why.Everyone in town stood and stared. I had sworn in my heart to protect him.

we quietly crept back within sight of the city walls
we quietly crept back within sight of the city walls. Norcross smiled. He scanned our village from atop his mount and remarked loudly. He hides in his hole like a squirrel. curved swords. facing another sign.Gone. tell me. I thought we would live out our lives together. Water was as scarce as wine. or the only Turkish blood you'll see will be at the end of a mop. A sea of body parts. And Robert too.March.Sanctum Christi. to leave her this way.In that instant I saw my helplessness. went up to greet him.. Here I was... Then she held her half out and we touched the jagged edges together. six thousand strong. He has to accept. for a moment out of harm's way. That night. he hoisted the nine-year-old lad up like a sack of hay.

A peddler with a cart was considered an event here. Who will come. red-eyed demon that. urged by His Holiness Urban to lead an army of believers to the Holy Land to free the holy sepulchre from the heathen hordes.Their presence here could only signal harm. I fixed on a face above the main gate. A relic already! Nico laughed. I swear it. At the stone bridge on the edge of town. our commander. sometimes dragging a companion along with him.I threw my pouch over my shoulder and tried to drink in the last sight of her beautiful. What little water we carried we consumed like drunken fools.The trail seemed cut out of the mountain's edge. crowding the massive walls. Very old. I noticed her peeking at a rehearsal.Those we captured were sometimes handed over to a fearsome group of Frank warriors called Tafurs. resembling his mount. Hugh. the terrified Alo cried. lay in the column's path. Nicodemus glanced at me. Bloody corpses were scattered everywhere.I went back to the priest. Norman. my legs seemed ready to comply.Gone.

Reach up your other hand. The sound of shouts and vicious fighting erupted from inside.. I was twice the boy's size. Spoils and booty were being divvied up among the men. why. heads charred and roasted.' she says. barely able to believe my eyes. A soothsayer who couldn't even predict his own death? he spat.Why.The Bosporus.. and she said that I probably had one in every town. The ranks of farmers. I squawked about like a chicken. a mixture of ardor and tears. Our spirits were bolstered by the tales of Turks fleeing at full run. Men and women hacked up like diseased stock. I stammered. but as we got closer. You are free!EVEN IN VEILLE DU PERE. side by side. A soothsayer who couldn't even predict his own death? he spat. and the head of a man next to me shot off like a kicked ball. and there were fruits I had never tasted before: oranges and figs. jongleurs. You saw what happened today.

They were not rocks at all-but skulls. grinning. She came back a moment later with her treasured comb. tearing at their sizzling faces and eyes. Matt.now . It appeared to be gilded with gold and it was studded with what looked like rubies. pinning the staff uselessly under his sandal.But the old Greek was too slow and laden with gear to get out of the way. To see Sophie once more. A bearded knight helped him slide off. Soon they were battering again at the gate. I stood paralyzed.In that instant I saw my helplessness. we fitted the comb's halves together and made a whole. Sophie. Their temples. then I remembered my own gift.Nico was right. All I wanted was to get off this ridge. This happened. So did my urge to resist. Yet I was dying for this cause anyway. You see those hills over there? I pointed across the channel. two black-robed Turks hovered over a priest. Raymond and Baldwin are aligned.The bastards are welcoming us. only a fool.

the leaders cried. I recognized him as Guillaume. I simply could not hold back. And people of no stench.. Don't look so sad.. Arrows and spears followed them. You better tell him. I felt like a man who had just claimed the richest dowry.It was the image I carried for the next two years. He was tugging on his knife.What's going on? Who needs help ? they shouted. he and the goose were great companions to us.What has happened here? a soldier muttered.Nico. Then he toppled onto his wife.at me. `Now. Or freeing Jerusalem. Tafurs.The lead Tafur delivered one more blow to the bloody mound..It was the image I carried for the next two years. I said to him. I had to do something-even if it sealed my own fate. A sea of body parts.I'm strong.

given to them at a young age when my mother died.'She leads him through a series of dark. People I had known for years shouted. The animal's hind legs spun. I had come here to set myself free.And beyond that.. a heralded fighter. A bearded knight helped him slide off. I knew I could no longer fight. grinning. given to them at a young age when my mother died.She had nearly drifted off to sleep. Fields that were once milk and honey now lie spattered with the blood of Christian sacrifice. why. ran to get their possessions. I was trembling with horror. I fear not. I leaned over the dead Turk. Hugh. It was all that kept him from plunging to his death. The rage that burned in my heart from the day's horror was killing me. It will be made easily. to pick sunflowers for you. Word has reached him that a rabble passed through here a day ago. I stepped over to the body of the man who had spared me and looked. as far as the river Orontes. Tafur.

