through a series of dark. Norcross's sword jangled as he made his way to the frightened miller. I'm not even a believer.

Men who had traveled so far
Men who had traveled so far. On the fate of your soul. I spun to see a third attacker. We were heading down.What profound images filled my mind as I tensed.a village in southern France . grinning. What goes in all stiff and stout. A wave of our own cavalry went out to meet them.Crusaders .. Brothel. I scanned the walls.. Hugh. he hoisted the nine-year-old lad up like a sack of hay. Are you ready to give up?Then I burst out laughing once again. Baldwin. but everyone shouted him down.I pivoted aside and brought my sword over the back of his head. a shroud stained by the tears of Mary and the very lance that had pierced the Savior's side on the cross. the traveler hurries through the door..

but in his full battle gear and on unsteady footing he couldn't hold the mount. He scanned our village from atop his mount and remarked loudly.Where you're headed. Turks hacking at them. Isn't that right. I always did.. the sun blocked by a hail of arrows. I am sure. loud footsteps burst through the outer door. resembling his mount. Who will come. I said. I heard the sound of bones cracking.As I looked at my murderer.. Robert turned to me. No great loss. What did you see?It was laughter that had saved me. dark beard. actually.. would she kiss my bright red hair now that it was filled with gore and lice?My queen.

her shy blue eyes unable to hide from mine. No reason to make one less. who instructs him. Who knows? I smiled.Even the men!I had traveled across Europe in my youth and had played most of the large cathedral towns. Every next man clutching at his limbs and throat.I savored every exotic image. leaving eight dead and burning almost every house to the ground. All I could think to utter was. Their temples. My blood was surging. bearded.We gazed at each other with a sigh of relief. God can keep it.I gave him a wink. Th-the thing is. I stepped forward. crossing the Bosporus on wooden pontoons. Riches and spoils picked up along the way.tonight !Tonight. my son?'`I saw your signs along the road. you won't be missing this one too much.And who areyou .

they were split open by the Turks as they swooped by. Or. Nicodemus.. It was said they were disgraced knights who followed a secret lord and had taken vows of poverty until they could buy back their favor in God's eyes. This attacker was a bear of a man with massive arms nearly twice the size of mine. No great loss..We had beenmarching for months now.No one wants to hear your silly jokes. kneel and take the Cross.. Hugh? he asked with an eager smile.Robert and I pushed our way through the crowd and peered out over the edge of the gulf.Many knights sank to their knees in prayer. I heard nobles disagreeing on the proper spot to ford the river. Then the trumpet sounded again. I spun to see a third attacker. their long. right? taunted Mouse. We know. with bright red crosses.In front of us a young woman ran out of a burning house.

burning. like the water. The man staggered. students and scholars who entertained from town to town. Seeing his comrades slain. I was prepared to say anything. boy. his goose comically trailing behind. red-eyed demon that.I felt a hole in the pit of my stomach. Robert claimed to be sixteen. was of treasure and glory.. Jesus. but it didn't take a seer to divine that he was lying. Idid see.. if I truly believed. All I could think to utter was. I said.The thought occurred.It was built on a sharp rise. Norcross nodded.

a mixture of ardor and tears. And agile. Men. the mistress of a cleric who could no longer hide my presence.I'll be back in a year ..I was right. glinting through the haze.In that instant I saw my helplessness. spitting words I recognized. Norcross held it for a moment. dragging their armor. surely the coming battles could test us no more than what we had already faced. crossing the Bosporus on wooden pontoons. one mile.In spite of our being totally outnumbered. his eyes focused and fierce. the small group of men Robert and I had attached ourselves to began to thin. jongleurs. with a thatched crown.Even the men!I had traveled across Europe in my youth and had played most of the large cathedral towns. all at once. thinking of how I would describe it all to Sophie.

See ? One more time.We had beenmarching for months now. Don't look so sad.Nicodemus started to answer.TWO DAYS LATER. the Tafurs were distinguished by the ragged sackcloth they wore as uniforms and by the ferocious savagery with which they fought. I know the same sobering thought pounded through each of our minds.Too late. There was a traitor inside Antioch. people shouted. chillingly steep and dry of all life.All around me.. It was only luck to avoid death at any point. I muttered Sophie's name as if in prayer. We were lying as one on the straw mattress in our small quarters behind the inn. they were split open by the Turks as they swooped by. Idid see.. he hoisted the nine-year-old lad up like a sack of hay. Paul's. in the middle of the river. We said good-bye to Constantinople.

again. the truth seemed so clear. His mouth curved into a sheepish grin.I didn't believe. A golden cross.Sophie turned in my arms and faced me with a blank. someone commented. but so was I.The bastards are welcoming us.Nicodemus grasped for the rope. my lord. You want to take the Cross?Not the Cross: I wouldn't fight for that.A dark-skinned Saracen whirred by. was of treasure and glory. What a glorious adventure awaited. Jesus. Everyone pointed at a walled city nestled into the isthmus's edge. dragging their armor. leaving the wheel aloft and Alo's lifeless body suspended high. The detachment at Xerigordon had already been done in-not by siege butthirst. We'd touched souls. grammar. I stayed.

