rang up. The smith led us for a
hundred paces through the beech trees and then across the brook,
and the steep slope up to the village was before us. There was a
little, ancient earthwork of no account round the place, but if
there had been a stockade on it, it was gone.

Then came a roar of yells and shouts from the far side, and we knew
that the work had begun, and ran up the hillside. Then fled a man
in chain mail out of the place, leaping over the earthworks
straight at us, unknowing.

Spray the smith swung his hammer, not heeding at all the sword in
the man's hands. Sword and helm alike shivered under the blow, and
the man rolled over and over down the hillside.

"That is the first Dane I ever slew," said Spray to me as we topped
the ridge.

Then we were in the village and among a crowd of wild-looking,
half-armed forest men, who fled and yelled, and smote and cried for
quarter in a strange and ghastly medley. There was no order, and
seemingly no leader among them, and an end was soon made. Before I
had struck down two men they scattered and fled for hiding, and we
followed them. Wulfnoth would have no mercy shown to these wretches
who would harry the peaceful villagers--their own kin. They would
but band together again.

Now I did a foolish thing which might have cost me my life. For two
outlaws ran into one of the old stone buildings of which I had
heard, and I followed them. As I crossed the threshold I stayed for
a moment, for the place seemed very dark inside, and I could not
see them. But I was plain enough to them, of course, and before I
could see that a blow was coming one smote me heavily on the helm
and I fell forward, while they leapt out over my body into the open
again. Then I seemed to slip, and fell into nothingness as my
senses left me.

Presently I came round, nor could I tell how long I had been alone,
I heard far off shouts that were dull and muffled as if coming
through walls, and then as my brain cleared, I saw that I was in
what seemed to be a dungeon like those that Earl Wulfnoth had under
Pevensea. All round me were walls, and the light came in from a
round hole above me.

When I saw that I knew that I had indeed fallen into this place,
and my sword, too, lay on the floor where it had flown from my hand
as I did so. It was lucky that I had not fallen on it.

Now the shouts died away, and I thought that our men were chasing
the last of the outlaws into the woods. When the silence