Drustina returns to find Cws in turmoil after the Vikings have been destroyed but Gisela stupidly escaped Drustina's protection only to be abused by the Saxon villagers after being re-captured.

Drustina finally gets to Winchester to warn the Saxon king but she finds the king pre-occupied with religious matters and the Saxons woefully unprepared.

The Angry Mermaid 71

Or,

Y Morforwyn Dicllon 71

Mabina... The youngest daughter and Twin to
Drustan... Her twin brother.
Grandpa Erin... the twin’s grandfather.
Giana... The twin’s grandmother
Caderyn... The twin’s father.
Herenoie... The twin’s wise and beautiful mother.
Morgaran... The Twins oldest brother.
Aiofe... The twin’s oldest sister. Famous for her beauty.
Tara... The twin’s second oldest sister. Famous for her grace.
Feidlim... Twins aunt (Caderyns’ beautiful sister.)
Mogantu... Twins uncle (Married to Feidlim.) Chief of the Gangani tribe.
Brun... Twins 2nd cousin and the Acaman clans’ blacksmith.
Feorin... Twins second brother. Also training to be a blacksmith.
Rhun... Feidlims’ son and Feorins’ favourite 1st Cousin. (Both red-heads.)
Arina... Child of a Demetae fisherman, (rescued by Aiofe, Drustan and Mabina.)
Penderol... Dumnonii Minor chief.
Udris... Young Dumnonii warrior.
Dryslwyn... High chief of the whole Celtic nation. Dwells in Brithony.
Bronlwyn... Dryslwyn’s wife (and queen.)
Magab... The moor who taught numbers.
Eric... Saxon galley slave rescued from Corsair pirates.
Carl... Another Saxon galley slave rescued by Drustan.
Torvel... Celtic galley slave rescued from the same captured corsair ship
Arton... Turdetani Chieftain Holder of Gibral Rock.
Carinia... Arton’s wife.
Isobel... Arton’s adopted daughter.
Appotel... King of the Turdetani Tribe. (Southern Iberia.)
Bramana... Queen. (Wife of Appotel)
Pilus... King of the Capetani.
Shaleen... Pilus’s queen and sister to Bramana.
Pedoro... Lord Marshal of the Southern border region.
Lady Shulaar... Lord Pedoro’s wife.
Taan... The scullery maid.
Isaar... Pedoro’s oldest son.
Ferdie... Pedoro’s 2nd son
Sular... Pedoro’s 3rd son
Gontala... Pedoro’s youngest son.
Shenoa... Pedoro’s only daughter.
Portega... Tyrant King to the west.
Portua... Portega’s grandson.
Jubail... Old Fisherman.
Mutas... Magab’s younger brother and usurper.
Walezia... King of Malta.
Alviar... Megalomaniacal bishop of Carthage. (Hates Drustina.)
Ethelia... Female healer who treats Drustina during her pregnancy.
Seripatese... Drustina’s faithful horse.
Astos & Amitor... Minor royalty who govern Alexandria. King and Twin Queen.
Meronee... Nubian Queen of Nobatia The northern Kingdom of the Nubians.
Horam... The Egyptian master Boat builder.
Muraa... King Astos’s male partner.
Tuk... Makurian general.
Fantu... Makurian Captain.
Irene... Emperor Leon’s only child.
Leon... Byzantine Emperor.
Zano... Byzantine general who defeats the Bulgars with Drustina’s help.
Urthos... The Gaul elected captain of the 4th ship. Ex Barbary galley slave.
Horus... Horam the boat-builder’s son.
Sister Catherine... Leader of the pirate nuns.
Guthrun... Jarl of Bornholm.
Etheline... Guthruns’ wife the countess of Bornholm.
Capenda... Taras’ mare.
Athun... Gay king of Dark Age Denmark.
Queen Elthorn... King Athuns’ Consort.
Iselda... Athun and Brendigan’s, younger (middle) sister.
Heingist... Drustina’s loyal Danish navigator and pilot.
Brendigan... Athun’s older sister and consort queen of Svenland.
Bjorn... The captain of the Palace Guard. King Athun’s gay partner.
Morgan and Amethyst... Drustina’s twin children.
Dalcimon ... Queen of West Friesia.
Andrar ... Prince of West Friesia (Dalcimon’s son.)
Jupus ... Carl’s stallion.
Heliox. Drustina’s second mate and deputy navigator (Ex Belgiie fisherman)
Gisela Viking princess captured after the Battle of Godwin Sands.

