The Angry Mermaid 125 or Y Morforwyn Dicllon 125.

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At Last Drustina meets with her foe. The two armies meet on the South banks of the River Mersea where the Brunbah Creek enters the Mersea Estuary.

No need for maps, this is just a straightforward, 'stand up - knock down' fight.

The Angry Mermaid 125.
Or
Y Morforwyn Dicllon 125

As the arrow streaked skywards and curved at its zenith Drustina followed its descent somewhere just behind the Viking shield wall. Then for several moments there was silence before a roar erupted from both ranks as they advanced behind their shield walls. After the many and varied battles she had fought, she still found it hard to countenance the ritualised violence and posturing that both Saxons and Vikings seemed to favour. Both ranks advanced with swords drawn and shields forming a solid wall.

Sat astride her beloved mare Seripatese, Drustina had a perfect view as the two shield-walls advanced but she was also dangerously exposed. So far no missiles had erupted from the Viking ranks but she held a large heavy horse shield to her shoulder and Seripatese had on her unique horse armour that had served her since the wars in Byzantium.

Ordinarily, in a battle where arrows would have served as the initial artillery barrage, Drustina’s feminine cuirass and decorative helmet would have readily served to protect the lioness but she was more fearful of the Viking spears. They were much heavier than arrows and a direct strike could quite possibly pierce her or Seripatese’ armour and puncture the lionesses' or the mare’s hide; especially when hurled by a powerful Norse giant. To avoid unnecessary exposure, Drustina constantly trotted back and forth behind the shield-wall thus providing a moving, and therefore more difficult target. Her activity also served to give her a good view of the Viking shield wall and to make out any choice targets that were within range of her deadly bow.

Only the Viking’s heavy wood and leather long-shields were impervious to her arrows. There were still weak spots in the Viking’s protective clothing and she twice demonstrated the lethality of her long bow to Viking and Saxons alike.

Before the shield-walls had even met, she had twice stopped behind her men and told them to watch out for such and such an individual that her mounted position had enabled her to spot. Her ensuing arrow had then struck with unbelievable accuracy and some giant Viking or well armoured Jarl had fallen from the Viking wall with an arrow in his face. On both occasions the Saxons immediately opposite the fallen Viking had invariably swallowed with genuine relief as Drustina’s lethal bow had eased their fears.
Gasps of thanks were offered up from the men as they saw that their leader was already making the Vikings pay before a sword-blow had been struck.

Her next move was to call up her mounted archers and have them fire a withering hail of arrows before the shield-walls came within spear range. After having demonstrated the effectiveness of her mounted archers to her foot-men, the Saxons began to take heart and Drustina could sense the ripple of conviction hardening through her lines.

She looked back to see Ethelred and Edrinor watching from the small hill, safe from spear or sword. It galled her that they chose not to engage in the very first fighting.

Her looking back towards the allied kings almost cost her, her life for she did not see the first avalanche of spears erupt from the Viking ranks. A spear slammed into her shield that had been slung across her shoulders and the impact knocked her forwards over her mare’s head. It was Gisela’s scream that told the Saxon’s that their talisman queen had been struck and low moan of despair rumbled through their ranks. Fortunately the Saxon line did not break but it wavered as distracted foot soldiers watched several archers dismount and rush to the Lioness’s inert form. For long perilous seconds it looked as though Drustina was dead but eventually Gisela’s feminine squeal of delight told all close by that the Lioness lived.

Information quickly spread through the ranks as Gisela determined that the Lioness was only winded and bruised. The spear had partially pierced her shield and only dented the back of her maidenly cuirass. Finally the Lioness was recovered, albeit bruised and winded but little the worse for wear. Within two minutes she emerged from the protective turtle that had been thrown over her body, to finally remount her mare. The broken spear-shaft was still protruding from her shield as mute irrefutable evidence to the Saxons and Mercians that their beloved Warrior queen was truly sharing their dangers and their hopes.

Once she was mounted she leant down and forward to praise her beloved pony just as another cast of spears rained down. One spear whistled past her back and glanced off her shield again before lodging in the shield of one of her companions. Again Gisela shrieked, more with surprise than fear.

“Dammit Lioness! You’re one lucky bitch! Take care!!!”

Then Cedric appeared and advised Drustina.

“You’d better start moving around again lioness; you’re attracting too much attention. Look out! Here comes another lot!”

Now alerted to the dangers, her mounted archers spurred their horses together to form a better turtle over the Lioness with their collective shields.

