Elina remembered the night before. How sounds of wolves howling could be heard in the far, hours prior, the majority of men in the village went to wage war against a rival village. Now in the long night, the monster lurking in the depths of the pine forest was preying them.
Most of the woman's in the village were once warrior's, as when they were young battling was a form of proving yourself and to sustain oneself if they didn't want to just be farmers or housewives.
So in the face of beasts they were unafraid.
But this wasn't the occasion, right now they were trembling, with fear in their eyes. Lurking in the shadows, howling like animals. With rough breaths were men, encircling the entire village as if they were a pack of wolves hunting.
The ones with better eyes could see yellow eyes watching them from the pines.
The moon was watching how more than three hundred men with fur clothes and tattooed bodies were preparing themselves to raid their enemy's village. A large group was approaching them from the north, leading them was a man with a reindeer skull in his head, he was completely clothed in fur. In his hand there was a large pole that served as a staff. He was chanting words as the warriors surrounding him were in a frenzied state.
The moment he was with those surrounding the village, he put a foot out of the forest, watching at the village. Two men stood beside him, hammering drums along with the man's words. They were chanting a ritual, for their God. The man with the skull in his head was singing with his throat.
"Draupnir... Geri Freki... Sleipnir... Gugnir ..." All the warriors were in a trance as they heard his voice, while other's were singing with their throat's with him.
"Haegolae! Haegolae! Haegolae! Wiju Bi Gojzeee..." With a maddening state their eyes lose their focus as the skull chanter said finally.
"...Haugen Maunen..." With a yellow glint, he pointed his finger towards the village as he said with a chilling throat voice.
"...Ok Alfadhir heitir..."
A crow sounded in all the forest, resonating at the same time as the drums.
And as if the drums were a thunder, with their tempo all the warriors chanted a war song while they were marching, with no resemblance with humans anymore. Their eyes showed a bestial state as they enclosed the village while chanting.
"...Fimbulthulur Fjoelnir...
...Udhur Ulfroegni...
...Thekkur Thudur...
...Onski Ofnir...
...Rognir Raudhir...
...Grimnir Goendlir..
...Hlefreyr Hangatyr.."
Men's throat and drums were the only sound in that night. The people in the village were frozen in their places, Elina watched as more and more figures with yellow eyes approached their village. She couldn't cry, she was trembling alongside her mother. Those figures in her eyes were monsters in human skin, she felt a primal fear engulfing her soul as she watched them.
Her eyes were focused on the man with a skull and antlers. That man was the most terrifying war harbinger in her young eyes.
"...YGGR OK YUNGIIIIRR..."
And with one final chant, all men charged toward the village. As if a spell was broken all the villagers were thrown in panic, Elina's mother took her sword as she runs with Elina in her arm towards the river at the southern side of their village, all the other mother's were doing the same. It was the only safe route as all enemies were encircling them. They hoped with numbers could make a breach and let at least their children escape.
Those unfortunate enough were caught and raped, mothers, and children. While those men set fire and pillage the entire village. The elders were killed on the spot or crippled, mostly taken for sacrifice to a ritual later on.
The dark night was bathed in blood and screams. The warriors were merciless as they obliterated everything on their path, buildings, and life at the same.
Elina and her mother were successful at passing the encirclement, but they were chased along with others. Elina's mother had an injured leg due to the terrain, in her escape along with the dark night it was hard to see a few meters ahead with clarity. It wouldn't be severe if weren't for the situations she was in, she couldn't stop even a second with the pursuers chasing on. She couldn't afford to fall or delay, as every second she could be ahead meant a chance for her daughter.
With tears in her eyes she accepted her fate. She couldn't be with her daughter in the future but the least she could do was giving her a chance to live on. Even if that means past through horrible torture before her death.
The only thing that was moving her on was her will and her denial in letting her injure affect her.
Soon, she saw the large river, with hope raised again she went there as fast as she could. Even if the river was freezing cold, she continued. The river width was 57 meters, but with her limbs suffering the cold of the river, it was hard to pass through it without having difficulty. The pursuers were more and more and she could saw a few unfortunates that were hit and taken back towards the village.
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A group of 40 men was chasing them in the river, and with their state of mind everything was easier for them.
Biting her trembling lower lip, Elina's mother put all her efforts to pass the fast as possible. She saw a few of her fellow neighbors falling into the cold river maws. Her daughter was trembling due to the cold and she knew that she didn't have too much time left.
Finally, after a few eternal seconds, she reached the shore, without wasting any moment she tried to run. Even when the trembling in her body was difficult to contain, she let her will handled her towards the dark plains ahead. She couldn't spare a moment to look back and see if anyone had made it to shore successfully.
