Carack

Carack Ch14 complete

Chapter 14 The Mural

As they approached Widnbrea, after three days of travel, Meendhu’s pace increased and eventually he left them as he ran on ahead of everyone, he was so anxious to see what was happening at the castle. When Euny, Gerent and Brunnstan came to the top of the last hill, to look down onto the plains and castle of Widnbrea they pulled up to take in the view. Gerent, raising his drooping head could hardly believe his tired eyes; in front of him lay a scene of total devastation. The lush grass around the castle had been trodden down to near non-existence; the whole place was eerily quiet, without the sound of pheasants or other birds apart from the harsh calling of rooks and crows.

Gerent could smell a strange odour and he sniffed the air, realising it was the wispy ends of wood smoke that were drifting across that he could smell. From what he could see all of the settlers wagons and tents had been burnt or torn down, there were charred patches and the remains of pieces of wood scattered across areas that had once been green grass but was now a dust bowl of bare earth. The wind whipped up dried foliage and red soil and sent it spiralling upward sending dust showers before it as it drove across the blighted valley. Gerent could see amongst the devastation that there were a few bodies lying around but he could not believe what had happened to the tall grass he had ridden and farmed in only three weeks ago.

‘Is it usually so barren?’ Euny said staring around. Neither Gerent nor Brunnstan could reply, Brunnstan wiped a tear from his cheek, Gerent was gazing at the castle on the white bluff, and there was not one banner on its walls.

‘Don’t worry Brunnstan,’ Gerent tried to reassure the Brownie, ‘I’m sure it’s not as bad as it looks. Let’s see who’s in the castle.’ Gerent, with his heart sinking, spurred his horse forward and slowly the two mares picked their way across the battlefield.

‘There are bodies here, but not enough to indicate strong resistance or even a hard fight, not enough to indicate that Sancret even had an army.’ Euny said quietly as they rode through the devastated settlements. Euny came to a halt, then signalled Gerent to do the same and scanned the battlefield around them, standing in the stirrups to do so.

‘It is odd, there are a few soldiers lying here who were obviously Madron’s men but the others, it looks as though those who have fallen out here, for Sancret, were not fighting but running and the closer you get to the castle the less bodies I can see. But if a battle had been fought there would in fact be more bodies by the castle walls than anywhere as the defence there should have been the fiercest and strongest.’

‘He did have an army, and it would have fought, N’zar was, is- I don’t know,’ Gerent trailed off hopelessly. Euny dismounted and went to examine a nearby corpse, disturbing some crows in the process. Kneeling Euny rolled the body over, Gerent turned his head but the view in the opposite direction was just as bad. He saw the bodies of fallen men lying half over a torched wagon, which was still smoking, so he looked back to see what Euny was doing. Euny was rummaging through the clothes of the fallen man, head bent, intent on the search.

‘I thought you said there were refugees and settlers here.’ the knight said quizzically while rumaging.

‘I did,’ replied Gerent, ‘there were, what are you looking for?’

‘If there were settlers that would indicate that women and children would have been out here, but all of the fallen that I can see are male and,’ Euny finished searching and got up, ‘seem to be made of straw!’ Euny held out a large bunch of dried stalks that had just come from the body on the ground.

‘Straw! I don’t understand, how could straw people be killed, where are the real people? Straw men couldn’t fight!’

‘With Sancret they might have been able to, it is as if these were decoys while he did something to save everyone – I don’t know, if he had won or survived the battle where is he? Where are all the people you say were here?’ Euny remounted Fogbow, ‘I suppose we will only find out by going to the castle.’