Pride of Lions Read Online Free PDF Page A

increasingly apprehensive about what he might find there, and willing to put off the moment as long as he comfortably could.
    Soon enough the walls of Dublin loomed ahead.
    As a result of countless assaults and sieges over the years, the city was heavily fortified, protected by timber palisades and guarded gateways.
    Close to the house of Vespers the horsemen crossed the Slighe Dala as it approached Dublin from the west. There they saw their first bodies. Irish warriors in saffron-dyed linen tunics and foreigners in chain mail lay twisted together in the dance of death, their blood stiff and black upon them.
    Lowering their heads, the oxen stared popeyed at the corpses and gave them a wide berth.
    One of Donough's men pointed toward the city.
    "I see figures moving on the walls."
    "Guards on the palisades, no doubt," Ronan responded. "The question is, are they our men, or theirs?"
    Donough narrowed his eyes. "It looks like they're wearing cones on their heads."
    Ronan swore under his breath. "You have the eyes of an eagle. Vikings wear conical iron helmets, we don't, so those are Sitric's men."
    Donough gnawed on his lip. If the Ard Ri had not captured Dublin, it must mean that for the first time in years Brian Boru had been defeated in battle. "I want to join my father right away,"
    he told Ronan. "He needs my support."
    For once Ronan was disinclined to argue.
    "He's probably still north of the Liffey," the veteran surmised, "supervising the gathering of the bodies and the digging of mass graves. The best place for us to cross the river would be at the Ford of the Hurdles, which is beyond spear range from the walls. That way," he indicated with a nod.
    The company rode along the west side of Dublin in the direction of the ford. Sitric's men watched in ominous silence from the walls.
    "Why don't they yell at us, curse us, something?" one of the horsemen wondered aloud.
    As they approached Fair Green they found a haphazard military encampment sprawled across the meadowland. Recognizing banners, Donough gave a glad whoop. "Dalcassians!" He rode forward eagerly. "Abu Dal gCais!"
    No one returned the ancient shout of victory. It was met with a thunderous silence, and as he drew nearer Donough could see that these were men with nothing left to give, either physically or emotionally. Bloody, battered, as dispirited as the sodden banners that dripped from poles beside their officers' leather tents, they sat or sprawled on wet earth.
    The faces they turned toward Donough as he rode up were the faces of men who had seen hell.
    Defeat then, Donough thought. Defeat confirmed. He braced himself as for a physical blow.
    A sandy-haired man with a luxurious moustache emerged from one of the tents. Over his knee-length leine was a brat of woven wool dyed a brilliant Munster blue and trimmed with wolf fur.
    "Fergal!" Donough shouted to his cousin.
    "Fergal Mac Anluan."
    The son of Anluan glanced up and frowned.
    "Oh. It's you."
    Donough was taken aback. "Of course it's me."
    "We could have used you on Good Friday."
    "I'm here now!" the boy bristled. "Where's my father?"
    Fergal gazed at him thoughtfully, started to say something, changed his mind, waved his arm toward the north.
    Donough shouted over his shoulder to his men, "You lot stay here and mind the oxen. I'll be back to you when I've seen the Ard Ri." He galloped away before anyone could protest, including a second man who emerged from the tent to join Fergal.
    "Could you not stop him?" the second man asked Ronan, who was dismounting.
    "I can't do anything with him, Cian. His head is pure rock. Is it too dangerous for him to go off alone like that? I can go after him and ..."
    "I doubt if there is much danger to him right now," replied Cian, who wore a mantle even richer than that of Fergal. "But he'll be wanting someone with him."
    "I don't understand," Ronan said.
    Cian turned to Fergal. "Did you not tell them?"
    "I hadn't the heart."
    Ronan felt suddenly chilled. "Tell us