Year 488 - War on the Continent

[GM Craig]

Yeah, most of them are running away or hiding.

[Cedwyn]

[oh...well, bugger them...]

“Arne, warn them them we are coming through. Those who block us die.”

“Forward march! “ Collan called, “Kill any Frank that tries to stop you.”

[Arne]

Arne nodded to Cedwyn and turned his horse slightly so he could see and address the peasants better.  In a stentorian voice, he boomed, "<Villagers, I speak for Sir Cedwyn (fill in titles)!  Heed me well before doing something foolish!  We are here to take supplies only- not to slaughter peasants or take slaves!  Stand aside and do not interfere, and you will not be harmed.>" 

He leveled a hard, merciless stare at the twenty Franks that were defying them, and although he spoke loudly enough for all the villagers to hear, he made it clear to them that his attention was on the score that stood in their way.  "<Resist, though, and those that do so will be slain!  And what will that get you?  Nothing but your own dead to bury, for we shall still take the supplies anyway.  Be smart, and stand aside.  Food and valuables can be replaced.  Lives cannot.>"


Orate roll (if needed):  Roll of 12 vs. skill of 5 = fail

[GM Craig]

Arne calls out his warning. Some of the Franks look around nervously, and a couple break from the others and run to the village. The rest, however, stand firm. As the column moves forward, they hurl refuse and rotten vegetable matter at you, and are quickly slain by your soldiers. It is a bloody business. The Franks stand their ground, and are run through by the soldiers, willing dying rather than surrender. On your horses, you ride past the bloody bodies of men and women, some still about the business of dying, and march on your objectives.

This early in the year, the village does not have much grain, but the granary is not empty either. You also round up several cows, pigs and chickens, and an ox, and whatever personal possessions the farmers had in their homes. There are also selections of other food - smoked hams and sausage and the like, which you could probably keep for your own troops. The bloody slaughter of their fellows has an effect on the few villagers who remained. They cower in fear as your troops enter, and do not resist as their homes and larders are ransacked. You recover about 100d. worth of coins and trade goods, such as horseshoes and charcoal and the like.

In the church, the soldiers leave that space to their betters. Those of you who enter the church have to step over the bloody corpse of the priest sprawled next to the threshold. Inside the church, you find some silver alter implements. Standing over the altar on a pole is a solid gold sun-cross, the symbol of Wotan. There is also a tapestry along one wall. You do not know the details of the scene, but it appears to be something heroic featuring Wotan and a dragon. A female frank dressed in a dirty white robe cowers in the corner - possibly the wife or concubine of the priest, or perhaps a servant or initiate.

[The sun-cross is worth £1, the silver implements are worth 300d. The tapestry is bulky, but well made. It might be worth 300d, if you found someone somewhere willing to buy it. You could take it as a trophy, and count it as a treasure.]

[Cedwyn]

[We take it all. }:-D ]

Cedwyn gave order for the grain and live animals to be taken by a small detachment back to the main army.

"Arne," he said to the chieftain, "have one of your riders lead the detachment back to the main army."

He pointed in their direction of travel, "Have him them meet us hence over those hills...and be wary."

[Geoffrey]

Geoffrey could do nothing but shake his head as he walked over the bodies of the dead and dying Franks.  They'd thrown their lives away for nothing that could not be replaced.  Sure, the months ahead would be made harder but they would have survived.  Now those that depended on those that died would suffer even more and possibly share their fate, just in a much slower manner.

The knight rode around the village to help keep things orderly and to insure none of the men, be them knifers or militia, took things too far.

[Arne]

Arne looked around the church uneasily, but nodded in reply to Cedwyn's command and motioned one of his riders over.  "<Ulf, take the detachment back to the van as Sir Cedwyn says, and meet us over those hills.  Post watches, and send a rider back to me if anything comes.>"

As the warrior left to carry out his orders, Arne turned his attention back to the church and the body of the priest, then to the woman cowering in the corner.  Moving over to Sir Cedwyn, he whispered quietly enough for only the knight's ears.  "What will happen to the sacred treasures of Wotan, Sir Cedwyn?"


(OOC:  Sorta uncertain as how to react here.  Is there any correlation between Wotan and Odin in the Norse people's eyes?  Ie. would most Norsemen see the looting of Wotan's temple and the killing of it's priest as sacrilege?)

[Cedwyn]

Cedwyn shrugged, “We will ultimately melt them down and share them amongst ourselves as spoils of war. Tis a pittance so far but we will see.”

