It seems that I have greatly underestimated the whole situation, the stress-inducing anxiety-filled world situation.
However!
I shall take the challenge.
This is my answer to the last damn months. I have no idea if it entertains you readers,
I, at least, am happy to unblock my thoughts and go back to writing irregularly.
Have fun at eating these chapters.
Go and enjoy the last days of this year. May they be filled with some good entertainment.
I still promise nothing.
Waves crashed against the wooden planks of the two ships, a not so gentle sway from the left to the right felt by those unhardened by the rough seas. It must have been a great joke for whoever above in the heavens as the only person to feel more and more sick from those sways ended up being Ann.
Oh, unmerciful pains! Who the fucketh has sent you to me!
It didn't matter that it was the morning of the fifth day on the ship and up till now her body hadn't displayed any major concerning symptoms.
However, the stress built up slowly and steadily as her delicate nerves were grated on by each little sensation. It took one moment for the delicate balance to collapse.
The previous night let her suppress the nasty experience of the smell, her stomach ready for food and not a shadow of doubt in the choice for her plate.
It had been a relatively warm day, people worked, no one died, and the sun batted its pretty rays at her freaking eyes, the splashing water making her stomach spin a dance and her mind wandered into a field of pain.
It turned out that out of all the fish in the sea, one didn't agree with her, thus making it a great chance of a closer encounter with the porcelain seat, its coolness easing the hell of this situation.
Luck or not, everything became a blur from the moment of her turning green, a long date in the stall till she ended up in the bed with a wet rug on her forehead. She felt the salty air, the wood of the small bed, the rough texture of the blanket, and nothing eased her frenzy nerves, that flared up every single goddamn time the ship swayed from left to right, left to right.
Left to right, left. Right. Left. Right.
Left.
Breathe.
Right.
In.
Left.
Out.
Right.
In.
Left.
Out.
Breathe.
Calm and peace.
Something that she desperately tried to grasp for some time.
"Well, unlucky lady, time to drink," a gruff female voice woke her from the drowsy state. The pain pulled back into the back of her mind, her nerves as frail as glass to any disturbances. Her strong point of waxing shakespearish poetics not once wavering in the face of the storm. And indigestion.
"Upset stomach and fatigue, nothing serious. Drink the tea. If the pain doesn't let down, I'll give you a pill. We have little medicine left after the raid and I'd rather not waste the rest. So, here's your ginger."
A thump near her head.
Sounds of metallic clicks and clacks could be heard, a steady flow of heavy steps around the room followed. The door closed.
Sick or not, Ann had bigger worries to face.
They were approaching land. Fast.
That meant she and Erika had to come up with a good plan to navigate on their target place to make a living and hopefully make better plans for how to go back home.
Bucket Island.
Problems: Food, shelter, money, healthcare.
Everything had to be thought out, planned and organized, as to avoid landing on the streets, when they arrived on the island. The option of working on the merchant ship died out, when she heard that the employing process was hell for this merchant company, as it turned out they weren't independent merchants, but were one of the ships, which worked under one flag. For Muscovy Company, if she remembered it right.
Maybe it would be easier to just die. Become a formless soul drifting above the seas. It may even be her way out of here. Like a shock or something to wake her up from this nightmare.
If only it was a foggy kind of terror nightmare. No, no. That would have been too easy to handle. She just had to be in a lucid and corporal nightmare, where her pain resonated like the devil's screeches of a broken gold fiddle.
A whimper, demure and filled with despair, might have been the answer to the pain. But as it was, she managed to give out yowls of irritation and desperation with a tint of I-don't-wanna-give-a-fuck-ation,
Slowly, she reached out to sip on the tea, kicking into her taste buds, and hit her head back onto the pillow, barely letting any air into her lungs.
One thought crossed her before escaping reality. 2 days left before the island. Tomorrow and the day after that.
Then, another hell would break loose in her nerve bundles.
Splendid. She fell asleep.