The third flight of spears again whistled out of the sky and thudded deep into the earth around the Lioness. Fortunately none struck her or Gisela but it was obvious that the Vikings had identified her and were making every effort to nail ‘the sorceress’.

Drustina nodded towards Cedric.

“You’re right Saxon, we’d better keep moving.”

The Lioness swung low behind her pony’s back ‘Cossack Style’ as she had seen the Bulgars do in the Byzantine wars. To an inexperienced eye, it looked as though Seripatese was bolting in riderless panic.

Hidden behind the Saxon shield wall, the Vikings lost track of their hated antagonist. Seeing the clever riding trick, Cedric and Gisela promptly copied their leader’s stunt with mixed success. Cedric fell off and Gisela got stuck because she had not tightened her girth strap enough. When they finally met with Drustina, she and the Saxon footmen beside her were laughing uproariously despite the horror all around them.

Drustina quickly dismounted and yanked hard at the girth strap of Gisela’s pony.

“Next time make sure your horse and saddle is properly harnessed you silly bugger. Have you ever practised what I just did?”

Gisela wagged her head somewhat sheepishly.

“No Lioness; never.”

“Well now’s not the time to bloody learn is it? Come on let’s fire off some arrows here then dash back to the other end of our shield wall and spread further confusion amongst those butchers. Oh Cedric don’t try and copy us, you’re too big, you’re too heavily armoured and you’re horse cannot stay balanced, that’s why his unsteady gait dislodged you. This is mostly a woman’s trick unless the man is light and/or an expert horseman.”

So saying, she and Gisela galloped behind the Saxon shield-wall to re-appear at the other end adding to the mayhem and confusion.
By now the opposing shield-walls had engaged and Drustina’s usefulness with her bow was over. Now it was sword against sword in hand to hand fighting. She ordered some mounted archers to shoulder their bows and use their longer swords to back the footmen up. It was a manoeuvre that she had practiced with a select few of her men and she now put her theory to the test. When the shield wall met there was a heavy press as combatants tried to strike with swords whilst also pushing hard against their foe. The heavier foe often won by weight as much as sword skills. Drustina had seen this tactic several times and thought long and hard about it. Now she was to try out a new idea.

The allied riders with the most reliable horses sidled up behind their own footmen to provide the Saxons with a secure wall of horseflesh to fall back against. This meant the Viking heavyweights could not force their way by sheer weight. Simultaneously the mounted archers were now able to reach out over their companion’s heads and add a second sword to every other Saxon’s blade. The engaged Vikings suddenly found themselves confronting two ranks of swords, one at body height and a second blade now attacking from on high ... horseback high.

This tactic only worked for about a dozen horse-lengths because it was innovative, experimental and not fully tested. Drustina only despatched a dozen horsemen initially to see if her idea worked. If it went wrong, Drustina could not afford to allow an irreparable breach to form in the Saxon shield-wall.

As other archers watched in amazement, the Viking wall faltered and eventually a breach was rent. At that critical point, Drustina eased more of her horsemen forward and the horse-wall was slowly added to behind the Saxon rank. As the breach widened, Drustina momentarily had a clear view of the whole Viking disposition. The second rank of Viking reinforcements was now massing feverishly to close the breach. They were tightly clustered in the centre to immediately block the Saxon shield-wall by presenting a monolithic block.

Drustina watched the Vikings gathering together and cursed silently. If the Vikings made a massed charge at any particular point they would almost certainly break through. The obvious point for the Vikings to charge was where their own shield-wall had been breached.

‘If Carl could see that dense mass of Vikings, it would provide an ideal target for his trebuchet.’ She mused.
Once again, she was forced to turn to her reliable messenger, the Viking Princess.

“Gisela! Take a squadron of riders for protection and ride like the wind to circle the Viking perimeter. Try and get word to Carl to fire his trebuchet over the little ridge. He’ll be firing blind so tell him to watch for my arrow signals.”

She handed Gisela a scribbled note in Latin and repeated the instructions verbally.

“Tell him this ... red arrow - aim more to the north; green arrow - aim further south. Two white arrows - extend the range. One white arrow - shorten the range.

Two green arrows will mean commence firing and finally two red arrows means stop firing. If we can land a few well placed boulders into that seething mass, we’ll win this day.”

Gisela knew that speed was of the essence and she galloped away even as her surprised escort struggled to catch up with her. Drustina smiled, ‘the girl was nothing if not intelligent.’