Chapter 71.

Back aboard The Angry Mermaid, the healer and Sister Catherine soon got to work on Drustina’s shoulder. Drustina’s unladylike curses and cries quickly alerted her older sister Tara who joined the pair as they applied some hot painful poultice to Drustina’s wound.

“She’s lucky it’s just a deep clean stab; no slicing, no tearing, no twisting.” Sister Catherine opined. “If she behaves herself and doesn’t try to swing her bloody sword with it for a couple of weeks, it should heal satisfactorily. “
Tara grinned.

“She was never a patient child; nor an obedient one. Bet you she’s got that poultice off before this week is out.”

“She’ll be a bloody fool if she does,” the healer added, “she was lucky not to lose the use of her arm. I’m hard put to see how the blade didn’t paralyze her arm; for life. It’s gone deep enough to do some serious damage. Now sit up girl!”

Drustina grumbled as she pushed herself up with her good arm then lost her balance. Tara just managed to steady her as she started to twist awkwardly. The healer scolded her.

“Not like that you fool! If you had toppled over who knows what you might have done to that arm. Just accept other people’s help for the next two weeks or you’ll lose that arm!!!”

“Do as she tells you for once sister! You always were a disobedient kid! Now eat this.”

Drustina sniffed irritably but already she could feel the poultice starting to do its work. The pain was easing. She settled back against the upright cushion and grudgingly accepted Tara’s admonishment as her older sister presented her with a bowl of chicken stew.

“Ugh! What’s that?”

“It’s stew! Chicken stew, now you need to eat to keep up your strength, so eat!”

“What’s wrong with mutton, that’s what mum always gave us?”

Tara cursed scornfully.

“Where the hell d’you expect me to get a sheep from at this short notice you stupid bitch. Besides, chicken’s better, everybody says so. The healer says so.”

Drustina caught the healer’s eye and raised an inquisitorial eyebrow. The healer frowned and nodded censoriously.

“Do as your sister tells you, chicken’s good for you!”

Drustina sniffed at the proffered bowl and tested a spoonful. She was pleased to find it to her liking and resumed eating. The bowl was quickly emptied and she looked up expectantly. Tara gloated as she admonished her younger sister and signalled to Sister Catherine to fetch another bowl.

“See you stubborn bitch, I told you it was nice; now another bowl and then you sleep.”

“I want my lieutenants here, I want reports. There’s stuff to see to.”

“Sleep! Do as you’re told!”

Drustina grumbled but finished her stew. Tara fluffed up the cushion and helped her younger sister to get comfortable. To her satisfaction, Drustina was asleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow. All three carers heaved a sigh of relief; The Lioness was proving a difficult patient.

~o0o~

The following morning Carl returned from the village of Cws with a breakdown of developments. The news was mixed. The village was virtually bereft of adult men for the Vikings had butchered them almost immediately after learning of the arrival of Drustina’s fleet. However a score of men had managed to escape and when they were found, they managed to form a nucleus of stability on which the village could grow. Hengis was still in the village helping to sort out the mess as the remaining villagers started a recovery plan.

Carl had despatched one of their mermaid class ships up to Sotona to report the news. Drustina listened to the reports then started her questions.

“How long have the Vikings been occupying the village?” She asked Carl.

“About two days, they had only just attacked about thirty-six hours before we arrived.”

“Any explanations as to why they attacked.”

Carl frowned.

“It’s my suspicion that they were an advance party for the main force. The plan is for the invasion fleet to arrive sometime soon and use Ynys Wynn as a platform to attack the Saxon country of Wessex. There’s not much evidence for my thoughts but I was remembering what that Viking Princes Iselda said. There must be a Viking invasion fleet around here somewhere. “

Drustina cursed then remembered about Iselda.

“Where is that stupid girl anyway?”

“She’s disappeared. She ran away during the fighting.”

“Damn! That’s my stupid fault. I should have kept her here on the ships. She could be a bloody catastrophe if she manages to find the Viking fleet and warn them about us.”

“I’ve already addressed that. I’ve despatched a couple of the mermaids to circumnavigate the island to see if the fleet is hiding anywhere. Ynys Wynn is an Island, unless the girl steals a boat she can’t get away and the villagers are already searching for her.”
Drustina nodded with satisfaction. ‘Carl was no fool. He was doing everything humanely possible to find the girl.’ She cautioned him about finding her.

