6. Arrival

The next morning you awake to the sound of men rowing and sit up quickly. The Dane is already up and at his usually post overlooking the ocean ahead. The sun is just barely peaking over the horizon and you can see a thick fog surrounding the vessel. Shivering slightly you rise to your feet and hesitantly walk towards the man. You see his head move slightly as you approach but he doesn't turn to face you. Standing wordless beside him you stare out into the thick mist ahead of you and think about last night. You almost thought you had dreamed the whole thing but the still slightly damp spot on your skirt told you otherwise. The rest of the day passed the same as the one before. However, this time you notice that the men don't set up the makeshift tent before eating their dinner.

The cloudless sky above you indicates that it's only used when weather is unpleasant. You wonder what that will mean for you when it's time for you to join the Dane in your temporary bed. You stay up as long as you can and are surprised to find yourself feeling slightly disappointed when you wake to the familiar sound of ores rowing. The Danes seem to be experts at getting up and moving about quietly since you never hear them rise. The one who captured you is standing before the rowing men and you hear him saying something in their Nordic language. When he's done speaking to the men he turns and looks down at you. His hazel eyes are sharp and he carries himself with a confident air of dominance. You have to assume he's either high ranking or someone of importance based off of the respect the men seem to show him.

As the days continue to pass by you begin learning a bit more about your captor and his people. It appears that he goes by the name Sten or at least the men seem to call him that a lot. The men seem to have an somewhat strange dynamic when it comes to how they interact. While there's a fair amount of joking around, they also seem to argue a fair bit, yet no one appears to be in direct charge. They certainly appear to listen to Sten for the most part but there are times where he seems to stay out of their squabbles. You try to keep your distance from them but it's a small ship so it's hard to avoid their leering gaze. After a few more days you feel yourself growing nervous again when you see the dark shadow of land in the distance. The men's moods seem to pick up and you're surprised to see Sten move to join the rowing men. He removes his shirt beforehand and your see that the tattoos on his arms go up along his bicep before connecting across his chest. A depiction of a hammer is in the center of the intricate design and there seems to be some type of runes or glyphs beneath. You blush slightly as you take in his muscular form while he begins to row.

As if expecting your arrival the wind begins to pick up and helps move you along faster towards your destination. It had been fairly early in the morning when you first spotted the land but the sun is slowly beginning to set when you finally arrive. A cool summer breeze blows past you as the ship slowly pulls up to a small wooden dock. It's growing quite dark but a couple of the men quickly light torches before the rest start unloading the ship. You stand back near the bow as Sten helps hand cargo to the men to take down. When they're done he turns to you and you swallow nervously as he steps forward. Following behind a line of men you step off the ship onto the deck before you. Sten keeps close as you all make your way down a path leading into a wooded area. After walking for a bit the distant sound of music reaches your ears and soon you can see lights up ahead. Passing through tall wooden gates you look around in awe as a large crowd of tall, mostly blonde, people dance and drink around a large campfire. Some of the people notice your arrival and move over to meet up with the men.

A group of women giggle slightly when they see you but walk past towards Sten. He seems to ignore them for the most part and they frown when he pushes you forward. A few other people eye you as you walk past but don't seem bothered by you. A man comes up and offers Sten a large mug full of a dark liquid. When he sees you, he hands you the other one he had been holding. Sten takes a few deep gulps of the drink then begins talking to the man in their language. There's a pungent smell coming from the warm mug and you hesitantly take a sip. The back of your throat burns slightly as you swallow the strange liquid. It tastes a little similar to beer just far stronger but you're still cold so you take another drink. Sten continues talking to the man and before you know it half the mug is empty. A warm feeling has spread through your body and you turn around to obverse the crowd behind you. After a moment you feel a presence behind you and look back to see Sten's figure. His hand reaches around your body and his fingers brush against yours as they wrap around your mug.

You turn around as he takes the mug from you and watch while he downs the rest of its contents. When he's finished he tosses it aside and steps towards you. His familiar grip is soon back on your arm as your being led past the large bonfire. The sound of music and laughter fade away slightly as you make your way down a long dirt path. You pass by several wooden houses before finally arriving at a large stone structure. It's a considerable amount larger than any of the buildings in your old town and you frown as Sten leads you up to it's large doors. When you enter you're surprised to see a large open hallway and cautiously follow him inside. There are furs along with other hunting trophies hung up along the walls and two large wooden tables run parallel to the walls along the sides of the room. You stiffen slightly when you see a group of people sitting on elegantly carved chairs at the opposite end of the room. They get up when Sten approaches and an older female moves in to hug him. When he steps back she glances over and raises an eyebrow when she sees you.