by Lily Thomas
When they found a good place for setting up camp, Stryme gave the signal to his warriors. He wanted an open area where the tents and campfires could be spread out, but also where they could keep an eye on their captives easily.
Dismounting he gripped the human female around the waist and set her down on the ground. She weighed absolutely nothing, even with all the clothing on her small frame. What was the point of all the clothing? It just hid her curves and got in the way. If she had been dressed a little better, she may have had a chance at escaping. She was the female who had got the farthest.
It was time to cut her bindings loose. Gripping her arm he yanked out a dagger, slit the rope, and backed away before she could even react.
Her striking blue eyes were wide with shock as she stumbled back a bit. Clearly, she hadn’t expected him to be whipping a sharp knife around her dainty body. She had nothing to worry about though. Stryme was skilled when it came to any blade.
He motioned for her to stay where she was. She just gave him a death glare, as she rubbed her wrists.
He smirked. He liked her being a little ruffled, because he got the sense that people in her world didn’t challenge her too much.
Before he left, he gave her a once over. Out of all the females she was holding herself together a lot better than the rest. He frowned. Stryme was already finding her impressively strong willed. She might be the female that he would have to keep an eye on.
When the giant seemed satisfied she would stay where she was, he led his horse to a nearby tree. Taking the opportunity to glance around she saw they were making camp for the night. At least this meant there might be time for someone to stumble upon the burning caravan.
Then again, who would be traveling through the valley? They hadn’t been gone long enough for anyone to know what had happened to them. They might have to wait several days if not a couple weeks for someone to know about the misfortune that had befallen on them.
She swallowed hard, as she thought about the upcoming night with the fire giants. She might be a princess, but she might have a testing challenge in front of her. How was she to keep all of them safe from all of these large warriors? Who knew how long they might have been without a warm woman beside them.
Elizabeth spotted the other women standing nervously in different spots around the camp. They were waiting for their giants to come back from whatever task they were doing.
Sarah was close enough to talk to though!
Elizabeth inched her way over to Sarah, so the giant wouldn't notice her movement. She didn't know how literal he was about her staying in that specific spot. Personally, she didn't see any harm in moving a few feet away. It wasn't like she was making a wild dash through the woods.
After seeing the teeth on his necklace, she was fearful of what might be out there in the night. She wasn't that foolish, not yet anyways. There might be a point where she would have to risk the forest, but tonight was not that time.
“How are you faring?” Elizabeth asked, as she approached Sarah.
“I'm doing better than most. I'm not as petrified as the rest of the women. Though, I will admit I am nervous, Lizbet. We don't know what they might be planning to do with us.” There was a tremble in her usually strong voice.
Elizabeth placed a comforting hand on Sarah’s shoulder. “We need to keep strong in front of the others, so they don't completely melt down on us.” Elizabeth said trying to remain positive. This was going to be a test of her mental strength, but she could do it.
Sarah rubbed her arms and looked directly into Elizabeth's eyes. “What do you think they are going to do with us? They could have killed us, but they kept us alive. They must have something in mind. I can't help but doubt we will get out of this alive.” Sarah took a deep gulp. “If they use us, we will never be accepted back as respectable young women.”
“Don’t fret about it or you will just tie yourself into knots.” She tried to remain positive, but she too had her own fears. Sarah was right. Being used by a giant would ruin any marriage prospects and make them into outsiders when it came to court. She might be a princess, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t be ruined. If anything, it meant it was easier for her to be ruined. She was to be the pride of the people.
Somehow, Elizabeth doubted the giants would show them any sort of mercy. They were only human women, after all, nothing special in the eyes of a fire giant.
“We need the other women to keep their hopes up or all will be lost. Perhaps, they want us as ransom, and when they get what they want they will set us free. We just don't know anything yet, so let's not jump to any unnecessary conclusions.”
Sarah gave her a grim smile, but at least it was a smile. Elizabeth thought everything had been smoothed, but then Sarah lunged forward to wrap Elizabeth in an iron tight hold.
Elizabeth’s eyes popped wide with shock. Sarah was so strong and so put together. It was hard for her to see her friend in such a distraught state.
Sarah wept against Elizabeth’s shoulder. “I just want to go back to the castle and have this behind us. I never thought this journey would be dangerous. I just wanted to remain your friend and continue to be by your side.”
Elizabeth pulled away from Sarah. “Don’t lose it now. I need you to be strong, if not for the other women, then for me.” She had always known her to be strong, but now their roles were getting reversed. Now Elizabeth was the one bringing Sarah comfort in this trying time.
She understood how Sarah felt. There was a sense of dread in the pit of her stomach that she couldn't push away. Not only were they captives of giants, but now she wasn't able to bring aide to her people.
It would make it easier for Elizabeth to hold her emotions in check, if she had someone else doing the same. Elizabeth didn’t know how much longer she could hold herself together. Her mind was finally slowing down enough for her emotions to come to the surface. She didn’t need her emotions flooding her and confusing her senses.
