Eagle of Mercia by MJ Porter

Author:MJ Porter [Porter, MJ]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Boldwood Books

15

‘Keep to your ship crews,’ Ealdorman Ælfstan informs us in a harsh whisper. We’ve managed to gather together. We’re not yet inside the extent of the monastery. A thick stone wall blocks our passage, but Brother Eadgar assures us the wall is broken down in one place and we’ll be able to scramble over it once the ealdorman has determined how we’ll attack our enemy.

‘The sheep used it all the time.’ There’s sorrow in his voice. I take it that the Viking raiders have truly killed all of the island’s sheep as Cap believed. Mind, it can’t have been long ago, for the smell of sheep is all around us.

‘And how many buildings are there?’

‘Six,’ Brother Eadgar offers immediately. ‘The stables are where the Mercian lord’s being kept, with no one but the donkey for company. The enemy is inside the great hall and the church. Foul heathens that they are. I’ve seen them, in there, conducting their blood rites to their Gods.’ Brother Eadgar spits at the words. I don’t so much see it as hear it.

‘And tell me the placement of the buildings,’ Ealdorman Ælfstan continues.

Oswy is next to me now, Frithwine to my right. I can see the pair of them by the whites of their eyes but little else. I can, however, hear the heavy breathing of every single man, all of them trying to recover from the steep upward climb. I can see why the enemy might not know of this entrance.

‘The stables are closest, directly ahead from here. The church is to the westward side, the great hall further south from there. The sleeping quarters are as far as it’s possible to get from the stables, along with the grain store.’

‘So, we need to get to the stables and the church and hall?’ Ælfstan surmises quickly.

‘Yes, my lord. That’s where you’ll find the enemy. The Mercian lord is in the stables, as I said. Although I confess, they sometimes take him out of there to have some sport with him.’ I shudder at the thought of what that sport might be. Lord Coenwulf’s not the most robust man I’ve ever met. I don’t want to think about his pain and torture, and yet I do all the same.

‘Oswy, Icel and Frithwine, you go to the stables. Wulfheard, lead your men to the church. My group, and that led by Æthelmod, are going to take the hall.’ Ælfstan gives the commands easily. ‘We kill everyone. I want no prisoners. If you trouble befalls you, get back to the quayside by any means possible. Oswy, Frithwine and Icel, you must rescue Lord Coenwulf. If you don’t, they’ll kill him.’ The words are far from reassuring. But I nod, despite the fact Ælfstan can’t see the action. ‘Brother Eadgar, stay here. I don’t wish to risk you further. You’ve done enough.’

‘My thanks for that, ealdorman, but I’ve no intention of standing to one side. They killed all my brother monks. I’ll also have my revenge on them, and then I’ll beg God to have mercy on my soul.

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