Battle at the River by Paul J Bennett

Author:Paul J Bennett
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: Paul J Bennett
Published: 2017-11-29T16:00:00+00:00

His ragtag band of soldiers closed the distance to their target, but the enemy was busy, too intent on their immediate danger to see a new threat approaching.

Gerald studied the rhythmic swing of the great warhammer and checked his pace; he would have to time his attack perfectly to strike just after the enemy’s swing. He watched closely, waited for the hammer to arc over the man’s head and then rushed.

His timing was just right; as the hammer swung low, he stepped forward, leading with his shield. It struck the leader’s arm, pinning it against his body, forcing him back several steps, creating an opening for the Mercerians behind to charge into the enemy commander’s bodyguard. Now was the time for screaming, now was the time for madness to take over.

He drove the sword forward, penetrating his adversary’s mail; he could feel the grating as the armour scraped up the blade. A shield smashed into him from the right, and he felt the rim dig into his sword arm, knocking his weapon from his grasp. He grabbed his shield with both hands and pushed with all his might. The ground was wet with snow and blood, and when his opponent slipped, Gerald fell heavily onto him, trapping the warhammer between them.

Again and again, the Norlander struck with his shield in an effort to free his weapon. Gerald could feel the crushing weight of it with each blow. For the second time today, a thunderous sound flooded his ears, and then there were horses everywhere. He kept pushing down, pinning the enemy’s arm in place, willing himself to take the shield blows until his opponent tired.

Finally, the blows stopped but as he started to relax and take a breath another opponent loomed overhead, and he struck out with his fists.

Baron Fitzwilliam flinched as Gerald, covered in blood, turned on him. He stepped back, held up his arms and his sergeant stopped, staring in disbelief.

“It’s over, Gerald,” he said. “You’ve captured the enemy commander. The battle is over.”

“Lord?” he replied.

Fitz was elated, “We’ve won, Gerald. Against all odds, we won.”

“You said we’d win, Lord,” a confused Gerald said.

“I know I said that, but I didn’t actually believe it.”

Gerald regarded his baron in a new light. He had served Fitz for many years, had trusted him completely, had never doubted his ability. He was about to curse the man, but as he looked upon his mentor he saw the wide grin and couldn’t help himself, he started laughing; only Fitz could convince him to win a hopeless fight!

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