"Shut the gates!" Théodmund ordered.
Herulác climbed up to the palisade wall and peered over, gazing intently at the five riders as they vanished into the distance. Finally he turned around and leapt to the ground. Heruwald and Heruwulf were already halfway to the great pavilion. Herulác followed slowly behind.
"My lord Brego, the five Dunlending warriors have departed our camp unharmed and undespoiled, as you have bidden," Herulác announced as he approached Brego's table.
"It is well," said Brego. "Herulác, you were with them the longest. What do you think they meant by coming to our camp?"
"If they had any other intentions than what their herald himself told us," Herulác answered, "I could not tell. Nevertheless, it did not seem to me that he expected you to agree to his lord's demands. Therefore, I do not believe he came hither to make threats, but to justify a war."
"We are more ready for war now than we have been for a generation," Brego said. "Nevertheless, we could use more time to prepare."
"I do not believe they will delay very long," responded Herulác.
"This is a pointless discussion," Gúthred interjected. "The time to strike is now, before they have a chance to muster their armies."
"Unless they have already done so," said Herulác. "In which case we must be careful we are not riding into a trap."
"If they have mustered their armies, then it is already too late to do anything but ride to meet them," said Gúthred. "We should have driven out the trespassers much earlier, but now is much better than later."
"It is clear we must take action soon," said Brego, "but what form that action should take is not yet clear to me. I would like to hear Éowald's counsel before I make any decision."
"I know what he will say," Gúthred muttered.
"I will weigh the counsel of all my captains," Brego said. "We shall meet in my pavilion at the beginning of the next watch. Any who have duty that watch shall have to appoint lieutenants to take their place."
Brego stood up from his chair and left the great pavilion, followed by the four guards. Gúthred also left shortly thereafter. Hildebrand remained in his seat and poured himself a cup of wine.
oooOooo
Brego sat in a gilded chair in his pavilion. To his immediate right sat a tall man with a scar across his left cheek. Although his face was as weathered and wrinkled as the king's, his hair and beard were still flaxen gold. This was Éowald Éomund's son. Next to him sat Gúthred, smoother of face and less tall, with green eyes and light brown hair. To Gúthred's right sat Hildebrand, whose hair and long beard were entirely gray. These were the chief captains of the Éothéod.
Wígfana stood, and all voices were hushed. "Thanes of the Éothéod, listen closely! This day is a day of great consequence. Much depends on what we will decide here today. Let us hearken to the words of our king!"
As Wígfana sat down Brego spoke: "This day we have received an offer of peace from Coiram, who is lord of the Dunlendings on the far side of the Isen, and claims sovereignty over the Mark as well. He has offered to cede to us the East-mark, except for the lands around Edoras, if we acknowledge his sovereignty over the West-mark and Edoras. I have refused his offer. If there is anyone who disagrees with my actions this day, let him stand and make his case."
No one stood. Brego continued: "Herulác, son of Hildebrand, believes the Dunlendings mean to gather an army to drive us out of the West-mark, and that they will do so very soon. Gúthred believes we should attack immediately, whatever their intentions are. However, I would like to receive more information and counsel before I make any decision. That is why you are here. Gármund, son of Gúthred!"
Gármund arose.
"How many armed warriors of the Dunlendings are now on this side of the Isen?"
"It is impossible to say," Gármund responded. "Most of the Dunlendings in the West-mark are mere farmers or herdsmen. They could be armed, but they are not well-trained in the arts of war. Some of the settlers are trained warriors, but they form a small portion of the whole. Nevertheless, their numbers have been steadily growing since your father Eorl was granted this land. I would guess that there are now no less than two hundred and no more than one thousand Dunlending warriors in the West-mark."
"Either way," said Gúthred, "we still outnumber them if we strike now."
"True," said Brego, "but that does not take into account the warriors on the far side of the Isen, who we may be certain will join battle against us as soon as we attack their brethren in the West-mark. Gármund, how many warriors does Lord Coiram command?"
"We know very little about the Dunlendings who live on the far side of the Isen," Gármund said. "I cannot say with any certainty how many warriors Coiram commands, but it must be at least six hundred. It may be as much as four thousand, or perhaps more."
"So we may be required to fight five thousand trained warriors or more," Brego mused.
"My lord," Gúthred said, "few Dunlending warriors are armed as the five men you saw here today. Only chieftains and warriors of great rank wear shirts of mail. Most wear leather jerkins or no armor at all. Many do not wear helmets, or only leather caps. Most carry spears and shields, but only noblemen of high rank carry swords. And most Dunlending warriors fight on foot, rather than on horseback or chariot. I do not think they will give us much trouble."
"There are many different ways of giving trouble," Brego said. "Gármund, what is Lord Coiram's rank and influence within the Kingdom of Dunland?"
"He is a lord," said Gármund, "and as such he has almost complete sovereignty over the people of Fithcoll. The Dunlendings are said to be ruled by a High King, but of him we know almost nothing save his name. At any rate, his authority seems to be more symbolic than real. Real authority is in the hands of the various lords and chieftains of Dunland, who form temporary alliances with each other to aid themselves in their petty feuds against the other lords and chieftains."
"How many of these lords and chieftains are there?" Brego asked.
"I do not know," Gármund answered. "We know of five whose lands border the Isen. Beyond them it is impossible to say how many there are."
"And with how many of these lords and chieftains does Coiram currently have an alliance?"
"Again, I do not know. He has a long-standing alliance with Liath of Balreith, but his other alliances are so brief or little-known I cannot say anything else with certainty."
"How many warriors does Lord Liath command?" Brego asked.
"At least five hundred is my guess, but it may be as much as three and a half thousand."
