Vikings: Harsh Lesson
Chapter 8 of my Vikings story, enjoy, a brief break from the torment at Kattegat.
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Now onto the story.
Disclaimer: Vikings belongs to History Channel.
Chapter 8
The boats sailed closer to the shore; they had almost arrived at their destination, prepared to raid once more. Ragnar stood at the prow of the boat he was on, eyes narrowed as he surveyed the shore. Something did not sit well with him, but he couldn't put his finger on it.
'This is a different land, it is still England, just another part of it, at least, that's what it seems.' He thought to himself. 'Yet I cannot shake the feeling that something is waiting for us there.'
Even as he thought this, his eyes swept over the empty shoreline they were coming to. It didn't make sense to him, suddenly his senses were alert, danger was near. He couldn't believe he hadn't seen it before. Atop two cliffs, on either side of the shore were large wooden towers, with two more located further inland.
Ragnar silently cursed. 'Watchtowers; they've seen us; they know we're coming. There must be an ambush.'
He turned and spoke to those on his boat.
"We have to be ready, send warnings to the others, we're sailing into a trap." He informed them urgently.
Almost immediately they began to gather their weapons and shields, they moved the boat close to as many of the others as they could, passing warnings along. This allowed the others to do the same. By the time the Vikings came ashore, they were all armed and ready, waiting for an attack.
They stood, watchful, all standing ready to fall into formation at a moment's notice. King Horik was standing next to Ragnar and spoke quietly to him.
"You're sure of this Ragnar, you're positive this is a trap?" He asked carefully.
Ragnar, not taking his eyes off his surroundings replied. "I know a trap when I see it. I wish I'd spotted it sooner."
Sure enough, no sooner than he had said those words, a storm of arrows suddenly flew into the sky.
"Shields!" Ragnar bellowed.
The Vikings immediately adopted their shield wall, ready to defend from the arrows. Soon the arrow storm passed and Ragnar chanced a look out between the shields. The archers were led by scouts who originally had been in the watchtowers, with them was a moderately sized group of men at arms. As these men charged, the archers prepared to fire again. Ragnar saw their plan and reaffirmed their position.
"Hold fast, endure the arrows and prepare for the attack." He told them.
They heard the arrows again and soon they were hitting off their shields. The moment the arrows ended, the men at arms slammed into them. But the Vikings had braced for impact and the shield wall remained firm. Soon both sides began to push, attempting to overpower the other.
Defended by their shields, the Vikings were able to employ single attacks with their weapons, over the shields, onto the heads of some of their attackers. Through this they eventually began to claim the upper hand.
Unable to attack for fear of hitting their own men, the archers could only watch the struggle. That was before the Vikings archers began picking them off. At the same time the Shield Wall surged forwards and soon the battle became a massacre.
With incredible, brutal efficiency, the Vikings slaughtered their enemies, cutting down the men at arms and advancing on the pinned down archers. Before long those men were slaughtered too and the Vikings had claimed the area.
Ragnar looked around, just off the shore was a decently sheltered spot, very defensible, a good place to camp and wait and plan their next move.
"I say we wait here, prepare ourselves." He said. "I want those watchtowers torn down. We don't need more scouts coming in the middle of the night and climbing them. I'd rather not have our every move scrutinized."
Several of his men hastened to obey, while everybody else got to work setting up their camp. That night, everything was set, the watchtowers destroyed. Ragnar sat, enjoying a drink with King Horik.
"A fine victory today." King Horik remarked. "A good sign for things to come I say."
Ragnar took a swig of his drink. "I wouldn't get ahead of ourselves, King Horik, the fact they were waiting for us tells me this will be an uphill battle."
King Horik simply laughed. "The best kind."
Ragnar couldn't help himself, he laughed too.
Later, he returned to the part of the camp where his men were.
"Everyone, gather round." He said, getting their attention. "We need to start making plans."
Once he had their attention he spoke. "We have not been here before, we need to be careful, keep an eye on the lay of the land. Determine what there is for us to take; what we are up against."
The others murmured their agreement to this and finally Ragnar smiled.
"Once we have done that, we will attack and we will claim our treasures."
That drew a cheer from the men and they all loudly voiced their approval. King Horik was delivering a similar speech to his men and they were also cheering. After this, while many of the men were preparing to sleep; Ragnar found himself with company.
"A rousing speech, you always know how to excite everyone." Floki remarked with a grin.
Ragnar laughed lightly. "It's a gift I suppose."
Floki nodded slowly but then quickly became serious. "Ragnar I must warn you. I don't like the way things are, we may be friends and allies now. But that's just because we are useful and you know that."
Ragnar narrowed his eyes, considering Floki's words.
"I will speak plainly; I feel we should be prepared for anything, after all. I don't trust King Horik." The boat builder continued; his words whispered and tense.
Yet Ragnar's reply was calm and simple. "Neither do I."
Floki seemed satisfied with that and soon things were settled for the night, ready for the raid to begin the following day. Although Ragnar's sleep was troubled and he felt it had nothing to do with his distrust of King Horik.
End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.