Waves slapped up against the ship, rocking it along with the whistling winds. That’s the last sound I remember as I laid on the cold, wet wood on the bow.
Now I’m sitting in cold water up to my waist looking out at the open sea to my left. Our ship used to be right there, but it crashed into the rocks and sunk into the watery depths. It looks like I’m the only left.
The problem is that I don’t feel alone.
There’s rustling in the trees across from the marsh with bodies that I can’t make out moving quickly through the brush. What sounds like someone trudging through the mud seems to come closer and closer to me. Then a subtle breeze comes from somewhere in the marsh I’m sitting in. In my mind, I imagine some horrible, horned water beast sending out his breath and inhaling strongly to get the scent of a meal. At that thought, I bolt upright, wringing out my sodden shirt as I walk to firmer ground. My eyes dart every which way, but it’s so dark there’s not much I can truly see.
I hear a snarl and jump. I am most definitely not alone and I know who that snarl belongs to.
The ship we came on held animals, quite a few of them. They were being brought to America for a circus. There were monkeys, a couple lions, a baby elephant and a couple zebras. None of those animals made this particular sound.
There was a tiger on board that would snarl just like that while I mopped up the floor around its cage, as though it were rolling its shoulders up and down, preparing to pounce on supper. I’m not sure if I’d care to see that tiger right now, especially if that cage had a similar end as our ship.
Another gust brushes by and a chill runs down my body. My arms grasp each other, feeling many goosebumps prickle up.
Then a sound I’m not expecting–a slight tinkling, like a small bell–rings slightly through the humid air.
From out of the jungle, a green light no bigger than my head comes my direction. It’s bright–too bright. I shield my eyes against the green glare. At that moment, the clouds part and expose a very full moon.
“No need to be afraid, little one.”
The voice is small and female, though clearly grown up. The light surrounding her is so bright that I can only see the outline of her tiny human-like form which is dwarfed by feathery wings.
“What are you?” I ask, though my gut tells me she’s magical. Magic may only be spoken of in hushed whispers where I’m from, but I always hoped and dreamed that it really existed.
“I’m a faerie, and I’m here to help you, Linley.”
I inhale sharply. She knows my name. I’m about to ask her how she knows who I am but she cuts me off with a giggle.
“We know everything about you and have since the moment your body touched our soil.”
As she spoke, she held out a wand and another green light started to glow and grow. Within moments, that light shifts into a lantern.
“Take it,” she says encouragingly. Once I grab the handle, it’s like everything around me–the marsh, the ocean, the jungle behind me–comes into clearer view. “There are few others who survived, but you must find them. They are all on this island somewhere, scattered from the impact.”
“Why must I find them? I’m only a child,” I ask, near tears, hoping that an adult would come and protect me so I wouldn’t have to do this on my own. What the faerie says next makes me catch my breath.
“You’re the only one who believes in the Magic so it must be you. Don’t worry, you’ll find help as you go,” the green light of the faerie starts to float away from me. “But beware, there are plenty of creatures that won’t be as kind.”
Rustling surrounds me as though those creatures are around, and I could have sworn there was a howl somewhere in the distance. The lapping of the water on the marshy shore seems to increase like a stronger tide could be rolling in.
“Stick to the path illuminated and you will find your comrades and your escape. I cannot stay, but I trust I shall see you soon, Linley.”
In a glimmer, she takes flight over the jungle into the foggy clouds, illuminating the emerald green trees that make up the jungle. The clouds slowly roll back together as if the moon were pulling a blanket around itself. For a moment, it’s quite beautiful and I wish I had a blanket to keep me warm. Then I remember, I’m not alone and there’s nothing here to keep me warm. Moving is my only option.
The green lantern the faerie left with me shimmered with a yellow ribbon that unwound itself from the green light, leading me away from the marsh and up a stoney path alongside the jungle.
Who knows where this path will take me? I can only hope that I can trust the lovely green faerie who knows my name, and trust that I will find whoever is left from our ship.
