HIPPOLYTA [A Kind of Peace] First chapter.

HIPPOLYTA [A Kind of Peace]

CHAPTER ONE

The caravan of six traders with their wives and servants crossed the Big River at the bend.  They stopped for the night, and as they were having a meal they were unaware that a scout from a band of marauding thieves was watching them.  Their lives were in danger, but it was not imminent because the scout had to return to his leader to report.

* * * * *

The commander of the Hun patrol stopped his men when he saw a rider approaching.  It was one of his own scouts, who delivered his report and then departed in the same direction he had arrived.

The commander addressed his soldiers: “There is a party of traders three thousand paces to the south east, and they may be in danger.  As we know, that area is not safe.  We have no reason to expect trouble, but we will do as we have done many times before.  We must move to where we can observe them and give protection if necessary, and there is a small hill not far from them that will provide the perfect vantage point.  We will have to march all night, but I promise you a day of rest as soon as the traders have moved on into the next command’s area.”

There was mumbling in the ranks at having to march all night, but the day of rest would be welcome and they would be close to a village where they could trade or buy comforts from the local people.

* * * * *

Some way to the north of the Hun patrol, two scouts returned to report to their leader.

“There is a party of traders a thousand paces from the bend in the Big River, Badral.  They have stopped for the night, and the closest army of foot soldiers is over three thousand paces away.”

Badral ran his finger and thumb down either side of his beard, his big, round eyes staring at the men.

  “How large is this caravan of traders, Mend-amar?” he asked.

“There are many horses and I counted six large tents, with many slaves.”

Badral gave a wicked smile.  “Get some sleep.  We will leave after the first meal of the day.”

* * * * *

The sun had been up for a short while when one of the traders saw horsemen charging towards them.  Panic ensued in the camp, but as the attackers came within a hundred paces of the traders, arrows fell from the sky and killed scores of them.  Badral looked for the archers that had shot the arrows, and was startled to see a detachment of fully armed Hun foot soldiers rapidly approaching the traders’ camp from the hill on the other side.

“Blow the horn to retreat,” Badral ordered quickly, as he turned his horse away from the traders’ camp.

The horn sounded twice and the attacking horsemen turned, but not before another cloud of arrows had hit them.  By the time the Hun foot warriors reached the tents, the attackers had disappeared over the hill.  All that was left were the dead and dying, and a few riderless horses.

The Hun foot warriors took no prisoners.  The wounded were put to death, leaving more than two hundred bodies on the ground, but at least twice that number had escaped.

One of the Hun warriors reported back to the commander.  “There is something strange about that band of thieves, Commander.  One of the dead is Mend-amar, and he is a scout for the army that Ruga leads on the other side of the Big River.”

“Are you sure?”

“He is from my own town, commander.”

“Retrieve one of those horses.  We will have to send word to King Ernakh that there is a renegade Hun army our side of the Big River attacking the traders.”

* * * * *

The army entered the forest.  Badral shouted, “Fetch that fool Mend-amar to me now.”

Someone called back, “He is dead.  I saw him fall.”

“Good.  That saves me the trouble of killing him for sending us into a trap.  Borwin, you are in charge until I get back.  I am going north to see Ruga and to get more mounted warriors.”

* * * * *

There had been peace in Hippolyta’s realm for many years.  Danilo had remained in the village as Royal Hunter and trainer of the Queen’s army.  Every day until mid morning, Danilo and Queen Echephyle went into the arena and trained with the army of Amazons.  The army commander, Scyleia, was Queen Echephyle’s second in command, but these were no ordinary warriors.  They were the elite, handpicked by Scyleia, Echephyle and by Hippolyta herself, chosen for their skill with all the weapons the Amazons used.

For two years these warriors had been trained to improve their skills, and each one was now able to use their weapons and to hunt almost as well as Danilo, even though no one, not even he or Echephyle could teach them to think like a true barbarian.  It was something that came naturally to Danilo, but it was not a skill that could be taught.

Now, after two years of training, this army could fight almost as a single warrior.  Their skills had been honed to a point where instinct and reaction were one, and they spent all their time training and practising.

It had been Echephyle’s idea to train this force because they knew that the Alani had small but powerful armies on the other side of the big river.  Danilo and Echephyle would take the army out onto the plains and practise tactics, warring with an invisible enemy.  There were many ways to fight mounted warriors, and Echephyle and Danilo along with Scyleia would work out what to do in different situations and then practice the moves until they were embedded in the Amazons’ minds.

