The Dragon And The Raven: Or The Days Of King Alfred(Fiscle Part-3) by G. A. Henty (e book reading free TXT) 📕

Join With Him And Tell Me How Things Are Going,  And How

Sweyn Treats His Captive. If I Find He Is Pushing Matters To An

Extreme I Must Make Some Desperate Effort To Carry Her Off;

But If,  As Is More Probable,  He Trusts To Time To Break Her

Resolution,  I Shall Follow At A Short Distance."

"Shall I Go With You,  Edmund?"

"I Think It Will Be Better Not,  Egbert. Your Beard Would

Mark You As A Saxon At Once."

"But That I Can Cut Off," Egbert Said. "It Would Be A Sacrifice

Truly,  But I Would Do It Without Hesitation."

"Thanks,  Dear Kinsman,  But I Think It Would Be Of More

Purpose For You To Remain In Command Of The Dragon. She

May Meet Many Foes,  And It Were Best That You Were There To

Fight And Direct Her. I Pray You At Once To Descend The Seine

And Sailing Round The North Coast Of France,  Place The Dragon

At The Mouth Of The Rhine. Do Not Interfere With Any Danish

Ships That You May See Pass Out,  But Keep At A Distance. Should

Sweyn Descend The Rhine I Will,  If Possible,  Send A Messenger

Down Before Him,  So Do You Look Out For Small Boats; And

If You See One In Which The Rower Hoists A White Flag At The

End Of His Oar,  You Will Know He Is My Messenger. If I Find

Sweyn Goes On Towards The Elbe I Will Also Send You Word,

And You Will Then Move The Dragon To The Mouth Of That River.

"Lastly,  If You Receive No Message,  But If You Mark That

In A Danish Vessel When Passing You A White Cloth Is Waved

From One Of The Windows Of The Cabins In The Poop,  That Will

Be A Signal To You That The Vessel Is Sweyn's,  And That Freda Is

A Captive On Board. In That Case You Will Of Course At Once

Attack It. Let Us Ask Siegbert. He Has Sailed Up Both The

Rhine And The Elbe,  And Can Tell Us Of Some Quiet Port Near

The Mouth Of Each River Where You May Lay The Dragon Somewhat

Out Of Sight Of Passers-By,  While You Can Yet Note All

Ships That Go Down The River. My Messengers Will Then Know

Where To Find You." Having Settled This Point They Returned

To Siegbert,  And Edmund Told Him What He Thought Of Doing.

"I Can Advise No Better," Siegbert Said. "Assuredly You

Cannot Prevail By Force. At Present I Have Only Ten Of My

Followers With Me; The Rest,  After I Was Wounded,  And It Was

Plain That A Long Time Must Elapse Before I Could Again Lead

Them In The Field,  Asked Me To Let Them Follow Some Other

Chief,  And As They Could Not Be Idle Here I Consented. I Have

Ten Men With Me,  But These Would Be But A Small Reinforcement.

As You Say,  Your Saxons Would Be Instantly Known,

And The Northmen Have Suffered So At Their Hands During

The Siege That The First Party You Met Would Set Upon You."

"I Will Take Two Only Of Your Men," Edmund Said. "Choose

Me Two Who Are Not Known By Sight To Sweyn. I Wish One To

Be A Subtle Fellow,  Who Will Act As A Spy For Me; The Other I

Should Choose Of Commanding Stature; And The Air Of A Leader.

He Will Go With My Party,  And Should We Come Upon Danes

He Will Assume The Place Of Leader,  And Can Answer Any Questions.

There Is Far Too Much Difference Between The Saxon

And Danish Tongue For Me And My Men To Pass As Danes If

We Have Many Words To Say. I Shall Take Four Of My Men,  All

Full Grown,  Strong,  And Good Fighters. They Have But Little

Hair Upon Their Chins At Present,  And They Can Shave That Off.

Now,  Jarl,  I Want Five Danish Dresses,  For Your Costume Differs

Somewhat From Ours. Have You Horses? If Not,  I Must Send Back

To Paris To Buy Some."

"I Have Plenty To Mount You And Your Party."

"Good," Edmund Said; "I Will Go Down To My Ship And

Pick My Men."

In Half An Hour The Party Were Ready To Start. Egbert

Had Received From Siegbert Particulars Of Villages At The

Mouths Of The Rhine And Elbe,  And He Promised Edmund

That A Watch Should Be Kept Night And Day At The Mouth Of

The Rhine Until A Messenger Arrived. Edmund Had Already

Ascertained That Sweyn Had Left A Fortnight Before With His

Following,  And Had Marched Towards Champagne. There

Probably He Had Halted His Main Body,  Returning Only With A

Party Of Horsemen To Carry Off Freda.

"I Would I Could Go With You," Siegbert Groaned As

Edmund Said Adieu To Him. "I Would Ride Straight Into His

Camp And Challenge Him To Mortal Combat,  But As It Is I Am

Helpless."

