Banners of the Northmen (5 page)

Men huddled against the gunwales, sheltering from the arrows. One man squirmed on the deck, curled against his pain and gripping his pierced shoulder. Blood smeared the deck beneath him.

A second volley streaked after the first, though the wind batted many shafts into the water. Ulfrik hunkered at the tiller, forcing
Raven's Talon
to straighten her course. The cliffs glared down and their shadows brushed her hull. He glimpsed the ambushers lining the side of their ship, stringing more arrows.

"Do we have any bows?" Ulfrik's question sounded more like a plea. He had not prepared bows, thinking only to catch the raiders' ship. No one replied, but held themselves low against the next volley. Now the gap had widened and the last flight of arrows served only as a warning not to drift into range. Ulfrik ran to the prow, past his cowering men, jumping up to shake his fist at the ambushers.

"Come fight!" he challenged. The crew of the slender ship waved their bows overhead and laughter skipped across the water to Ulfrik's ears. "You won't escape me, you turds. I know who you are!"

By now the rest of his crew had recovered. Several huddled around their fallen companion, while Snorri joined Ulfrik at the prow.

"They laid a trap for us, lad. Thank the gods they were stupid enough to spring it early."

Ulfrik's fist beat the neck of the prow as he watched the ships glide farther into the distance. A black fletched arrow had sunk into it, and he snapped the shaft out of the wood. He held the broken arrow out for Snorri. "I'll put ten of these into each of those bastards. I swear it, Snorri."'

"And so do I." He took the shaft from Ulfrik's hand, then tossed it into the water. "But we don't have enough men on this ship to take on two of theirs. We barely escaped with our lives, except for Thorstein."

Shame immediately overtook Ulfrik. Einar had grabbed the tiller and several men worked the oars to keep clear of the cliffs. The rest stood dejectedly over Thorstein. He no longer squirmed on deck and a thick puddle of black blood spread beneath him.

The men parted for Ulfrik as he knelt beside the body. Thorstein's eyes stared into the trackless skies, and his hand clenched in death on the hilt of his sword. Ulfrik stroked his eyelids closed, then bowed his head.

"Our brother has gone on to the feasting hall. His was a warrior's death, one we will not grieve but forever remember. Keep him in your hearts when we avenge his death. We will follow their ship at a safe distance. They may raid Ingrid's hall on their way home. We must discourage them from that idea. Someone help me wrap Thorstein's body, and the rest of you get on an oar."

Snorri began to shift Thorstein's corpse to retrieve his blood-soaked cloak. Ulfrik cast his gaze north from beneath a furrowed brow. His flocks would not be recovered, and yet another dead man and another defeat marked a day closer to the arrival of winter.

Ulfrik licked grease from his fingers, then guzzled the bitter beer from his wooden mug. The stew had lacked flavor and the meat was overcooked, but his stomach had been filled. Leaning back on the bench at the high table, he glanced past Ingrid sitting before him. Behind her, embers in the hearth throbbed and the scant light of day slanted from the smoke hole. Doors hung open to let in gauzy light and fresh air, but nothing could clear the stale mood from the men silently chewing their meals at the long trestle tables. Ingrid had fulfilled her obligations to Ulfrik, ordering a feast prepared in welcome and surrendering her hall while he visited. However, burying Thorstein earlier in the day had soured everyone's mood.

Ingrid hid her age well enough, but Ulfrik spotted the gray in her platinum hair and the lines clustered at her eyes. Her half-smile irked him, as if she enjoyed his defeat, though his suffering was hers as well. Their fortunes were tied through marriage and sacred oaths. She rubbed her chin, then looked back to her bowl.

"Do you think they'll return?" Toki, who lived here with his wife, Halla, offered to take Ulfrik's mug for a refill.

"And why not?" Ulfrik said, handing over the mug. "I would come back until I'd taken everything I could."

His gloomy comment drew sidelong glances from the men at the lower tables. Forgetting himself, Ulfrik straightened his posture and tried to brighten his voice.

"But if we are united, and take this fight north, we will be victorious. We are the men of Nye Grenner, and we defend our own."

Ingrid smiled and glanced sideways. Halla sat beside her, and shared a fleeting smile with her mother. Ulfrik mistrusted the two of them, because Halla looked more like her father every year than for any other reason. Now that she had married, her hair was pulled into bun and hid under a covering. It was unflattering, and strengthened her resemblance to Hardar. But Toki was her husband, and he trusted him above anyone else. Still, his mood on this day was easily ruined.

