CHAPTER XXVII. FACE-OF-GOD LEADETH A BAND THROUGH THE WOOD.
NEXT morning tryst was held faithfully, and an hundred and a half weregathered together on Wildlake’s Way; and Face-of-god ordered them intothree companies. He made Hall-face leader over the first one, and badehim hold on his way northward, and then to make for Boars-bait and see ifhe should meet with anything thereabout where the battle had been.Red-coat of Waterless he made captain of the second band; and he had itin charge to wend eastward along the edge of the Dale, and not to go deepinto the wood, but to go as far as he might within the time appointed,toward the Mountains. Furthermore, he bade both Hall-face and Red-coatto bring their bands back to Wildlake’s Way by the morrow at sunset,where other goodmen should be come to take the places of their men; andthen if he and his company were back again, he would bid them furtherwhat to do; but if not, as seemed likely, then Hall-face’s band to gowest toward the Shepherd country half a day’s journey, and so back, andRed-coat’s east along the Dale’s lip again for the like time, and thenback, so that there might be a constant watch and ward of the Dale keptagainst the Felons.
All being ordered Gold-mane led his own company north-east through thethick wood, thinking that he might so fare as to come nigh toSilver-dale, or at least to hear tidings thereof. This intent he told toStone-face, but the old man shook his head and said:
‘Good is this if it may be done; but it is not for everyone to go down toHell in his lifetime and come back safe with a tale thereof. However,whither thou wilt lead, thither will I follow, though assured deathwaylayeth us.’
And the old carle was joyous and proud to be on this adventure, and said,that it was good indeed that his foster-son had with him a man wellstricken in years, who had both seen many things, and learned many, andhad good rede to give to valiant men.
So they went on their ways, and fared very warily when they were gottenbeyond those parts of the wood which they knew well. By this time theywere strung out in a long line; and they noted their road carefully,blazing the trees on either side when there were trees, and piling uplittle stone-heaps where the trees failed them. For Stone-face said thatoft it befell men amidst the thicket and the waste to be misled by wightsthat begrudged men their lives, so that they went round and round in aring which they might not depart from till they died; and no man doubtedhis word herein.
All day they went, and met no foe, nay, no man at all; nought but thewild things of the wood; and that day the wood changed little about themfrom mile to mile. There were many thickets across their road which theyhad to go round about; so that to the crow flying over the tree-tops thejourney had not been long to the place where night came upon them, andwhere they had to make the wood their bedchamber.
That night they lighted no fire, but ate such cold victual as they mightcarry with them; nor had they shot any venison, since they had with themmore than enough; they made little noise or stir therefore and fellasleep when they had set the watch.
On the morrow they arose betimes, and broke their fast and went theirways till noon: by then the wood had thinned somewhat, and there waslittle underwood betwixt the scrubby oak and ash which were pretty nighall the trees about: the ground also was broken, and here and thererocky, and they went into and out of rough little dales, most of whichhad in them a brook of water running west and southwest; and nowFace-of-god led his men somewhat more easterly; and still for some whilethey met no man.
At last, about four hours after noon, when they were going less warily,because they had hitherto come across nothing to hinder them, rising overthe brow of a somewhat steep ridge, they saw down in the valley belowthem a half score of men sitting by the brook-side eating and drinking,their weapons lying beside them, and along with them stood a woman withher hands tied behind her back.
They saw at once that these men were of the Felons, so they that hadtheir bows bent, loosed at them without more ado, while the others ran inupon them with sword and spear. The felons leapt up and ran scatteringdown the dale, such of them as were not smitten by the shafts; but he whowas nighest to the woman, ere he ran, turned and caught up a sword fromthe ground and thrust it through her, and the next moment fell across thebrook with an arrow in his back.
No one of the felons was nimble enough to escape from the fleet-foothunters of Burgdale, and they were all slain there to the number ofeleven.
But when they came back to the woman to tend her, she breathed her lastin their hands: she was a young and fair woman, black-haired anddark-eyed. She had on her body a gown of rich web, but nought else: shehad been bruised and sore mishandled, and the Burgdale carles wept forpity of her, and for wrath, as they straightened her limbs on the turf ofthe little valley. They let her lie there a little, whilst they searchedround about, lest there should be any other poor soul needing their help,or any felon lurking thereby; but they found nought else save a bundlewherein was another rich gown and divers woman’s gear, and sundry ringsand jewels, and therewithal the weapons and war-gear of a knight,delicately wrought after the Westland fashion: these seemed to them tobetoken other foul deeds of these murder-carles. So when they had abideda while, they laid the dead woman in mould by the brook-side, and buriedwith her the other woman’s attire and the knight’s gear, all but hissword and shield, which they had away with them: then they cast thecarcasses of the felons into the brake, but brought away their weaponsand the silver rings from their arms, which they wore like all the othersof them whom they had fallen in with; and so went on their way to thenorth-east, full of wrath against those dastards of the Earth.
