Over the Wall: A Warrior Druid of Britain Novelette by McKay Steven A

Author:McKay, Steven A. [McKay, Steven A.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Broadsword Publishing
Published: 2020-06-10T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER FIVE

Nuallan watched as the Damnonii king, accompanied by four other warriors, one a woman and one the biggest man he’d ever seen, searched the summit of Dun Breatann. Coroticus and his followers went from building to building, looking inside, apparently checking every available space that might hide an enemy warrior.

The Dalriadan listened to the searchers’ chatter, smiling at his companion Lugus when he heard one of the Damnonii talk about how easy it had been to kill the invaders and how stupid the dead men must have been to attack the fortress with such a small warband.

Little did they know, Nuallan thought grimly. When the fighting started, he and Lugus slipped away, up here to the summit, unnoticed in all the commotion between the peaks.

Now, hidden in the darkness, he watched in silence as Coroticus sent away the guards who’d been positioned on the summit, and then finished his own sweep of the area. A lean hunting dog sniffed around, but thankfully seemed oblivious to the Dalriadans’ presence.

When the searchers were gone, leaving the area in silence, Nuallan nodded to his comrade and the pair of them slipped down from the roof of the tall storehouse they’d been hiding atop. None of the Damnonii searchers had thought to check up there, as it was too high for anyone to get up onto.

Anyone apart from an expert climber, that was. Like Nuallan or Lugus.

They stopped to listen, to make sure their descent hadn’t been heard, and then moved like wraiths around to the front door of King Coroticus’s house. The door was locked, but this was why Lugus had been chosen for the mission. The Dalriadan took out some tools, flicked his long blonde ponytail away from his face, and set to work.

The lock was good quality, but not a particularly complex mechanism and there was soon a click as Lugus had it open, allowing the Dalriadans inside. They closed it after themselves and locked it again, listening for signs of occupants within the building.

The fire in the hearth had burned low, almost going out, but it offered just enough light for Nuallan to peer around the partition wall and see an elderly servant woman dozing contentedly. Nodding to Lugus, they left her sleeping and headed for the king’s chamber which was behind another thin wall on the western side of the house.

A carpenter who’d done work on the house had been captured weeks before by the Dalriadan king and bribed to draw a crude plan of the fortress, including the interior of this building. Nuallan and Lugus had memorized the entire plan so they knew exactly where to go now. Taking up positions behind the long drapes covering the shuttered windows, they drew their knives and prepared themselves for the end of their mission.

The main goal was to kill the Damnonii king and queen. If Nuallan and Lugus could do that, the night’s work would be a success. Both men would like to escape Dun Breatann alive though, and

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