The other two queens and Alexius had followed them out a few months previously and were in awe of this fierce army.  They had been told by Scyleia how during the mock battles either Echephyle or Danilo would often stop the action to discuss what was going wrong.  Echephyle was learning how to fight to the extreme, and she listened to everything Danilo told her.  She always gave her input, and between them they covered all possible mistakes.  Danilo always treated her as the queen in charge of the army, which was her rightful place, but she treated him as an equal.  Echephyle still slept with him on many nights, showing the other Amazons that he was more than a hunter and barbarian.

Hippolyta had given her blessing, as she knew it would help to keep both Echephyle and Danilo at their peak of readiness.  They fought a battle with each other every day, and every day their skills improved.  As Echephyle reached the point where she might beat Danilo, he upped his game to show her he was still teaching her.  Danilo had trained three hunters to hunt better than they thought possible.  It had been done so that Queen Hippolyta would always have fresh food when he was away with the patrols.

As Andromache and Alexius were watching Echephyle and Danilo fighting, Andromache said, “They are so fierce, Alexius.  I sometimes worry about what would happen if one of them made a mistake.”

Alexius gave his knowing smile.  “It will never happen, my Lady.  They know each other too well for that to happen.  I have been watching them both over the past few years, and Queen Echephyle is extremely good now, but Danilo is still so much better and faster.  The commanders’ army are now at the standard Queen Echephyle was four years ago.”

Andromache was watching the fight as she replied, “Echephyle has learned a lot from Danilo, and she has picked up a great deal from him that he did not consciously teach her.  She has matured, and settled in her place as one of the queens.  I have a great deal of respect for Danilo.  It took great skill and confidence for him to teach my daughter to become the fierce Amazon queen she is now.”

The village had changed over the years, and now if was more like a Greek town.  There were better buildings and many new ones, built to accommodate the expanding army of Amazons.  All the warriors still practiced their weapons skills, but since the day of the alliance with both the Hun and the Alani there had been peace.  The warring tribes knew that Hippolyta’s large, fierce army could tip the scales in any conflict between them.  Whichever side she joined in war would be the victors, and neither side would take the risks of losing.  There was also a greater Roman presence in the area, as the Roman Emperor realised that Hippolyta was a potential threat to him.  Even though he had had assurances from the three queens in writing, he knew that if they turned on him they would be almost impossible to control, and the Amazon village was in a good defensive position that made any attack on them unlikely to succeed.  In the end, he accepted their word that the Amazons would never turn against the Romans who had helped them for so long.

As the centre of the trade route from the north and the east, the village’s port was very successful.  Trading was steady, with the Hun, the Alani, and the Romans trading with each other.

* * * * *

Echephyle and Danilo stopped trying to kill each other with axes and went over to the council fire.  This was now very different from a few years ago.  A new building had been constructed, with four corner pillars of stone and stone seats all around.  The three queens and Alexius sat on seats on the three sides, with a seat next to Hippolyta for Danilo.  He was still her favoured royal hunter and protector, and many times she sat beside him to hear the stories of his hunting excursions.  The building had wooden sides that could be removed in the summer to let the air flow through.  The commanders took the remaining seats, with the central fire in the centre of the building, so they sat around it in the same way that had always been done.

There was now a slave doing all the cooking for the queens and the commanders, not only meat that had been killed by hunting but also food from other parts of the world brought in by the traders.  He was often seen at the council fire, turning the spit..  With food from the traders also came cloths and new inventions.  The world around the Black Sea was changing, and Hippolyta had laws written down so that they could be read out to all the people of her realm, few of whom were literate, and they would know the penalties for breaking them.  There were only a few penalties, mainly harsh and applicable to harsh crimes, and Hippolyta sat as judge when the people brought the offender to her village.

* * * * *

The council was seated, and the last to arrive were Andromache and Hippolyta.  Gone were the furs that Echephyle and her army of warriors used to wear.  Hippolyta was now dressed in a long blue silk dress with a cape over her shoulders, and on her head was the crown handed down by the previous queens.  It was a gold band no thicker than a middle finger, but at the front was a small cluster of green, red and blue jewels that stood up in the shape of a flower.

There was no formality to the way the meeting progressed, except that a meal was eaten from whatever was over the fire cooking before the meeting started.

Alexius was the first to speak after they had eaten.  “We have had a report of a group of traders from the north west being attacked by a small army.”

Hippolyta asked, “Did they say whose army the attackers were?”

“They were not Alani, my Lady.  If it had not been for a Hun ground army arriving at the same time, they would have been killed.”

“So, there is another army in my realm attacking my people.  I will get the warriors together, and when I find them I will destroy them.”

“You cannot do that, Hippolyta.  You have the responsibility of looking after the village and upholding the laws.  Your days of riding about the realm fighting battles are almost at an end.  Also, the Emperor will be arriving in the next few weeks, and you will be needed to oversee his stay.”

