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Lost At Sea by the-key-of-the-twilight
A/N: Thanks a lot Islandbreeze for reviewing! It was greatly appreciated! I hope that the first chapter wasn’t really bad… Anyways, a few new characters will be introduced in this chapter! Well, I hope you enjoy!
Thump! The wheels had gone over a fairly medium sized rock and the whole train shook. The blond girl with her head hidden in her arms cocked her head and blinked dazedly. She rubbed her eyes and stared out at the window. She glanced at the clock and sighed. It had been three hours already…
Similar to her trip to the train station, there wasn’t much to see outside. There were only trees after trees after trees. Elizabeth yawned and attempted to return to sleep if it were not for the bumpy terrain the train was currently traveling on. She scanned the room she was in and realized that there was a young man on the other side. At least Elizabeth thought it was a young man. He could have been a woman with such lovely, long brown hair. He was sleeping upright and Elizabeth thought to herself that if this person was a man, he was indeed a beautiful gentleman.
Since she had nothing else better to do, she decided to continue observing the passenger. His arms were crossed lightly over his chest that was slowly rising and falling. The window next to him was open so the breeze blew at his hair. Nonetheless, his mane remained surprisingly well combed.
Ba-dump! The tremor after this confrontation of a large rock startled Elizabeth. She shook her head to rid herself of her dreamy state and glanced at the clock again. To her disappointment, hardly any time had passed since the last time she checked. She let out an impatient sigh and stared unenthusiastically toward the window. Before she knew it, her eyelids drooped and she fell asleep once again.
The stick extended and finally, Elizabeth saw, an attached body came to view. It wasn’t long until the whole picture became clear to her; it wasn’t long until she knew what it was. She blinked in awe and rubbed her eyes just in case she was hallucinating. But no, she wasn’t seeing things. She wasn’t imagining those bright white sails, that large body of wood, and those wooden wings covered with white cloth. It was indeed a flying ship.
There was no doubt about it. The ship was indeed… flying. The wings at the side of the craft raised and lowered as the ship continued forward. Elizabeth had never seen such a thing. Sure, she had read about ships in books and had seen pictures of them, but she had never seen something so… extraordinary. Besides the wings, the ship was not like any other. It was great in size and a dragon’s head made out of pure gold lay at the end of the ship. Sunlight reflected off the majestic craft and made its brilliance all the more lovely.
“You’ve never seen one of our ships before?” a smooth voice asked.
“No, I haven’t. It’s… amazing…” Elizabeth breathed, and shortly later, spun around to see how had spoken to her. She saw no one except for the man who had been sleeping a while ago in the corner. However, he was awake now and she blushed at the sight of his handsome emerald eyes. She was sure he was male after considering his voice and had never seen a more attractive man.
“Amazing you say?” he replied. “That’s just the Raging Dragon. It’s really nothing special compared to some of the other ships that we have.”
“How can it not be amazing? It has wings! The thing can fly!” Elizabeth shouted in glee. “It can really fly!” She glanced at the window again, but the ship was gone. It had flown out of view.
“I can assume that you’re not from Angard, are you?” he observed and clasped his hands over his lap.
“No, I’m not,” she answered. “I’m from Pacificus.”
“Ah, Pacificus. I’ve been there many times,” he stated. “Do you like it there?”
“Of course! I’ve lived there all my life!” Elizabeth replied. She then saw the man close his window. Meanwhile, the train had slowed down a bit.
“We’re here,” he said and true to his words, the train ceased movement. Elizabeth slowly stood up and lifted her dress a bit to avoid stepping on the fine cloth. She was almost at the door when she suddenly lost her balance and luckily, fell into the arms of the man, who was walking straight behind her. She quickly recovered and flushed.
“I apologize. That was foolish of me,” she said quickly. However, instead of an insult, she received a smile.
“It’s alright. Don’t worry about it,” he forgave and opened the door for her. “Ladies first.”
She could not believe his kindness as she stepped out the door and out of the train. This young man was so… perfect. The sun was bright and the sky was a clear blue. A pleasant breeze blew and the rustling of leaves was tranquil to the ear. She carefully stepped into the train station and looked around. It was certainly more occupied than the one in Pacificus. There were children crying, women gossiping, and men discussing business ideas. There were people in lines everywhere. There was only a space near the end of the room in which there were no people. Elizabeth made for it, but was stopped by a man in a blue uniform.
“And who are you, Missy?” he spat and observed her. “What’s a fancy girl like you doing here?”
“Well, I- ”
“She’s with me,” a voice interrupted from behind.
“L- Lieutenant Lambda! Welcome back and good day to you!” the uniformed man spoke nervously and put a hand to his chest. Elizabeth turned around and found the man she had met on the train behind her.
“And a good day to you, too, Burgsam,” he replied, imitating the hand gesture. He then walked to Elizabeth. “Come on.” She followed him intently, not wanting to be stopped by some other person again. He’s a Lieutenant! “Don’t be afraid, you needn’t be,” he said. “He’s always like that to newcomers.” The two made it to the front door and they both stepped outside.
