King Constantin greeted an invitation to make the long journey south to an urgent meeting hosted by Aethelflaed, the Lady warrior of the Miercians, with mixed reactions. Curious to meet the famed daughter of King Alfred, he was also reluctant to leave his homeland in troubled times. His western borders were more secure with his brother, Dyfnwal, installed as King of Strathclyde, but the menace of the Norsemen loomed once more.
Their devastations in Ireland he considered too close for liking. Thanks to this Miercian noblewoman, the Viking fleet suffered defeat a few days past. She sent Saxon ships led by an ealdorman from Kent, named Ecgwulf, to confront them. The King’s brow furrowed, he did not know this Ecgwulf but how he would like to clasp his hand for obtaining a victory that helped
