The flames burned with a fury as the last flickers of sunlight began to set upon the doomed village. The blackness of the coming night and the last moments of daylight combined to create dark foreboding shadows over the remains of her home and ultimately what was her life. The riders had come into the village while she was in the fields working the land as her family had always done. The screams of terror and the rising smoke and flames had brought her attentions from the daydreams she often had while doing her daily work. The men folk had rushed from their work, carrying with them their simple tools as weapons to see what had set upon their homes and now caused so much pain and terror; those poor brave souls now lost to the riders that had taken so much from her, while others still cowered in the fields. She could not resist the unmistakable sense of curiosity within her and followed as quickly as she could the men who had gone to see. Now she lay hidden underneath a small storage hut; it was once used to store wood, to protect from the unrelenting winter winds and biting cold of these harsh northern lands. All around her she could see the bodies of her fellow villagers. Now they lay like slaughtered cattle, as she could do nothing but watch as these black armor clad men moved from body to body completing their slaughter with swift and deadly precision. She could see the fallen body of her father as he lay motionless in a dark pool of blood. In his hand was his broadsword. She did not know why but the horror of the moment seemed to wash away as she could recall those summer evening when her father had showed her how to use a sword, trying to teach her to defend herself, and she could never understand why until now and all she could understand was her desire to take the sword from his now cold hand and strike each and every one of these monsters dead even if it meant her own life in return. Then her attention was suddenly drawn to another rider entering the village. He sat atop a dark black warhorse, his features concealed within a dark metal Helmet only revealing his piercing cruel blue eyes through the slits that ran horizontally along the face of the helm, his body clad in dark plate mail armor and at his side hung a long sword. She could see his eyes dart from side to side surveying the carnage that had been reaped upon her village and then his head turned and their eyes locked. Suddenly fear took her spirit and she darted from the hiding place and began to run towards the fields to escape, even though she knew deep inside that there could be no escape from this moment. She could see two of the armored men move to intercept her. The terror rose in her as her mind reeled against what horror would be inflicted on her if they captured her and she saw the two warriors draw their swords and an almost sense of relief momentarily took her terror away as she knew at least it would be quick and she would be with her family instead of here. Her fear pushed her on as she tried to move to the left and dodge past the closest warrior as he closed on her, the adrenalin now making her feel sick as she moved past the warrior and saw the edge of the village. She could almost sense safety if she made it back into the fields; perhaps she could escape. Her legs drove her on until she could feel the edge of road and the sharp incline that would force her down into the field. Then the world turned upside down as she felt a foot catch her leg and she tumbled backwards, her head striking the ground and the sky coming in view. The realization of death was upon her again as the two warriors she tried to escape stood over her, swords drawn and slowly raising to be brought down in a death blow. She could see the cruel smile on the nearest warrior as he seemed to enjoy the terror in her eyes and then the silence was broken by a commanding voice. She could not determine any dialect or tone to the voice other than the dominant force in it. “STOP,” she could hear it say and the warriors above her froze and slowly moved back, the soft sound of the blades being moved from her above her into their scabbards amplified by the terror as her senses raced and she could not understand why she still lived. Her eyes turned to the dark armored man on horseback as he climbed down from his horse. She could see him signal to the two warriors closest to her and she was pulled from the ground and held by her arms in front of him. She felt the terror pouring from her but she felt she no longer had anything to lose and pulled her head up to look directly into this man’s eyes. She spat into his face with all the hate and venom she felt for him at this moment. Her blood froze as she saw a cruel smile form on his face as the spit hit the side of his helmet and slowly dripped down. She tried to maintain her gaze with him but could not. Instead she turned to look at the place her father had fallen and a feeling of helplessness filled her as she pulled her head back to look at him once more. His gaze was now turned to look at her fallen father and the sword in his hand. With a sudden graceful speed he turned and moved to the fallen body, kneeling to collect her father’s sword. He turned the blade over in his hand as if testing the weight and quality of the weapon and stood once more moving slowly towards her. With a simple gesture of his head the two warriors holding her suddenly released her arms and she could hear them move away from her, leaving her facing this man. “You want to kill me, don’t you?” His voice was perfectly calm and she could feel the cultured authority oozing from it. This was no thug or brigand. The thoughts were quickly overtaken by the fear in her heart and the yearning for revenge. She flinched slightly as he flipped the sword over in his hand so it was pointing towards her hilt first now. “Here take this weapon.” She froze, unsure what to do. Could she take this chance and kill the man? What would happen even if she could? Would she be given freedom or would the others just kill her? She reached out with trembling hands and took the blade from him. He spoke again as he took several steps away from her. “If you kill me you are free to go, no one here will attempt to stop you.” She paused in confusion as he began to unbuckle his armor and expose his unprotected body underneath. Was this man trying to invite death? What was this trick? She snapped from her thoughts as she heard the armor hit the ground and he placed his hands behind his back, standing unprotected before her. “I am unarmed and all you need do is strike me.” She shivered at the calmness of his voice and gripped the sword tighter. Her knuckles turned white with the effort and she could feel the cold touch of the metal against her skin. With a scream, she lunged forward toward her aggressor, a mad look across her face as she aimed the sword for the center of his chest to slay this man, this monster, who commanded these monsters who had taken her family away from her and destroyed her life. Her aim was true and she recalled all her father had taught her on how to use a sword. The blade thrust into the center of his chest and then she felt the sword jerk upwards as if struck by something. Her senses cleared as the blade wrenched from her hand. His sword was now no longer in his scabbard but in his hand and he had swept it up in a circular motion. Her own sword flew from her hand and into the air, the sheer power of his movement caused her to become unbalanced and slip to her knees. Her face crashed against his chest and she could feel a slight trickle of warm blood against his shirt where her blade had met his skin for but a moment before she tumbled backwards. She lay prone before his mercy, her eyes catching his as he slid his own blade back into its scabbard once more. He looked down at the small cut and trickle of blood on his chest and then down at her. “You are now mine,” he said as he turned away from her and moved back to his horse. The fear in her suddenly assaulted her senses once more, questions ringing in her head. “Why, what does he mean? What will happen to me? “She felt her arms grabbed from either side and manacles thrust around her wrists, a length of chain jerked to make her follow as one of the warriors mounted a horse dragging her behind, the length of chain keeping her a few feet behind the warrior leading her. The group of riders rode from the now destroyed village. She looked back one more time, almost as if saying goodbye to her home and her family, now pondering what the words meant. “You are mine now.” They echoed in her mind over and over as the village faded behind them and she could tell they were heading for the coast as the darkness of the night fell, bringing with it a moment of peace.