She turned to face the fray again then signalled to the kings to prepare the Cavalry for a charge. If the Vikings did make one desperate massed attack, the most effective counter would be to drive the cavalry into their flank.
For the moment the shield wall immediately in front of her was unopposed where the Viking line had broken. Despite the apparent advantage of having demonstrated their fighting superiority Drustina was forced to shout at her troops to hold their line intact and not peel off to attack the remnant ends of the Viking line. That would be sheer folly for Harald’s reinforcements would immediately charge through the breach and smash into Drustina’s inner ring which was woefully short of men.

She looked back with no small relief when she spotted Edrinor’s Mercian Cavalry cantering around to the north and position itself on Drustina’s left flank. She wondered where the Viking cavalry might be but so far there had been no sign. She could not let unknown factors dictate her tactics but she had to heed the uncertainties. After studying the field intensely she could see only one viable tactic. She gathered what was left of her mounted bowmen and prepared to meet any massed Viking charge with her remaining squadron of horsemen. Her hope being that the horses’ weight and speed would delay the concentrated mass of Viking attackers long enough for Edrinor’s horsemen to slice at an angle through the weakened line of the outer Viking shield wall and hit the massed Viking column on the flank.

She was just about to raise her sword and signal her horsemen forward when, to her surprise, she spotted fireballs streaking into the sky further behind the Viking ranks and landing unseen behind the Viking ridge.

Surely Gisela could not have reached Carl already?’ She pondered.

There followed much disorganised cursing and shouting as from behind the ridge there emerged several squadrons of Viking horsemen who had suffered from the flaming barrage Drustina grinned wolfishly.

Carl you clever bastard. So that’s why you didn’t reveal your trebuchet immediately!’

Cold-blood had been holding what few cavalry he had behind the ridge and out of sight. Carl’s bombardment from the seaward side of the Viking rear had made their location unsafe and they had emerged into view to protect themselves from the fireballs. Drustina watched as a small group of Vikings emerged from the Main Viking column to go and remonstrate with the Viking horse commander. It was obvious that the leaders were arguing. The small group of riders were obviously the Viking high command for Drustina had recognised Cold-blood – the Viking who had raped her when she was spying in The Havre before the battle of Solanta.

‘So Cold-blood, we meet again but this time on more equal terms!’ Drustina mused.

To her surprise the Viking horsemen re-positioned themselves to the south of the main Viking column and she wondered why. The obvious place would have been to go north of the main column and position themselves between their foot-soldiers and the obvious threat of the Saxon horse. Drustina turned to Cedric and the commander of the Saxon shield-wall.

“Why would they do that, d’you think?”

“They must have some sort of trap prepared on their right flank. I haven’t seen any Viking archers as yet; mounted or on foot.” Cedric offered.

Drustina nodded thoughtfully as she concurred. She turned to the foot commander with questioning eye-brows.

“What are your thoughts?”

“I think Cedric’s right. Where are their archers?”

“Have they got any?” Cedric added.

Drustina shrugged a ‘don’t know’ as she peered towards where the fireballs were originating.

“If they have got any, I should think they’ll be preoccupied with neutralising Carl and his trebuchet at this very moment.”

Drustina fell into a thoughtful silence. Her earlier intelligence had led her to believe Carl had enough troops to protect the trebuchet but now she wasn’t sure. By declaring the trebuchet’s presence he was now inviting as much retribution as Harald Cold-blood could spare. She was watching Edrinor’s cavalry milling around on her left flank when, to her immense relief, a pair of green signal arrows from Carl’s presumed position told her that Gisela had reached the Saxon with Drustina’s request. It also meant Carl now had another squadron of mounted bowmen to help protect his precious engine of war. Drustina waited with bated breath until the first flaming fireball streaked high into the air and landed to the north of the Viking massed column.

The fighting momentarily eased as all heads on both sides turned to see the fall of shot. Drustina nodded with satisfaction and fired her signal to correct the aim. The next shot landed on the edge of the column with sufficient devastation to cause the Viking force to vacillate as the injured men cursed and cried with shock and pain.


‘That’ll give them pause,
’ Drustina nodded as she signalled for greater range.

