Five canoes carried 20 people. They paddled hard on the West Dvina River with bows, arrows, spears and three days of dry food. Their destination was the upstream village of Duka, where the tragedy was reported.
In fact, it didn’t take too long to sail. After rounding some corners, people with a discerning eye could see green smoke in the distance, and everyone immediately became vigilant.
After rounding the last big bend, what appeared in front of us was indeed the terrifying charred ruins.
"Oh my God! This has never happened before!" People exclaimed in shock, their paddling hands trembling.
They landed cautiously and tried to find survivors, although no one gave them hope. To their surprise, no human bodies were found in the ruins, but burnt cattle and sheep corpses could be seen everywhere.
"These villains are so cruel?! They are not just robbing, but malicious killings? They don't even spare cattle and sheep?!"
This has never happened before. Even if it were bandits, they would not deliberately destroy it. They killed all the living creatures they saw and burned down the cowsheds and sheepfolds.
People who arrived at the scene had to reflect on what kind of person they had provoked to take such vicious revenge.
No! We didn't mess with anyone. There's a gang of thugs attacking everywhere!
They unified their ideas and looked for more clues near the village. They were all hunters and were quite good at finding the traces of prey.
"Come here quickly." A squatting bow-wielding man called to his companions.
After a while, many people gathered.
"What is this? Feces?"
"It's definitely horse manure. It's dry on the outside but still wet on the inside. The attacker didn't run far. You all look for horse hoof marks again, and we can at least determine a direction."
So, everyone began a large-scale search. They found the former camp of the Ross Cavalry and found more horse dung, traces of smelly sheep blood and a large number of bone fragments. There were traces of undigested oats in the newly found horse dung.
, this is very abnormal.
"Apparently the gangsters took away the village's surplus grain to feed the horses, and now we can determine where they are going."
The most critical horse hoof marks can be seen everywhere, and they made important judgments based on these marks. People's heads were buzzing when they realized the complexity of the situation. "Let's go back! Damn it, these villains are actually going to continue to attack us!"
The canoe was evacuated overnight, and the explorers returned to the starting point with their tired bodies and bloodshot eyes. They woke up the sleeping leader and actively reported their findings.
The big leader, who was already angry at getting out of bed, got a carp kick and his mind suddenly cleared up. After listening to the report, not only did he feel a chill down his spine.
"Twenty horse-riding bandits at most? The hoofprints of each horse are large and deep. They are still moving towards our village. Are they still advancing upstream of the Bolota River? It seems that we need to adjust our defense center."
Could it be that a mere twenty horse bandits were enough to make the entire Polotsk community tremble? The big leader, Proslaw, was by no means an idiot. He knew that cavalry on big horses could create many crises.
Even though the Polotsk people did not have qualified cavalry, the era when the Avars were galloping near the Vistula River had receded only half a century ago. The Polotsk people settled in the east and knew to some extent that they were relatives of the Vistula Poles.
encounter.
Those horse riders are always elusive and run away after grabbing things. It is not easy to pursue and take revenge.
The big leader increasingly felt that the new horse bandits were very similar to those guys, and maybe they were the same thing. Based on those legends, he didn't quite believe that his farmers and Orions' infantry armed forces could complete their revenge, or at least drive them away.
However, if the enemy attacks in the direction of the Bolota River, there may be an opportunity to intercept and kill them.
The big leader ordered the village leaders to take action, and the Orion farmers they gathered collectively moved to the north of the settlement, and then organized ten small teams, each with about fifty people.
There are another five hundred people on standby with weapons on hand, and they will attack immediately if they are discovered. They are young men with good legs and feet. Although they are all clothed and unarmored, they can run very fast with simple weapons. The so-called advantage of numbers, try to
It is far better to discover and kill them, even if some people die in battle, than to roam around and prevent everyone from agricultural production. Because oats and rye are about to head, the harvest day is not far away, and the trouble must be solved before the autumn harvest.