It was hard on sunset when they left the valley of murder, and they wentno long way thence before they must needs make stay for the night; andwhen they had arrayed their sleeping-stead the moon was up, and they sawthat before them lay the close wood again, for they had made their lairon the top of a little ridge.
There then they lay, and nought stirred them in the night, and betimes onthe morrow they were afoot, and entered the abovesaid thicket, whereintwo of them, keen hunters, had been aforetime, but had not gone deep intoit. Through this wood they went all day toward the north-east, and metnought but the wild things therein. At last, when it was near sunset,they came out of the thicket into a small plain, or shallow dale rather,with no great trees in it, but thorn-brakes here and there where theground sank into hollows; a little river ran through the midst of it, andwinded round about a height whose face toward the river went down sheerinto the water, but away from it sank down in a long slope to where thethick wood began again: and this height or burg looked well-nigh west.
Thitherward they went; but as they were drawing nigh to the river, andwere on the top of a bent above a bushy hollow between them and thewater, they espied a man standing in the river near the bank, who sawthem not, because he was stooping down intent on something in the bank orunder it: so they gat them speedily down into the hollow without noise,that they might get some tidings of the man.
Then Face-of-god bade his men abide hidden under the bushes and stoleforward quietly up the further bank of the hollow, his target on his armand his spear poised. When he was behind the last bush on the top of thebent he was within half a spear-cast of the water and the man; so helooked on him and saw that he was quite naked except for a clout abouthis middle.
Face-of-god saw at once that he was not one of the Dusky Men; he was ablack-haired man, but white-skinned, and of fair stature, though not sotall as the Burgdale folk. He was busied in tickling trouts, and just asFace-of-god came out from the bush into the westering sunlight, he threwup a fish on to the bank, and looked up therewithal, and beheld theweaponed man glittering, and uttered a cry, but fled not when he saw thespear poised for casting.
Then Face-of-god spake to him and said: ‘Come hither, Woodsman! we willnot harm thee, but we desire speech of thee: and it will not avail theeto flee, since I have bowmen of the best in the hollow yonder.’
The man put forth his hands towards him as if praying him to forbearcasting, and looked a
t him hard, and then came dripping from out thewater, and seemed not greatly afeard; for he stooped down and picked upthe trouts he had taken, and came towards Face-of-god stringing thelast-caught one through the gills on to the withy whereon were theothers: and Face-of-god saw that he was a goodly man of some thirtywinters.
Then Face-of-god looked on him with friendly eyes and said:
‘Art thou a foemen? or wilt thou be helpful to us?’
He answered in the speech of the kindreds with the hoarse voice of a muchweather-beaten man:
‘Thou seest, lord, that I am naked and unarmed.’
‘Yet may’st thou bewray us,’ said Face-of-god. ‘What man art thou?’
Said the man: ‘I am the runaway thrall of evil men; I have fled fromRose-dale and the Dusky Men. Hast thou the heart to hurt me?’
‘We are the foemen of the Dusky Men,’ said Face-of-God; ‘wilt thou helpus against them?’
The man knit his brows and said: ‘Yea, if ye will give me your word notto suffer me to fall into their hands alive. But whence art thou, to beso bold?’
Said Face-of-god: ‘We are of Burgdale; and I will swear to thee on theedge of the sword that thou shalt not fall alive into the hands of theDusky Men.’
‘Of Burgdale have I heard,’ said the man; ‘and in sooth thou seemest notsuch a man as would bewray a hapless man. But now had I best bring youto some lurking-place where ye shall not be easily found of these devils,who now oft-times scour the woods hereabout.’
Said Face-of-god: ‘Come first and see my fellows; and then if thouthinkest we have need to hide, it is well.’
So the man went side by side with him towards their lair, and as theywent Gold-mane noted marks of stripes on his back and sides, and said:‘Sorely hast thou been mishandled, poor man!’
Then the man turned on him and said somewhat fiercely: ‘Said I not that Ihad been a thrall of the Dusky Men? how then should I have escapedtormenting and scourging, if I had been with them for but three days?’
As he spake they came about a thorn-bush, and there were the Burgdale mendown in the hollow; and the man said: ‘Are these thy fellows? Call tomind that thou hast sworn by the edge of the sword not to hurt me.’
‘Poor man!’ said Face-of-god; ‘these are thy friends, unless thoubewrayest us.’
Then he cried aloud to his folk: ‘Here is now a good hap! this is arunaway thrall of the Dusky Men; of him shall we hear tidings; so cherishhim all ye may.’
