“I'm not going to hurt you,” King told Annie. “I'm not a threat.”

She wanted to believe him, but she couldn't take that chance, thus the alert on the horn. Annie had never seen a stranger from a strange land. Every person she'd ever met had been a resident of what remained of [url=https://i.imgur.com/0Lm3ANi.jpg]Greenland[/url], and nearly all of them had come from no more that 200 kilometers away, barely a fifth the length of the island. Annie’s world was, to say the least, quite small.  

The figure coming up behind Annie was Paul. Paul was the son of one of the Clan's most important Elders and -- because of this -- was also the leading candidate for being the first to [i]seed[/i] Annie’s womb when she came of age. She didn't care much for him; she found him arrogant and aggressive. She certainly wasn't eager to have him between her parted thighs, thrusting hard and deep until he emptied his balls inside her.

“Did he get near you?” he asked Annie with a concerned voice upon reaching her. His meaning was actually [i]Did he touch you? Did he infect you?[/i] Paul's concern wasn't for Annie's health really. It was for his own future, specifically as the father of Annie's first child.

“No, he didn't get near me,” Annie responded. “I don't think he's sick.”

“[i]You don't know that![/i]” Paul stressed. He was right, of course; the incubation period for the Bug was long, perhaps months long. It was why the virus had been so successful at spreading across the world. “He'll have to go into quarantine … or leave."

"[i]Quarantine![/i]" Annie said without hesitation. She saw how Paul reacted to her response and, just as quickly, covered for her excitement about the stranger with, "I mean ... Papa's going to want to question him ... before he gets sent away."

Annie's father, Bran, just happened to be the second man to arrive on the scene. He'd been down the beach hunting seals, unfortunately unsuccessfully this day. As he neared the stranger, he leveled his spear and ordered, "[i]Don't move! Don't get close to anyone![/i]"

“I'm not going to hurt you," King repeated. "I'm not a threat."

"Who are you? Where'd you come from?" Bran asked, slowly circling the man from a distance of no less than 10 meters. He saw no signs of infection, but like Paul had said earlier, you just couldn't know for sure until after a suitable quarantine period.

"I'm just a survivor of a shipwreck," King said. "I'd like to search for my companions.”

By now, there were almost a dozen Clansmen on the beach, watching the goings-on. Bran, who was one of the youngest Elders and well respected, ordered everyone to stay back. Then, to Paul, he said, "Take him to the quarantine hut. Post a guard. [i]No[/i] one goes in until I say so. Get him food, water, and blankets."

"Yes, Elder," Paul said, stepping out of the path between King and the village uphill. "Let's go."

Bran told the stranger, "I will send search parties up and down the beach to look for your friends ... so long as you follow this man's instructions and don't give us any trouble. If you do ... give us trouble, I mean ... Paul has permission to put his spear through you. Do you understand? I can't take a chance that you are infected with the Bug."  

He waited for King to respond. If the man agreed to the orders, Bran would gather armed villagers and do as he had promised. If the man didn't agree ... well ... he'd have to figure that out when it happened.