forget the time?He slowly raised the wheel.

Whatever I had come for-freedom
Whatever I had come for-freedom. tearing at their sizzling faces and eyes..As we entered the town there were corpses everywhere. but where I'm headed a woman's comb may be looked at strangely. an odious smell coming from their flesh. bald. I grabbed my shield and ran after the boy. He has to accept. Others. It was a slaughter. they recounted. the towers. when a raiding party from our lord's rival in Digne swept through town during the wars. One by one.Many knights sank to their knees in prayer.We spotted red crosses painted everywhere. All I could do was scream. nonsense. Foot soldiers were hurling their lances up at the defenders.

The smallest hope flashed through me: maybe I could whack it across his ankles. What a glorious adventure awaited. My friend is rich! Rich. He fell from the horse.But just as the man's spear was inches from my throat. and from within. I would return both sweet smellingand free!Then the knights and nobles rallied us. bunching his lips. the bones of saints.Now I was free. Maybe I'll come back a knight. I knew any moment could be my last. At any second he would strike the final blow.I had to get out of here.Sir. it caused a terrible reaction.Knights took off their helmets and surveyed the city in awe. I had simply made him smile. No great loss.First it was the heat.

dropping them as they ran. a shroud stained by the tears of Mary and the very lance that had pierced the Savior's side on the cross. calling his name. his eyes like fiery coals.We spotted red crosses painted everywhere. he rushed toward me. I was sure. which attested not so much to their religious fervor as to their urge to inflict pain.Then he lowered his head and puked his guts out on the field.OUR POWERLESSNESS WAS SO OBVIOUS it was shameful to me. I handed him a stick that would be good for walking. our liege lord. slapping one another on the back.So.I gave him a wink. It was never known what became of her.She stopped and smiled at my plain flax tunic and calfskin vest. They're coming! They're almost here!From the east. giving the appearance that we were headed for a raid elsewhere. then let it be.

Women. lighting a cloth afire and tossing it to the earth. The irony was bursting through my sides. horrified. One day. We pounced on him and hacked him bloody..I am called Peter the Hermit. his blade caught the glint of a torch. we joined forces with Count Robert of Flanders and Bohemond of Antioch. Everyone pointed at a walled city nestled into the isthmus's edge. There was nothing left of them?A nauseating anger boiled up in my stomach. I saw that same knight. No reason to make one less. I remarked to Robert. in my lord's name. carts overladen with supplies. No one around can do the tricks I do.Disaster loomed in front of my eyes. It looked like bronze.

Go where ? There was something in his face. one step at a time. I dreamed about Sophie every night. I rose early.Whatkind of God inspired such horror? Was this God's fault? Or man's?Something snapped in me. When Alo broke the surface. I did not care about Antioch. We were lying as one on the straw mattress in our small quarters behind the inn. Free of my illusions.As far as the eye could see. Tonight you'll go to sleep fucking the emir's wife!The camp sprang alive.And the thirst. But every time a soldier moaned. Hugh. I put my hand on Robert's shoulder. to leave her this way. good and bad. just sixteen. not even for a moment.It was built on a sharp rise.

Word has reached him that a rabble passed through here a day ago. One was Nicodemus. the truth seemed so clear. or the little hermit will take all the spoils.There is the one about the convent and the whorehouse..It was a slaughter. to pick sunflowers for you. One by one. Arrows and spears followed them. A good-sized river.Robert bolted ahead. They were snooping for signs that Baldwin's own subjects had taken up the Cross. Freedom. From my vest pocket I took out a small sunflower. two miles..Nothing lay in our path toward the Holy Land except the Moslem stronghold of Antioch. I'll need it more when I come back. He smiled as if to say.

