A mixed army begins a new journey.
The fleet set off from the main island of Shetland Islands, followed the direction of the island chain, and successfully arrived at the northernmost tip of Scotland in two days.
The army was repairing on the deserted coast, and the weather suddenly turned bad.
Rainy weather has enveloped the entire world. Compared with the drop in temperature, the feeling of wetness is constantly dampening the spirit of the soldiers.
But the brothers have truly stood on the big island of Britain. Even if there are a lot of deserted offshore rocky slopes in front of them, as long as they continue south along the coastline, they will definitely find the fat sheep-like Edinburgh.
People endured the light rain and continued southward, and the quiet change in the wind direction also allowed all the ships to raise their wet sails.
Everyone huddled together to bear the sudden cold feeling, and the sea became more and more violent.
The north wind did not stir up any rough waves. Even so, all the ships were already rising and falling among the waves.
"If a ship is overturned by a big wave, wouldn't it mean that there will be heavy losses before the victory is launched?" Rurik was so disturbed that he hid in the cabin of the Avrola alone, not having to repay the pain of his men. , but still lost his appetite due to the constant ups and downs of the waves.
Many people simply suffered from seasickness. They became sluggish and could only huddle up instinctively.
The fleet deliberately travels close to the coast so that it can float to shore if the ship capsizes. The expedition once turned into a self-flagellation in the wind and rain. After being tossed by wind, rain, and waves for five days, the sun finally dispelled the haze and the sea became calm. At this moment, everyone gradually woke up from the malaise, and they were shaking and wet. He subconsciously looked to the west and saw the dark green scenery immersed in the mist.
Where exactly is the fleet?
Bathed in the warm south wind, Rurik stood on the bow deck and looked around.
At this moment, the Shetland Islander Huo De, who was a guide, stood cautiously beside him.
"Where are we now? How far are we from Edinburgh?"
"This..." Huo De was startled. He knew Rurik would ask this, but he really didn't know how to answer accurately. This makes me cautious: "Based on my last experience, it took about ten days to get from Shetland to Edinburgh."
"Oh?" Rurik glanced at the high sun: "Now, we are already on the seventh day of our voyage. You mean, we have at most three days left to sail?"
"Yes."
"Well, it's not bad."
"but……"
"What's wrong?"
Huo De said cautiously: "We sailed in the wind and rain, borrowing the northwest wind for many days. We sailed almost day and night, maybe we are now..."
"Huh?" Rurik's head tightened, "Maybe we are about to reach the target?"
"That's about it. I can't determine the correct location, but if I see the small fjord, I know that there is a large fjord to the south. Edinburgh, Northumbria, is on the south bank of the large fjord. "
"Then, just keep your eyes open." After saying this, Rurik suddenly became ambitious. He felt that he needed to convey the good news of "coming soon" to all the soldiers, but after thinking about it again, after seeing Edinburgh Before urban architecture, any declaration would be too hasty.
All the longships were still following the sails of the Aurora. The big ship was sailing against the wind, and the flag on the top of the mast was flapping, which was the beacon that everyone paid attention to.
Rurik still felt that the voyage would take a few more days, but as soon as it was afternoon, Huo De stamped his feet happily because the key "small fjord" appeared!
It is the fjord at the mouth of the Tay River in Scotland. In the language of the Picts, this river is called the Taita River. If the fleet goes upstream along this river, it will eventually reach the core area of the Pictish Kingdom. It's just that compared to the centuries-old feudal kingdom formed by the Angsa people in the south, the Picts in Scotland are too poor. The Picts could be crazy indigo raiders, but unfortunately, they were really poor, even though they had already learned how to discover and process diamonds to make treasures.
But the Angsa people are essentially Saxons!
A group of Saxons who defended the Frankish army on the European continent fled north and became the new Danes. On the cucumber-like outlying island of Oland in Scandinavia, Borgholm is a small city-state founded by Saxon refugees!
Based on this understanding, Rurik subconsciously felt that the Saxon descendants in Edinburgh were more likely to build their city into a fortress.
Build a fort? Can walls withstand the attack of a real army?
Just as the fleet passed the "small fjord" smoothly, Rurik summoned all the family leaders and family military representatives at sea to hold a combat meeting on the flagship Avlora.
Rurik needs no further explanation, his right hand goes to the man.
He stood at the height of the forecastle deck and issued an order: "The long voyage will finally come to an end! Tell your soldiers to endure the last night, and we will arrive in Edinburgh tomorrow! Tell everyone to recharge their batteries and let us Launch a surprise attack! No mercy!"
