[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
he?
Will he? I asked in some confusion.
Of course he will. So tell him, Derfel, that I laughed. She stared defiantly at me, then suddenly
shrugged. No, don t. Tell him I wish him all happiness. Tell him whatever you like, but ask one favour of
him, She paused, and I realized how she hated asking for favours. I do not want to die, Derfel, by being
raped by a horde of lice-ridden Saxon warriors. When Cerdic comes next spring, ask Arthur to move
my prison to a safer place.
I think you ll be safe here, Lady, I said.
Tell me why you think that? she demanded sharply.
I took a moment to collect my thoughts. When the Saxons come, I said, they ll advance along the
Thames valley. Their aim is to reach the Severn Sea and that is their quickest route.
Guinevere shook her head. Aelle s army will come along the Thames, Derfel, but Cerdic will attack in
the south and hook up north to join Aelle. He ll come through here.
Arthur says not, I insisted. He believes they don t trust each other, so they ll want to stay close
together to guard against treachery.
Guinevere dismissed that with another abrupt shake of her head. Aelle and Cerdic aren t fools,
Derfel. They know they have to trust each other long enough to win. After that they can fall out, but not
before. How many men will they bring?
We think two thousand, maybe two and a half.
She nodded. The first attack will be on the Thames, and that will be large enough to make you think it
is their main attack. And once Arthur has gathered his forces to oppose that army, Cerdic will march in
the south. He ll run wild, Derfel, and Arthur will have to send men to oppose him, and when he does,
Aelle will attack the rest.
Unless Arthur lets Cerdic run wild, I said, not believing her forecast for a moment.
He could do that, she agreed, but if he does then Ynys Wydryn will be in Saxon hands and I do not
want to be here when that happens. If he won t release me, then beg him to imprison me in Glevum.
I hesitated. I saw no reason not to pass on her request to Arthur, but I wanted to make certain that
she was sincere. If Cerdic does come this way, Lady, I ventured, he s liable to bring friends of yours in
his army.
She gave me a murderous look. She held it for a long time before speaking. I have no friends in
Lloegyr, she said at last, icily.
I hesitated, then decided to forge on. I saw Cerdic not two months ago, I said, and Lancelot was in
his company.
I had never mentioned Lancelot s name to her before and her head jerked as though I had struck her.
What are you saying, Derfel? she asked softly.
I am saying, Lady, that Lancelot will come here in the spring. I am suggesting, Lady, that Cerdic will
make him lord of this land.
She closed her eyes and for a few seconds I was not certain whether she was laughing or crying. Then
I saw it was laughter that had made her shudder. You are a fool, she said, looking at me again. You re
trying to help me! Do you think I love Lancelot?
You wanted him to be King, I said.
What does that have to do with love? she asked derisively. I wanted him to be King because he s a
weak man and a woman can only rule in this world through such a feeble man. Arthur isn t weak. She
took a deep breath. But Lancelot is, and perhaps he will rule here when the Saxons come, but whoever
controls Lancelot it will not be me, nor any woman now, but Cerdic, and Cerdic, I hear, is anything but
weak. She stood, crossed to me and plucked the letter from my hands. She unfolded it, read it a last
time, then tossed the parchment into the fire. It blackened, shrivelled, then burst into flame. Go, she
said, watching the flames, and tell Arthur that I wept at his news. That s what he wants to hear, so tell
him. Tell him I wept.
I left her. In the next few days the snow thawed, but the rains came again and the bare black trees
dripped onto a land that seemed to be rotting in the misty damp. The solstice neared, though the sun
never showed. The world was dying in dark, damp despair. I waited for Arthur s return, but he did not
summon me. He took his new bride to Durnovaria and there he celebrated the solstice. If he cared what
Guinevere thought of his new marriage, he did not ask me.
We gave the feast of the winter solstice in Dun Caric s hall and there was not a person present who
did not suspect it would be our last. We made our offerings to the midwinter sun, but knew that when the
sun rose again it would not bring life to the land, but death. It would bring Saxon spears and Saxon axes
and Saxon swords. We prayed, we feasted and we feared that we were doomed. And still the rain
would not stop.
PART TWO
Mynydd Baddon
ho? Igraine demanded as soon as she had read the first sheet of the latest pile of parchments.
W
She has learned some of the Saxon tongue in the last few months and is very proud of herself for that
achievement, though in truth it is a barbarous language and much less subtle than the British. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
zanotowane.pl doc.pisz.pl pdf.pisz.pl rafalstec.xlx.pl
he?
