The Black Rood Read Online Free PDF Page A

said, ‘A wall is sometimes called a curtain.’ So, he orders the wall to be taken down, and behold! There is the True Cross.”
    â€œGod be praised,” gasped Emlyn, clasping his hands reverently.
    â€œIt seems,” continued Torf, ignoring the abbot’s outburst, “that when the Saracens first captured the city, those churches they did not destroy, they turned into mosqs. In the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, they found the True Cross hanging above the altar, but even those heathen devils did not dare lay a hand on it, so they walled it up. They mixed a thick mortar and covered over the sacred relic, hiding it from view. Godfrey orders the mortar to be pulled down, and there it is: the True Cross is found. The king declares it to be a sign ofGod’s good pleasure, and orders everyone to kneel before the holy relic and pray for victory in the coming battle.
    â€œThis is difficult to do for the church is very small, and there are so many soldiers. So, he orders the cross to be brought out to us, and we all kneel down before it. Skuli and I find ourselves near the front ranks and we see the cross as the priests walk by; two priests, led by Godfrey’s chaplain, hold it between them, and two more walk behind carrying censers of burning incense.
    â€œI look up as it passes by, and I see what looks to be a long piece of rough timber, slightly bowed along its length. It is perhaps half a rod long, and thick as a man’s thigh. I know it is the True Cross because it is blackened with age, and its surface has been smoothed by the countless hands that have reverenced it through the years.
    â€œThe prayers are said, and the monks are returning to the church; as they carry the cross away, someone behind cries out, ‘Let the cross go before us!’ That is all it takes—at once everyone is up and shouting: ‘Let the cross go before us!’
    â€œGodfrey hears this and calls for order to be restored. He says, ‘It has pleased God to deliver this most sacred relic into our hands as a sign of his good pleasure in the restoring of his Holy City. As we have kept faith with God, so God has kept faith with us. The enemies of Christ are even now marching against us,’ cries Godfrey, his voice shaking with righteous rage. ‘I say this cross—this Black Rood—shall go before us into battle. From this day forth, it shall be the emblem of Jerusalem’s defenders, so that those who raise sword against us shall know that Christ himself leads his holy army to victory against the enemies of our faith.’
    â€œThe monks begin chanting: ‘Rejoice, O nations, with God’s people! For He will avenge the blood of his servants; He will take vengeance on his enemies, and make atonement for his land.’ And that is how it began…” So saying, Torf slumped back, exhausted by the effort.
    I stared at him in amazement that he should recall so much of what happened that day long ago. Brother Padraig, who had crept near to hear the tale, motioned to me to fill thebowl again. I poured the ale, and held the bowl to the sick man’s lips. Torf drank and revived somewhat.
    â€œRest now,” suggested Emlyn. “We will talk again when you are feeling better.”
    A bitter smile twisted Torf-Einar’s lips. “I will never feel better than I do now,” he whispered. “Anyway, there is little more to say. We rode out from Jerusalem the next day, and met the Arabs on the road from Ascalon two days later. They were not expecting us to attack, and had not yet formed a proper invasion force. Two knights carried the cross between them, and Godfrey led the charge. We fell upon al-Afdal’s confused army and scattered them to the winds. We routed the infidel, and sent them flying back to their ships.”
    Torf drank some more, and pushed the bowl away. “That was the first time the Black Rood went before us into battle, but it was not the