Speaking of excitement, what everyone saw were the clenched fists of the beautiful young man. The commander was so decisive, and people were happy for it.
After so many hardships, a great victory is just around the corner.
A group of northern waves is quietly approaching Edinburgh under the cover of darkness. Every warrior is actively polishing his ax and sword blades in preparation for the most terrifying fight. They only have treasures and beautiful women in their eyes. They are not afraid of fighting in a pool of blood, but rather enjoy it.
Because Odin's eyes are always fixed on the earth, the god is selecting the bravest warriors, and only the most savage ones will be chosen!
This traditional Nordic belief is equally strong among the Balmoks. Of course, their eyes are filled with the desire to make a fortune.
So the Northumbrian garrison in Edinburgh never realized anything was amiss? Their fishing boats didn't even spy on the threat from the north?
As far as reality is concerned, it is.
It was obviously close to the coast, and the once violent sea had returned to calm. However, except for the sailing Viking fleet, Rurik could not see other people's fishing boats in the sea. He originally thought that once he was exposed, he would have the Avora set up full sail, get rid of the large force, catch up with the enemy fishing boat, and sink it to prevent the secret from being leaked.
Rurik was too worried, and the caution he and others had was actually superfluous.
Because the British Navy, which once dominated the world, does not exist now.
In other words, the British sea souls themselves were brought by various Viking conquerors.
Northumbria is the product of the merger of two small kingdoms. Her north and west are under military pressure from kingdoms established by various Celtic tribes. The situation in the south is even more difficult. Although they are of the same Saxon family, Mercia The nobles are working hard to establish the hegemony of "Great Mercia".
The Seven Kingdoms era in Britain was still in an era of intense competition among the kingdoms, especially in Northumbria, where long-term aristocratic infighting had exhausted the kingdom. Now, the Vikings are coming.
The Vikings had already appeared! The local nobles of Northumbria are also very aware of a brand new threat coming from the eastern sea!
Those ugly savages do not believe in God. They try to sell their dubious fish catch, but they also secretly commit gangsterism.
The fact is that many years ago, Hode and other Shetland Islanders' expedition team went to the south and found the existence of Northumbria. It was true that they sold fish, and it was also true that they plundered secretly. They transformed the Nordic "principle of maritime contact" and the so-called fishermen into pirates, and perfectly replicated them in civilized Northumbria, which naturally aroused the rage of the local governor.
It is a pity that the local governor of Edinburgh does not have his own fleet at all, and the entire kingdom does not have any form of navy. What is even more strange is that the ships owned by such a large kingdom are only small boats such as sampans. It can only sail in rivers, and even entering offshore is courting death.
They were obviously people who set sail from Jutland, Denmark four hundred years ago, and their descendants in Britain have forgotten how to build ships!
They have become purely land-based countries, and the so-called coastal defense can be ignored. The governor of Edinburgh was a relative of the king. Most of the troops stationed in the north of the kingdom were focused on resisting the invasion of the Pictish kingdom. As for the threat from the sea? The army was actually helpless. In other words, the people of Edinburgh never imagined that an army of thousands of barbarians would take the sea route to land on their homeland!
Even though it is an important town in the north, the population of Edinburgh is not even as large as that of Rossburg, the hometown of the Ross people!
Not only that, in the current era, the total population of this huge kingdom is only more than 100,000 people. Even the population of England as a whole is only about 800,000, mainly concentrated in Mercia and Wessex.
More than 4,000 people live in Edinburgh and the surrounding villages. The army is on guard against the invasion of the Kingdom of Picts and the Kingdom of Strathclyde. The farmers continue to live a quiet country life day after day, and even go to the monastery to attend mass, which is just plain. The most important entertainment in life.
It was originally a warm morning. When the sea fog dissipated and the sunshine dispelled the laziness of Edinburgh, farmers, shepherds, soldiers, generals, and those priests, this should have been the most ordinary beginning. People were enjoying the most prosperous and stable days they knew in the short period after the wheat harvest. The Earl of Edinburgh also prepared a carriage with great hope, planning to send the collected agricultural taxes (wheat) to the royal city of York.
However, some children who looked like the coast saw the most incredible sight in their short lives!
It was some children who first raised the alarm about the danger, but it was too late!
The Avora led all the longships to launch a beautiful beach landing. The big ship anchored near the shore. At this moment, Rurik could see the basic structure of the city clearly.
"Oops, they do have some wooden walls."
Biyongni, who was eager to try, looked confident. He didn't care: "The wall is nothing. If the brothers step on it for a few hundred feet, the wooden wall will collapse."
