Uther's Destiny: A Light in the Dark Ages, #3

Prologue

In the year 467, Ambrosius Aurelianus, High King of Britannia, lay dead from poisoning. His brother and chief military commander, Uther Pendragon, proclaimed himself High King and was endorsed by a majority of tribal chiefs. Two years on, the fragile peace secured by Ambrosius is crumbling as Uther battles to secure the edges of his kingdom (England and Wales) from marauding invaders from all sides – the Saxons to the east, Jutes to the south, Scotti (Irish) to the west and Picts (Scots) to the north.

Frightened Britons move away from coastal towns and settlements that attract the attentions of determined raiders intent on plunder and murder. Christian priests travel across the land gathering souls as they feed off the fears of a populace worried by the constant threat of attack. Roman buildings are gradually abandoned and stripped of stone and timber by those more concerned with modest living and basic survival. Many of the wealthy Romano-Britons have left to settle in relatively peaceful Armorica (Brittany).

From his stronghold in the Roman walled town of Venta Bulgarum (Winchester), Uther holds court and directs his nobles and knights in the defence of his kingdom. He is a widower in his fifties and his daughter, Morgana, is a young woman in her twenties. King Uther has no male heir and is resisting pleas to name his nephew (son of Ambrosius), Dawid, as his heir apparent.

Map and Characters

PLACE NAMES

Venta Bulgarum - Winchester

Calleva Atrebatum – Silchester

Aquae Sulis (Caer Badon) – Bath

Mount Badon – A hill near Bath

Londinium – London

Camulodunum - Colchester

Corinium – Cirencester

Caer Gloui/Glouvia – Gloucester

Isca Silurum – Caerleon

Isca Dumnoniorum - Exeter

Portus Adurni – Portchester

Noviomagus – Chichester

Eboracum – York

Vectis – Isle of Wight

The Wall – Hadrian’s Wall

The Stones - Stonehenge

Hibernia - Ireland

Armorica – Brittany

Gaul – France

Main Characters

Uther Pendragon

Ygerne (his queen)

Morgana (his daughter)

Merlyn – (his healer/adviser)

Ambrosius Aurelianus (his dead brother)

Brian Pendragon (his adoptive brother)

Constans (his stepbrother)

Danius (his Chancellor)

Queen Gwendolyn (Ambrosius’s widow)

Dawid (Ambrosius’s son)

Artorius (Uther’s son)

Andreus (Christian Bishop)

Gorlois (Chief of North Cornubia)

Mark (Chief of South Cornubia)

Vortimer (son of ex-king Vortigern)

Pascent (son of ex-king Vortigern)

Caradoc (Catwellauni chief)

Ælla (Saxon Chief, nephew of Hengist)

Octa (Saxon Chief, son of Hengist)

Chapter One

BAREFOOT CHILDREN RAN beside the great grey horse of their king, whooping and cheering. Uther looked down and grunted his pleasure, throwing a handful of small brass Roman sestertii he kept for such moments. They had travelled thirty miles in a slow celebration of victory from the south coast and could now see the stone walls and gatehouse of Venta Bulgarum as the sun dipped to the west.

Rose petals rained down over Uther and his knights as they passed through the impressive arched gatehouse – wide enough for two ox carts to pass side by side. Townsfolk clad in a mix of animal hides and woollen garments lined the street and hung from the porticos of terraced two-storey houses that led to the forum. Uther dismounted and was greeted by his smiling daughter, Morgana, her long black hair splayed out over the shoulders of her white, gold-edged gown. She placed a bejeweled golden crown on his head of dusty black and grey curls as he handed her his conical steel helmet. He laughed as he kissed her lightly on the cheek and proceeded up the flight of a dozen worn steps to flagging stones lined by rows of Corinthian columns before what was once the magistrate’s hall.

He ignored his fawning chancellor, Danius, and turned to address the gathering. My people, we have indeed returned in triumph and have chased the devilish Jutes back to their Isle of Vectis! The crowd, glad of some good news, cheered and threw handfuls of petals into the air, blowing red, blue and violet in the gentle breeze.

Uther grinned and continued. We have reclaimed the great sea fort of Portus Adurni and have left a garrison there from our Regnii brothers who are charged with keeping the peace. There was a great slaughter of Jutes, and their villages rendered to ashes. Boos rang out and some gestured with thumbs pointing down. Uther knew too well the anxieties and deep insecurity of his people.

They have been greatly reduced in number, with less than one tenth of their warriors eluding our blades to escape in their boats. They will lick their wounds on Vectis, and we will raise a fleet to invade them there in the spring! Loud cheers and clapping filled the square as Uther raised his hands to calm them. Tonight, a feast! Bring your tables to this square and let us share our victuals with our neighbours. I shall send ale and roast meats! He backed away into the shade of the portico as cries of Hail Uther! rang out.

