two long wings of double ranks on either side, forming an intimidating wall before the reluctant knights.
Staring down the length of his spear, Alexius brought its point to the throat of the foremost knight. 'I am Alexius, Supreme Sovereign of the Holy Roman Empire. Do you understand what I am saying to you?' he asked, speaking in unadorned Latin so that there should be no mistaking his meaning.
'I understand,' replied the truculent soldier. The man's age and the scar on the side of his neck signified him to be a veteran of battle. Wisely, he made no move to raise his sword.
'Where are your lords?' Alexius demanded.
The pilgrim jerked his head sideways, indicating that they were up ahead, leading the march. 'Go and find them,' the emperor ordered. 'We will await them here.'
Seeing that the Greeks did not appear interested in offering battle, the knight nodded to the man beside him. The second warrior put spurs to his mount and rode quickly away. There followed a long, tense interval as the two opposing forces waited for the arrival of the crusader lords, eyeing one another across the short distance separating them.
All at once there came a commotion from the rearward ranks. A way parted and Alexius saw a number of riders making their way towards the front line. He waited until they had come within the sound of his voice, and then said, 'So! Tell me, how stood the fearsome merchants before your mighty swords? Did the children and their mothers offer stout resistance to your massed attack? The victory is yours-how well the glory sits upon your valiant shoulders!'
Duke Godfrey, a puzzled look on his face, drew himself up to speak, but Alexius continued, 'Why do you repay the empire's generosity with treachery? Not even wild dogs bite the hand that feeds them.'
Alexius glowered at the assembled knights, who shifted uneasily, looking to their leaders to defend their honour against the emperor's inexplicable wrath. 'Shame!' he cried. 'The blood of the defenceless demands justice. We charge you to make reparation out of your own treasuries to the families of those you have slain.'
'Lord Emperor,' said Godfrey defensively, 'I profess before God and all gathered here, I know nothing of what you speak.'
'Ignorance ill becomes you, lord,' Alexius replied tartly. 'Heed then, we will enlighten you.' He then told the disgraced nobleman about the riot and attack on the marketplace, and demanded, 'Where were you when your troops violated the peace and friendship between our peoples?'
'Our supplies have run out,' answered the duke, evading the question. 'The people are hungry-they starve. They have had nothing but stale bread for weeks.'
'Fresh provisions await your people-as you well know,' the emperor told him. 'It only requires your oath of fealty to secure all the food you need.' Having vented his anger, Alexius pressed on to secure his primary purpose. 'This day,' he said, assuming a more conciliatory tone, 'is the day appointed for the signing of the oath of loyalty. We will have your answer. What is it to be?'
Godfrey looked upon the imperial troops ranged before him, and hesitated. There came a movement from the rear, and Baldwin burst suddenly into the front line. 'This demand is an insult!' he shouted, thrusting himself forward. 'I say we will
Alexius gazed on him without expression. 'Give us your pledge, or give us your life. The choice is yours, friend, but we will have one or the other before this day is run.'
'The Devil take your oath!' Baldwin said, drawing his blade. Several of the knights looking on shouted support for this sentiment. The air tingled with the sound of swords sliding from scabbards.
'Peace, Baldwin!' his brother roared. 'Put up your sword. We will abide the emperor's request.' To Alexius, he said, 'The attack on the marketplace was ill-judged. On my honour, those who led the raid will be punished.' His eyes shifted unhappily from Baldwin to several of the leading knights, who had gone very quiet. To the emperor he said, 'We deeply regret the destruction and loss, and will make suitable reparation as you command.'
'We urge you to be generous,' Alexius told him. 'For the measure you use for others will be used for you.'
'It will be done,' Godfrey replied. 'Moreover, we stand ready to sign the pledge of loyalty at the time and place of your choosing.'
'So be it,' declared the emperor. 'We will see it signed here and now.' He held out his hand to Dalassenus, who promptly delivered into the emperor's outstretched palm the parchment square, which Alexius unfolded. 'Come here,' he commanded the brother lords; they dismounted and stood before him.
'Read it out,' instructed the emperor.
Reluctantly, Godfrey read out the oath, promising to keep faith with the emperor and recognizing his sovereign authority in all matters pertaining to the governance of the empire and its citizens, and further, to return to imperial rule all lands or cities-and any concomitant treasures, relics, or holy objects-formerly belonging to the empire which might fall to the crusaders' advance.
Having read the oath, Godfrey owned the vow, whereupon Dalassenus produced a quill and a vial of red ink which he proffered to Godfrey.
Dour and unsmiling, the lord dipped the point of the quill into the vial and signed his name with a defiant flourish. Handing the document and quill to his brother, he said, 'Affix your name beneath mine, dear brother, and let us remember we have come to fight the infidel, not to make war on friends.'
Baldwin sneered at the last word, but signed the document in scribbled haste and passed it contemptuously to the emperor, who looked at the signatures, and then delivered the document into the hands of the Grand Drungarius for safe-keeping.
'The promised food supplies will be delivered at once,' the emperor informed the lords. 'In a few days' time we expect to receive Count Bohemond of Taranto, who will also sign the oath of loyalty. When that formality has been accomplished, we will meet together to lay plans for shipping your people, horses, and supplies across the Bosphorus.' He paused to allow the significance of his words to penetrate their understanding, and then said, 'As your time in Constantinople grows short, we would have you enjoy something of the city's treasures and delights. Therefore, we have arranged for you and your men to visit the principal sights of the capital.'
'You are very kind, Lord Emperor,' Godfrey said, accepting the invitation by way of a peace offering. 'We would enjoy nothing more.'
Baldwin frowned, but held his tongue for once.
'So that you should not come to grief in a city so large and unknown to you, we will provide an escort of our own bodyguard to serve as guides. Thus, you need have no fear of becoming lost, or falling into harm.'
'Again,' said Godfrey, 'your thoughtfulness is laudable. We thank you, and will anticipate with all eagerness the council you propose.'
The lord made a small bow, whereupon the emperor bade them farewell, and detailed the Grand Drungarius, two strategi, and fifty Varangian guardsmen to see to the reparation settlement and conduct the lords and the noblemen of their company on a tour of the city. He then returned to Blachernae Palace to prepare to meet his old enemy's bellicose son, Bohemond of Taranto.
SIXTEEN
The settlement at Inbhir Ness was much larger than Murdo expected, and far more squalid. Tight clusters of low huts with high-peaked roofs of coarse thatch huddled close together over narrow footpaths that seamed through the town in every direction, like a bare earth web. Smoke from a multitude of hearthfires hung over the place so that even in the bright sun, Inbhir Ness appeared dark and uninviting.
The river mouth itself was wide enough, but only a handful of small boats, and three or four ships, were moored along the muddy banks. Aside from a large monastery on the hill high above the firth, the place seemed old, derelict, and forlorn, which surprised Murdo. Even sleepy Kirkjuvagr boasted more bustle and commerce. When he mentioned this fact to Peder, the elder seaman simply told him to wait and see. They proceeded through a pinched and narrow channel, and into another, smaller firth, which continued inland a fair distance to the mouth of the Ness which formed a wide and shallow harbour so full of craft of various sizes that it took all Peder's skill to manoeuvre their own small boat to shore. 'Put in!' Murdo called from the prow. 'Put in!' 'Aye,' Peder agreed. 'We will-when I see a good place.' The voyage had been good, the winds favourable and the seas calm. But after the