"The way you talk reminds me of my cousin."
"But I am indeed your brother." Biyongni said proudly.
"No! Be as reckless as my cousin." With that, Rurik instructed his Yevro and others, "Unload all the torsion slingshots, bring two boxes of cast iron projectiles, and let's go ashore and destroy the wooden wall!"
At the same time, those long boats had washed up on the beach in large numbers.
A large group of people wearing leather jackets, or simply with bare patterned arms, holding axes and wooden shields high, roared towards Edinburgh's wooden wall, which was better than nothing.
Don't forget that she is an important town in the north of Northumbria. The so-called city is simply a large village surrounded by thin pine walls. There are also stone buildings, but unfortunately they are very few.
The terrifying army rushed up, and the Edinburgh civilians wandering outside the city ran away. Unfortunately, their actions were too late.
The furious Viking army showed no mercy. They ran and killed all the way until they reached the wooden wall.
It was here, too, that the Balmoks and Shetlanders, their raging heads were instantly awakened by the troubles of reality!
A large number of farmers and herdsmen fled to the countryside, and those who had no time to escape could only huddle in the city.
The Earl of Edinburgh had never seen such a formation, and the local bishop also tried his best to suppress the panic in his heart. Together with the young monks, he walked up to the city wall holding up multiple shining golden "holy crosses" and nervously recited scriptures. The so-called Let the morale of the defenders explode.
The junior warrior-captain wielded an iron sword, and the standard-bearer struggled to wave the orange flag of Northumbria.
They fired arrows from short wooden bows in an attempt to stop the sea raiders.
The Viking attack did pause. This was not because they were hindered by the opponent's arrows, but because they noticed the trench under the wooden wall. It has been raining for the past few days, and there is deep mud in the trench. The whole world is still wet. If you fall into the trench, you will be trapped in the mud.
The bravest family leaders, such as Osten's eldest son Geiger, led his brothers to look at the suspended wooden bridge, swing their axes and knock shields, and curse at the enemy.
Some of his brothers had begun to be hit by stray arrows, but the army still had no intention of retreating. Instead, relying on the large number of people, the army began to conduct a tactical siege of the entire city.
Is this an excellent tactic? On the contrary, it was precisely because these guys who were impatient for the follow-up heavy weapons rushed too fast and were helpless looking at the inferior wooden walls that they could only surround the city first.
However, as Rurik came ashore with all ten torsion slingshots that had been dismantled from the Avlora, the brief helplessness would be resolved.
People held their axes, swords, and spears high and roared, as if the Viking war cry could knock down the wooden wall with sound waves.
Thanks to this sudden terrifying momentum, more than a thousand men and women in the city were really in extreme fear.
Even though the five hundred Northumbrian standing troops persisted in resisting, it was a pity that they were still at an absolute disadvantage!
Because the invaders were more than 1,100 Viking warriors. They came here to plunder and make money. They would not have the slightest mercy for killing people. This is unmatched by the kingdom's warriors recruited from farmers, herders, and even serfs.
"Chaos! It's such a chaos!" Rurik shouted angrily, and then yelled at Biyongni's men who were carrying the torsion slingshot: "Hurry up and move! We have to end the battle before noon! After destroying their walls, you Just go plunder!”
And what about Biyongni? He himself held his beloved Ross crossbow and gathered with all the crossbow-wielding warriors.
Rurik mixed most of the bow-wielding Balmoks with his crossbow-wielding mercenaries and disembarked sailors. Even the casual Modgen, an old traveler, now became a crossbowman.
Biyongni's men represented the power of the Balmok leader on the battlefield. They accepted Rurik's most direct order and fought with the Geiger brothers of Osten who were busy trying to break through the drawbridge.
Geiger was young and energetic. He protected most of his body with a wooden shield in one hand. He pointed his sword in his right hand at the opponent who was shooting arrows at the wooden wall. Facing Biyongni, he complained: "They actually have such means, brothers can't beat them!" "
"I know! Let your brother retreat for now, and now let Rurik come! Rurik of Rus, our commander-in-chief, he is best at destroying wooden walls."
"Okay! Let's take cover!" Geiger was overjoyed and watched as the heavy equipment started to activate.
However, just before the torque slingshot showed its power, various long-range soldiers holding bows and crossbows, including Biyongni, were already under the control of Rurik. They lined up in a very dense formation to defend the largest jumping bridge. The enemy, launch fire suppression!
At this point, the balance of victory has undoubtedly fallen to the Vikings and to Rurik's hands.
