Rise of Rurik

Horse hooves splashed with ice and snow, and the cavalry, under the guidance of Carl Eriksson, rushed into the forest logging camp in a wedge-shaped attack formation.

The movement of the cavalry in mass was absorbed by the fluffy snow, making them appear silent. This forest area, which is gradually shrinking, is also very quiet. If an ambush enemy suddenly breaks out, blocking the cavalry's retreat will be a bit tricky.

Fisk marched while observing his surroundings carefully. So far, the world was silent.

"Strange, the Smolensk people occupied the logging camp. Where are their figures? Could it be that they froze to death?" He didn't have much time to doubt, because the huge camp was right in front of him.

He couldn't help but rein in his horse, and the whole team hovered around him urgently.

"It's too quiet. It doesn't look like a camp... It's just a tomb?" Fisk took off his sunglasses to see some details clearly, but he couldn't make up his mind for the time being.

"Should we rush?" Carl asked.

"Is this really their camp? I still can't see anyone."

"But Avender did say that there is smoke here." Fisk thought for a moment: "Just treat them as if they were all frozen to death." He raised his bow and signaled to the brothers behind him: "Let's go! Kill any resistance! Try to catch them Alive." There was no need to hide it, the melodious horn sounded, and Ross's 1st Cavalry stormed towards the Silent Camp.

From the beginning, the soldiers estimated that they would not encounter decent resistance. They rushed into the messy shacks at the lumber camp like the wind.

They were clearly abandoned, the simple roofs were covered with snow, and the dark doors were lifeless. Like a large abandoned village, Fisk believes this was once an enemy camp.

Suddenly, something strange was discovered, like a stone stuck on a wooden pole. Only upon closer inspection did one realize that it was a severed head.

This is already a major discovery. Fisk's vigilance had almost dissipated, and he still carried his bow and rode on horseback. He was found by his subordinates and led to the place of the pestle head.

"What's going on, their sacrificial ceremony?" He got off his horse and observed for himself.

"The deceased were our lumberjacks. Maybe, there were also Danish businessmen..." Karl recalled the previous prisoners' remarks in passing.

Fisk gently peeled back the snow and saw that some heads had pure golden hair.

"Damn it, they are really Danes. Our people were sacrificed by them. This place is clearly abandoned and the fighting does not exist at all." Those Danish businessmen must be from Riga. They are not Rus but allies. Their murder is enough. Fisk was furious.

Because this area has always belonged to Russia, and the Smolensk people are invaders. If they kill anyone on the territory of Russia, they will die!

However, the harsh words now appear to be somewhat incompetent and furious. The brothers present were very angry. The enemy killed the Ostara people and Danish businessmen. We really needed to execute a few enemies to vent their anger. It was also for this military operation.

"Open meat". Just as Fisk was stamping his feet in anger, the cavalry soldiers searching everywhere really captured some prisoners of war from some dark shacks.

To their surprise, the number of prisoners of war gradually exceeded fifty. They were captured without resistance and were dragged out by war horses like dead dogs after their hands and feet were tied.

The unkempt prisoners of war were gathered together. Seeing how unlucky these people were, Fisk, who vented his anger, temporarily put away his knife.

The condition of the prisoners was very strange. They had varying degrees of injuries, and some were suffering from severe fever.

Soon, another cavalry rushed to Fisk.

"Visjorm, what are you in a hurry for?"

"Brother, I...my people found a tomb."

"The tomb?" Fisk was excited: "Does it have anything to do with these prisoners of war?"

"The deceased all had brown hair, and there were arrow wounds on their bodies. Moreover." The cavalry centurion Bishom took out a broken arrow that he found.

"It must have been fired from a crossbow. We are the only ones who have this kind of tapered steel arrow cluster."

"Could it be..." Closing his eyes gently, Fisk put the collected information together, and without bothering to interrogate it himself, he had already guessed a lot.

