for them. They discussed the situation with Rowena and Wulfhere told her the history that they had with Cœlfrith. Rowena said that there was a leæce who had come with Cœlfrith and he matched Dunstan’s description of Dunric. Dunstan thought that they might really be in trouble and he said to Wulfhere that they should have left earlier. He said that he was not afraid to die but would prefer if it was not at the hands of Dunric. The next day Dunric came to Rowena's Hall and asked for the Hrothgarsons. Rowena said that they had left Taddenlæge the previous night and she believed that they may have returned to their home having thought that there was nothing more that they wanted to do in the north. She said that she thought that they were unlikely to escape the Artrebate blockade and had more than likely been killed. Dunric was polite but suspicious and made Rowena nervous by continually sniffing the air. That night they again discussed leaving. Uthric could still not walk on his leg without frequent rest and he certainly would not be able to fight or run. Wulfhere was not keen to leave him and Dunstan said that the brothers had never been separated before. He thought that if they should die then they should die together. Uthric said he had no intention of dying yet and Dunstan should remember they had separated during the battles at Glawmæd and Cædering and they had managed to do so without coming to harm. He thought that this was one of those times that they should leave each other as they were always lucky in wars. Dunstan said that maybe that they should make their own wyrd and attack Cœlfrith and Dunric rather than leaving because they would be doing the people of Miðgarðr a favour if they managed to kill both of them. Wulfhere said that while this was a fine plan it was unlikely to work. Cœlfrith had over sixty warriors and they had three and one of them could still not walk. He thought that perhaps they needed to think of another plan. Dunstan was concerned that Cœlfrith must have come past Glawmæd on his way north. He thought that this might be bad news for their mother and wives. Wulfhere said that this was unlikely as Coelfrith would have been foolish to openly attack one of Cerdic's villages. That would be a declaration of war and invite reprisals when Cœlfrith had gone north. Yet he conceded that Coelfrith could have been spiteful enough to do something to their mother and wives but consoled himself that when he had left the south, Cœlfrith had not known the Hrothgarsons were at Taddenlæge. The night was dark and cloudy and with Rowena’s help Wulhere and Dunstan slipped over the wall and safely made their way along the Arle and kept east until they reached the upper Moen. They then travelled south over open land and did not encounter many people. Those that they saw in the distance hurried away without making contact. Wulfhere thought people were afraid and he suspected the rumours of war had made people fearful of armed men. They spent the night in Old Wincen Cæster Hill and recalled their fight with the Déaþscufa and Ætremód. When he slept, Dunstan had nightmares about the Ætremód and the darkness that he had been caught in. In the morning he said that Uthric's idea of building a village here might possibly be a bad idea and he thought he would not support it. Wulfhere said he thought there still might be evil here and he too would oppose Uthric’s idea of a settlement. They went on to Glawmæd and met with Lucnot and their wives. Meire was concerned that Uthric was not with them and thought something might have happened to him. Wulfhere assured her that while Uthric had been unable to travel at the time they left, he had been alive and well four days ago. They left early next morning having avoided talking to their mother because Bronwyn had told Wulfhere Hildegard was annoyed about their time keeping again. Wulfhere also wanted to see Cerdic as soon as possible and tell him the news of the north. He hoped Cerdic would give him warriors to expel Cœlfrith from Taddenlæge. Wulfhere asked Dunstan how he felt about going to Cædering to see Tæthle but they decided it would not serve much purpose at present. When they arrived at Portus Cæster they asked the guards at Cerdic's Hall if they could see Cerdic but were refused entry. The guards told the brothers that Cerdic was not in Portus Cæster and no one was permitted to enter. Dunstan began to get annoyed with the Chief guard, Alaric, who also refused to let Wulfhere or Dunstan know where they could find Cerdic. All they could discover was that Cerdic had gone West to attack Dumnonia. Dunstan was incensed by Alaric’s lack of interest and information and threatened to tell Cerdic that he was obstructive. Alaric said that he was not particularly bothered about what Dunstan said or didn't say. Alaric said his job was to protect Cerdic's Hall and he intended to do that as well as he could. Wulfhere stopped Dunstan from doing something to Alaric that he might regret. They decided that they should go north and then west to look for Cerdic. Wulfhere thought that he could ask people where Cerdic was as they travelled. He thought it might be hard to hide a large army and he felt sure that people would tell him. Dunstan complained about Alaric during the days travel. He thought that Cerdic needed to improve the quality of his guards and importantly there should be a system of how to get important messages to him. After a while Wulfhere asked Dunstan to be quiet but Dunstan said he was too angry to be quiet and spent his time muttering to himself. They reached Clausentium at nightfall and spoke with Arnulf, the Þegn in command of the garrison. Arnulf told them Cerdic had been at Clausentium half a moon ago but had gone north along the road with his army. There had been talk about attacking a fortress in the north but Arnulf had not been part of that discussion. He could not tell them any more information as no-one had brought any news from the north and the garrison had been too busy fighting off Dumnonian raids to send their own messenger. Dunstan took the opportunity to tell Arnulf what he had been thinking about for the last two days. Wulfhere recognised what was coming so he decided to see if he could get his spear sharpened at the smithy. Dunstan ignored Wulfhere's look and told Arnulf that he had a good mind to tell Cerdic that if he was off fighting wars then he needed a system that could send messages to his commanders. It was not good enough if people could not find him when they needed decisions made. Arnulf said he would like to be present when Dunstan criticised Cerdic for not being a good leader. He said the last time he had seen Cerdic he had not been in a good frame of mind and had reacted angrily to criticism. Dunstan was a bit surprised and said that he always found Cerdic open to discussion. Arnulf said that this may have been how Cerdic used to be but more recently he had found Cerdic was increasingly intolerant of people who offered stupid advice. Dunstan said that his advice was not stupid and it was clear that Cerdic needed to make changes if the size of his lands was increasing and it only was good governance to be able to know where he was at any given time. Wulfhere returned and was not surprised to see Dunstan still telling Arnulf his thoughts. He was surprised however that Arnulf had not knifed him to keep him quiet. Wulfhere said he thought he was tired of Dunstan's discussions on what should or should not be done and he was going to sleep because they needed to leave early in the morning. They travelled north for another day and were thinking how they could cross the Itchen before they reached the Dumnonian fortress at Venta. Neither wanted to be caught by a Dumnonian patrol but they could not find a ford. Wulfhere doubted that either of them could swim over the river with their armour and weapons so they thought they should try and find a boat. They could see the smoke of Venta in the distance and were unsure what they should do. Wulfhere thought that crossing the Itchen into Dumnonian territory could be very dangerous. They camped for the night but were awoken by Saxon voices calling to each other as they searched either side of the road. Wulfhere and Dunstan shouted to them and they identified themselves to the leader, Ranulf. Wulfhere said he had been looking for Cerdic as he had news that he would like to get to him as soon as possible. Ranulf said that Wulfhere was in luck because they could easily take him to Cerdic. Cerdic was in the process of assaulting Venta Belgarium. The camp was spread out to prevent reinforcements reaching the defending troops before the final assault on Venta. Dunstan thought that it would be a difficult assault on the walls and likely to end in many deaths. Groups of armed men lazed around which Wulfhere suspected were to react to any aggressive move by the Dumnonians but he wondered how effective they would be. Most of the men had taken off their armour and were eating and drinking or playing gambling games using British throwboards. Dunstan thought it amusing that warriors were always complaining about a lack of silver but when they had silver they contrived ways to rid themselves of it quickly. Wulfhere remarked that it was interesting for all the warrior’s belligerence and rejection of British culture, throwboards had made the cultural leap in popularity amongst the warriors. As they were approaching Cerdic’s tent they could hear him shouting which they thought might not bode well. However, when they were brought in by Ranulf, Cerdic looked pleased to see them and asked for the news. He dismissed a group of Þegns except for his nephew Stuf and sat down to listen. Wulfhere told him of the events in Taddenlæge, of Tadda's illness, of the rising of the Artrebates, of Gorbold the new Þegn and the alliance of Octa and Cœlfrith. They could see that Cerdic was annoyed at what they said and Wulfhere thought it was time to stop talking. Cerdic said that he had been under the impression that they had brought him men but they had only brought him more troubles. After a while he calmed down and asked more questions. He asked the Hrothgarsons why they had come and said he hoped that it had not been only to convey bad news and a failure to complete the task he had set them. Wulfhere was hesitant to say that they had come to ask for warriors but, in the end, he saw no easy way to say it other than point out that Cœlfrith had to be stopped. Cerdic agreed but said he had no warriors to spare at present. As it now stood, any assault on Venta would mean that he would suffer loses that might not be acceptable. He told Wulfhere to gather men from Cædering, Glawmæd and Cælctun. All three villages still had their garrisons. Wulfhere asked him what would Cerdic wanted them to do. Cerdic looked bemused and said he thought it was clear. They should kill Cœlfrith and bring men back to Venta for the final assault. Stuf took them out of the tent and said that it was urgent that they completed their task quickly. It was becoming difficult to hold the warriors outside Venta and they would have to attack soon or the army would go home. Stuf said that was the reason for Cerdic's anger and it had not necessarily directed at the Hrothgarsons. Wulfhere and Dunstan left as soon as they could and travelled through the night to reach Glawmæd in one day. Despite their exhaustion they went to see Tæthle and told her of Cerdic's request. Tæthle said that she was not entirely impressed by the plan. Taking most of the Warband north left the three villages dangerously exposed, particularly if Cœlfrith was still an active enemy She suggested that she could only spare forty warriors and even keeping twenty and the Fyrd would leave them open to attack. Dunstan was pleased to see Hereward the Leæce was in Cædering and asked if he would like to come with them. Wulfhere told him Dunric was in the north and they would need Hereweard to counter Dunric’s spells. Hereward said he did not have Dunric's skills in dark or blood magic but as he enjoyed a challenge, he would agree to come. He did warn Dunstan that if things got too dangerous it might be that he would leave them because he was not as young as he used to be and was not keen to end up having his soul tormented by Dunric’s demons. Dunstan for once was lost for words. It took four days for Wulfhere, Dunstan, Hereweard and the forty warriors to get to the Taddenlæge. Travelling with them was their younger brother, Halig, who was going to his first war. They arrived at the ford of Arles to find that it was held against them by Cœlfrith's men. They had not enough men to force a passage and when. more men came out of Taddenlæge to add to the defenders Wulfhere ordered a withdrawal from the ford to the forest to consider how they would proceed. Uthric lay in his hidden room in the undercroft of Rowena's Hall. Her men had stacked more sacks of grain in such a way as to hide the pallet that Uthric was using for a bed. His leg was slowly healing but it would still be at least a week before he could even hobble around on it. Any movement could cause the wound to reopen and set the healing process back weeks. Uthric asked Rowena if some of the men would remove the sacks each day so that he could make brief journeys outside his cramped bedroom to test and exercise his leg. He was not keen that it remain stiff and sore. However, he did not go into the main Hall and Rowena would meet him periodically and tell him the news. On the second day after these arrangements were agreed, Uthric heard his name being talked about by a man whose voice he did not recognise. He could hear Rowena answer but the sound was too muffled to hear what was said. It was only towards evening he learnt from Rowena that Dunric had come to her Hall to ask for the Hrothgarsons. He had seemed suspicious that all three brothers had left Taddenlæge and had been aware that Uthric had been injured and unable to walk. Rowena had denied all knowledge of Uthric's whereabouts and she assured Dunric about her loyalty to Taddenlæge. She also told Uthric that Dunric had begun to execute one prisoner each day outside of Taddenlæge to terrify the besieging Artrebates. The prisoners were horribly mutilated whilst still alive. She said that she was sickened by Dunric's cruelty and the suffering of the prisoners and did not see how it benefited Taddenlæge. After another three days, warriors again came to Rowena's Hall to search for Uthric. They even searched the undercroft but did not discover Uthric's hiding place. Rowena met with Uthric afterwards and he thought she looked scared. He asked if Dunric had threatened her but she said that she just thought he was an evil man and capable of much cruelty. She thought it did not forebode well for the future if men like Dunric did what they pleased. She said she had the impression that darkness followed him. Uthric said that he should leave as soon as he could walk because he thought he would put everyone in danger if he was to be discovered. Rowena said that it was her opinion there was a great difference between walking on his leg and being able to fight. She thought that it was only Uthric who was at risk if he was discovered. Gorbold and Dunric would not dare to attack her or her people. They could not afford to lose warriors when the situation was so delicately balanced. Uthric said he was not sure but was glad she had such confidence. Rowena came again the next day to talk with Uthric and told him that each day Dunric continued to kill a prisoner by torturing them and that