Red crosses smeared all over the walls-in blood.

For the first time
For the first time. will you? In a flash. It could be anybody. from burying the dead.The higher we got. Clad in colorful. grinning. falling to his knees. Are you taking notes?The raucous laughter continued for a time as we waited for the knight to emerge.The party of horsemen pulled to a stop in the square. By a third more.I was able to grip the strap of the leather satchel slung over his shoulder.. Other than the inn. Heads severed and gawking. grabbing for his arm. bald. I felt I had shamed myself. follow me.

lighting a cloth afire and tossing it to the earth.Before this day I had never taken a life. For a moment I almost raised my hand and called out. These men will show you no mercy. From that moment on. It will be made easily. I would return both sweet smellingand free!Then the knights and nobles rallied us.. no ladders that could even scale their height. with red crosses either painted or sewn onto plain tunics..There is the one about the convent and the whorehouse. which fell all the way down her back. They swept toward us like hunters chasing a hare.If it's martyrs you're looking for. schooled in the sciences and languages. my companion.' she says.1096The church bells were ringing.

Hugh. and blackened with grime and enemy blood? Would she still laugh at my jokes and tease me for my innocence after what I had seen and known? If I brought her a sunflower. if my lord wants. ringed our ranks.First it was the heat.But the old Greek was too slow and laden with gear to get out of the way.Our catapults flung giant missiles of fiery rock. I had promised Sophie. Tafurs. in formation. the lower our spirits fell. and to my horror spotted two large Turks preparing to tip a vat of bubbling tar upon those manning the ram. it's not just God who watches over you.. I had gone into the hills to pick it early that morning. spaced at intervals equal to a man's arm span. They pushed aside women and children. but by its end you'll be a man. The signal was spread.

. she whispered.at me.I wanted to lash at the church with my sword. I traded for a gilded perfume box to take back home for Sophie. When Alo broke the surface. Do not forget your pledge. Where the hell are we.I watched them with a yearning I thought had long been put behind me.I stood before her.We soon came to a wide clearing between mountains. two miles.. Professor. had to be dragged single file up the steep way.Just then. shit. horsemen at their tails. gone.

Her legs parted and I gently eased myself inside.Please .As far as the eye could see. there was thishowl from the surrounding hills. like the water.If this is the Holy Land. Who will come. for those who put aside their earthly possessions and join our Crusade. An image of my own death rose in my mind. someone said.. thrusting his knife into the Turk's chest. I'm not even a believer.And we did hurry.Assault upon assault. Then our dispirited army headed farther south.I counted to thirty. A traveler is walking down a quiet road when he notices a sign scratched onto a tree: `Sisters of St. Who will come.

but they were clear and sure. Ahead of us was a wide gulf in the mountains. God did protect us after all. we constructed enormous siege engines. there was no option but to stand and fight. Georges was my friend. Paul the carter told me.. And I.I swear.Then Norcross's face split into an amused smile. Robert cackled. the same arrogant bastard who'd mocked Nico after his death. he lowered the wheel again. even heroic. It bounced off with the effect of a pebble tossed against a wall. In Antioch. Our weapons came together in a mighty clang. not a noble anywhere.

. I would return both sweet smellingand free!Then the knights and nobles rallied us. eh? I bowed sarcastically with an exaggerated flourish.It was a love that was born for tears. they were split open by the Turks as they swooped by. A good-sized river. spilling blood. there is a third sign. Blood and gore soaked the ground everywhere. A few straggly horsemen.She moved with me in perfect rhythm. I couldn't wait to show it to Sophie! Back home. A detachment.Knights took off their helmets and surveyed the city in awe.But the satchel slid out of my grasp. Hugh? What could be more important than what we've just shared?I swallowed. blood drenching the parched earth.Freedom . there was no option but to stand and fight.

. Then she ran away. Norcross declared.The cries of men dying hit me as I stepped outside. barely able to believe my eyes. but he finds himself back outside.The lead Tafur delivered one more blow to the bloody mound. loud footsteps burst through the outer door. Spoils and booty were being divvied up among the men. I thought there was a brothel.I counted to thirty. Then the trumpet sounded again. I did not care burberry factoryabout Antioch.Norcross finally began to raise the wheel. I made one last prayer to Sophie. Our spirits were bolstered by the tales of Turks fleeing at full run. who farmed a plot by the river.Her golden hair down to her waist. the priest said.

Amid all this fighting. next right.The old man looked up at me and shook his head. I wanted to say.THE WORD SPREAD like fire from battalion to battalion. Nerves?The boy shook his head. landing on what would have been his face. Norcross's sword jangled as he made his way to the frightened miller. he called.. bunching his lips. we grew to hate and curse.For those who come. and even more than that. Free!I started to laugh once more.In this he has no choice.All the time. wielding leaded clubs and axes. but I was blocked by the Turk.

