Lost

Chapter 17

Five days. That's how long it took for the tiny group of Spares to reach any type of place even resembling a beach. One more after that until they reached the open ocean.
Much to her relief, the murderous shadow monster hadn't shown itself again, and she didn't feel the unsettling feeling of being watched the rest of the journey.
She didn't know how it was possible, but the sea was nothing like she'd pictured and yet, everything she'd ever imagined.
Thora was positive she'd never get used to the sound of the waves crashing upon the shore. It was calming and maddening all at once.
The sand was no more than fine, black powder. Fisher told her that black sand was rare, and even he had never seen it in person back on Earth. The ocean was turquoise blue, striking in comparison to the black sand. And it was clear. So clear you could see a hundred feet down. The trees had changed from what it had been back at their first camp; less like conifers and more like palm trees, and there was little shrubbery to be found, still with the stark red leaves. All the plants had a strange algae covering them that she made sure not to touch, just in case.
Fisher seemed to be in his element. Thanks to him, they'd already started constructing two huts, made of driftwood and tree fronds, tucked back amongst the trees. It wasn't a permanent solution, not in the slightest, but it would be good enough to last them until the rest of humanity got down to the ground. They also had a water collecting system in the river, and Fisher was teaching them all how to fish.
It was too cold to swim, and the days were slowly getting colder, their time in the sun even shorter.
In the late afternoon, when the sun was at its peak, Thora found herself perched on a log, staring out at a tranquil ocean. The tide was high, with the water almost lapping at her bare toes.
"Hey," came Fisher's voice from behind her. She turned to him, a soft smile on her lips. "Can I sit?" He pointed to the log. "Or does the Commander need her space?"
She rolled her eyes at him but patted the log beside her. He sat so close that their legs brushed. Before she could say anything, he threw an arm over her shoulder, pulling her into him. She let out a contented sigh. Fisher seemed more at ease than she'd ever seen him, and things were almost perfect. If only she could get Kenji to look in her direction. She missed hanging out with the boy, joking with him.
"I told you I'd get you to the ocean, didn't I?" Fisher asked, tearing her out of her dark thoughts.
"Uh, I think you actually said 'beach'," she responded with a smirk. Fisher was the one to roll his eyes this time, nudging her.
"If you keep that up I won't teach you how to fish!" he exclaimed playfully. She giggled before they both fell silent, gazes set on the waves.
Fisher pressed his cheek to her forehead. "I wish I had a sketchbook. This would've been the perfect setting. The ocean, the trees... you." She smiled again, reaching down and grabbing a random stick from the sand. Fisher gave her a puzzled look.
"The sand can be your sketchbook." She handed the stick to him. He grabbed it from her, shooting her another smirk just as the stick was about to touch the sand.
"You know, for a second there I thought you were gonna go off about how that was cheesy."
Her nose crinkled as she thought about a response. "Nah. I think it was sweet. I'd be honored to be featured in a Fisher Norman sketchbook." She kissed his cheek. He smirked.
"I think I could get you an appointment." He leaned over again, dragging the stick through the dark sand as they fell into comfortable silence.
Just as the sun was about to slip over what looked like the edge of the world, Fisher turned to her, eyes alight in a way she'd never seen before.
"What do ya think?" he asked from his spot on the ground, gesturing to the patch of beach in front of him.
With the dark sand, the image was hard to make out. But, she could see it when she squinted. It was her. Just her, smiling brightly. Probably wider than she ever had in real life and yet he'd managed to capture her essence.
"I love it," she said in hushed awe. Fisher beamed and pulled himself back up onto the log beside her.
"This is weird, huh?" Fisher asked after a few more minutes of silence. Thora glanced over at him from the corner of her eye, eyebrows slightly lowered.
"What is?"
"Being... actually happy." He rubbed his hands together, not meeting her eyes. "Actually believing that the rest of them would join us down here." She followed his gaze to where a flock of small birds fluttered over the waves.
"I... you're right, but I think I always believed that there was a chance that we weren't gonna be alone for the rest of our lives. Even if it was hard sometimes, I still had a sliver of hope." It was true. She had always known deep down that they'd come down and join them on Cressida eventually.
"I guess that's why they made you Commander and not me." She huffed out a laugh, closing her eyes and leaning her head against his shoulder.
"We were a team. I couldn't have done it without you." She paused, looked down at her lap. "All of you. Aeryn, Dell... Kenji. I would've gotten us all killed twenty times over if you guys weren't here."
"You give us too much credit," he joked, elbowing her. He cleared his throat, suddenly changing the subject. "Did you contact the Albatross?"
She nodded. Grinning, she reached down for her backpack to grab the EN-pad before remembering that her bag had been thrown into one of the huts earlier that day. "Yeah, they said they'd land in the next couple of days. Which means we have a few days of leisure."
"What could we ever do with our newly found free time?" Before she had time to answer, Fisher had swooped her up in his arms. She squealed at the unexpected movement as he ambled clumsily to the ocean. Her eyes widened as she realized what he intended to do.
"No, Fisher, no-" Before she could even finish her sentence, her entire body was doused in icy water. She struggled to the surface, spluttering.
"Fisher!" she screamed. "You are so dead!" Fisher, standing waist deep in sea water, smirked. That was the last straw, she thought, tackling him with as much force as she could muster.