Viking, me.

Chapter 2 - Demon Boat

"Put me down!" I spat out

"Answer my question!" He said bitterly "Did you kill these men?!" He tried again. I just spat in his face. He wiped it away and glared at me with such an evil glare my blood ran cold, I wriggled in his grip. He threw me down and I fell from my feet to my bottom. He drew his sword from his belts and pointed it at me. I scrambled back a few feet. My breathing became laboured with worry. There was a loud crash from behind me.

Spinning around on my hands and knees to see.
"The church!" I screamed! I looked around to see these men coming out with our villages tabernacle and chalice. I looked back at this man his sword still pointed at me. A cold sweat lay slick on my skin, the house of God has been defiled and there isn't anything I could do, at least with out risking my life. The mans face was perplexed with thought. I looked at him watching his eyes.

"Stand up and move!" He ordered. When I didn't move quickly enough for his liking he grabbed my wrists in his large hand and pulled me to his side. His rough tone and strange accent when he spoke my mother tongue insulted me and my people, he spoke with such hate. He began to drag me back down the road, the path laden with straw and domestic objects.

As he dragged me we joined a group of other strangers. The man holding my hand hoisted it up and pulled me in front of him to show me off to the others. He said something in presumably his home language. The man laughed and one obviously inspected me like a prize cow. He commented on my appearance and my capture laughed.

They continued to talk and laugh. My heart sank as I realised this was probably my end.
I gazed around the village and landed of the faces of women lined up against a wall. My body froze and I couldn't hold back my anger and sadness.
"Grandmother!" I screamed my throat hurting after. She looked at me and smiled sadly. He had her hands bound and her knees shook from her feble old age.

"Don't let them see you cry my dear" she said making a quick nod with her head, she smiled and mouthed the words 'I love you' to me. I screamed as the archers let their arrows fly. The sobbing women's voices stopped when the arrows stabbed theirs hearts. They fell to the ground. One girl moaned in pain but suddenly all was quiet when her second arrow hit her. All was quiet apart form the fire crackling. Tears ran fast from my eyes and my heart burned with injustice.

"YOU BAST*RD!" I shouted as I tired to the mans still holding me. There was a smirk on his face. I whacked my hands against his chest.
"You monster! You demon!" He laughed at me. And said something to my in his disgusting foreign language. I furrowed my brow and my anger rose.

The same man the looked over my like an expensive cow slapped the man from the well's shoulder and looked at me sneering as he spoke. He looked back at my capture for a response.
"What did he say to you!" I demanded glaring at him my tears well and truly dried up and anger took over.

"He said he killed you grandmother because he said it would be fun" he replied in his low voice. His comment stung but I knew it wasn't what he said, I had a feeling it wasn't. My capturer undid a leather belt from his waist and quickly wrapped it around my wrists three times before slipping the thong thought the buckel and yanking it tight. I winced as it tightened.

My capture in a confident tone ordered something and threw is hand in the air to signal a 'move out' retreat.
A young girl came running looking quite desheviled. She saw me and slowed her pace. It was malí! My best friend here eyes were glassy and her cheeks flushed red. I waved my hands at her to tell her to stop.
"Stay back! Go back! Go somewhere safe!" I shouted to her. "Take care of my house, I'll be back okay?" I didn't know if I'd ever be back but I tried to stop her from crying. I wanted my last memory of her to be a strong one.

I prayed to god that this wouldn't happen to anybody else. I prayed for the spirit of my grandmother, that she will rest in heaven. By the time I had finished fighting back the tears and said my prays we had reached the banks of the river just out side the village.

I noticed that other invaders had captured monks from our monastery and had them bound more so than how I am. I looked at the blood spattered faces of the monks. I didn't recognise any of them well. I had only spoke with the bee keeper and the healer and a handful of others. I had noticed that they were muttering prayers under their breath.

"Keep your mouth shut and there won't be a problem, okay?" He said harshly.
His tall stranger must have also noticed the monks prayers for mercy. When I didn't reply he tugged the belt to it got tighter and I whimpered. I nodded and looked down at my feet.

He said something to him in their language and then looked at me with a disgusted look.
"What?!" I demanded of him he looked at me with astonishment. This mans Irish was worse than my capturer's, his voice creating too many throaty sounds. "Shut it girl, or I'll put you in your place"

I stopped my self from retorting angrily because he slapped me across the face, I flew to my knees my cheek feeling as if it were on fire. Placing my fingers over my cheek to protect it, I whimpered a little at the pain.

The vessel looked like none of seen before. It bobbed in the water, it's deep wood colour was decorated with fierce carvings or faces. It had a head that looked like the devil it's self, bulging eyes and a red slithery tongue. There was the figure of a strong figure that stood resting on the head. His cloak dark that had a leather shoulder flap. I was falling behind and out of step with the man. He looked over his shoulder at me as the belt went taught in his hand.

"Hurry up" he said gruffly. My eyes widened with wonder at the construction of this boat. It's dimensions looked nothing like the curracks of the Irish fishermen. We came to stand beside it on the banks. It loomed over head and with my small figure I must have looked like a child.
Suddenly I was picked up at the waist and placed on the thick wooden side f the boat. The invader followed up as one of the other men gave him a leg up.
He picked up the belt again and tugged it for me to follow him. These invaders were jumping on board from the one side and I felt doomed. I tried to keep my head down and not attract attention but being the only woman on board it was impossible.  Wooden boxes lined the inside of the boat and as we past the second mast  I was pushed down onto a wooden box on the inside of the two places to sit. My capture sat at the side and gripped the oar and prepared to row away from the banks of the river.

The order was given and the men groaned as they began to row away. I looked back at my home, I saw my house and the church and the smoke that billowed up from the straw as buildings burned. The Sunday morning sunshine hitting the trees that surrounded my house in the hill. This Sunday was to surely change my life. I was leaving all I had know behind, and I was now alone in this world. I longed for the glorious peaceful Sunday morning to come back and I wished that today had been different.