Hippolyta listened to what Andromache had to say, and knew all she spoke was true.  She was now a respected queen, and there were many people with trade that needed her guidance.  “You are right, Andromache.  I will have to send a battle queen and her army.  Echephyle, you will go with your warriors to destroy this filth.  I want prisoners so that I can show all attacking armies that even though I may never leave the royal palace I am still the queen they have to kill before they can take my realm.  Take Danilo with you, because you will need his help.  You may leave first thing tomorrow morning.”

“Have you any idea how many there were in this army, Alexius?” Echephyle asked.

“I was informed that there was no more than three hundred, my Lady.”

“I will take a thousand warriors in addition to my own army of three hundred.  Scyleia, would you get them ready for tomorrow.  We will not need slaves as it is still warm at nights.”

“Is that going to be enough, Echephyle?” her mother asked.

“We will spend a few days patrolling in the hope we can get near to them without them seeing us.  We have to find out their real strength before we engage them in battle.  The last thing we want to do is take on too many, but on the other hand we want to take enough for safety.  If the Hun foot soldiers have only seen them this one time, then they will hopefully be in small numbers.”

Hippolyta thought about what Echephyle had said, and realised it was the same as she would take and do.  “You are right in your assessment, Echephyle, but don’t take on more than you can handle.  I am also in agreement with what you said about finding out their strength first.  A few prisoners would help so that we can find out who they are and what they are about.”

When the council had finished with all the commanders going to their duties, Hippolyta spoke again.  There were only the three queens and Danilo left seated.

“Echephyle, I have been watching the army that you and Danilo have trained, and I feel that they are second to none.  You now have the responsibility of protecting the whole realm from these invaders, although they might just turn out to be nothing more than a band of thieves.  You cannot afford to make mistakes, and I doubt very much that you ever will.  I have watched you training on the plain.  Take the time to discuss the situation with Scyleia and Danilo.  They will be with you to help make your plans work.  I know that Danilo will never tell you what to do, but in his own way he will tell you if there are any pitfalls in doing it the way you have planned.  Listen to him, because he has never been known to be wrong in his briefing.  If you need a bigger army, then send a messenger and one will be sent to you at speed.”

Hippolyta stood up.  “I know you will serve me and the Amazons well, and what I have said is only a reminder to do the things you do well together now.”

“Thank you, Hippolyta, for allowing me to lead the army.”

“You are a Queen, Echephyle, and a Queen of Amazons.  You have the right to lead your army.”

Hippolyta walked away back to the palace, and Andromache went down to her own palace that Alexius had taken time to build for her.

Just before Hippolyta stepped inside the palace, she looked round and saw Echephyle walking after her mother, but Danilo had not moved.  He was still sitting near the council fire sharpening his axe.

“He will not let Queen Echephyle look weak in front of her enemies, just as he never let them laugh at you, my Lady.”

She turned about fast to face Alexius.  “I know, Alexius.  Look at him sitting there with that contented smile on his face once more.  It is the face he always showed me when out on the plains.  I learned over time that it was the face of knowledge, telling me that things were being done the right way.  Like me, Echephyle listens to Danilo when he tells her his thoughts.  There is something special about Danilo, as if he already knows the outcome of the battles even before the fighting begins.

“He is sitting there thinking about the battles ahead of them, even though there is little information about the enemy and no hint of where they might be fought.  There are many variations of any battle to consider, and no two would have the same outcome.  You are also correct, my Lady, when you say that Queen Echephyle always listens to his thoughts, and without compromising her battle plans she still incorporates his.”

“On many nights when I cannot not sleep I leave the palace and go to the council fire.  Danilo always wakes up, as in his sleep he suddenly knows that I need company, and he comes to the fire and talks to me.  He tells me of the times he has gone out to catch either deer or hog.  He tells me in such detail that I feel I am actually walking beside him while he is going in for the kill.  He has told me how he crept up on the Hun so many times, and while relating the story I feared for us both being found and captured.”

“I have watched him mature into the barbarian warrior that he is now, and he never fails to please me.  I realise he does not run as fast as he did, but his stealth and fitness is just the same.  I remember the boy that was pulled from the forest of fire and see what he is now, and I realise that he is as much part of the Amazons as the queens are.  He has taught Echephyle so much, and in doing so made her the most ruthless queen that we have had in the village.  Her maturity was forced upon her the day she was attacked by the wolves and by the very same man she had tried to make a fool of.  There is an invisible bond that ties her to Danilo that I don’t think will ever be broken.  I think my army is in safe hands, Alexius.”