The people were very excited. If a single village faced the ghost-like entanglement of horse bandits, they would be very afraid. When they saw the strength of their united companions, they became brave.
According to the clues discovered by their own hunters, the defense focus of the entire Polotsk people was adjusted to the northeast direction.
Now each village has summarized the news in recent days, and people suddenly became enlightened!
There are dense forest areas near the settlements, as well as flat land mixed in with clusters of forest land. Some families live in more remote areas, and the problem of missing persons that has occurred in recent times has become apparent.
Maybe some woodcutters were killed by bears in the forest, or they lost their way in the forest and died, or died from drowning. Before the horse bandit incident, people speculated that these were ordinary accidents in daily life. Now,
All missing persons incidents were identified as attacks by horse bandits.
In fact, this is the reason why old Harold and his gang have three female prisoners in their hands. They attacked the Polotsk people in a sneak attack and their methods were sufficiently concealed.
However, it was said that Urreco's ten-man cavalry group was too arrogant and domineering in their methods. In other words, they completely implemented the expedition in accordance with the war mode, always replicating their glorious deeds of plundering Cologne and the surrounding areas last year.
Just like that, they already have a lot of spoils but they are still not satisfied.
Because even though many innocent people were killed, they failed to collect silver coins in the "war". The regret drove the young veterans to continue military adventures.
They are also cunning, considering that if they continue to move along the river, they will inevitably encounter more villages. Only ten brothers collided with the polot people, but they were unable to defeat the four-legged situation with three punches. The next action must be sinister, so
We chose a forest route away from the river.
After obtaining some valuable information from the prisoners' mouths, they began to use the cover of the dense forest to operate.
However, they ignored the horse dung and hoof prints. Because even though the Polotsk people owned many ponies, they were not luxurious enough to feed the horses with precious grains, and there could never be grain residues in the horse dung.
.
It seems that everything is under the control of the adventurous Ross cavalry.
As the brothers got closer to the Polota River, they set up a temporary camp on the edge of the forest, lit bonfires arrogantly, reheated the mutton they had plundered before, and gathered together to discuss what to do next.
The flames crackled, and looking at the beating flames, Ureko could hear the discussions of the soldiers in his ears. He felt that as a captain, he was almost done. The young Russians were taller than him, and they all boasted that they were better than their fathers.
The ancestors are stronger. They are not so arrogant as to deny the credit of the Pecheneg instructors, but Ureko can only listen to their opinions for the next action.
He still wanted to insist on his right to make suggestions: "At least, I am still your captain. We only have ten cavalry, and it is too risky to forcefully break into their main settlement. What do you want?"
"Gold coins!" Everyone raised their heads and almost said in unison.
"Gold coins? Well...gold coins. Do you think these poor farmers really have gold coins?"
"At least you can get some gems? There is always a chance to get something good." Someone said this, which immediately attracted others to pursue it.
Some people said fairly: "We have already reached here. Even if we can't get the treasure, at least we have to see the settlement of the Polotsk people with our own eyes, and then report it to the king so that our army can send troops to conquer it in the future."
This is indeed a very convincing reason. Ross's expansion is consistent. The king only stipulates that the lack of large-scale military expansion in recent years is not giving up. It is just accumulating strength and conquering quickly. Our expedition is to find the things that need to be conquered urgently for the king.
New goal, even if you can't get any gold or silver in this expedition, you will always get some monetary reward if you bring the information to the king.
"At least, let's explore the number of their villages and estimate their population."
After everyone discussed it, they set task goals for themselves and will continue to implement them tomorrow.
Little did they know, they were heading towards the upper reaches of the Bolota River, and it was only a matter of time before they collided with a large number of villages.
No one can learn the specific path distance from the captives. After all, the captives lack the concept of this aspect, but they have already arrived at the current location. All the captured women are becoming more and more cooperative. That is the only possibility of escaping from the horse bandits.
