Read Online Iny Lorentz - The Marie Series 02 by The Lady of the Castle - Free Book Online
Authors: The Lady of the Castle
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faces of the men, women, and children, none of whom was wearing more than a shirt, making their terrible injuries visible to all.
Pleading, they raised their arms. “The Hussites are right behind us! They’ve killed everyone else and burned down our villages. We’re the only ones who got away, thanks to God’s grace.”
This wasn’t entirely true, because the slow-moving procession soon came upon several more groups of fugitives, though their reports unsettled even the hardiest warriors. The Hussites had to be devils straight from hell, because they killed their captives in the cruelest ways possible but appeared to be invulnerable themselves through some kind of black magic.
In the early afternoon of the fifth day, smoke columns rose up in the air not far in front of them, most certainly coming from a village that had just been burned down by the Hussites. Shortly thereafter, more peasants came toward them, telling of new atrocities, and the kaiser promptly ordered his commanders to him. Among the men asked to the meeting were Michel and the leader of the Swiss mercenaries, Urs Sprüngli, who had entered the kaiser’s service with a good dozen of his men and was visibly apologetic about the lack of a substantial contingent of troops from his Appenzeller countrymen. Falko von Hettenheim and a few other knights who hadn’t been called rudely pushed past the others until they were right in front of the kaiser.
Sigismund kneaded the pommel of his long sword and repeatedly glanced at the refugees who’d settled down beside the road, considering themselves safe in the protection of the imperial army. “Men, we’ve reached our first destination. The enemy is busy pillaging a village less than an hour in front of us. With God’s help we can surprise these godless Bohemian heretics and destroy them. Let’s leave a small group to protect the wagons and go prepare for battle. We’ll advance as soon as possible.”
Most of the men looked as though they would have preferred to boast of their heroic wartime deeds against the Hussites from the safety of their castles rather than actually meeting them in battle, and so the cheers for the kaiser weren’t overly enthusiastic. Even Michel caught himself wishing he were back at Rheinsobern with his wife.
The army moved barely any faster without the wagons, and by the time they finally reached the village on the banks of a small river, every building was already burned down to its foundations. The Hussites, whose scouts must have been better than their own, had retreated to a flat, bare hilltop not far from the village where their wagons formed an almost impregnable defensive position. Several dozen carts, all of them smaller and more maneuverable than the kaiser’s, had been pushed together to form a barricade, and the rebels had even had time to stuff the gaps with twigs and thorny branches.
The hill’s flanks were too steep for horses in most places, and dense thickets provided the enemy with additional protection. The kaiser reined in his horse, glared at the enemy, and helplessly opened and closed his fists.
Forgetting he was wearing a helmet, Timo tried to scratch his head. “It doesn’t look good, master. We should surround them up there and besiege them, because if we try to take their wagon fort by storm, we’ll lose half of our men just on the way up.”
Michel nodded his agreement at first, then changed his mind. “We don’t have enough provisions, while the Hussites surely found plenty in the village. Also, we don’t have enough men to encircle the hill.”
“Then we’ll need God’s help.”
“In that case, all we can do now is pray and hope for the best!” Michel patted his faithful friend’s shoulder and looked uphill again. Men had come out from behind the wagon fort and were hurling mockery and abuse at the imperial army to provoke them. Though their Czech words were incomprehensible, their gestures were unmistakable, and the few who spoke
Pleading, they raised their arms. “The Hussites are right behind us! They’ve killed everyone else and burned down our villages. We’re the only ones who got away, thanks to God’s grace.”
This wasn’t entirely true, because the slow-moving procession soon came upon several more groups of fugitives, though their reports unsettled even the hardiest warriors. The Hussites had to be devils straight from hell, because they killed their captives in the cruelest ways possible but appeared to be invulnerable themselves through some kind of black magic.
In the early afternoon of the fifth day, smoke columns rose up in the air not far in front of them, most certainly coming from a village that had just been burned down by the Hussites. Shortly thereafter, more peasants came toward them, telling of new atrocities, and the kaiser promptly ordered his commanders to him. Among the men asked to the meeting were Michel and the leader of the Swiss mercenaries, Urs Sprüngli, who had entered the kaiser’s service with a good dozen of his men and was visibly apologetic about the lack of a substantial contingent of troops from his Appenzeller countrymen. Falko von Hettenheim and a few other knights who hadn’t been called rudely pushed past the others until they were right in front of the kaiser.
Sigismund kneaded the pommel of his long sword and repeatedly glanced at the refugees who’d settled down beside the road, considering themselves safe in the protection of the imperial army. “Men, we’ve reached our first destination. The enemy is busy pillaging a village less than an hour in front of us. With God’s help we can surprise these godless Bohemian heretics and destroy them. Let’s leave a small group to protect the wagons and go prepare for battle. We’ll advance as soon as possible.”
Most of the men looked as though they would have preferred to boast of their heroic wartime deeds against the Hussites from the safety of their castles rather than actually meeting them in battle, and so the cheers for the kaiser weren’t overly enthusiastic. Even Michel caught himself wishing he were back at Rheinsobern with his wife.
The army moved barely any faster without the wagons, and by the time they finally reached the village on the banks of a small river, every building was already burned down to its foundations. The Hussites, whose scouts must have been better than their own, had retreated to a flat, bare hilltop not far from the village where their wagons formed an almost impregnable defensive position. Several dozen carts, all of them smaller and more maneuverable than the kaiser’s, had been pushed together to form a barricade, and the rebels had even had time to stuff the gaps with twigs and thorny branches.
The hill’s flanks were too steep for horses in most places, and dense thickets provided the enemy with additional protection. The kaiser reined in his horse, glared at the enemy, and helplessly opened and closed his fists.
Forgetting he was wearing a helmet, Timo tried to scratch his head. “It doesn’t look good, master. We should surround them up there and besiege them, because if we try to take their wagon fort by storm, we’ll lose half of our men just on the way up.”
Michel nodded his agreement at first, then changed his mind. “We don’t have enough provisions, while the Hussites surely found plenty in the village. Also, we don’t have enough men to encircle the hill.”
“Then we’ll need God’s help.”
“In that case, all we can do now is pray and hope for the best!” Michel patted his faithful friend’s shoulder and looked uphill again. Men had come out from behind the wagon fort and were hurling mockery and abuse at the imperial army to provoke them. Though their Czech words were incomprehensible, their gestures were unmistakable, and the few who spoke
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