Somewhere in the recesses of her sleep addled mind an alarm blared. She heard her Captain’s voice fogging in and out.
“May.”
“Yes we truly do have excellent weather in
“Day.”
“Yes, yes I shall definitely find something extraordinary to work on today. I’m thinking that the clanks down in the boiler need their fortunes told. And I shall see about making an offering to Turanos to favor the winds for the zeppelin so that we can make it back to Luftshiffehalle 93 in one piece. Soon my Captain we will be back in cheery
Without further ado Ms. Rachel Trevethan found herself tossed out of her bunk and splayed on the floor of her cabin. Cursing with some very unladylike language she heard the comm. System buzzing with interference. Reaching for the switch she found that the cabins gaslight system would not work. Curiously puzzled with all that was going on she proceeded to reach out and touch her bunk. Even from sleeping her eyes could not penetrate the darkness that surrounded her. Frowning she pulled herself up and made her way blindly for the door. Her fingers brushed the wall lightly and she found the molding that announced she was at the door.
“Finally.” She sighed in relief. Finding the handle she turned it lightly and opened the door onto more blackness. “Well damn it, what in the blazes is going on?! Hello?! You can’t tell me a whole airship full of people and not a damn one in earshot!” She walked out into the hall and reached out to find the opposite wall. “And of course the night blind person is walking around in the dark…if I break something I don’t think I will agree to marry the Captain when he finally proposes…I don’t think I shall.” Instead of a wall though, she felt what had to be the most beaten up wood she had ever felt. The walls’ weren’t wood…they were all metal…what was going on? She grasped it and pulled close to it wrapping her arms around it, she found herself actually hugging a tree. Starting to panic a little she slid down to her knees.
“We crashed? How could we have crashed? Desdinova is the best…the best!” She felt dirt underneath her jumpers. “You’ve got to be kidding me. This simply can’t be happening.” She crawled back towards the door of her cabin and made her way inside, she begin to search for her expedition gear. “I know I didn’t put it away since we were going to be making port soon, now where did I stash it though?” She found her way to her desk and sure enough the pack was sitting just underneath it. She wrestled one of the pockets open finding the small globe she was looking for. Shaking it with all her might, the room was filled with the glow of blue light. Sighing in relief she got up and looked out the door of her cabin only to see a forest.
“Sticks & Stones! You’ve got to be kidding me!” She rushed outside and followed the contour of her room which was sitting all by itself out in the middle of this forest.
“Oh…my….gods….” She sat down again and begin to really panic. “But my lab! All my clanks and my inventions and my offerings and altars…I just…I just….ye gods! We were going to get married! I was going to own half the zeppelin once we had got the mortgage paid off! I was going to finally not be labeled nuts by the Academy! They were going to offer me a position with the Royal family! Noooooooooo!” Her eye twitched slightly as she breathed deeply.
"This is going to be harder then I thought." Getting up and setting her jaw determinedly she went back into her cabin grabbing the pack and shrugging it on. She grabbed a pair of goggles off a shelf and put those on. Now able to see due to the glass in the goggles she put the globe away. Grunting she walked outside and looking back at the cabin. For good measure she pulled out her dog tags and put them into place to form the key locking the door. Cracking her neck to the side she began to walk through the trees.
Walking through the trees beneath the dark canopy of leaves she begin to feel just how utterly quiet the woods were. Sighing she watched for signs of life, she could see no evidence of what must have been a horrible wreck. The zeppelin must have been a catastrophic mess! Her room had been left essentially intact, but where were the pieces of walls, flooring, the gas lamps…why was there no fire? What in the verse was going on here? As she walked she seemed to find a natural path through the woods, one that hadn’t been there a minute ago. She walked on still finding nothing of what had been her home and any of her friends and colleagues. She became less focused on her surroundings and began to internalize turning inward as her mind tried to handle everything that was happening around her. Something along the way refused to click, and she remained stumped.
As she continued to internalize her plight she overlooked the trees that were now growing closer together and altogether missing the roots that were before her feet. Next thing she knew she was kissing dirt.
“Blech! Yuck! Gods girl get it together!” She leaned up slightly spitting dirt out of her mouth and caught sight of what could only be light from some kind of building. “Praise be to the Gods, I’m saved!” She jumped up brushing herself off a bit and began making her way towards the structure. “I’m sure I can find someone to help get my wits about me until morning when we can send out a search party. Once they realize how generous the Queen will be with such individuals I’m sure they won’t hesitate.”
As she got closer to see what could only be called a tavern, and not one of her Royal Majesties well provisioned ones at that, she lifted the night goggles up and placed them on top of her head. Clicking her tongue inside her mouth she walked forward to try the door. Finding it open she let herself inside and after her eyes adjusted a bit, drank in the sight of the room.
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