5
My mother named me Rue, I don't know why. My name means street in French and regret in English and I think that it is because of this that I have never followed a straight road and it is certainly why I have only allowed myself one regret. My father, on the other hand, named me De la Mer. As far as I know, this means 'of the sea' in French. So with such a name I was born the street (or regret) of the sea. So many times I've wondered if the sea could regret. You often hear the ocean as being referred to as a she, and if the ocean is in fact a woman, I not only believe she could have one regret, but many regrets. And if she does have a street running through her, where does it go? As a young child I made it my goal to find out.
The island of Alai was a perfect place to grow up. As a very energetic little girl, I made use of every available opportunity to make mischief. In the tall trees with their wide leaves I was a jungle woman, on the shores of the sea I was a dastardly pirate, but in the home I was always first and foremost a daughter and a sister to my two brothers, Kael and Ronan. Kael is 3 years older than me, Ronan is just 2 younger. I am very close to them, though Ronan still claims he hasn't forgiven me for the time I tried to use him as shark bait. When I wasn't playing with my brothers, Ellum O'Rolland was my companion. We met when we were just 6 years old. He broke my toy sailboat and I broke his arm. He remained my closest friend until the day he died.
Ethnically, I'm what you could call a mixed breed. My mother is of the native tribe of this island, the Latoks. My father is a foreigner, as us islanders call them. His ancestors invaded Alai some years ago, but I couldn't tell you how many, I'm terrible with history. My looks take after of my mothers. I have her slender build, dark hair, and high cheek bones. Yet my green eyes and small, squishy nose are all my fathers. A marriage between the two groups of inhabitants isn't unheard of, though it is uncommon. While there are many people on this little island that resent such a union, I was lucky enough to be surrounded by people who see beyond race.
My father was a well-standing member of society on Alai. At a young age he had perfected the art of glass blowing and had gained himself the reputation of being the finest at his craft, not only on Alai, but also on the mainland. His achievements secured a good life for my mother, brothers, and me. A thorough education was provided to me as well as a nice home. I never wanted for anything, but yet I always felt like there was something missing - something that couldn't be attained by money.
Maybe that's why I chose to work down on the docks. It was a rough job, but I didn't mind. It kept me close to the sea and I got to check out all the boats coming in, not to mention all the sailors. My job essentially was to keep record of who went in and who went out. I really wanted to help load and unload the cargo, but certain men think that it wouldn't be a lady's place. What they don't understand is I have never been a lady and never will be. But that is beside the point. March 27th began as an ordinary day.
That night I worked the night shift. I got down to the docks around 8 o'clock, just as the sun was starting to set. Ellum had promised to walk me there and I was angry that once again he'd fallen through on his word. Angry as I was, the sight of the sun just about to dip below the blue horizon filled me with a feeling of ease. The amber, crimson, and magenta of the rays shooting out across the expanse made of think of my favorite mixed drink, all fiery and smooth. Because traffic at that time of night is slow, I hunkered down in my post on the dock for a long stretch of nothing but the waves slapping below me. As I watched the pink slowly turn to once again to blue and then to black I admit I drifted off.
My father swung me high above is his head. "Don't drop me pappy!!" I screamed through my bouts of laughter. My surroundings swirled together in a mush of shapes and colors. The speed in which I circled took my body farther into the air. Higher and higher I flew, when suddenly his hands no longer held mine. Without him holding onto me, I came crashing to the earth and woke with a start.
Searing pain tore through my scalp. "Don't you dare scream or I'll cut your pretty throat, aight?" said the man holding the knife from behind. To add emphasis, the hand holding my hair gave a few jerks before letting go. Scared to open my eyes, but also scared of not knowing what was happening around me, I reluctantly opened my eyes to a bare chest inches from my face. I jumped to my feet just to be pushed into my chair again. "Get your filthy hands off me!" I screamed as rope was quickly wrapped around my wrists and ankles. I struggled with all my might, shouting the whole time. "I thought he told you not to scream little girl," said the man in front of me. I got one look at his face (and the time to think "I'm not little") before he knocked me on the head and my world went black.
This time when I opened my eyes I couldn't see a thing. I was still tied up with my hands behind my back with my hands and ankles roped together as well. This made for an extremely uncomfortable situation. My thighs were cramping severely, my hands and feet were both numb, and the floor I laid on was cold and smelled of mold. I had no idea how long I had been knocked out: an hour, a day, 3 days?? Who knew? All I knew was I had to get out of those ropes before I had a nervous breakdown. Since wiggling my hands out was impossible due to lack of dexterity, I began to rock my body from side to side. Left, right, left, right. As I quickened the movements I began to gain some momentum. To my excitement, I toppled over onto my other side, crashed into a pile of crates, sent them flying, and made a terrible ruckus in the process. So now I was laying on my other side on top of boxes, which were digging into my flesh – my situation had not improved.
I had just started the rocking process again when I heard footsteps above my head. Knowing that the noise I had made had drawn attention, I froze. I tried to listen for more steps, but my heart was pounding so hard in my ears I couldn't hear a thing. I lay motionless for several more moments and thought that I was in the clear when a sliver of light appeared. A large pair of black boots began their descent down the now illuminated stairs. The boots were followed by a long pair of legs in plain linen trousers, a waist with a sword strapped about it, a torso with broad shoulders in a white shirt, and a face with auburn hair and emerald green eyes.
When he reached the bottom of the stairs he just stood there – staring at me. Our eyes met and held for what seemed an eternity. There was something about his gaze that nearly made me tremble, yet I couldn't look away. Finally, he broke his gaze as he said "If I unbind you, are you going to make a fuss?" I shook my head no and the man behind him, whom I hadn't noticed until this point, came forward and cut my ropes with a knife.
Searing pain shot through my legs as I tried to straighten them. I managed to get to a sitting position and felt like a fool as I fell right back down when I tried to stand up. I looked at the men standing before me, expecting a hand, but no hand was extended. "Fine," I thought to myself, "I don't want their help anyway." This time I leaned against the wall as I stood up and maintained my upright position, despite numb feet and cramped legs.
"My name is Terrick Shard," said the man with the auburn hair. His voice was surprisingly smooth. "I am the first mate of this vessel, the Twilight Lady, and you my dear, are her newest crew member."