WHAT NEWS, DANIUS? Uther growled as he paced past bowing courtiers into the oak-beamed hall, his way lit by an orange sunset glow filtering through high windows.

My lord, messengers were dispatched one week past to summon your nobles and knights. Some have already arrived. We still await news from Londinium...

Danius trailed behind his king, unable to keep pace as his wooden crutch beat an echoing rhythm of increasing tempo on the marble floor as his master strode towards a dais and his throne of dark wood. In truth, Uther carried a barely-disguised war wound that caused him to limp, and he avoided wherever possible walking next to the crippled Danius. A king must be seen to be strong and without any sign of weakness. This he knew.

Too many wretches have been sleeping here - the air is fetid and offends my nostrils! Uther shouted, kicking at clumps of matted straw as dogs yelped and scurried away from the tide of cloaked men striding purposefully across the open space.

Uther sat and faced his followers, flanked by Morgana and Danius. My loyal subjects, please be seated. He pointed to the rows of wooden tables and benches used for feasting that lined the walls of the hall. After a brief whispered conversation with Danius he took to his feet. Come forward my nobles and greet me, he said. Uther had adopted the Roman practice, now popular with Christian bishops, of offering a gold ring bearing a large ruby to be kissed as a sign of fealty. He announced them in turn:

Chief Eliduris of the Atrebates, our powerful neighbours, you are welcome; Kinarius of Caer Badon, welcome. Ah, Drustan son of my late dear friend Drustan of the Belgae, our host! Let me welcome you to your hall! Laughter rang out as the nervous young man grinned and shuffled to one side.

Uther squinted into the gloom. Come forth, men of the North. Ah, Caradoc, son of Brennus of the Catwellauni, you are most welcome! A tall, elegant young man dressed in a fine gold-lined tunic stepped forward and kissed Uther’s ring.

My lord and king, I bring greetings from Readingum and our lands to the north, he crooned with a smile.

Pray tell, what news of Saxon incursions? Uther asked.

We have fallen back from Verulamium on the eastern border of our lands. It is a taken by a Saxon army under Ælla, my lord. Uther recoiled in shock as a murmur ran around the room.

This is heavy news! he groaned. But what of our brothers to the east? The Corieltanui and Trinovantes? Were you not jointly charged with holding off the gathering Saxons?

Two strapping warriors in leather jerkins stepped forward and bowed. The bigger of the two spoke. My king, I am Brayant of the Trinovantes, son of Gorbonuc. And this is Alan, son of Jago, of the Corieltanui. You knew our fathers – both slain by Hengist in the Night of the Long Knives. We have been fighting against ever-growing numbers of Saxon warriors who arrive with their families by the boatload in Camulodunum and Londinium, occupying both those ports. As you must know, Ælla and Octa left their lands in the north and marched down the eastern coast, gathering Saxons and Angles as they went. They have combined forces with the new arrivals and now have taken Verulamium with a force of several thousand, and we have fallen back to Readingum where our remaining men are camped.

Silence fell on the hall as the full weight of the report settled on them. Uther stroked his black and grey-flecked beard in a show of agitation. Then it is true – the lost lands of Lloegyr are growing as we shrink back from the gathering might of our enemy. We must rally our remaining troops and oppose them. What say you, Caradoc, son of Brennus?

Caradoc stepped into the space vacated by the two grim-faced nobles who were now his house guests. My king, this is indeed a grave threat, and our spies inform us that the emboldened Saxons are planning to march west, gathering up our farming land and giving it out to their new arrivals. This is their method of payment to their fighting men, who have come from the salty marshes on the other side of the Germanic Sea. Groans rang out from around the hall.

Uther took to his feet and silenced his audience that had now grown to over one hundred worried faces. Step forward my knights! he thundered. Half a dozen men worked their way to the front of the crowd and lined up next to the nobles.

We shall raise an army and meet these invaders, led by my nobles and knights! The mood changed instantly and cheers rang out as swords were raised and spears thumped on the floor.

Uther nodded and continued, My noble brother, Ambrosius, did initiate the order of Knights of the Bear and Dragon, for the defence of these lands. Some are with us no more, but others remain. Here are Sir Hector, Sir Pelleas and Sir Cadeyrn – veterans of the Battle of Maisbeli. Three elderly knights stepped forward, age-mates to Uther, and took the cheers of the gathering. Sir Owain is now Chief of Dyfed and we shall summon him. My noble brother, Brian, shall join us from Corinium and we have a new knight in our presence – Sir Percival.

The hall rejoiced as their old and new leaders stood in a line of the dais on either side of their king. Uther milked the applause for a few seconds. Fear not, for we shall raise this island to oppose the invaders and drive them back into the sea! I am the keeper of my noble brother’s legacy and shall continue the fight. All hail our generals!

