nodded.
"The maple maser, Nelda. Surely it would do."
Nelda would fix it all for her. And she'd best escape to some dark corner for a while. He would be safe a little longer, for all that she had made herself look the perfect simpleton. And if she couldn't manage to steal the cloak, she could at least pray for warmer weather so he wouldn't wear it as much.
Except that God did not hear her prayers.
* * *
The lord's chamber centered around a table of dark oak that was nearly as large as its curtained bed. On that table Alain stretched out an old parchment, scraped bare, on which he traced out a crude drawing of the Eden Valley that led up to Carlisle and the Solway Firth. He drew a square to indicate his castle and wiggling lines to represent the becks and rivers. More squares went down as symbols of other manor holdings, and tiny circles for the smaller holdings.
"Think of it as the way God must view the world from the heavens," he said to his knights.
"God would see the fells, too," Hugh objected.
"And God would see the colors and shapes of things, too, but we cannot put all that down. It would only confuse us. But we all know the fells are in between the becks. I suppose we could mark where the peaks are, but that is not important. We want to know where we can go, and where our enemies might be."
Robert scowled. "It is a good idea, Alain. But it isn't right. If it takes a day by horseback to go from here to here," he said as he traced out a route with his finger, "then it should take more time to go from here to here." And he drew another route with his fingers. "But it does not, it takes less time."
Chrétien stopped to rub his fist over his chin. "But the first route is much harder, and the horses must go much slower. How can you tell, Alain, how far it is?"
"If we had the time, I suppose we might measure it someday. But that is not my purpose. I propose only to guess. Merely by making marks on the parchment, we can plan our moves in advance, and mayhap see flaws in them before they happen."
Alain removed small, flat stones of varying colors from a tiny leather pouch and tossed them onto the table.
"The white ones will represent Rufus and the army he brings. Ours are the red stones, and the black ones are Malcolm's. Grey, for Anwealda and those allied with him."
He placed red stones at each holding under his control. He placed Malcolm's black stones as a group to the northeast, representing Scotland, and Rufus' white ones near York.
"Now, where is Anwealda?"
"Up in the fells," said Gerard.
"Aye, but where?"
"It matters not if– aye, I see your meaning. From wherever he is, he can strike, pull back, and hide, and we cannot be there soon enough to stop him. Yet if you knew where he hides– "
"Aye, it is true," said Chrétien. "And if he can keep himself supplied with what he captures from us, he can continue his harassment. But if we can draw him into engagement more than once, we may be able to guess his location."
Alain nodded, pleased. "If you were Anwealda, where would you strike next?"
"Where we have already been," said Chrétien. "Where we think we are secure, but are not."
"Anwealda's own holding," Gerard added.
"And therefore, we will surprise them by reinforcing the men and supplies we left there yesterday," said Thomas.
Alain smiled, pleased they thought the same as he. "If we have outguessed him, we win again."
Gerard leaned forward and placed a finger on the map between two becks, and Alain guessed he was imagining the fells between them. "Aye," said Gerard. "You are right. We must try to outguess him by noting where he appears, where he comes from. Where he goes."
"But what next?" asked Wallis. "We cannot always outguess him."
"It is true," said Alain. "But Rufus is close. We must keep harrying Anwealda until Rufus arrives."
"You have heard news?"
"Aye. Rufus comes. But he is weeks away. We must secure our conquests now." Alain moved back to the map. "This land, Anwealda's, you will
"The maple maser, Nelda. Surely it would do."
Nelda would fix it all for her. And she'd best escape to some dark corner for a while. He would be safe a little longer, for all that she had made herself look the perfect simpleton. And if she couldn't manage to steal the cloak, she could at least pray for warmer weather so he wouldn't wear it as much.
Except that God did not hear her prayers.
* * *
The lord's chamber centered around a table of dark oak that was nearly as large as its curtained bed. On that table Alain stretched out an old parchment, scraped bare, on which he traced out a crude drawing of the Eden Valley that led up to Carlisle and the Solway Firth. He drew a square to indicate his castle and wiggling lines to represent the becks and rivers. More squares went down as symbols of other manor holdings, and tiny circles for the smaller holdings.
"Think of it as the way God must view the world from the heavens," he said to his knights.
"God would see the fells, too," Hugh objected.
"And God would see the colors and shapes of things, too, but we cannot put all that down. It would only confuse us. But we all know the fells are in between the becks. I suppose we could mark where the peaks are, but that is not important. We want to know where we can go, and where our enemies might be."
Robert scowled. "It is a good idea, Alain. But it isn't right. If it takes a day by horseback to go from here to here," he said as he traced out a route with his finger, "then it should take more time to go from here to here." And he drew another route with his fingers. "But it does not, it takes less time."
Chrétien stopped to rub his fist over his chin. "But the first route is much harder, and the horses must go much slower. How can you tell, Alain, how far it is?"
"If we had the time, I suppose we might measure it someday. But that is not my purpose. I propose only to guess. Merely by making marks on the parchment, we can plan our moves in advance, and mayhap see flaws in them before they happen."
Alain removed small, flat stones of varying colors from a tiny leather pouch and tossed them onto the table.
"The white ones will represent Rufus and the army he brings. Ours are the red stones, and the black ones are Malcolm's. Grey, for Anwealda and those allied with him."
He placed red stones at each holding under his control. He placed Malcolm's black stones as a group to the northeast, representing Scotland, and Rufus' white ones near York.
"Now, where is Anwealda?"
"Up in the fells," said Gerard.
"Aye, but where?"
"It matters not if– aye, I see your meaning. From wherever he is, he can strike, pull back, and hide, and we cannot be there soon enough to stop him. Yet if you knew where he hides– "
"Aye, it is true," said Chrétien. "And if he can keep himself supplied with what he captures from us, he can continue his harassment. But if we can draw him into engagement more than once, we may be able to guess his location."
Alain nodded, pleased. "If you were Anwealda, where would you strike next?"
"Where we have already been," said Chrétien. "Where we think we are secure, but are not."
"Anwealda's own holding," Gerard added.
"And therefore, we will surprise them by reinforcing the men and supplies we left there yesterday," said Thomas.
Alain smiled, pleased they thought the same as he. "If we have outguessed him, we win again."
Gerard leaned forward and placed a finger on the map between two becks, and Alain guessed he was imagining the fells between them. "Aye," said Gerard. "You are right. We must try to outguess him by noting where he appears, where he comes from. Where he goes."
"But what next?" asked Wallis. "We cannot always outguess him."
"It is true," said Alain. "But Rufus is close. We must keep harrying Anwealda until Rufus arrives."
"You have heard news?"
"Aye. Rufus comes. But he is weeks away. We must secure our conquests now." Alain moved back to the map. "This land, Anwealda's, you will
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