It would have beenme in that pool of blood that was leaking across the stones. I was a different man.. One of the ram carriers went down. the Spaniard Mouse remarked. missing me by the width of a blade.. The holiest treasures of our faith. knight.A massive walled fortress. yellows from China.I bring greetings from your lord. just that I could no longer fight in their ranks. Norcross jeered.Georges threw himself at the chatelain's feet. and streets paved with polished stone. Hundreds of men were gathered there. we fitted the comb's halves together and made a whole.The cries of men dying hit me as I stepped outside. The detachment at Xerigordon had already been done in-not by siege butthirst.. I saw Sophie there at her father's inn. Panic clutched at my heart.Sharpen your knife.Themetal trade. It was a slaughter. thrusting their swords toward Heaven and hurling their helmets into the air. I vowed to carry it with me wherever I went for the rest of my life.

Finding nothing. I heard the sound of bones cracking. His protection for your families who dutifully remain behind. toward Norcross. tell me. then fight for the glory of your liege when called upon. but the Turk intercepted me with a vicious kick. She would never know how I died.Such a city I had never seen before in all my life. At the stone bridge on the edge of town. his sword poised above my head.I lunged for the harness around its neck. We're going in.The first ram pounded into the heavy gate.The Bosporus. I told him. we joined forces with Count Robert of Flanders and Bohemond of Antioch. I say!Quiet. he and the goose were great companions to us. Alo was gagging and coughing water out of his lungs. stuffing anything of value into their filthy robes. I dreamed about Sophie every night. Nothing ever happened here!I was struck with a kind of wonderment.I searched his eyes for panic. given to them at a young age when my mother died. The lucky among us were slain where they stood. madness boiled out of control. sometimes dragging a companion along with him.

Something from this moment that I would have for the rest of my life. It seems he wasn't cut out for the miller's life after all. word reached us that the fortress had fallen.Sophie. curved bows glinting in the morning sun. wielding the dagger that was still covered with the priest's blood. insisted that the scouts and maps suggested a point to the south. After my discovery. You saw what happened today.I was heading home to Sophie. `Now. Aim?e. Frank. the Turk lowered his sword.It's an army. The talk. I saw a cross. We were hailed as heroes and we had fought almost no one.THERE WERE FOOLS among us who believed that Antioch would fall in a day. this old tomb was what we were fighting for. The sound of shouts and vicious fighting erupted from inside. I'd been brought up by goliards.. Not from its walls crumbling but from treachery and greed.. the loss of my friend weighed greatly upon me. piercing the Turk with my sword. I told him.

galloped over the bridge aboard his mule. and gruesome gasps escaped from their wretched mouths. screaming wildly. daylight darkened. By a third more. a buttress of gray rock thirty feet tall..All around me. not their swords.I drew Sophie close and kissed her. pulling along the animal behind it to which it was tied.In front of us a young woman ran out of a burning house. never once crying out. stepping toward him.Disaster loomed in front of my eyes. our liege lord's chatelain. no god either. Peter's we signed up for. I simply could not hold back.. Men. The talk. People will be eager to feed a Crusader. as was my vow.Then Norcross's face split into an amused smile. the farther away I felt from anything I knew. I noticed her peeking at a rehearsal. My stomach felt as empty as a bottomless pit.

it was said. She was pounced on by two marauding Tafurs who tore the clothes from her body and took turns mounting her in the street. jongleurs. I was prepared to say anything..Under the shield of darkness. a memento. I lunged. our tunics clean. Alo went under. the soldiers mocked. piercing the Turk with my sword. With untold treasure and fame. House of Prostitution.Are there any believers here ?He was pale and long nosed.I am not! You mustn't think that.. up ahead. Robert among them.Mocking us was more like it. they were split open by the Turks as they swooped by. what do you see?What do I see? Either the holiest army I've ever seen or the dumbest. cursing him in their tongue. you will need it all the more. an officer barked from behind. In the open. He leaped from his horse and thrashed around for Guillaume under the surface. I finally prayed.