The third fireball landed with satisfactory accuracy in the midst of the Viking column and suddenly the tight formation started to break up as men sensed real danger. The next trebuchet shot comprised several smaller stones that spread pandemonium in the Viking column as a score of men fell dead or injured throughout Cold-blood’s formation. Drustina did not see where all the stones had fallen but Cedric let out a yell of joy as he called Drustina’s attention to a cameo in the centre of the Viking ranks. A high ranking warrior was obviously having great difficulty controlling his horse that seemed to have suffered some sort of injury from the last of Carl’s barrage.

“That looks like Constin’s colours if I’m not mistaken.” Drustina declared to nobody in particular though several men nearby heard her words as she added. “By the Gods! The Scottish king is unhorsed and on foot!”

In her mind Drustina prayed fervently that Carl would continue the loose-stone barrage but she was mildly disappointed when another fireball appeared instead. It fell with perfect accuracy and Drustina frowned with some annoyance.

‘If that had been a load of loose stones it would have absolutely devastated the front ranks of the column’.

She wondered how she could get Carl to change his ammunition but his next firing settled her frustration. For want of hard information, Carl was alternating his shots between solid shot and scatter-shot. The next round did for the Viking discipline as brave men decided for themselves that standing around in a massed body only presented the unknown attacker with a seemingly perfect target.

More experience Viking heads concluded that if the Vikings were going to avoid the fire from the heavens, they had best get amongst the Saxon ranks and cause the unknown artilleryman to stop.

To this end, without Harald’s leave, the front ranks of the Viking column charged across the clear ground where the original Viking shield wall had been breached. Unfortunately these brave Vikings had not been able to see Edrinor’s Cavalry poised to counter exactly such a charge.

Drustina turned to wave frantically towards Edrinor to send his cavalry into the flank of the Viking charge but he or his commander was already ahead of her. She let out a curse of relief as a beautiful sight filled her gaze.

Thank the gods somebody in Edrinor’s ranks has got the sense!’ She announced to her immediate companions.

Edrinor’s heavy horse was thundering across the field of battle to slam through the weakened right flank of the Viking Shield wall then hurtle on unhindered straight into right flank of the main Viking charge. Unprepared men started to fall like corn before the Mercian horse and Drustina slumped with relieved satisfaction. The first really effective telling blow against Harald himself had at last been struck.

However, the battle was by no means over. Harald brought his own cavalry from behind his hill and urged them to advance along the left side of the Viking column and then wheel right to try and meet the Mercian charge even whilst mixing it amongst his own foot-soldiers. Drustina immediately spotted the real danger to Edrinor’s cavalry. If they were stopped in the midst of the Viking foot-soldiers then the mêlée would become totally unpredictable and the advantage would clearly lie with the Vikings who would have both foot and horse against Edrinor’s exposed horsemen. Edrinor needed immediate back-up.

Without hesitating Drustina screamed to her remaining Saxon horsemen.

“Each of you gather a footman on your back and follow me. Soldiers open a gap! Now!”

Only about a hundred horsemen managed to gather a companion to ride pillion but it was the first telling step as Drustina’s small force hurtled out of the hastily made gap and dashed across the corpse-littered ground to engage the Viking horse just as it was about to wheel right and into their own column. As she and Cedric clashed into the front rank her followers shed their pillion riders who immediately gathered to form a small phalanx to protect their tiny squadron of horse.

It was a desperate move by Drustina but it sent a clear message to Edrinor’s horsemen as they realised two things. There was now a clear objective to make for, namely Drustina’s desperately outnumbered squadron and all importantly a small band of Saxon foot-soldiers who could obstruct the Viking left flank. The left flank and their immediate columns were now too engaged with the Saxons on the outer flank to be able to turn inwards and defend themselves against Edrinor’s horsemen as they trampled desperately across the Viking mass.

Over the heads of the Viking foot-men Drustina was able to momentarily wave her sword towards the Mercian commander whom she now recognised as the very same scout at the Frod ledge; Edrinor’s son.

The acknowledgement was only momentary however for each was fully pre-occupied with their immediate battles.

Drustina felt she had been fighting for hours but it was actually little more than five minutes when she heard a horn blowing from the Saxon Ranks.

At long last, Ethelred had decided to move as he advanced his own Saxon bodyguard across the killing ground and into Drustina’s rear.
The final addition of fifty Saxon horse coupled with Ethelred’s own bodyguard of about five hundred of his best skilled and best equipped foot-soldiers proved to be the final straw.

They charged the extreme left Viking front rank and forced the defenders to turn to their left to defend themselves. Like a mower reaping corn the Saxon charge shaved the edge of the Viking column until they met with Drustina’s exhausted squadron. Drustina had no time to greet him as she fought desperately with the enraged Vikings. She only had time to curse the Saxon King.