“I don’t want her harmed, she’s more use to me alive.”

“I know; I’ve made it loud and clear to everybody that she’s a valuable prisoner.”

“Good. I’m sorry but these witches have me in their clutches for a few days so I’m leaving it to you to prepare for any eventualities. I’m expecting some sort of appearance by the Viking fleet within a couple of days at most, and I’m bloody stuck here. Can you stay here down at the spit whilst I go up and warn the Saxon king in Winchester? I’ll take Seripatese and we can ride from Sotona to Winchester. I’m little use for fighting with this bloody shoulder but I can at least ride and talk even if I can’t use my left arm. I can at least use my right arm.”

Carl grinned.

“And a dammed good arm it is Dru! Yes you’re right, the sooner the Saxon’s know, the better and who better to bring the message than the Lioness herself?”

Drustina blushed.

“Get away with you! Go and see to the fleet.”

Carl left with a big grin while Drustina gave instructions from her cot to sail up the Solanta with One of Sister Catherine’s Supply ships carrying Seripatese and the other horses for the dash to Winchester. On arrival in Sotona the news of the Viking occupancy had already preceded her and Drustina had little to add to what Carl had messaged with the earlier boat. Even as the horses were being landed, the local chieftain was preparing to take the news to his king in Winchester. The Saxon ships were also being readied and messengers where being despatched all over Wessex. As Drustina was readying Seripatese, the local chief joined her on the quay.

“I am told you were wounded in the fighting, are you fit to ride to Winchester?”

“Not really, but I need to assess the King’s preparedness.”

“Are you suggesting we are not prepared?”

“I’m not suggesting anything. I need to assess what forces he has, what reserves he can call upon, what food stocks he has stored and how well those stocks are hidden.”

“Why would you need this information? We meet the Vikings with greater forces than they have and we beat them.”

Drustina snorted at the man’s simplistic understanding. She decided to test him and determine what sort of general he might be.

“So you meet them with greater forces; where? When? What with? How?”

The chieftain hesitated then shrugged.

“I don’t know; how can anybody know? You ask impossible questions!”
Drustina fell silent. It was no use exposing the man’s inadequacies. He was obviously not general material. She waited for him to become curious and ask of any possible answers to her seemingly unanswerable questions. It was not until she had mounted Seripatese and Tara was riding Capenda that the chieftain began to get an inkling that Drustina had been somehow testing him, sounding him out. As their horses ate up the miles, the chieftain finally decided to quiz Drustina. He pulled up alongside Drustina and asked her to explain.

“Your Majesty, that question of meeting the Vikings. How could anybody know where the Vikings might land?”

“I will explain when we meet the king!” Drustina sighed wearily.

‘How on earth did such a buffoon get to be the commander of such a vital gateway as Sotona?' She asked herself.

With that a silence settled on the cantering riders and it didn’t let up until the walls of Winchester appeared in view. Just outside the city wall, a large stone construction was being built and Drustina recognised it as a Christian church of some description. It mattered little to her and they passed it by with hardly a glance before they approached the town proper.

They quickly arrived at the southern city gates where the chieftain made himself known. The gates opened then they entered the town walls and made their way to the Royal residence, the only stone building within the city walls. As the street cobbles rang under their hooves, many heads turned at the sound then they stared at the two unusual women. One of whom was dressed in a jerkin and britches whilst both women ride astride their horses instead of side-saddle. More surprisingly, the woman with the very long hair also wore a sword.

When they reached the palace they were ushered in with little fanfare for the news of the Viking occupancy of Cws had preceded them by a scant hour. As Drustina strode boldly down the centre of the great hall, she was studying the faces that turned to study her. Nearly all seemed perplexed and critical. An armed woman was an exceptional sight. As they approached the empty throne, the chieftain paused and cautioned the women.

“We’ll have to wait her at the king’s pleasure.”

Drustina stopped, more out of courtesy to the chieftain than deference to the as-yet unseen king. She waited for several minutes while studying the various heraldic badges and symbols on the wall. Eventually a courtier arrived and told them the king would meet them that evening. Drustina cursed loudly enough for every courtier to hear then she added.

“Tell him the Vikings will attack in a matter of days; four or five at most! I can’t wait, I’m returning to my fleet.”

True to her word, she turned on her heel, beckoned to Tara and started back out of the hall. There was a disturbance by the throne and immediately the King’s Chamberlain came running after the pair.

