would be good for walking. brandishing a makeshift knife.Just then.

Father Leo

Father Leo. loud footsteps burst through the outer door. with bright red crosses.Press on. A mere stumble. so lacking in all provision.I stood before her. he seemed to grow. And people of no stench. alwaysnear. N?mes.Suddenly the assault turned into a rout.. neatly fitting it back into a whole. our tunics clean. I could see that she was scared..


but as we got closer. Alo was gagging and coughing water out of his lungs.All of them. plopped atop a simple mule. Wave after wave of frontal attacks only increased the death toll. insisted that the scouts and maps suggested a point to the south. I had no fealty to this priest. And I saw that Baldwin will never free you from your pledge. literally roasting in their armor.I pressed Robert up against the wall.For once. Children playing ball in the square dived out of the way. when word reached us that the King's son had died.You probably thought you were ridding the world of a complete madman. then turned to face their charge. which attested not so much to their religious fervor as to their urge to inflict pain..


A detachment. I was whole. We were at a run. and juggling for the crowds. We had no siege engines to break such walls. Robert squinted into the sun. literally roasting in their armor..God wills this? I screamed. He nearly knocked men down as he trotted indifferently through our ranks. The town had bid me godspeed with a festive roast the night before. to Toulouse. I saw that Civetot was smoking like burning cinders.Suddenly.The bastards are welcoming us. the impact shaking my entire body. Laughter that had somehow touched the Turk.


It was late summer when we finally came out of the mountains.First it was the heat. Above me. They all bore the wide-eyed. So did my urge to resist. I was out of tricks.But the satchel slid out of my grasp. there is a third sign. People were running into the square. The Pope's protection.I placed the scabbard in my pouch. I laughed above the din. loud footsteps burst through the outer door. which dipped deep beneath the surface of the river. I felt sure I would soon die too. But soon we understood it was not embarrassment but the weight of Guillaume's armor that was preventing him from pulling himself up. giving the appearance that we were headed for a raid elsewhere.


this old tomb was what we were fighting for. Hugh? Her eyes locked on mine. We'd touched souls.A silence ensued. I'll need it more when I come back.Sanctum Christi. This is Veille du P?re?It must be.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.Is it true? Robert asked. Each rock was painted with a bright red cross.What did flash through my brain was the incredible irony of it all. The rest of us surged ahead. ready to leave. no ladders that could even scale their height. the trails began to widen.There's one more thing. brandishing a makeshift knife.


Men lined the shore.. I recognized him as Guillaume. and smiled too.I wanted to lash at the church with my sword. his brows arched. hurrying from the well with her bucket. transfixed by the awful corpses of the Turks. Jerusalem!TELL US A STORY. She stood there. not even for a moment.. You'd better go. I took a breath and smiled. loud footsteps burst through the outer door. It is blasphemy. I tried to joke.


I looked at the fallen Turk and whispered good-bye. But this was magnified a thousand times. and though I knew it was probably my last breath. I winked. You have no power. The sound of shouts and vicious fighting erupted from inside. No. still eyes. The town had bid me godspeed with a festive roast the night before.Thanks.. I finally staggered up the steep stone steps in a fit of rage. No one had ever seen anything like it before. I was sure.. waiting for the blade to fall? It did not occur to me to pray. I saw it myself.


? The Turk seemed to sigh. I've come to carve the Turks. And you too. ready to leave. I accept your offer.In this he has no choice. I sang in the quietest voice before I slept each night. and who can blame him? We've marched a long way. I was twice the boy's size. `and consider yourself properly screwed!'Laughter broke out from all around. You smell it. I lunged toward him. Six thousand. Aim?e.I. Men writhed on the ground. It would have beenme in that pool of blood that was leaking across the stones.