Will he? I asked in some confusion.
Of course he will. So tell him, Derfel, that I laughed. She stared defiantly at me, then suddenly
shrugged. No, don t. Tell him I wish him all happiness. Tell him whatever you like, but ask one favour of
him, She paused, and I realized how she hated asking for favours. I do not want to die, Derfel, by being
raped by a horde of lice-ridden Saxon warriors. When Cerdic comes next spring, ask Arthur to move
my prison to a safer place.
I think you ll be safe here, Lady, I said.
Tell me why you think that? she demanded sharply.
I took a moment to collect my thoughts. When the Saxons come, I said, they ll advance along the
Thames valley. Their aim is to reach the Severn Sea and that is their quickest route.
Guinevere shook her head. Aelle s army will come along the Thames, Derfel, but Cerdic will attack in
the south and hook up north to join Aelle. He ll come through here.
Arthur says not, I insisted. He believes they don t trust each other, so they ll want to stay close
together to guard against treachery.
Guinevere dismissed that with another abrupt shake of her head. Aelle and Cerdic aren t fools,
Derfel. They know they have to trust each other long enough to win. After that they can fall out, but not
before. How many men will they bring?
We think two thousand, maybe two and a half.
She nodded. The first attack will be on the Thames, and that will be large enough to make you think it
is their main attack. And once Arthur has gathered his forces to oppose that army, Cerdic will march in
the south. He ll run wild, Derfel, and Arthur will have to send men to oppose him, and when he does,
Aelle will attack the rest.
Unless Arthur lets Cerdic run wild, I said, not believing her forecast for a moment.
He could do that, she agreed, but if he does then Ynys Wydryn will be in Saxon hands and I do not
want to be here when that happens. If he won t release me, then beg him to imprison me in Glevum.
I hesitated. I saw no reason not to pass on her request to Arthur, but I wanted to make certain that
she was sincere. If Cerdic does come this way, Lady, I ventured, he s liable to bring friends of yours in
his army.
She gave me a murderous look. She held it for a long time before speaking. I have no friends in
Lloegyr, she said at last, icily.
I hesitated, then decided to forge on. I saw Cerdic not two months ago, I said, and Lancelot was in
his company.
I had never mentioned Lancelot s name to her before and her head jerked as though I had struck her.
What are you saying, Derfel? she asked softly.
I am saying, Lady, that Lancelot will come here in the spring. I am suggesting, Lady, that Cerdic will
make him lord of this land.
She closed her eyes and for a few seconds I was not certain whether she was laughing or crying. Then
I saw it was laughter that had made her shudder. You are a fool, she said, looking at me again. You re
trying to help me! Do you think I love Lancelot?
You wanted him to be King, I said.
What does that have to do with love? she asked derisively. I wanted him to be King because he s a
weak man and a woman can only rule in this world through such a feeble man. Arthur isn t weak. She
took a deep breath. But Lancelot is, and perhaps he will rule here when the Saxons come, but whoever
controls Lancelot it will not be me, nor any woman now, but Cerdic, and Cerdic, I hear, is anything but
weak. She stood, crossed to me and plucked the letter from my hands. She unfolded it, read it a last
time, then tossed the parchment into the fire. It blackened, shrivelled, then burst into flame. Go, she
said, watching the flames, and tell Arthur that I wept at his news. That s what he wants to hear, so tell
him. Tell him I wept.
I left her. In the next few days the snow thawed, but the rains came again and the bare black trees
dripped onto a land that seemed to be rotting in the misty damp. The solstice neared, though the sun
never showed. The world was dying in dark, damp despair. I waited for Arthur s return, but he did not
summon me. He took his new bride to Durnovaria and there he celebrated the solstice. If he cared what
Guinevere thought of his new marriage, he did not ask me.
We gave the feast of the winter solstice in Dun Caric s hall and there was not a person present who
did not suspect it would be our last. We made our offerings to the midwinter sun, but knew that when the
sun rose again it would not bring life to the land, but death. It would bring Saxon spears and Saxon axes
and Saxon swords. We prayed, we feasted and we feared that we were doomed. And still the rain
would not stop.
PART TWO
Mynydd Baddon
ho? Igraine demanded as soon as she had read the first sheet of the latest pile of parchments.
W
She has learned some of the Saxon tongue in the last few months and is very proud of herself for that
achievement, though in truth it is a barbarous language and much less subtle than the British. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]