As Sarah sucked in some deep breaths to calm herself, Elizabeth looked around at all of the young women. All the young women had their arms wrapped around their tiny frames, with tears streaming down their cheeks once more. But something didn't seem right to her.
Elizabeth glanced over the women again. There was something she was seeing but not understanding. Something about the other women didn’t seem right to her.
“Elizabeth? Elizabeth!” Sarah barked into her ear.
“Ouch!” Elizabeth backed up and re-focused on Sarah.
Elizabeth shook her head, as her ear gave off a ringing noise. “No need to ruin my hearing. I was just lost in thought.”
“And here I thought you were being a good friend.” Sarah's smile faded from her face, as she gave Elizabeth a small frown.
Elizabeth shrugged, and cast her an apologetic smile. “What can I say? There is a lot on my mind, with the situation we are in.” She was about to explain that something had seemed wrong, when a sound from behind her made her jump nearly sky high.
With her heart hammering away in her chest, she turned to find her fire giant standing just a few feet away. He was watching them with those eerie crimson eyes of his. Elizabeth couldn't help wondering what he was thinking while he watched them.
He probably thought they were conspiring to try to get away. Which to be absolutely truthful, she was already trying to think of how to get them out of this sticky situation.
He grabbed Elizabeth by the arm trying to drag her away.
Sarah let out a gasp and leaped to stop him. “Let go of her, you brute! You can’t handle her like that.”
Elizabeth quickly yanked her arm back to grab Sarah’s face with her hands. “Sarah! Calm down. Take a breath. We can't go up against them. Angering them will do nothing to help us.”
Sarah took in a couple shaky breaths, until she was able to nod stiffly. Backing away she eyed the fire giant with distrust and distaste.
Elizabeth faced her captor, ready to follow him back to her designated spot, with
pursed lips. This was no time to fight the fire giants. A few young women against such brawny warriors would be a slaughter.
Their guards hadn’t even been able to kill one of these fire giants. The only way to beat these giants was to use their minds. She believed she could out wit these fire giants. It was just a matter of time.
Stryme watched his human female comfort the other human. Perhaps, his human female would be the key to getting the other young humans to stop their constant sniveling. He knew most of his men were starting to lose their patience with the never-ending whimpers.
He stepped forward, interrupting what ever they had been talking about. He didn't need them thinking they could make an escape plan. There was always going to a pair of eyes watching them.
Out of all the humans on his hands, he thought his human would be the one to come up with a plan. She was, after all, the calmest. She seemed more watchful of her surroundings, and he was sure she wouldn't miss an opportunity, if she saw one. He would just have to make sure she was never given an opportunity. He didn’t need any of them getting back to either human kingdom to start a conflict with the fire giants.
He re-grabbed her arm in an iron grip and led her over to the tent he had set up. Looking into her electric blue eyes he motioned to her that this would be where she would spend her nights.
Stryme still didn't feel like letting the human know he could speak her language. He knew he would have to speak to her at some point to get some answers, but he was going to prolong it as long as he could.
He didn’t like anything that had to do with humans, after they had abused him in his youth. The less he had to do it, the better. He also knew it meant the humans would talk more openly, if they thought no one could understand. This way he would know about a plan before it happened.
After showing her the tent, he led her over to the fire set up in the middle of the camp. He gestured for her to take a seat. She pursed her lips, and he just shrugged. If she wanted to stand, that was her decision.
Stryme left her to get one of the many birds he had sent two of his warriors out to catch. He had grown tired of eating salted meat. Now that they had the humans to feed, they would need to hunt anyways. There wasn't enough salted meat to go around until they reached the castle.
It wasn’t like he had planned to have human captives. He couldn’t see into the future. He would have to provide for them now that he had captured them.
He brought one of the birds back and sat down next to his human female. She eyed the bird he had grabbed and grimaced, as he started to pluck its delicate feathers from its pink skin.
He shrugged his shoulders at her, when he caught her grimacing. It was already dead. It wasn't like he was being cruel, and they needed to eat something. He was a warrior, not a deer. He was going to eat fresh meat this night, whether or not she liked it.
What did she want him to do? Just throw it out because it didn't sit well with her?
His fellow warrior, Keylz sat down beside him bringing his own female over, the female who had lashed out at him earlier.
“Some of the men noticed I put up an extra tent. They are getting concerned they won't be sharing a bed with a warm female tonight.” His commander stated.
Stryme grunted at him. “The humans will have a separate tent. I am sure the men can rein in their lust, until we get back to the castle. Once there they will have plenty of willing females at their beck and call.”
“Just to be clear.You are saying they will not be used by the men?” Keylz sounded slightly crestfallen, like he himself had been hoping for a warm female body.
Stryme arched an eyebrow, as he looked over at his friend. “How restless are they?” Stryme would never put himself between a human female’s legs. After what their kind had done to him, he would never get that intimate with a human. They were tainted creatures who hated the world around them.
