Acathiens: The Forgotten People

Chapter 1 Audra

"Hey Audra!" someone called from above. Audra glanced to the top of the enclosure to see Stan standing at the top. "We could use some help with that new seal pup if you got a chance," Stan yelled down.

"Okay, Stan!" Audra yelled, turning back to her little black-and-white patient. "Let me just finish with little Peggy here!" Audra said.

"One last clip, little Peggy." Audra cooed. The little penguin ruffled her feathers while waiting for Audra to cut the last piece of waterproof tape.

"There! All better! Now your stitching won't get infected!" Audra patted the little penguin and watched as she shuffled away.

Audra stood stretching out her sore back, laughing as the penguin showed off her new look. Audra saw her reflection in the window and gave herself a quick look over. She was petite for a woman, just barely over five feet. Her strenuous job kept her body in good physical form, but had enough curves in the right places to feel still feminine.

She looked at her rough and worn hands calloused from hours of work. Her skin was tanned from being out in the sun most of the day, and her cheeks always held a rosy sunburn that ran across her nose.

Her long light brown hair hung loosely down her back, with loose flyaways sticking to her sweaty forehead and straight up around her face. She desperately needed to get to the salon for a haircut but never had the time or energy to do so. She had large, round, oval-shaped eyes of warm hazelnut, with an upturned nose and thin lips. She hated her brown eyes; she always thought they were so dull.

Her mother had always loved her eyes. She would always say the same thing about brown eyes.

"My Little Storm, brown eyes are the most unique. They are full of hidden treasures that take patience to study. Close your eyes. When you are patient enough, you will unlock the hidden treasures that they hide. Now open them!"

Pearl placed Audra in front of a window the sun was shining directly in. Her mother held a mirror as she looked at herself, and the sun hit her eyes just right. She says the dancing of greens and golds twirling threw her irises that day. Laughing with glee, Audra hugged her mother.

The memory of her mother tightened her throat, and she brushed off some leftover fish guts from the penguin enclosure on her bright yellow waterproof overalls.

She was forcing herself to think of anything else besides her mother.

With one last glance at herself, she gave a nod. Audra walked over to the ladder leading to the penguin enclosure's top.

She was currently doing her clinicals at the Roundhouse Aquarium to finish her veterinarian residency in aquatic care. It was one of the smaller aquariums, where she was learning from one of the best in the business.

Stan Jones. A well-known Aquatic Vet who truly knew how to impact the world. Stan was a skinny, lanky man with skin that had lived in the sun. Thick, dark-rimmed glasses permanently blocked his dull, gray, wisdom-filled eyes.

His thinning hair was starting to turn white, and he was beginning to hunch over from years of hard work.

It was because of Stan that many aquariums changed to rehabilitate and release centers. Even when working for the best, Pearl was never happy with her career choice.

Audra wanted to be an aquatic vet to work with the marine animals she grew up around. Audra fell in love with the ocean because of her mother's career in marine biology.

She traveled the world with her. Up to Antarctica to study Orcas and Emperor Penguins. Down to Costa Rica, where Pearl studied coral reefs and endangered fish.