Marooned

The Isle of Avalon


She remembered the tree.

But it was misshapen, twisted, and deformed; arranged into the body of some silent eldritch horror. It stood upon an endless field of white, where the horizon and the sky blurred together along some meaningless vector. It's limbs were black and bare and reached outwards into the vast expanse of nothingness. The tree stretched over a pond which was bottomless, and appeared as if it were the gaping maw of some primordial beast.

She remembered falling.

The ice shattered against her back and stole the breath from her lungs. She sunk further and further into the pond away from the surface. It became like a distant sun which she struggled towards. Inky tendrils of formless dark dragged her down further into the deep abyss. She tried to scream, but the water filled her lungs and turned into lead.

She remembered the cold.

It was colder than anything she had ever felt in her entire life. The warmth was immediately sapped from her body and the cold settled deep within her bones. With each of her fleeting breaths she inhaled more of the water, infiltrating her lungs and filling them with a chill so intense and so complete that she froze from the inside out.

She remembered Elsa.

Stood above her at the surface. Sometimes, Elsa's face was a mask of horror and shock, frozen in a scream that echoed through time and filled her heart with shards of ice. Other times, Elsa grinned wickedly, leering down at her in hateful glee as she was swallowed by the darkness. Her face was always the last thing she remembers.

... ... ...

Anna woke from her nightmare with a start, gasping and clutching her chest before realizing that she was no longer asleep. "What the fu-" she sighed and cursed her luck. "Of course."

Taking deep calming breaths, she then surveyed her surroundings and noticed that she was upside down. She was still securely fastened in place by her seat belt, with only her feet and arms were dangling in the air in front of her. It was then that Anna realized she was staring at the ground from a few meters above. Scattered about the forest floor were bits of metal and other debris.

"Agh, Jesus… my head," Anna winced as she rubbed her temples.

Her entire body ached and she was bruised all over. When she looked around in a daze, she saw that the rear section of the plane she was on was entangled among the treetops of a dense forest. Aside from the smoke lazily swirling about, the air was largely still save for the occasional breeze and was punctuated by a suspicious silence.

Anna fussed with her seatbelt. "Perfect," she grumbled. "This is just perfect."

She continued to mutter more expletives to herself while she fumbled around with the buckle until she snapped it loose, releasing her from its hold. Immediately afterwards, she came loose from her mooring and fell down to the earth, crashing through several branches which cut her cheek and forehead before slamming into the grassy forest floor.

"Argh, okay" Anna groaned and rolled onto her back, wincing from the pain. "Yeah, that hurt."

She closed her eyes for a minute and scrunched up her face in discomfort as she waited for the pain to pass. A single leaf fell onto her cheek, tickling it. Anna sighed and opened her eyes wearily when she heard the sound of branches snapping and leaves rustling. The giant hunk of metal dangling above her started to careen to the ground right where she was laying.

"Oh crap!" Anna scrambled to her feet and ran clear of the wreck site, diving out of the way just in time as the rest of the plane came crashing down right where she had just been.

She laid still, shielding her head with hands and waited for any other pieces of metal to fall from above. After a moment, Anna peeked out and when nothing else threatened to crush her, she rose to her feet, rubbing her sore body to soothe the aches and pains. Around her, the wind whispered through the trees and a few drops of water were shaken loose from the leaves.

Anna gazed upwards and noticed that the dark storm clouds had passed over and moved on beyond the island. "At least the storms over," she realized she was still wearing her flotation vest and struggled to tear it off. "Ugh, get this thing offa me!" she ripped away the vest and tossed it aside, then she leaned back on the tree and chuckled to herself. "Guess I didn't need that thing after all, huh?"

Nothing else responded to her, and Anna realized then she was completely alone. Elsa and Kristoff were nowhere to be seen, and the wreck site was silent and empty.

Anna whipped around and searched the wreck. "Elsa? Kristoff? Anybody? Hello?" she paced around in a circle. "Wait Anna, think. The plane was split in half… which means… Elsa will be at the other crash site! I just have to get my bearings and find it."

Anna turned in a slow circle as she surveyed her surroundings. Through a stand of trees, she spotted a tall plume of smoke rising from the forest below her. It wasn't all that far away and remained within walking distance.

"That has to be them," Anna said. "Just gotta get there."

Patting her thigh, she was relieved to find that her sidearm was still there before limping into the woods in the direction of the smoke.

... ... ...

"Ugh, stupid roots!" Anna cursed as she tripped over a thick gnarled root. "Stupid trees, stupid storm, stupid… stupid me," she sighed as she kicked the tree repeatedly.

The tree remained stubbornly silent and impassive, which only infuriated Anna further.

"Stupid me… way to go Anna! It's just a little storm! We'll be fine! Stupid!" Anna slapped her forehead and aggravated the cut there. "Ow!" she yelped from the pain then took a deep calming breath. "It's okay, I just gotta find Elsa and Kristoff. God, I hope they're okay. Please be okay, Elsa. This is all my fault. I should never have dragged you into this mess."