“Yes, my Lady.  I know you are right.”

* * * * *

The following morning, the army were near the gates ready to ride out.  Hippolyta and Andromache were standing together.  Before either could speak Echephyle said, “I know what you’re going to say, and I can assure you I will act responsibly with the army.”

“Well that’s not a very good start, Echephyle,” Hippolyta replied.  “I was going to remind Danilo to keep thinking and pass his thoughts on to his queen.  Only, it is obvious by her first words this morning that she cannot read minds.”

Echephyle burst out laughing.

“Danilo,” Hippolyta continued, “I have no need to tell you what to do or how to do it, as you do it so well.  Look after your queen as you would look after me.

“I had every intentions of doing so, my Lady.”

“Then I wish the army luck in their hunting.”

They were just about to ride out when a young warrior ran forward, and stopped by Danilo’s horse.  Danilo recognised her immediately as she stood with an axe over her shoulder and a spear in her
hand.

“Danilo, will you teach me to be a battle warrior like Queen Echephyle when you return?”

Thraso, on the walkway of the wall, called down, “Omeed, Danilo will be resting when he returns.  He will have no time to teach you.”

Danilo looked up at Thraso and realised that his answer would mean a lot to her.  He pulled the axe from Omeed’s back and looked at the two edges.  Then he put his thumb on the point of her spear and looked at his thumb.  “The blade of your axe should be so sharp that when I look at it I will be unable to see the edge.  If I gently touch the point of your spear with my thumb, it should draw blood.  Neither of them have been properly prepared, so this means you have a lot of work to do before I return.”

“I will go right now and get started, because I have a sword and knives to do as well.”

Danilo watched her walk away up the hill, and then he looked up at Thraso again.

“Thank you, Danilo.”

“It will be my pleasure, commander.”

A few minutes later, the army was almost to the top of the northeastern hill outside the village.  The two queens and Alexius were watching, and as Echephyle disappeared from sight Alexius turned and saw concern on Hippolyta’s face.

“I understand your concern, my Lady.  Do you remember the conversations that you and I had during the Hun wars?  I told you that if Danilo had an army of just a thousand, he would be the most dangerous warrior in these realms.  While Danilo has been teaching the queen to fight, he has also taught her to think like him.

“Riding over that hill leading the most elite army of three hundred along with seven hundred veteran warriors is the most powerful battle queen I have ever seen.  She has with her the most skilful, battle hardened barbarian warrior.  She trusts him with her life and she will always confide in him.”

“With no disrespect to your commander, Thraso, but she also has a battle hardened battle warrior as her senior commander.  I have been watching Scyleia and she is far more advanced in fighting like a barbarian than the others in her army.  Danilo even told me that Scyleia was a natural hand to hand warrior.”

“Thank you, Alexius.  You have put my mind at rest.  It just feels strange that I am not going out there with them.”

“My Lady, if it is any consolation, when I was made legion commander I too felt uncomfortable when I was sending out a patrol to do something that I thought I could do better.”

Hippolyta laughed.  “You know me too well, Alexius.”

* * * * *

“What cover is there for the army about a day ahead, Danilo?”

Danilo thought about it quickly, and replied, “There are several forests ahead that are small, but big enough to hide our army, my Lady.”

“We will keep going until we reach the first one, and then we can work out how we are going to find this marauding band of thieves.”

It was half a day before they saw the forests far in the distance.  At this point, Echephyle brought the army to a sudden halt.  “I have a thought, Danilo.”

Both Danilo and Scyleia moved forward to listen.

“We have no idea whether the army of thieves are in that same forest.  I think, just to be cautious, we will stop and rest the horses until we know for sure.  At the moment we are on high ground and we can see clearly in every direction.  We can stay here until it is dark and then move forward until we are close to the forest, but not close enough to risk being seen by the sentries, if there are any.  Would you go forward, Danilo, and take a closer look?”  Then in a rush of concerned words, she added, “But do not place yourself in danger.”

“I know what you mean, my Lady.”

* * * * *

In the village, at midday the lookout called, “Lone rider galloping towards the village from the northeast.  He has three horses in tow.”

Hippolyta came out and looked down towards the gates that were being opened to let the rider pass.  Alexius stopped him, and he dismounted as a soldier held his horse..  “I have a message for the queen from King Ernakh.”

Alexius led him up to the palace where Hippolyta was standing outside with Andromache.  The messenger bowed, and on lifting his head he said, “I have been riding for three days, my Lady.  I was told to give you a message from King Ernakh about impending danger to the trade route in the northeast down to the southeast here near the Black Sea.

