James+W

James W

__** Flight 360 **__

Chapter 1: Air to Sea

As the trade winds blew in from the east, so did a large, white mass approximately the size of a whale. As if it were a beast itself, the great mass shuddered, and slowly sank to the deep, blue depths of the Indian Ocean. Two beaten, shattered wings lay, floating, in the distance, upon the slowly rolling waves. Thunder sounded in the distance, a fatal warning cry that was only just too late. To the west, atop a pedestal of rock and earth, lay the sun, setting after a long day.

It was Saturday morning. 10 o’clock. Flight 360 was on its way to Thailand from Moscow. Today’s pilot was Alex. This flight was his first time transporting civilians, so the pressure was on. In the cabin, the usual pilot jargon took place. “Flight 360 en route,” Alex babbled into the radio receiver. “What a beautiful day!” Alex came over the main speaker: “Good morning ladies and gentlemen, I am Alex, your pilot today. You will be pleased to know that we are on course, and on time. We expect to arrive within the next two hours. However, you can expect some slight turbulence in about half an hour. This is nothing to be concerned about.” At 10:36, the massive hull of the plane began to shake. The plane had been steered into the course of a hurricane. With every revolution of the engines, the plane veered farther off course. Careening into the abyss, the shrieks of terror came from not only inside the plane, but outside, as the wind blew past the plane with such force, that it tore the wings of the plane loose. Sailing away from the tragedy about to unfold, the wings of the plane floated gently towards the blue horizon. The fuselage spun wildly in the air, in a freefall. The sky lit up as if someone had turned on a lamp. Light. Dark.

Alex couldn’t tell the state of his existence as the plane came closer to the earth. He braced for impact, knowing full well that this would not aid him. Contact. Alex was thrust forward in his seat with such force, that he came flying out of the cabin and met the freezing ocean water with open arms. //“Stay afloat… Stay awake…”// Alex thought to himself as he flailed helplessly in midst of the wreckage. Alas, the warm comforting thought of sleep overtook him, and he left the face of the earth for what he thought was not long enough. When he awoke, Alex found himself half buried beneath the smooth sand, sheltering him from the waves which threatened to take him to sea once again. The young man stood slowly in confusion, eventually becoming aware of his surroundings. He was tall, and physically fit. When he finally came to, he began to walk through the sand, as it sifted through his bare toes. Around him lay an island, circular from his point of view, densely forested, and coming to a point on the far left side, where jagged rocks lay. Following his gaze upwards, Alex spotted a small mountain, illuminated in the sun. The mountain stood tall amidst the otherwise flat, green island. It would take a decent trek to reach the top, but it was achievable. From there, Alex could gain a better understanding of his surroundings. Later on, he discovered a duffel bag that had washed up farther along the beach. In it he found a knife, rope, compass, tarp, and mirror. Swiftly, the knife cut through the dense tangle of vines as if they were butter. Heat rose from the ground, slithering through the thick, sweet smelling air. From above, the sun smirked upon Alex once more, as if mocking him and his attempt to climb the mountain. Alex trekked on, picking some of the succulent fruit from the trees as he hiked. He gathered as he ate, preparing in advance for when he would need food. The mountain rose in front of him like a behemoth. In awe, Alex took a step back to admire the beauty.

Alex rose up the mountain steadily, foot after foot, until his toes were mere blisters. The sun had begun to set now, rolling off into the ocean as slowly as one does, not a care in the world. By now, Alex had reached the summit. From here he had a vantage point better than any before. Hundreds of feet below, just one fateful step too far, lay the forest, which was thick, and green with trees. From here he gazed out into the open ocean, where the water met seamlessly with the sky. The rim of the moon could be seen poking its head out from between the two sides of the earth. From here, Alex spun around, and took in the glory of the sun, which was setting now. On this side, the ocean appeared to be ablaze. A painter had come and dipped his paintbrush in fire. With this fire he created the sky, brilliant with the deepest orange, most intimate crimson, and darkest of blues.

Alex’s eyes trailed downwards, past the glorious sunset, and onto the far beach. He was trapped on an island, with no sense of where he was. Just as he was about to sit and prepare his camp for the night, he spotted something unusual. Down, at the bottom of the cliff, past the sea of green vines, on the beach. Alex spotted smoke.

