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Aelfric partook of a light meal and some thin ale, as his stomach would not take much more after the harrowing day of battle. The dark tent, whose gloom was only partially offset with the glow from a couple of braziers, was filled with silent, reflective men. A number of them were simply grateful that they still drew breath.
“Too many… far too many,” Aelfric stated leadenly, with a heavy heart.
“Aelfric, the Andamoorans are not likely to strike hard if they array for battle tomorrow,” suggested a tall man with sharply chiseled features, and dark, wavy locks of coarse hair.
“And were it not for you, Einhard, our right flank would not even be available to array tomorrow,” Aelfric responded somberly, taking a deep breath.
Many Saxans, such as Ealdorman Byrtnoth’s levies, had been caught out in the open when the Avanorans had made their deft adjustment. Even Count Gerard’s formidable Bretican cavalry had been in grave danger of being cut off, as they had pressed to the far recesses of the Andamooran ranks.
Quite possibly, the battle itself had come dangerously close to being decided in those precarious moments. Such were the incredible shifts within a battle.
“And of tomorrow? My men are preparing a surprise for the Avanorans, one used by our people before, in the center,” Count Gerard then announced. “Their Andamooran left flank has been mauled, but their right and center are still very strong, and there are many that they have yet to bring into this fight.”
“And many that we have not,” Aelfric added, glancing at the stoic, powerfully-built figure standing just a few paces away. “Aldric? Would you care to say how tomorrow will begin?”
“We will be striking the Avanoran reserve, where many of their great barons are, at first light,” Aldric stated confidently, as if it was an event that had already occurred.
Aelfric had no doubts that within Aldric’s mind, it truly had happened. Such was the supreme conviction dwelling within the determined Saxan.
A murmuring broke out in the tightly crowded tent at Aldric’s words, as all of them knew that it indicated that a full strike by their stalwart, sky steed commander was going to be undertaken.
“And what if the flying monstrosities return?” another thane asked. “We were not prepared for the attack today on the camp.”
“I do not think they will repeat themselves. Many of their men and other creatures have expended themselves heavily today, and I look for them to try new ways tomorrow,” Aelfric answered.
He had little doubt that the enemy would expect them to be wary for another similar strike, and in truth they would be, with some additional men held back to guard the wounded. There would be enough to hold off any attack at the palisade’s edges until reinforcements arrived. The enemy would not be able to pour uncontested through the camp’s eastern gateway, as they had done in the brazen attack that day.
“Then what are our goals?” Count Leidrad inquired, his face awash with deep concern. “The Halmlander must be broken.”
Aelfric had spent a good amount of time on the Saxan left flanks, and shared Count Leidrad’s anxieties. The first day had largely been a parry by the enemy, but the second day would likely be a thrust, or crushing slash.
The Ehrengardians on the enemy’s right had been content to harry them with arrows and bolts, and unleash a few mounted skirmishes from behind their living fortification of Halmlander mercenaries. All of the Saxans who had been on the left flank felt strongly that the second day would see a much heavier blow delivered by the warriors of Ehrengard and their loathsome mercenaries.
It was likely that the day’s debacle among the Andamoorans had caused a ripple all the way down the enemy lines, thereby preventing a stronger attack by Ehrengard on the first day. The Avanorans had probably been forced to break off their original contrivances. With the left and center distracted, the risks of committing the right flank had likely been too high for the tenuous state of agreement governing the command of the Ehrengardians, held delicately amongst their often-fractious princes and bishops.
Aelfric was much relieved that the woods to the left and right of the plains were highly difficult to pass through, even in peaceful times. They were now even harder to navigate, with the presence of ubiquitous barricades erected along any path that might even be slightly conducive to horses. It was a younger woodland terrain, filled with brush and undergrowth alongside the trees, making even progress on foot quite ponderous.
The thought of the forest, especially to the south and west of their position, brought his mind back around to the small band of skilled woodsmen who had been dispatched to look in upon Godric.
He had no great hopes for Godric’s loyalty, but the truth needed to be known. Only then could the Saxans know to the fullest extent what position the enemy was in. Many among them hoped that Godric would make a bold stand, at least in closing the gates of his large fortress.
He would not have to withstand a long siege. The enormous invading army could not remain stagnant for long, and certainly could not endure long delays. It was an army that had been built to break through in a rapid, decisive blow.
If it could not break through, then it would be too unwieldy to sustain itself. A starving army would swiftly become its own greatest enemy.
In a sense, all the Saxan hopes relied on the voracious needs of such a juggernaut of men, horses, oxen, and other creatures.
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