he was saving the Artrebate Chieftain, Orin to the last. In her opinion it was not lifting the blockade and meant that the Artrebates were likely to do the same to Saxon prisoners. Uthric asked how many prisoners were left and Rowena said she thought there were three including Orin. Uthric's leg was improving and it could now bear his weight but he was unsure if it would be sufficient to fight with. He was beginning to formulate a plan but didn't think he could wait until the leg was fully healed. He spent the next few days exercising the leg and practicing with his spear and shield. Uthric noticed he got tired early and the leg hurt after exercise but at least he could move on it. He decided it was time to make a move and asked if Rowena would come and see him. Uthric said he was unsure that his brothers would have got any help but he thought it might be good to get the support of the Artrebates in the area. Rowena asked him if lying in the dark had unsettled his wits and in case he was not up to date with the news he should be aware that the Artrebates had surrounded Taddenlæge and had declared war on the Saxon people. Uthric said that he was aware of that but he had a plan to rescue Orin which may persuade the Artrebates that not all Saxons agree with Cœlfrith and that he has manipulated the situation in Taddenlæge. Rowena said she was doubtful that the Artrebates would agree. They remained incensed about the destruction and death in the villages and she doubted that Dunric's continued torturing and killing of captives would have changed their views. Uthric said that he should at least try and siting waiting to be discovered and killed by Dunric or Cœlfrith was not doing him any good. Rowena offered to help but Uthric declined. He thought that the chances of success were low and if he was captured it would be better for her that she was not associated with his actions. There was little light that night because of the clouds and the new moon and Uthric was able to move between the buildings unseen. Rowena had told him there were only two guards watching Orin at night and he thought if he was able to kill both before the alarm was raised he could free Orin and get over the palisade before anyone knew what was happening. Rowena had ensured her men were guarding the section of the wall near to the Arle and they had been told to expect men would be leaving at night. Uthric watched the guards from the shadows. One was standing leaning on his spear and the other was sitting on a log close to the door of the hut they were using as a prison. Uthric moved forward as quietly as he could and was able to get close enough to hit the standing man in the stomach just as he turned. The spear caught on the man’s ribs and Uthric struggled to remove his spear. The sitting man, although surprised, got up and tried to attack but swung wildly with his axe. Uthric easily parried with his shield and thrust his spear at full force into the man’s chest. The force of the blow was so great that the spear protruded from his back. The man was dying but Uthric thought that it would be better if he could die more quietly and decided it was best to finish him off with a well-placed blow of his seax. He paused for a while to see if the noise of the combat had alerted anyone before removing the bar from the hut. He called Orin quietly in Brythonic and was answered cautiously by a man inside. Uthric told Orin that he was here to rescue him and that he needed to act quickly. Orin and another man came out. Uthric introduced himself and reminded Orin of their last meeting. He then briefly told Orin the plan. Orin and the other man took the dead guards’ weapons and both followed Uthric through the buildings keeping to the shadows. They reached the part of the wall where Rowena's men guarded and watched the open ground for possible enemies. Uthric thought it best that they walk calmly to the wall as if they were part of the new guards. Their plan was challenged when they head sounds of alarm. It seemed someone had at last discovered the bodies of the guards and was sounding a horn. Rowena's shieldman, Regenmær, signalled for them to hurry. If anyone saw them they would be caught and Uthric would not be able to explain away the fresh blood on his weapons and clothes. Regenmær had attached a rope to the palisade and told them to hurry. Uthric insisted Orin went first and then his companion, Wynn, went next. Uthric went over last, careful not hurt his leg again. Uthric had asked Regenmær to raise the alarm when they were almost at the forest. He thought that they would be safe at that point because he did not expect that any of the Saxons would pursue them at night in Artrebate infested woods. They paused to catch their breaths on the edge of the forest. Uther stretched his leg and realised that the cramped conditions of the undercroft had not allowed him to exercise as much as he should have and the exertion of the combat and escape had probably hurt it again. Wynn began making barking noises like a fox. The barking was answered to the left and to the front of them. Suddenly they were surrounded by Artrebate warriors. Orin told Uthric to lay down his weapons and not to make any sudden moves. Both he and Wynn did the same and they sat down and waited. The initial suspicion of the surrounding warriors gave way to glad reunion as men recognised Orin and Wynn. Uthric was taken to Calleva where Orin talked to the other leaders of the Artrebates. Uthric urged the Artrebates to send out scouts south of Taddenlæge to look for his brothers. He said he hoped that they would be coming north with a Warband. Uthric explained the situation in Taddenlæge as he understood it. He said he was not aware of all the motivations but he told of the alliance between Cœlfrith, Gorbold and Dunric, the illness of Tadda and that in his opinion that the people of Taddenlæge had been tricked by the Cœlfrith and his men. The attacks on the Artrebate villages had been orchestrated to provoke conflict by Dunric to allow Cœlfrith to take over. The Artrebate leaders elected Orin as their leader. He was not keen to be the Warleader as he felt his skills were more peaceful than warlike but was persuaded to accept the role for the duration of the conflict. He returned the Helmet of Anyon to Uthric as a reward for his actions. He agreed to send out scouts who had knowledge of Saxon to try and find Uthric’s brothers. They were unsure of the numbers of warriors that Cœlfrith had but Taddenlæge was a difficult place to attack without overwhelming numbers and Orin wanted to minimise every death. He thought that it would be difficult enough to rebuild their villages without more massive casualties from assaulting a defended fortification. Orin spent time organising the defence of Calleva and appointed warriors to lead small mobile Warbands that would operate independently but could gather together quickly if a larger Warband was needed. Uthric was able to rest his leg and he felt confident that he could now stand in a Shieldwall if required. On the fifth day after their escape, word came that there was a large Sais Warband coming north toward Calleva along the Old People's road. Orin thought this might be an opportunity to even up numbers if they were able to defeat a Warband outside the walls of Taddenlæge. Uthric thought from the red bull shield design they were Cœlfrith’s men. If they could kill or capture Cœlfrith there might be no need to fight further. Orin agreed but was worried about the number of warriors he could get that had experience of standing in a Shieldwall. Most of the Artrebates had only experience in skirmishing with hunting bows or javelins. Hunting bows were not particularly successful against close order troops in a Shieldwall. They were more often annoying rather than effective. His Javelin skirmishers were likely to cause more damage but then ran the risk of being counter-charged by experienced troops and might get in the way of their own Shieldwall. Nevertheless, Orin organised the warriors and they set off to find a suitable position to offer battle. He ordered his skirmishers to harass the Sais march, slow them down and make them cautious. Wulfhere had withdrawn his forces from the ford. He had spoken with Cœlfrith when the Ealdorman came to support his troops. Wulfhere had kept most of his warriors in the woods to make sure that Cœlfrith would be uncertain of numbers. Wulfhere had suggested that Cœlfrith withdraw from Taddenlæge as he was now outnumbered by Cerdic's forces. Cœlfrith laughed at Wulfhere's suggestion and said that he was welcome to try and come across the food. Wulfhere said that he did not see any advantage for him to try to fight his way across but if Cœlfrith was so confident in his own ability then he could withdraw back to allow his men to cross and then they could fight. Coelfrith laughed again and said that he would be a poor leader if he gave away an advantage due to some misguided principle of fairness. He said that life was not fair and the strongest would always take what they wanted. Wulfhere said he did not see any point in continuing the conversation as he had delivered the warning to Cœlfrith and if he chose to ignore it then he would have to accept the consequences of his actions. Wulfhere hoped that by talking to Cœlfrith that Cœlfrith's men and more importantly the warriors of Taddenlæge would begin to doubt their position. Halig said that although he was inexperienced in these matters there were obviously different factions in Taddenlæge which they should exploit for their own purposes. There must be a number of people who had grave suspicions of Gorbold. They must also see that the attacks on the Artrebate villages were perpetrated by Cœlfrith's outlaws to allow him to take over Taddenlæge. Dunstan thought if they could defeat or reduce Cœlfrith's power then there might be those inside Taddenlæge who would help them or at least not hinder what they were doing. Wulfhere said he thought this might all be true but the problem they faced was that the ford was guarded and they needed to get across. He thought it was also important to remember that Uthric was still inside Taddenlæge and probably in danger. They needed to try and get him out. Wulfhere sent Dunstan and Halig along the Arle to scout out Taddenlæge from that side. It would also give a view of the north side and Wulfhere hoped that they might find another way across the river and perhaps find a weak point to attack. Dunstan took ten warriors with him, choosing those that were good at moving through forests unseen. They all lay at the forest edge and watched the settlement. Wulfhere sent some of the men to guard the ford and others to forage for food. Dunstan and Halig grew bored of watching as nothing appeared to be happening in Taddenlæge. Dunstan wondered how their families were getting on in Glawmæd. Halig said that as ever his elder brothers were not good at coming back home when they said they would otherwise Dunstan would be in his own Hall and able to ask Gwenyth how she was. He said that their mother had been right, none of the women in the family could trust the men’s words. He thought that Dunstan and his elder brothers always downplayed their responsibility and sometimes actually stayed away longer than agreed on purpose. Dunstan grew angry and said he wondered why Halig always saw their mother’s viewpoint. He said it had not been their fault that they always returned late as situations that they assumed were simple turned out more complex. Halig said that this was a situation in point and that a little forethought and factoring in extra complexity would have given a more realistic timescale. This was in his view all the women were asking for. They were always concerned that their menfolk had been killed if they did not come back on time. The argument became more heated. Halig said that the worst time was when they left their mother in poverty and the family had nearly died of starvation. Dunstan said that he was tired of hearing this old narrative and that if Halig did not stop talking about it, then he would be sent home. Halig said that Dunstan needed to remember that he was not a child any more but a grown man and issuing threats to send him home was puerile. They began to tussle and the situation might have developed further if the guards on the palisade had not noticed them and were coming down to the banks of the Arles to investigate. Nothhelm, who was the most experienced warrior with the group, told Dunstan and Halig to stop arguing about their mother and pay attention to the enemy. Dunstan suddenly noticed that his argument with Halig had endangered his men and ordered them to withdraw and keep out of javelin range. The argument meant that they almost missed a large Warband of 50-60 warriors leaving the Callevagate and heading north. Fortunately, Uscfrea had been paying attention and pointed it out to Dunstan as they retreated. Dunstan and Halig returned to Wulfhere to talk with him. Neither mentioned their disagreement but Wulfhere asked what had happened that they both looked angry. Dunstan said that they had seen a large Warband heading north. What they thought was more concerning was that there was still the same number of men guarding the Ford. Wulfhere said that Cœlfrith had more warriors than they had realised and that did not bode well for the success of their task. Dunstan said that he was of the opinion that they should return to Venta and ask Cerdic for more reinforcements. Wulfhere said that this was not possible. Cerdic had been quite clear that he had no further men to give and moreover he expected them to complete the task with the men he had given or die trying. Orin and Uthric set their Shieldwall in the middle of the road flanked by two groups of hunters armed with bows. The bows were more an annoyance than a serious threat but the Saxon Shieldwall kept its distance. Orin and Uthric went forward to talk to the Saxon Warleader, a man called Osred. Uthric translated for Orin. Orin asked the Sais to lay down their arms and they would be spared death. Osred said that he had no intention of leaving but would generously allow the Artrebates to surrender. He said he recognised that it would be difficult for the Artrebates to do so but did not want to cause them more unnecessary death. He said that the only death he would require would be Uthric, who he considered to be a traitor to his people and family and spat at Uthric’s feet to show his contempt. Orin said that he thought they would just have to fight and Osred could try and kill Uthric. He warned Osred that many people had tried to kill Uthric but none had succeeded and they that they were now in Annwn's pits. With that the conference was over and the Commanders walked back to their troops. Uthric was angry after the discussion with Osred and said that he would like to meet him in the battle. He used his anger to make a speech to the men. He told them that Osred had called them barbarians but he told them that they were not the ones who killed and burnt woman and children. Uthric said that they were not Artrebates or Sais but they were heroic men who were fighting to protect their families and their villages. The Artrebate Warband were inspired by Uthric’s speech and shared his anger at the Sais. They advanced quickly before Osred had got his warriors aligned and many of the front-rank warriors fell to Artrebate spears. Osred's men were disorganised by the sudden attack and he desperately tried to hold them together. Orin's archers took advantage of the