"Never Fear,  Good Siegbert," Edmund Said Cheerfully;

"When Your Leg Is Cured Travel Straight Homeward,  And There,

I Trust,  Before Very Long To Place Freda Safe And Unharmed In

Your Arms. If I Come Not You Will Know That I Have Perished."

A Minute Later,  After A Few Parting Words With Egbert,

Edmund Mounted His Horse,  And Followed By His Six Companions,

Rode Off At Full Speed. He Knew That It Would Be Useless

Making Any Inquiries About Sweyn And His Party. But Few Of

The Inhabitants Of The Country Were To Be Seen About,  For The

Danes Had Burned Every House Within Very Many Miles Of

Paris,  And The Peasants Would Assuredly Not Have Paid Any

Special Attention To A Party Of Danes,  For Whenever They Saw

The Dreaded Marauders Even At A Distance They Forsook Their

Homes And Fled To The Forests. The Party Therefore Rode Eastward

Until Nightfall,  Then Picketed Their Horses,  And Having

Lit A Fire,  Made Their Supper From The Store Of Provisions They

Had Brought With Them,  And Then Lay Down To Sleep For The

Night.

At Daybreak They Again Started And Continued Their Journey

Until It Was Necessary To Halt To Give Their Horses A Rest.

They Had Passed Several Parties Of Danes,  For These In Great

Numbers,  After The Siege Of Paris Had Been Given Up,  Were

Journeying Towards Burgundy. There Was But Slight Greeting

As They Passed; But On One Occasion A Horseman Rode Out

From One Of The Bands And Entered Into Conversation With

The Two Danes Who Rode At The Head Of The Party. They Told

Them That They Were Followers Of The Jarl Siegbert,  And Were

Riding To Join The Rest Of His Band,  Who Were With The Company

Of Jarl Eric,  As Siegbert Would Be Long Before He Would

Be Able To Move,  And Had Therefore Kept Only A Few Of His

Followers With Him.

"Eric Is A Long Way Ahead," The Dane Said; "He Must Be

Full As Far As Nancy By This Time. Those Who Left First," He

Grumbled,  "Will Have The Pick Of The Country. We Were Fools

To Linger So Long Before Paris." Then Turning His Horse,  He

Rode Back To His Comrades,  And The Party Continued Their

Way.

They Avoided All Towns And Large Danish Encampments

On The Way,  But Made Inquiries From All Small Parties They

Met After The Party Of Sweyn. They Learned Without Difficulty

The Place Where He Had Been Encamped A Few Days Before,

But On Their Arriving In The Neighbourhood They Found

That The Place Was Deserted,  Nor Could Any Tell Them The

Direction In Which The Northmen Had Travelled.

For Some Days Edmund And His Party Scoured The Country

Round,  Journeying Now In One Direction,  Now In Another,

But Without Hearing Ought Of Sweyn's Party.

Certainly They Had Not Gone Along The Track Which The Main

Body Of The Danes Had Followed; But The Question Was Whether

They Had Turned Rather To The South In Order To Cross The

Mountain Ranges Between Them And The Rhine,  Or Had Turned

North And Journeyed Through The Great Forest Of Ardennes,

And So To Some Of The Other Rivers Which Run Down Into The

North Sea.

The Latter Was In Some Respects The Most Likely Course To

Have Been Chosen. By Taking It Sweyn Would Avoid Altogether

The Track Which The Majority Of His Countrymen Were Taking,

And This Would Naturally Be His Object. Siegbert Had Many

Powerful Friends,  And The Carrying Off Of The Jarl's Daughter

From The Side Of Her Wounded Father Would Be Regarded As A

Grave Offence; And Sweyn Might Well Wish To Keep Clear Of His

Countrymen Until He Had Forced Freda To Become His Wife.

Even Then It Would Not Be Safe For Him For A Long Time To

Return To His Country. Striking Through The Ardennes He Would

Come Down Upon The Scheldt,  The Moselle,  The Maas,  Or Other

Rivers Flowing Into The North Sea Direct,  Or Into The Rhine.

Edmund Knew Nothing Of These Streams; But The Danes

With Him Said There Were Several Rivers So Situated,  For They

Had Sailed Up Them. Where They Took Their Rise They Knew

Not,  But It Would Probably Be In Or Beyond The Forest Of

Ardennes.

"Then In That Way We Will Search," Edmund Said. "If

They Come Upon A River They Will Doubtless Set To Work To

Build Galleys To Carry Them To The Sea,  For With Only Three

Hundred Men Sweyn Will Not Venture To March By Land Through

A Country Which Has But Lately Suffered Heavily At The Hands

Of The Danes. It Will Take Him A Month Or Six Weeks To Cut

Down Trees And Build His Ships; Therefore We May