Page 18 of Wolf Heir
“You have wits,” Aodhan said as Coinneach came in for a counterattack and easily swept Aodhan's sword to the side with a clank.
“You carry a Viking sword,” Aodhan finally said, noticing the weapon Coinneach carried.
Coinneach did, though he hadn’t had the honor of killing the Viking, and he didn’t want to let on that he did. Since Aisling had sworn him to secrecy that she had killed the Viking as a wolf, he’d kept her secret, though he’d wanted to tell everyone of her bravery, that Aisling had killed the raider as a wolf.
“Mayhap you are better at sword fighting than I gave you credit for.”
While Aodhan was wasting his breath in conversation, Coinneach was strategizing. Somehow, he had to take down the mountain of a man before Coinneach wore out.
He rushed forth, getting so close that he caught Aodhan off guard. He grabbed Aodhan’s massive arms, his sword still in hand, slid his leg behind Aodhan’s right leg, and, kicking back, shoved him hard at the same time with all his might.
Despite or maybe because of Aodhan’s massive bulk and size, the giant couldn’t stop himself from falling and landed on his back on the ground.
Coinneach, relieved to the gods that the maneuver had worked on a man that size, a maneuver he had practiced with Tamhas until his brother could take Coinneach down, was worried now that Aodhan would be furious and take him to task.
Aodhan sat up and actually grinned at him. “You are all right.”
Coinneach offered his hand to Aodhan to help him up as a gesture of friendship. Aodhan could have pulled him right down, but he took Coinneach’s hand and helped himself up, mostly on his own. Then Coinneach realized that more than half the fighting men were watching them.
They all cheered to see that the bout had ended on friendly terms.
“You will sit beside me at the meal,” Aodhan said. “Now go. Fight someone your own size.”
Coinneach laughed. “You are a fearsome warrior to be reckoned with. If you’d hit my sword even once, I would have been done for.”
“It would never have happened. Not with your fleetness of foot.”
Coinneach inclined his head in thanks, then went off to fight someone else, but no one seemed to want to fight him after he had beaten Aodhan, even if it was in an unusual way.
Alasdair joined him and slapped him on the back. “I nearly died when I saw you take on Chief Hamish’s champion. You did well, my friend. Come, fight me so you can get in some more practice.”
AodhanwasHamish’s champion just like he’d suspected!
After Coinneach and Aodhan fought, both had sweat beading their chests and faces. Both were flushed with exertion, their hearts beating wildly from their previous fights. Coinneach glanced around for Aisling.
Giving him a half smile, she looked relieved that he hadn’t gotten himself killed. He was relieved he hadn’t either.
“Let’s do it.” Coinneach had wanted to fight others to prove to himself that he could. But Alasdair had been trained well, and so any practice proved helpful.
They squared off and were about the same size, so Coinneach could still get a workout.
“You were holding out on me,” Alasdair said.
“How’s that?”
“You have to teach me that maneuver you used to take Aodhan down. Chief Hamish asked me who you are.”
“Oh?” Coinneach struck Alasdair’s sword and knocked him back a few paces.
To their surprise, another man stopped them and said to Coinneach, “I’ll take you on.”
Alasdair looked to see if Coinneach agreed.
Coinneach nodded. “More later, Alasdair.”
“Aye, to be sure.”
Coinneach was glad to fight someone else who might use some techniques different from what Alasdair had taught him and his brother.
