The Captain's Aria Prologue WIP
Waves crashing against the shore. Seagulls crying overhead. Sunshine beaming down on pale skin. Sand shifting under cold hands.
It wasn’t obvious what woke the young woman, but as her eyes snapped open to a clear sky and the visage of swaying palm trees she knew she was in trouble.
Gasping she rolled onto her front and coughed up the small amount of water that was caught in her throat. Wiping her mouth with the back of her arm she frowned at the wetsuit. She only wore that when she went out with the Professor on his boat- “Ugh.” A throbbing in her head made her drop that line of thought, it wasn’t important at the moment. What was important was trying to figure out where she was now.
Standing up she grimaced at the grit that’d found its way into her clothes. Taking off her shirt she gave it a quick couple of flicks to get the sand out. Seeing a couple of low hanging branches nearby she quickly hung up her shirt before unzipping the wetsuit and stripping it down to her legs. After brushing away as much sand as she could she slipped the wetsuit back on and quickly slipped her shirt over top. She was hot in the full black body suit but it was better than leaving her skin unprotected. As for the shirt, she had no backpack and extra fabric was always useful. Either to make into a bandage or to carry other useful items.
Looking back out at the ocean she couldn’t see a single ship. Not fishing, military, cargo, or even a pleasure yacht. She was completely alone. And without a cellphone she wouldn’t be calling for help any time soon. With a sigh she turned away from the ocean and peered into the jungle. So far she hadn’t heard anything besides the seagulls and the waves. It might have been safer to wait on the shore but there was no fresh water or food in sight.
“Three to five days without water, two weeks without food.” It was something the Professor said to her once about being stranded.
Mind made up she stepped into the jungle, grateful for her sturdy water shoes with their thick soled bottoms designed for rock climbing. She only wished she hadn’t lost the matching gloves. There was no telling what might be a skin irritant in a foreign place like this.
Coming up to what looked like a sheer rock face that went on for as far as her eyes could see she almost turned back. But something glinting in the light caught her eye. Stepping closer she realized that the vines hanging down over the rocky face were actually hiding a crevice that had light on the other side. Hesitating for a moment she peered inside and tried to judge the size. It seemed safe enough, and she couldn’t see any jagged edges sticking out no matter which way she looked at it. So she bucked up her courage and pushed onward, into the crevice.
Surprisingly it was a fairly easy fit. At it’s smallest she only had to let out her breath a little and push herself through. But by that point she was out and back in the jungle.
Right next to a trickling stream that came from the rocks and wound its way into the jungle.
Thirsty and having no canteen she knelt next to the stream and cupped her hands to catch the water. Sniffing it cautiously she let it sit in her hands for a moment. When she didn’t feel anything bothering her skin, and the scent came back more earthy than anything, she took the smallest of sips. There was no acidity or metallic aftertaste, and her tongue didn’t tingle or feel odd. So she judged the water to be good and drank enough to slake her thirst, but not enough to fill her stomach.
“Drinking too much water can slow you down and affect your blood, it’s always better to drink just enough.” Her brother’s words… her brother?
Her head throbbed again as a memory surfaced.
***
“Princess!” A voice called out to her and she grunted in response, not even bothering to get up. “Hey mermaid princess, time to get your lazy ass out of bed!” Her blanket was torn away and she let out a groan, curling in on herself. “I still don’t know why you dyed your hair blue instead of red.” Came a teasing voice above her.
Swatting at her brother she cracked open an eye and glared at him blearily. “Because I got tired of people calling me Ariel.” She said crankily. “She doesn’t even have a name in the original book.” She muttered as she slowly pushed herself up off the bed.
“Yeah, yeah.” Arthur said as he rolled his eyes and headed for the door. “You’re going to be late if you don’t get up, princess.”
“Ugh.” Scrunching her face up she stuck her tongue out at him, making him snort in amusement. “At least I don’t go around telling people I’m going to be king of the British Isles some day.”
The other blonde stopped before turning to grin at her. “Hey, it could happen! I just have to find a really fancy sword and a crazy old man in a blue bathrobe to vouch for me!”
A smile crossed her face as she grabbed a pillow and chucked it at his face. “Get out, dumbass, I need to get ready.”
“Hey, is that any way to speak to your future king?” He asked playfully, batting the pillow out of the air before backing out the door and shutting it with a wide grin.
Alone in her room she stood and stretched, her old worn pajama top barely covering her stomach as she reached towards the ceiling. Glancing at the clock she stopped dead, her eyes going wide. “Oh shit!” Dashing to the closet she grabbed the outfit she’d set aside the night before and hurried to the bathroom. She sped through her usual morning routine, opting to tie her long hair up in a loose bun rather than waste time styling it. Grabbing the bag she’d packed the night before she pulled out her keys and closed the door behind her.
Sprinting down the stairs she almost bowled over her dad, who held his coffee away from him so it didn’t spill. “Woah, where’s the fire?” He asked, giving her a disgruntled look.
“Sorry, no time, have to get to the marina!” Sitting down she yanked on her water shoes and grabbed her jacket.
“Say hello to the professor for me. And let him know we’ll be coming to his barbecue on the eleventh.” Her father reminded her before disappearing upstairs to his office.
“Will do! Bye dad!”
***
Blinking back to her current situation she frowned. That morning she’d been late to a meeting with the professor, a man she had a lot of respect for, and had hurried out of the house. But at the moment that was all she could recall.
