A friend of my once said that the scariest thing in the world was when everything was going in the right direction, because that means you are in the eye of the storm and things are about to get ugly.

I didn’t pay much attention back then and just laughed, I mean he was the same guy that once said that if you watch to much porn you either become gay or bisexual.[1] He was always trying to look wise and mature when he was just a drunk with some questionable ideas.

Unfortunately, he was right about being on the eye of the storm. When it looks like I’m finally getting my life together, a fucking pirate raid has to happen. Goddamnit, why I didn’t even stop to consider this possibility and create some form of defense?

Even if I had thought about some plan, what I could do? Didn’t I just admit a few months a go that I was just a kid with no power? I need to survive first and them worry about what should I do to prevent this happening again.

Natali, Rita and her husband look exhausted and I don’t think they can walk further, which is a very bad sign. We are not even a third of the way and they are barely walking anymore.

-“We rest now.”

They simply fall to the ground. Thanks to the Corgi Gods they are too tired to talk about the screams and smoke coming from the village. Because I don’t know what I could possibly say besides that we are fucked.

I thought that the trail would be full of refuges, but there’s no one besides us. Most of the villager didn’t think fast like the bald guy or just didn’t have time to escape. That’s why you don’t build houses so close to the beach without any kind of defense or warning system!

But I suppose it’s very easy to see all the problems after the shit hits the fan. There is a lot more of smoke now, I hope the bald guy is fine. What a fucking idiot, what does he hope to achieve by colleting some tools?

If the village is destroyed, I don’t think there would be much work for him. Even if we survive. without other survives what could we do? Unnecessary thoughts, my first objective is to survive, after I will think about what to do.

-“We need to go now! We are too close to the village to be safe”.

There is a collective grunt but they start to get up, I help Natali and Rita is helped by her husband. What is his name? Dosen’t matter as long he is useful. We need to get back on the trail.

It was a mistake to run in the beginning, now they are too tired to even walk. And why I’m barely tired? Last time I almost died here and was just walking, now I feel like could start running again. Maybe it's the adrenaline, I once heard that fear of death can do that. Better not stopping feeling fear then. Which I don’t think will be a problem for the near future.

We are walking in a very slow pace, I think about another break, but I hear a scream that sounds very close to us and decided that we can rest when we are dead or captured. I wonder which one is the worst.

We continue for a while, but it’s clear that they can’t go on. To be honest I starting to get to tired from helping Natali.

-“Break”.

Now all of us just fell on the ground. I think my body finally run out of adrenaline. I'm panting heavily and the throat is starting to burn as I breathe. Fuck, I need to drink some water.

The others are in worst shape, it’s my fault for making they run in the beginning, there was no point to run when there were no enemies near us. I’m the oldest here, if you count the years lived back on Earth, and I keep making rookie mistakes!

Now is too late to regret, but I think we are safe now. We better be safe, because we can’t walk anymore.

There is plenty of people to enslave close to the beach, I don’t think they will waste their time coming after us. The screams have stopped or we are to far away to hear. There is a lot of smoke so I don’t think much of the place will be there when we return.

Why are they even burning the place before looting? Or the fuckers know that we have nothing to steal and are here just for the people? The survives are going to became slaves I sure of that, I heard a couple of times about how slavery works in the mainland. Which is basically like on Earth, very brutal and short life.

I think we should continue, but my body is to tired to get up without help. Fuck, I really hope that I’m far enough from the village, even if the bastards get in here they better carry or kill me because I refuse to leave here with my own two feet.

I hear voices and the noise of people walking and as try to get up I look the way that we come and see that is nobody coming, Rita screams and I look to her way and see a bunch of armed man pointing their spears at us and yelling.

How the fuck did they get around us?

One of them laughs and walks to Rita and tries to grab her arm, her husband tries to protect her but just get bitch slap and gets knockout. Rita continues to scream but tries to help her husband but the soldier stops her and laughing put his left hand around her neck.

For a second I think that he is trying to kill her but another of the raiders start yelling at him until he drops her. The brute looks angry but dosen’t say anything. The new comer turns to me and starts speaking. I can’t understand shit and it’s obvious that he is getting anger at me for not responding.

-“I can’t understand you.”

He stops and looks to the direction that he came and yells something and waits until another man show up and after talking to him the third man speaks in a broke version of my language.

-“Why here?”

- "The village was attacked by pirates, we are running away from them."

I speak very slowly so he can understand me, no point in trying to antagonize him. He translates and even without speaking his language I can see that the leader is saying a lot of profanities, I hope he dosen’t take his angry at me.

He finish swearing and ask a question that is immediate translate.

- “Spears, much?”

