Short stories and scrapped ideas [1]

The Red Feather of the Ocean

A/N: this story was originally a dream I had at a friend's house, parts were edited so it could actually be a story.

The ship tossed and turned, shaking. People grabbed onto handlebars near themselves, laughing. When our mothership landed everyone was ecstatic, they all wanted to settle down immediately and start experimenting. However, that was for the older groups, the younger groups were observing and taking notes.

I sat in the cabin, made from the trunk of an extremely large tree. The wood was a red color, dark, and absorbed the light. The walls were lined with beds and other rooms, privacy seemed out of the question. It felt dark and cold. I watched as people continued unpacking after a few hours; a bunch of over prepared idiots.

All the new groups had been given a simple run down of Planet 23-x, before being thrown onto a ship and sent to research. Everyone wanted to go, they had no problem with being sent to a new world. But I hated everyone on that ship, I seemed like the only one who was truly forced to go. It was just another planet to take resources from.

I sat on the covers of my bed staring off blankly. Whilst much of the other kids brought entertainment to pass the time, I stayed secluded in my area of the cabin. I rarely found things of entertainment enjoyable. People always threw fits if things went a different way then what they wanted. Either way entertainment had no value, we were here to research, it was stupid of the people to play around.

After dinner was served our director walked in, tapping a clipboard. "Alright everyone, no time to waste, I've assigned partners and a group of three. Check your badges and get familiar with your people. We'll be going out for data collection samples tomorrow." The director waved and walked off, whispers of excitement filled the room.

I look over to the desk and reach for my badge, it clicks showing a hologram of my partner, or rather, partners. Ari and Ameira, annoying ones. As I scanned the room for them, I saw their beds pushed together. I hold my badge close, dismissing any unwanted thoughts as I stroll over to them.

"Hey-" my hand raises but Ameira glares at me.

"Oh, we're the group of three," Ari snarked, looking me up and down. I held eye contact and they both scoffed, shifting around. Ari was popular in school, one of the queen bees, her 'heir' being Ameira. Her hair was down to her shoulders, brown and straight; matching with her eyes. Her skin; on the lighter side. Smile; devoid of any emotion but a lust for pain and suffering. She always wore more risky clothes, and lived to break people's hearts; never cared about anything but status.

Ameira was barely any better. Her hair was wavy; musty colored, but at least it made her look nicer. Her eyes were a nice blue color and she wore a lot of knit cardigans. Though, they were always down at her elbows so it rarely provided warmth. Her emotions could be more genuine depending if the person was close or someone she saw as 'lower' then her.

"I suggest you stay–y'know what. What's your name?" My hand twitches, surprised by her sudden change, I open my mouth but get cut off by their snickers, "never cared." They shove each other laughing. I relax my shoulders and walk away, back to my dark corner of the cabin. Dark and cold. It mattered little what I did now and in the morning, I was stuck with them.

As the morning sun rose our director came back in. "Rise and shine everyone, get breakfast and head out with your partner–s. Remember to stay inside the barriers that are set up. It's dangerous to go past them so stay with your partner." He tapped the clipboard and walked out. People scrambling to get ready, excited squeals echoed. And after breakfast everyone met back up at the cabin; close to their partners. Everyone looked so happy, so blind.

I stood a foot away from Ari and Ameira as they ignored me entirely. We all waited for the researcher supplies to be dropped off, when they were, people scattered out the door. On the other hand, Ari and Ameira took their sweet time. Continuing to talk about fame and how much attention they'd get if they found something interesting. They walked straight past the paths we were allowed on, "we walked past the route."