“There is a marauding army belonging to an old general that fought with Attila.  After the empire was split into three, this general went with Ellac but a few months ago they had an argument about the pay for this general’s armies.  In the end, Ruga walked away from the palace, leaving Ellac to look after himself with what army was left.

“Ruga wants his money and he has vowed to rob the traders at every chance.  King Ernakh knows from our foot warriors that patrol the trade route that most of Ruga’s army are still the other side of the Big River.”

“How many are there in Ruga’s army?”

“That is a big problem.  When Attila went west to fight, this army was left to hold the empire together.  At that time there was over twenty thousand warriors and he has had a lot of time to find more.  There was also a smaller army of ten thousand warriors led by a man called Badral.  He was not a Hun, but he would fight with them for share of the spoils, and King Ernakh thinks he will join Ruga.

“King Ernakh has sent word to all the foot warriors that they are to help you fight this army.  He has also said that he will send a general and twenty thousand warriors to help your army, should you need them.

“That is all I can tell you, my Lady, except that King Ernakh will keep you informed of any more information.”

“You have been very informative.  Phoebe, get a warrior to find him food and a place to rest.  When he is ready to leave the village, find him four fresh horses.”

The messenger bowed once more.  “Thank you, my Lady.”

As a warrior led him away, Hippolyta turned towards Alexius, about to speak.  He cut her short.  “It is too late in the day to send word to Queen Echephyle, my Lady.  If you send one at first light, they will only be a few thousand paces away at most.”

“Yes you are right, Alexius, but this is very annoying.  I will make this Ruga pay with his life for invading my realm and upsetting my peace.”

* * * * *

It was dark. and Echephyle had stopped the army a thousand paces from the forest in a dip.  Danilo dismounted and ran forward until he was three hundred paces from the edge of the forest.  Then, more cautiously, he crept forward in the long grass, all the time keeping a low profile.  The smell of smoke reached his nose a long time before he saw the fire, and then he crawled on his belly to get close without being seen.

There were two men sitting near a fire, eating rabbit.  Danilo slid as close as he dared through the long grass, hoping to hear their conversation.

“I think Badral has gone to get reinforcements before we attack those traders again.”

“I don’t like what we are doing.  Attacking unarmed people just isn’t right.”

“Badral said it was orders from Ruga, and he takes his orders from the king.”

“I don’t care.  I felt a lot better when we were fighting the Romans going west.  It was also a lot warmer over in the west, not like this cold country.”

“You should be happy that there is another great army ready to cross the Big River.”

“We lost a lot of good men in that last battle, and I heard that we are down to four hundred.”

“I heard it was less than that.  Eat your food, or it will be cold.”

Danilo slipped back through the long grass until he was some distance from them, and then he stood and crept away from the forest.  On his way back to Echephyle he noticed that five hundred paces to the west the land fell away.  It was a gentle slope, but it might be useful to provide cover for their small army.

* * * * *

Once Echephyle heard Danilo’s report, she called a council with all her commanders.

“Toxis, you will take seven hundred warriors to the valley that Danilo told us about.  When you hear the horn, ride out ready to fight.  I am not sure if there will be a battle, but we have to be prepared.

“Scyleia, we all know the drill with the archers at the front.  If we have to gallop into battle, then at one hundred paces they fire one arrow each before they draw their weapon of choice and drop back.  The warriors at the rear will come through to the front with a lance in one hand and a sword in the other.  We will then hit the remainder of the army at the same time as the warriors in the dip.  We do need to take some prisoners for Hippolyta.”

Echephyle waited half the night before sending Scyleia to get down and alongside the hill.  Just as daylight was appearing, Echephyle advanced her elite army of mounted warriors.  Inside the forest, someone shouted, “We are under attack!  Mount up and fight for your lives.”

Echephyle’s warriors were within five hundred paces of the forest when the opposing army galloped out.  Echephyle gave the command to charge, and told the signaller to sound the horn.

The arrows left the bows of the archers to find their target, sending many mounted warriors to their gods.  Just as their chosen close-quarter weapons were in their hands, the Amazons struck the enemy hard.  Each of the spears found its mark, and the noise from the crash of weapons striking shields with the cries of pain was deafening.  The battle was quickly over, and the few left alive surrendered to the might of the Amazons, although Toxis and her Amazons only arrived just as the battle ended.  It turned out that there was a second dip in the hillside before the ridge and flat ground, and this delayed her arrival

A count of warriors was taken, but such was the effectiveness of the Amazons’ attack that none had been killed, although several were injured.  Five prisoners had been taken, and they were soon sitting on their horses with their hands tied.

“Well done, everyone.  We will take the prisoners back with us and get our new orders from Hippolyta.”