A Border Raid by L.L. Weedon
Long John o' the Limp, an old lame moss-trooper, sits in the sun by Langley Tower polishing his gauntlets while little Mistress Alison Langley and her brother Jocelyn set out with a gerfalcon to hawk on the Red Moss. Jocelyn flies the falcon at a heron and makes his kill, but armed men appear on the moss. Fleeing across the treacherous quagmire, Alison's pony flounders until a strange bearded man, who turns out to be the Scottish reiver Wat Armstrong of Bannockbrae, rescues her and asks the way to Langley Tower. Jocelyn thanks him for saving his sister but realizes the danger, and the two children race for home as Armstrong recognizes their fair Langley hair and gives chase with his forty moss-troopers. They outrun the reivers and reach the Tower, where Long John raises the alarm. Jocelyn sends Alison off to rouse the countryside, warn the Long House to fire the Lattfell beacon, and alert the Charltons and Musgraves, while he and Long John, with Halbert, Jock, and Tam Foster, bar the grille and prepare to defend the peel. Black Wat Armstrong rides up demanding Ned Langley come forth, mocking Long John, and orders his men to break down the door. Halbert's crossbow bolt kills one attacker, and as the reivers batter the grille with a sledgehammer, the defenders hurl rocks from the parapet, killing Hal o' the Cleuch, whose son Halbert is among the defenders. The reivers fire the byre, and under cover of the smoke, Armstrong has his men lash two ladders together to climb through the second-story window. A rock thrown by Jocelyn, at Long John's urging, topples the ladder and kills the climber below Armstrong, leaving Armstrong himself clinging to the window bars as his men scramble to pile hay to break any fall. Before he can escape, Captain Langley arrives galloping with fifty men of Northumberland and Alison at his side, scattering the reivers, who flee toward the Bateable Land, leaving Armstrong trapped at the window. Langley has Armstrong brought down by ladder rather than killed, telling him he is sparing him because he spoke Alison fair and saved her, and that he must leave horses and harness to pay for the burnt byre. Armstrong, recalling that Langley burned his own Tower of Bannockbrae, hears Langley's reminder that Armstrong had first slain his brother. After a tense pause, Armstrong offers his hand, praises Langley's generosity, and gives his word that Langley Peel will go free of Wat Armstrong from then on. The two men clasp hands to the cheers of the onlookers, Langley has a horse brought for the reiver, and Long John leads a parting cheer from the Tower top as Armstrong rides away, with peace restored to the border.
By L.L. Weedon · Genre: Historical Fiction, Adventure, Action Fiction · 3,511 words
First lines
LONG John o' the Limp sat with his back against the mounting-block, polishing a pair of steel gauntlets.
The sun, not a great way as yet above the low peat hills that edged the little valley to eastwards, flung the shadow of the grey peel-tower far along the grass, and Long John o' the Limp shifted his legs to bring them into the sunshine.
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Genres
- Historical Fiction — Set in the Scottish-English border region with references to historical figures, events, and authentically depicted customs of 16th-century border warfare and settlement life.
- Adventure — The plot centers on a perilous pursuit, tower defense, and escape sequences with sustained dramatic tension and physical danger driving the narrative.
- Action Fiction — Features combat scenes, military tactics, raids, pursuit sequences, and hand-to-hand conflict that form the core narrative movement.
- Border Ballad — Directly depicts moss-troopers, Scottish reivers, and border conflict in the tradition of border ballad literature, with themes of raid and retribution common to the genre.
Tags
border raid · Scottish reivers · tower defense · Northumberland · medieval · heroic adventure · feudal conflict · reconciliation · chivalry · falconry · moss-trooper · siege
What this Textopian page supports
A Border Raid is listed on Textopian as a short story by L.L. Weedon, dated Date unknown.
This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.
- Work type: Short story
- Author: L.L. Weedon
- Date: Date unknown
- Language: English
- Genres: Historical Fiction, Adventure, Action Fiction, Border Ballad, Military Fiction
- Length: 3,511 words
- Structure: 1 section, 79 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Standard (8th-9th Grade)
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- Work identity for A Border Raid by L.L. Weedon
- Canonical title URL and first readable passage URL
- Genre and topic classification from the Textopian catalog
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