He suddenly opened his eyes and raised his arms and shouted: "Come here! Pull out the feverish ones among the prisoners! Behead them!" Some prisoners of war were pulled out. They showed no resistance and were dragged to the forest where they were carried by cavalry at wooden stakes everywhere. The ax quickly chopped off the head, and then he was beaten up with branches to repay blood with blood.

Witnessing the execution of their companions, other prisoners of war could only get a glimpse. They don't even show fear! Is it courage?

Pooh! Clearly numb.

"Brother." Bishom continued: "My people searched as much as possible, and they didn't even have food. People who are crazy about hunger, even..."

"Why don't you go and eat the corpse?" Fisk, who had just supervised the execution, turned around.

"Maybe...at least I found wolf tracks."

"That's what wolves gnawed on. At least, I understand why they are so weak. This kind of prisoner..." Fisk glanced at the dull prisoner of war again,

"Bring them all back to the fortress, give them some food, and let's ask one or two questions." Ross doesn't need many prisoners. Maybe Rurik will suddenly be kind to these people here, but Fisk has no reason to do so.

The living prisoners were still tied by their feet like dead dogs, and the cavalry dragged them directly on the ice and snow.

As the cavalry returned to the fort, the dismounted soldiers kicked the prisoners, and some more died. The soldiers reported the situation, but Fiske was unmoved: "The dead bodies were thrown everywhere, and we can't deal with them for the time being." Indeed, there were corpses of men and horses everywhere around Vitebsk, including the collapsed east gate of the fortress. They all use frozen corpses as bricks and stones.

Now the debris blocking the north gate is being cleared by the defenders one after another. The north gate, which has been completely sealed for more than ten days, is finally opened. The Ross cavalry with feathers on their heads enters in a mighty manner, and the fortress is completely saved!

The war horses were temporarily under centralized management and the soldiers were able to rest and recuperate. The reserves in the inner city warehouse are still sufficient. The iron pots are set up, the defenders are boiling snow and wheat, and the dismounted cavalry sit down against the wooden wall to rest.

Accompanied by Avender, Fisk looked at the fortress after the battle from a new perspective. The two of them stopped at a large wooden box.

"Yellinger. This is Yellinger's coffin. He led us to fight against powerful enemies, and finally died of exhaustion. And I almost died of exhaustion." After saying this, Aiwende had a vicissitudes of life on his face, and with him The age is really inconsistent.

"There are only a hundred of you. Actually, there is almost no loss?"

"Yes." Avender nodded,

"All the injured brothers were healed, and no one died of fever. It's just that their muscles and bones were injured and they were temporarily unable to fight."

"So you maintained great restraint, and you stayed in the inner city behind closed doors. Finally, you watched the enemy army move towards Polotsk?"

"You blame me?"

"I didn't mean that." Fisk corrected him and said about himself: "If it were me, I might go out of the city and fight with them. By the way, there are still twenty prisoners of war alive. What do you plan to do with them?" Ivan De suddenly looked at Fisk's face: "Kill! There is nothing to say."

"I also have the intention, but I can't give them the advantage in vain."

"Is it to be a blood eagle?" Avender trembled.

"They are not guilty, right?"

"Blood Eagle? Yes, if you like, but it's really not necessary. Boy." Fisk suggested: "The corpses on the ground are covered with snow, and the king cannot see your achievements in defending the city. You hang the enemy's corpse on the city wall, It’s good if the king can see it clearly.”

"Okay! Thank you for bringing back the captives. I'll take action now."

"But don't worry. Feed them the last meal, ask them about the situation before taking action." The prisoner loses its use value if he tells everything he knows, but Fisk gave the living prisoner cooked wheat and Promise to live if you tell what you know.

The prisoners did not think much. They recognized the Russian flag. The Russian cavalry who suddenly killed them gave food to the wounded Smolensk soldiers who had run out of food and were waiting to die of cold and starvation. They ate instinctively, and after they recovered some strength, they expressed their willingness to cooperate. .

At this time, Fisk and the defenders finally figured out the reason. There is a major discrepancy between what these prisoners said and the intelligence provided before!