disorder to appear on the flanks and fire point blank into the sides of the Shieldwall. By force of will Osred get his men to stand firm and they were able to lock shields but the earlier numerical advantage they had was now lying dead or dying on the ground. The Saxon Shieldwall started to push the lighter armed Artrebates back but Orin shouted at his men to target Osred who stood in the front rank. His men responded to the call and the Artrebates attacked strongly, focusing on Osred. Osred was stabbed below his shield in the thigh and would have fallen to the ground but for the press of the Shieldwalls. However, it could be seen by both sides that he was clearly badly wounded. The men in the second rank of the British Shield wall used their long spears to thrust at his head and shoulders. Osred could not defend himself but the men around him tried to protect him with their own shields. Unfortunately for them, they were then exposed to other Artrebate spears and the Saxon Shieldwall began to disintegrate. The end came when the two groups of archers charged the rear and enveloped what was left of the Saxon troops. Not many Saxons escaped the carnage and the pent-up frustration of the Artrebates who had seen their women and children murdered, added to the slaughter. Those Saxons who escaped were hunted through the woods by the Artrebate skirmishers. Uthric reckoned that only a handful escaped and he hoped that because of the cordon of scouts around Taddenlæge, they would be unable to tell Cœlfrith what had happened to his Warband. After the battle Orin sent the wounded back to Calleva and they dispatched any surviving Sais quickly. Uthric thought it would be good to strip the bodies and hang them from the trees as a warning to Cœlfrith. Orin said it might be more perplexing if they removed the bodies and hid them in the forest so that Cœlfrith would be unsure what had happened to his men. They could not hide the fact there had been a battle on the road but if there was no evidence of the outcome then he would be uncertain as to what happened. While they were moving the bodies, a messenger came from the Artrebates maintaining the siege around Taddenlæge saying that a Sais Warband had been seen on the south side of the Arle. The scouts had been alerted by two men arguing and had watched as they retreated into the forest to meet with a Warband of about forty warriors. The scouts did not know who they were but they did not carry red bull shields of Cœlfrith or the Thunor’s hammer of Taddenlæge. Uthric thought that it was likely to be his brothers with reinforcements from Cerdic. He said he had no idea who the men fighting on the banks of the Arle were and supposed that they had been trying to subdue a captive who had momentarily got free. The scout said that this was not the case. He had noticed that they had been lying watching Taddenlæge for several hours before getting up and trying to punch each other. The scout said from watching the strangeness of the Sais that he thought it was a wonder how they ever managed to be successful. Uthric did not respond to the jibe but asked Orin if he could go and meet the new force and asked if some of the scouts would take him. The scouts said they would be happy to him on the condition he did not instigate any wrestling matches at awkward moments. Uthric said he was not that keen on wrestling as he preferred using his spear but would keep their request in mind. Uthric found Wulfhere, Dunstan and Halig camped beneath the trees near the ford that was still defended by Cœlfrith’s men. They discussed what they should do next. Uthric and Wulfhere were certain that if they could gain a tactical advantage over Cœlfrith then the people of Taddenlæge might be less inclined to fight for him. Wulfhere thought that they might fear an Artrebate victory but if they could show a combination of Saxon and Artrebate forces they may be less concerned. The news that Uthric and Orin had managed to destroy a Warband meant that Cœlfrith's forces were already severely reduced. Dunstan reminded them that Dunric was still in Taddenlæge and he needed to be dealt with or neutralised. Wulfhere was unhappy that they could not get across the ford and asked Uthric if the scouts could get his men across to join up with the Artrebates. The scouts were happy to take them north but the route would likely take a day. Wulfhere said the time period might be too long and asked Uthric how he had got across the Arles but he was told that Uthric had taken a small two-person boat across. There was only one boat therefore transporting the Warband and their equipment across would take time. If they were discovered then those men on the far bank would be at risk of death or capture as they could not be reinforced quickly. They agreed that getting across the ford was the next step and how to do it safely was the difficult issue. Wulfhere was certain that he did not want to have to force the ford even if the numbers were initially similar. The defenders could be quickly reinforced from Taddenlæge and any defeat or too many loses would endanger their mission. Uthric suggested that they could gather all the hunters on the south side and use missile fire to force the defenders at the ford to retreat. He said he had been impressed by the use of bows in their battle on the road. The Artrebate scouts agreed that this possible and could be done relatively quickly. The scouts could swim the Arle while their equipment could be ferried by the small boat. They pointed out that there was a risk that the Sais in Taddenlæge could then discover that there was no-one maintaining the siege. Wulfhere thought this was a risk worth taking. The siege could be reinstated if he got his troops on the north bank of the Arle and would have the advantage of being reinforced by his Warband. Uthric said that he had also thought of a way to get inside Taddenlæge. He had proposed to Orin that they dress in Saxon war gear and pretend to be the remnants of Osred's Warband returning wounded. When the gates were opened then they would hold them, kill the guards and the remaining hidden Warband would reinforce them. If Wulfhere had forced the ford then his warriors could join Orin’s men in holding the gates. Once inside he thought that resistance would crumble. The warriors of Taddenlæge would run to protect their families leaving only Cœlfrith's men to fight. He thought that the combined force of Artrebates and Saxons would be then greater than Cœlfrith’s men. And so that is what they planned. The hunters lifted their siege and made their way over the Arle to the south side and joined with Wulfhere’s Warband. Wulfhere readied his troops while the hunters shot arrows from the south side of the Arles Ford at Coelfrith's troops on the north side. The defenders had initially formed up in a Shieldwall but retreated from the ford when the arrows kept falling. None of the warriors were killed but here and there an arrow had found exposed flesh and there had been a dribble of wounded men returning to Taddenlæge. When the Warband retreated out of range, Wulfhere hurried his men across the ford and formed a Shieldwall. The archers then formed a bank of skirmishers on the flank of the Shieldwall. The enemy seeing that Wulfhere had successfully crossed the ford retreated inside the palisade. Wulfhere took his men into the forest on the north side of the Arles and spread them along the eaves ensuring they were out of sight. The hunters returned to their stations around Taddenlæge to enforce the siege. Several hours later a motley band of wounded and injured men bearing the Bull shields of Cœlfrith limped into the clearing. A man wearing a closed helm shouted at the gate guards to open and let them in as they were being pursued by Artrebates. Wulfhere counted twenty-six men in the Warband and he hoped it would be enough. Wulfhere smiled as a rearguard of five men formed up facing towards the road. He thought he might have been convinced if he had been a gate guard. He gave a quiet command for his men to be ready to run for the gate when Uthric and Orin’s men formed a shield wall. Uthric was not sure that the guards were going to open the gate. They delayed and seemed to be more nervous about a rapid attack from a pursuing force that might mean they were unable to get the gate closed again in time. He shouted at his rearguard to fall back towards the gate but when nothing happened he realised that none of them could understand Saxon. Uthric shouted at the gate guards again to open the gates quickly and the foremost of his group began to hammer at the gates. Uthric ran to the rearguard and pushed them back toward the gate. When they saw that there was no enemy nearby the gate guards moved to open the gate and let what they assumed was the remnants of Cœlfrith’s men enter. There was a stampede of men through the gate and by the time Uthric had pushed his way through to the front of his men, the gate guards were dead and a Shieldwall had been formed inside the gates to keep them open. One man was using a Saxon war axe to try and hack off the hinges of the door to ensure they could not be closed again. The guards along the palisade had seen what had happened and alarm horns were sounded. Defenders ran to form up in a Shieldwall to face the Artrebates but Uthric could see no leader and he noticed most of the shields were not Cœlfrith's Bull. He looked behind him in the hope that Orin and Wulfhere's men would have arrived but could not see anything because of his own Shieldwall. He took off his helmet so that the Saxons could see him and asked where Gorbold or Cœlfrith were. No-one answered so Uthric let them know that he had no intention of fighting the men of Taddenlæge. He told them that he his only enemies were Gorbold and Cœlfrith both of whom had contrived the situation by creating a crisis. As no one again responded, he told the Saxons to go to their families and they would be safe. By this time, he could hear shouts of more men arriving in both British and Saxon and he thought that Wulfhere and Orin had now reinforced his original force. He did not want to look round because he was too close to the Saxon Shieldwall and was concerned someone might try and strike at him. He was relieved when Wulfhere and Orin joined him. Wulfhere said that he had no desire to kill any of the warriors of Taddenlæge or to destroy the town but he was going to order his men to move forward to the market place and the Þegn's Hall. Anyone who resisted would be overwhelmed. When he gave the order to move forward, the opposing Shieldwall melted away. Wulfhere led his men to the marketplace where there was another smaller Shieldwall. Gorbold was on the raised platform attached to the Þegn's Hall to direct the defence. Wulfhere thought that Gorbold must see he was heavily outnumbered and order his men to surrender. Wulfhere called on Gorbold to surrender and save his men from certain death but Gorbold said that he would not give in to outlaws like Wulfhere. He told his men to make a name for themselves in songs and fight to the death. He told them that the more of the enemy they killed, the more followers they would have in Neorxanwang. He called for his spear and shield and turned to shout some more instructions to his men when a javelin suddenly pierced his throat. It was likely he was dead before he hit the ground. Wulfhere was surprised. He had not seen anyone throw a javelin until Uthric said loudly that he had promised himself this one pleasure when next he met Gorbold. The situation was still tense. Gorbold’s Huscarls were keening their death songs and it was well known that such men die hard and no-one wanted to be first to attack them. The situation was rescued by Rowena who had appeared with her men. She asked Wulfhere to withdraw his men to the far side of the Marketplace while she spoke to Gorbold's Huscarls. Dunstan said that they had not seen Cœlfrith or Dunric in this confrontation and he was concerned about what they could be doing. Wulfhere agreed with Dunstan but he did not want to split his forces when there was still a possibility of a battle in the market place. It was almost evening by the time Rowena had agreed the terms of surrender. Wulfhere had said he did not require anything from the Huscarls other than their agreement not to take up arms against his men. As soon as the peace was agreed, Dunstan took a Warband of thirty men to look for Coelfrith but quickly learnt that he had left by the Callevagate during the standoff in the marketplace. Dunstan wanted to go after Cœlfrith but Wulfhere said that he had almost half a day start and it would be futile. Orin was annoyed too that Cœlfrith and in particular Dunric had escaped. He blamed himself for withdrawing the hunters from the siege of Taddenlæge to take part in the assault. Uthric said that he should not be angry with himself and in his opinion it could not be helped. They had needed all the warriors to look like they had overwhelming forces. He pointed out that only the gate guards and Gorbold had died and they had taken Taddenlæge and that would be good for the peace. Dunstan said that he hoped that they would not regret Cœlfrith's escape. He reminded them that Cœlfrith would have to go past Glawmæd and they had most of the experienced Glawmæd and Cædering warriors in the north. Wulfhere said this was not such a good thought and agreed to send Uthric and Halig south as soon as possible. Dunston reminded Wulfhere that Cerdic was expecting reinforcements for the assault on Venta Belgarium. Uthric looked doubtful. He was keen to get back to Glawmæd as he knew Cœlfrith was vindictive enough to take revenge on their families. No-one wanted to think what would happen if any of their relatives fell into the hands of Dunric. It was agreed that Uthric and Halig would take Tæthle’s thirty warriors and any of the Artrebates who wanted to attack the Dumnonian Venta. After the battle the survivors were then to travel on to Glawmæd. Uthric and Halig led their thirty warriors and Orin brought twenty Artrebates to the assault of Venta. The battle was bloody but swiftly over. The defenders had been reduced in numbers over the siege but still fought to the death. Uthric was badly injured in the assault and had to spend half a moon recuperating and came late home again. Orin returned north with Cerdic’s thanks and considerable treasure as compensation for the burnt villages and murdered people. Cerdic agreed that the Artrebates would rule themselves with their own lords and laws but pay taxes to Taddenlæge. Orin thought this was fair and he left Cerdic on good terms. Hereweard expelled the spirit of sickness from Tadda who gradually recovered and was grateful to the Hrothgarsons and Hereweard. He renounced his oath to Aelle and swore an oath to Cerdic as his new oath Lord. Cerdic renamed Venta Belgarium the Saxon name Wincen Cæster and decided it would be the chief city of his lands. He also declared himself the Westseaxacyning and independent of the Brytenwealda Aelle. He made his cousin, Tadda, an Ealdorman. Dunstan stayed with Rowena to help restore order in Taddenlæge while Tadda recovered and was late home. He suffered a scolding from Hildegard. Gwenyth was just pleased to see him. Wulfhere and Halig went to Glawmæd and were re-unnited with their families. They discovered that no-one had seen Cœlfrith come south and it was not known where he had gone after leaving Taddenlæge. They heard from some merchants during the next moon that there were rumours that Aelle had killed Cœlfrith for his treachery.

