Loudly answered the smitten lyre for a moment, and Lysias obeyed, but quickly came back from the fore deck the command of Ulric, the son of Brander.
"Silence, all!" he shouted. "There is a trumpet, far away southerly. We are too few and we near the land. Hark to the breakers!"
Listening diligently, all ears heard the dashing of that water as if upon rocks, and yet again came up from the southward that distant peal of the trumpet.
"Struck!" suddenly exclaimed Sigurd. "We go upon a shore. Is this thy land, O Jew?"
Not with a great shock, but glidingly and grating hard, did The Sword go on a little while the sail was lowering. Then she stood fast, and all on board of her knew that the end of her voyage had come.
Needing no command, the Saxon sailors made ready two of the small boats and prepared to lower them.
"The trumpet is nearer," said Ben Ezra. "But this ledge of rocks cannot be far from the mainland. Thy men seem to know not of fear and they obey thee."
"No Roman arms or armor," shouted Ulric. "We land as Saxons and we will leave behind us no token. Kindle a fire amidships."
To his cabin went he and Ben Ezra, and unto them shortly went Lysias, but each prepared bundles of his own to carry to the boats.
"No man knoweth of thy treasure nor of mine," said Ben Ezra to Ulric. "Let the Greek, too, have gold and silver coins, for he will need them. He hath fought well."