The trees thinned out into a grassy clearing, and there Anna found the smoke rising into the sky again. She was getting closer.

"Not far now," Anna huffed. "Please be okay, Elsa. I'm sorry, you can yell at me, you can tell me I told you so. Just don't be… I can't even think about that right now. Just… please be okay!"

She crossed through the clearing as she continued to talk to herself. Though the storm had passed and the temperature was cool, she could feel the meager warmth from the midday sun obscured by the clouds.

"Let's recap. Flew to the island, crashed on the island. Now we're separated, and… I'm alone… talking to myself. Just me and my thoughts. That's okay, I can keep it together. My thoughts are great, I love my thoughts," Anna started skipping, filled with false pride. "Elsa kissed me and I still don't know why and I'd really like to know but I can't know if she's dead," she stopped in her tracks. "Oh boy, that took a turn. Just keep moving Anna. And don't… think about that. You can ask her when you find her! That's it. Just gotta keep moving and find Elsa."

The next little while was passed in the same manner, with Anna stumbling through the forest while muttering indignantly to herself. The higher ground where her section of the plane had crashed gradually evened out as Anna descended from the steady slope. Eventually, she entered the clearing where the rest of the plane was.

"Finally!" Anna sighed in relief as she passed through a swath of splintered trees and found the crash site.

The front half of the plane that had broken away had landed among the trees, gouging out a deep groove in the earth and carving a path of destruction through the woods.

"Elsa! Elsa!? Hello!?" Anna called. "Kristoff? You guys here?"

She approached the crash site, sidestepping all manner of metal and wooden debris. Small patches of fire blazed here and there, filling the air with the acrid scent of burning fuel. The nose of the plane was buried in a mound of dirt, and the front section was leaning towards its right where the wing had partially embedded itself into the ground.

"Elsa!? Kristoff!?" Anna called as she entered the remains of the cockpit. "Shit," she sank and rested against a seat. "They aren't here... but maybe that's a good thing!"

She stepped out of the cockpit and surveyed the crash site. Ahead of her, lying on its side next to the scar in the earth, was a crate of their belongings.

"Our supplies!" Anna gasped as she righted the crate and opened it. "Empty. Of course," she groaned and let the lid fall to the side.

She sat down and leaned against the crate as she rhythmically banged the back of her head against it, trying to think of her next move. A string of voices split the silence then, snapping Anna back to focus as she shifted around and peered over the edge of the crate. She didn't recognize any of the voices, and so she withdrew her pistol as a cautionary measure and switched the safety off.

"Shit. Nobody could have survived that wreck."

"Why chance it? If you see them, no warning shots. Take them down."

"Damn it. Not good," Anna whispered to herself.

A group of mercenaries emerged from the underbrush, pointing their weapons before them as they encircled the wreck. Before long, they would close in on Anna's position.

She peered over the crate again, waiting for an opportunity to relocate. Two mercenaries broke away from each other ahead of her and split off in different directions. Anna seized the chance and slipped away, moving quickly and quietly. She reached a patch of tall grass which offered a better vantage point and provided sightlines to much of the crash site where she could assess her situation.

"Two, three… four… five and six," Anna whispered to herself as she counted the mercenaries. "Six. I can handle that. Just have to play this smart."

After two encounters with Westguard mercenaries, she no longer had any qualms about dispatching her foes with lethal force, given that they had tried to kill them at every opportunity.

A string of rapid gunfire cracked the quiet of the forest and caused her to duck. A string of urgent voices followed.

"Woah! Woah! You got something?"

"Thought I spotted moving in the trees."

"We're in a fucking forest, shit'll move. Hold your fire until you have a solid visual."

"Yeah. Roger that. False alarm, everyone!"

Anna rose and blew a sigh of relief when she realized the gunfire had been aimed nowhere near her. A lone mercenary was approaching her position, but remained oblivious to her presence hidden among the tall grass. She moved slowly, utilizing the inherent camouflage of her jacket to close the distance to the mercenary unnoticed. As he neared the edge of the tall grass, Anna leapt up and seized him in a chokehold and dragged him down.

Unprepared for the attack as he was, the mercenary let out a choked gasp and fell underneath Anna. She then dispatched him by twisting his head sharply to the side, snapping his neck.

"I'll take that," Anna muttered as she scooped up the rifle that had fallen on the ground and holstered her pistol in favor of the extra firepower.

With one mercenary dealt with, she slipped out of the tall grass towards a fallen log for cover. From her new position, she could see two mercenaries were rooting around inside the wreck, another two were on the far side of the crash site, and the nearest mercenary was a few meters away from her in the open. There was no cover between Anna and him, so she could not risk crossing the open ground without being seen. She pressed her back against the log and thought of her next move when she spotted a rock she could throw as a distraction.

Anna hefted the small rock in her palm. "This'll work," she whispered to herself.

