Barbaric Gaul: Chapter One

Gaul, Barbarians, Franks, war, bloodshed. Among all this, there was a village, small, but large in their time. In the center was a hill with the castle of Lord Aldrich. A wall surrounded it. There were two walls, one connecting the wall to the castle, and the other separating the courtyard from the other side of the Keep. On the other side were the stables and servants’ quarters. There was a path leading down to the village. There were also two gates in the wall surrounding the village. One was the main gate, and the other was the gate to the fields of Lord Aldrich. On the hill where his castle was set the animals that worked in the fields were kept in stables.

We shall not put are focus on the castle yet, but on a large family that lives in the village. They had three sons and five daughters. The eldest, a daughter, was Bernadine at nineteen. Marschal was eleven. Talon was ten year old. Savill, a daughter, was eight. Garoson, her younger brother was seven. Maria was six years old. Qunnel, the youngest boy was and Salina, the baby daughter was only one. Bernadine, being the eldest of the eight, worked in Lord Aldrich’s field stables. On a warm, fine spring day, Bernadine and Marschal were gazing out a window while the other members of the family were in a different place of the home.

“Bernadine, “What do thee think of the Franks?”
“Cruel and wicked,” replied Bernadine.
“Why do thee think that?”
“Because they art barbarians.”
“Where hast thou heard that?”
“I hast not heard, I know”
“Hast thou ever seen one?”
“The spy.”
“To scare us, they art trying”
“Would anyone try to, Marschal?”
“I hast never seen one, and they say they attack many a time.”
“Mother hid thee and thou sisters and brothers.”
“So, never will they break in?”
“Never will thou know.”
“Look around Bernadine. We hast strong walls and men.”
“Thou hast never seen one or how they art strong.”
“I’m not afraid.”
“Thou might be, if thee see what they do.”
“Do thou not think they art afraid of us?”
“Marschal. Oh, Marschal.”
“Bernadine.”
“Canst thou sit here speaking of franks as they art good when burning and killing they might do now”
“But I do not believe.”
Bernadine sat in silence, and then spoke. “Ignorant, thou art being ignorant.”
Then Marschal stood up, a look of fury was on his face. They glanced at each other, and Marschal opened the door and slammed it shut.

Early in the morning, Bernadine walked to the stables. The sun was just beginning to rise, and most of the village was just beginning to stir. She carried a small meal in a brown satchel that was slung around her shoulders. When she had walked up the short path, she and a boy named Ferrand, unhitched the stall for the cattle. Twenty there were, each took ten, two at a time.

“Ferrand, do thee think thou will always do thy work here”? asked Bernadine, when they were both taking two cattle to the fields.
“I do hope I will”, he answered. The sun had just slightly risen, and the grass glinted with the early morning dew. An arrow whizzed passed her ear, hitting a cattle in the heart so he fell on the ground dead. Ferrand and Bernadine looked into each other’s eyes; their eyes were wide with shock.
”Franks”? Ferrand asked.
“I fear,” answered she. And more queer things were to happen.