I think he wants to know how many soldiers are attacking, I have no fucking idea about the number of soldiers, the only think I know is the name of the ship but looking at their expression I better start proving that I’m useful.

- “Big boat, three decks, many spears.”

The translator looks confused, I need to do something. I grab a stick and draw the Dancing Fool or at least something that resembles a war ship. Then I draw three oars, I point to the ship.

-“Big ship.”

When I’m sure he understand, I point to the oars using the stick in my right hand while I put my left had close to my mouth with three finger.

-“ Three decks of oars.”

Luckily, realization daunts on both of them and makes the one I assume is the leader to look pensive. I think is a good thing, I was ready to draw a spear and speak Italian with my hands to show that they have many warriors.

The time pass, probably no more then a few seconds but it feels like days and the leader shouts something. When I wasn’t paying attention a lot of soldiers started to arriving. They don’t like what the leader is saying, especially the Brute who grabbed Rita. He looks like wants to kill him.

The leader yell again and the Brute start running in direction of the village while the other sit wherever there is space. Rita and Natali are trying to reanimate Rita’s husband that continues to be unconscious. Some of the soldiers are given them dirty looks but none of them try anything.

They’re just a few steps from me, but I’m too scary to try to move without permission and stay in my spot. Natali looks very desperate but when our eyes met, she gives a very faint smile to show me that everything will be alright.

Poor woman, she knows that we are fucked, but is trying to encourage me, that make me fell like scum because I wasn’t consideration her at all in my survive plan. I’m trying to figurate a way out, something that can change our situation.

I can talk about electricity and how amazing it is. But even if I could make he understand me and understand how awesome it is, I don’t know to create. To be honest, I can’t make nothing that he would be interested. Even if I had the technical knowledge to build, he would never believe me.

Why would he? I’m just some barbarian on a crappy island , how could I know something that he dosen’t? He would laugh or burn me in stake for being a wizard. But to try something I would need for him to understand me and by the quality of his translator that is not going to happen.

There is no way out for me, best cause scenario I’m a slave for the rest of my life, worst case he just kill me now. And what about Rita and Natali? There is a bunch of horny soldiers, they must know what is going to happen.

And yet she tries to cheer me up in this situation. Damn, why don’t you try to betray me? I can deal with that, but is to hard to think that there is people who care more about me than themselves and there is nothing that I can do to save them.

I keep creating scenarios in my head to make everything right. But ever single of them is just a dream. There is nothing that I can do in a situation that I’m a children without any kind recourses and I don’t even speak the same language.

Impotence, that’s the definition of my situation. I think Rita husband is waking, the poor bastard should just die and save himself a lot of suffering. Poor Rita looks happy, I wonder why? It’s not like he is a super powerful person who can save us.

Or perhaps he can. This is a place where Gods exist. I look at him and my hopes are immediately shattered when he first look confused and then panic hits him hard and Rita starts to calm him down. Why did I even hope for him to do something?

Because I’m desperate, that’s the answer. So desperate that I will believe in anything as long gives me a chance to survive that dosen’t involve slavery. I look to my side and see something white in the distance.

After a while I see that the something white is Pepita. What is that crazy deer doing? Does she want to play? I try to think of a way to use her to survive, but there is nothing. I’m surrounded by armed men. Besides, I’m way to tired to run from anyone.

I think about informing the pirates about her, maybe use her to gain some good will. But that would be a dick move, she might be a crazy animal, but she is my crazy animal. Betraying a human is a thing, but betraying a animal is unacceptable

I can’t yell for her to run without alerting the guards, so I better stay quiet and hope that she will realized that now is not a good time. Not sure if she realized that now wasn’t a good time or just decided she has better things to do, but she turns and run away.

I do not know why, but that makes me happy, at least my dog/deer will survive to fight another day. She might even avenge me in a reverse John Wick. Like that is possible.

The Brute returns and says something to the leader that is sitting close to me. The leader dosen’t like what he is hearing. There are no more then twenty armed men here and the Dancing Fool has many more. It's not a fight anyone would want to fight.

He yells to the group that looks upset about the order but everyone starts moving to the other side of the island. One of the pirates kicks me and the prisoners form in a Indian line. Natali is behind me and says:

- "Baby, no matter what happens to me, be quiet and make sure you do your best to survive."

Any happiness from Pepita escape evaporates. Unconditional love is a huge burden, especially when it’s not reciprocal and you have a conscience.

[1] Based on true facts, we were very drunk and arguing about how the constant raise on the beer price is destroying the Western civilization and from nowhere he says that. To this day he refuses to admit that he said anything like that and uses his favorite excuse to refute “ if I don’t remember didn’t happen”. I think he was trying to leave the closet and was disappoint that I didn’t support him. I was a bad friend that day. Remember kids, always support your friend stop living a lie.