This was a hugely difficult session to write up as there was so much interplay between PCs and NPCs and even between the PCs themselves. I had actually played it in mid January and had completed other write ups before I did this one. Part 3 will be published soon and then I can edit and publish the other sessions we have played since hopefully a lot quicker than I have been doing.. including one of my favourite sessions so far ..the Beatification and Canonisation of St Hywel, the martyr of Dunum

Betrayal of one’s Lord They awoke the next day with sore heads. Uthric spent the morning vomiting and Duncan just felt sorry for himself. It was almost midday before they felt better and Dunstan swore that he would never touch alcohol again. They had planned that they should go and speak with Rowena. She had not made any overtures towards them but neither had they sought her out. They arrived at her Hall which was magnificently decorated with rich tapestries and inlaid carvings of the Æsir and Jotuns on the wooden posts. They found Rowena sitting at her high seat discussing something with her men. Wulfhere introduced himself and his brothers and asked that if the Lady Rowena had time, would she mind talking about what was happening in the area. Rowena was cold at first but once Wulfhere convinced her that he did not blame her for the attacks on the Artrebates, or more importantly for her disastrous assault on Calleva, she was more agreeable to discuss matters. Rowena said she had been thinking over the situation and wished she had not been so hot-headed on the previous day. She had not been able to understand why the Artrebates were indiscriminately blaming Saxons for attacks on their settlements. As far as she was aware no-one from Taddenlæge had attacked the Artrebates and she told them that just before the Hrothgarsons had come to her Hall she had been discussing that it may have be outlanders or outlaws who were responsible. She now thought that as Tadda seemed to be dying there was no longer any way to communicate with the Artrebates. Wulfhere asked if the main Artrebate settlement was Calleva but Rowena said that Calleva had been deserted for years and was now a ghost town, full of howling winds and decaying buildings. She told him that the Artrebates had 10-12 villages in the area and many other smaller family settlements. However the Artrebates now seemed to have re-occupied Calleva as the centre of their fight against Taddenlæge. Dunstan said that he had noticed that things had only started happening when the leæce, Dunric, had come to Taddenlæge. Rowena said she had not taken much notice of leæce at the time, considering him just another wandering healer but she did wonder why anyone would mistrust a leæce as they more often than not served the community. Dunstan said that they had had difficulties with this particular leæce before. He told her that Dunric had been disowned by his patron and fled the area after summoning shadow creatures that he had sent to kill warriors. Dunstan said that in his opinion all evils flowed from Dunric. Rowena said this might be so but Dunric was no longer here and she thought the priority but was to start talking to the Artrebates. She had not been aware until earlier that day that their villages had been destroyed. Wulfhere said this would be one posable way to begin to understand about the difficulties in the area and he asked her how she intended to do this. Rowena said that she has called a council tonight to elect a new Þegn. In her opinion, Brecca has been inept and has not shown leadership. She thought it was time to replace him and she felt that needed to happen sooner rather than later. Wulfhere and Dunstan left Rowena's Hall and returned to Uthric who was trying not to move too much to allow his wounds to heal. They told him what Rowena had said but it did not add any more to their knowledge. Wulfhere thought Taddenlæge might have a new þegn tonight but he was unsure what would happen next. Dunstan helped Uthric strap up his leg so that if he had someone to help him he could get around slowly without opening his wounds again. All three brothers attended the Þegn's moot that night. The moot was held outside the Þegn's Hall in the cleared space where on market day the farmers and merchants would put up their stalls to allow as many as possible of the townsfolk to attend. The torches cast a flickering light on the faces of the people who watched the proceedings. Rowena had opened with a speech declaring that Brecca had not provided the leadership his father did. She said that Tadda was ill and probably dying but Taddenlæge deserved strong leadership and needed it now that there was a crisis. Rowena said that she was putting herself forward as the new Þegn. Gorbold who had been standing watching the crowd from the raised platform of the Þegn’s Hall, asked for permission to speak. He said that he had not been thinking to stand for Þegn but since Rowena had brought it up, he said he thought that he might be a better candidate than Brecca or Rowena. Gorbold said he thought that they had to show strength to the Artrebates and that was likely to be the only way Taddenlæge would be respected. Equally he thought it would be important to find out why the Artrebates had taken up arms when they had lived in peace for so long with their neighbours in Taddenlæge. Gorbold said that he would take a more pragmatic approach to this conflict, reaching out to the Artrebates to negotiate but always with the view of protecting the people of Taddenlæge. He said he thought that Rowena was too impetuous to be Þegn. She had lost over half her men in a futile attack on Calleva. He said that these men had been their friends, warriors that had stood in the Shieldwall beside them, men who had families and had hoped to see their grandchildren but had died because Rowena decided to seek vengeance for herself. Gorbold said that if he was Þegn, no-one would lose their life without reason. He said that Brecca had shown indecision and lack of leadership. Gorbold thought that there was no doubt that if Tadda had not been sick things would have looked differently. However, Tadda was dying and Brecca had not the same skills as his father. Gorbold said that he was the only person who could bring peace and security to Taddenlæge. Uthric and Dunstan thought Gorbold had spoken well and had no doubt that he would bring a resolution to the troubles in Taddenlæge. Wulfhere was unsure about Gorbold and said to his brothers that he did not truly trust him but could not say why he thought that way. The Carls and villagers felt the same as Uthric and Dunstan and elected Gorbold as their Þegn. Brecca had only four votes from his father’s house Huscarls. Gorbold held a victory feast in his Hall that night but the Hrothgarsons did not attend. Uthric's leg did not allow him to move freely and he thought it best not to exert himself too much. Wulfhere and Dunstan thought that they should think about how they were to achieve their mission. Wulfhere said they were no closer to understanding what had happened in Taddenlæge. They decided they would sleep in the bur again that night. In the morning they were awoken by the door of the bur being kicked open and loud shouting in Brythonic for them to surrender or be killed. Uthric could not even stand unaided so while Wulfhere and Dunstan would have considered trying to fight they agreed that it would mean the death of Uthric. Dunstan said they were already in enough trouble with their mother so it would probably be best to live a bit longer rather than tell her they had left Uthric to die on his own. Wulfhere said that still might be the case but they agreed to put down their weapons. They were bound and taken outside. Taddenlæge was surrounded by over one hundred British warriors. Some were well armed and some only had hunting spears or bows but all were focused on a conversation that was occurring just out of the Hrothgarsons hearing. Eventually three men came over and one said in halting Saxon that he had work for them. Uthric said that he spoke Brythonic if the man would prefer to use that language however since he was a prisoner he was happy to leave the choice to his captor. The man smiled ruefully and said he wished all Sais had such curtesy but then again being in threat of your life tends to provoke compromises that might not otherwise be agreed to if a person was fully armed and healthy. The man introduced himself as Orin ap Brinn, a Chieftain of the Artrebates. He said he had thought about killing them but he did not much like killing prisoners and had therefore thought that rather than death they might wish to convey a message to Tadda. Uthric said that this might be difficult. When Brinn signified his displeasure at this seeming reluctance, Uthric said it was not that he would refuse to do what Brinn had asked nor that he was unwilling. It was that any message sent to Tadda could be delivered but it was unlikely that there would be any answer that Orin would understand. He told Orin that Tadda was delirious and looked as if he was going to die of his illness. Orin nodded and asked who was in charge of Taddenlæge now. Uthric said that from the previous night it was Gorbold. Orin said he had asked for someone to come out and talk with him but they had refused. Orin said that Uthric should perhaps be thankful for that refusal to talk had helped Uthric and his brothers live at least another day. He asked them to take his demands to Gorbold and he would allow him a day to consider a reply. Orin said that she would return tomorrow at noon to listen to Gorbold’s words. Orin said that he needed them to be aware of the Artrebates’ demands which were that 1. They wanted all Sais to be gone from their ancestral lands 2. They could no longer trust the Sais. They had promised peace but had killed innocent villagers 3. If there are some Sais who could prove they were not involved in the murder and torture of their women and children and wanted to stay then they must accept Artrebate Chieftains 4. They wanted the men who murdered and tortured their children and women to be given up for justice 5. Failure to agree to these terms would mean that Taddenlæge will be declared besieged and there would be no ingress or egress Orin asked Uthric if he understood these demands and asked him to repeat them back. He said he was curious about how Uthric spoke Brythonic. He said that the Sais rarely bothered to learn their language and relied on slaves or captives to translate or on shouting loudly and waving weapons in the air. Uthric said that where he came from Saxons and Britons mixed freely and had equal rights under the King. Orin said that this was unusual but he was interested to learn if the Chieftains were Britons or Sais. When Uthric replied that they were Saxon, Orin said that he thought that would be the case and at some point, when the Britons became inconvenient, they would be turned out of their lands. Uthric asked Orin if they could keep their weapons and armour but Orin refused. Orin then signalled to his men to withdraw and Wulfhere and Dunstan supported Uthric to walk to the gate. Wulfhere and Uthric told Gorbold of Orin's demands. Gorbold was angry that Taddenlæge was being threatened but decided he would call a Moot that night because he thought it best if all the townspeople were in agreement to any tough decisions and if there were going to be harsh measures people would need to be willing to back him. Uthric said that seemed a good idea but he was curious why Gorbold had not spoken to Orin directly. Gorbold shrugged and said he was considering options. Wulfhere said that in his view that it had been a good decision not to talk as he and his brothers had not been killed. Dunstan was unhappy with the situation and said that they were now down and out in Taddenlæge. Uthric said they at least were still alive and reasonably healthy even if their weapons and equipment were gone. Dunstan said he thought it might be time to take up Gorbold's offer of accommodation and that he was no longer quite so keen to sleep outside the walls in the bur. Uthric wanted Dunstan and Wulfhere to leave and get some warriors either from Cerdic or Tæthle but neither Wulfhere or Dunstan wanted to leave yet. Dunstan said the brothers needed to stay together besides travelling through enemy territory without weapons was not the greatest idea he could come up with. Just after midday there was excitement in Taddenlæge. Thirteen men, led by a grizzled warrior called Leofstan, had arrived from the Southlands to reinforce the defence. Everyone said this was unexpected except for Gorbold who said that he would reveal all at the Moot. Most of the adults of Taddenlæge attended the Moot which had to be held in the market place again to allow people to hear what was happening. Gorbold told everyone that he had secretly sent a Messenger south several weeks ago when the troubles had started. He said he had foreseen that the situation would get worse and had sent one of his man to visit all the great Lords of the Saxons to ask for aid. He pointed out that Aelle had been their oath Lord for years but not once had he helped Taddenlæge. No-one was sure of Cerdic as no-one could predict what he would do. Gorbold said that he had hoped Cerdic's ambition to rule more lands would have helped to get a favourable response but he had refused to send help. The only Southern Lord who had responded was King Octa and he had sent men immediately and had promised more to come. Gorbold said that they should make no mistake. The demands of the Artrebates show that they were intent on taking Taddenlæge for themselves. He said this was their land and that Saxons had built it up from nothing with hard work, sweat and blood. He said that no-one would take the homes from the people of Taddenlæge particularly since they were innocent of the crimes the Artrebates had accused them of. Gorbold said that he had spent the afternoon thinking about this and he had come to the decision it was an Artrebate plot to take their homes and goods but he would resist them with the help of King Octa. Gorbold was a good orator and the people gave him his support. They agreed they would reject