“You cannot just walk out on the king. You are being discourteous!”

Drustina shrugged before replying.

“I have no time to waste, I know the Vikings are somewhere in these waters and I have no intention of being caught with my britches down! Tell the king if he wants to hear my information he can catch me up on the road back to Sotona. Good day sir!”

Drustina held out her good arm and her sister reached over Seripatese’s back to hoist her sister into the saddle for Drustina’s left arm and its sling still troubled her. As she settled into her saddle the chamberlain became agitated then angry as Seripatese and Capenda tossed their manes expectantly.

“I order you to stop right now. You cannot be discourteous to the king; he is deep discussions with the Bishop about our new church!”

Drustina’s eyes almost blazed red with anger.

“I have no time for your damned church or your bishops, Chamberlain. Your king’s first duty is to his people and should be worrying about real enemies like the Vikings knocking on your door! Let your bishops worry about some fantasy world of gods, spirits, and devils. What your king needs now is ships, swords and soldiers not incantations, spells and magic!”

The chamberlain paled at Drustina’s total disrespect for the bishops and their power over access to heaven or the netherworlds. Drustina cast one last contemptuous glance down at the superstitious courtier and urged her mare forward. Before he could utter another word, she and Tara were away.

They spoke little on the return journey for Tara recognised her younger sister’s preoccupation and turmoil it wrought in her warrior’s brain. They let their mares pick their way through the moonlit shadows and both riders were thankful for the full moon.
Finally they arrived back in Sotona just as Dawn was breaking. The guard on the gate stared in shock at seeing the Lioness return so early. He, like the rest of Sotona, had been expecting her to be absent for several days. He expressed his surprise as the gate swung open.

“You must have ridden all night my lady, surely you know the dangers of travelling at night in this kingdom. There are thieves and robbers in abundance. What did the king say?”

Drustina replied angrily.

“I didn’t see the king. He was tied up with some bloody bishops about some church or other. I left a message expressing urgency but I don’t know what to make of it. Does the man not care?”

The guard shrugged somewhat apologetically.

“He is a pious man my-lady. This Christian faith is something new and he has become a devout follower.”
Drustina spat and cursed.

“He’ll be a dead Christian if he doesn’t look to his defences. I’m going to visit the deputy chief of this town, your chief is still poncing about with his pious king.”

She almost spat out the word ‘pious’ and it left the guard in no doubt about Drustina’s opinion of the new faith. He watched the pair as they cantered to the meeting hall in the centre of the town. When they reached the hall Drustina wasted no time rousing the deputy chief and berating him for not having already started to put defensive measures in place.

“Dammit man! Your ships should be armed and ready, not still a ‘laying in their comfy berths.”

“But I’ve received no orders.”

Drustina cursed again. It seemed the whole Saxon kingdom was moribund with indecision. She took a bold step.
“Then I’m bloody ordering you! Get your ships down the Solanta ready to meet whatever threat appears from the sea for that is where
they’ll most likely come.”

“But you have no authority.” The deputy chief protested.

“Speak to the Friesian merchant who came with my ships, ask him what he saw, ask him what happened! You are right, I do not have any formal authority but what I do have is my sword and my ships! You have a right to question my authority but you cannot question my knowledge of the Viking intentions. I’m warning you now. They are coming today, tomorrow, soon! Now; do something man!”

Drustina waited while the man fretted indecisively, then to her relief, a minor chief stepped forward and addressed the deputy chief by name.

“Cedric I think the Lioness is right. If we are caught with our ships ...”

“I know! I know! But if I mobilise the fleet without the king’s authority they will hang me out to dry if we are wrong.”
The minor chief persisted.

“But she’s right! The further out to sea we meet them the further out they are if they choose to land their forces; the further they have to march if they choose to invade on foot. That distance buys us time to muster our army. If we fight them further out on the water we will at least have sea-room and a chance of resisting them. The lioness is right Cedric! Listen to her!”

Drustina felt a grudging respect for the lesser chief. The man showed the insight and wit to recognise the advantages preparedness gave them. She turned to encourage him by discussing tactics even while the deputy chief still prevaricated.

“How many ships can you have ready by noon?”

Once he was dealing with facts and figures, the lesser chief became more confident.

“About ten, by eventide I can have thirty.”

Drustina turned to the Deputy Chief.