All the cattle and oxen had been butchered; even the dogs had been eaten. That is the blood of your useless Savior. It was broken only by Aim?e's whimpers as she emerged weak-kneed from the mill. I thought of gaining our freedom.The longer Antioch survived.Hold your tears.It was love at first sight for us. they taught me how to perform. a prize like this could buy us food for a winter. In a last effort. Nothing ever happened here!I was struck with a kind of wonderment. The rows of red crosses sent a shiver right through me. Their haughty faces read..But look.I. like one of those multitudes prophesied in Isaiah or John. cut through the rising peaks. schooled in the sciences and languages.Choking back the laughter.Carrot-top here must be keen on the miller.The sight sent a chill shooting through my bones. sainted sites destroyed. Show them whose God is One. reminded me how much I loved her..Suddenly the assault turned into a rout. wagons.

. he hoisted the nine-year-old lad up like a sack of hay. I felt connected for the first time in my life.No. I knew. But the laws of custom are the laws. I noticed that my own tunic and arms were smeared with blood.Georges threw himself at the chatelain's feet. I raised myself to my elbows. just as one of the attackers thrust a dagger into the belly of the priest.soldiers.Choking back the laughter. sweltering in our tunics and armor.FOR DAYS TO COME. but shabbily.I called her my princess. as tall as the highest towers.At last the abbess stops at a door. And I.It's an army. lofting some harmless arrows at us.But as I held Sophie that night.I just laughed.I savored every exotic image.' it reads.He peered over the edge and swallowed. Horsemen were coming in at a full gallop! I was rolling a cask up from the storehouse when all around jugs and bottles began to fall. another survivor recounted.

Brigit. their chargers snorting heavily. Georges said. but these savages would surely kill me. Norcross nodded. winding passages where he sees many beautiful young nuns who smile at him. thank God. and the most precious relics in all of Christendom. I looked down. Jerusalem!TELL US A STORY. Father? Is this what you expect from the Pope's protection? He lowered the wheel again and the small boy disappeared. teetering over an immense chasm. they recounted. I wished Nico were here. she snapped her prized comb in two.. Now he was gone and I was here.tonight !Tonight. I laughed. and she said that I probably had one in every town.Father Leo spoke up. the trails began to widen. raped. freedom. had turned toward me. I said.. I staggered around.

Nico . Back toward the city gate.Every couple of days. passing from horror to horror. Men. the boy's face was bloated and wide-eyed. until his powerful body resembled some hideous slab of meat and not the noble soul he was. We continued to climb. With a hideous bray. word reached us that the fortress had fallen. Just common men and women. then he nodded. I yelled. no longer hatred or even amusement..I dragged him from the wall and we ran with all our might. other visitors came through our town. He nearly knocked men down as he trotted indifferently through our ranks. redhead. His small jaw hung open. The child appeared. This attacker was a bear of a man with massive arms nearly twice the size of mine. when a raiding party from our lord's rival in Digne swept through town during the wars.First it was the heat. We're too few as it is.Look. The men boasted once again of how many Turks they would slay in the coming fight. I saw the hostility on his face fade.

Then he toppled onto his wife. every twitch of her nose. Clad in colorful. the towers.A hundred yards. I knew.. I was no hero. someone said. but the Turk intercepted me with a vicious kick. I think the duke's point is adequately driven home. past the fires to the edge of the camp. but as we climbed. Others said the bird had more sense than us and got out while she was still alive.My regiment went on. Each rock was painted with a bright red cross. don't let this be some kind of cruel trick.She sat up straight. when word reached us that the King's son had died. redhead. That bird had walked across Europe with him! Many felt our luck had run out along with hers.I ran with my sword drawn and a loud cry. as tall as the highest towers. Norcross pressed on. as far as the river Orontes. I felt I had shamed myself. with red crosses either painted or sewn onto plain tunics.A trumpet sounded the call to arms.

at his bloody corpse. And agile.It took everything I had not to leap on the Tafurs myself. a terrible moment that was empty and gnawing.We looked at each other for a long while. Red-crossed soldiers stormed through the streets. when word reached us that the King's son had died. Red crosses smeared all over the walls-in blood. And higher up.So.At first. Father Leo. he rushed toward me. the monk said in a surprisingly strong voice. toward the mill.tonight !Tonight. the soldiers mocked. but now I hacked and slashed at anything that moved as if I had been bred solely for it. raiders. I had fought bravely.All at once. and smiled too..My heart pounded under my tunic. No great loss. I tried to joke. and were left. The Turk fell to his knees.

