Robin Hood | Thief of Skandia

Chapter 13 (Strategy)

This one is a long one <3

Song: On The Floor by Jennifer Lopez, Pitbull

The pine had fallen several years back, finally defeated by the weight of snow in its branches, the insidious rot at the heart of its massive trunk and one too many seasons of gale force winter winds. Even in death, however, its neighbours had tried to support it, keeping it from the ignominy of the ground, holding it in the grip of their tangled branches so that it lay at an angle of thirty degrees to the horizontal, seemingly supported between heaven and earth by its closely packed fellows.

Halt, now on the rough bark that still coated the dead trunk and peered down into the valley below, where the Temujai column moved slowly past.

Robin however wasn't looking at the Temujai anymore, she was looking up at the surrounding trees.

'They're taking their time,' Erak said, beside him. The Ranger turned to look at him, one eyebrow raised quizzically.

'They're in no hurry,' he replied. 'It's going to take them some time to get their wagons and supply train through the passes. Their horses don't like confined spaces. They're used to the open plains of the steppes.'

Finally she walked over to one of the trees and stood a few feet from it.

'What are you doing?' Erak asked, hand on his axe.

'Keeping some distance between me and that axe of yours.' She climbed up the trunk of the tree with amazing speed and walked across one of the branches, like a tightrope. 'I like my brains where they are.' A few of the men Erak had brought with him laughed.

The cavalry army continued its slow advance. There seemed little order to their march, Robin thought, frowning. There were no outriders, no patrols screening the flanks of the mob of men, horses and wagons as they made their way towards Hallasholm, ninety kilometres to the north.

Robin, Halt, Erak, and a small party of Skandians had come south-east, moving over the mountains, along steep, narrow paths where the Temujai cavalry found it more difficult to move, to scout the invaders' progress. Robin only being there since Erak had come, he refused to let her out of his sight, as per Ragnaks orders. Now, as she watched them, a thought struck her.

'I have an idea,' she said softly. Halt raised an eyebrow so she continued. 'We could make them move a little bit slower.' Erak shrugged impatiently at the idea.

'Why bother?' he asked bluntly. 'The sooner we come to grips with them, the sooner we settle this.'

But Halt was nodding. 'The longer they take, the more time we have to prepare,' Halt told him. 'Besides, it does bother me to see them just ambling along, taking no precautions, riding in no order. It's too damned arrogant.'

'I thought you said they were smart?' the Skandian queried and it was Halt's turn to shrug.

'Maybe it's because they expect you to simply come at them head-on when they finally reach Hallasholm,' he suggested. The Skandian war leader considered the thought, looking a little offended by it.

'Don't they give us any credit for strategy?'

Halt tried to hide a grin. 'How would you plan to fight them?'

There was a pause, then Erak replied reluctantly, 'I suppose I'd simply wait till they reached our position then ... attack them head-on.' He looked carefully at the shorter man, but Halt was being very obvious about not saying anything further.

Robin laughed causing the Jarl to frown at her, he was still annoyed that he had to watch her.

Finally, Erak added, in an injured tone: 'But there's no need for them to simply assume that.'