Adria: A Sarah J Maas Fancfic

Chapter Two

Sea mist sprayed against my face as I hung onto the ship's wide mast. Whipping my head in every direction I tried to figure out where my parents were. There was nothing but sullen storm clouds for miles. Suddenly the deck tipped vertically onto its side, and I slid down the rough wood flooring and slammed into the railing - I heard something crack.

Gasping from the pain, I fell to my knees, still clutching the rail with one hand. I could barely breathe. I whimpered as I slowly rose to my feet, but wave after wave a nausea crashed into me causing my knees to buckle once more. I squeezed my eyes shut, trying not to black out.

Abruptly, everything went silent. There was no wind, no waves, no sound. I slowly peeled my eyes open.

Darkness had risen up all around the ship, swirling and shifting. Trying to get to me. A sharp sound jutted out of the churning mass of darkness. It sounded almost...human. Gritting my teeth against the pain, I edged closer to the deepest, darkest part of the roiling horde of black. Slowly, I reached out my hand, and the darkness stilled - as if it were a pet waiting for its owner's touch. I was so close, mere inches away. I leaned further over the railing.

Almost there.

In one last effort, I pushed myself the final half an inch, and my finger was able to just graze the tip of the darkness before it vanished.

Startled, I reeled backwards, but a heinous gust of wind shoved into my back, right over the injured area. Screaming, I tipped over and fell down the length of the boat. Each second turned into a hundred as I tumbled toward the icy sea. The black, churning waves grew nearer, and nearer, and nearer, then -

Light rushed in. Gasping for breath I shot upright. I sat there for a moment just breathing in and out slowly.

Gods I hate nightmares.

That was one of the worst ones I'd had in a while.

I hated revisiting the past memories from my childhood that I couldn't even remember. It was like being forced to relive a trauma that wasn't even mine. All that was left in my brain were holes begging to be filled, but left empty.

Taking one last deep breath, I got up and went to the bathroom.

My turquoise eyes were all puffy, and were bordering bloodshot. My hair had turned itself into a nest around my head, and to make it worse, the image of me falling into the sea wouldn't get out of my head.

There wasn't much I could remember about the early years of my life. I remember that my mom gave me away when I was born. I remember the wealthy merchants that took me in. I remembered the ship that was felled by the storm. I remember everyone on board jumping into a life raft and leaving me behind.

And I remember dying.

Yet somehow I came back.

*****************

I trudged down the stairs. The smell of old wood and strawberries wafted into my nose. I breathed in deeply - this was the smell of home. It almost made me forget how awful this morning was. Sunlight was shining through the window directly above the table, casting a warm glow throughout the room. I headed into the kitchen, and sure enough, a huge bowl of strawberries was sitting on the counter.

I reached up and pulled a plate out of the cabinet. After shoveling two huge spoonfuls of strawberries onto my plate and grabbing a piece of toast, I left to eat my meal outside. I meandered along the stone path that led to the garden. Finnigan had been working on it for h. Stretching out for over the span of a mile, the garden was one of the most beautiful things I'd ever seen.