the Artrebate demands and hold the town until Octa's reinforcements arrived in two or three days. Rowena was the only one to object to Gorbold’s speech. She said she thought maybe the Artrebates might have a point and Gorbold should at least negotiate about their grievances. She was shouted down by the crowd and the people agreed with Gorbold that they would resist the Artrebates despite the short-term discomfort. Gorbold invited the Hrothgarsons to come to his Hall and when they returned Gorbold called for food and ale. He said he was happy with the outcome and asked the brothers for their opinion. Uthric said that Gorbold should be aware that Octa was treacherous and this might be a case of Octa stirring things up. Gorbold said that he needed warriors now and Octa was the only Lord to respond. He thought if he had to wait for Aelle or Cerdic there might be nothing left here to defend particularly if the Artrebates carried through with their threat to destroy Taddenlæge. Octa had sent a message with his men to say that he had sent Ealdorman Coelfrith with a large Warband north to subdue the Artrebates and protect Taddenlæge. Wulfhere and Dunstan were dismayed. Dunstan said that Coelfrith was Aelle's Ealdorman, not Octa's but even so he had been untrustworthy in all dealings with all the villages around his town. He was also the Ealdorman who was Dunric's patron. Gorbold dismissed Dunstan's opinions and said that he was doing what he could for the best of Taddenlæge. The Hrothgarsons spoke privately together after the feast. Wulfhere said that someone was playing a game. They knew that they could not trust Octa or Coelfrith and they were certainly not keen to be in Dunric's company. They again discussed if they should leave, Dunstan asked if they really wanted to be in Taddenlæge when Coelfrith and Dunric arrived. Uthric agreed and said that he would not be getting good odds on their survival after Dunric arrived not to mention Coelfrith. They again decided they should wait and Dunstan pointed out that they had no weapons and armour yet. Uthric wondered if it was on purpose that no one had offered any weapons to replace the ones that Orin had taken. They hoped that they would be safe to wait until Uthric could stand on his leg unaided. The next day they decided to go and see Rowena again. Wulfhere did not like the idea of staying in Gorbold's Hall if Coelfrith was coming and thought that it might be very easy for them to get a knife in their ribs when asleep or vulnerable. Rowena was happy for them to stay and even gave them weapons and armour from her store for which they were grateful. They discussed the situation with her further. She said she was not aware of Octa but thought if he had offered help then they would do well to accept it. None of the other Lords had offered any aid. She admitted that she had heard rumours that Octa's army were comprised of men who were desperate, landless or outlaws and had a reputation for cruelty and this worried her as there were likely to be more Artrebates in the area than Saxon warriors. Wulfhere said that Coelfrith was not known for actively supporting his Þegns or their villages, nor did he follow his Lords commands in their own experience of him. Rowena thought that although she did not necessarily agree with Gorbold’s decisions they had been made for the good of Taddenlæge. Dunstan disagreed. He said that someone associated with Octa and Coelfrith had been causing trouble. He thought it likely that Rowena's husband had been killed by those people and it was no coincidence that Tadda was sick because he is friendly with the Artrebates. Rowena was not wholly convinced by their arguments and wondered what purpose it served if it were as Wulfhere and Dunstan said. Wulfhere said that he had also had these worries and the only reason he could come up with was that Coelfrith and Octa wanted more power and land. Their discussions were interrupted by the news that Orin had arrived for his answer to his demands and Gorbold was going to meet him. When they arrived at the gate they watched as Gorbold talked to Orin. They could not hear what was spoken but they could see that Orin was visibly angry. Gorbold started to return to the gate when Orin ran forward and pointed to Leofstan. They could hear Orin’s words as he accused Leofstan of being the leader of the Warband that had attacked their villages and killed women and children without mercy. Orin spoke in Saxon and his voice was loud enough for all who were at the gates or walls to hear his accusations. Gorbold stopped momently but continued walking and ordered the gates to be closed. Orin came forward and announced that Taddenlæge was besieged. No-one would go in-out until either the Sais were dead or the Atrebates had died in the attempt. He turned and left without saying anything further. Rowena had been listening to what Orin had said and she had confronted Leofstan but he had denied any knowledge of killing Artrebates. He said that Orin must have been mistaken as he had only come north two days ago. She said that she was not sure about that and asked Gorbold to hold a town Moot that night. She thought it best that the allegations were aired in public and some agreement reached because if the Artrebates would not allow anyone to leave or come in then Taddenlæge was under the greatest threat in its history. Gorbold would need to devise a plan and that plan needed to have the support of the whole town. Gorbold agreed with Rowena and invited everyone to attend the town Moot that night. Wulfhere asked Rowena if she could talk to Brecca about seeing Tadda. He thought that if he knew more about the illness then they might be able to get help for it. Rowena agreed and took them to see Brecca. She persuaded him that Wulfhere might be able to help. When they entered the room, Tadda was lying in bed. The bed clothes were drenched with sweat and he tossed fitfully from side to side. Sometimes he would mumble words but they could make no sense of what he said. They noticed he was painfully thin and the woman who was tending him said that she even had difficulty getting him to drink. It was clear to Wulfhere and Dunstan that Tadda was dying slowly. The only question appeared to be how long he would continue to hold on. Wulfhere asked if there was a leæce in the town but Brecca said that sometimes leæces would make the trip north but they could never tell when they would come. Wulfhere delivered Cerdic's greetings to his cousin, Tadda, and Wulfhere said he hoped that he would recover. Tadda did not respond and they doubted that he had heard them. With that they left as the smell of death was already in the room and they could not abide it any longer. At the Town Moot that night the market place was packed. The Hrothgarsons had decided to stay at the back of the crowd. Rowena told the crowd that she had grave misgivings about Gorbold’s behaviour. She said she felt that he had acted duplicitously with this new alliance with Coelfrith and Octa. No-one knew who these men were and why they suddenly had an interest in the north and in particular with Taddenlæge. All their difficulties had started when the leæce, Dunric, had visited Tadda and he had fallen ill shortly afterwards. She said that she had become aware that Dunric had fled the north after summoning a Déaþscufa to attack people he had an argument with. She reminded them that it was customary that if you have an argument with someone you bring it to an Ealdorman or the King. She felt it was an underhand to summon creatures from the shadows rather than accuse people in the daylight. She said it was interesting that the attacks on the Saxon traders, including her husband’s murder, and on the Artrebates had begun at that time of Dunric’s arrival. She asked what purpose had this been for and who had benefitted. She said she knew that it was not the people of Taddenlaege. She asked the crowd to consider what Orin ap Brinn had said about Leofstan. Orin had been their friend and now he was their enemy. She said that not only had the people of Taddenlaege suffered but the Artrebate villages had been destroyed and women and children killed. Orin had blamed Leofstan and he needed to account for his actions. Leofstan slowly got to his feet from where he had been lounging on one of the mead benches that had been brought out of the Þegn’s Hall. Leofstan denied that he had been involved in any killing of the Britons in the north. If it had been a Saxon that had killed the Artrebates then he thought it must have been outlaws. He believed Orin was mistaken and was only following his own agenda to rid the north of the Saxons who had made Taddenlæge wealthy. There were loud cheers for Leofstan’s speech and muttering throughout the crowd about Rowena. Dunstan had had enough. He moved to the front of the crowd and asked if he could say something. Before anyone could refuse him, he started by saying he had been sent north with his brothers to deliver a message to Tadda and had come here in good faith. He said that he found these times troubling and the prospect of an all-out war now seemed likely. He said that people needed to consider what had happened three weeks ago. Dunric was a leæce who had been banished from his homeland. He murdered people in the south, unleashed a Déaþscufa on innocent people and then visited Tadda who immediately had fallen sick. At the same time attacks had started on the Saxon traders and on the Artrebate villages. The people of Taddenlæge have said it was not them and the Artrebates deny attacking Saxons. He asked the people to think about who might be attacking both sides and for what purpose. He also said that they should remember that Orin accused Leofstan of being behind the attacks. He said that people needed to think for themselves and look at the evidence. Coelfrith was devious and Octa was a desperate man, a King without a kingdom or power. He asked why would they want or be interested in lands in the north. Leofstan stood up and said that they could not believe Dunstan as he was an outlander. He asked if Dunstan was here to help why had he not brought any warriors. He thought it was strange that Dunstan was choosing to believe an Artrebate rather than a Saxon and wondered if Dunstan and his brothers were actually behind the attacks. Dunstan was infuriated and demanded Leofstan apologise for the remark. Both men drew their seaxs and the crowd parted to let them fight but Gorbold moved in between them and asked both men to put away their weapons. He said it was unbecoming of either warrior to fight the other when the real enemy was besieging Taddenlæge. Gorbold said that this is what Orin wanted. He had sowed mistrust and doubt in people who should be allies. He thought it was likely that Orin had recognised Leofstan as a stranger and decided on this ploy to weaken Taddenlæge. Gorbold said he was sure that Coelfrith would arrive soon with a Warband and together they would defeat the Artrebates and have peace once again. Rowena said that she did not believe any of Gorbold’s words and Leofstan had been identified by Orin as a murderer. She said that if people really wanted to trust Coelfrith and Octa they were free to do so but she for one was reserving judgement and would be seeking the truth. The Moot broke up and Uthric said to Wulfhere that he had no doubt that Orin could tell the difference between a stranger and the man who had led a Warband to destroy villages and kill women and children. Dunstan was still angry when they got back to Rowena's Hall and said he would still like to fight Leofstan but Rowena made him sit and gave him ale. Uthric's wounds had bled again because he had been moving around too much and it was agreed that from now on he was to say in Rowena's Hall. They discussed what they should do. None of them wanted to fall into Coelfrith's hands particularly if Dunric was with him. The leæce had a cruel reputation and the death he gave anyone would be long and painful. Uthric wanted his brothers to leave that night and seek out Cerdic and tell her what was happening. Wulfhere thought that would be a good idea. Cerdic would not want to see Coelfrith establish a base in the north and he would likely send reinforcements. Dunstan said he was reluctant to leave Uthric behind but Rowena said it would be necessary because he could not walk unaided and any sustained walking would open his wounds. She said that Dunstan had now made an enemy of Leofstan and he would need to have eyes in the back of his head. Rowena said that they should not be concerned about Uthric as she could keep him safe in the secret room in the undercroft of the Hall. He could recover while Wulfhere and Dunstan sought advice from Cerdic. Wulfhere said that this was the best plan they could make but thought they might have difficulty in escaping the Artrebate blockade. Rowena said that this was true but she thought if they travelled east along the banks of the river Alre and keep on until they reach the Moen then they should avoid any Artrebates. She thought the difficult bit might be getting out of Taddenlæge. Wulfhere said both he and Dunstan were more than capable of sneaking through woods so he was not particularly worried. Rowena ordered her cooks to bake thrice-baked travel bread and gave Dunstan and Wulfhere the pick of weapons and armour. They agreed that if the next night was cloudy they would attempt to get away. Brecca came to see Rowena but was happy to include the Hrothgarsons in the discussion. He was concerned that the delicate peace and relationships that his father had built up with the Atrebates had been shattered. He was concerned that Taddenlæge would be destroyed and that they were being manipulated by outside forces. Wulfhere said he agreed with Brecca's views but was unsure what they could do about it until the outside forces showed their hand and they could react. Brecca said he was tired of reacting and that he wanted to go on the offensive and let others react as they saw fit. Dunstan suggested that if he was intent on seeking help from others then he could talk to Tæthle in Cædering. She would likely give him warriors to come north because of her close relationship with the Hrothgarsons. Brecca