Arthur had announced who they were and why they had come so far north. The man in charge was arguing with Arthur and Lancelot about leaving the lands "given by the Pope himself". Arthur got off his horse and quietly exchanged a few words with him and they were being led into the estate for a bite to eat. Like the rest, Dag hadn't had anything to eat since they left their camp at daybreak, but to be honest he'd rather just gather up the boy they were sent to get and head back home.
The lady of the estate quickly arranged for them to be fed and Dag found himself watching her. She seemed different than the other women he'd been around. She didn't look that different, but she seemed to be afraid to speak to anyone without permission. She kept her head slightly bowed and only once or twice did Dag see her look up at someone when they spoke to her. She reminded him of some of the dogs that hung around the wall. They would run up to people to get a small scrap of meat but they seemed to expect the kicks they received as often as they received food. She seemed to be waiting for the kick she knew was coming sooner or later.
It angered Dag to think that any woman was mistreated so. This was just another reason for Dag to want to be as far from the Romans as possible. Even if he and the others were considered to be pagans, they knew how to treat their women. Women were to be taken care of and protected from harm. How could a man harm his wife or allow anyone else to? Such an act was incomprehensible to the fierce-looking knight.
After they had eaten they began to rally the people and make them understand the danger they were facing in the Saxons. Even the men of the village that surrounded the estate seemed afraid to speak up when spoken to. Dag could tell that Arthur was growing impatient with the people. After much prodding and pushing, they were finally almost ready to leave, but Arthur kept looking at the two guards that were watching two men lay stones with mortar at the entrance to a small hut outside the wall. Dag watched as Arthur dismounted and pulled his sword from the scabbard on his saddle. He started toward the two guards and they turned to block his way.
They exchanged words and Arthur turned to Dag. Dag dismounted and took his huge axe and strode over to the newly laid rock wall. With a few swings he had knocked down all their work, but behind the wall was a wooden door that was locked from the inside. He glanced at Arthur and received the order he was waiting for. With a couple of kicks he knocked the door loose and Arthur started to enter followed closely by Dagonet, Lancelot and Gawain. The other knights blocked the entrance from intruders and they walked down into the cellar-like building with the knowledge that no one would come in behind them unless they wanted it.
The narrow passage down into the cellar was lined with contraptions that had only one purpose… to inflict pain. The stale air smelled worse than a battlefield days after the battle was over. Whatever else they would find, Dag knew there was bodies decaying. The passage opened into a small room occupied by a couple of men dressed in long woolen robes. They didn't appear to have bathed since their mother's had stopped bathing them and their smell only reinforced his thoughts.
On each side of the small room, Dag saw cages. At first he thought they were keeping animals and he looked to see what kind of animals could possibly need to be so mistreated. He was brought out of his thoughts by the tone of Lancelot's words. He had missed what was said because he was so shocked at the sight of human beings in various states of decay. They were all chained to the wall and appeared to have died from starvation among the very noticeable wounds that had been inflicted on them.
"See if any are still alive", Arthur commanded. Dag rushed over and opened a small metal cylinder. The smell of death almost made him choke. "This one is dead", he told Arthur. "By the smell, they are all dead", was the only words spoken by Gawain. Dag agreed with the comment, but he would continue to do as Arthur commanded. Moving quickly, he went to another of the cylinders and opened it. "Arthur", his tone was one of surprise, as he reached inside and quickly lifted a small boy out.
The boy winced and shied away from Dag. "You must not fear me", Dag commanded in what he hoped was a tone of reassurance. The boy shyly lifted his eyes and looked at Dag and the big man saw the look of relief in the boy's eyes. Dag quickly ran his hands over the boy to check for injuries. Other than being covered in dirt and a little thin for his size, he seemed to be in fairly good condition considering the people in the cells around him. The only obvious injury was a broken arm, but Dag was certain with care it would heal cleanly.
Arthur and Lancelot were opening the metal doors to the other cages. Everyone was beginning to think the boy was the only one left alive when Arthur found another person alive but in pretty bad condition. Out of all the cells under the ground the knights had only found the two people still alive. Just what they had uncovered was beyond Dag's reckoning as they made for the entrance and some fresh air. They put the two on the ground and Arthur called for water.
The Bishop's little "gopher" ran up quickly with a skein of water and Dag noticed that Marius' wife ran over to the woman with Arthur. She knelt beside her and laid her hand on the other woman's arm. Dag was surprised by the injured woman's response. She quickly laid her head on the lady's hand and closed her eyes. He didn't know how or why, but he did know they had met and had some kind of interaction before then. There was a familiarity between them that spoke of many meetings before. The boy groaned and that took Dag's attention away from the lady and then shouts from Marius quickly brought it back
Dag was watching the exchange between the Roman and Arthur when Marius slapped his wife. Just as he was about to get up and take care of the man himself, Arthur punched Marius, knocking him to the ground. Dag relaxed back into his kneeling position with the boy as Arthur was pulling Marius up with his sword to his throat. After all they had seen at this estate, Dag would not have been surprised to see Arthur kill the man.
After a few tense moments, they were finally on the road back home. Dag was riding in a wagon with the boy, the injured woman and Marius' wife whose name was Fulcinia. Dag noticed she wasn't a beautiful woman, but she was kind and she had pretty eyes. They had a little bit of a sad quality, like she had seen too much suffering. Dag thought on this for a moment, then turning to her, he said, "You are not responsible for the things done by your husband."
Fulcinia stopped what she was doing and looked at Dagonet. "I could have done more to stop him. I let my fear keep me from releasing the people he killed, therefore I am as guilty as he and it will take more than a little nursing to atone for my sins." She then turned and continued wiping the boys forehead with a cool, wet cloth. Dagonet searched for something to say that would lessen her guilt, but deep down he knew she was right. By not doing anything to stop the atrocities, she might as well have done them herself; but looking at her when she didn't know he was looking, he felt sorry for her. He could tell she had been abused herself, and only her fear of being treated like one of his prisoners would have kept her from stopping his insanity. At least she had done enough to keep the boy and other woman alive.
Just then the other woman moaned and Fulcinia quickly moved to help her. Dag watched as the injured woman put her hand up to Fulcinia's face. She spoke quietly and with the movement of the wagon it was hard to hear her words, but he heard enough to know that the woman was trying to reassure her of her innocence in the doings of her husband. Dag understood her reasoning and he agreed with her. Sometimes you just can't do something without having someone at you back and he was sure Fulcinia would have been alone in anything she tried to do. He decided he would try to make her understand. She didn't deserve to feel the shame or guilt she now felt.