4. Withdraw

Rough finger tips brush against the soft skin of your upper thigh as you try to keep your breath calm. The hand on your waist tightens slightly and you feel yourself being pulled forward. Coarse beard hairs brush past your cheek as the man lowers his face into your neck. He inhales deeply and you quiver slightly when you feel the hand on your thigh begin moving inward. You both startle slightly when the distant sound of a horn cuts through the silence. The Dane pulls back and you see him frown before looking over his shoulder towards the center of town. He turns back to you after a moment and he tells you to get dressed. You pause for a moment but quickly grab your shirt when he takes a step forward. When you're done putting it on he looks at you expectantly. "Where is rest of clothes?" You think back to the undergarments still discarded beneath the tree outside of town before pointing the opposite way towards the direction of your home.

Perhaps he'll take you there first and you might run into someone who can help you. Unfortunately, the man simply raises an eyebrow somewhat suggestively, and moves forward. You tense slightly when the Dane puts his hands around your waist then deftly hoists you over one of his shoulders. The yoke of his leather vest digs into your stomach and blood is rushing to your face as your front half drapes down over his back. The man places a hand on your lower back to keep you steady before heading in the direction of town. "Please, let me walk." You gasp out as your body jostles around on his broad shoulder. "No, too slow." Is all he replies and continues onward. The burnt smell in the air grows stronger as you approach the center of the town. The crackling of the embers engulfing the distantly spaced buildings is the only sound you hear. Through the locks of hair hanging around your face you can make out the corpses of the townsfolk. You thought only the men had been slaughter but as you continue on you begin seeing female bodies mixed in with the bunch. The majority of them are naked or in some state of being undressed and all are covered in blood.

It seems as if the whole town has been destroyed along with any hope you had of being rescued. As you reach the end of town you can hear male voices in the distance. They appear to be speaking the same Nordic language the man had been earlier and he greets them when you arrive. You can see leather boot clad feet approach and someone begins speaking to the man holding you. They exchange a few words and after a moment you sigh in frustration when the man starts walking again. Your head is pounding from being upside down for so long and your eye sight is now obscured from the sweat running down your face. Twenty minutes or so pass by before the heat and blood rush take their toll and you feel yourself slip into unconsciousness. Cold water being splashed on your face startles you back and you cough as salty water runs into your mouth. Blinking water and tears out of your eyes you look around in confusion. Your fingers curl around sand that lies beneath you as you look up at the Dane crouching above you. He watches you silently for a moment before handing you a rag from his satchel. You gratefully wipe water and dry blood from your face before hesitantly trying to stand.

The Dane also rises and you feel his hand wrap around your bicep as he lifts you to your feet. You can hear the oceans waves lapping behind you and strong wind whips around your frame as you stand quietly. The man looks past you and the distinct sound of a boat being loaded is slightly muffled by the wind. You consider begging for freedom or perhaps attempting to run. But where would you even go now that your village and family are gone? The mans hand is still on your arm and he takes a step around you while pulling you along. His grip is tight and hurts slightly but it's better than being upside down again. When you turn you're surprised to see men climbing aboard a sleek, low, vessel. It's not typical for such a large boat to be able to dock slow close to the shore but this ship is far different than any you've ever seen. When you reach the shore line you notice the boat is still a good 20 feet out. You turn over to the man to see if he's going to offer you any assistance in getting across the water but instead see him walk forward. He takes a few steps before pausing and looking back over at you expectantly. Glancing down at the waves lapping at your shoes you sigh before hiking your skirt up slightly. The water is colder than you expected and you shiver as it slowly rises up past your knees as you continue forward.

After a few more steps you realize trying to keep your skirt dry was a fruitless endeavor as a large wave crashes against your thighs. By the time you arrive at the ship the water is slightly past your waist and the waves have grown even larger. This doesn't appear to be as much of an issue for the man as the water barely reaches his upper thighs. There's a rope ladder attached to the side of the ship and the Dane stands a side to let you ascend first. You've just barely gripped one of the rungs when a large wave rolls in and crashes over you. Your fingers slip off of the rope as your body tumbles under the waves rippling current. Flaying your arms about your feet finally connect with the ground and you gasp for air as you emerge from the water. Your skirt feels like a weight around your waist as the thick material completely absorbs the liquid around you. Another wave crash around you and salt burns your eyes and throat as you're pulled under again. When you resurface you panic when you realize your feet can no longer touch the ground and you see the ship is now further away from you. Kicking with all of your might you begin trying to swim in the direction of the ship but feel a current pulling against you.

The waves increase in frequency as you feel yourself being dragged further back into the ocean. It's getting harder to breath as you struggle to keep your head above the choppy surface and your legs are growing weaker with each kick. You're just about to accept your fate and stop struggling when you feel a strong arm wrap around your waist. With a quick tug you're pulled back into a solid chest and you hear water splashing to your left. After blinking water out of your eyes you can see that the Dane is holding you and using his free arm to stroke backwards through the water. You grab on to his muscular arm as a large wave rushes over you and threatens to pull you from his grasp. Finally, the waves decrease in size, and you feel your heels drag against sand beneath you before the man helps you to your feet. This time he keeps a hand on your arm as he walks you back over to the ladder. "You are too fragile, is not good." You hear him say as you begin ascending the ladder. When you reach the top you blush as a group of a men is revealed and you notice they're all staring at you. Shivering slightly you climb over the side of the vessel and stand before the group of men. You wrap your arms around your chest protectively as they leer back you and a couple of the same something to each other in their foreign tongue. A moment later your captor is up the ladder and you tense as he feel him standing behind you.