thanked them for their advice and said he would think about how he would react to that information. In the morning there was a new development. It seemed the Brecca had left with his remaining four loyal Huscarls had gone over the wall in the night. No-one knew where or why they had gone. Gorbold was angry that five warriors had left and he gave orders that no-one else was to leave. When he heard of the new order, Dunstan said that he for one would not be taking any advice from Gorbold. Dunstan said that they should remain together until they had six working legs between the three of them. He said that he had noticed that Leofstan had become very brave after Gorbold had told everyone there would be no fighting. He said he was still annoyed by Leofstan's insults and he planned to take it up with him again. Uthric still said that they should leave as soon as possible and get help from Cerdic. He thought every day of delay would bring Coelfrith and Dunric closer and trying to hide three men was much more difficult than hiding one man. Wulfhere said he would have difficulty telling Cerdic why he needed to ask for help. He still had no real idea what was happening and who was doing what. He reminded them what Cerdic had asked them to do and how he had said that he wanted Tadda to send him men therefore it might be likely Cerdic had no warriors to spare. Wulfhere also said he had difficulty in seeing what the advantages in this were for Gorbold. He had become Þegn but that was a poisoned cup. He wondered who might be pulling the strings. Dunstan said that in his mind it was clear that the rogue leæce, Dunric, was behind this and probably Coelfrith. He doubted Octa would have thought of this on his own. Dunstan was sure that Gorbold was somehow involved but he could not prove it. Wulfhere said that Gorbold had definitely benefitted from the upheavals and conflict but they had no proof that he was in on it and may have only taken the opportunity to take control. Uthric said that in this case they had two options given the lack of evidence. They could attempt to get out of Taddenlæge and tell Cerdic and ask for his advice or alternately they could wait to see what happens. In the late afternoon, Orin came to Taddenlæge and asked to talk to Gorbold. He gave Gorbold the body of Brecca who he said had been killed when he tried to evade the blockade. Orin said that he was sorry Brecca had died but too many good men had also died and he thought that if Gorbold was willing they should think about agreeing a peace. He said that he would like to know if Gorbold had made a decision about the Artrebates’ demands. Gorbold accepted Brecca's body and said that he would see that Brecca was treated with respect. Gorbold said that he thought maybe the killing should end and asked Orin to come back tomorrow and he would give him an answer. He said he needed time to talk to the people of Taddenlæge and make them see that further killing was unnecessary. Orin said that there was an exception in any peace deal with regards to Leofstan. He would need to be given over to be tried for murder. He said that Gorbold should know that it was likely he would be tried, found guilty and executed. Orin said that it would be a better death than he deserved and better than the deaths Leofstan had given many of the women and children he had captured. Gorbold laid Brecca's body in the marketplace on a table he had bought from the Þegn’s Hall and dressed him in his richest clothes and wrapped him in an embroidered cloth to hide the wounds. Gorbold let it be known that he would hold a Moot that night. The people of the town came to see Brecca and added small items that he might find useful in the afterlife. Gorbold made a great speech that night. He told the people of Taddenlæge that they had two choices. Firstly, they could stay and fight or else they could gather their portable belongings and leave. He said his own choice would always be that they needed to stay and fight. Some of the Carls asked Gorbold about Orin’s claims that the Artrebate villages were attacked by Leofstan. Many of the Carls had been friendly with the Artrebates and some had Artrebate wives. Gorbold said he had not really had time to think about the claims and had not been able to investigate it. Leofstan said that they should not believe the word of a Briton over that of a Saxon. The Carls were not happy with Leofstan's answers and there was murmuring which Gorbold tried to unsuccessfully stop. The Carls and other townsfolk demanded Leofstan's arrest and Gorbold reluctantly agreed. He was not keen to lose another warrior but he recognised that the people would not agree to any other outcome. Leofstan began to say something but Gorbold tore a piece of cloth from his tunic and put it in his mouth. He said that in his opinion warriors needed to face their wyrd bravely and he was not keen to hear Leofstan’s pleadings. Leofstan looked for a way to escape but was held by two strong carls and he was then bound with ropes. Gorbold ordered that Leofstan be taken out of the palisade and tied to a stake for the Artrebates. Leofstan could be heard whining even with the cloth stuck in his mouth. When Leofstan was led away Gorbold ordered that a pyre be built in the marketplace. Gorbold lead the procession that carried Brecca’s body to the pyre and the townspeople all watched solemnly while Brecca's body was consumed by the fire. After the fire had cooled his ashes were gathered and put into a sealed Roman urn to bury under a mound when there was peace again. Much to the surprise of the watchers on the walls Leofstan was still there the next morning and throughout the day. The people were angry that Brecca had been killed and they blamed Leofstan. Nothing much happened that day and people tried to go about their business. Children watched Leofstan and wondered what would happen to him. That night Leofstan was taken and in the morning, there was a severed head on top of the stake he had been tied to. Orin stood beside the stake and waited for Gorbold to come. Gorbold had planned this moment. He had warriors hidden behind the stockade near the gates. He himself went out with four of his best warriors to talk to Orin. After some minutes of discussion, Gorbold suddenly seized and held Orin. One of his warriors hit Orin with his spear butt and the Artrebate Chieftain went limp. Gorbold was quickly reinforced by his men who had hidden behind the palisade whereas Orin's men were slow to react. They had not been expecting treachery and when they ran to help their chieftain they were either killed or captured by the Saxon warriors. Gorbold was pleased with his treachery. He had captured Orin and five other men and told the people he would use them to bargain for a peace settlement.

I misread this and thought it read ... "I'll let you DECIDE"... I'd choose (A)...every time but then I realised it was not a choice but it was an INTx5 roll... which I fumbled so I still chose (A). The fumble was because I'm not very good at inches so if it had been in centimetres it would have been an easy roll... I'm guessing I'll just have to wait having made my Knowledge roll x3 and discovered 1 inch=2.45cm... damn

A Very British Coup A dozen years ago Aelle marked the borders of his kingdom. He had sent a man called Tadda, a Kingsthane, north to make a settlement near the abandoned city of Calleva. Aelle had thought to use it as a base for expansion to the north and west but as often happens in uncertain times, he was distracted by other events closer to home and Taddenlæge was forgotten. Tadda was an astute man and one that sought compromise rather than conflict. He made alliances with the local British villages and even traded with the fortress city of Venta before the Dumnonians took it over. Tadda and the Atrebates tribe had common enemies in the Dumnonians who lived on the other side of the Itchen. Taddenlæge grew over the years and the population increased to the point where it was more like a small city. It was the sixth year since Aelle declared himself Bretwalda and the fourteenth since he became King of the Jutes and South Saxons having deposed Hengist’s sons Esc and Octa. Esc had sworn allegiance to Aelle and now ruled the isle of Thanet. Octa had chosen to go into exile but with Cerdic’s help he now ruled Whit from Whitwarasburgh. Kingsthane Osberht travelled to Ealdorman Cerdic’s Yule festival in an oxcart. He was still in pain from his burns but thought that it was time he took up his duties and he was attending the Yule feast to renew his oaths to Cerdic. Thane Taethle, Lucnot and the Hrothgarsons travelled with him. Dunstan asked around the taverns in Portus Cæster if anyone had seen Beorthric or Winfrith. A merchant told him that he had met men with that name in Cissa Cæster two moons ago. They had asked him for information about travelling to Lundenwic or possibly to Anderida and Caer Ceint. The merchant could not remember the exact request but he remembered the names and what they looked like. Dunstan told his brothers and they discussed that the information was already two moons out of date. It was unlikely that either man would still be in Cissa Cæster and they could not go travelling across Ceint in the hope they might meet the two fugitives. Cerdic’s feast was lavish as usual. After last year’s incident the number of guests in the main hall was smaller. There were other smaller feasting halls that had been set up for the Carls and people of Portus Cæster who had an interest in attending. The last year had not gone as Cerdic had hoped but he still felt it was a success. He had curbed Octa’s power by purging his warband of known criminals and turning some of the outlaws over to the justice of those looking for them. It was said that Octa had become much more accommodating to Cerdic’s wishes after Cerdic took his action. Cerdic had had to postpone his war with Dumnonia. The Leæces of the Isle of Halig had warned him that war would be unlucky and although not a superstitious man he had postponed his attack. Instead he had sent the new people who had arrived from Friesland over the Moen to build fortified villages or to take over abandoned British villages that had been cleared of the previous inhabitants. In the north, news had come that the Bretwalda Aelle was planning to move along the Tamyse valley and there was murmuring among Cerdic’s Carls that he should do something about this. Most were of the opinion that Cerdic should declare himself King and break with Aelle. The leæces of Halig Isle had made the old sacred sacrifice, examined the sacrifice’s entrails and read the runes and they had told Cerdic that Aelle would die soon. The Carls thought that it should be Cerdic’s main task to hurry Aelle’s death. Cerdic’s feud with Ealdorman Coelfrith continued after the events at Cædering where a Deáþscúfa had been summoned by Dunric. Coelfrith had disowned Dunric. He has told Aelle that the Leæce has not been seen since the Midsummer festival. Cerdic had complained to Aelle that Coelfrith’s leæce, Dunric had summoned the Deáþscúfa but Coelfrith denied it was on his orders and the leæce had been acting on his own. There was peace with Coelfrith but most were under the impression that the payment was still to be made. Cerdic asked to see the Hrothgarsons on the second day of the Feast. He praised their deeds in their recent help in defeating the Deáþscúfa, their successes in the Battles at Cædering, Cælctun and Glawmæd that had allowed the taking of Llys. He was especially pleased that they had humbled Coelfrith and he had lost power in the area. He told them of his plans for this season with an attack on Dumnonia and a likely push north to the Tamyse valley to secure a crossing point. He asked if they would be willing to take a message to his cousin Tadda, a King’s Thane who ruled in a settlement called Taddenlæge. Cerdic explained that Tadda had been sent north twelve years ago by Aelle and more or less forgotten. Tadda had made a success of the settlement and attracted a lot of the British Atrebates tribe as his allies and building a loose confederation who lived in peace with each other. The Atrebates were traditional enemies of the Dumnonians and had been in conflict with them for many years. Tadda had supported their conflict and helped them maintain their independence. None of the Hrothgarsons had ever heard of Taddenlæge even when Cerdic explained where it lay. Cerdic wanted his cousin to swear an oath of allegiance to him rather than Aelle and send him troops south to help him with his war against the Dumnonians. He was keen for as many troops as possible, either Saxon or British and all would be rewarded when the victory came. Wulfhere said that they would be willing to take the message and Cerdic thanked them. He emphasised the importance of persuading Tadda to join him and said that he would have better support from him than he ever had from Aelle. After Yule they returned to Glawmæd to set things in order. They planned to leave after the Festival of Sol-monath. Dunstan, who felt most responsible for Egfryd and constantly fretted that Hildegard was over-feeding him on honey cakes, consulted Iola, the wise woman. He asked her to make a charm to make Egfryd refuse proffered honey cakes. Dunstan paid Iola who inscribed some marks on a stone and told Dunstan he should bury it underneath a Bee’s nest. Wulfhere asked Lucnot why he had not chosen a wife over the last year. Lucnot said that he had been hoping to ask Taethle to marry him but every time he was in her presence his tongue seemed to stick to the roof of his mouth. He asked Wulfhere if he might sound out the proposition with her as he was Lucnot’s brother-in-law and oldest living relative. Wulfhere promised to do so when he returned from the north. Dunstan decided that Egfryd was old enough to learn a trade. He talked to the boy and Egfryd said that he had an interest in being a Blacksmith. He had often heard Dunstan complain about the cost of armour and he thought if he learnt how to make spears and armour, he would not only help his brothers, but also become rich in the process. He confided to Uthric later that his goal was to become rich because that way he could employ someone