The minutes seemed eternal, she loses the count of time as she was running towards no apparent path. Tiredness was threatening to take her body. Her injured leg was taking her strength as the pain was hard to bear. But if anything, her sleeping child in her arms was giving her force enough to bear all of this. She couldn't stop, at any moment those beasts would be near enough.
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Just like that, running and holding pain. Elina's mother passed the night. She couldn't hold it anymore as a few minutes after the dawn, she fell through the floor, there was no strength remain in her entire body. She could even carry her precious child anymore as with her fall, Elina flew across the tall grass, waking up. Disoriented with the sudden situation, Elina takes a few minutes until she regained clarity, anxiously she watched her surroundings until she saw her mother. With an incredible amount of fear in her eyes she approached quickly to her, tears were starting to fall on her young face as she called her mother.
"Mom! MOM!? PLEASE GET UP" Her tiny hands were shaking the tired body of her mother.
Her mother just smiled at her. With sadness in her eyes and with a tired voice she said to Elina gently.
"Mommy doesn't have strength my child, you have to keep running for me okay? Like you did every time you went to play. But this time you don't need to stop." She reached with her tired hands her daughter face, cupping both of her hands around her cheeks.
"Shireg shireg my dear Elina, mommy can't go with you anymore." She said to her while crying, she knew that her child wouldn't move, but this was all she could do after running so much.
Elina was crying in her mother's hands, as she refused to abandon her mother. She stayed with her for a few minutes, crying as silent as possible. Her mother didn't know what to do, as if she let her daughter stay with her, all her prior efforts would have been thrown to waste.
It was during her efforts to coax her child that she heard heavy footsteps. With a panicked expression she said to Elina.
"Hide quickly! The bad men are coming, don't come near to me whatever happens, okay?" She said to Elina seriously.
"If you don't do what mommy said I will be really mad. Now go and hide quickly, remember whatever happens don't come close." She pushed her daughter towards the tall grass as she steeled her heart and mind for whatever had to come to her. She didn't care what they do with her body or life if that means that her daughter could survive.
She knew that their village enemies would not have mercy on her. Her only regret was not being good enough to guarantee,along with her husband, a better place for their child.
Elina first run a few meters,but fearing to abandon her mother she hid in the grass as she tried to have a better view of her mother. She hoped that those bad men's passed far away without finding them both.
But fate was cruel on her expectations as she saw frightened how one of those beasts appeared near her mother. She tried to suppress her voice and breath as she remembered her mother's words. But it was hard as she saw horrified how her mother was raped and later on dismembered. She closed her eyes when she saw the head of her mother, it was the worst nightmare that happened to her, she wished that she could wake up and see her mother smile once again.
She couldn't suppress anymore her pained groans as she quickly gets up and tried to run away the faster she can. The image of her mother dying in the hand of that man was imprinted on her mind, even if she wanted to embrace her mother remains the fear was taking a foot on her body as she followed her survival instinct as she runs the fast as her small legs let her.
The men after hearing sounds near him were alerted, as he issued a roar that was responded back by the other two more. He quickly runs towards where he heard the sounds, with a frenzy look on his face.
The sun rays were permeating through the plains as a chase was taking place on it. There Elina was running moving aside the tall green grasses with her tiny bloody hands, her faces were filled with tears and mucus as she was running for her life. Her chest was filled with grievances and sadness as she couldn't even mourn her mother.
Behind her, a few meters was a tall and muscular man filled with blue tribal tattoos on his entire body, in his hand was an ax as a maddening look was on his face. Dozens of meters behind him was running another two men's who looked alike with the first. The only difference was that one of them got a sword instead of an ax.
If one looked at the image, they would think that those men would have an advantage against the little girl, as they had long and muscular legs in comparison to the tiny body of the girl. But the high grass was an advantage in the girl favor, as with her size she could sneak away with relatively easy, her small legs helped her to run as if she was a small deer.
This took place for two hours, it was then that the small girl couldn't bear the fatigue anymore, her pursuers were closing towards her until a young man appeared in front of the little girl.Taking her in his arms.
Two of the pursuers flanked him as he was easier to notice than the little girl, fearing that he might want to take her for him, they attacked him. Without much resistance from the young man, the group of three men was preparing to kill him with their weapons, until a large shadow covered them. Intrigued, they looked towards the sky. Only to see the terrifying faucets of a gigantic dragon. They couldn't even scream their as they were pulverized into ashes.
The enormous dragon looked over the young boy and the girl in his arms, as they disappeared with the dragon from the plains. Leaving the plains as if nothing had ever happened there, with only blood-stained on the grass, as a proof of what happened.