She peeked around the log, waiting for an opportunity. The mercenary shifted his gaze over the log where Anna was hidden then passed over it. Anna then rose and quickly tossed the rock into a patch of nearby bushes, agitating them and drawing the mercenary's attention.

"The hell?" the mercenary raised his rifle and slowly approached the bushes.

With his back turned and attention away from Anna, she peeked once more to make sure the coast was clear, then snuck up behind him. She raised the butt end of her rifle and swiftly struck him in the back of the head, forcing him to his knees and dazing him. Before he could react, Anna looped her arms around his neck, trapping it between herself and the rifle. She pulled back, crushing his windpipe to prevent him from making a sound, then yanked his chin sharply upwards, snuffing out his life.

"You guys find anything over there?" a mercenary called out. "Hey, you guys alright?"

The pair of mercenaries that were in the plane were now heading towards Anna's position.

"Shit," Anna muttered as she adjusted her position.

She decided to act before she lost the element of surprise and laid prone on her stomach. Next, she took aim with her rifle and waited until she had a clear shot of the two mercenaries. As they entered her sight picture, she released a burst of gunfire and dropped the first mercenary, then adjusted her aim onto the second. The second mercenary attempted to return fire but could not ascertain Anna's location and fired wildly into the trees. Anna released another controlled burst, striking the mercenary in his chest and eliminating him.

The final pair on the far side of the crash site came rushing over and fired off towards Anna. She rose to her feet to relocate and sprinted across open ground, leaping down into the trench carved into the earth by the wreck for cover.

"She's still alive, take her down!"

The pair fired as they advanced, forcing Anna to remain in cover as patches of soil exploded all around her.

"Now it's on," Anna muttered as she sprinted out of cover towards the wreck. A momentary pause in gunfire allowed her to put some distance between her and the remaining mercenaries.

"She's moving towards the plane. Move up, I've got you covered!"

Anna dove behind a broken piece of the plane's fuselage and used it as cover. Next, she peeked out and saw one mercenary advancing towards her who immediately opened fire. Bullets smacked and rang against the metal as Anna flinched and ducked back. She adjusted her position and crept to the opposite side of her cover, then stood out and let off a hail of automatic fire. The mercenary advancing on her position dropped dead, and Anna's rifle clicked empty.

"Empty. Damn," Anna swore as she dropped the rifle and ducked back behind cover.

The final mercenary was taking cover behind the mound of earth by the plane's nose. Something caught Anna's eye as it sailed through the air and landed at her feet, which she recognized immediately as a grenade.

"Oh, oh no!" Anna exclaimed, breaking away from cover.

She jumped over a depression in the ground and dodged a hail of return fire, sliding over the smooth metal of the wing and taking cover beneath it. Seconds later, an explosion split the air as dirt and debris were tossed up all around her.

In response, she withdrew her pistol and fired off a few rounds at the remaining mercenary, forcing him back down. An idea came to her then as the bent wing she was taking cover behind caught her attention. With little consideration for any danger, Anna climbed onto the wing and ran up it's length towards the top of the plane above the nose.

"Geronimo!" Anna cried as she leapt off, sailing through the air and down towards the final mercenary.

"What the fu-"

Before he could do anything, Anna struck out with her foot aimed at his head as she collided into him with all of her momentum. As she landed, he crumpled to the ground unconscious and cushioned her fall. With a moment to relax, Anna caught her breath, sitting on top of the mercenary's body as she looked wearily around at the carnage. Afterwards, she gathered up a rifle and slung it over her shoulder, then patted around his vest until she withdrew a few extra magazines which she stashed in her pockets. She was just about to leave when she did a double take, then bent down and fished out a pistol suppressor from his vest.

Anna tested it against the barrel of her pistol, and found that it clicked into place easily. "This'll come in handy," she nodded approvingly, then slid her pistol back into its holster.

Just then, another group of mercenaries came crashing through the underbrush, likely having heard the gunfight that had just occurred and upon spotting Anna, they opened fire immediately.

"There's one of them!"

"Crap!" Anna swore as she took off running. "I've gotta get outta here!"

Bullets whizzed around her, ripping through the air, and shredding through wood as she bobbed and weaved around them.

"She's getting away. After her!"

"Shit, shit!" Anna exclaimed as she ran.

She dipped and ducked between bullets and soon, she arrived at the edge of a muddy slope that descended downwards further into the forest. The voices behind her were still calling out and they were closing in on her.

"Oh boy," Anna paused at the edge and took a quick glance over her shoulder. "Here goes nothing!" she jumped off without another moment of hesitation and slid down the muddy slope on her rear.

When she reached the bottom, she sprung up and landed on her feet. Behind her, the mercenaries had reached the edge and had begun scanning the forest below, but they did not give chase.

"Does anybody have eyes on her?"

"Negative. I can't get a visual."

"She must have gone down."

Rather than stick around to find out if they would follow her, Anna took off running deeper into the woods.