Brego smiled. "If your high estimates are correct, perhaps it is better if we cede the West-mark altogether."
"I do not believe they are correct," said Gármund. "I only give them because I do not know the true numbers, but I believe my low estimates are closer to the truth."
"Thank you, Gármund," said Brego. "Lords and captains, what then is your counsel?"
"We should drive the Dunlendings out of the West-mark immediately," said Gúthred. "If any Dunlending lords try to intervene, we should drive them back across the Isen and lay waste to their lands."
"And how many riders will we need for this task?"
Gúthred thought awhile. "Six companies of six éoreds each should be sufficient, if Coiram and Liath choose to become involved."
"And what if all Dunland becomes involved?" Herulác asked.
"Then we may need more," Gúthred answered.
"It seems to me," said Brego, "that in order to respond to the Dunlending threat, I will need to draw warriors away, either from the burgs or from the Downs, if not from both."
"I would advise against withdrawing any more men from the Downs," said Éowald. "We barely hold the line of the South Downs against the Easterlings with three companies. If they see us withdrawing any more, they will be sure to attack."
"The Easterlings have not bothered to do more than feint since the Battle of the Wold," Gúthred said. "At any rate, we should have dealt with them long ago. Now we shall just have to wait until the Dunlendings have been dealt with."
"The Easterlings are patient," said Éowald. "They have long been prepared for war, and eye the green fields of the Eastemnet with much longing. They are both a greater and a more immediate threat to us than your Dunlending squatters."
"Do you think they will dare attack us again after having suffered so great a defeat in the Battle of the Wold?" Gúthred asked.
"They will remember the names of their many warriors who were slain, but those men are now but a distant memory to the younger generation. And they will also remember that Eorl himself fell in that battle. Thus time may turn even great defeats into victories."
"It was not a total victory for us," said Brego. "Neither was it a total defeat for them, for they still go whither they will within the Wold. Éowald, how many armed warriors defend the Wold against us?"
"It is difficult to say with certainty," Éowald responded. "The Easterlings hold the forts at the Undeeps, and their people freely cross the Great River between the Brown Lands and the Wold. I believe they have settled on the North Downs and perhaps further north, beyond our country, although I doubt they stray too close to the Golden Wood. When we try to lay siege to the forts, a great host sweeps down from the Wolds to hinder us. I would say there are at least three thousand, and perhaps as many as six thousand arrayed against us."
"Hildebrand, what counsel do you give?" Brego asked.
"I say we go to battle," he responded, "whether with the Dunlendings or the Easterlings, or both at once."
"I do not wish to divide my forces and scatter them across the Mark," Brego said. "I fear lest the Dunlendings should spread as far eastward as the Entwash. But then, at least, we would all be holding a single line against the enemy. Aldor, my son, what think you?"
Aldor sat in the second chair to Brego's left. He wore a red tunic and a green mantle. "I am with Hildebrand," he said. "Let us fight our enemies, wherever they may be found. Perhaps it is not best to fight them both at once, but we must decide soon. If my uncle Éowald wishes not to withdraw any men from the Downs, then let us take what men we have gathered here and go to battle against the Dunlendings."
"And who will defend the Entwade?" Éowald asked.
"With your men defending the Downs against the Easterlings and the rest of us attacking the Dunlendings, what need do we have to defend the Entwade, unless some new enemy should arise against us from the earth, or fall from the heavens?"
"A clever enemy will attack us from a quarter we do not expect," said Éowald, "and he will not need magical powers to do so. All he will need is to wait until our attention is focused elsewhere. I would that we had more than three companies to defend the South Downs, but at least we have the garrison of the Entwade to keep the Easterlings cautious. Without it, I fear three companies would not be enough."
Brego sighed. "Baldor, have you any counsel to give?"
"Baldor keeps his own counsel and gives counsel to none," Gúthred said.
Baldor sat on Brego's left hand. He wore a red mantle over a blue tunic. His hair was gold and his eyes were as the sea under a canopy of storm clouds. He spoke for the first time in the council: "The difficulty is that Gúthred and Éowald are both right."
"Do you see any solution?" Brego inquired.
"The solution is the same," Baldor said.
"How do you mean?" asked Brego.
"Since the Battle of the Wold, we have had nothing more than minor feints and skirmishes with the Easterlings. They have not dared to attack our lines in strength for two dozen years. It may be that they will not dare to attack for another couple of dozen years, but we do not know that. Gúthred wishes to do battle with the Dunlendings. In order to do so, we must withdraw many of our men from the South Downs. Éowald believes the Easterlings will take that opportunity to attack us. We have held them off long enough: let us give them the opportunity they desire."
"That would put us in a very precarious position," Éowald said. "How will we prevent our retreat from turning into a rout?"
"We will meet them in equal numbers," Baldor replied.
Éowald frowned. "We cannot do that without sending reinforcements from this camp, and if the Easterlings see us marching against them in force, they will probably not dare to attack."
"That is the real difficulty," Baldor said. "We must make it appear to them that we are only withdrawing men from the Downs, when in fact our reinforcements are greater than the number of those withdrawn."
Éowald thought awhile, and the frown gradually left his face. "It may work," he said.
"But it would leave the rest of the Mark open to attack from the Dunlendings," Gúthred countered.
"We will need to withdraw men from the Downs anyway to support your quarrel with the Dunlendings," Éowald said. "In this manner we will have a chance of withdrawing them successfully."
Brego stared at the animal skins that covered the ground in front of him, twisting the end of his beard with the fingers of his left hand. At length he looked up at his captains. "Let us see a map of the East-mark," he ordered. "It seems to me that we have the beginnings of a plan of battle."