There was lingering hope that the time would drag out, like unnecessarily long pages of detailed paragraphs filled with fanciful wordings and informational uselessness.
Well, she was wrong. And the hope flushed down the forsaken toilet, which she needed to scrub clean with the other ones as soon as she was well. Why?
Because as much as she and washing clothes didn't function, her cooking was as it was, at least no one died, which left cleaning as a useful asset for the merchants. The true skill the merchants got out of her during her stay. A thing for her future resume.
She was far from offering services on par with cleaning companies or Erika's God level of versatility in cleaning and cooking, but it was… enough. At least to clean the toilets, which turned out to be a peculiar experience, and one she actually did well.
Got an extra potato and background giggles of grown men for dinner.
What was peculiar were the cleaning utensils, part of them like the toilet brush and rubber gloves were familiar, however the box made her wonder. It didn't have etiquettes or caution warnings like the ones back home. It was bare. (Like the toilets without water inside them) It did contain powder. The other bottle, she had figured out from the smell, was vinegar.
After her awkward reaction of "I don't know what this powder is," which was the equivalent of "I don't know what a fork is," she had been told it was cleaning stuff. Obviously.
However, when pressed for details like did it contain chlorine or what other chemicals, the older gruff man, who had been assigned on cleaning duty on her first day, scratched his face and said, "Make sure to mix the powder with the vinegar, scrub with it, let it set for a moment. Oh, and use the wipes, no flushing." Then, he went out leaving her answerless and with the many toilets. Later that day one of the cook helpers gave her the answer that it was just baking soda.
As to where the waste went, it would be at the port as the seas in this area weren't good for letting it go due to the strong currents that could sweep up the waste back to the surface and near the island.
For the most part, the waste went overboard.
Back to the matter at hand, which was getting rougher with the number of chores, the time was running out.
Now it was the evening of the 6th day. As much as she hoped for a more eventful and fruitful in planning day, she only ended up with a bucket instead of the toilet.
Surprisingly, the night was rather calm compared to the jittery mess she felt throughout the day. She did feel a certain pressure as Erika in one of her 'fits', she generally ignored for the sake of the younger girl's comfort, hovered over her bed.
The red-head might have a penchant for keeping quiet, yet Ann could feel a growing presence, which had more to say than any words. Maybe a way to break out of her shell. With her full 18 years and more, Ann didn't possess much wisdom about reading other people, but had a small inkling that Erika was developing ways to communicate her feelings.
The presence settled next to her on the bed.
Probably questions about their arrival. Ann didn't have much to explain.
"I'm sorry. Couldn't think up anything." A squeeze to her left hand.
"It doesn't look good. I don't know much about the jobs here or any prospects, healthcare seems like a gamble and social security based on what I heard and saw is not a concept."
As if drunk on a sudden shot of truthfulness, she mumbled away any ideas, fears and concerns.
"First, shelter. I'm not as familiar with the geography in this terrain, but managed to get some info on the island from the crewmembers. Good news, there is a forest, quite lush so food is a thing. Might avoid starving. Hope there's some berries I recognize. What I would give to have some books on the local wildness. Or better yet the universal social system on how everything works.
Never mind.
Downside, the local inhabitants. A guy said, sorry can't remember his name, the area is known for big animals. Like huge. Good. I mean. Not good.
We get to avoid any people, I think bandits, anyone who can rob us, sell us or rape us. Problem that we have to avoid any problematic being. I mean both human and non-human, animals included. I know, that we will arrive in a city but well, I'm a grasshopper in terms of currency, how that works or getting a stable job on the island, which provides healthcare and a secure neighbourhood." Another squeeze, and she saw a finger raised.
"One?" A few heartbeats, some weird gesticulations and something lit up in the darkness of Ann's self-pitying mind.
"Oh, you don't mind going straight to the forest instead of getting around the town?"
The night lacking a strong light source comparable to a proper electrical lamp, Ann didn't manage to catch the little curve of a smile, only a slight nod. At least she interpreted it that way.
