Tuck

my lord, and God bless 'em. But those you see before you are with you to the end-and that end is to see you take your rightful throne and lead your people in peace and plenty.'

'Hear him!' said Scarlet. 'Hear him!'

'S'truth,' added Siarles, and others shouted, 'God wills it!'

Bran nodded to Angharad, who struck the bare earth three times with the end of her staff to silence the commotion. Then, raising her hand, palm outward, she tilted her face to the light slanting down through the leaf- laden branches. 'Goodly Wise, Strong Upholder, Swift Sure Hand,' she said in a queer chanting voice, 'draw near to us; enter into our minds and hearts; be to us the voice that speaks the True Word. Be to us our rock and fortress, our shield and defender, our strength and courage. Go before us, Lord of Hosts, bare Your mighty arm, set Your face against our enemies, and as You destroyed the army of the wicked pharaoh in the sea, let fear swallow up those who raise their hands against us. These things we ask in the name of Blessed Jesu, Our Hope and Redeemer, and Michael Militant the Terrible Sword of Your Righteousness.' Her mouth moved silently for a moment longer; then she said, 'Amen.'

All gathered in the solemn assembly echoed. 'Amen.'

Bran turned his head and thanked his Wise Banfaith for her prayer. To the people gathered before him, he said, 'We are here to decide how the war with the Ffreinc shall be pursued. On my most solemn vow, there will be an end to their rule in this realm… or there will be an end to me. For I will not tolerate their presence in the land of my fathers while there is yet a single breath in my body.'

'I am with you, my lord!' cried Iwan, slapping his knee. 'We will drive them from this realm-or die in the attempt.'

Bran gave a downward jerk of his chin by way of acknowledgement of Iwan's pledge, and continued. 'Let us speak freely now, holding nothing back. As we must stand together in the days to come, let us share our hearts and minds.' He paused to let his listeners gather their thoughts. 'So now.' He spread his hands. 'Who will begin?'

Tuck was first to find his voice. 'To speak plain, I am grieved in heart, soul, and mind since the attack in the grove-and any man who said otherwise is a liar. Our King William has proven himself a greedy, grasping rogue and a stranger to all honour. If that was not a bitter enough brew to swallow, our Ffreinc overlords have shown us that they will attack with impunity, little respecting women and children-'

'Devil take them all,' muttered Siarles.

'Nevertheless,' the friar continued, raising a hand for silence, 'I have bethought myself time and time again, and it seems to me that if our enemies have any tender feelings within reach of their cold hearts, it may be that they are even now sorely regretting that rash act.'

'What are you saying, Tuck?' asked Bran softly.

'It would be well to send Abbot Hugo an offer of peace.'

'Peace!' scoffed Bran. 'On my father's grave, a moment's peace they will not have from me.'

'I know! My lord, I know-they have earned damnation ten times over. Is there anyone here who does not know it? But, I pray you, do not dismiss the notion outright.'

Tuck turned to appeal to those gathered beneath the oak boughs. 'See here, it is not for our enemies that I make this plea-it is for us and for our good. The pursuit of war is a dire and terrible waste-of life and limb, blood and tears. It maims all it touches. Maybe we gain justice in the end, maybe not. No one knows how it will end. But, know you, we will lose much that we hold dear long 'ere we reach the end, and of that we can be more than certain.'

'We have little to lose, it seems to me,' remarked Iwan.

'True enough,' Tuck allowed, 'but it is always possible to lose even that little, is it not? Think you now-if war could be avoided, we might be spared that loss. By pursuing peace as readily as war, we might even gain the outcome we seek-and is that not a thing worth the risk of trying?'

Tuck's plea fell into silence even as he implored the others to at least consider what he had said. No one, so it appeared, shared his particular sentiment.

'Our priest is right to speak so,' said Merian, moving to stand beside the little cleric. 'War with the Ffreinc will mean the deaths of many-maybe all of us. But if death and destruction can be avoided, we must by all means try- for the sake of those who will be hurt by what we decide today, we must make an offer of peace.'

'Offer peace?' wondered Scarlet aloud. 'That's begging for trouble with a dog and bowl.'

'Aye, trouble and worse,' growled Siarles. 'If you have no stomach for the fight ahead, maybe you should both join Henwydd and his band of cowards. They're not so far ahead that you couldn't catch 'em up.'

'Coward? Is that what you think?' asked Tuck, voicing the question to the whole gathering. 'Is that what everyone thinks?'

'I don't say it is, I don't say it en't,' replied Siarles. 'But the shoe fits him who made it.'

'Enough, both of you. Courage is not at issue here,' Bran pointed out. 'I was willing to swear fealty to William Rufus. Indeed, I encouraged my father to do so, and we would not be here now if he had listened to me and acted before it was too late…'

'Do you not see?' said Merian. 'You're in danger of becoming just like your father-too proud and stubborn for the good of your people. And, like your father, you will die at the end of a Norman spear.' She put out a slender hand and softened her tone. 'Red William is a false king; that is true. His decision was the ruin of all our hopes, and now everything has changed. Look around, my lord-only half of Cel Craidd remains. Even if we were mighty warriors, champions each and every one, we could not take back Elfael by force of arms alone.'

Bran glared at her, his brow low and furrowed. Judging from the expressions on the faces around him, Merian had won solid support for her opinion. 'What do you suggest?' he said at last.

Merian glanced at Tuck. 'That is not for me to say, my lord.'

'It seems to me you have said a great deal already, my lady. Why stop now?' He lifted his head to include the rest of the gathering. 'Come, speak up, your lord is asking for your counsel. What do you advise?'

'If I may speak freely, my lord,' began Tuck.

'I doubt anything in heaven or earth could prevent you,' remarked Bran. 'Speak, priest.'

'Hardheaded Saxon that I am, I have always thought it a good thing that the clerics rule the church and kings rule the realm. That is the way God has ordained it, has He not? Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's, to be sure, but give to God the things that are God's. Like it or not, the Ffreinc-'

'Is there a point to this sermon, Friar?' interrupted Bran.

'Only that we must be prepared to compromise if we are to persuade the abbot and sheriff to accept the peace.'

'Compromise,' repeated Bran dully.

'What sort of compromise?' asked Siarles.

'That any Ffreinc who have settled should be allowed to remain in Elfael under your rule, and that Hugo will remain in charge of the spiritual concerns of the abbey.'

'Let Hugo keep the abbey and I take the fortress-is that what you're saying?' said Bran.

'In a word, yes, my lord.'

'Why in heaven's name would Hugo agree to that?'

'Because,' suggested Tuck, 'it would allow him to put his efforts into saving his abbey, which he will certainly lose if he continues to pursue this war. Lose the abbey and he has lost his place in the church-and I heartily doubt he'll ever get another one. Who'd have him?'

'Indeed,' said Bran.

'You know what I mean,' Tuck continued. 'If he agrees to the peace, he will survive, and keep much that he will lose if the war continues.'

'My lord, you would have to swear fealty to William,' Will Scarlet pointed out.

'He has offered to do that already,' Iwan reminded him. 'Twice.'

'What about the king? He has given the realm to Hugo.'

'Then he can take it away again and give it back to its rightful ruler,' said Tuck, adding, 'of course, the abbot would have to agree to support you before the king.'

'He'd never do it,' said Siarles.

'Share my realm with that rank Ffreinc butcher?' wondered Bran, shaking his head. 'My stomach churns at the very thought.'