Haven Keep (Book 1) (54 page)

“Get in!”

Von was not sure who yelled, but when he turned Yaris was climbing back into the sled and Kaiden was already waiting inside.  The sled was up right again and the horses, now dead, had been cut free.  Soren started pushing the sled straight down the slope.  If Von did not jump in now he would be left behind.

Von jumped, vaulting himself into the sled, cramming between the two dogs.  Soren continued to push, sprinting as fast as he could.  Faster and faster the sled picked up speed,  until finally Soren leaped inside.  They sped down the mountain in the sled, picking up more and more velocity.  Soren had hurled them straight down the nearly vertical mountainside.  Surely the vyr could not run this fast, not on this steep slope.

Von’s breath caught as he realized they were in the air again. They had gone over a ledge.  Further into nothingness they flew.  Then the weightlessness returned as they fell.   Downward, farther and farther.  They had to hit ground again sometime.   He clung to the rail as tightly as he could.  He hoped the others had enough sense to do the same.

The impact finally came with a jolt, but he held fast.  The sled gradually came into greater contact with the mountain.  The grade was steep, they were traveling faster than ever, speeding across the ice and snow, trees and rocks whipping by on both sides.

Von did not know how long they raced down the mountain, or how far, but eventually the sled began to slow.   He hoped it would stop before they hit a tree.  He did not wish to escape from the vyr just to die crashing into an oak, or falling off another ledge.

Slowly the sled began to decelerate and the mountainous slopes gradually leveled.  Von sat up to get a better look at their surroundings.  They were sliding through a snow covered meadow, slowing more and more. Finally the sled came to a rest.  Von stared up the mountain at where they had come from.   It had taken them four days to climb that mountain, now they had descended it in just one.   He could see the trail the sled had left in the snow, like some giant animal.   There were no signs of the vyr.  They were left behind up on the mountain.

“How could there be that many?” Kaiden asked.

Von wondered the same thing. “With so many of those things in the mountains we should have seen them or known about them before now.”

Soren stared up the mountain the same way Von had.  “I do not know, but something stirs in the Rift.  Something dark.  I believe old things are coming again.”  He turned and gave Von a knowing look, like he somehow knew a secret that Von kept.  A secret Von was not sure he knew  himself.

“I think we are at least safe for now,” Von said, avoiding Soren’s eyes. 
Did he know about the dream, about Brimstone?
  “How many do you think we killed?”

Soren shook his head.  “I’m not sure.  We wounded many, but I think we only managed to kill a few.  Many I thought for sure were dead came after me again.”

Von remembered the one he was sure he’d killed with his sword.  After taking a blow like the one he’d given, the thing should have laid down and died, yet it had not.

Soren continued, “Death does not come easy to these creatures. I don’t think we have seen the last of them.”

Von thought the same thing.  He did not like the prospect of facing the vyr again, but he would have to if he was going to return to Haven Keep.

Chapter Thirty-One

Flenn couldn’t think of a reason Oded and Tostig deferred to him.  They possessed the superior fighting force and the greater experience.  He should defer to them. The opposite was the case.  The two men listened to Flenn and followed  his decisions.  They gave advice, but made Flenn aware it was only advice and his was the final decision.

Only a few hours had passed since the fight with the Halfen, but Flenn was already working out a plan to get into Azmark safely and warn Baiden.  He was not sure it would work.  It all depended on wether the Halfen army had already laid siege to Azmark.  The problem lay in not knowing where the Halfen were.  Everything hinged on knowledge he did not have.  He hoped he wouldn’t be forced to formulate an entirely new plan upon reaching home.  By then it might be too late.  He weighed many options, reviewing the possible scenarios in his mind as he rode at the head of his growing band of fighters.

The little army was still far enough away from Azmark that the farms remained scattered, with most of them set far back into the forest, away from the old road Flenn and his men traveled.  The few farms they passed were usually inhabited by men who wanted to join the fighting.  When the homesteaders learned a Halfen army was invading they came running, bringing their son’s and their weapons with them. It was heartening to learn most of the Kailfen clan were still loyal and would fight for Baiden despite the enormity of the odds against them.

