Roman - The Fall of Britannia Read Online Free PDF

expert archer and
swordsman, he had also been taught the Roman language by a slave
brought back by Gallic traders from the forests of
Gemina.
    Both boys were
safe from harm, as long as the truce endured, but had either tribe
transgressed the agreed terms, then the Druids would have
sacrificed both boys, and a bloody war joined. Luckily, for them,
the past fourteen years had been relatively peaceful and both were
back where they belonged.
    ----
    ‘ Do
what you will, Gwenno,’ he said eventually, ‘I will not betray
Erwyn’s trust.’
    ‘ I
am glad to hear it, boy,’ boomed a voice and the two teenagers spun
around to face Erwyn, who had returned to see where they
were.
    ‘ Give him the arrow, Gwenno’ he said, ‘and get back to your
mother.’
    ‘ Sorry, father,’ she murmured, looking down at the
floor.
    ‘ Quick about it,’ he ordered.
    Gwenno sneaked a
wicked smile to the boy before running into the camp, dropping the
arrow as she went. Erwyn picked it up and joined Gwydion near his
horse. Gwydion stared into the distance, the shame evident in his
eyes. After a while, Erwyn addressed him.
    ‘ Tell me, boy,’ he said, ‘why do you favour the bow over the
sword when you can gain much more honour in close
combat?’
    ‘ I
do not spurn the sword, Erwyn,’ he replied, ‘and will pit myself
against any man if challenged, but arrows can kill many men from a
great distance. Surely, this is a great advantage in battle when
the enemy is larger in number?’
    ‘ Perhaps so, but how can you take the head of your enemy if
you are a hundred paces away? Let me teach you the skills of the
double axe. That truly is a warrior’s weapon and will gain you many
heads.’
    ‘ I
seek no trophies, Erwyn,’ said Gwydion.
    ‘ Then, I fear you will gain little honour,’ sighed the leader.
‘The heads of our enemies bestow much honour on the
taker.’
    ‘ I
am happy with my bow.’
    ‘ You
proclaim your weapon’s virtues, yet allow your arrows to fall like
firewood. You even allow a mere girl to take one from you. Is this
what you have been taught by those Catuvellauni dogs?’
    ‘ It
is only one arrow, I have eleven more,’ answered the young man
defensively.
    ‘ Only one,’ repeated the warrior. ‘Tell me Gwydion, how much
do you like my daughter?’
    ‘ Err…I suppose…’
    ‘ Speak up, boy,’ snapped the warrior.
    ‘ A
lot, Sir,’ he said quickly.
    ‘ Do
you wish to court her?’
    ‘ I
don’t know, I mean, yes Sir, I would like that very
much.’
    ‘ Tell me, why should I let a man who loses weapons court my
daughter?’
    Gwydion hung his
head and silence fell again. They both knew there was no correct
answer to the question.
    ‘ You
made a mistake today, boy. It will be the first of many, but
consider this. Imagine we were under attack and you had already
used eleven arrows. Consider further, if an enemy then set his
sight on Gwenno and you reached for your last arrow in her defence,
what would become of my daughter?’
    Gwydion looked
shocked.
    ‘ I
would defend her with my life, Sir,’ he said.
    ‘ I
would expect no less, but for that one lost arrow, the clan would
be less one warrior, and I would lose my only daughter.’
    Gwydion hung his
head again, realising he was being taught a valuable
lesson.
    ‘ Lift up your head and look at me!’ snapped Erwyn. ‘You are
back amongst the Deceangli now and you bow your head to no man. If
you make a mistake, you will take your pain with head held high, do
you understand?’
    ‘ Yes, Sir,’ answered Gwydion, standing upright.
    ‘ You
have done well these last few weeks and I will not hold this
mistake against you. Learn from this and ensure it doesn’t happen
again. If it does, I will have you beaten in public. Do I make
myself clear?’
    ‘ Yes, Sir.’
    ‘ You
have a lot to learn, boy, but today you showed me respect. Take
your bow and ensure you become the best you can be. The Deceangli
have many warriors who wield sword, axe or spear, but few