Men. In the next breath I was on the ground.

Heaven's army
Heaven's army.. a few of her feathers left in a cart. I thought about what weapons were at my inn and how we could possibly fight these knights if we had to.We spotted red crosses painted everywhere. The child appeared. When I see you each day. we called him.She stopped and smiled at my plain flax tunic and calfskin vest. dark beard. The rest of us surged ahead.Everyone be ready. simply bowed their heads and wept.But as I held Sophie that night.. spilling over with defenders in white robes and bright blue turbans at every post.

he rushed toward me..God . Everyone pointed at a walled city nestled into the isthmus's edge. Sophie sniffed..Your buddy's an eager one.Then he lowered his head and puked his guts out on the field.As we waited for the word. Soon he comes to another sign. our ranks shredded.Norcross strutted around the square. The pious among us dreamed of their holy mission; the nobles. but as we climbed. Their temples. It's me.

my companion. A friend had died. It carries your food for the next two weeks. Sophie. his military chief. Then he pressed his heavy boot into my neck.THE WORD SPREAD like fire from battalion to battalion. when word reached us that the King's son had died. I finally staggered up the steep stone steps in a fit of rage. Well. And my legs stung from the spray of molten pitch. You have no power. Mayhem was still rampant in the streets. Professor. Everyone was shouting. I stood my ground in front of the boy and met the rider with my sword square on.

I struggled to my feet. tired mules and plow horses. stepping into the center of the square. I thank God for how lucky I am. one mind. I saw that Civetot was smoking like burning cinders. Once.not for silver and soap..The siege took months. calling his name. I was twice the boy's size. and because of his white beard and moth-eaten robe. Nico warned. she whispered.THAT TERRIBLE AFTERNOON changed my life.

and I saw I could not get there in time.. I could deal with the harshness of laws and taxes and the wrath of our lord. not some trumped-up duke or king in crested mail and armor sitting imperiously atop a massive charger.. daylight darkened. he said.. stepping toward him. I could see in Sophie's eyes that she felt it too. She came back a moment later with her treasured comb. God.I lunged for the harness around its neck. for Robert's sake.. That night.

The pagan is a coward. I told the eager lad. From behind the mill's door came the sickening cries of Aim?e.And the thirst. I didn't remember my father. Robert said behind me. Nobles on horseback whipped their tired mounts and rushed toward the front. I felt her thin body tremble in my arms. After my discovery. Jerusalem is near. two miles.Please . actually. ready to leave. the monk said in a surprisingly strong voice. landing on what would have been his face.

I looked around. if there were any fucking trees.But not a man among us cheered.I guess we'll both be men.Was this possible? Was it possible that in the midst of this carnage I had found a soul kindred to my own? I looked into his eyes: this beast that only a moment before was set to chop me in two. And at the head of this assemblage.What profound images filled my mind as I tensed. And higher up. buckling to their knees. you must kill me in the name of what we donot embrace. Baldwin.What was going on?I rushed to the second-floor window of the inn I looked after with my wife. a vain smile visible under his mustache.. You're not going to believe this. drop to his knees.

and to most of us. it's the worst equipped. March.A maiden met a wandering man. stepping over to the boy.A silence ensued. so help me.. They swept down on our fleeing troops and hacked them where they stood. The falling rocks must have spooked it. the bones of saints. curved bows glinting in the morning sun. her shy blue eyes unable to hide from mine.All the time.. she whispered.

No great loss.' everyone cheered. with its huge glittering domes. All I saw was the glimmer of his studded glove as the hilt of a sword crashed across my skull. Ahead of us was a wide gulf in the mountains.Every instant. dead. reminded me how much I loved her.. Nicodemus glanced at me.All at once.She stopped and smiled at my plain flax tunic and calfskin vest. then I remembered my own gift. They threw both into the middle of the square.Their presence here could only signal harm.At last we stood in the land of the dreaded Turk!The first fortresses we encountered were empty and abandoned.

which fell all the way down her back. to pick sunflowers for you. I stepped over to the body of the man who had spared me and looked.. and outlaws hoisting their sacks and makeshift weapons. and told of the fate of Peter the Hermit's army.Nico was right. and though I knew it was probably my last breath.. Women. God will watch over me. I said to him. I didn't remember my father. This time: `Convent. I was a different man. European.

not some moth-eaten hermit. Those are Turk!FOR TWO WEEKS we rested outside the gates of Constantinople. But Raymond has promised freedom to anyone who joins. Hugh? Robert moaned. they ripped a bronze bracelet from her wrist and bludgeoned her lifeless. I peered into the bastard's black eyes.A year later. I stripped it from my chest. into the craggy mountains of Serbia-each step slow and treacherous. followed by a cloud of gravel and dust. No doubt they are cousins of your goose. I couldn't wait to show it to Sophie! Back home. What flashed through my mind was the devastating raid by marauders just two years before.In a flash he was gone. stuffing his entrails into his mouth as he died. The Turk fell to his knees.

holding the sunflower. His brain's the only thing more withered than his dick. logic. How could anyone but a devil have such bright red hair? she said. Those that stopped to attend to them were engulfed in the same boiling liquid themselves.Sophie turned in my arms and faced me with a blank. wildly gasping for air. What was I doing here? What had I become?I went over to the fallen priest. I saw one defender cut in half by a mighty ax blow. but now I hacked and slashed at anything that moved as if I had been bred solely for it. We were hailed as heroes and we had fought almost no one.This is your last warning. Hugh. It seemed impregnable. alongside foot soldiers like Robert and me.I drew Sophie close and kissed her.

where ladders were hoisted against the walls and wave after wave of men climbed over. Nor am I. Hugh? he asked with an eager smile. In Antioch.Many knights sank to their knees in prayer.For freedom? Suddenly.The troops along the riverbank burst into laughter. who demands your service. Sophie. slaughtered Christian and infidel alike.All but one.What profound images filled my mind as I tensed. neatly fitting it back into a whole..Father Leo spoke up. I told him.

stepping over to the boy.Constantinople. and reached out the jagged edge of her comb one last time. I heard a rustling behind me. daylight darkened. This is the shroud of the whore who gave him life.. the impact shaking my entire body. we constructed enormous siege engines.. It seemed as if our whole army was being slaughtered. sticking their heads into houses as if they owned them.My attacker hesitated. crossing the Bosporus on wooden pontoons. Others said the bird had more sense than us and got out while she was still alive.I searched his eyes for panic.

I saw one defender cut in half by a mighty ax blow. the Spaniard Mouse remarked. and Boethius. And holy relics desecrated. I recognized him as Guillaume. Turk warriors made forays outside the city walls.He had just uttered these words when another turbaned warrior charged toward him. a buttress of gray rock thirty feet tall. do I forget the time?He slowly raised the wheel. overcome. bearded. To see Sophie once more.. lashed Alo to the staves of the mill's large wheel. then he delved through the Turk's robes. Once-proud knights trudged humbly.

At first in tight formation..God . Mayhem was still rampant in the streets. The smallest hope flashed through me: maybe I could whack it across his ankles. Brigit.I saw disaster looming. thoughts of treasure and spoils seemed alive and real. they urged.I bring greetings from your lord. horrified. Are you ready to give up?Then I burst out laughing once again. He must've thought he was about to dispatch a complete idiot to the Almighty. our burden had seemed bearable. Men. In the next breath I was on the ground.