"Do you not believe it, Ingrid? We cannot defeat those northern scum?"

"Why doubt my belief, Lord Ulfrik?" Her wide eyes sparkled and she put a blue-veined hand to her chest. "Of course we can defeat any enemy we choose. For some reason, we have not chosen to destroy them yet."

Toki returned to the bench with a filled mug running over with thin foam. "We've been merciful," he said as he sat between Ulfrik and Snorri. "But now they've gone too far. Almost a whole flock gone! They'll pay in blood."

Ulfrik's flaring temper cooled at Toki's timely interjection. Both he and Snorri shared happily surprised looks, since Toki's words historically worsened matters rather than smooth them over. Attacking his refilled beer with relish, Ingrid jumped into the gap.

"Mercy is a fine quality. But I fear it is wasted on Skard and Thorod. They have never understood mercy, mistaking it for weakness."

"Christ taught us to be merciful just as our Father is merciful." Halla's face beamed as if her statement was more profound than anything ever spoken. Ulfrik grimaced.

"My father would've cut the balls off the lot of them, then nailed their heads to his mast. I'll take my own father's counsel in this."

Laughter circulated around the room, which Ulfrik welcomed; it masked over the insult Ingrid had slipped at him. Disregarding Halla's sullen frown, he met Ingrid's cold eyes. She had appeared dutiful and loyal, despite fears she would side with her dead husband's family. Yet at the same time, her former family took no revenge on her and left her lands alone. He wondered at this luck.

"Those are all fine words, Lord Ulfrik. But the fact remains Skard and Thorod sail freely along our coasts. They've refilled their crews and now test your armor. Today they found a gap in your mail."

Silence settled over the hall, and Ingrid gently tilted her chin forward. Halla gasped then studied her lap, while others turned on their benches to watch. Ulfrik's stomach tightened and he felt his lip curling, but he bridled his anger and reminded himself to be firm and confident for his men.

"What they found was the path up the northern cliffs. Call it a gap in my mail, if it pleases you. But those two fools have gone beyond what I'm willing to tolerate from them. I've conserved my strength, ignoring those scavengers to focus on better things. Now they've invited me to war, which I will not give them. Instead, they'll get slaughter."

The hall erupted with shouts of agreement and oaths of vengeance. Toki patted Ulfrik's shoulder and added his own curse on the two cousins, Skard and Thorod. However, Ingrid did not waver in holding Ulfrik's eyes.

"Their strength matches our own, and soon will outnumber us. You couldn't even follow them today." Her voice came thin but confident over the roars of the men. "How will you bring this slaughter?"

"I have no fears of those two cowards." Ulfrik shoved away from the table, and stood. He threw back his cloak, so his gold and silver armbands gleamed in the shadowy light. "Your men and my own are more than a match for the bandits and scum those two recruit."

Ingrid's brow raised and a wry smile twisted her lips. Ulfrik knew he had accused the cousins of the very thing he did to fill his ranks. Her smirk further tested his control, and he balled his fists.

"What they've done today is murder. It's more than Thorstein, many more. Without our flocks, what do we eat in winter? How do we keep warm? What do we have when the traders come for wool? They're killing our people, and so they must die!"

"I did not ask why we should destroy them." Ingrid now stood, which gave Ulfrik and the others pause. "I asked how you plan to do it."

"Do not challenge me, woman." Ulfrik's voice lowered. "That I've vowed to destroy them is good enough for you. Your oath requires you and your men to obey me. So obey!"

His command broke across the hall like thunder, and many eyes turned to the floor or looked aside. Ingrid's haughty confidence melted and she slowly took her seat as Ulfrik glared at her. Not satisfied, he continued.

"You've suffered nothing from these two, so don't complain. Don't question me, and don't speak about defeat and loss. If we all sailed north and died in battle it would still be glorious. Only if we hide in our homes do we die in shame. I don't know what you are hinting at, but let me clear your mind. We will regroup and we will bring down these cousins. Your hirdmen will stand in the shield wall with mine, and fight for our homes. Anything less makes you and your men oath-breakers."

Only the intermittent snap from the dwindling hearth interrupted the silence. Ulfrik scanned the room, and met every eye that dared to raise to his own. He nodded at each man, assuring them in his confidence and testing their strength. Satisfied, he retook his seat in front of Ingrid, whose eyes fluttered and turned away.