“What bloody kept you!?” She snarled before turning again to fend off another furious assault.

Ethelred did not reply for he was immediately engaged by several Vikings who had recognised the King’s personal colours and high grade armour.

It was clear to everybody in the battle that the two horsemen in the midst of the fight were of the highest rank and immediate targets for all to attack. Fortunately the Saxon King's own bodyguard and Drustina’s self-appointed protectors also recognised the danger to their leaders as they raised their shield to protect the leaders from the occasional arrow or spear that was fired from amongst the Viking’s rapidly depleting ranks.

After much ferocious fighting, Edrinor’s son eventually made it to Drustina’s side and he was shocked by the warrior queen’s blood streaked appearance.

“Well met Lioness! Are you injured?”

Drustina did not even have time to turn from her combat as she replied.

“And well fought yourself Mercian! Are you hurt?”

“My right leg is cut but I still have my arms. We have divided the Viking column. The front ranks are surrounded and being cut to pieces.”

“Then let us make for those blasted horsemen who watch us from the hill.”
The prince glanced up and gasped.

“Is that Cold-blood?”

“The very same! I want him for the thousand hurts he has done me!”

“You and me both Lioness!”

“And that man there would have a bone to pick I’m sure.”

The Mercian Prince raised his visor and stared.

“Is that Ethelred?” He asked slightly surprised to find the king himself in the very thick of the hardest fighting. “Right here in the midst?”

Drustina replied curtly.

“The man is no coward Mercian; a bit slow to grasp tactics or strategy but he is never a coward.”

So saying, Drustina forced her way towards Ethelred as the Mercian prince followed tight alongside her. It was fortunate because even as she joined the king, a sword appeared from below and she only just managed to deflect it from Ethelred’s vitals.

The king was fighting furiously with a mounted Viking and had not noticed the footman sneaking low but Drustina had. Ethelred had just pulled his sword from the Viking horseman’s shoulder when he sensed rather than saw the deflected blade slither uselessly up his thigh as Drustina’s blade held it off the king’s body. He cursed thankfully as he recognised his saviour.

“By all the cancers of hell I thank you lioness! That was a close run thing. Are we winning d’you think?”

Drustina’s well experienced eye reassured both Saxon king and Mercian prince as she shouted an assuring ‘YES!’ It was a reply designed to reassure all around them as she pointed her sword towards Harald and his allies still trapped upon the hill.

"See there comrades. The Viking king has the River Mersea and Brunbah creek at his back and the victorious Saxo-Mercian army steadily grinding its way up the hill towards him."

There was no escape to Cold-blood’s rear for Carl’s trebuchet was now pounding the remaining Viking ships bottled up in the creek and several sunken ships now blocked all hope of escape by sea. As the three leaders finally crested a piedmont plateaux on Harald’s hill they were stunned to see the mayhem that Carl’s trebuchet had wreaked amongst the crowded Viking supply ships. It was obvious to all that Harald Cold-blood was caught like a rat in a trap.

“We have him!” Ethelred declared as Drustina felt the hot flush of victory tingle through her veins

~oo000oo~

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Comments

Just having surrounded him

doesn't mean Coldblood is out of the fight. That rat still has fight in him but I can imagine that seeing Drustina and his daughter against him will give him a bit of a fear. Now, can they keep from killing him in battle? Prevent him from achieving Valhalla?

A yard to far

When you are the superior force the wins can come easily. When your plans back is broken by a superior tactic you need to be the best tactician to pull your own tallow out of the fire. Cold Blood may be nasty and brutish but Drustina is a women wronged and now with her sward at Cold Bloods innards.

Great battle scene lots of understanding of carvery tactics, sure you haven't done this some time before. Like in a past lifetime, You would have been Celt I was Roman your tactics have a familiar look to them. This fight has a very Dajavue feel to it, I hear the noise smell the stench and feel the sweat under my helm and my saddle.

Or was that a party when I was in collage. Hummmmmm.

Huggles

Michele

PS

I still love the battle at sea over the one on land.

With those with open eyes the world reads like a book

celtgirl_0.gif

Another WOW!!!

Wow. This battle is intense. The end looks to be soon for Harald Cold Blood. We shall find out soon just how cold his blood really is. I'll bet he bleeds hot and red like everyone else.

Well written, Bev.

Much Love,

Valerie R