to make him honey cakes whenever he wanted instead of having to wait for Hildegard to offer them when Dunstan was not around. Uthric said he thought this was a shrewd move by Egfryd and he swore on his Hammer amulet he would not tell Dunstan. The Hrothgarsons prepared for their journey. On Hildegard’s advice, Meire and Bronwyn insisted that Wulfhere and Uthric set a time when they would return home. Wulfhere estimated they would only be gone half a moon at the most. Their task was simple and according to the merchants they had talked to it was a relatively straight forward journey along the old people’s road heading west. The only dangerous part was to skirt round the Dumnonian fortress of Venta and then go on the road north until they reached Taddenlæge. On the morning they were to leave five riders appeared coming from the north. They were led by an imposing woman riding a white horse who named herself as Ealhwyn Hrofsdotter. She told them she was an emissary of Aelle and she had been made aware that they were going to Taddenlæge to ask for help from Tadda for Cerdic. Aelle’s command to them was to ignore Cerdic’s request and tell Tadda to send him troops to Anderida instead, where they would be needed for Aelle’s forthcoming campaign. If they were successful Aelle would give them all great rewards. Wulfhere apologised but asked how he was to know if Ealhwyn spoke for Aelle as he had never met her before. She told Wulfhere that she was the daughter of Ealdorman Hrof, who they had met on the occasion of their visit to Anderida but she was also married to Aelle’s son, Wlencing and therefore a Princess. Wulfhere bowed his knee for he believed her words. After getting his agreement she jumped on her horse and rode south. Wulfhere discussed what had happened with his brothers and expressed the view that there was a spy in Cerdic’s court. Dunstan reminded him that they had talked to merchants about possible routes but agreed that their mission for Cerdic had not been disclosed. Uthric said that since his eldest brother was a Thane it was for him to work out what they should do. Wulfhere took some time to think through the tangle of relationships. As a Thane he swore an oath to Cerdic who was his Ealdorman. Cerdic in turn swore an oath to Aelle as his King. The King was therefore the arbiter and keeper of all oaths. The conflict in oaths between Cerdic and Aelle was the issue. Wulfhere decided that the simplest solution was to tell Tadda of both demands and let him decide what he wanted to do. They had disagreements about the possible route. They knew that there was a Dumnonian fortress, Venta that they had to pass which was likely to have patrols that could be a danger. They discussed taking more men but agreed stealth was better than strength. Eventually they decided on the quickest route which would be to go along the old people’s road and strike north through the forest before they came to Venta and re-join the road further north which should take them to Taddenlæge. They stayed the first night of travel at Old Wincen Cæster Hill in the company of a Thane called Ælfric and some of his warriors. Ælfric was returning to Portus Cæster having taken his men over the Moen on an errand for Cerdic. Dunstan told them the story of the death of Ætremód and Ælfric shared mutton and ale that they had raided from the Britons. Uthric spent some time looking at the Hill. He had long thought he might like to build a settlement here and was of the opinion that this would be an excellent position for trade and defence. Wulfhere said that perhaps trade would not be ideal at present because apart from Glawmæd, the closest neighbours would be Dumnonians. It might also be difficult to farm if your lands kept getting raided. Uthric said that this was his future dream and he could envision heavily laden Oxcarts taking goods north and staying overnight in the safety of the Hill. They continued along the old people’s road and crossed the ford at the Moen without seeing anyone. The land around had been raided and although it was good farm land no one had lived here for many years. Most existing settlements were heavily fortified Burghs and relied on other settlements far behind the disputed lands for food. They smelt the smoke of cooking fires of Venta before they could see it and agreed that it would be best to go north through the forest. The forest was old and full of dead-end trails and they quickly became lost and unsure if they were heading in the right direction. They turned west hoping to strike the road but realised that they had not gone far enough north and had come too close to Venta. Wulfhere was not pleased with Dunstan and said that he expected more from Dunstan’s skills in woodcraft. He did not think that they were proficient enough with their spears for all three of them to attack Venta and if that was Dunstan’s idea then he needed to have a more realistic view of himself. Dunstan was apologetic and they again went north staying close to the road but did not yet dare to walk in the open. After half a day’s march Uthric realised that they were being followed by some people that were trying to remain hidden. They kept moving north but agreed that they would try and lay an ambush. Wulfhere and Uthric hid themselves in the undergrowth and surprised a group of three Britons who were trailing them. Uthric and Wulfhere used their spears well and the two leading men fell. The third managed to get two arrows off which hit Wulfhere in the chest and Uthric in the helmet. Uthric stabbed him in the leg with his spear and the man fell over incapacitated. He put his spear to the man’s throat and he surrendered. Wulfhere was not pleased that his new leather jerkin had a hole in it and very obvious blood stains. His injury was not significant and was likely to heal quickly. Uthric looked comical with an arrow lodged in his helmet. They removed their prisoner’s weapons. His wound in his leg was serious and it was unlikely that he would walk without help. Uthric stopped the bleeding in his leg and sat beside him and asked him his name. The man was startled that Uthric spoke British but told them his name was Caradoc. Uthric said he had been unlucky to meet the Hrothgarsons and even more unlucky to have a leg wound. Caradoc said that his luck had not been good recently and he had a premonition that it did not look like improving. Wulfhere wanted to know where he was from and why they had been trailing them. Caradoc said that all Sais were his enemy and after they had burnt his village and even killed all the women and children it was unlikely that he would ever be friends with the Sais. He said he had lost all faith in anything the Sais said and considered them wreckers, murderers and without honour. Wulfhere thought that he should perhaps have a more open mind and that not all Saxons were without honour. He said for instance he had a British wife and lived in a mainly British village. Caradoc said that this might be so for him but asked if he had a British or a Sais Chieftain. Wulfhere admitted the village was ruled by Saxons and Caradoc nodded and said that this was how it always started. The Sais would initially be friendly but in the end, they killed the British and took what they wanted. Wulfhere said that he could only speak for himself and his brothers but that was not how they saw things but each person was entitled to their own opinion. He offered Caradoc his life if he would agree to serve him for a year. Caradoc said that he didn’t see any advantage for him in being a slave. He considered himself a free man and he had been a person of importance in his village before the Sais had destroyed it and killed his wife and children. He said he would rather end his life and go to the otherworld to be with his family who were likely waiting for him. Wulfhere said that he accepted his decision and killed him quickly. Dunstan and Wulfhere were perplexed by Caradoc’s words. They had been told that there were good relations between the British and Saxons and yet there was a Saxon Warband attacking and destroying British villages. Wulfhere wondered if the Warbands were the same ones Cerdic had sent out last year and if this was so, it would likely complicate their mission. Uthric said he was interested in the British Otherworld and wondered if it was the same as the Saxon Afterworld. He observed that events in the Afterworld frequently mirrored those in Miðgarðr and he would not be surprised if the British were feasting in their otherworld and enjoying themselves when a warband of Saxons would arrive, kick down the door and kill all the men and take over the feast. He laughed at the thought and said that it would be a great shock to Caradoc if it happened. Dunstan said that this was the British wyrd and he agreed with Uthric that it was an amusing thought. He thought it would be interesting to see the look on Caradoc’s face when Saxon raiders burst in. The Hrothgarsons arrived in Taddenlæge just as the sun set. The gate guards looked nervous but directed them to the Thane’s Hall as they had requested. There were more guards at the entrance which they found odd but they let them past with minimal questions. They approached the high seat where two men were seated. They addressed the older man assuming he was the Thane and named themselves saying that they had travelled form the south with messages for Tadda. The older man introduced himself as Gorbold Gethlison, one of the prominent men of Taddenlæge and the younger man he introduced as Brecca Taddason. Brecca welcomed them although they noticed that he seemed unsure of himself and often stumbled over his words. He told them that his father was ill and had been so for the last two weeks. He was not able to receive guests but that Brecca, as his son, could hear the message. Wulfhere thanked him and asked if they could be assigned a dwelling where they could refresh themselves and meet with Brecca in private. Brecca called the steward, Eadric, who offered them a choice of staying in the Hall or if they required somewhere quieter he could let them have the use of a bur outside the palisade. Wulfhere agreed that the bur would suit their purposes but they did not expect to be staying for long. Gorbold offered to show them the bur and Eadric said that he would need a short time to prepare in order to make sure it was swept, had fresh rushes laid on the floor and the bedding straw was fresh. Uthric and Dunstan thought this was a good thing. They both were thinking of their experiences in Kernow and the difference in Saxon and British hospitality. Brecca said he would be delighted if they joined him tonight in the hall for food and afterwards they could talk but in the meantime they should rest after their journey. That night Brecca held a feast. He asked The Hrothgarsons about their family and what news they had. Dunstan told them of their recent difficulties in the south with Thane Gorm and the battles with the British Regneses tribe. Dunstan told the story modestly and did not overly promote either himself or his brothers. Everyone said that he had spoken well and many were impressed. Gorbold gave Dunstan a ring when he sat down told Brecca to bring him some of the special ale to ease Dunstan’s throat. Brecca was interested in the story of the Déaþscufa and Dunric’s part in it. He told how a leæce of a similar description and name had come to Taddenlæge one moon ago. Dunstan said that Dunric seemed to bring trouble wherever he went and Wulfhere thought it might not be a coincidence that Tadda fell ill after a visit from Dunric. Brecca thought it unlikely that a leæce would have caused so much trouble. He believed his father was ill because he had been Ælfshot having inadvertently offended one of the ælfar. Uthric said it would not be the first time that Dunric sets spirits on his kin. Indeed, trouble didn’t seem to avoid Dunric but preceded and followed him too. Gorbold said that all the talk of Ælfar and spirts was depressing and that the feast was turning melancholy. He thought that they should enliven things by having a riddling contest. He challenged Wulfhere to a contest and put forward the prize of a thick silver torc. Wulfhere said that he would rather not as his last riddling contest had not ended so well. The warriors laughed at him and they shouted that southerners were not as capable as the hardy northerners. Wulfhere reluctantly agreed. The contest went on over ten rounds and was evenly matched, sometimes Wulfhere failed but Gorbold also failed to guess the answer to Wulfhere’s riddle. At last Wulfhere asked a riddle that Gorbold could not answer: My hall is not silent, nor am I myself loud. My lord created a journey together for us two. I am faster than him, sometimes stronger; he is more powerful. Sometimes I rest; he must run onwards. I will dwell in him for as long as I live: If we two part, death will be fated to me. There was loud acclaim for Wulfhere’s final riddle and since Gorbold did not guess it Wulfhere would not tell the answer. Wulfhere said that it will remain a mystery for now. Gorbold willingly gave him the silver torc and with his own hands put it round his neck. The feast was enjoyable and Brecca asked Wulfhere what was the message he had brought for his father. Wulfhere said that he would prefer to deliver it to Brecca in private or with his counsel rather than at a feast where most had already too much to drink. Gorbold thought that the political situation in the world was changing. New powers were arising and the old order might be swept away. Uthric asked why the British were hunting travellers. Brecca and Gorbold looked at one another before answering. It was Gorbold that said that as far he was aware the British had decided that they no longer accepted Saxon rule. He was not sure why but he thought it might be because they knew Tadda was sick and that he might die. He thought it might not be beyond the bounds of possibility that if the sickness was because of evil spirits sent to afflict Tadda then it had been the Britons who had done it. There was a murmur of agreement in the hall after Gorbold’s speech. Brecca tried to change the subject because he said he felt uneasy talking about these things in an