A burst of fresh salty air blew at Elizabeth’s hair and the bright sun shined ever so joyfully. She realized that the train station was placed on a cliff several feet above the city in which gave the deck she was standing on a magnificent view. Happily, she ran to the railings and leaned over to view the glorious scenery. She gasped at what she saw.
The city was large and bustling with activity, unlike the overly peaceful Pacificus. Rows and rows of different colored houses circled around the town center where she saw children run around and people moving about. Further to the north, lay the harbor. The sight of the wide, open sea amazed her. One by one, fleets came to the dock and unloaded and seagulls sang from overhead. She inhaled the cool and refreshing air and stared in awe at Angard’s glorious scenery.
“Come on now, don’t you have somewhere to go?” the man called from behind her. Elizabeth spun around with a blissful look on her face.
“It’s- it’s so gorgeous! I’ve never seen scenery so beautiful! It’s absolutely magnificent!” she exclaimed happily. The man smiled and coughed a little.
“Here,” he said and stretched out a hand towards her. “I’ll escort you to your destination.” Elizabeth’s face formed a wide smile. “And hold your bags of course.”
“Really? You will?” she cried in surprise. “Thank oh so very much, Lieutenant Lambda!” He flushed suddenly after hearing her call him so formally.
“Don’t call me that. It’s too formal for someone like you,” he said kindly and took her hand as she placed it on his. “Just call me Sasha.”
“Um… alright!” she replied. “Thank you very much, Sasha!”
“So, miss, where exactly is your destination?” he asked politely.
“Well, let’s see…” she fished for the address in her bag with her free hand. “It’s 307 at West Wing Lane.” Suddenly, Sasha bore a surprised look. “Hmm? What’s wrong?”
“Oh, it’s just that that address is where one of my close friends live. I’m just surprised they’re expecting a guest from Pacificus, that’s all,” he explained. “I’m afraid that your destination is quite a long way to walk. I hope you don’t mind using your legs too much.”
“Oh, don’t worry! I’ll be fine!” she assured him and with that, the both of them walked down the several flights of stairs until they halted in front of a gate guarded by two soldiers. Instantly, upon Sasha’s arrival, the two soldiers put their hands to their chests.
“It is a pleasure to have you back, Lieutenant Lambda,” the two guards greeted in unison. Sasha put his hand to his chest as well and nodded while Elizabeth couldn’t resist the urge to curtsy. Soon afterwards, the two came upon to another gate and Sasha was greeted once again while Elizabeth acted as polite and graceful as possible. After another gate, came the final gate. (Elizabeth had become quite worn out.)
“Ah, Sasha! It’s been a while!” one of the soldiers called from the West Wing Gate. Elizabeth was surprised that the guard had just called Sasha casually and not in a formal way.
“It has been a while, Keth! What are you doing on duty? I thought tomorrow was your call,” the lieutenant replied.
“Heh, the guy that was supposed to be on duty became ill so I had to substitute for him,” Keth explained and rubbed his head. “Ah, and who’s that lovely lady with you? Don’t tell me- ”
“No, she’s not! Don’t be silly! I would never do such a thing without letting anyone know!” Sasha interrupted nervously. “She’s going to the Barroks’.”
“The Barroks?” the soldier answered. “Don’t they have enough female visitors? Lucky guys like the Sea Raven get all the attention and all the girls.”
“That is true, but nonetheless, he’s a noble person,” Sasha said and then did the gesture he always did with the other soldiers. “Anyways, we must be going now. I’ll see you at Headquarters.”
“Good-bye,” Elizabeth called and Keth smiled kindly back.
“Miss, we’re here! The seventh house of West Wing Lane belongs to the Barroks. They are wonderful and generous people so you shouldn’t be nervous,” he explained to her. However, Elizabeth only listened to him half-heartedly. Her eyes were glued to the image before her.
The seventh house of West Wing Lane was unlike any other she had ever seen. First of all, there were wooden stairs that led up to it, like the stairs that led to the train station. The main door was on the second floor and wooden beams held up the front deck. The roof tiles were emerald green and the house was a creamy peach color. Second, the home looked like a house that was stacked onto another house. The design was strange and bizarre. Finally, to Elizabeth’s great disappointment, it seemed old. The wood from the beams was splintered and a plank of wood was missing from the stairs. Some of the roof tiles had been chipped away and others had changed their hue. However, a pot of irises grew beautifully on the deck.
“Are you surprised, Miss?” Sasha asked and Elizabeth silently nodded. “Well, before my task done, will you be kind enough to leave me your name?” She turned to him and curtsied.
“My name is Elizabeth Agate,” she said daintily. “And I thank you for escorting me.”
“It’s no problem, really,” he replied, smiling. “You know, my sister’s name is Elizabeth as well. But everyone calls her Beth. I personally think it’s a lovely name for a lovely young maiden.” Elizabeth flushed. She had never been flattered so! “Come, let’s go.” The two of them made it up the stairs and Sasha knocked on the door. At first there was no reply, but then, the door opened a crack.
“W- who is it?” a husky voice inquired.
“It’s Sasha,” the brown-haired young man replied.
