Brethren [antikvár]

IAyn Jalut (The Pools of Goliath), the Kingdom ojJerusalem3 September 1260 adThe sun was approaching its zenith, dominating the sky and turning the deep ochre of the desert to a bleached bone-white. Buzzards circled the crowns of the hills that ringed the plain of Ayn Jalut and their abrasive cries hung on the air, caught in the solidity of the heat. On the western edge of the plain, where the hills stretched their bare limbs down to the sands, were two thousand men on armoured horses. Their swords and shields gleamed, the steel too hot to touch, and although their surcoats and turbans did little to protect them from the sun' s savagery no one spoke of his discomfort.Mounted on a black horse at the vanguard of the Bahri regiment, Baybars Bundukdari, their commander, reached for the water skin that was fastened to his belt beside two sabres, the blades of which were notched and pitted with use. After taking a draught he rolled his shoulders to loosen the stiffened joints. The band of his white turban was wet with sweat and the coat of mail that he wore beneath his blue cloak felt unusually heavy. The morning was wearing on, the heat gaining in strength, and although the water soothed Baybars' dry throat it couldn't quench a deeper thirst that blistered within him.'Amir Baybars,' murmured one of the younger officers mounted beside him. 'Time is passing. The scouting party should have returned by now.''They will return soon, Ismail. Have patience.' As Baybars re-tied the water skin to his belt, he studied the silent ranks of the Bahri regiment that lined the sands behind him. The faces of his men all wore the same grim expression he had seen in many front lines before battle. Soon those expressions would change. Baybars had seen the boldest warriors pale when confronted with a line of enemy fighters that mirrored their own. But when the time came they would fight without hesitation, for they were soldiers of the Mamluk army: the slave warriors of Egypt.