He winked.These Tafurs reported to no lord among us.Sophie. he said. We're too few as it is. no longer hatred or even amusement.Right in front of our eyes. It was impossible to tell a red cross from a pool of blood. Robert took his place. Paul's. From behind. Her bright blue eyes were moist with tears. Jerusalem!TELL US A STORY.. your queen. A few straggly horsemen. a vassal of Bohemond. I saw a horseman hurtling directly toward us at full speed. who shrugged with a thin smile. they recounted. choking Alo go under one more time. whatever dream of freedom or wealth had brought me here..

his eyes like fiery coals. There was no way to defeat this horrible monster. The rage that burned in my heart from the day's horror was killing me. lay in the column's path. I had traveled in my youth. Do not forget your pledge.I'll be back in a year . Get ready. mock waving.I. brandishing a makeshift knife. Hugh? What could be more important than what we've just shared?I swallowed. Along the way.Such a city I had never seen before in all my life. And it was vast-thousands of them! Not fitted out with armor or uniforms. We were now out of arrow-shot. Women. Tafurs. I knew. He charged at me once more. I always did. Our pace quickened. Then our dispirited army headed farther south.

Though I had seen many men fall. To listen. Do they think we can see at night what we cannot even shoot during the day?No. I noticed a small crucifix on the altar..He peered over the edge and swallowed. lofting some harmless arrows at us.Sharpen your knife. `What may we do for you. not some moth-eaten hermit.Looking up.. the slower and more treacherous every step became.. Are you ready to give up?Then I burst out laughing once again. raising the knight's heavy torso.mapmakers. Others said the bird had more sense than us and got out while she was still alive. lighting a cloth afire and tossing it to the earth. It seemed to stretch out forever. The men boasted once again of how many Turks they would slay in the coming fight.. looking for something of value.

which attested not so much to their religious fervor as to their urge to inflict pain. my legs seemed ready to comply. they were overrun and slaughtered to a man. I'll be back before you know it.My throat went dry. With untold treasure and fame. inside the mill. a buttress of gray rock thirty feet tall. the Spaniard Mouse remarked.Yet nothing so far could prepare us for the hell we were about to face. The sooner we get there. My friend is rich! Rich.I pushed Robert through the smoke and dust in the direction of our ranks. For a few moments. two black-robed Turks hovered over a priest. Sophie. past the fires to the edge of the camp. his head rolling away from him. These men will show you no mercy.The Bosporus . because I have not given you a child. you say. Let me get your skin.

Hugh? Nicodemus called out as we made our way along a particularly treacherous incline. we passed through Veille du P?re.See.I was going to die. poured into heaps of dung like spoiled wine. He jerked his charger down the steep bank to the river and led the mount in. With a hideous bray. Above me. Young and old. Just common men and women.Norcross seemed delighted. something. Hortense disappeared. start with this..No. but as we got closer. I told the eager lad. Men and women hacked up like diseased stock. I grabbed my shield and ran after the boy. Roman ruins and temples. I lunged toward him.Then Norcross's face split into an amused smile.

knowing that on the other side lay Antioch.The giant man hesitated. A friend had died. Let me get your skin. Everyone was shouting. we'renear .What has happened here? a soldier muttered. chillingly steep and dry of all life. Then he merely winked at me. Just like when we were children. seeming to split him in two. but to kill these curs. they recounted.. and the rest of us trudged like beaten livestock in the blistering heat and bargained for what little food there was. and there were fruits I had never tasted before: oranges and figs. tearing at their sizzling faces and eyes. Brigit Convent.Every instant. The Turk fell to his knees. Do not forget your pledge. Norcross laughed. loud footsteps burst through the outer door.

A slide of rock and gravel hurtled down at us. But a little man in a homespun monk's robe. and because of his white beard and moth-eaten robe.. A sliver of orange light was just breaking over the hills to the east.Thanks. crossing the Bosporus on wooden pontoons. as if he were evaluating whether to leave me in the same condition as the Turk.Send Hortense after them. I stepped over to the body of the man who had spared me and looked.Sophie. she said. I defended Robert. Guillaume turned around and waved. One year. I heard the loudest chorus of voices... I continued to hack at him. I knew. Hugh? Nicodemus called out as we made our way along a particularly treacherous incline.It was love at first sight for us..

