The old warrior was excited by the prospect of seeing Balduur's head. He told Morgon he had been present at the battle of Baddon Marsh when Balduur died. The Catti had charged over the marshes led by their king, the paramount chief Cronwyn. He galloped ahead of the main body with his one and only surviving child, his daughter Bronwyn.

Still just a girl, not fully grown, the young princess rode a huge white stallion. She carried a sprig of holly in one hand and the royal standard of the Catti in the other. Nearing the enemy line, she pointed the holly berries to the sky and cried out for the mother goddess to intercede ... and the heavens seemed to shimmer.

Then Cronwyn shouted to Balduur, challenging him to single combat. Balduur spurred his horse. The two men met, their horses collided and Balduur was thrown to the ground. An instant later Cronwyn was upon him. Balduur's head was cut from his living body and thrown to the young princess. She grasped it by the hair and galloped towards the Gorms, shouting that their god had forsaken them and the goddess was supreme.

Morgon had heard the story before but this was the first time he'd heard it from the lips of someone who had been present at the battle. The collapse of moral on the Gormish side was horrifying. An otherwise invincible army had been crushed and humiliated.

Bronwyn was now an old woman. She was paramount chieftain of the Catti and commanded a sizeable force. Her daughter Adrina was a member of Pius' household and dearly beloved by the old man. It was a situation fraught with danger. Anything which would unite the two tribes could bring disaster. He needed to keep them apart. It was important to remind the Gorms of their humiliation at the hands of the Catti and show them that he was a trusty friend and ally.

That was why Balduur's head was so important. For years the Gorms had tried to get it back. Now he'd done it for them. He'd bribed a member of the queen's guard and the head had been sneaked out of the royal apartments. There would be a ceremony. The Grand Master would preside. The box, which held the head, would be opened. The head would be displayed. Then it would be burnt on a brazier so that the great warrior's soul could join his ancestors ... or whatever the ignorant savages thought would happen.

Morgon didn't care what the natives believed. He wasn't interested in their religion. What mattered was the kudos he'd gain by returning Balduur to Gorm. He could hear the rolling chant of the warriors as the party bearing the head passed the main gate.




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