Uther announced two days of feasting ahead of preparations for war before directing his nobles and knights to join him in his council chamber to discuss tactics. As he turned away from his subjects to face Morgana and Danius, his mask of resolve fell to reveal worried eyes beneath a furrowed brow. Send for Bishop Andreus and Merlyn. They shall join our council in this perilous moment.

Chapter Two

ASPIDER SPINNING its web caught her eye as she looked out through the tower window to a stormy grey sea. She delicately tested the elasticity of the web with her finger, sending the spider scurrying to check for a fly. White-capped waves crashed over black rocks below her husband’s castle at Tintagel; their rhythmic, hypnotic effect sending her back to the day that changed her life, some ten years ago.

She remembered that day – singing to herself as she tended a herb garden of sweet-smelling parsley, thyme and rosemary, as a rumbling sound announced the approach of a storm from the rocky crags in the distance. She knew it as the sound of the dragons awaking in the mountains of Dyfed, beasts that flew across the sky in balls of fire, warning peasants and nobles alike that trouble was coming. She was arching her back as a boy came running towards her, wobbling along wooden slats that crisscrossed the vegetable and herb plots.

My lady! You have a visitor!

Who is it?

It is the chief of the Dumnonii, my lord Gorlois, he announced, with a knowing grin.

Ygerne’s life had been lived like a dream to that point. The maid from Gwent, blessed with a natural beauty that placed her above all women, was a bright and dutiful courtier. She may have unwittingly earned the enmity of the ladies at Prince Cadeyrn’s court, but they kept a respectful distance as she was favoured by her illustrious uncle. Cadeyrn was Prince of Gwent, a Silurian knight and a respected commander in the armies of High King Ambrosius, and now his successor, King Uther.

Her admirer, Gorlois, the handsome Dumnonii chief of North Cornubia, became a frequent visitor to their court at Isca Silurum, a stone-walled town reclaimed by the local tribe, the Silures, following the Roman evacuation when she was but a mere girl. Gorlois and Cadeyrn were friends and powerful allies who encouraged trade between southern Gwent and northern Cornubia, across the wide Severnus river estuary. Often, they had cause to summon each other’s assistance to rebuff Scotti invaders coming from the western isle of Hibernia. In this endeavour they worked with the army of King Owain of Dyfed in holding the western borders of Britannia.

A courtship between the young lovers had resulted in marriage, and now the Lady Ygerne was the wife of a powerful chief, living in a castle over rocky cliffs at Tintagel. They were blessed with a daughter, Morgaise, but no son followed in the years after, despite much coupling between the loving couple. Years passed and Gorlois spent as much time managing the trade of goods in exchange for tin ingots, mined to the south, as he did patrolling his boundaries.

The alarming news of High King Ambrosius’s villainous murder by poisoning at the hands of a Saxon spy had reached them, two years earlier, and her husband had dutifully attended his funeral pyre, built in an ancient stone circle and overseen by both druids and Christian priests in an uncomfortable alliance. The old and the new faiths had been drawn together to mourn the passing of a great king, a unifier and pacifier in stormy times. Now Uther was High King, by popular assent, and Ygerne had received his messenger some hours earlier with the news that her husband was summoned to Venta Bulgarum to report for military duty.

Her dreamy reflections were interrupted by her maid, Arienh. My lady! The master approaches. They are crossing the causeway! They ran along the corridor to a window overlooking the landward side of the castle and saw the final few riders of Gorlois’s escort cross the narrow land bridge that connected the rocky island to the mainland.

Gorlois was soon at the top of the stairs. He had ridden the last two miles hard, leaving his attendants in his wake. He could hardly wait to see his beautiful wife and little daughter. He brushed aside two spear-bearing guards and entered the bed chamber. Ygerne folded into his arms, as little Morgaise hugged his dusty thigh. He held his wife’s narrow, pale face in his hands and locked his brown eyes on hers, leaning forward and kissing her full lips.

I have carried the image of your pretty face with me, my love, and now I’m returned.

Thank God you have come safely back to us, my handsome lord, she replied sweetly, stepping back and fixing him with her lustrous smile. His heart melted. This was where he longed to be.

And little Morgaise, he said, bending to lift the wriggling toddler. Have you been good?

I found this, Papa, she said, producing a dead lizard from behind her back. Here.

He laughed as he accepted the gift, and made to eat it.

I have better food for you, my love, Ygerne said, taking the lizard and shooting a disapproving look at her mischievous daughter.

Let me bathe before eating, Gorlois said.

And after bathing I will give you some news, she said lightly.

Oh? And what news might this be? Gorlois asked, rubbing her belly.

Ha! No news of that, my lord! she laughed. Let me help you with your doublet. She pulled his leather top over his head. We have a messenger from King Uther resting in the kitchens. Perhaps he can tell you himself.

MORGANA FOUND MERLYN in his dispensary, mashing herbs in