After the Battle at the Spile
With the Sweon survivors of the Battle of the Spile fleeing into the interior of Bardsey Island, Wiglaf gathers together his jugath – the young, lightly armed element of his host – to mount a pursuit. His gesith, Heathwulf the Swift, puts them in order and splits them into small groups, each led by warrior with a hunting horn. A set of horn signals are agreed and the groups dispersed to hunt their quarry.
Gadd and Deorwulf were amongst those seeking vengeance and loot from the remnant of the Sweon invader. They paired up with a waelcyrige named Nothgyth and called the Ugly for her scar-ravaged visage and rasping voice and a young lad named Eadric. A brief altercation between Gadd and Nothgyth established the latter was in charge and she led the group into the wooded hills of Bardsey.
Deorwulf proved the most skilful in finding tracks. He soon spotted a set of heavy shod boots heading north but as he was tracking the party heard a horn call indicating a contact had been made nearby. They rushed to the source only to find that a rival band of Geats already had the matter in hand and their help was not needed.
They moved onwards and soon picked up another set of promising tracks. These appeared to suggest two carrying a third wounded man. The tracks led into a thicket and Deorwulf entered to explore. He saw the legs and lower torso what appeared to be the corpse of a well-armoured warrior, freshly slain. As he moved to investigate he found himself strangely enveloped in a mass of thorny branches from which he was only extricated with difficulty by his comrades. Nothgyth quickly identified that this was a Wose Wife’s grove.
Greed struggled with fear in their discourse. It was clear that this was a man of status, wearing a byrnie and carrying other battle gear of value. Yet his goods could not be obtained without slaying the Wose Wife. Nothgyth was less concerned about this than the return or pursuit of the Wose himself, for they were known to be fearsome and vengeful wights who seldom strayed far from their brood-mates. Eventually fear, or perhaps wisdom prevailed and the party withdrew.
It being now late in the day they set up a campsite. In the night a band of Pukelings came upon them – for Bardsey is wild country where wights of all sorts abound. The party slew several and took no deaths themselves but by morning all bore wounds and so decided to the main encampment with only the paltry booty of the Pukelings to show for their efforts. When they arrived they learnt of the capture of one of the Earls who had led the Sweon host. He had escaped wounded with two faithful gesiths, 0ne of whom had perished in a Wose Wife’s grove.