Ayris

A rhythmic motion and intense pressure along my abdomen fill my senses, as the blackness slowly subsides. Pressure accumulating around my forehead and behind my eyes. I realise to my horror that I’d been flung across someone’s shoulder and the blood was rushing to my head, as I slumped against the back of the stranger carrying me.

This is it. This is how I die.

Don’t. Panic. I decided pretending I hadn’t regained consciousness may give me an advantage. Maybe they’ll place me down somewhere and I can run. I try to remain limp, loosening my limbs and allowing my arms to dangle beneath my head as we continued to trudge through the clearing. I can’t see anything except the backside of the person carrying me, and whilst I must admit its one of the most resplendent backsides I’ve ever seen, with the soft brown leather cupping everything perfectly, I remind myself that it’s a backside that is more than likely attached to a murder or some kind of violent criminal who enjoys scaring women and abducting them, so I stop looking and try my hardest to feign being unconscious.

The footsteps slow, and I begin to hear sounds, other people, no, other men, rowdy and loud. Adrenaline begins to pump through me as I realise its unlikely I can fight off a group of them. Running was my only hope and even that was looking bleak. Such dire circumstances and yet you were ogling his arse not two minutes ago. Maybe I’m a bigger creep than they are. No. Focus. Now is not the time.

“I cannot believe you could not subdue a simple human female” a one who carries me speaks. I swear I hear a low rumbling growl from the man to his left before he answers

“Watch your tongue, Varin, I am perfectly capable of subduing most creatures, you included. I allowed her to run, I wanted a chase”

“Is that why I could hear you cursing half way across the forest, Drogar? And why you’re trying desperately to disguise the limp she’s given you? The lies make this scenario even more pathetic than I..”

His words are cut off by a snarl. And I feel a small sense of pride, knowing that I’d managed to injure that monster that felt me so weak and insignificant. The footsteps cease, the voices and commotion around us now seems louder than before. The men continue to parry words with one another whilst I try to work out my next move.

“When Lord Ayris hears of this you will be demoted, Drogar, a man so easily overpowered by a female has no place in the king’s army”

I know that name I think to myself, I’d heard it before but couldn’t place it. My thoughts are knocked from me as the men begin to scuffle, a shove knocks my captor backwards, but not enough to unbalance him. Now could be my chance. I feel the surge of adrenaline once more, the loud noises of the others around us drowned out by the pounding in my ears. I dig my nails deeply into his shoulder blade and bite down swiftly, and as hard as humanly possible. A bellow is heard, as he struggles to shove me off his shoulder, I bury my knee into his ribs, as he forces my body down and away from him, a grunt clearly audible as air is expelled from him. I stumble to my feet and

I’m running again. No time to fully absorb my surroundings I dart through clearing, avoiding contact with the men weaving around me.

Suddenly I feel a jolt, pain surges through my shoulder as I’m violently shoved to the ground, my face unceremoniously making brutal contact with the grass and soil. I groan, pain coursing through my shoulder and surrounding tissues as I lay still on the ground, unable to move or focus on any coherent thought, other than the pain and shock as my brain tries to catch up with my body. Large brown boots stop before my face, my forearms still sprawled on the ground around me, as they’d unsuccessfully attempted to break my fall.

“Rise” the deep voice commands me, and suddenly everything seems deathly still. No voices, no movement, the entire clearing becomes eerily quiet as the man before me speaks. My shoulder throbs and my head and chest burn and pulse. Every minute motion of my body hurts as I try to wiggle my limbs.

“RISE. NOW” The voice reverberates, the booming tone carries across the forest and suddenly even the air around me becomes thick and heavy with his furious order.

I gingerly pull my knees underneath me, and bear my weight on my right elbow, trying desperately to avoid any motion that would disturb my throbbing shoulder, but the action is in vain, as the pain surges through my shoulder and across my chest, causing me to gasp and groan with the effort, and forcing tears prick my eyes. I’m kneeling before him, head down and arm tucked into my chest, trying to stem the pain, but it still comes. Shakily I stand on my feet and try not to vomit with the effort, pain pulsing through my temples, I keep my head bowed low, to help steady myself.

“A female” he states aloud. “In the military camp” a hint of surprise in his voice as he regards me.

My mind swirls trying to process everything, I still have no clue who these people are, what they want with me and why being a woman seems to be such a significant problem here. I stand still, trying to form a coherent sentence.

“The only women I allow here are whores” he pauses, before continuing “Are you a whore, woman?” the pain is almost unbearable now, a steady pulsing of pain surges through my shoulder blade and down my arm, confusion, anger and fear coiling themselves in my belly. The emotions of the baffling and frightening events of this evening burst from me as pain and fear are replaced by pure rage. My head darts upwards to look him in his face and I suddenly feel the wind knocked out of me as our eyes lock upon one another.

Its him.

The man from my dreams.

Ayris.