“Ah!” It was obvious the figure inside had not expected the Lieutenant and immediately swung open the door. “Sorry, I thought you were someone else…” He scratched his head in embarrassment and laughed nervously. His voice was very cheerful and bright.
“That is alright,” Sasha replied and then stared down at Elizabeth. “I met up with this young lady here on the train from Pacificus and according to her, she’s supposed to stay here… um, let me rephrase that. She’s intended to stay with you.”
Elizabeth smiled. The boy who had opened the door was indeed unique and could catch anybody’s eye. He had sparkling scarlet eyes and his hair the color of a raven. A white bandanna was wrapped around his head and his clothes resembled those with an outgoing personality. He seems to be a really kind and heartwarming guy…But his red eyes are scary… they remind me of a demon, Elizabeth thought to herself.
“I assume you are acquainted with her…” Sasha said awkwardly after a brief moment of unexpected silence. The boy blinked in bewilderment and squinted at the lovely girl. He put his finger to his chin and studied her closely. After a while of observing, he finally stood straight up to declare a conclusion.
“Honestly, I have no idea who she is,” he blankly stated and watched the bewildered expression on Elizabeth’s face. Right then, the blond girl lost all respect for the young man. “Um, I’m really sorry, but… I really don’t know who you are… er… are you one of the girls who gather at the Town Square?” He laughed nervously with his hand behind his head. But being unrecognized was certainly not an acceptable thing in Elizabeth’s opinion. Her fists clenched.
Who does this guy think he is? Talking to me like that? Me, the lovely Elizabeth! And how can he not know me?, she thought bitterly and stared at him angrily.
“Are you sure you are not familiar with her?” Sasha asked and at his soothing voice, Elizabeth relaxed a bit. “She’s come a long way and there’s bound to be a reason for her arrival.” Suddenly, a deep and gruff voice called out from inside the house.
“Alduin, what’s taking you so long at the door? If she wants to go out with you, go with her!”
“Father! It’s not one of the girls from the Square!” the young man yelled back. His face reddened with embarrassment. Sasha leaned toward Elizabeth.
“You see my friend here, Alduin, is quite popular with the ladies,” he whispered into her ear. Elizabeth was surprised. She had seen nothing special in this… rude boy while on the other hand, she had flushed every time Sasha smiled at her.
“Then who is it?” Alduin’s father shouted.
“It’s Sasha and this… girl!” he replied.
Girl? Just a girl? I don’t look like a lady to him?, Elizabeth thought, infuriated. However, her moment of angry was cut short as she heard loud footsteps toward the door. After hearing his father’s stern voice, she began to fear how his father really was like. Is he like one of those huge, businesslike men? Or is he a bad-tempered drunk? Or could he be one of those shiny and muscular men? Or, wait, what if he’s one of those gigantic wrestlers? Oh, that would scare me to death!
A large man appeared at the door, standing tall next to his son. Alduin looked so tiny and weak beside his father. The man was indeed muscular and he had a messy brown mustache and beard. He wore a loose white shirt and big tan pants and under one large arm was a roll of newspaper in which he must have been reading earlier. The man cleared his throat and stared sternly at the young blond girl. Elizabeth looked back, terrified.
“Captain Barrok! It has been quite a while!” Sasha immediately stated and laid his hand onto his chest. “It is definitely a pleasure to see you!” The large man gave off a hearty laugh.
“Yes, Sasha. It’s certainly been a while,” Alduin’s father replied and returned the gesture. He then turned over to Elizabeth and gasped. “You can’t be- ”
“Oh, this lovely young lady here is supposed to stay with you. However, Alduin doesn’t seem to recognize her. Is she familiar to you?” Sasha explained and curiously watched the man’s shocked face. “Her name is Elizabeth Agate and she is from Pacificus.”
“E- Elizabeth?!” both father and son cried out at once.
“Ah, Elizabeth! I’ve been waiting for you!” Captain Barrok exclaimed suddenly and embraced her into a tight hug. “You’ve grown up so much that I didn’t recognize you! The only things that looked familiar were those pretty blue eyes you have!” He let go and put his rough hands on her shoulders.
“Elizabeth? Y- you mean,” Alduin stammered, “that this is the ‘little bratty blonde imp’?”
“What did you say!” Elizabeth shouted suddenly in an outburst of angry at being called such a name.
“Alduin, it is not nice to call others names!” his father said and led Elizabeth towards the door. “And as for you, young lady, we’ll get you settled.” The two went inside as Alduin (who was gaping) and Sasha stood outside. Coughs were heard from the brown-haired man.
“I- I better be going now,” Sasha said in between his coughs.
“You should come in and sit for a while,” Alduin offered. “It’s a long walk from the train station to here. Come in, come in.” The scarlet-eyed boy led Sasha into the room.
“So… she’s the ‘little bratty blonde imp’ you used to tell me about,” Sasha said, half chuckling. “Well, she can possible be ‘bratty’ since I haven’t known her long, but she certainly isn’t a ‘little imp’ anymore. I mean, she isn’t a child anymore, she’s quite a lady.”
“Well, then that makes her the ‘big bratty blonde imp’,” Alduin replied with a grin.