"Okay. But I'll try to ask…" Her first thought was the captain, but suddenly it became scary. She wasn't sure why; the chill was gnawing at her insides at the simple idea of going to the captain for information.
"Some other crewmembers." Doubtful. It had taken her already a huge chunk of energy to properly address the ladies in the room, and those who at the table during dinner.
There were so many questions to ask, and every single one she had to go through, if the questions weren't too stupid and giving any signs of not being from here, which she already did but at least they thought of her as a pampered kid and not from another world person.
And mustering up the courage to even ask. So many people with various work schedules and everyone brimming with energy and a kind of non-approachable aura. Or she was overreacting, yet the knots in her guts didn't lessen at that.
Asking other people, she didn't interact with casually on the ship, ended up with stuttering, running back to chores. At worst making a spectacle and puking on the floor.
Not a nice experience to remind herself of when trying to put on a brave face.
Small rough fingers traced along her arm. Ann needed to work on her poker face if Erika caught on her nervousness.
Softly she mumbled on.
"So, food in the forest. Check. Next, water and shower. We need to be clean. Clothes, too. We need to have clean underwear at least every second day. Here we got some clean undies from the nurse and a wash every second day, but the forest isn't going to be so nice. Clean not to get any disease, and so we don't reek. Especially if we mingle among people in town. I still don't know how we will manage to survive the town, but we will manage. There's two of us."
Ann grasped in a tight hold Erika's hand.
"Shower means room. I think we can pull off sleeping in the forest, but I grew used to being in a bed. A room plus shower, and a bed, or some relatively clean surface. That means money. Which means job. And a dead end as I don't know how I'll get a job. Maybe cleaning services. I know you're amazing with it, it may be easier for you to get a job."
The grip on the hand tightened as the other fingers clung to the sleeve of Ann's borrowed shirt.
"I'll do my best. If anything, I'll be right behind you, but I'm relying on you a lot. You know much more than me about this place, and got skills to get around."
The fingers turned into a grip as tight as the one on the hand.
"I think Teacher Erika has a nice ring. We may be stuck now in a secure place, where we both tend to be apart, but when we arrive on the island, it's going to be us two. Hence, I'm going to be learning a lot from you."
Still tight on the sleeve and hand. Gently, Ann put her free hand on Erika's wrist. Whispering, she rambled on, going on the drunken nightly high.
"I'll try to teach you what I know. Not much. It's just fancy words and some theory, which I don't remember, don't know how to apply or don't have the conditions to use it. I hope we'll get along." It was harder to keep the heavy lids up and the mind from shutting off.
Moving on.
"Let's see, job offers: waitress, heavy work: carrying, cleaners in hotels or taverns. I know it's not a touristic hot spot, but a few mentioned that labour workers are always needed as the island works as a transit for merchants, pirates and at times marines. People need to sleep sometimes on solid land. W'as Bella, hfo sayd it." A yawn escaped between her ramblings.
"Next on the list, food – forest – check, stealing no good, no ability to pick-pocket, shower – river or seawater, lots of it here, best case – room. Room equals job. Don't know what we get, we'll see. Problem: health. No serious injury. No doctor, hospitals – need to be paid or be registered, Lis said so, depends on the islands, countries, cities, muni- see, pal- Nah too long. So much info, too much. Last thing: safety."
The grip had long loosened, yet still lucidly firm. Aware.
"We have each other." The two strangers bound by these few days and need for comfort.
The grip was mutual.
The ship swayed left and right, a lullaby to the sizzling thoughts, slowly sweeping into a place of darkness.
"T's ahhl."
Ann went to sleep, closer to the comfort of Erika's arm. A few heartbeats later, the tired green eyes closed, welcoming the warmth of Ann's skin.
Tomorrow. Another day.
Unbeknownst to the slumbering girls, a burning fire greeted the first grey strands of the dawn.
A growing glow hovered at the horizon, waiting for them to come.