Some farmers, with the help of Tostig’s scouts, ranged further out, recruiting men from farms and villages hidden deeper within the forest.  Each farmer recruited knew of additional farms, mostly friends and relatives, concealed even deeper in the trees.  Eventually the farmers took the duty over completely, allowing Tostig to concentrate his efforts on scouting ahead.

The small force he started out from Azmark with had grown.  There were nearly three hundred men with him now, and more coming in faster than he could keep track.  He hoped to have at least five hundred able bodied fighters by the time they reached Azmark.

Flenn held no delusions these men were hardened soldiers, but he could not imagine Ky possessed anything different.  The men of the north were born and bread fighters.  The descendants of warriors feared throughout the lands of the south.  That was before the time of the empire, but some people had long memories.

Most of those coming in rode horses, but not all.  The men on foot kept up pretty well.  All the men, young and old, some he would wager were barely starting their fourteenth winter, had brought bows.  The other weapons they carried were a mix of swords, long and short, with even a claymore or two, as well as axes and spears.  He even saw a warhammer and a couple of maces.  Their armor was just as much a hodgepodge as they were.  Dented helmets and breastplates, large wooden shields, sometimes square sometimes round.  Occasionally a man wore armor that was fit for a lord.  It probably belonged to a grandfather who had once been more than a farmer. The sight of these men reminded Flenn they were not just farmers, they were freemen, accustomed to
fighting for their land and for their lord.

Flenn worried  Tostig had been gone for too long.  He normally reported back by now.   There were Halfen scout’s out there, Tostig had already taken out two.  The Halfen men died silently, with no way of warning their army of Flenn’s position.   Eventually the Halfen would wonder why their scouts did not return, and it wouldn’t be long before they sent a larger force to find out why.  Flenn hoped Tostig hadn’t gotten tangled up with such a force.

Flenn and most of his men rode in silence.  At first they came boasting of what they would do to the Halfen.  Flenn worried they might not know what they were getting themselves into.  Eventually, as the hours wore on, they grew quieter.  They still boasted some, but most rode or walked quietly.

Flenn couldn’t see a way to win, but he would fight anyway.  Baiden couldn’t have more than fifteen hundred men inside Azmark, and that was only if he’d managed to gather men from the outlying communities. They were outnumbered more than two to one by the Halfen.  It would be eight to one when the larger trailing army joined the foregaurd.  Even with Oded’s southern army fighting along side them they were still sorely outnumbered.  The southern forces brought the odds back to two to one, but that was before taking an account of the Hywell and Kragen.  Tostig had seen evidence of them gathering armies of their own.  The Whaleren would most certainly send forces to aid Ky.  Who knew where the Celten’s would stand?  The last time he saw Dethan the boy did not sound supportive of Baiden.  Who knew what effect the death of Dethan’s father would have on him?  If the Orlenc still stood with Baiden they were probably just sealing their own doom.  The north was about to be plunged into a civil war.  Flenn was disgusted.  They were doing the Horde’s work for them.

Flenn glanced up to the low rolling hills and was heartened to see Tostig finally approaching, probably to inform him they had caught another Halfen scout or some similar news.  No, not similar news.  Tostig was riding fast and did not slow as he came closer.  He rode right up to Flenn before stopping.

“Flenn.”  He was nearly breathless, he must have ridden hard. “The Halfen have reached Azmark. They are at the walls.”

No
.  Flenn had hoped to reach home before the Halfen.   “Does Azmark still stand?”

“Yes, they are not pressing the walls too hard.  I think they are meant to pin Baiden inside until the main force arrives.”

“We have less time than I thought.”  Flenn did not know if they were too late already. “Berkler pass the word that those who do not have horses will have to catch up as they can.  We ride now!”

