Ethereal

Chapter 16: The Minnow

I was standing in the middle of the main hall back at the orphanage, the building burning around me. Screams echoed up and down the hallways as Matrons and the other girls called out my name begging me to save them. The horrifying echoes of their pain-filled cries followed me from door to door as I tried to reach them, but all of the doors were locked from the other side. The fire continued to burn around me, the smoke curling into my lungs and slowly suffocating me.

I thought I could smell singed hair and melting skin. The fire loomed closer around me threatening to swallow me whole. There was no escape; no one would make it out alive. Not even me.

The ringing of their screams still lingered in my ears as I shot up in the sand, my hand clutching my throat as through I was still amid the fire and smoke. I tried to swallow the rising sob that was crawling up the back of my throat, but my tongue was as dry as the sand I clutched between my fingers.

Something cold suddenly flattened itself onto my right palm, making a shiver go down my spine. I looked down to see a patch of fluffy white snow sitting beneath my hand, standing out against the dark tan of the sand that surrounded me. I blinked once, twice, three times, waiting for my eyes to stop playing tricks on me. All thoughts of my nightmare instantly vanished. What was a patch of snow doing here on the beach?

"Oi! Watch the oar! Ya almost smacked me upside the head!"

"Well what's your head doin' by the oar?"

"You could've given me brain damage, ya dope!"

"It wouldn't make much of a difference, now would it, Carlo?"

I looked up to see two men arguing by a rowboat by the shore several yards away. The sun was already ascending high up into the sky, and in the distance, I could see several more rowboats heading out towards the cargo ships waiting on the horizon.

"Shit!" I said, scrambling to my feet. Before I bolted down to the water, I stole one last glance at the sand, but there was only an imprint of where I had been laying. There was no snow patch to be found. I must've been in dream haze from my nightmare. I shook my head and sprinted down towards the rowboat and skidded to a stop in front of the two men who were knee-deep in the water as they pushed their rowboat into the sea. They stopped arguing for a moment and looked over at me, their gazes confused and somewhat suspicious. I didn't recognize these men from the bonfire last night – but to be fair, I didn't stick around long enough to learn anyone's names.

"Are you a part of Jax's crew? Headed to Death's Canyon?" I said, out of breath.

"Ah, I remember you." Said the man with the oar. He was wearing a white cap over his silver hair, his skin riddled with liver spots. "You're the newbie from last night."

"The new guy? You didn't tell me it was a girl, Stew." Said the other man. He was standing on the other side of the boat with his brown pant legs rolled up to mid-thigh. He looked to be a couple of years younger than Stew, but still old. His hair still had a few strands of black in it, and his skin wasn't nearly as leathery. They both wore a matching set of tan pants with black leather boots, along with torn brown shirts that were several sizes too big for them. They too, had the same matching 'C' branded into their forearms. Though their branding scars were somewhat faded from several years of healing, their haunting bone white color was unmistakable.

"You would've known that had ya not fallen asleep right after dinner, Carlo. What does it matter anyway?" said Stew, interrupting my thoughts.

"It's bad luck to have a lady on board." Said Carlo, his voice low. Stew rolled his eyes.

"Ya also say its bad luck to sneeze three times during a full moon. Just get in the damn boat before I actually smack ya with the oar this time." Said Stew. He turned to me and held out his hand, "You're in luck today, miss. Had ya slept for another minute you woulda missed the last boat off the beach. Now climb on in and we'll be off."