Rebel

Water and Blood

The cold water swept over me. I shivered crazily, feeling goosebumps spread through my body in a blink. I gasped as the freezing water splashed on certain areas of my body that made me even more cold.

      I dipped my head into the water, rubbing my hands over my face. I sighed contentedly as I swam about in the river. Two days had passed since I had last taken a shower. And two days I had been walking throughout the forest without finding a clean water source that wasn't frozen.

The cold water felt frigid enough to get me sick. But my body didn't forget the cold days of traveling and having to wash myself in nearly frozen rivers. This was much better. I massaged my head, letting the shampoo I brought with me to wash off. I glanced over to the pile of clothes I left on the bank.

I cursed to myself as I realized I forgot some soap. I pushed myself to the riverbank. I dried myself quickly and slipped on some underwear. I looked around for my bra. With a roll of my eyes I grabbed a overly baggy shirt, slipping it over. I began to look for my shoes when I heard a noise.

             I spun around, spraying water from my hair. My breaths slowed as I strained my ears to listen. Hopefully it was just an animal, but deep inside I knew it was something more. I frowned as I noticed I didn't bring anything to defend myself with. I took a step back.

     A horse skidded to a stop right in front of me in a blur. I spun around as I saw who was sitting on top of the horse. A scream ripped out of my throat as I got tackled from behind. I wriggled underneath the crushing weight of the body.

I squirmed until I turned around, my back digging into the ground. The soldier came into view, making me seething with anger. He had cropped blonde hair, with cold blue eyes. His face was red from the cold. He struggled as I continued to fight against him.

"Get off me!" I shrieked. I slapped his hands away each time they grabbed my shoulders or tugged on my hair. My legs thrashed but having him sit on top of me I couldn't get anything to kick on. His whole body weight smothered my air.

          As I coughed for some air the soldier took the opportunity to bring back his fist. Before I could realize what was happening his knuckles connected with my cheek hard, sending my head thumping against the ground.

All of my senses went silent for a split second before everything came back to me. I blinked a couple of times, trying to register what was going on. I felt thick, big hands groping the upper half of my body. My baggy shirt was ripped open. Alarms went off in my head.

No.

I squeezed my eyes shut before letting them fly open. I dove my hands straight to his groin, making him lean back from sudden pain. He groaned as he doubled over. I glanced at the strap around his waist. I grabbed the dagger from its sheath, struggling as he tried to make a grab for it.

        I backhanded his face with my free hand, sending him to the side. I took no hesitation when I swiped the dagger across his throat. Blood sprayed out, spewing all over me. I tried to shield myself from it but it was no use. I shoved his body off of me.

The soldier opened and then closed his mouth like a gaping fish. I dropped the dagger and scrambled to my legs. My hands shook violently, if it was from the cold or something else, I wasn't sure. I whirled around to look for the horse, wiping my face as I tried to clean myself from blood. The soldier's bright red blood dripped down my exposed chest and shirt. It even reached my legs.

         I ran to the horse, making it take a step back. I tugged on its reins, trying to set it loose. My hands trembled, making it hard to take it off. I had to warn the others. Soldiers were near. Where there was one soldier, there was many.