, they firmly believe that the brave tribesmen will send troops to attack the bandits once they discover them.
It was an ordinary night. The Russians lit a bonfire and ate barbecue as usual. They also distributed some sizzling and oily mutton to the captives, and were delighted to find that the captives started to eat it without saying a word.
They cooperated so well that the soldiers also became interested. What is surprising is that even if they have sex again, their faces no longer show fear, rejection, or dullness. Although they are not enjoying themselves at all.
Their attitude became very strange, and what was even more alarming was that when everyone started sleeping around the campfire, they were the only ones staring, and even though they seemed to be sleeping, they were just looking good.
It is best to be extremely vigilant when camping on the grassland. If you are traveling with a group of people, be sure to send a brother to stand guard. The first thing is not to worry about a sneak attack, but to be wary of the prairie wolf taking away the traveler's dry food (usually dried meat) and then biting the war horse.
Even if Ureko turns into a new Rusian loyal to the King of Rus, the habits he developed in the grassland cannot be changed. Especially now, the captives are clearly on guard. What are they afraid of? Or what are they waiting for?
"Stay vigilant. Evil bears who are not afraid of fire may appear in this area. We all sleep with bows and arrows. We must be able to join the battle immediately!"
At least in terms of combat, everyone will definitely listen to captain Ureko's request. The brothers are very grateful to this low prairie man for teaching him the riding and archery skills. But the brothers are real Russian blood, even if they stay alert and fall asleep, they will not be able to do anything.
You should sleep with a round shield on your back so that you can get up instantly when an enemy situation arises. At the same time, you should carry a "big turtle shell" on your back to ensure your defense.
Ureko woke and slept, always paying attention to the reactions of the prisoners. He held a bow and arrows in both hands, and a horn hung on his chest.
Even if the soldiers are arrogant, he regards these Ross boys as brothers, and now he will serve as a night sentry for them.
Summer nights in high latitudes are quite short, and the autumnal equinox is still far away. The temperature at night is brighter, and the grass will be stained with dew when it is close to dawn. The morning fog will evaporate when the sun is about to break, and the water vapor in the trees is the most intense.
When the sun rises, countless golden curtains fall in the forest, creating a holy feeling like a sanctuary.
Look! The fog is rising, the sun is shining on the forest, and there are golden curtains everywhere.
"It's so beautiful."
Ureko lamented the unimaginable beauty of the grassland in the early morning, and an exaggerated yawn proved that he had not rested well. "Ah, at worst, I will lie down on the horse's back and sleep for a while during the day."
The horses that were sleeping on their knees had woken up one after another. Seeing this, Ureko stood up and walked into the horses whose reins were tied to the trees. He had no intention of disturbing the brothers who continued to sleep, and had no intention of kicking the captives who had to sleep. He at least looked
Look at the four brown-haired women: "Why do you bother? Staying up all night in case of a bear attack? You're not asleep yet."
He had to untie the linen bag and feed the captured oats to the war horses. There was too much dew on the grass early in the morning, and the war horses would have diarrhea if they ate too much. In fact, some horses along the way did have gastrointestinal problems, and he, who cherished his horse power, was more willing to feed them.
Dried wheat. (This is why there are undigested wheat grains in horse manure.)
He untied a horse, held grains of wheat in one hand, and put them into the horse's mouth.
Suddenly, the ears of all the war horses twitched alertly.
The alert Ureko suddenly trembled all over because he noticed a strange noise in the morning mist.
"Who is it? Are you awake? When you wake up, add firewood and let us have breakfast."
Some soldiers were too lazy to yell a few words. He turned his head and saw his subordinates getting up one after another. Because most of them were lying on the ground and carrying bucklers behind their backs, they looked like turtles.
It seemed that he was worrying too much, so Ureko didn't care anymore.
But suddenly, there was a loud roar in the morning mist, and in a moment, some shaggy-headed "savages" came charging in with wooden clubs and short spears.