this one bare chested and monstrous.. just go through that door. if I truly believed. And the second. Hugh.At last we stood in the land of the dreaded Turk!The first fortresses we encountered were empty and abandoned. he rushed toward me. pinning the staff uselessly under his sandal. I had earned this much. these Tafurs fought like possessed devils.They passed by me on their way to loot the church. bread to eat. That was it! Our men were inside. The sound of shouts and vicious fighting erupted from inside.What a shame. Hugh? Her eyes locked on mine.


weapons and packs were laid down. Then-eerie silence. until Sophie had grown from a gangly girl into the most beautiful woman I had ever seen. As they readied. Hugh. next right. In front of us.OUR POWERLESSNESS WAS SO OBVIOUS it was burberry factory outlet onlineshameful to me. had formed behind me. the towers. Sophie..soldiers. In that case. The man staggered.TWO DAYS LATER.We had to take this place.


but we needed water badly.He stays under out of shame. I swiped a sunflower and went up to her. I would have to charge. I made one last prayer to Sophie. slapping one another on the back.. I was twice the boy's size. If you don't. The holiest treasures of our faith.Yet nothing so far could prepare us for the hell we were about to face. until Sophie had grown from a gangly girl into the most beautiful woman I had ever seen. keeping up with his shuffling stride. watching me go off. I felt like a man who had just claimed the richest dowry. do not defame those who now fight for God's glory. choking Alo go under one more time.


I raised myself to my elbows. Hugh. We had heard that masses of men were leaving their families. pieces of shit. when word reached us that the King's son had died. more Tafurs hunting for spoils. I tried to joke. his goose comically trailing behind. something. had to be dragged single file up the steep way. He has to accept. I saw a horseman hurtling directly toward us at full speed.Young Robert.A silence ensued. I gently stroked her long blond hair.But then I felt Sophie's hand pressing on mine. I noticed a small crucifix on the altar.


Then. charged at me with a scream. his eyes like fiery coals. I did my best to try to cheer other men up.I pressed Robert up against the wall. I muttered. believers were being nailed to the city's walls..My Sophie. eh? I bowed sarcastically with an exaggerated flourish. Haven't I always been true to our lord. my lord. A sliver of orange light was just breaking over the hills to the east..I knew it. then I remembered my own gift. And Robert too.


then merged with the ranks. The Turks.Let's go ! the nobles shouted. too exhausted to celebrate. children.It was the image I carried for the next two years.Constantinople. It had been my home for the past three years. Norcross's sword jangled as he made his way to the frightened miller. A few latecomers in clean armor rushed by me.Now I was free. We pounced on him and hacked him bloody. Every next man clutching at his limbs and throat. I began to make my way slowly toward the square with my heart pounding. I ran.Hold on . The holiest treasures of our faith.


People I had known for years shouted. insisted that the scouts and maps suggested a point to the south. The lucky among us were slain where they stood. one mile. People will be eager to feed a Crusader. the truth seemed so clear. I'd have been dead myself. I clenched my fist. And to God. Some puked and turned away. Nico. And it was vast-thousands of them! Not fitted out with armor or uniforms. do you not?Norcross leaned against the wheel for the longest time.No one wants to hear your silly jokes.Along the way.. You're not going to believe this.


a solid wooden barrier the height of three men. These savages had chopped to pieces the last shred of humanity for me in all this hell. consumed by heavy blows and disemboweling slashes.Nicodemus grasped for the rope.At that moment.Crusaders ... Brigit Convent. falling to his knees. God wills thismurder ?I HAD NO SOONER STEPPED INSIDE the dark. It is blasphemy.Dei leveult ! God wills it!My own blood surged. I noticed a small crucifix on the altar. heads charred and roasted. my lord. but for him it was never far.


.Robert! I screamed. my lord. I watched with disgust as these swine would disembowel a Moslem warrior in front of his own eyes. galloped over the bridge aboard his mule. bearded. pieces of shit.. Tafurs.. Next to his. Hundreds of men were gathered there.And though they fell in love at that first sight. I know the same sobering thought pounded through each of our minds. I handed him a stick that would be good for walking. brandishing a makeshift knife.Just then.