Amid all this fighting. but where I'm headed a woman's comb may be looked at strangely. people shouted. in formation. I told the eager lad. every ridge ripe with ambush. A chance to change my destiny in a single stroke. you'll have your pick. If one of our illustrious leaders hears you. The rows of red crosses sent a shiver right through me. was a million miles away.Look. to ask God for the forgiveness of my sins. I winked. an old Greek. I was about to say. I was no hero.Carrot-top here must be keen on the miller. one mind. And here they were. I said to myself. there was thishowl from the surrounding hills.Sharpen your knife.Loud. 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. I took another step. like the water. On their huge mounts.

Hugh? What could be more important than what we've just shared?I swallowed. fortune-all that left me as if it had never been there. this time it's different. The rest of us surged ahead. he shouted to Raymond. was swept screaming into vast crevices or dropped in his tracks by Serb or Magyar arrows a thousand miles before the first sign of a Turk. sucking in precious food. It was as if the boy had seen that he was powerless to stop his own death and.To my surprise. who managed to keep up his steady stride despite a satchel heavy with tracts of Aristotle.This is your last warning. It could be anybody. I saw knights wearing the purple-and-white colors of Baldwin of Treille. Or any of us. someone said.As he spoke. I heard the sound of bones cracking.As Norcross passed the miller's cowering daughter. You see those hills over there? I pointed across the channel. The love of my life. Word has reached him that a rabble passed through here a day ago.When we charge. seemingly built into a solid mound of rock. I saw men clearly over the edge guzzle their own urine as if it were ale. I reached for Robert and pulled the boy toward the mountain's face. in a way I was proud. a sudden rock slide.Antioch.

we continued along the ridge and down the narrow trail. !The sword caught Robert just below the throat. I dreamed about Sophie every night. The fortress lacked all water. And to God. Do not compare the Pope's holy protection to yours.I'll be back in a year . The other infidel turned.I was able to grip the strap of the leather satchel slung over his shoulder. You have no power. He went and cupped the face of the cowering boy in his massive hand. people shouted. a bit reluctantly.And beyond that. wasn't it? Or.A massive walled fortress. you will think this was Paradise.Sophie lifted her head and kissed me. Wave after wave of frontal attacks only increased the death toll.I'm dreaming . I love you. unsure look. `What may we do for you. `Now. The moreblasphemous the better.It was the greatest multitude I had ever seen! Jammed along the narrow road into town.That's who we fight for. He went and cupped the face of the cowering boy in his massive hand.

I had traveled in my youth. Paul the carter told me. madness boiled out of control. I laughed.Now I realized what Norcross and his men were doing here. No reason to make one less.. The traveler goes in and is greeted by another comely nun. We were heading down. My blood was surging. and told of the fate of Peter the Hermit's army.Robert! I screamed. but his face was still as boyish and smooth as when he had first joined our ranks. God can keep it. bread to eat. Give me your hand. His body was asunder. I am sure. I snuggled into the smooth curve of her back..Constantinople. he shouted back. but now I hacked and slashed at anything that moved as if I had been bred solely for it. all I saw in my path was the wise Greek's face. I felt my soul spring alive. pagan towns now consecrated in the name of God. with the help of a cohort. Our pace quickened.

He scanned our village from atop his mount and remarked loudly. but never had I seen a place like this! Gold was like tin here. Each year I promised I would come back. he shouted back. lightweight cottons and silks.Instead . You smell it. then I remembered my own gift. maybe her husband. European. the small group of men Robert and I had attached ourselves to began to thin. At first we were glad to leave the inferno behind.The party of horsemen pulled to a stop in the square. One by one. praised for valor in battle. stuffing anything of value into their filthy robes. Robert said as we marched. which was starting to fill up. I saw that same knight. I was sure.And the thirst.'`Why not?' the traveler thinks. stepping over to the boy.As Norcross passed the miller's cowering daughter. these Tafurs fought like possessed devils. Yet I was dying for this cause anyway.As we fled.There is the one about the convent and the whorehouse.

Why had I ever come to this place? I had walked across Europe to fight for a cause in which I didn't even believe.Their presence here could only signal harm. `Sisters of St. Children Wailed for their mothers before being hurled into raging flames like kindling. my son. the Spaniard Mouse remarked. facing another sign.Away from the senseless killing. choking Alo go under one more time. I'd have been dead myself. Peter's we signed up for. It carries your food for the next two weeks. Then-eerie silence. he would taunt. It almost seemed funny to me: this. The Turks. not some moth-eaten hermit. I resumed. Battle-thirsty men in tunics with red crosses lopped off heads and held them aloft as if they were treasure.Norcross strutted around the square. A left at the next ridge and we should seeRome.The cries of men dying hit me as I stepped outside. as was my vow. right? taunted Mouse. When we hit the mountains. She would never know how I died. I scanned the walls. horses.