In order to prevent his memory from overlooking some important details, Fisk simply took banknotes, dipped his quill in the cold and sticky ink, and recorded one piece of key information to submit directly to the king.

There are three important pieces of information here: First, the main force of the Smolensk Army still has 3,000 troops, and it has already attacked Polotsk with all its strength.

Secondly, the leader of the army is Vadim. Third, there was no ambush around the Vitebsk Fortress, and hundreds of wounded soldiers were abandoned and slowly dying.

There was also some miscellaneous information. Fisk even asked the specific identity of the prisoners of war, whether they were ordinary farmers, servants loyal to the nobles, or even mercenaries.

The surviving prisoners of war were all peasants, and the Smolenskians sent people from every village to fight. Vadim's war purpose is to cut off communication lines and take revenge.

This year we plan to capture a Ross town, and if all goes well we will continue to expand the war next year. The Smolensk people had reasons for revenge, but when it came to Vadim, the situation had obviously changed - revenge turned into a struggle for hegemony.

The pity is that they are a group of honest peasants fighting for Vadim's ambition, and there are also some debtor serfs who can't even think about it.

Fisk had no pity for these people. Seeing that they were all well fed, his purpose of interrogation was also achieved. A bald giant stood in the sun. Fisk looked down at the prisoners sitting on the ground, pointed at their faces and suddenly shouted in Slavic: "Since you are warriors, you should pay the price of dying in battle. Now, go. Die! Someone is coming!" As soon as he finished speaking, a group of warriors holding bows appeared quickly.

"Hack an arrow! Shoot! Shoot all your quivers!" The soldiers obeyed the order and mechanically shot at the uninformed prisoners... The prisoners of war had no possibility of excuse. They were shot like hedgehogs, and This is exactly the effect Fisker needs.

Twenty prisoners of war were covered with arrows, and their bodies were hung upside down on both sides of the north gate wall, becoming horrifying decorations to welcome the king's army.

There is nothing to worry about. The cavalry team will stay in the inner city this night. Who is the hero?

Karl Eriksson, who once wanted to take over the old man Jellinger as the next Vitebsk City Lord, now has to admit that the unknown young player Eyvind became a big celebrity after a big battle.

Any idea can only be given up. Because Fisk admired this guy very much, he was willing to vouch for Avender and recommend him to Rurik.

Currently, the person with the highest status is Fisk, and Ross's bald general is guarding this place, so everyone can feel at ease.

Fisk specially invited the young Avender to have dinner. After some discussion about the boy's original place of origin, Fisk held his chest high and acted like a big brother.

"With your talent, you should go to the standing army. Now is the time for the king to employ people. When the king learns of your achievements, he will definitely use you."

"Brother Fisk, you want to promote me?" Avender was startled, and his body couldn't help but tremble.

"Boy, can you ride a horse?"

"certainly."

"I'm very optimistic about you. You can stay with me for the time being. Be my attendant for the time being. In the future... maybe the king will grant you the position of captain of the cavalry flag."

"Great! But..." Avender lowered his head slightly: "Am I really qualified?"

"Are you not confident? You killed the enemy decisively and led the brothers to defend the fortress after the death of the city lord. If Vitebsk fails, Rus will be humiliated and the king will be humiliated. What do you think this fortress means?"

"What?"

"In the king's view, there is no room for loss here. This is the crossroads of the Amber Road. Both the enemy and ourselves know its importance. We all thought that Vitebsk was lost, and we didn't believe that a hundred defenders could hold on, but you!" Fisk! He stopped talking and patted the kid on the shoulder.

Avender is not stupid, he knows that he has no reason to shirk anymore. His father was dead, and his mother was ordered to shepherd sheep in the meadows near the city of Novoostara. He really didn't have much to worry about, so he didn't complain when he was assigned to guard Vitebsk.

What Aiwende lacks is opportunities, and he will never give up the opportunity now. The cavalry only spent one night in the fortress. At noon the next day, the Russian army followed the traces left by the cavalry and successfully arrived in Vitebsk.

