Disaster

Two days into our journey and disaster has struck.  It was yesterday just after noon the heat of the sun bearing down on us as our horses plodded along.  All except Jord’s horse, he rides a tiny little mare that he picked up while he traveled with a Viking ship, she has seemingly endless amounts of stamina and prances along happily all day.  My own horse is too nervous to plod, an incredibly annoying trait for a horse although it likely saved my life in this case.  I had just stopped for a moment to take care of some business, and was trotting my horse back to the front of our ragged group to pester Jord into telling me another story from his many adventures when suddenly my horse shied to the side.  I am a fair horseman, but caught off guard by his sudden movement I almost came off.  As I clung to the horses’ side (I should really name the beast I’ll have to give it some thought) I heard the distinct whistle of an arrow pass through the air where my chest would have been, and then a solid thunk as it imbedded itself in a tree just behind  me on the side of the road. 

Four more arrows had flown simultaneously with the one that missed me.  Two of my men lay in the dirt, and one was slumped lifeless in his saddle.  The fifth arrow had been for Jord, but by some blessing it missed it’s mark by a hair and was lodged firmly in the front of his saddle. 

Momentarily it seemed to me that everything froze in place, and then complete pandemonium.  “Shields!” Jord bellowed in a voice that sounded to me like it should have come from a bull not a man.  Of my six remaining men three brought up their shields, and three wheeled their horses around to flee.  I didn’t have a shield, so I jumped down off of my horse, and attempted to put his body between myself and wherever the arrows were coming from. 

Five more arrows followed Jord’s command, and the three fleeing men fell from their saddles as the fled.  One arrow hit the ground between my feet, and another stuck into Jord’s shield.  I could see our attackers now just ahead of us spread across the road.  I had just located them when Jord smashed into the middle of their line with his little mare.  My other men followed closely on his heels, and the battle commenced on even terms.  I am ashamed to say that at this point I lost control of my horse and he knocked me off my feet and bolted taking my sword with him. 

I jumped to my feet just as one of our attackers, a young man with an incredibly ugly face, leap from his galloping horse directly onto me.  I may not be much of a fighter, but I am a fair wrestler and stronger than I look.   I had managed to turn a little so that when we hit the ground neither of us had the advantage.  What possessed the man to leap from his horse I shall never know.  He could easily have stayed aloft, and lopped off my head at his pleasure as he rode by.  Battle has a way of ckearing some men’s minds, and making others into complete idiots.  It is my fortune that I am one of the former, and my opponent one of the latter. 

I held my own for a time as we wrestled among stamping panicked horses and the bodies of my unfortunate companions.  His superior size was greatly to his advantage however and soon I was on my back and his hands where firmly wrapped around my throat.  I don’t know if you have ever been choked to death, but it is unequivocally a terrible way to go. 

Just as the darkness began to close in on my vision a brown blur struck my killer directly in the chest knocking him off of me.  The three legged pup (I have since named him Beast) had seen my plight and come to my rescue.  I scrambled to my feet, and was about to jump back into the fray when Jord stepped in to save the day.  In his hands he carried the most beautiful shovel I have ever seen (I have since learned from him that it was a gift from an elf king) which he brought down with a thunderous smash on the head of the ugly man.  The battle was over.

Jord and I are unharmed though I am heavily bruised, and quite shaken.   My two remaining men stole away in the night with all but my horse, I assume they could not catch him, Jord’s mare, I assume they were too scared to even try to steal her, and Beast who refuses to leave my side.  We are a day’s journey or so from Balfour castle.  We shall travel there and attempt to win the favor of Duke Balfour a friend of my fathers.