down here a few months ago, and they’ve been killing people in the woods along that trail.”
“Killing them? Not just robbing them?”
“Aye. Killing ‘em. They drag ‘em off the road, tie ‘em up to trees and cut ‘em over and over until they die. Then they just leave ‘em up there to rot. And I don’t know that they’d go easy on priests, either. The new king, Aethelred, he finally sent some men last week but we ‘aven't heard a thing from 'em.”
“Is there another way we could travel?”
“You could go to Bath, then go north from there, maybe.”
“Bath?” I said, more to myself. “That’s where Saint David’s Monastery is, yes?” He shrugged, but I already knew the answer. Bath was an old city, built by the Romans, and legend had it that King Arthur’s victory at Mount Badon, or Mons Badonicus as the Romans called it, was nearby. That would be a safe diversion, and a good place to rest for the night, if we could make it by nightfall. “How do we get there?”
“You’ll reach a fork about midday. Left will take you west to Bath. You could get there by tonight if you walk fast.”
"God be with you, my friend," I said, heartened by the news. I hurried down the path and caught up with Arkael.
“I spoke with one of the villagers back there and he mentioned that some Mercian bandits were in the area ahead of us. He makes them sound ruthless. Perhaps we should take another route?”
“Every trail has bandits.”
“But these are particularly dangerous ones," I said. "The kind who like to kill priests.”
“Well then, I would not begrudge you for turning back and going home, where it’s safe.”
“No. No, of course not. I’m not about to turn around now. We’ve only just started.” I smiled, covering my worry. “I just wondered if it might be more prudent to take another route. We’ll hit a fork in a few hours, and the left fork will take us to Bath. There’s a monastery there we could stay at. I’m sure we could get some hot food from the monks. Maybe even a roof over our heads? The skies look threatening today.”
Arkael said nothing.
“They’d be eager to meet someone like you, I’m sure. You’d be praised as a hero and possibly a saint for what you did at Rogwallow.”
“You should feel free to go to this monastery, then, and tell them all about it. You have my permission to embellish your story any way you see fit.”
I bit my lip in annoyance, and I gave up on convincing him to change our route. If it wasn’t clear to me before, it certainly was now. He would be traveling his own way, and I was free to either keep up or give up. I only hoped that his sword was as effective against bandits swooping in from the shadows as it was against raiders plundering a church.
*****
The road stretched ahead into the autumn-touched countryside, meandering north-east through dense clusters of oak groves. Most of the trees had lost their leaves and the grassy hills they sprouted from didn’t have their normal bright green luster, leaving the world in several dull shades of brown. I pulled my robe tight and rubbed my arms, fighting off the chill that returned once the sun dipped low in the sky. We passed another village in the afternoon, which I anxiously pointed out. But Arkael continued on as if I’d said nothing, which was exactly how most of our conversations started, and ended. I eventually asked him if he planned on stopping at all this night, and that’s when he asked me if I was tired. I told him I was, but I was more concerned with finding a safe place to make camp. He grunted, and left it at that.
As afternoon turned into evening, dark clouds again rolled in from the south, but unlike yesterday, these actually brought rain. It started as a trickle at first, though we didn't notice it while staying in the trees. Just before the downpour started, Arkael turned off the path and walked through the forest, moving between the thick trunks, stopping every so
“Killing them? Not just robbing them?”
“Aye. Killing ‘em. They drag ‘em off the road, tie ‘em up to trees and cut ‘em over and over until they die. Then they just leave ‘em up there to rot. And I don’t know that they’d go easy on priests, either. The new king, Aethelred, he finally sent some men last week but we ‘aven't heard a thing from 'em.”
“Is there another way we could travel?”
“You could go to Bath, then go north from there, maybe.”
“Bath?” I said, more to myself. “That’s where Saint David’s Monastery is, yes?” He shrugged, but I already knew the answer. Bath was an old city, built by the Romans, and legend had it that King Arthur’s victory at Mount Badon, or Mons Badonicus as the Romans called it, was nearby. That would be a safe diversion, and a good place to rest for the night, if we could make it by nightfall. “How do we get there?”
“You’ll reach a fork about midday. Left will take you west to Bath. You could get there by tonight if you walk fast.”
"God be with you, my friend," I said, heartened by the news. I hurried down the path and caught up with Arkael.
“I spoke with one of the villagers back there and he mentioned that some Mercian bandits were in the area ahead of us. He makes them sound ruthless. Perhaps we should take another route?”
“Every trail has bandits.”
“But these are particularly dangerous ones," I said. "The kind who like to kill priests.”
“Well then, I would not begrudge you for turning back and going home, where it’s safe.”
“No. No, of course not. I’m not about to turn around now. We’ve only just started.” I smiled, covering my worry. “I just wondered if it might be more prudent to take another route. We’ll hit a fork in a few hours, and the left fork will take us to Bath. There’s a monastery there we could stay at. I’m sure we could get some hot food from the monks. Maybe even a roof over our heads? The skies look threatening today.”
Arkael said nothing.
“They’d be eager to meet someone like you, I’m sure. You’d be praised as a hero and possibly a saint for what you did at Rogwallow.”
“You should feel free to go to this monastery, then, and tell them all about it. You have my permission to embellish your story any way you see fit.”
I bit my lip in annoyance, and I gave up on convincing him to change our route. If it wasn’t clear to me before, it certainly was now. He would be traveling his own way, and I was free to either keep up or give up. I only hoped that his sword was as effective against bandits swooping in from the shadows as it was against raiders plundering a church.
*****
The road stretched ahead into the autumn-touched countryside, meandering north-east through dense clusters of oak groves. Most of the trees had lost their leaves and the grassy hills they sprouted from didn’t have their normal bright green luster, leaving the world in several dull shades of brown. I pulled my robe tight and rubbed my arms, fighting off the chill that returned once the sun dipped low in the sky. We passed another village in the afternoon, which I anxiously pointed out. But Arkael continued on as if I’d said nothing, which was exactly how most of our conversations started, and ended. I eventually asked him if he planned on stopping at all this night, and that’s when he asked me if I was tired. I told him I was, but I was more concerned with finding a safe place to make camp. He grunted, and left it at that.
As afternoon turned into evening, dark clouds again rolled in from the south, but unlike yesterday, these actually brought rain. It started as a trickle at first, though we didn't notice it while staying in the trees. Just before the downpour started, Arkael turned off the path and walked through the forest, moving between the thick trunks, stopping every so
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