Others said the bird had more sense than us and got out while she was still alive.I came upon a Christian church. horrified.Norcross shouted. I squinted through the trees and felt my jaw drop.At first I stared in horror. wildly gasping for air.There was a ground-shaking rumble from the west.. I lifted the staff that had been in my hands when the Turk spared my life. I looked around. I thought we would live out our lives together.If it's martyrs you're looking for. The streets ran ankle deep with blood. I shouted. but the stone gave way. Then-eerie silence.The bastards are welcoming us. raising the knight's heavy torso. Oh.

I made one last prayer to Sophie. Six thousand. come quick. You are no soldier. I yelled. heads charred and roasted. the sun blocked by a hail of arrows.All of them. stepping into the center of the square. he boasted.. I was only a breath away from death and yet instead of panic and fear. and looked toward me. crossing the Bosporus on wooden pontoons.. but I stayed behind.Nicodemus started to answer. you must kill me in the name of what we donot embrace.Sophie and I watched as the column began to cross the stone bridge on the outskirts of our town. his white hair and beard billowing in the draft.

As I knelt beside him his eyes grew cloudy. seeming to split him in two. I stood paralyzed. Robert said behind me. Aim?e. Show them whose God is One.For freedom? Suddenly. our own conquering army spilled in. All signs that Peter's army had been through. if there were any fucking trees. It almost seemed funny to me: this. just because you're first at the party doesn't mean you get to sleep with the mistress of burberry factorythe house.At first. A calm came over me. almost dumbfounded. I was twice the boy's size. dragging their armor. Men simply dropped as they marched. Cluny Le Puy reciting our irreverent songs. she whispered.

black slaves from Africa. Robert shouted. it's not just God who watches over you.. horse and rider surrounded by a cloud of dust. ? I repeated. The poor warrior was empty of anything: a ring. Sophie.. but to kill these curs. I heard a struggling.I heard awful cries of death farther up the hill. Sophie sniffed. I thought there was a brothel. He leaped from his horse and thrashed around for Guillaume under the surface. An eternity in Heaven at the feet of our grateful Lord. I knew. We know. the sun blocked by a hail of arrows. God will reward you.

the rest were seized. Other than the inn. Robert cackled. past Robert and Nico..Then. Yet as he spoke. Ten of Paris could have fit within its walls. Men simply dropped as they marched. I knew.Then my mind fixed on the danger of the moment. Clad in colorful.St. Every time she moved. Yet he'd spared me. Hundreds of men were gathered there.Sophie.I will never forget that deafeningwhoosh. I lifted the staff that had been in my hands when the Turk spared my life. the stubborn Bohemond among them.

March.Finally. There was no way to defeat this horrible monster. But the laws of custom are the laws. ? It could not be! My mind flashed back to the cheerful faces and joyous voices of the hermit's army as it marched through Veille du P?re. The chatelain had dark. Spare him!He managed to kill the first one with a mighty sweep of his sword..As this became clear. which fell all the way down her back. They raised me as one of their own. The chatelain had dark. They're coming! They're almost here!From the east. Now that was just a mocking refrain in my dreams.Why.But every summit we surmounted brought the sight of a new peak.Guillaume's horse waded in. In that case. we constructed enormous siege engines.It's an army.

Robert squinted into the sun. I put my hand on Robert's shoulder. lofting some harmless arrows at us. Red crosses smeared all over the walls-in blood.. slowly depleting. hastily putting on his boots. I yelled. I saw men clearly over the edge guzzle their own urine as if it were ale.Slowly. I tried to sound cheerful. I could see in Sophie's eyes that she felt it too. sometimes dragging a companion along with him. There was nothing more to say. The smallest hope flashed through me: maybe I could whack it across his ankles. No one wanted to delay in our rush to catch up with the army of Peter. Then the devils moved on to us. our commander.She nodded. My eyes locked helplessly on him as he stumbled in his long robe.

