The Knights of the Cross, or, Krzyzacy: Historical RomanceSienkiewicz, Henryk
History
The Knights of the Cross, or, Krzyzacy: Historical Romance
Sienkiewicz, Henryk
Poland -- History -- Jagellons, 1386-1572 -- Fiction; Teutonic Knights -- History -- Fiction
The hall still resounded with the terrible cry: "Save me!" when the body
of the count struck the stone floor with such terrible force that the
brains from the shattered skull bespattered Zygfried and Rotgier who
stood by. Jurand sprang to the wall, near which stood the arms, and
snatching a large two-handed weapon, ran like a storm at the Germans, who
were petrified with terror. The people were used to battles, butchery and
blood, and yet their hearts sank to such an extent that even after the
panic had passed, they commenced to retreat and escape like a flock of
sheep before a wolf who kills with one stroke of his claws. The hall
resounded with the cry of terror, with the sound of human footsteps, the
clang of the overturned vessels, the howling of the servants, the
growling of the bear, who, tearing himself out of the hands of the
trainer, started to climb on a high window, and a terror-stricken cry for
arms and targets, weapons and crossbows. Finally weapons gleamed, and a
number of sharp points were directed toward Jurand, but he, not caring
for anything, half crazed, sprang toward them, and there commenced an
unheard-of wild fight, resembling a butchery more than a contest of arms.
The young and fiery Brother Godfried was the first to intercept Jurand's
way, but he severed his head, hand and shoulder-blade with a lightning
swing of his weapon; after him fell by Jurand's hand the captain of the
archers, and the castle administrator, von Bracht and the Englishman
Hugues, who, although he did not very well understand the cause, pitied
Jurand and his sufferings, and only drew his weapon when Danveld was
killed. Others, seeing the terrible force and the fury of the man,
gathered closely together, so as to offer combined resistance, but this
plan brought about a still greater defeat, because he, with his hair
standing upright on his head, with maddened eyes, covered all over with
blood, panting, raging and furious, broke, tore and cut with terrible
strokes of his sword that battered group, casting men to the floor,
splashed all over with clotted blood, as a storm overturns bushes and
trees. Then followed a moment of terrific fright, in which it seemed that
this terrible Mazovian, all by himself, would hew and slay all these
people. Like a pack of barking hounds that cannot overpower a fierce boar
without the assistance of the hunters, so were those armed Germans; they
could not match his might and fierceness in that fight which resulted
only in their death and discomfiture.
"Scatter! surround him! strike from behind!" shrieked old Zygfried von
Löve.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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