A Pirate's Life for Mei

Reflections

Mei crashed through bushes. Tree branches tore at her as she passed. But she was in no state of mind to notice with her mind blank with fright.

She stumbled and fell, slamming into the ground and scraping her hands and getting a gash on her shin. But she barely slowed, up again in an instant, fleeing blindly through the jungle as if her life depended on it. Because it did.

By chance or perhaps by instinct, she ran in the same direction that she'd originally come from. And when she grew disoriented in the dark and tripped over some roots, it was at the base of the same fig tree that she'd sat at before. Chest heaving, lungs seared with the need for oxygen, she ducked behind the tree and shrunk into a hollow space in the dirt. Tears welled. She sat there, listening hard for pursuit.

But the jungle was eerily quiet.

No insects nor birds sang under the stars. Not even the wind rustled the leaves.

She gulped and vainly tried to control her breathing. She could barely think straight. Her hands shook.

Leaning her head back against the trunk of the tree, she continued to listen. Surely that monster was coming for her. He'd sneak up on her and then jump her. He'd hold her down and choke the life out of her. Or stab her. Or haul her back to the fire and burn her alive again.

She whimpered.

Yet no matter how long she waited, body tense, no one came for her. Her killer did not appear. And very gradually, she began to relax. She could even think again.

New emotions swirled within her. Embarrassment for the way that she'd panicked like a little girl and ran in front of the others. Shame and self-loathing for being so afraid. Anger at the man who had done this to her. Relief that she wasn't about to die again.

She cried for a bit, though not for long. Just in reaction to the extreme emotions she'd gone through. But they subsided quickly enough and she regained control of herself. Not so much that she could entirely relax, however. She spent the night sitting in that hollow all alone and wary and trying to deal with her emotions.

By morning, she was utterly drained, and her mind had grown fuzzy with both lack of sleep and emotional exhaustion. Her body was cramped from being tightly wound up and in the same position all night. Wincing, she quietly stretched out. Then she peeked around the tree for any sign of Tattoos.

He wasn't there. Neither was anyone else around, as far as she could tell. It belatedly occurred to her that the others hadn't come looking for her. She paused and wondered what that meant. Had Tattoos killed them too? Had they just not bothered because they knew that if anything bad happened and she died, she'd just respawn? Or were they still upset with her and shunning her?

Whatever the case, she didn't feel like returning to the camp. She didn't feel welcome, didn't feel like she had a place there anymore. And she really didn't want to see Tattoos. What would she even say to him if they saw each other again? What would he say to her? Or would he just do something awful to her again?

She felt miserable and down on herself. To hell with all of them. She was better off by herself. And for the moment, she was perfectly fine with never seeing any of them ever again.

She was also ravenous. Her stomach was growling and she was thirsty. It was time to look for food and water.

There was no need to return here, so she dug up her things. The money was heavy. Taking a handful of coins and spreading it between both pockets, she left the rest. She could come back for it if she had to. If she didn't, well, pirates buried their treasure, didn't they? She chuckled to herself at that.