Wet Fire

Red Shores (E2)

Adair

Adair found himself spinning in a dark world. There was no floor, no roof, and no force keeping him tethered to any surface-he was floating. He tested the environment by kicking his legs, but that did no good, for he only grew tired and nothing happened. The urge to breathe came upon him and he sucked in water. Then, everything went black.

...

The first thing Adair saw when he opened his eyes was the intense sunlight, filling his field of vision. What happened? When he opened his mouth, a stream of water poured out and he weakly managed to cough and retch until it hurt his lungs. He relaxed. The right side of his body sat in something soft and cool, and it almost felt a bed. He wondered where he was. At home possibly? Then a cold sensation rushed up his body and he knew it was water. He was on a beach, but where? Birds squawked nearby.

After a minute of getting his consciousness back, Adair tried to get up, but found out that his arms and legs were completely useless. He collapsed again on the beach, feeling wet and heavy with his silver armor on. A wave rolled in on the beach, filling his mouth again with water. Strangely, the water tasted slightly more metallic and salty than the seawater he was used to swallowing. When Adair's eyes finally focused, he saw that the water was pure red. A few feet away was the body of a man-probably one of his crew. As his eyes focused, he saw that the man's right side was completely ripped to pieces and a wake of vultures was ripping at his flesh. They shook at the man's organs and sucked them down, fighting over pieces of meat. The man's tunic and rusted chainmail had been pecked clean through, and his skin as well, down to the bone. A vulture then turned and faced Adair, letting out a short kaw. Its two beady black eyes stared at him for a while.

Adair felt himself overcome with dread, knowing that in a few minutes, the vulture would descend on him as well. Again, he wondered where in the world he was, and if his mother would ever find out how he died. It was obvious that his fleet had lost the battle. There were bodies of his men strewn all over the beach, bloody and waterlogged. His ship had most likely been destroyed and sunken, but how, he did not know. In fact, Adair did not remember anything. He couldn't even remember his own name.

Is this how I am going to die? Adair wondered. The sea had taken his men, his memory, and soon, it would take his life. Slowly, Adair closed his eyes and prepared himself for death. His breathing became shallow and he let his mind drift away. What had he done in his life? He remembered bits and pieces-a ship and a crew, his crew; a castle on a rocky shore; a boy with dark hair and freckles-his brother perhaps. For some reason, Adair could not put the pieces together.

Suddenly, Adair felt someone grab the back of his armor and pull him up into a sitting position. He slouched and was held up by a weak hand.

"Adair!" it was the voice of a girl. She hugged him and then scooted over so that he could see her. The girl had olive skin and a thin nose. Her thick brown hair fell just below her ears, and when she smiled, dimples appeared on her cheeks. She looks beautiful.

"Is that my na-name?" Adair asked, choking out words.

"What do you mean? What's wrong?" her voice was soft.

"My name. Adair?"

She nodded, confused. "You don't remember?"

"I don't remember much. I don't remember you."

The girl looked saddened and replied. "I'm Cass. Remember?"

"No." Adair felt a connection with this girl, even though he knew not what is was. He wanted to remember her.

"Come on, let's get you up." Cass took Adair by his armor and dragged him up out of the water onto the beach. The hot sand stuck to his neck and created a hisss sound under his armor. Cass sat down next to him and started taking off his armor, one piece at a time. Each time she took off a piece of metal, Adair felt more able to move, but after a while, an intense feeling of tiredness overcame him.