Chronicles of the Brittany Kings Chapter 28

 28

“I am Vortimer, the bastard son of Vortigern.” The young warrior rode his horse along the gathered army of the rebelling Lords. The figure was in an armor suit and carried the sword in his right hand.

“He calls me the bastard son. He is truly the ignorant King.” Vortimer roared out to the army. When King Vortigern ceded land to the Anglo-Saxons, the people on the land were upset and named the King; the Ignorant King.

“The Ignorant King does not know who he fathers or he does it with any he may find accessible? He may have forced his urge on them.” Vortimer stroked the rage that was there in his army.

“The King acknowledged no others to be his rightful ones. He calls you his people of the land and yet he invites the barbarians to our land. Are we not of this land? Why should we concede to others? Was it because the pretender to the throne demands it?” Those words were met with the roar of the gathered. “Are we his bastards?”

“We are no sons of the harlot.” The gathered spoke their mind. The people of the kingdom enraged by the King’s action had rallied there. Vortimer was a young guard under Lord Ian but with the call to rebel, he was given the title of the Commander of the New Army. He started with five thousand warriors and was to be involved in two battles since then. He fought them first at Darent, and the coming battle was at Episford.

“Now, we are at the throat of the Anglo-Saxons. We will drive them to the seas.” Vortimer was pressing on to Thanet, the land that the Anglo-Saxons occupied, and Vortimer drove them to the coastal areas. He was with Catigern, the named relative of his by bloodline to Vortigern, but the loyalty of the sibling was to the New Army. When he was told that there was a huge grouping of Anglo-Saxons still at Thanet, Vortimer rode there with part of the New Army to Thanet leaving Catigern.

“I will be fine, Vortimer.Ride on ahead

“Lord Ian, how do we stand with our army?” Vortimer looked to the Lord who had massed the ag=rmy.

Lord Ian glared at the other. Vortimer was part of his guards and then with the call to rebel, he was pushed to their icon. He resented having to answer the lowly guard but the oath was passed in the gathering of the rebelling Lords, that Vortimer was to be the next King. Due honor was required for the bastard son of Vortigern.

“We stand ready with twenty thousand now while another five thousand will jus the Twin Rivers for our march to the castle.” Lord Ian replied. “And our foes may be smaller in numbers but they are fortified in the castle. We may be in dire conditions if the mercenaries marched from Kent onto us.”

“I was told that Lord Baltimore and Cheshire will meet them at midway.” Vortimer had to rely on the strength of his Lords to fight the battles.

“They did and a battle was fought there when Catigurn clashed with Horsa, the bloodline of Hengist. I was told they were of equal strength and fought hard. Catigurn had challenged Horsa to a duel to decide the battle. They fought hard and were wounded but they kept on. It finally ended in a truce with both warriors on their backs. Horsa and Catigurn had agreed to a truce and retreat then. It ended the blood bath but Catigurn soon died from his wounds. We heard that Horsa fared no better. Both of them were praised as worthy warriors.”

“A truce? How can they do that? We must defeat them.” Vortimer was upset.

“Leave the fighting to us, Vortimer. We are well-versed in the needed strategies. Just stay your role as the …new King.” Lord Ian had his patience stretched then rode off. Vortimer sat there with his mount and had no replies in his voice but the discontent to use profanities.

“Patience, young one. Leave the fighting to them. They are more experienced.” Vortimer was told the repeated words by one other he was to meet there at the battlefield. It was the druid that wander the lands with his prophecy that there will be a King that will unite all of Brittany.

“I have no time to listen to you, druid. Be away before I have removed.” Vortimer brushed the druid off. He then rode to meet the other Lords.

“A gnat to challenge the lion.” The druid heard the muttering of a veteran warrior who overheard the conversation.

“A gnat may be small in the shape but the bite of its fangs could hurt the lion.” The druid challenges the other. “Just as you had survived as a gnat in the ranks, you have hurt many lions in the battles.”

“Me? I am a blood-letting gnat, fought my share, given an eye and half of my left arm.” The veteran had fashioned a wooden stub with a steel blade on it. “The lion who took my arm was to see his mother in the other world.”

“The savagery of the living demons can never be met that of the creatures with their back to the sun.” The druid sighed. “They may profess mercy in their voice but they breathe the foul air.”

“Behold the arrival of Lord Cornell!” The call resonated among the gathered.        

Vortimer rode to meet the powerful Lord who sat by King Vortigern in the hall. He was joined by the other Lords who were keen to see Lord Cornell.

“Hail, Lord Cornell.” Vortimer greets the newly arrived Lord. “You ride with a small detachment of guards.”

“I am here to see all of you, Lords. You hold a great army of…” Lord Cornell looked above the heads of the Lords to have a feel of the there.

“We are twenty thousand strong, Lord Cornell.” It was Lord Ian who interjected toward the other. “Many others are joining us.”

“As I was advised. Your rebellion has taken on the hearts of many to the peril of King Vortigern.” Lord Cornell looked to Vortimer.

“You still called him King.” Vortimer overstepped his line there. “Are you …”

“I am always loyal to the King and its people. Vortigern is still the King now.” Lord Cornell cut in. “I may not agree with his calls, but I am not a rebel.”

“I will serve the King that is accepted by the people.” Lord Cornell stressed the point.

“Do you then march against us, Lord Cornell?” It was Lord Ian who intervened then.

“No, I am to battle any of you, nor do I will stop any of you. I will, however, pledge my army to the people, and with that, I will stop the barbarians to intervene in our battles. This is Brittany's issue and not theirs.”

That pledge was met with the approval of the rebels. They know that with Lord Cornell’s army, not in support of King Vortigern, the latter was weaker.

“I will ride on.” Lord Cornell then turned his horse around.

 

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