Free Viking Wrath by Griff Hosker Page B

the nephew of the present king but Gwybfor is old. Mark of Tintagel is busy gaining allies and the means to seize the crown and the throne. His sister is the one with the power. It is said that she has delved into the earth and summoned fell creatures who should not see the light of day and she has powerful magic available to her. I would fight her brother butI would steer well clear of her."
    "And Tintagel? Is it as hard to assault as we have heard?"
    "Aye!" He drew with a piece of charcoal on the table as he spoke, "They have a gatehouse on the mainland. If that is taken then you have to cross a rope bridge. It would need someone who could fly to cross it. Then they have another gatehouse, a high wall and the whole edifice is built upon cliffs."
    "And the cliffs? Could they be climbed?"
    He nodded, "They could but not in armour. I would not risk it but they are not sheer. A nimble couple of men could climb but then they would have to face the garrison and he keeps many men within its walls." He looked at me with horror on his face. "But you cannot seriously consider that. You would have to climb in daylight and you would be hit by arrows. It is impossible."
    "None the less we will try it for they have my daughter, my son's wife and girls I rescued from Wiglaf the Evil. We rescue them or die trying."
    He nodded, " Wyrd !"
    "If you could ask your sailors and your ships to watch for those three ships we would appreciate it."
    "None of those who have arrived in the last few days have reported seeing three such ships. We knew you were coming." He smiled, "Others fear you Jarl Dragon Heart. Perhaps they have taken a different route."
    "They may have. If they have a witch on board then they might risk the edge of the world. We will have to sail to Tintagel and see if there is a way in."
    We took our leave and headed along the Sabrina towards the land of On Corn Walum; it was within a day's sailing and we were now on the last part of our journey. I had never felt so pessimistic as on that voyage. I could not see how we could affect a rescue. It seemed that we would end our lives on a fruitless search for my family. The world and the sea was a big place and the witch could be anywhere.
    We now had more detail on Aiden's map and he and Erik had worked out a more accurate position for Tintagel. We edged our way down the course during the afternoon. We saw no ships and we saw few settlements. Our information could only place the castle within ten Roman miles or so. We would need to scout it out and that meant wasting valuable time. We knew that there were some rocks called the Sisters and they were less than a mile or so from the castle. When we spied them in the distance we headed for shore. They were unmistakeable. Llewellyn had been specific about their location. The shore was a mass of sheer cliffs and no beaches. Even if we could get Snorri and Bjorn the Scout ashore then there was no way they could scale the cliffs. Reluctantly we retraced our course in the fading twilight to find somewhere to land.
    We found an estuary some four miles north. It was now dark and we hove to off the coast to the south of the mouth of this estuary. Aiden used the light from the stern to read the chart. "I think, Jarl, that this must be the port that they use for their ships. There is nowhere else along this coast." We had been told of a small port which had a wooden jetty. The port lay at the mouth of an estuary to the north of Tintagel.
    "Then we can send Snorri and Bjorn the Scout to scout out the castle and I will go ashore with Sigtrygg, Aiden and Cnut. We will see if this river and this port contains the ships we seek."
    Haaken shook his head, "Wolf Killer will not be happy."
    "When Wolf Killer is jarl then he can make the decisions until then it is my responsibility. Erik stand off the coast. I would not have you risk damage. We will signal with a light when we return."
    We did not wear armour. I wore a kyrtle and wolf cloak over my leather