Immediately, a soldier was hit in the body by a thrown short spear. Since everyone did not wear armor for the convenience of movement, the soldier who was hit by the spear was shot through the body.
The conflict broke out so suddenly that many of the confused warriors were knocked down, and then they were stabbed randomly by the "savages" with their broken blades.
Do you still care about war horses now?
Ureko could no longer care too much and immediately went into battle with the other brothers.
"Shield wall!"
Someone shouted, and the six men with intact shields on their left arms gathered together with swords in their hands, and immediately started fighting with at least twenty people.
The sword pierced the attacker's throat and cut his leg.
The attacker's ax hit the buckler hard and he was forced to carry it, followed by a counterattack with Ross's steel sword.
The Russians watched helplessly as their downed brother was attacked by multiple wolves and stabbed randomly with short spears by the enemy.
Some soldiers were eager to avenge their brothers who died suddenly in battle. They rushed over with huge round shields and knocked down no less than five people with brute force. Then one person with a sword fought many people.
The tired Ureko was no longer sleepy. He shot with a bow and actively cooperated with his comrades. However, in this chaotic battle in the morning fog, the bow and arrows were not of great use.
The Ross cavalry are all transformed into infantry, and like their fathers, they fight the enemy with pure sword and shield hands.
The battle turned into the most familiar look for the Vikings. Young warriors who were always unarmored faced enemies with only civilian clothes and crude weapons and resolutely launched a counterattack after stabilizing the battle situation.
They had already lost three people. When the brothers saw that their backstabbed comrade had fallen into a pool of blood, it was obvious that they were hopeless. At least they died with weapons in hand, and their souls should have gone to the Hall of Valor.
Someone shouted: "Kill the attackers! Blood sacrifice to Odin!"
The momentum has increased, and now it is the attacker's turn to retreat.
Even though the number of attackers was larger, they could not defeat the entire Russian team during the raid. Once they fell into a chaotic battle, with their rich combat experience and stronger physiques, the small number of Russians began to have an advantage.
There were more than a dozen attackers lying on the ground. Some were dead and others were wailing. More attackers escaped into the dissipating morning mist.
The Ross warriors vigilantly observed the surrounding situation. They leaned on each other, their blood-stained bucklers formed an arc of defense, their steel swords were trembling constantly, and they stared at the surroundings with pairs of eyes.
This is an opportunity! Ureko hurriedly unbridled all the horses and called on the vigilant men: "Don't forget that you are cavalry! Get on the horse quickly! Take the injured brother away."
Injured brothers?! No! Three brothers are dead, and one of them was even dismembered.
"Snorri! Gudrid! Eric! They are dead!"
"Take their bodies away too!"
"No! We can't take them away!"
"At least take away their swords! Their souls have gone to the Hall of Valor, take away their nameplates."
…
The attackers were preparing the next round of attacks in the fog, and the Russians who had suffered a huge loss had no time to complain. They all mounted their horses, and their sober horses were not injured in the chaos.
But just before they mounted their horses, the "savages'" second round of attack had already begun.
Once mounted, the cavalry has a tenfold advantage over the infantry. In a critical situation, some of the loot cannot be taken away, and the prisoners cannot care about it. Even the soldiers cannot make up for the wounded soldiers in the first round of the battle. They will fight
The metal nameplates of the dead brothers were taken away so that they could give an explanation to the king later.
At this moment, Ureko finally understood the reason why the prisoners insisted on not sleeping at night. "So is this what you were waiting for? The ones who attacked us are really your people?"
Although I had already anticipated that a direct military conflict would break out with the Polotsk people, I never thought that just like the Russians attacking the village, they would now launch a sneak attack.
So what about a sneak attack? Now the fog has dispersed a lot, and the surviving brothers have already mounted their horses.
"Charge head on! Kill some more enemies and we'll retreat!" After saying that, Ureko and everyone launched a frontal breakout.