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Back A Night of Flames
Chapters (76)
  1. Cover
  2. Praise forMATTHEW HARFFY
  3. BY MATTHEW HARFFY
  4. Title Page
  5. Copyright
  6. Dedication
  7. Maps
  8. Epigraph
  9. Contents
  10. Place Names
  11. One
  12. Two
  13. Three
  14. Four
  15. Five
  16. Six
  17. Seven
  18. Eight
  19. Nine
  20. Ten
  21. Eleven
  22. Twelve
  23. Thirteen
  24. Fourteen
  25. Fifteen
  26. Sixteen
  27. Seventeen
  28. Eighteen
  29. Nineteen
  30. Twenty
  31. Twenty-One
  32. Twenty-Two
  33. Twenty-Three
  34. Twenty-Four
  35. Twenty-Five
  36. Twenty-Six
  37. Twenty-Seven
  38. Twenty-Eight
  39. Twenty-Nine
  40. Thirty
  41. Thirty-One
  42. Thirty-Two
  43. Thirty-Three
  44. Thirty-Four
  45. Thirty-Five
  46. Thirty-Six
  47. Thirty-Seven
  48. Thirty-Eight
  49. Thirty-Nine
  50. Forty
  51. Forty-One
  52. Forty-Two
  53. Forty-Three
  54. Forty-Four
  55. Forty-Five
  56. Forty-Six
  57. Forty-Seven
  58. Forty-Eight
  59. Forty-Nine
  60. Fifty
  61. Fifty-One
  62. Fifty-Two
  63. Fifty-Three
  64. Fifty-Four
  65. Fifty-Five
  66. Fifty-Six
  67. Fifty-Seven
  68. Fifty-Eight
  69. Fifty-Nine
  70. Sixty
  71. Sixty-One
  72. Sixty-Two
  73. Author’s Note
  74. Acknowledgements
  75. About the Author
  76. An Invitation from the Publisher

“And Os,” said Mancas, “of the not so quiet voice, will also travel with us.” There were guffaws of laughter at this. “Oswald too, and Arcenbryht, Eadstan and Cumbra.” I followed Mancas’ gaze and saw his most trusted warriors standing at the doorway of the hall. They were all good men, but there was still little feeling of camaraderie between us. Each of the bands of warriors kept to themselves. I wondered whether that would change once we set sail.

“Brymsteda is a large ship,” Mancas went on. “Larger than any built here before, and it could never have been completed without all of your hard work and sacrifice.”

“And a wrecked Norse ship!” shouted Os. A few people chuckled. My gaze fell on Eafa. His face was sombre and unsmiling.

“It is true,” said Mancas, “that the wreckage enabled us to equip Brymsteda with the rope and sail she needed much more quickly than would have otherwise been the case.”

“And a lot cheaper too,” bellowed Os.

“Yes, that too,” replied Mancas, fixing Os with a stare that informed the warrior clearly that his interjections did not amuse his lord. The man sipped his ale and fell silent. “I thank the Almighty for the squall that shattered the Norse ships,” continued Mancas. “It shows that God is on our side, but it is also a warning to us. The ship we have built, guided by the hand of a master shipwright,” he inclined his head towards Runolf, “is big, and it will be fast and strong. But its crew will still be at the mercy of the weather and the waves. So all the men who have volunteered for this mission should never have their bravery questioned. I thank each and every one of them. The warriors I have already spoken of, but I must not forget the men who have offered to sail with us. Alf and his brother Garwig, and Mantat, Dunn, Scurfa and Snell have all accepted the challenge, and I know Runolf is pleased that there will be some men aboard with knowledge of the sea.”

The small group of fishermen were seated close to one of the fire pits, and the glow from the embers showed their grins, as they laughed and joshed one another at having their names called out by their lord. The oldest of their number, Alf, was about twenty-five years of age, and each man was strong, with the brawny forearms that came from heaving on ropes and nets, and the ambling gait of someone who spends more time standing on a rocking deck than on immovable earth. Their eyes gleamed with excitement in the firelight. I supposed they saw this as an opportunity to become wealthy, for Runolf had agreed with Mancas that all freemen who sailed aboard Brymsteda would receive a share of any treasure we acquired, whether through trade or conquest.