Chapter 2: Secrets The bright green tendrils lashed out at Alex’ face as he bolted down the mountainside. He reached the bottom panting, and out of breath. He knew he had seen the smoke on the other side of the island, but it was only a matter of time before the sun fully set and he would be lost in the foliage. Alex dashed through the dangling arms as they reached out towards him, beckoning. Finally he reached the edge of the division between forest and beach. Alex had miscalculated. He had only traveled just around the bend of the mountain where he had washed up on shore. Quickly, he unlaced his shoes and began to sprint across the sand. //“I know there was smoke. There had to have been smoke,”// Alex thought to himself. This uncanny race against time sucked the breath from Alex. It was a matter of seconds before he would be plunged into darkness, and could only hope to find his direction. For what felt like several helpless hours wandering in the darkness, guided only by the sound of the tiny waves crashing on the sand, Alex was rewarded. He heard people talking, and saw a welcoming orange glow, accompanied by the crackle and hiss of fire. “Hello!” Alex shouted over the wash of the waves. The three shapeless figures stood immediately, an object in all their hands. Alex could only assume they were knives. The tallest figure spoke: “Show yourself.” “//It’s a woman!”// Alex thought to himself. He stepped forward into the small clearing. Surrounding the fire were three women. All of which Alex could not make out any details, because of the blurred image of the fire. Alex spoke first. “I was the pilot of flight 360. Were you all aboard that plane?” The first woman answered for the group. “Yes! We were! I can’t believe this miracle. We are all still alive!” Suddenly, the fire let out a gasp. Everyone was bathed in a warm glow. Alex saw the three girls. They were not much younger than he was, all dressed in expensive looking clothing. The four survivors got to know each--other, Alex, Casey, Jane, and Rachael. Alex asked how they had started a fire so quickly. Rachael carried a lighter on her, and it wasn’t damaged during the crash. Eventually, the four survivors grew tired and decided to go to sleep. The makeshift campsite consisted of the tarp Alex found, a couple damp blankets, and some strategically placed rocks that looked to be seats. Casey stated: “That tarp looks familiar; I think my brother used to have one like that.”

The golden sun ascended the mountain, bathing the four survivors in a yellow glow. One by one they rose like the dead coming back to life, for they had to sleep on the ground the night before. Alex reached into the duffle bag, and he produced from it four ripe chunks of fruit. This was to be their breakfast, as they had no other food. “I think we need to scour the island, and search for people or supplies.” announced Alex through a mouthful of fruit. “That sounds like a good plan,” replied Rachael. “We should all go once over the island and bring back everything we can.” “Awe couldn’t I just stay here?” whined Jane. “Fine,” retorted Casey, who had little to no time for shenanigans. She was ready to be rescued right now. Her trip in Moscow was not a memorable one, and she wanted to be home now. At approximately noon, Alex, Casey and Rachael left the tiny campsite. While walking along the beach, Alex realized how pointless his journey had been the previous night. He had washed up on the shore just around the corner of the mountain, and out of the view of the three girls. He had travelled the wrong direction. When they neared Alex’s first landing point, he noticed something strange. When they neared the strange object in the water, Casey gasped in terror. “That’s my brother!” she wailed. “How did he get here?” Upon further inspection, Casey’s brother was confirmed dead. The pale lifeless face seemed peaceful in the sunlight, like he had reached paradise.

Chapter 3: Divisions

With tears in her eyes, Casey sprinted towards camp. Following closely behind were Jane, Rachael, and Alex himself. They careened through the sand, trying to catch Casey. She was just too fast. In the distance, Alex could see Casey stop and grab some supplies from the campsite. The three remaining members stopped in the sand to catch their breath. “What’s going on?” demanded Rachael. “Isn’t it obvious?” retorted Jane. “Her brother just died!” “No, it wasn’t that. It’s just the way she ran away so quickly. Why was that?” Finally, Alex broke in. “She didn’t know he was on the plane. It was supposed to be a surprise for when we reached Thailand. I neglected to tell her that her brother was on the plane with us.” “How could you!” Rachael raged. “What if that was our loved ones! Would you have told us then?” Alex said nothing and walked away.