So the carles thronged about him and bestirred themselves to help him,and one gave him his surcoat for a kirtle, and another cast a cloak abouthim; and they brought him meat and drink, such as they had ready to hand:and the man looked as if he scarce believed in all this, but deemedhimself to be in a dream. But presently he turned to Face-of-god andsaid:
‘Now I see so many men and weapons I deem that ye have no need to skulkin caves to-night, though I know of good ones: yet shall ye do well notto light a fire till moon-setting; for the flame ye may lightly hide, butthe smoke may be seen from far aloof.’
But they bade him to meat, and he needed no second bidding but atelustily, and they gave him wine, and he drank a great draught and sighedas for joy. Then he said in a trembling voice, as though he feared anaysay:
‘If ye are from Burgdale ye shall be faring back again presently; and Ipray you to take me with you.’
Said Face-of-god: ‘Yea surely, friend, that will we do, and rejoice inthee.’
Then he drank another cup which Warcliff held out to him, and spakeagain: ‘Yet if ye would abide here till about noon to-morrow, ormayhappen a little later, I would bring other runaways to see you; andthem also might ye take with you: ye may think when ye see them that yeshall have small gain of their company; for poor wretched folk they be,like to myself. Yet since ye seek for tidings, herein might they do youmore service than I; for amongst them are some who came out of thehapless Dale within this moon; and it is six months since I escaped.Moreover, though they may look spent and outworn now, yet if ye give thema little rest, and feed them well, they shall yet do many a day’s workfor you: and I tell you that if ye take them for thralls, and put collarson their necks, and use them no worse than a goodman useth his oxen andhis asses, beating them not save when they are idle or at fault, it shallbe to them as if they were come to heaven out of hell, and to suchgoodhap as they have not thought of, save in dreams, for many and many aday. And thus I entreat you to do because ye seem to me to be happy andmerciful men, who will not begrudge us this happiness.’
The carles of Burgdale listened eagerly to what he said, and they lookedat him with great eyes and marvelled; and their hearts were moved withpity towards him; and Stone-face said:
‘Herein, O War-leader, need I give thee no rede, for thou mayst seeclearly that all we deem that we should lose our manhood and become thedastards of the Warrior if we did not abide the coming of these poor men,and take them back to the Dale, and cherish them.’
‘Yea,’ said Wolf of Whitegarth, ‘and great thanks we owe to this man thathe biddeth us this: for great will be the gain to us if we become so likethe Gods that we may deliver the poor from misery. Now must I needsthink how they shall wonder when they come to Burgdale and find out howhappy it is to dwell there.’
‘Surely,’ said Face-of-god, ‘thus shall we do, whatever cometh of it.But, friend of the wood, as to thralls, there be none such in the Dale,but therein are all men friends and neighbours, and even so shall ye be.’
And he fell a-musing, when he bethought him of how little he had known ofsorrow.
But that man, when he beheld the happy faces of the Burgdalers, andhearkened to their friendly voices, and understood what they said, and healso was become strong with the meat and drink, he bowed his head adownand wept a long while; and they meddled not with him, till he turnedagain to them and said:
‘Since ye are in arms, and seem to be seeking your foemen, I suppose yewot that these tyrants and man-quellers will fall upon you in Burgdaleere the summer is well worn.’
‘So much we deem indeed,’ said Face-of-god, ‘but we were fain to hear thecertainty of it, and how thou knowest thereof.’
Said the man: ‘It was six moons ago that I fled, as I have told you; andeven then it was the common talk amongst our masters that there were fairdales to the south which they would overrun. Man would say to man: Wewere over many in Silver-dale, and we needed more thralls, because thosewe had were lessening, and especially the women; now are we more at easein Rose-dale, though we have sent thralls to Silver-dale; but yet we canbear no more men from thence to eat up our stock from us: let them faresouth to the happy dales, and conquer them, and we will go with them andhelp therein, whether we come back to Rose-dale or no. Such talk did Ihear then with mine own ears: but some of those whom I shall bring to youto-morrow shall know better what is doing, since they have fled fromRose-dale but a few days. Moreover, there is a man and a woman who havefled from Silver-dale itself, and are but a month from it, journeying allthe time save when they must needs hide; and these say that their mastershave got to know the way to Burgdale, and are minded for it before thewinter, as I said; and nought else but the ways thither do they desire toknow, since they have no fear.’