[GM Craig]

(OOC:  Sorta uncertain as how to react here.  Is there any correlation between Wotan and Odin in the Norse people's eyes?  Ie. would most Norsemen see the looting of Wotan's temple and the killing of it's priest as sacrilege?)

In your eyes, Wotan and Odin are completely separate entities.

[Arne]

Arne nodded; it was as much as he had suspected.  Motioning Cedwyn over for a private talk, he whispered, "I am not a Christian, Sir Cedwyn, so I must ask . . . in your lands, what would have the knights and commoners more enraged against invaders?  The killing of a few peasants that should have had sense to surrender, or the sacking of a Christian church and the killing of its head priest?" 

Arne's question carried no tone of rebuke, but rather curiosity.  He was wondering how fanatical these Franks were in their devotion to their gods. True, most of the peasantry here backed down in the face of overwhelming odds, but what would happen when word got out that the invaders were looting churches and killing its priests?  Would the entire countryside now rise against them?

[Cedwyn]

Cedwyn sighed. How to explain to a pagan ally tactfully. Wotan and all the rest werr false gods. Idols. Only God and His Son Jesus the Christ were real.

“Arne,” Cedwyn said, “They follow false gods. Only God is God. His Son the Christ came down to ys not 500 years ago, died for soins, and came back from the dead.”

[Arne]

Arne's face locked into an impenetrable mask as he regarded Sir Cedwyn in a new light.  So you think us non-Christians follow false gods, eh?  It is good to know where we stand with you, then.  How long will it be before the Christian priests are sent to our settlement to "teach" the word of God and this Jesus?  And what will our gracious hosts do of we refuse?  Our people should be ready with a plan if this does come to pass.

He shook his head and kept his voice calm as he replied, "This is not what I meant, Sir Cedwyn.  I would think that, in Christian lands, the pillaging of churches and the killing of priests would enrage the warriors and commoners far more than a raid against a village."

"It does not matter that you or other Christians think that Wotan is a false god, Sir Cedwyn."  He pointed at the woman still cowering in the corner.  "You need to understand the way they think, if not accept it.  She believes in Wotan, as did the priest over there, and the Franks in this village.  That is why the priest resisted the looting of this place, the same as any Christian priest would do if his church was being threatened."

"Do not mistake me, Sir Cedwyn.  Wotan is not my god, and the treasures in here are spoils of war.  Killing the priest, though . . . it might have been better to leave him alive.  Giving him a good beating or knocking him out might have wiser.  This might have made him a  . . . what is the word?  Yes, martyr.  When words spreads of what happened to him, it is possible that the entire countryside will be up in arms against us . . . not just its warriors."

He shrugged as he turned to leave the temple.  "Or perhaps the Franks are not as devoted to Wotan or their other gods as many Christians are to God and Jesus the Christ.  I do not know for sure.  But I would counsel that we set extra guards during the nights.  A zealot who is not afraid to die to avenge an insult to his god can be very hard to kill.  A horde of them . . ."  He left that last part unfinished.

[Cedwyn]

Cedwyn regarded Arne a moment. In some ways, Arne was much younger than Haydn, and it showed. This concern was...typical of inexperience and youth.

"I forget how young you are Arne," he replied quietly, "The Franks have ousted their rightful lord, Syagrius. We are here to restore him to his throne. The lord of these lands has to be punished for their unlawful acts. Were he acting in the right, he would be fighting alongside us to restore his lord."

He put his hands on the chieftain's shoulders, adding, "This isn't about gods but justice and retribution for the lord of these lands. We have come and are fighting the Franks now so of course we will have guards and such. Moreover, we gave ample warning to them to stand down or die. Any word that spreads will contain that as well," Cedwyn trusted that such stories would spread with the truth attached, "It is the lord of this place's responsibility to care for the people as it is mine for Winterbourne Stoke, Sir Geoffrey for Falt, and you and Valka for your people as chieftains."

"We will have to set guards every night till we return to Logres for the simple reason of being unwanted in these lands, my friend," Cedwyn finished, "This is war. True war as God intended it to be."

[Valka]

Valka peered around the church, her eyes resting on the robed woman.

"Rest easy husband. Frankish they may be, but Saxon gods they serve. At least this was a consequence of war. Theirs against us was from dishonor, sport, and devotion to this god."

She turned to both Cedwyn and Arne.

"And we have stayed in Britain because of it, where we have, as both friends and comrades in arms always respected and always will respect each other's opinions and choice of worship, yes?"

[Cedwyn]

Cedwyn nodded, "Aye, that is the truth."