I was having a pleasant day farming in the fields when I smelled the smoke.
That was my first observation of the event. I was taught when I was young to run whenever I encountered that, so I did. I made a mistake, because what I saw I could never prepare for -- the familiar flames at such a high level and mass were what was shocking. But the carnage really had me in. I saw burning bodies and thankfully I caught the perpetrators. Out on the dock near our village were ships still being unloaded. All of the possessions in our town were being knocked out of their places. A raid! But there hadn't been a raid on our village in hundreds of years!
I stayed curled up in a bush near the hills for safety. I had a good view, and thankfully I didn't recognize any faces. My family and most of the other townspeople must have evacuated -- smart move. The wreckage was monumental, but after a few hours, I began to see the sails moving away. I recognized them. Vikings.
I felt like I was going to be sick. I thought they were only a legend. There were still no people clearing back into the village. What had they done? Had anyone killed? What was left, if anything? I wanted to know. But I was thankful that I didn't.
That was my first observation of the event. I was taught when I was young to run whenever I encountered that, so I did. I made a mistake, because what I saw I could never prepare for -- the familiar flames at such a high level and mass were what was shocking. But the carnage really had me in. I saw burning bodies and thankfully I caught the perpetrators. Out on the dock near our village were ships still being unloaded. All of the possessions in our town were being knocked out of their places. A raid! But there hadn't been a raid on our village in hundreds of years!
I stayed curled up in a bush near the hills for safety. I had a good view, and thankfully I didn't recognize any faces. My family and most of the other townspeople must have evacuated -- smart move. The wreckage was monumental, but after a few hours, I began to see the sails moving away. I recognized them. Vikings.
I felt like I was going to be sick. I thought they were only a legend. There were still no people clearing back into the village. What had they done? Had anyone killed? What was left, if anything? I wanted to know. But I was thankful that I didn't.
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