“This may work to our advantage,” Oded said.

How could he sound so calm?

“We can catch them from behind while they are occupied with the siege,” Oded explained.

“Yes, but we must go now.”

“Think first, my young friend.  You are gathering men as you go.  If you charge off now you will gain no more and you will lose those who do not ride.  We can still travel swiftly without leaving the footmen behind.  When we arrive at Azmark we will have over five hundred men with us.  That is better than two hundred, with another two hundred trailing behind, leaderless and too small in numbers to be more than a nuisance to the Halfen.  We cannot afford to divide the forces we do have.”

Flenn knew Oded was right.  He needed to think rationally.  “Alright, but as fast as the men on foot can march. We can send horses to gather in as many more men as we can, but we can’t wait for them to give word to everyone.  Baiden needs us now.”

Oded nodded.  Apparently that was good enough for him.  That was the way of it for the next few miles.  Flenn wanted to ride faster, but Oded kept him in reign.  Tostig proved again how resourceful he was, returning to his original recruiting mission while still managing to scout ahead.  Even while traveling at the faster speed, the recruiting continued to increase.  Maybe it was the news Azmark was already under siege.  However Tostig did it, the men came in droves.

The new comers joined the march with a grim determination, falling in with their countrymen, often greeting each other like long lost brothers, though Flenn doubted all of them had met before today.  Many did know each other, a good number were related in some way a few generations back.  Distant cousins who might not have seen each other in years.  If they hadn’t met before, they at least knew of one another.  These men were not only countrymen, they were family, and would fight as family.  They would fight for their lord and for their land.

Flenn was glad he’d listened to Oded.  He hoped to gather five hundred men before reaching Azmark.  Over five hundred followed him already, with more flocking in.  Those who came on foot ran along side the horses.  They knew what was at stake, and had come to fight.

Dell rode next to Flenn.  The smile Dell wore just a few days before was gone.  Today he saw real fighting, fighting in which men died.  He was not excited for the prospect of another fight, and Flenn could see he was anxious.  Anxious to reach Azmark.  Anxious to break the siege and save those inside.

Timm and Wendle trailed just behind Dell.  They looked anxious too, most the young men did, but they rode with determination and conviction.  Maybe Flenn was wrong to think they were too young.  They could fight.  They were old enough for that, more than proving their worth earlier today.

The forest opened up, the road widened, and farms became more common and closer together.  Most were empty and recruiting slowed down as less and less men joined. Tostig and the others gave up on recruiting, and Tostig took to riding near Flenn and Oded, taking reports from the other scouts.  The Halfen remained outside the walls, and the scouts reported only a few skirmishes between Ky’s army and defenders of Azmark.  It seemed Tostig was right.  The Halfen meant to pin Baiden inside and prevent reinforcements from joining him until the main force arrived. 

A scout rode hard across the farmland.  He slowed as he approached and reined in beside Tostig.  He was a dangerous looking man whose name Flenn did not know.

“There is a group of about fifty men approaching,” he announced.  “I do not think they are with the Halfen.”

“Any idea who they are?” Flenn asked.

“I think they mean to join us,” the man answered. 

Finally, good news.  Flenn wondered where the men from the farms were.  Baiden didn’t have time to gather them all in.  Flenn supposed he had his answer.

They rode for another mile and a rider appeared at the top of small hill to the east.  He hesitated only moments, then started toward Flenn.  Flenn broke off to meet him.

The man looked familiar, about ten winters older than Flenn.  His beard was slightly darker than his braided yellow hair.  He sat without a saddle on a shaggy mare better suited for pulling a plow than riding into battle.  His armor easily fit in with the men in Flenn’s small army.  He raised a hand in greeting and spoke.  Flenn finally recognized him.  It was Kole, from one of the outlying farms northeast of Azmark.  He rarely came into town, and when he did Flenn usually had no business with him.  Still, it was a familiar face and one Flenn trusted.

“Flenn,” Kole said, “it is good to see you.”