Time had passed, and no one had seen Casey. After the incident, Rachael and Jane had resented Alex’s existence. Alex would try to start a conversation, but ended up being ignored. The camp was a mess. The group was running low on food, and the tension was unbearable. Bones were beginning to show through Alex’s sun reddened skin, as if he were the death himself. His lips were dry, his skin was beginning to crack, and his hair had reached his shoulders.

On a particularly sunny day, Alex decided to go for a walk to clear his mind. Just as he made his way around the bend of the beach, the far mountaintop came into view. Sitting, balanced precariously over a treetop that sat on top of the mountain, he saw a figure. Immediately, Alex dashed up the mountainside. Just as if he were coming down the mountain, the green forest swallowed him whole. Faster than ever before, Alex climbed. When he finally reached the summit, he stood and absorbed the image before him. Approximately ten feet from the precipice, hung Casey. Alex shouted at the top of his lungs before he could stop himself, and collapsed into the dirt as if some invisible force had sucked the life from him. “Did you hear that?” questioned Jane. Rachael rose from her seat in the sand, took in the magnificent view of the ocean, and replied, “Nope, I didn’t hear a thing.” The two girls wanted nothing to do with Alex, for he had broken their trust, and given them reason to forget him. They were on the beach now, with ample supplies, for they had just come back from a trip around the island searching for fruit and pieces of wood to help build their shelters. Rachael continued to stretch, looking out into the vast blue green abyss. “Hey, Jane… Come see if you can see this!”

Crying, his mop of a head slowly rose and stared, longingly, at what looked like the lifeless body of Casey. Alex stared for what felt like an eternity until, finally, the leaves began to rustle. The wind picked up, turning the rope attached to the tree, revealing the truth. Casey spun on the rope, began to reach up towards the sky, and grabbed hold of the branch above her. Alex’s tears turned to those of joy, and he ran forward, not fully aware of the situation. “Hurry up and help me down, dummy!” called Casey through gritted teeth. “I don’t have all day here!” Quickly, Alex grabbed Casey and brought her back from the edge of death, and to safety. Alex quickly noticed that Casey was not quite alright. Her left shin was mangled and twisted, with little hope of being fixed. “Wha- What happened to you?” asked Alex between nervous breaths. “When I found out my brother was dead, I was scared. I didn’t want to deal with this godforsaken island anymore, Alex. So, I came up here to live out the last of my days in peace, and tranquility. I climb this tree every day and sit on top of it searching. For what, exactly? Rescue? My Brother? I don’t know anymore, Alex. I just want it to end,” Casey continued. “Today, like every day, I climbed the tree. I’m not sure how it happened, but I managed to fall out and bash my leg against the tree trunk on the way down. I swung out with such force that I came back and plowed into the rock. After that, I can’t even remember. I think I passed out.” “When you woke up, you saw me?” asked Alex. “Yes, Alex. Thank you for saving my life.” “I don’t think that we can take you anywhere tonight, Casey,” announced Alex, “That leg is as round as a coconut. I’ll stay here with you tonight so you can get some rest. Alex and Casey sat and watched as the sun began to set over the Indian Ocean once more. They fell into a peaceful sleep at last, only Alex did not take notice to the small, red shape that slowly bobbed to and fro on the far side of the island, just below the horizon.

“QUICK! JANE! GRAB YOUR THINGS!” shouted Rachael at the top of her lungs. “We need to light this fire before it gets dark!” Rachael had spotted a ship. This was the first ship that anyone had seen on the island since they landed. Like a dream, the ship floated just out of reach. Rachael grabbed her lighter, and sparked a fire. She began to grab branch after branch, and toss them into the ever-growing inferno. “But… Rachael… What about Alex and Casey?” Jane said hurridley. “Let Alex stay!” shrieked Rachael over the roar of the fire, her eyes lit with fury. “He betrayed us! Besides, Casey hasn’t been seen for weeks, months, years, who knows how long!” She began to laugh maniacally under her breath. The girls began to scream and wail, doing anything to try and catch the attention of the passing ship. Eventually, the girls became exhausted, and gave up. The ship had beaten them, and the night had grown ever so dark. Suddenly, the two girls were blinded by a bright flash, and a horn. The white sand shook beneath them, and soon they realized, the ship was headed directly for them.