would affect the morale of the archers as I wanted to loose when they were as close as possible for they were not yet as good as they might be. “A hundred paces.”
“That is close.”
“By the time they are twenty paces from you we will have loosed two hundred arrows.” It was a confident claim but I knew that Raibeart and I could send eighty easily.
We heard the wail of the dragon standard before we saw the horsemen but when they did come I saw two empty saddles. They had not avoided casualties. The horses laboured up the slop e in a wide line and behind I could see the enemy. They were better armed than the hunters we had ambushed and the ones who had chased us. These warriors were ready for war. There were many of them in mail and all had a shield and either an axe or a sword and, as they poured forwards I could see archers. “Aelle, take out the archers. Raibeart, try to hit the leaders.”
When the horsemen cleared I could see that they outnumbered us easily by as many as three to one. My first command could be a short one. As the horsemen cleared I gave my first order. “Notch! Pull!” I paused to time it correctly. “Loose! Loose! Loose! Loose!” I noticed that the last flight had been ragged and the enemy were closing quickly. “Choose your own targets!” I aimed at their archers and quickly sent five to their deaths. Unlike me they were without armour and I felt some of their arrows clattering against my mail. My archers would be dying too. I saw the effect of Aelle’s slingshots as the archers, the few who remained, fled down the hill to escape the rain of death. I switched to those warriors at the front of the wedge which was heading up the hill. They had their shields held tightly to their faces and I saw many shields with arrows embedded in them. I aimed at the eye of the warrior leading the wedge and, as he fell loosed a second at the man behind before he could bring his shield up. Raibeart, too, was choosing his targets wisely and his arrows were mortal. Unfortunately the rest of the archers were hitting helmets, mail or shields. They were doing no good. “Archers fall back!” I did not see how many retreated but I sent my last four arrows to good homes and then dropped my bow, swung around my shield and drew my blade. I stepped behind a warrior in the perilously thin second rank and Raibeart joined me a heartbeat later. “We thinned them out brother.”
“Yes Raibeart, but they still outnumber us.”
Aelle and his boys were still striking home and the effect was to make the vision of the advancing Saxons limited as they tried to protect more of their bodies and faces with their shields. It compacted the wedge and, as they approached the ditch, I could see that they would become disordered as they dropped down to the bottom of the defensive structure. I yelled, “Archers, loose!” The few archers who still had arrows sent a ragged volley into the air and were rewarded by eight warriors caught unawares. And then they slammed into our front line. I saw that they used their shields as a weapon, punching with them. The front ranks were so close that they could not move their arms and those with spears in our second file stabbed through the gaps causing many casualties. My sword was long and I saw a bearded giant with black holes for teeth and I stabbed forwards over the shoulder of the warrior in the front rank. He could see the blade coming for him but could not evade it and I twisted it as I pushed it through his eyeball and into his brain. He fell backwards into the crowd of warriors eagerly pushing forwards. Raibeart’s sword was shorter and he had to wait his turn. Suddenly the warrior in front of my brother fell to the ground, dead and he stepped into the breach. I moved to the left to stand behind my brother. His shorter sword served him well and I saw the look of surprise on the blond warrior who was gutted from beneath. I stabbed at the warrior to
“That is close.”
“By the time they are twenty paces from you we will have loosed two hundred arrows.” It was a confident claim but I knew that Raibeart and I could send eighty easily.
We heard the wail of the dragon standard before we saw the horsemen but when they did come I saw two empty saddles. They had not avoided casualties. The horses laboured up the slop e in a wide line and behind I could see the enemy. They were better armed than the hunters we had ambushed and the ones who had chased us. These warriors were ready for war. There were many of them in mail and all had a shield and either an axe or a sword and, as they poured forwards I could see archers. “Aelle, take out the archers. Raibeart, try to hit the leaders.”
When the horsemen cleared I could see that they outnumbered us easily by as many as three to one. My first command could be a short one. As the horsemen cleared I gave my first order. “Notch! Pull!” I paused to time it correctly. “Loose! Loose! Loose! Loose!” I noticed that the last flight had been ragged and the enemy were closing quickly. “Choose your own targets!” I aimed at their archers and quickly sent five to their deaths. Unlike me they were without armour and I felt some of their arrows clattering against my mail. My archers would be dying too. I saw the effect of Aelle’s slingshots as the archers, the few who remained, fled down the hill to escape the rain of death. I switched to those warriors at the front of the wedge which was heading up the hill. They had their shields held tightly to their faces and I saw many shields with arrows embedded in them. I aimed at the eye of the warrior leading the wedge and, as he fell loosed a second at the man behind before he could bring his shield up. Raibeart, too, was choosing his targets wisely and his arrows were mortal. Unfortunately the rest of the archers were hitting helmets, mail or shields. They were doing no good. “Archers fall back!” I did not see how many retreated but I sent my last four arrows to good homes and then dropped my bow, swung around my shield and drew my blade. I stepped behind a warrior in the perilously thin second rank and Raibeart joined me a heartbeat later. “We thinned them out brother.”
“Yes Raibeart, but they still outnumber us.”
Aelle and his boys were still striking home and the effect was to make the vision of the advancing Saxons limited as they tried to protect more of their bodies and faces with their shields. It compacted the wedge and, as they approached the ditch, I could see that they would become disordered as they dropped down to the bottom of the defensive structure. I yelled, “Archers, loose!” The few archers who still had arrows sent a ragged volley into the air and were rewarded by eight warriors caught unawares. And then they slammed into our front line. I saw that they used their shields as a weapon, punching with them. The front ranks were so close that they could not move their arms and those with spears in our second file stabbed through the gaps causing many casualties. My sword was long and I saw a bearded giant with black holes for teeth and I stabbed forwards over the shoulder of the warrior in the front rank. He could see the blade coming for him but could not evade it and I twisted it as I pushed it through his eyeball and into his brain. He fell backwards into the crowd of warriors eagerly pushing forwards. Raibeart’s sword was shorter and he had to wait his turn. Suddenly the warrior in front of my brother fell to the ground, dead and he stepped into the breach. I moved to the left to stand behind my brother. His shorter sword served him well and I saw the look of surprise on the blond warrior who was gutted from beneath. I stabbed at the warrior to
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