“They are considering human females, so I would say they are fairly restless. We have been without any female companionship for weeks, and now we have our hands on some human females. Not many of the men are picky about whether they sleep with human females or giant females.”
Looking over at the human female beside him Stryme didn't think they would ever be willing. The females probably thought of them as barbarians who would only taint their delicate bodies.
Did it really matter to him all that much if a few human females were taken tonight? It wasn't like the humans themselves treated any other species with kindness. Why should he show them any emotion other than contempt?
Then again these women themselves hadn't done anything to the giant race other than exist. It was their men who waged the wars and treated others cruelly.
His decision was made quickly. With a shrug he stated simply, “The tent we set up will only be used if the men decide they don't wish to have a human female. No need to deny the men their needs.”
“I am sure the men will appreciate your concern for their needs.” Keylz answered as he pointed to the fire. “Your bird looks done.”
Stryme looked over to where the bird was now developing more than just crunchy skin. It had a few spots of char. He shrugged. A fresh dinner was a fresh dinner. Anything was better than salted meat.
He ripped a leg off the crispy bird and offered it to the human female beside him.
Elizabeth gaped at the bird leg he was clenching in his hand. She stared at it cross-eyed and slowly leaned her head away from the leg. He had ripped it clean off, as if he was breaking the smallest twig in the land. Though, it did look scrumptious. The leg dripped juice and the skin looked perfectly crisp.
It was trained into her to always use her utensils. She didn't know if she could do it. Holding food would be so foreign to her. But at the same time it sent a thrill through her like she was about to do something indecent. It was an adventure, a small one, but still one for such a pampered princess.
She had never been able to do anything indecent, with her mother watching over her like a clucking mother hen. She had to be flawless, so she could attract the right suitors. So much for winning the perfect suitor, she had been promised to a prince who she hadn’t even met before. It was a definitely a suitable match, in terms of station, but she was reluctant to marrying a man who she didn’t know.
The fire giant shook the bird leg to grab her attention again.
Reaching out her hand she took the leg from him gingerly with two fingers. She watched on in horror, as he took huge bites straight from the bird's body. Hot juice ran down his chin to drip onto the ground below.
Looking back at the roasted leg she was holding between two fingers she took a tentative bite. Flavors sprawled out over her tongue, as her taste buds awakened. Her eyes widened then slid closed, as she sank her teeth into the delicious meat.
Eating food with her fingers felt wicked, and she wished her mother had been there to witness it. If only her mother knew how relaxing it was to eat with fingers. There was no rigid spine while sitting at a table with other stiff nobles. Who would have guessed a campfire could have produced such a meal? Not her.
Then again she had never been around too many campfires, if any. She was a princess who had never left the safety of her castle and surrounding village. Being so cloistered had made her dream of a life with some excitement.
Though this might be too much excitement, she thought to herself as she glanced around at the fire giants.
As she took another bite of the leg, a trickle of juice ran down her chin. She was unable to contain the giggle that came out, as she rubbed a hand over her chin, and her cheeks flooded with color. The dribble had been ticklish and gave her a slight sense of freedom.
When she got to Sardarn, she would have to make sure eating with hands was welcomed. This new experience was endearing. She gripped the leg a little more forcefully to take some bigger bites.
The fire giant next to her watched her as if she might be losing her mind. She managed a shy smile over the mouthful of bird. She was losing her min
d a bit.
The giant beside him said something taking away her audience, which she was fine with. Now she was left to eat her bird leg in peace.
When she finished, she threw the leg bone into the fire. She watched on, as the flames licked at the grease hungrily. It brought her back to the fire at the caravan and all the death that had happened. She still could see the look in the captain’s eyes as he fell beneath a fire giant’s blade.
How was she going to get to sleep with those kinds of images floating through her mind? Then again the fire giants’ might have something else on their mind other than sleep.
Turning her attention back to the giants she listened into their conversation. To her, their talking sounded like a bunch of grumbles and growls. There was nothing she would be able to make sense of, though she found it intriguing.
Being a sheltered princess had definitely made her inquisitive about the world around her. Especially, since she had never before heard a foreign language. It was fascinating to listen to. She only hoped she wasn’t with them long enough to learn their language.
A frown formed on her face. She couldn’t imagine living among fire giants for years on end.
Elizabeth rested her chin on her chest and tried to keep her eyes open. Falling asleep around fire giants wasn’t a good idea, but despite her best attempt she promptly fell asleep. The warmth of the fire and the excitement of the day lulled her into an exhausted sleep. She might be letting her guard down, but she was unable to keep her eyelids open, no matter how much she tried.
Stryme stretched his arms above his head, as he stood. He was ready to hit the furs and get some sleep. He turned to offer her his hand and found her already asleep. She was letting out soft snores, as she slept peacefully with her chin resting on her chest.
She probably wouldn't react well, if he decided to carry her back to his tent. The image of her waking in his arms gave him a reason to smile. She might appear calm, but he was betting she was a spitfire deep down. Stryme was sure she would fight him. Defiance burned in the back of her eyes, when she was awake.