A full minute passed before the new rider was able to reach the area.The longer the horrible siege went on. missing me by the width of a blade. It was only luck to avoid death at any point. to break the mood. I thought we would live out our lives together. mock waving. Isn't that right. A Seljuk horde of thousands surrounded the city and simply waited them out.' the abbess replies. people shouted. Full battle gear.' she says. Something my life in Veille du P?re had stilled but not completely put aside.. plunging my sword into his neck and watching a flow of blood rush out of the warrior's mouth. Each town we got to was scorched and empty. raped. There was nothing left of them?A nauseating anger boiled up in my stomach.Outside Civetot we had our first taste of the enemy.

missing me by the width of a blade. All I saw was the glimmer of his studded glove as the hilt of a sword crashed across my skull.Robert and I pushed our way through the crowd and peered out over the edge of the gulf.In a flash he was gone.. again.I'll be back in a year . Riches.A knight pushed up the trail. Nicodemus said grimly..My heart pounded under my tunic.. A few latecomers in clean armor rushed by me. which Nicodemus had taught me.The longer Antioch survived. You smell it. and told of the fate of Peter the Hermit's army. counting the beats that Alo remained under. his hope that none of you were swayed by the ravings of that religious crank.

Then he sneered.I began to laugh.But the satchel slid out of my grasp.. If one of our illustrious leaders hears you. crowding the massive walls. In that case. Robert shouted. I saw the first ram approach the main gate. He went and cupped the face of the cowering boy in his massive hand. daylight darkened. we fitted the comb's halves together and made a whole. He scanned our village from atop his mount and remarked loudly. then fight for the glory of your liege when called upon.. Yet all I could do was laugh. From behind the mill's door came the sickening cries of Aim?e.It was the image I carried for the next two years. Those are Turk!FOR TWO WEEKS we rested outside the gates of Constantinople. Our pace quickened.

like an eighth-moon. their chargers useless. I will be back. how to read and write.Every couple of days. I squinted through the trees and felt my jaw drop. A detachment. Father? Is this what you expect from the Pope's protection? He lowered the wheel again and the small boy disappeared. even before the sun. their white tunics ablaze. or where. Nico had made pilgrimages to the Holy Land and knew the language of the Turk. I knelt down and touched his hand. and though I knew it was probably my last breath. loomed over me. Robert said as we marched. taunting and mocking us. I heard Sophie scream.Our bodies cried. Are you taking notes?The raucous laughter continued for a time as we waited for the knight to emerge.

Stumbling on a ledge. The Army of the Crusade. I only wanted to go home. Then. softly moaning with pleasure and love. and the mood in the ranks brightened with anticipation of what lay ahead. it was said.. The falling rocks must have spooked it. It seems he wasn't cut out for the miller's life after all. passing from horror to horror. Robert took his place. You must let go.Nothing lay in our path toward the Holy Land except the Moslem stronghold of Antioch. laughter had entered my soul. the trail ahead was lined with large white rocks.. Panic clutched at my heart. I defended Robert. schooled in the sciences and languages.

I knew she was trying to be brave. I dreamed about Sophie every night.soldiers. Its frightened eyes showed that the animal was aware of the danger. and juggling for the crowds. roaring with cheers. Rumor had it some holy relics were held ransom there. I think the duke's point is adequately driven home.Norcross finally began to raise the wheel. For a moment I almost raised my hand and called out. then pointed east. children. transfixed by the awful corpses of the Turks. start with this.As he spoke. as if he were evaluating whether to leave me in the same condition as the Turk.The longer the horrible siege went on. confused. Riches and spoils picked up along the way. unprotected-chopped to bits in their tents.

not their swords. on a holy crusade that I never really believed in.Mocking us was more like it.My throat went dry. his small eyes moving from person to person. you will think this was Paradise. I will carry his expression with me for the rest of my life. Its feet were unable to hold the trail.I know that is a pile of shit. carrot-top. Jesus. Then-eerie silence.I stood before her. I was twice the boy's size. from the same building.She had nearly drifted off to sleep. heads charred and roasted. I said.'Aroused. do I forget the time?He slowly raised the wheel.