The ice on the West Dvina River is getting thicker day by day. At first, Rurik was still worried that the sled would fall into the ice cave. However, with nearly 6,000 troops and nearly 10,000 reindeer and war horses, the huge army did not want to advance in the cramped riverside area. The glacier The road is the best way. Since no one has fallen into the river, this gray-white army is moving forward like a worm on the ice, and the speed is really fast.

This was Rurik's first visit to Vitebsk. He had complained that Carlotta's southward movement was too radical, but now he only praised her move.

"Our flag is flying on the city wall! The fortress is not lost, haha!" Rurik was in a good mood. Carlotta, who was once nervous, finally let go of his worries.

"It seems that Vadim is an idiot. He can't win with more and less beans." Carlotta said casually.

"You can't say that." Rurik corrected him: "Your soldiers are too brave!"

"They are Ross's warriors." Carlotta also corrected.

"They are our soldiers! They are mainly yours. Carlotta, you have to reward that guard Jellinger."

"That's natural."

"And Carl Eriksson, who reported the news."

"It's natural." They were all from the Principality of Ostara. Rurik felt that as the king, he could just reward them with a sum of money. The real reward involving status was the Duchess Carlotta.

The Chinese army's sled had arrived at the north gate of the fortress, and all the soldiers were so frightened that they were sweating at the dead bodies hanging at the gate.

What kind of strange sacrificial activity is this? The corpse in tattered clothes was covered with arrows, and it was actually illuminated by the winter sun?

No! Clearly showing off to the new brothers.

"Haha!" Rurik, who had already left the sled, saw this and said

"Carlotta, look, your people are already claiming credit." Carlotta couldn't hide her smile: "I just don't know how many enemies they killed. After all, they were besieged by five thousand people..."

"Go to the city and have a look. We'll find out soon." Rurik deliberately summoned Jellinger. It is said that this is a calm old man who can lead the defenders to complete the defense and will be rewarded with ten pounds of silver coins.

The traces of the battlefield were difficult to cover up with snow. Rurik could notice the chaos in the eastern direction of the fortress. As he entered the city, the Guocheng area was indeed in a mess. There were even many arrows and javelins inserted high up in the wooden house. Being stripped off.

Fisk took Avender with him, and the two of them changed their clothes and came majestically. In the eyes of others, Avender is now Fisk's entourage, like a member of the cavalry.

After a brief negotiation with the king, Rurik naturally did not notice the little entourage next to Fisk.

"Fisk, where is the city's lord Yelinger? I want to meet this heroic defender." Rurik said with great interest.

"He...he died in the battle."

"Huh?" Rurik was slightly surprised, but Carlotta was the most surprised.

"Then who's defending the city?" Carlotta shouted impatiently.

"It's him." Fisk immediately pulled Evan to him.

"Evind. You kid..." Carlotta couldn't hide her surprise.

"That's him. Avender was in command after Yellinger died in the battle. Carlotta, you still have young generals under your command, but you...may have underestimated the abilities of these young people." Carlotta was surprised and happy. , without the slightest doubt.

Rurik narrowed his eyes and stared at Avender's face carefully. The two looked at each other, Rurik looked at the boy, and he saw the boy's perseverance, even...

"I understand. This kid can't lie. The eyes of those who have killed people are different. Fisk!" Rurik looked at his old buddy again: "I guess you still have something to say."

"Of course! I am optimistic about this boy. Your Majesty, he is qualified to serve as your warrior."

"Oh? This is a good thing. Okay! As long as his merits are confirmed, I will take it. This kind of young man has the qualifications to be a flag captain." Rurik noticed a slight change in Carlotta's mood, If this person has the qualifications to be a brave general, as the general of the Ross Standing Army, wouldn't he be poaching Carlotta's corner.

It doesn't matter! Excellent generals must be placed in the standing army. As for Carlotta. Rurik thought he had an effective way to comfort her.

She was a wife after all, a member of Rus' harem. wife of high status