Gods of War by C R May

Author:C R May [May, C R]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2016-08-18T04:00:00+00:00

The king saw them first and Eofer was overjoyed to see a smile spread across his features, despite his lord’s careworn appearance. As the warriors surrounding King Eomær parted and looked his way, the thegn slid from the back of his horse and knelt before him. Eomær gripped Eofer’s shoulders, hauling him back to his feet as wide grins illuminated the faces of the surrounding gesith.

‘Your boys managed to get you back then!’ the king exclaimed.

Noticing Eofer’s look of surprise, King Eomær gave a warm chuckle. Despite the king’s obvious fatigue following the rigours and worries of the sea journey and campaign, the eorle was pleased to see the twinkle of mischief which he knew so well remained in the king’s eyes as he explained. ‘The ship thegn, Eadward arrived back last week. He described the events surrounding your capture and Hemming’s harebrained plan to free you. I have to say,’ he added with a shake of his head, ‘that we all had our doubts that they would be successful.’ He looked back across his shoulder and Eofer saw for the first time that his brother was among the warriors there, shaking his head slowly as his mouth curled into a smile. ‘Apart from Wulf, of course,’ the king chuckled. ‘Who I had to place under guard, to stop him racing off northwards to help. You will be pleased to know that King Heardred’s men burned the Danish ships after they helped Eadward to retrieve his own. Eadward cruised off the coast to ensure that this Ubba couldn’t return to Daneland in a gaggle of fishing boats, but they must have got word to the Danish mainland somehow because a fleet of dragon ships put in an appearance and the Hwælspere was forced to flee.’

Eofer nodded. ‘The Danes are on the march, lord. We watched their army moving south this morning. They are looking to pin us here against the coast.’

The king frowned. ‘That is a problem.’ He plucked at Eofer’s sleeve and guided him towards the summit of a grassy knoll. The day was all but spent, but the pair emerged into blinding sunlight as they reached the summit. King Eomær turned his back on the orb and pointed away to the East with his chin. ‘They appeared before us, just as we started to make camp here for the night. The light had just started to go, it was perfect timing on their part. Too late for us to mount an attack, but just light enough for them to form a battle line. Now, with the information which you have just provided about the whereabouts of the main Danish host I can understand why.’ The king turned to Eofer and pursed his lips. ‘You now know these lands better than most, Eofer. When would you expect King Hrothulf to arrive?’

Eofer scratched at his beard as he thought. ‘Armies move at a slower pace than either mounted war bands or flying columns,’ he replied. ‘Their levy, the leding, will

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