"I did not mean to anger you, Lord Ulfrik. I am merely a worried, old lady. The tidings you brought me today are the worst I've heard in many years. My lands are closer to theirs, and I fear they could return for me one night."

"Be vigilant," Ulfrik offered, glad to be done with conflict. His temples throbbed and his eyes hurt. "I must return home for a short while, but Toki will come to represent your lands. We will devise a plan to keep you and everyone safe through winter. When spring arrives, we will welcome it with a blood sacrifice such that the gods will remember us for all time."

Ingrid inclined her head, then excused herself and Halla to help in cleaning the remains of the meal. As she stepped down, Ulfrik whispered to Toki. "Can I trust her?"

"Yes, but with a wary eye. She's an opportunist."

Ulfrik nodded and watched as people turned back to muted conversation. His own closest hirdmen, Snorri and Einar, along with Ander and several others, continued to watch him. He waved his hand as if shooing a fly. "We'll discuss her later. For now, we rest before returning home."

CHAPTER FIVE

Runa hefted the sword overhead and tightened her grip on the wooden shield. Across the grass, Ulfrik circled with his own blade drawn and shield held in guard to his left. Behind him the usual line of women who came to shake their heads and gossip appeared as a dark blur. This time, she decided, she would tag Ulfrik if it meant cutting him. Sweat rolled into her eyes and down her nose. Ulfrik no longer teased her, instead appeared half-focused on her and looking into another place.
You'll learn to pay attention to me
, she thought.

Her short sword struck down at Ulfrik's face. He recognized the flashing iron, pulling his shield to defend. A smile played on Runa's face, and she pulled her strike to slash at his exposed leg.

Ulfrik recovered with practiced ease, stepping back from the blade and sweeping his own sword at Runa's head. Reflex took over and she raised her shield to intercept. The thud of the impact shuddered up her arm. A flash of anger bit her, and she saw his exposed forearm. Her heart raced, finally the opening she had been seeking. Yet her cut passed through air, and suddenly Ulfrik had wheeled to her right side with his shield out. He shoved it into her sword arm, the force of it driving her sword onto her own shield and pinning it. A cold pinch at her inner thigh informed her of defeat.

The tip of Ulfrik's blade pushed into her deerskin pants. She cursed and stepped back, dropping her sword and shield to her sides. Ulfrik laughed, pulling away.

"That was a well-done bit of swordplay, Wife." A few claps came from the distant onlookers, and Runa's face grew warm.

"What good is it if you lamed me?"

"Not lamed," Ulfrik corrected as he sheathed his blade. "Such a cut would bleed you to death before you could curse Fate. But don't let it discourage you. You fight against the best. The worms you're likely to face would fight like the farmers they are."

Runa threw her shield in the grass and sheathed her blade. Though she had been practicing with real swords and shields for over a year, the effort still left her shoulders sore and her back aching. She rubbed her shield arm which still tingled from the force of Ulfrik's blow. He drew her close and rubbed it as well, kissing her forehead as he did.

"We have to do this regularly if you expect me to meet farmers in battle. It's not enough to practice every time you fear a raid is coming."

He stopped rubbing and drew her tighter. "Then we will make more time. It's important for you to defend yourself."

They stood in a quiet embrace long enough for Runa to feel shame for chiding him. If anything, she had cajoled him into teaching her proper sword fighting, and he desired assurance she could stand on her own.

"Ulfrik, I am sorry. Finding time to practice is not easy with all the real work I have." She turned to face him, then wrapped her arms around his waist. "And you want more children, yes? We must stay busy with that plan."

He laughed and the two began to walk toward the cliffs. Runa watched him as they strolled, and she read the worry in his face. He had not been himself since his visit to the seidkona. Meeting with Ingrid no doubt worsened matters. The Hag-Queen and Witch-Daughter were Runa's private names for Ingrid and Halla. Unfortunately, after Gerdie's passing, she had only Gunnar to share her bitter complaints. Ulfrik had not revealed what happened at Ingrid's hall, but she surmised the old hag had tested her limits. Runa figured Ingrid should have followed her husband in death and all her lands pass to Ulfrik, but for some reason she was spared.
Show a little mercy
, she thought,
and the world takes you for a fool
.