Georges said. A relic already! Nico laughed.mapmakers. carrot-top. I felt my soul spring alive. trails more nerve wracking than the last.He had just uttered these words when another turbaned warrior charged toward him. some of them just boys. The team reversed and rammed again. the boy strung up on that wheel could be our own. So did my urge to resist.We've got to get out of here. Young and old. pushed east to seize the Turkish fortress at Xerigordon. Do not compare the Pope's holy protection to yours. you will think this was Paradise. to leave her this way.All the time.One by one. with one purpose. They swept toward us like hunters chasing a hare. I snuggled into the smooth curve of her back. still carrying their tools. slaughtered Christian and infidel alike. Then our dispirited army headed farther south. literally roasting in their armor. And there was something that I missed from those days. It was all that kept him from plunging to his death.

crossing the Bosporus on wooden pontoons. The irony was bursting through my sides. I finally staggered up the steep stone steps in a fit of rage. This time.As he made his way back across the square. where they fell. from infidel spies. but I was blocked by the Turk.Themetal trade. Bloody corpses were scattered everywhere. lay in the column's path. cool nave of the church than I heard a cry of anguish coming from the front. A crowd of others.He carried Alo. A sea of white tunics and red crosses. I saw that Civetot was smoking like burning cinders.Get out of my way . horrified.All along we were told that Peter's army was months ahead of us. our ranks were being shredded. but the stone gave way. We were told to ride east until the smell of shit. I squinted through the trees and felt my jaw drop. I had simply made him smile. You want to take the Cross?Not the Cross: I wouldn't fight for that. blessed the town with a wave. Yet he'd spared me. The Turk fell to his knees.

amused. I love you. A Seljuk horde of thousands surrounded the city and simply waited them out.March. then I remembered my own gift. Jesus. but they fell against the massive walls like harmless sticks. I held my shield as they ripped into us.I just laughed.A dark-skinned Saracen whirred by. but these savages would surely kill me.I stopped her.Along the way. Nico had made pilgrimages to the Holy Land and knew the language of the Turk. I saw the hostility on his face fade. I put the priest's staff to the ground and took a step-the other way.. God did protect us after all. A Seljuk horde of thousands surrounded the city and simply waited them out.. We'd touched souls. How could anyone but a devil have such bright red hair? she said.Then I should pack some more food for you. which was starting to fill up. I recognized him as Guillaume.But my attacker merely took a giant step.Why had I ever come to this place? I had walked across Europe to fight for a cause in which I didn't even believe. unconvinced.

Norcross laughed. fortune-all that left me as if it had never been there. no doubt. Even us. I saw Sophie there at her father's inn. it's not just God who watches over you.Up ahead. it looks old. in my lord's name. were spared just so we could bear the tale. Robert said as we marched. burst.Until we were free.To my surprise. Their temples. Hugh? Her eyes locked on mine. Even my mother's mother could cross here. I took it down and stuffed it into my pouch. Other soldiers who had reached the rocks crossed themselves. running from house to house. The falling rocks must have spooked it. the mistress of a cleric who could no longer hide my presence. dressed up in ornate robes. I'd been brought up by goliards. It was more like resignation. your queen. a teasing rhyme:A maiden met a wandering manIn the light of the moon's pure cheer. The Turk let out a chilling howl.

The three years we'd been married had been the happiest I had known. all I saw in my path was the wise Greek's face. but when it comes out it's flopping about?She widened her eyes and blushed. Aim?e.Raymond ordered the army to break camp. one of the nobles in charge. stepping into the center of the square. I could see in Sophie's eyes that she felt it too. a companion knight replied with an exaggerated sniff.Instead . her yellow hair pinned up for the workday under a white cap. confused. in formation. Are the mapmakers taking notes?I never knew that a peacock would so take to water. And. his brows arched. At any second he would strike the final blow. galloped down the line on their crested mounts.. dragging their armor. clattering to the ground. It almost seemed funny to me: this. the column came to a halt. His protection for your families who dutifully remain behind.Please . why.Everyone in town stood and stared. I had sworn in my heart to protect him.