Bil woke at three A.M. feeling exilarated after his dream. His
step was lively as he went up on deck, his thoughts going to beautiful
Talia, waiting for him on First World. It wouldn't be long now.
Though the sky was clear a breeze had picked up, sending a chill
wind through his thin shirt. The waves appeared choppy as he shivered
and pulled on a jacket. Even the wind could not dampen his spirit
several hours later, as a red sky warned him of an impending storm.
Kandor woke around nine A.M. with a slight hangover. The rocking
of the ship did nothing to quell his stomach as he stumbled to the
deck, he found himself clinging to the railing as he relieved himself
spewed the contents of his stomach overboard. He hoped Starfire would
feel better than he did.
Bil called Kandor to join him as he battled the choppy sea, then
stifled a laugh at the man clinging to the rail, whose face had taken
on a peculiar shade of green. Bil came to join him, bringing a cool
cloth for Kandor's face. After Kandor finished spilling his stomach
into the ocean, Bil helped him climb to the upper deck. After
depositing him in a chair, he told Kandor of his latest dream.
Book 2, Tidmore-15Starfire woke, her head feeling as if it would explode. She
didn't even remember how she had made it to bed. How much had she
drank last night? As she sat up, she saw stars and almost passed out
from the pain. Holding her head in her hands, she moaned as she hauled
herself to her feet and stumbled out to the deck repeating Kandor's
earlier performance. As she clung to the rail, sea spray hit her in
the face. She coughed, feeling sparks of pain in her head. Kandor
made his way down to her giving her his arm for support.
"Is it going to storm?" She asked him.
"I think we're in for a good one," Kandor answered. "Bil said the
sky was red at sunrise, and that's always a warning sign for a storm.
We poured over some of his charts and found that we're really close to
the Gate though. We'll be fine if we can stay on course. Let's get
you inside and warm you up."
"I can't believe how bad my head hurts!" Starfire commented as
Kandor led her inside and handed her a cup. "What is this?"
"Just drink it. I guarantee it will make your head feel better,"
Kandor reassured her. "Bil made a batch of it up this morning after he
rescued me from the railing."
Starfire made a face as she swallowed a mouthful, "this is awful!"
"Yeah, but it really works! Give it about fifteen minutes," Kandor
reassured her.
"You mean I'll be able to hold it down that long?" She asked him
as she made a wry face.
Kandor laughed as he left. Reminding her to dress appropriately
for the weather, he went back out on deck. Starfire drank all of the
wicked, tasting, so called "remedy", then went to their cabin to don
some warmer clothing.
The timing of the storm worried Bil. They were so close to their
destination and he was so close to realizing his dreams, he prayed
nothing would stop them now. By the time Starfire came back on deck,
rain was already falling heavily. She held her hand out above her eyes
as a protector from the rain as she looked at the upper deck searching
for a glimpse of Kandor. He shouted something at her that was lost on
the wind.
"What?" Starfire hollered back.
He shouted something down to her again. She still couldn't hear.
Just then the ship pitched wildly; Starfire lost her footing and slid
dangerously across the deck. Kandor, seeing Starfire was in danger of
being swept overboard, ran to help her. He made it to the stairs just
as the wave hit the deck, sweeping her overboard.
"Starfire!" Kandor screamed as he grabbed the life preserver on
his way to the railing. Without thinking twice, he was over the side
going after her.
Bill could only look on in horror as he fought the vicious storm,
the wheel of the ship bucking wildly in his hands. He could see no
sign of either Starfire or Kandor, as the stormy ocean pulled the ship
farther and farther away from where they had both gone overboard. Soon
the storm had driven his ship into a funny cloud bank with strange
flickering lights. Bil knew he had found the passage through and he
would soon be with Talia!
*
Starfire had felt herself slipping over the side, then she was
plunging into the cold embrace of the sea. She heard someone scream,
not knowing it was herself as she called out to Kandor. The waves
swept her under as she fought to remain afloat, barely catching her
breath before another wave would hold her under it's confining depths.
Just when she thought she would drown, she felt a hand grab her pulling
her to the surface.
Kandor placed the buoyant life preserver around Starfire, relieved
to find her still alive. Looking around for the Zephyr, they saw the
tail end disappear into the flickering cloud bank. Knowing he was on
his way to First World without them and that he at least would find his
dream on the other side, gave them little comfort as they fought
against the monster waves that threatened their very lives.
They were alone in the middle of the Atlantic ocean. The storm
finally passed leaving them to ride out the remainder of the turbulence
left behind.
They prayed they would not fall prey to any of the sea's voracious
creatures as the afternoon waned by. Kandor tried to reassure Starfire
by telling her they couldn't be far from the gate. All they had to do
was wait for it to open. Starfire knew it wouldn't open just by their
willing it to however, but smiled at Kandor anyway. They were still
alive and still together, and at least that was something to be
thankful for.
Thirsty, hungry, and tired, they faced the evening. How would
they make it through the night? Conversation hardly existed between
the two over the remaining hours of the day, knowing they were in dire
straights. Talking about it only depressed them both. The sun had
set, the last rays finally disappearing to leave them only a sliver of
the moon for light. Now even the moon became oblivious to them,
obliterated by the clouds.
Kandor squeezed her hand trying to give her some reassurance that
he himself did not feel. He would stay awake for her, watching over
her and holding her head up, so she could catch a little sleep if
possible. It was so dark they could not see each other, Starfire
called out several times over the next hour to make sure he was still
alive, needing to hear his voice. They both knew neither one would
sleep.
It was Kandor that noticed the glow first. Thinking his mind was
playing tricks on him, he said nothing about it to Starfire.
Starfire did say something about the glow, and something about the
added turmoil of the water. Alarmed, they held tightly to each other
as whatever it was rose from the depths of the ocean, nearing closer
and closer.
Starfire screamed as they watched in horror, not knowing what it
was surfacing near them. It was like nothing they had ever seen on
First or Eighth World!