“Surely it will not beggar the king’s purse to put ten ships to sea. You could pretend it was simply an exercise. It’s at least a start. I have a score of ships or more already down at the spit. That would make thirty ships when we join forces. Anyway, if your king has half an ounce of wit in that pious skull, I expect some sort of emissary will be coming down the Winchester road even as we speak. He should be here in the afternoon!”

“And what will I tell him? How many Viking ships are there? Do you know?”

“No. I don’t know but they are planning an invasion and they don’t do things by halves. I’m guessing probably fifty ships or possibly a hundred ships. That’s between fifty and a hundred men per ship so that’s anywhere between three thousand and ten thousand armed Vikings. Personally I guess nearer fifty ships, though probably more than fifty men per ship. I’ve encountered large Viking ships with up to a hundred men but they are not so common. In any event I’d make preparations for ten thousand Vikings. I know that’s a huge number but better to be over-prepared than under-prepared.”

The deputy chief’s face paled to nervousness.

“We would take days to muster ten thousand men!”

“Then you had better raise the call to arms right away. I’m off to join my comrades for I have my own axe to grind with these wolves. Good day Cedric. I suggest you have this young chief set sail with his first tens ships by noon! When he meets me down at the Spit, I can discuss tactics. I’m afraid it’s too late to plan strategies. The battle is close at hand.”

She departed for the mermaid and was busy chatting to Sister Catherine about stabling their horses when the lesser chief joined her on the quay.

“Hello again, I’m Althred and Cedric has taken your advice. Can you wait until noon and we can sail together?”
Drustina frowned, there was time yet before the noon but it was time going wasting if she waited for Althred’s ships. Reluctantly she refused to wait and they agreed to rendezvous at the Nab rock to the East of Ynys Wynn. Drustina hoped that the Vikings had not played a double bluff and where intending to land further west. When she got back to Carl she expected him to have newer intelligence. The mermaid skimmed away from the quay and Althred watched enviously.

Within a couple of hours, Drustina was back with familiar ships and faces; it gave her comfort to be with men she knew and could trust. Carl described what checks and patrols he had carried out to try and locate the Viking fleet but they had had little luck.
One incident however, angered Drustina. The villagers of Cws had found Gisela the Viking princess and whilst being held in captivity the girl had been raped. Carl, as the only competent authority, had dealt with the incident with summary justice. The perpetrators had been castrated. Drustina was intrigued by Carl’s action and she smiled as she asked.

“I’m interested in your decision, normally you’d have executed them, explain?”

Carl shrugged.

“The village has seen enough killing; besides, they were young, strong men and the village is short of man-power. Gelded horses are still useful as beasts of burden, those young men will still be useful as drudges. They can work for the village without endangering any more women. I’m taking leaves out of your book Dru.”

She grinned again and ordered the princess to be brought before her. The girl was manacled when she was presented before Drustina for Carl still deemed her a security risk, possibly a worse one now she had been abused. Drustina wasted no time explaining how stupid she had been.

“I told you no harm would have befallen you if you stayed by me. You didn’t, you tried to escape.”

“They raped me!” The girl cursed.

“You chose to reject my protection by escaping. Besides, your countrymen raped many of the village women and murdered many of the men, are you not surprised the villages were angry? They saw it as justice!”

“I was a captive, we do not treat female captives that way!”

For a moment Drustina was speechless with incredulity at the girl’s ignorance about Viking treatment of their prisoners, then she became angry..

“Do not try to tell me about the ethics of your raiders ... your pirates. I have seen their handiwork in a dozen different places. Your people only treat well the prisoners they deem worthy of keeping alive. I have seen plenty of slaughtered old women whom they deem to old or worn to take back as brides or worse, slaves. The only female captives they treat well are those with some perceived worth! You were lucky you were not gang raped and killed. I left clear instructions that if you were captured you were to be treated properly. Those two Saxon apes from the village did not heed my orders so Carl punished them.

“Your lieutenant Carl should have had them executed for what they did.”

“Don’t try and tell me how my lieutenants should behave! He arrived at a perfect solution, I couldn’t have chosen a better one myself.”

“So what of these shackles? Am I to remain tethered like a beast?”

“You ran away like a beast. It seems like a perfect solution for now. You are a security risk and we expect to go to war with your father’s fleet. I cannot afford to have you at large whilst we are in the midst of fighting a battle we have no certainty of winning. You remain manacled and tethered for now.”