By then was night come, and though the moon was high in heaven, andlighted all that waste, the Burgdalers must needs light a fire forcooking their meat, whatsoever that woodsman might say; moreover, thenight was cold and somewhat frosty. A little before they had come tothat place they had shot a fat buck and some smaller deer, but of othermeat they had no great store, though there was wine enough. So they littheir fire in the thickest of the thorn-bush to hide it all they might,and thereat they cooked their venison and the trouts which the runawayhad taken, and they fell to, and ate and drank and were merry, makingmuch of that poor man till him-seemed he was gotten into the company ofthe kindest of the Gods.
But when they were full, Face-of-god spake to him, and asked him hisname; and he named himself Dallach; but said he: ‘Lord, th
is is accordingto the naming of men in Rose-dale before we were enthralled: but now whatnames have thralls? Also I am not altogether of the blood of them ofRose-dale, but of better and more warrior-like kin.’
Said Face-of-god: ‘Thou hast named Silver-dale; knowest thou it?’
Dallach answered: ‘I have never seen it. It is far hence; in a week’sjourney, making all diligence, and not being forced to hide and skulklike those runaways, ye shall come to the mouth thereof lying west, whereits rock-walls fall off toward the plain.’
‘But,’ said Face-of-god, ‘is there no other way into that Dale?’
‘Nay, none that folk wot of,’ said Dallach, ‘except to bold cragsmen withtheir lives in their hands.’
‘Knowest thou aught of the affairs of Silver-dale?’ said Face-of-god.
Said Dallach: ‘Somewhat I know: we wot that but a few years ago there wasa valiant folk dwelling therein, who were lords of the whole dale, andthat they were vanquished by the Dusky Men: but whether they were allslain and enthralled we wot not; but we deem it otherwise. As for me itis of their blood that I am partly come; for my father’s father camethence to settle in Rose-dale, and wedded a woman of the Dale, who was myfather’s mother.’
‘When was it that ye fell under the Dusky Men?’ said Face-of-god.
Said Dallach: ‘It was five years ago. They came into the Dale a greatcompany, all in arms.’
‘Was there battle betwixt you?’ said Face-of-god.
‘Alas! not so,’ said Dallach. ‘We were a happy folk there; but soft anddelicate: for the Dale is exceeding fertile, and beareth wealth inabundance, both corn and oil and wine and fruit, and of beasts for man’sservice the best that may be. Would that there had been battle, and thatI had died therein with those that had a heart to fight; and even sosaith now every man, yea, every woman in the Dale. But it was not sowhen the elders met in our Council-House on the day when the Dusky Menbade us pay them tribute and give them houses to dwell in and lands tolive by. Then had we weapons in our hands, but no hearts to use them.’
‘What befell then?’ said the goodman of Whitegarth.
Said Dallach: ‘Look ye to it, lords, that it befall not in Burgdale! Wegave them all they asked for, and deemed we had much left. What befell,sayst thou? We sat quiet; we went about our work in fear and trembling,for grim and hideous were they to look on. At first they meddled notmuch with us, save to take from our houses what they would of meat anddrink, or raiment, or plenishing. And all this we deemed we might bear,and that we needed no more than to toil a little more each day so as towin somewhat more of wealth. But soon we found that it would not be so;for they had no mind to till the teeming earth or work in the acres wehad given them, or to sit at the loom, or hammer in the stithy, or do anymanlike work; it was we that must do all that for their behoof, and itwas altogether for them that we laboured, and nought for ourselves; andour bodies were only so much our own as they were needful to be keptalive for labour. Herein were our tasks harder than the toil of anymules or asses, save for the younger and goodlier of the women, whom theywould keep fair and delicate to be their bed-thralls.
‘Yet not even so were our bodies safe from their malice: for these menwere not only tyrants, but fools and madmen. Let alone that there werefew days without stripes and torments to satiate their fury or theirpleasure, so that in all streets and nigh any house might you hearwailing and screaming and groaning; but moreover, though a wise man wouldnot willingly slay his own thrall any more than his own horse or ox, yetdid these men so wax in folly and malice, that they would often hew atman or woman as they met them in the way from mere grimness of soul; andif they slew them it was well. Thereof indeed came quarrels enoughbetwixt master and master, for they are much given to man-slaying amongstthemselves: but what profit to us thereof? Nay, if the dead man were achieftain, then woe betide the thralls! for thereof must many an one beslain on his grave-mound to serve him on the hell-road. To be short: wehave heard of men who be fierce, and men who be grim; but these we mayscarce believe us to be men at all, but trolls rather; and ill will it beif their race waxeth in the world.’
The Burgdale men hearkened with all their ears, and wondered that suchthings could befall; and they rejoiced at the work that lay before them,and their hearts rose high at the thought of battle in that behalf, andthe fame that should come of it. As for the runaway, they made so muchof him that the man marvelled; for they dealt with him like a womancherishing a son, and knew not how to be kind enough to him.