Lost Together -> James Conrad

03

My feet carried me quickly towards the helicopter platform.

I slept in a bit, a bad habit I have. I was stuffing my notebook into my bag when I crashed into someone. My bag and notebook fell down and I groaned in annoyance.

"I apologise. I didn't see you coming." I heard a voice.

The british accent already told me who it was. I barely looked at him as I collected my stuff. It was the British man who asked about the bombs yesterday. He is accompanying this expedition as well, I believe.

"It's fine." I dismissed it.

He went to help but I was quick enough so he didn't have anything to help with. I won't be seen as a fragile thing that needs helping with everything. There are way too many women in the world who are dependent on men. I refuse to be one of them.

"Are you going to the helicopters?" He questioned.

I adjusted the bag on my shoulder and hummed in agreement. He didn't seem to mind that I didn't allow him to help me. In fact, I felt as if he was amused by it. Being amused is better than being confused.

"Yeah. You're Captain James Conrad right?" I asked.

We started walking towards the platform together. The ship is still quite new to me. I prefer solid ground than to feel the hum of the engine underneath my feet. It makes me feel uneasy.

"Just James is fine. And I'm decomisioned so no Captain title." He explained.

I nodded acknowledging his words. The topic didn't seem like one he wanted to talk about.

And I'm fond of leaving people alone to deal with their problems. Every time I try to help, I only make it worse.

"Okay, Just James. I'm Lissa." I stated.

He glanced at me briefly. His long legs were difficult to keep up with. I've never liked the fact that I was shorter than most people.

But standing next to him, I felt like an ant. A cute ant, but nothing compared to James.

"I've heard. Radna kept mentioning you." He commented.

I snorted as he smirked. Radna has a secret agenda and I don't like how he keeps important details of the mission to himself. I still don't understand why he would want me on this expedition. He could've had any other writer. But he chose me.

"You don't seem fond of him." James pointed out.

I shrugged not wanting to reveal I was more suspicious than fond of him. Something isn't right here but I don't want to say anything until I have proof. Perhaps Mason can help me with that. She seems more than eager.

"I don't currently have an opinion. I try not to judge people without truly knowing them." I explained.

"A wise choice." He commented.

We reached the helicopter and he went in first. He turned around to offer to help me but I was already inside. I noticed the surprised look on his face. This time it wasn't amusement, but he still didn't mind.

"I'm not that fragile." I retorted.

He smirked at me as we took our seats. And there it was. The look of amusement that was getting old. I'm kind of disappointed that he's not giving me any reactions. I like making people annoyed.

"I'll keep that in mind next time." He said.

My attention was caught by Mason who joined us. She looked at us and motioned for us to scoot over. James smirked a bit as he moved to the other side and I ended up in the middle. I guess I'm not the only person he gets amused by.

We put our seat belts on and the helicopter flew off. I watched amazed as we went towards the storm. Black clouds surrounded the helicopters. Thunder boomed around us as the helicopter became unstable. I held on tightly to my seat. My eyes closed for a second imagining my brother.

"Come on, Liss. You got this. A little storm ain't gonna hurt you."

I could visualise him sitting across from me giving me that brave smile of his. My eyes opened and I inhaled sharply. I can do this. It's just a storm. One who looked like the devil made it but still.

The helicopter rocked dangerously but I didn't feel scared anymore. Then all of a sudden, the clouds disappeared and the storm was no longer there. But a magnificent island was.

It was covered in greenery and heights you could only imagine. A mysterious fog was around us but it went away as we came closer. The sea was underneath us and I could smell the saltiness of it. It was truly breathtaking.

Mason took pictures left and right. I noticed a flock of birds and grinned. I understand now why my brother liked his job as an explorer. Music from one of the helicopters spread through the air as my eyes went over the scenery.

My smile however fell when they dropped the explosives. They're ruining such a beautiful place. Suddenly, there was a sound of shouting from the helicopters.

I frowned before noticing a helicopter falling down. A palm tree came through it making it fall. I looked ahead only for my eyes to widen.

"What the hell?" I mumbled.

A giant ape stood in front of us. It blocked the sun as I released a shaky breath. It was taller than anything I've ever seen in my life. And it did not look happy. Every part of my body was screaming at me to get out of there. But I had nowhere to go.

The helicopters surrounded the gorilla or ape preparing their weapons. I shared a worried look with James. I've got a bad feeling about this.

Soldiers started firing at the gorilla. A part of me hoped it would work but I knew the truth. We couldn't defeat something of this size. Definitely not with normal guns.

The bullets seemed to have just bounced off of him. In fact, they only made him angrier. He roared and jumped a bit. His hand took down a helicopter and I flinched.

"Pull out now! Pull out!" James yelled.

"I don't take orders from you!" The pilot retorted.

Panic finally rose inside of me as the gorilla continued its assault. The forces that were sent to help soldiers on the ground were crushed by the gorilla. He wasn't intent on letting anyone survive.

Two helicopters flew towards him. One from behind and one from in front of him. But he jumped making the two helicopters crash into each other. He then switches to killing the people on the ground.

"Hang on!" The pilot shouted.

He turned to glance at us when I noticed a man flying towards us. My eyes widened, but I couldn't move or say anything. This didn't feel real. It couldn't be real. Giant gorillas didn't exist.

"Watch out!" James yelled.

It was too late. The man crashed into our window then he was carried up towards the propellors. Our helicopter suffered the damage because of it. This is going to be a rough landing.

"Prepare to crash!" The pilot shouted.

My heart beat erratically at his words. My brother's words echo in my head as I prepare for the crash. I curl myself into a ball protecting my vital organs and hold on tightly.

I don't know if it helped my brother considering he was never found and was presumed dead but it's worth a shot. I could feel every hit the helicopter received as we crashed. I took deep breaths trying not to panic which proved to be nearly impossible.

And then the final hit came and I shut my eyes tightly.