War
In an effort to be home in time for Yuletide, Caedmon and Aidan departed the day after the wedding. Unable to stem the tears, Blythe clung to them for a long while before they mounted, keenly aware she might never see them again. Aidan could not speak. Caedmon clasped Dieter’s hand. “I’m leaving my daughter here because I trust you to take good care of her.”
After they left, the reality of how far away she was from family began to sink in. She grew lethargic and weepy, grateful for Dieter’s seemingly endless patience as he consoled her.
“You’ve given up everything to be with me,” he told her. “And I love you all the more for it.”
Her turn to offer solace came when Dieter’s father and the nursemaid returned to Wolfenberg, taking Johann. It was heart-wrenching to see him go, but would be safer there. All of Köln acknowledged the problems of the empire’s domination remained unresolved. A confrontation still loomed between Dieter’s overlord and Emperor Heinrich who was reportedly amassing an army to crush Duke Lothair.
The newly-weds celebrated Yuletide alone, completely immersed in their new found delight in each other’s bodies. They celebrated the pagan tradition of burning the Yule log, lying naked before the hearth. He sang the ballad of Parsifal he had been singing at the lake when she’d stumbled upon him naked. They shared the humor of the memory.
For Yuletide dinner they dined on traditional roasted goose and Humble Pie made from the heart, liver and brains of a deer. Blythe taught the cook how to make mincemeat tarts. The servants entertained them with a trope, chanting in dialogue the story of the nativity and the Holy Family. Dieter offered a toast of thanks to all his servants, wishing them health and happiness for the coming year. They returned the wishes.
* * *
Throughout the month of January in the year of our Lord One Thousand One Hundred and Fifteen, Dieter spent most of his time organizing and training soldiers to fight against the imperial army.
Blythe missed him keenly, but understood he had to fulfill his duty. The emperor had made political moves to bring Lothair to heel, but the Saxon duke continued to intrigue against him, and her husband was the undisputed leader of the opposing forces in Köln. It was widely acknowledged Lothair’s eventual goal was the imperial crown.
Emboldened by their success at Andernach, the rebel forces decided to mount an all-out frontal attack. Blythe found the constant talk of war and intrigue very unsettling, especially when Dieter told her the imperial army was well to the east of Köln, and his men would likely have to travel several days to join forces with Duke Lothair.
At the end of the month, confirmation came they would ride to Mansfeld, a four-day journey. Dieter spent hours preparing his armor and weapons. Blythe was proud of his prowess as a warrior and his reputation as a hero, but fearful of what might happen to him. Their life together had just begun. The day he left, bundled in his huge wolfskin coat to keep out the chill, she clung to him. Tearful servants gathered to see him off.
“Don’t worry, Blythe,” he whispered in her ear. “This is something I have to do. I’ll return safely. Nothing can keep me away from you for long.”
“We’ll be waiting for you,” she murmured, holding back tears.
He held her away from him. “We?”
She nodded. “Your son and I.”
He hugged her ferociously and buried his face in her neck. “You’re with child? You didn’t tell me.”
“I wasn’t sure—but now I think it is so. I didn’t want to distract you from your mission.”
He placed his hands on her belly. “You’ll never be a distraction. You’re my life, but life will be better for all Saxons, including this little one, once we get rid of Heinrich.”
“Auf Weidersehen, my love,” she said through her tears.
“Auf Weidersehen, Blythe. Take good care of my babe until I return.”
He kissed her deeply, mounted his gelding and rode out to join his assembled forces.
Sick at heart, she fell to her knees and wept.
* * *
The rebel army rode through the village of Brilon situated high in the hills on the upper reaches of the river Möhne. The town lay between the Arnsberg Forest to the west and Lake Diemel to the south-east.
From there they went on to the hill town of Warburg where they stayed in the Old Town in the Diemel Valley. Nordhausen at the southern edge of the rugged Harz Mountains was their next camp, where they went to Mass at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross. On his knees, Dieter prayed for the success of their campaign and for his wife and unborn child at home. He had called Köln home for some time. He loved the city and his house there, but intended eventually to take his family back to his own estates in Wolfenberg.
At last, they passed south east of the River Harz, through Sangerhausen and on to Mansfeld, where Lothair waited.
Five days later, the imperial forces, under the command of Hoyer of Mansfeld, gathered at Welfesholz to await the united Saxon troops led by Duke Lothair. The armies clashed in a bloody battle that lasted several days. Dieter fought like a man possessed, his one thought to survive the mayhem. He witnessed gruesome barbarism and selfless heroism. Severed body parts littered the field made slippery with rivers of blood. He could not hold on to the contents of his belly when the whoosh of a battle-axe lopped off the head of the knight riding next to him.
The outcome was uncertain, both sides evenly matched. However, the duke’s forces gradually gained the upper hand. The conflict ended in the decimation of the imperial army and Hoyer’s death. Heinrich took flight. Duke Lothair had broken imperial power in Saxony. He was now the most powerful Saxon noble and the wealthiest prince in all of northern Germany.
Dieter and his men were exhausted. He took charge of finding and burying the bodies of fallen comrades. Amputation was the only option for many of the badly wounded. Piteous moans drifted across the camp and the stench of death filled the air. Dieter was sickened by it and longed to return home. He resolved to be done with war now that Lothair had been victorious. He would go home to Wolfenberg with Blythe and take care of the lands the duke had granted him to rule over as Graf.
By the end of February he was free to return to Köln. He had sent messengers ahead and, as he rode into the courtyard, Blythe hurried out to meet him. The dogs ran around like wild things. His heart and his rute soared at the sight of his wife. He was bone weary, but confident his beautiful and passionate Blythe would soon restore his energy.