open hall with so many people listening. He asked about the political situation in the south and the rumours they had heard about Cerdic challenging Aelle. The brothers said that high level politics were not their concern but acknowledged that there was a growing tension. Gorbold said that he thought that he had heard Wulfhere say that they brought a message from Cerdic and therefore must have some knowledge of what Cerdic was thinking. When none of the brothers replied he let the question go and spoke of lighter subjects. After the feast, Gorbold walked them back to their bur. He said that they should come tomorrow to his Hall for a feast as he would like to talk to them further. Wulfhere said they would be pleased to do so and they left each other on good terms. When they were back in the bur, they discussed the new information they had learnt. They were all most concerned that Dunric had visited Taddenlæge and the troubles seemed to escalate from when he had arrived. Tadda had fallen ill, the British seemed to take exception to Saxon overlords, the British alleged that Saxons were killing their women and children and they were in turn killing Saxons. Dunstan wanted to know why Dunric would have travelled north. He could not think of a reason but thought that maybe they had just not found the answer yet. Uthric wondered if the Carls who had killed Garm were behind the attacks on the British villages and they might have linked up with Dunric. Wulfhere said they could speculate all night on links and causes. He was more concerned about what they should do about Dunric if they found him. There was a proscription on killing leæces and it was well known that it would bring bad luck on the person who did it until the fifth generation. It was also said that the souls of those who killed a leæce would be gnawed by the dragon Níðhǫgg in the underworld. They all shuddered at the thought but Wulfhere said that he wondered how true this was. The proscription on killing leæces came from other leæces and he thought there might be a bit of self-interest in the ruling. None of them were sure that they wanted to test out the truth of the matter. It was left unresolved how they would deal with Dunric if they found he was mixed up in this. In the morning they went to see Brecca. As they arrived in the Hall they interrupted what appeared to be a tense situation. A tall woman was shouting at Brecca, calling him a useless cowardly nīþing and she was demanding that he get off his father’s chair and do something useful. Brecca did not look at her while she shouted at him and spent the time studying his hands. The woman stopped shouting when she saw the Hrothgarsons and abruptly turned and walked off. She paused briefly to stare at the Hrothgarsons before walking on. She did not say anything to them. She stopped and turned again at the entrance to the Hall and said that if Brecca was not prepared to take action, then she would do so on her own. Wulfhere looked at Brecca. It was clear that he was out of his depth and could not take control of what was happening or make decisions to remedy the situation. However, he decided this was none of his business and his job was to deliver a message from Cerdic and another message from Aelle. It was then up to Brecca as Thane to decide on what he would do. Brecca could not even look at Wulfhere as he spoke of Cerdic and Aelle’s requests. Wulfhere tried to be as neutral as possible and not to give either message preference. He thought it might have been lost on Brecca anyway as he did not seem to comprehend what was being asked of him. Wulfhere said that Brecca was likely to need time to consider his response so he would come back tomorrow for an answer. There was a silence in the Hall that became awkward and the brothers exchanged glances. When Brecca continued to say nothing, Wulfhere said they would leave and let him contemplate on his own. They turned and left but as they were leaving they asked the guard at the Hall door who the woman had been. The guard laughed and said that was the Lady Rowena, head of one of the most powerful families in Taddenlæge. They discussed the interview with Brecca when they were alone. Uthric said that he had never met a Thane who appeared so inept and useless. Rowena had been right to call him a nīþing. Dunstan thought that their mission to get reinforcements was doomed even discounting the poisoned cup they had been given by Cerdic and Aelle. Wulfhere sat and stared at the forest for a long time and said it was likely that the Carls would not stand for Brecca’s behaviour much longer. He expected that if Tadda did not recover soon then there would be a new Thane elected. Wulfhere thought they should insist on seeing Tadda. He wondered if they might be able to do something to heal him or even to let him know about the requests. Wulfhere said that he suspected that even if Tadda was well, it was unlikely that any help could be sent south while the British were killing Saxons. They feasted with Gorbold that night. They found him pleasant company and he had good food and ale. The conversation was generally light-hearted but they did ask about Rowena. Gorbold said that Rowena had not been the same since her husband was killed by bandits two weeks ago. She had demanded that Brecca lead a Warband to the British base at Calleva and punish and kill the bandits. Brecca had been incapable of making a decision but it was also unlikely that the Carls would follow him anyway. Everyone viewed Brecca as an unproven Warleader. Gorbold said that he had heard that Rowena was going to take her men north and attack on her own if Brecca would not help. Gorbold said that he felt sorry for Brecca but he thought that it was only a matter of time before there would be a decision by the Carls to replace him as Thane with someone more experienced. Wulfhere asked if Gorbold would be standing for Thane but Gorbold said that despite his prominence in matters of trade, Rowena was a Shieldmaiden in her youth and what Taddenlæge needed now was a War Thane to defend the settlement and destroy the insurgent British. Gorbold thought that Rowena would be the best Warleader for Taddenlæge and he intended to support her if it came to an election. He said that personal ambition had to be put aside for the good of Taddenlæge. Wulfhere and Dunstan agreed that this made sense. Uthric was not sure that he trusted Gorbold. Gorbold offered the brothers to stay the night in his Hall or as many nights as they would be in Taddenlæge. He thought that they might be more comfortable in his Hall rather than in a bur. Wulfhere said that they would likely take him up on his offer but tonight they would sleep in the bur. They again discussed what they should do when back at the bur. It was clear that Taddenlæge could not give troops because of the standoff between the Saxons and the British. It was also clear that Cerdic had not been aware of the situation when he asked them to come and they wondered should they go back and bring warriors from Cædering and Glawmæd to help resolve the situation. They talked around in circles for a while and then decided the best thing was to sleep and see what the next day brought. Dunstan said he felt this was the problem, they were always reacting to situations rather than creating them. In the morning, they were awoken by a commotion and cheering. When they came out of the bur they watched a small warband of twenty warriors led by Rowena heading north in the direction of Calleva. Uthric asked the gate guards why so few were going north and the guard told him that Brecca had refused to send more men so Rowena took her own warriors. Wulfhere said that they thought they should see Brecca and then make some decisions when they had more information. Brecca was in the Thane’s Hall alone and they approached him and asked if he had thought about what they had said the previous day. Brecca said that he could not make any decisions at present and would not be sending any warriors south until the situation was resolved in the north. Wulfhere said that while he understood this he was confused that Brecca had not helped Rowena and sent more warriors with her. Brecca could not answer the question and Wulfhere had to remain confused. Uthric said that he had some skill in healing and thought that he could help if he examined Tadda. Brecca said that he had given up hope that his father might recover but if there was any chance of Uthric healing him then he was willing to take it no matter how small. Brecca took the three Hrothgarsons to see Tadda. He was lying in bed with a fever and was clearly delirious, mumbling and shouting incomprehensible words. Uthric said that unfortunately he had never seen an illness like this before and had no knowledge of his symptoms. When Brecca heard what Uthric said he asked them to leave Tadda in peace. Dunstan asked Wulfhere if there was any point in staying in Taddenlæge if they were unlikely to fulfil their mission. Uthric thought that at least they should wait until Rowena returned which he felt may change the situation. Wulfhere said he thought a positive resolution was slipping away but he needed to make every effort before going back to Cerdic and telling him that he would not get any reinforcements from the north. Wulfhere agreed that they should wait for Rowena to return at the least. It was late afternoon when Rowena and what was left of her Warband returned. They had lost over half of their men on an assault on Calleva where they had tracked the British force to. Rowena went straight to her Hall and did not speak to anyone. Uthric saw Gorbold watching her return from a distance and he went to his own Hall shortly afterwards. Uthric thought it might be good to scout the enemy at Calleva. He said he was tired sitting around waiting for something to happen. If they knew the strength of the fortifications and the numbers of the enemy at least they might be able to add some knowledge to help solve this issue. Dunstan agreed and they went to get their armour and weapons from the bur. They knew the road north went straight to Calleva but thought it unwise to follow it openly because of the danger of enemy patrols. They moved quietly through the forest heading north. Unfortunately, they were not moving as quietly as they thought they were and were ambushed by a British patrol. The arrows that suddenly hit the trees around them or stuck in their shields surprised them but did no damage. The enemy, seeing that they had not hurt any of the brothers, tried to escape but were caught and quickly killed or disabled. One of the enemy did escape and he stopped again and fired arrows. Uthric decided he had had enough of being shot at and charged at the man, crouching behind his shield. The man was either luckier or a better shot that his dead or wounded comrades because two arrows hit Uthric’s right leg. One went through his thigh and the other hit his kneecap and he fell over unable to move without sever pain. The man fired two more arrows but they stuck in Uthric’s shield which he had hid behind. It was likely if Uthric had been alone the man would have killed him but he ran off when Wulfhere and Dunstan came to Uthric’s aid. They helped Uthric up and helped him to walk. It was clear that the return journey would be slow because Uthric was unable to walk without support. Wulfhere examined the bodies of the men they had killed and finding one was still alive interrogated him. The man refused to answer questions other than calling them child murderers and woman killers. He said he would prefer to be killed quickly rather than burnt alive as the Sais usually did. Wulfhere said that this was exactly the stereotypical binary views that perpetuate misunderstanding. Sadly, Wulfhere’s British was good, but not good enough to translate exactly what he meant and the man looked confused. Uthric said that what Wulfhere had said was that the idea that the Saxons were all bad and the British all good was false and that it was not helpful in finding solutions. Wulfhere’s patience was growing thin and he gave the wounded man a quick death. They returned slowly to Taddenlæge without further incident but when they examined Uthric’s leg they knew that he would be unable to walk on it for some weeks. They sat in their bur and made plans. Uthric said that Wulfhere and Dunstan should leave and tell Cerdic what was happening and leave him here until he recovered. The other two disagreed and said that at present they should stick together. Dunstan asked what exactly could they tell Cerdic. They were still not sure what was happening or why there was conflict between the British and Saxons. They decided that they needed a lot of ale and all drank too much before they went to sleep.

I'm being lazy.. and I'm sure this topic has been discussed before...but Is there any reference material for building things like.. Stockades, Steads, Boats, larger buildings etc? Interested in costs and time

Only 20 cows for a bride... Kalfrik might buy some cows then... he is never going to be a silver tongue devil particularly when his Beastspeech is better than his Heortling... and that's barely comprehensible..unless he decides that his life partner is Lulla?

As loud as the New Years fireworks...

If they are marching on the ground, they are an army... or at least that's the collective noun for fleas.. so each baboon has a herd of armies which can be unleashed on unsuspecting victims

Don't they keep fleas?

Absolutely, mixing and matching keeps the excitement. Presenting people with uncertainty and the unknown makes for both good stories, roleplaying and those are the ones people look back on. The antagonist having something the PCs don't understand is good for creativity too. I like it when the players triumph by clever means rather than knowing what to do. My PCs never know how the baddies pulled things off, they just see the effects and make plans. And usually I have no idea how the baddies pull stuff off they act out what I want them to for the story. It's all about waugh! really. 100% don't understand it and it feels terrifying but we got through it. Then we waughed to the tavern and everyone bought us drinks when we told the story... WAUGH!