Read Legend of Oria 1: Initial Contact for Free Online

Olaf to lower his sails.  The waves grew in intensity making it impossible for the archers to continue their exchange of arrows.  Bloodax’s smaller ships had a much more difficult time in the raging storm, as the ship’s crews focused on the weather more than the battle.  The smaller boats further closed the gap.  Men on Bloodax’s boats prepared to board Olaf’s ships.  Olaf retaliated by ordering the nets overboard.  It took only several minutes before the netting tangled up Bloodax’s boats.  They lost their ability to navigate the rough waters and several of them ended up capsizing.  Olaf continued to monitor the advance of Bloodax’s other boats and saw the squall hampering them as well. 
    Olaf began to weigh the risk of putting on some sail versus continuing his battle of attrition with Bloodax’s fleet.  He knew it was only a matter of time before the chase was back on.  The squall would clear and the remaining small Bloodax boats would again renew their assault.  Olaf’s son suddenly came up with an idea and presented it to him.  He suggested folding the sails and raising them such that the wind would strike only half of the sail area.  Olaf liked the idea and gave orders to carry out his son’s idea.
    Olaf’s crew quickly placed the reefed sails into position and continued to row the boat at a hard pace.  The small ships lost ground to Olaf and were almost a mile behind.  Olaf than witnessed some of Bloodax’s ships discontinue the chase and pickup survivors from the capsized boats.  He knew Bloodax would force them to pay a price for giving up the chase.  Bloodax would have left them to drown and he would have continued the chase.
    After several hours, Bloodax’s boats disappeared off the horizon.  It looked like Olaf had a clear shot for the mouth of the Fiord and an opportunity to head out to the North Sea.  So far, Olaf’s escape had been successful.  However, Olaf knew the dangers facing his clan and himself were only beginning.  The North Sea had claimed the lives of many a Norseman.  This time of year, the seas could be particularly rough.  Olaf was hoping to cross the North Sea to the Northern tip of Scotland and get fresh water and supplies.  He knew that most likely a landfall in Scotland would result in a fight and more danger to his clan.  The inhabitants of Scotland had gotten increasingly more capable at repelling Viking raids.  Olaf was hoping to avoid a fight, but there was much hatred of Norsemen on Scotland’s north coast.
    Olaf’s fleet made it successfully out of the Fiord and immediately entered the choppy seas between the North Sea and the English Channel.  There was no clear pattern to the waves as Olaf ordered his boats to head in a Northwesterly direction.  The winds were picking up making the boats unwieldy to handy under sail.  The winds forced Olaf to order the sails lowered and his men to slow their rowing down to a more sustainable pace.
    Several of the men were nearing exhaustion because of their race with Bloodax.  Olaf seeing the pain in their eyes and their weary bodies ordered the most exhausted men to rest while the remaining men continued at the oars.  He only gave these men an hour rest before ordering them back to relieve the others.  It would take a while before his crew was ready for a more normal schedule.
    It took several days for Olaf to reach the north shore of Scotland.  It was a rough cruise and his men received little rest.  As they approached the shore, Olaf had his best lookouts scanning the shore for hostile activity.  For the most part the coast was clear.  As they approached the shore, his men spotted a small creek.  Olaf decided to sail into the creek in search of fresh water and supplies.
    Olaf had one of the boats sail into the creek approximately 100 yards in front of the other boat.  He felt that was close enough for the trailing boat to assist the leading boat and reduce the risk of a shore-based