Face-of-god saw at once that he was not one of the Dusky Men; he was a black-haired man, but white-skinned, and of fair stature, though not so tall as the Burgdale folk. He was busied in tickling trouts, and just as Face-of-god came out from the bush into the westering sunlight, he threw up a fish on to the bank, and looked up therewithal, and beheld the weaponed man glittering, and uttered a cry, but fled not when he saw the spear poised for casting.
Then Face-of-god spake to him and said: “Come hither, Woodsman! we will not harm thee, but we desire speech of thee: and it will not avail thee to flee, since I have bowmen of the best in the hollow yonder.”
The man put forth his hands towards him as if praying him to forbear casting, and looked at him hard, and then came dripping from out the water, and seemed not greatly afeard; for he stooped down and picked up the trouts he had taken, and came towards Face-of-god stringing the last-caught one through the gills on to the withy whereon were the others: and Face-of-god saw that he was a goodly man of some thirty winters.
Then Face-of-god looked on him with friendly eyes and said:
“Art thou a foemen? or wilt thou be helpful to us?”
He answered in the speech of the kindreds with the hoarse voice of a much weather-beaten man:
“Thou seest, lord, that I am naked and unarmed.”
“Yet may’st thou bewray us,” said Face-of-god. “What man art thou?”
Said the man: “I am the runaway thrall of evil men; I have fled from Rosedale and the Dusky Men. Hast thou the heart to hurt me?”
“We are the foemen of the Dusky Men,” said Face-of-god; “wilt thou help us against them?”
The man knit his brows and said: “Yea, if ye will give me your word not to suffer me to fall into their hands alive. But whence art thou, to be so bold?”
Said Face-of-god: “We are of Burgdale; and I will swear to thee on the edge of the sword that thou shalt not fall alive into the hands of the Dusky Men.”
“Of Burgdale have I heard,” said the man; “and in sooth thou seemest not such a man as would bewray a hapless man. But now had I best bring you to some lurking-place where ye shall not be easily found of these devils, who now ofttimes scour the woods hereabout.”
Said Face-of-god: “Come first and see my fellows; and then if thou thinkest we have need to hide, it is well.”
So the man went side by side with him towards their lair, and as they went Gold-mane noted marks of stripes on his back and sides, and said: “Sorely hast thou been mishandled, poor man!”
Then the man turned on him and said somewhat fiercely: “Said I not that I had been a thrall of the Dusky Men? how then should I have escaped tormenting and scourging, if I had been with them for but three days?”
As he spake they came about a thorn-bush, and there were the Burgdale men down in the hollow; and the man said: “Are these thy fellows? Call to mind that thou hast sworn by the edge of the sword not to hurt me.”
“Poor man!” said Face-of-god; “these are thy friends, unless thou bewrayest us.”
Then he cried aloud to his folk: “Here is now a good hap! this is a runaway thrall of the Dusky Men; of him shall we hear tidings; so cherish him all ye may.”
So the carles thronged about him and bestirred themselves to help him, and one gave him his surcoat for a kirtle, and another cast a cloak about him; and they brought him meat and drink, such as they had ready to hand: and the man looked as if he scarce believed in all this, but deemed himself to be in a dream. But presently he turned to Face-of-god and said:
“Now I see so many men and weapons I deem that ye have no need to skulk in caves tonight, though I know of good ones: yet shall ye do well not to light a fire till moon-setting; for the flame ye may lightly hide, but the smoke may be seen from far aloof.”
But they bade him to meat, and he needed no second bidding but ate lustily, and they gave him wine, and he drank a great draught and sighed as for joy. Then he said in a trembling voice, as though he feared a naysay:
“If ye are from Burgdale ye shall be faring back again presently; and I pray you to take me with you.”
Said Face-of-god: “Yea surely, friend, that will we do, and rejoice in thee.”
Then he drank another cup which Warcliff held out to him, and spake again: “Yet if ye would abide here till about noon tomorrow, or mayhappen a little later, I would bring other runaways to see you; and them also might ye take with you: ye may think when ye see them that ye shall have small gain of their company; for poor wretched folk they be, like to myself. Yet since ye seek for tidings, herein might they do you more service than I; for amongst them are some who came out of the hapless Dale within this moon; and it is six months since I escaped. Moreover, though they may look spent and outworn now, yet if ye give them a little rest, and feed them well, they shall yet do many a day’s work for you: and I tell you that if ye take them for thralls, and put collars on their necks, and use them no worse than a goodman useth