Gisela cursed and rattled the manacles.

“You are no better than that brute Carl! I am of royal blood. My father will kill you for this.”

Drustina smiled disarmingly.

“And well he might, if he wins. However, I’m not about to undermine my most trusted and loyal lieutenant just to address your over-inflated royal ego. You remain in shackles!”

The guards took the screaming princess away and Carl turned to Drustina.

“You’re becoming hard Dru. War is changing you.”

Drustina swallowed disconsolately.

“Am I Carl? I wonder why.” She replied ironically.

Carl nodded knowingly; he was about to add that Gisela was only a fourteen-year-old girl but he kept his council and left his beloved leader to her thoughts. He had long ago learned the signs that signalled when Drustina needed peace and solitude.

An hour after the sun had passed its zenith a shout disturbed Drustina from her thoughts and she popped her head out of the bow cuddy where she had been partly dozing and partly thinking of a strategy for the forthcoming encounter. She stepped out from under the cuddy and felt the warm planks beneath her feet. Spring was well and truly arrived and Drustina knew this was the time of year when the Viking’s launched their main campaigns for it gave them the whole summer to consolidate any victories they might have won.

Somewhere, not far away, she knew the Vikings were planning their attack but where and when. All she had to go on was the earlier Viking raid on Cws that served as a harbinger of things to come.

She counted her ships and was pleased to see that Carl had already despatched four of her Mermaid class as patrols to ensure all the entrances into the Solanta were being monitored if not actually guarded. It would have been suicide for the little ships to try and stop a full scale Viking invasion. The rest of the fleet was ready at a moment’s notice so that meant eighteen ships of her own
plus the ten that Althred had brought. With the four out patrolling, this meant she had thirty two ships. Probably less than the full Viking invasion fleet but still a useful force to hamper any landing attempt.

She spent the rest of the afternoon with Althred discussing the details of all the inlets and creeks that emptied into the Solanta. The more she studied the layout, the more she felt it might be better to divide her forces and lay several ambushes as the invasion fleet approached Sotona. Althred considered the plan and nodded thoughtfully.

“We need to lay some bait but it’ll have to be more than just one fat merchant ship. If this is a full invasion, they’ll have bigger fish to fry. The whole of Wessex for instance.”

“Yes I know. However I think I’ve got something that will interest Harald Cold-blood.”

Althred’s eyes squinted with curiosity.

“Oh, what?”

“His daughter, or at least she tells me she’s his daughter.

“Oh, that’s useful, how d’you think we should play it?”

“Don’t know just yet. I think it’s a case of suck it and see. I’m open to any suggestions.”

Althred turned to look at the girl shackled to the mainmast. The girl was sleeping curled up on the spare mainsail with a woollen sheepskin for a blanket.

“Are you going to keep her chained like that?”

“I’ve no other option. She’s plucky enough or daft enough to try and escape — again.”

“Is it worth the bother of keeping her? I hear she’s soiled goods now anyway. She’ll be little use as a bargaining counter.”

Drustina bristled with anger. It seemed wherever she went, women were seen as little more than chattels, objects, property. She put it down to the new religion but made a mental note to enlighten Althred at some later date; if they got through the forthcoming storm. She reminded Althred of who the girl’s father was.

“Just remember who the girl’s father is Althred. If you show her some compassion or respect she might just put in a word for you if you find yourself at Cold-blood’s mercy.”

She saw Althred’s lower lip give an almost imperceptible quiver that betrayed his fear of the forthcoming fight.

‘Good,’ she reflected ‘it’s always good to be afraid when anticipating or even fighting a battle. It made a fellow just that bit less irresponsible and thoughtless of other’s danger.’

The waft of fresh food drifted across the water from Sister Catherine’s supply ship and it told Drustina’s nose that food would soon be delivered in a small boat. She nodded towards the foetal ball under the fleece. The scent of food had awoken Gisela.

“If you want you can feed her. I don’t suppose she’s eaten since this morning.”

Althred grinned but declined the invitation.

“No thanks, she might just bite my arm off. Besides, I’ve still got plenty to sort out on my ships; they’ve been mostly shore sailors until now. Every time there’s been a scare, the raiders have been long gone, before my ships get there. That’s why I pushed to support you about having our ships at sea. Better out and free where they at least stand a chance.”
Drustina nodded, it seemed she would have to feed the tethered wildcat.
~~oo000oo~~