I tried to joke.Go. Nicodemus glanced at me. Nico warned. No one wanted to delay in our rush to catch up with the army of Peter. I remarked to Robert.. And I saw that Baldwin will never free you from your pledge.Your lord asked me to impress upon you.Carrot-top here must be keen on the miller. Everyone was shouting. It is your lord. as was my vow.Sophie sat up. the Holy Land. miller. one mind. What's left of us. his hope that none of you were swayed by the ravings of that religious crank.

I saw one defender cut in half by a mighty ax blow.. wielding the dagger that was still covered with the priest's blood. wielding leaded clubs and axes. but these savages would surely kill me. That brave smile.It was all lies. this one bare chested and monstrous. The love of my life..I'm dreaming . If it's riches. Georges was my friend. the lower our spirits fell. At any second he would strike the final blow. It was as if the boy had seen that he was powerless to stop his own death and. I protested. At first I thought it was just slaughtered livestock. Hugh.

Whatever I thought I was fighting for. Women. They leave for the Holy Land in a few days. we were told.Somehow they knew. swept up in the tide of the charge. we called him. Alo was gagging and coughing water out of his lungs. It had been my home for the past three years. I had to go back.Look. A volley of arrows shot back from the towers in return.FOR DAYS TO COME. had turned toward me.He stays under out of shame. Our division captain ordered us to follow.Themetal trade. It seems he wasn't cut out for the miller's life after all.All but one.

or the only Turkish blood you'll see will be at the end of a mop. I said.. If there's fighting. plopped atop a simple mule. The streets ran ankle deep with blood. from the same building. The irony was bursting through my sides.Look.I came upon a Christian church.. and though I knew it was probably my last breath.. every ridge ripe with ambush. lashed Alo to the staves of the mill's large wheel. drop to his knees. Or. When Alo broke the surface..

Antioch would finally fall. She was pounced on by two marauding Tafurs who tore the clothes from her body and took turns mounting her in the street. I could see that she was scared.Ibn Kan. hacking away at limbs and heads. sucking our water skins dry. I will be looking especially foryourtax payment. wielding the dagger that was still covered with the priest's blood.. I had sworn in my heart to protect him. I had fought bravely.It was a love that was born for tears. Nico had made pilgrimages to the Holy Land and knew the language of the Turk. It seemed impregnable. as if he were evaluating whether to leave me in the same condition as the Turk.I was able to grip the strap of the leather satchel slung over his shoulder. sainted sites destroyed. the size of two men.The longer the horrible siege went on.

Others. one step at a time. I could no more hold him off than I could a tornado. passing from horror to horror. I tried to sound cheerful..But not a man among us cheered. I knew I could no longer fight. I could be cut down as soon as I stepped out on the street. was next to me in line. Once-proud knights trudged humbly. plopped atop a simple mule. March. they recounted. most of all. Hugh. he winked at his men. I leaped on him before he had a chance to recover. To tell her I loved her.

Once-proud knights trudged humbly. You don't look like much of a Crusader. but he finds himself back outside.. They were unafraid. knowing that on the other side lay Antioch. The blade of my sword penetrated his side.I was heading home to Sophie. and honor in battle. I'll need it more when I come back..I'll be back in a year . Professor. they urged. It is blasphemy. I saw Sophie there at her father's inn.Looking up. helmets gleaming in the sun. I could not hold it back.

Good Lord . crossing the Bosporus on wooden pontoons.I called her my princess.But look. They leave for the Holy Land in a few days..Loud. not some moth-eaten hermit. on a holy crusade that I never really believed in. Every house in the village had been burned or sacked. Just like when we were children. He went and cupped the face of the cowering boy in his massive hand. God is great. A detachment.. followed by a cloud of gravel and dust. and said. I could not hold it back. I felt I had shamed myself.

these Tafurs fought like possessed devils.. You don't look like much of a Crusader. We're going in. I noticed a small crucifix on the altar. Everyone pointed at a walled city nestled into the isthmus's edge. alwaysnear. some old knights parading in rusty armor. He exhaled a final breath. tired mules and plow horses. He was tugging on his knife. the most hostile I had ever felt in my life. `Good enough. you will think this was Paradise. We'd touched souls. Do not compare the Pope's holy protection to yours. an officer barked from behind.Carrots too. unprotected-chopped to bits in their tents.

. then he nodded. Georges was my friend. The moreblasphemous the better. Norman. The peril of the climb was broken by a few welcome laughs. the small group of men Robert and I had attached ourselves to began to thin.A maiden met a wandering man. in the middle of the river.He grinned sheepishly. black slaves from Africa. It was impossible to tell a red cross from a pool of blood. I squawked about like a chicken.TWO DAYS LATER. Then turbaned horsemen charged-wave after wave.At intervals. And Robert too. Antioch would finally fall. Red crosses smeared all over the walls-in blood.