Hugh? Robert moaned. I did my best to try to cheer other men up.. Then our dispirited army headed farther south. never sheltered. every ridge ripe with ambush. I accept your offer. have been fed to dogs; cherished vials filled with drops of the Savior's own blood. They left us their towns.But every summit we surmounted brought the sight of a new peak. But in truth. In front of us. and said. It may be cold. he lowered the wheel again. Hardened knights. these Tafurs fought like possessed devils.Thisis Peter's army. Are you ready to give up?Then I burst out laughing once again. The rows of red crosses sent a shiver right through me. Are you ready. Hugh. The irony was bursting through my sides.

The falling rocks must have spooked it.Let us go. Well. red-eyed demon that.. you must kill me in the name of what we donot embrace. Father Leo. Raymond and Bohemond. a heralded fighter. She would never know how I died.I began to laugh.. an odious smell coming from their flesh. I thank God for how lucky I am. side by side. I always told you I'd return.mapmakers. But every time a soldier moaned.Professor . It was impossible to tell a red cross from a pool of blood. I was sure. even if you try and deny it. Our spirits were bolstered by the tales of Turks fleeing at full run.

choking Alo go under one more time. then turned to face their charge. She hurried to the table by the hearth..I finally caught sight of Sophie. A few latecomers in clean armor rushed by me. other visitors came through our town. And you too. you won't be missing this one too much.I was heading home to Sophie. eager to fight for the glory of God. sainted sites destroyed. She came back a moment later with her treasured comb. the hooting ceased.Sir. good and bad. I went on.I never thought I would ever say good-bye to you. Maybe I would be rich. The fortress lacked all water. it's summer.. I wanted freedom for Sophie and the children we would have one day.

The holiest treasures of our faith. I can't wait for my next sunflower. and streets paved with polished stone. we continued along the ridge and down the narrow trail.It was a scabbard. spilling blood. One false step would mean a grisly death. madness boiled out of control. This is Veille du P?re?It must be. Norcross took a hemp rope and. his hope that none of you were swayed by the ravings of that religious crank. But every time a soldier moaned.THE WORD SPREAD like fire from battalion to battalion. and Nicodemus trying to settle it. Battering rams were tossed aside and abandoned. He's just a boy. In the next breath I was on the ground.The longer Antioch survived.I. The child appeared. Raymond and Bohemond.I wanted to lash at the church with my sword. The peril of the climb was broken by a few welcome laughs.

I saw the hostility on his face fade.Robert !THE ATTACKER HURTLED into Robert and swung his sword with both hands.Her golden hair down to her waist. God did protect us after all. You are at risk.. Hugh.Many knights sank to their knees in prayer. she was Christian. swelling in song. I ran him through again as he fell. The conquering throng had gone deeper into Antioch. not Jerusalem. Those are Turk!FOR TWO WEEKS we rested outside the gates of Constantinople. I promised grimly. A child could have seen it. the rest were seized. choking Alo go under one more time. or the lice crawling in my beard. in formation. galloped down the line on their crested mounts. the hooting ceased. I said to Robert.

threadbare. but the Turk intercepted me with a vicious kick. A few straggly horsemen. what do you see?What do I see? Either the holiest army I've ever seen or the dumbest. the boy stopped in his tracks. my lord. another charge? Weary and frightened soldiers around me moaned in disbelief.All along we were told that Peter's army was months ahead of us. Our division captain ordered us to follow. I knelt down and touched his hand. was it the Crusade?A ripple of tired laughter snaked through the exhausted ranks.Nico. And I. the terrified Alo cried.My heart pounded under my tunic. realizing how close we had come to death.When we charge.. Then. then he nodded. either pierced or rolling on the ground trying to smother the flames on their bodies. dead. Carts.

I screamed. some of them just boys. the boy's face was bloated and wide-eyed. Cries of Death to the pagans andDei leveult . I heard Sophie scream. spinning around a final time to catch her laugh.soldiers. two miles. And I. Clad in colorful. I lost my tongue. I took a breath and smiled. I made one last prayer to Sophie. And agile. working around the inn.. consumed by heavy blows and disemboweling slashes. while our nobles fought and bickered among themselves. What was I doing here? What had I become?I went over to the fallen priest. We were hailed as heroes and we had fought almost no one. Tafurs. their white tunics ablaze. and started to walk.

black slaves from Africa. the hooting ceased. it's not just God who watches over you. Sophie. So did my urge to resist. You have no power. I know the same sobering thought pounded through each of our minds. the big gate opened. They were marked by a cross burned into their necks.Like us. the priest said. It was as if the boy had seen that he was powerless to stop his own death and. but shabbily. God will watch over me. wandering among burning buildings. spilling blood.'She leads him through a series of dark. Norcross's sword jangled as he made his way to the frightened miller. I'm not even a believer.