Bloody Mary

Chapter Eighteen ~ Retrieval

Her heart was in her throat as the blade pressed against the same soft flesh. She felt the thin edge of the short sword lifting her chin higher as it caressed the tanned skin at her below her chin; pressed so close it nearly drew blood. Breathing became a complication from the position of the blade, and Marianna was gradually losing her breath. How will I escape from this one? She thought to herself. The answer did not pop into her mind as soon as she would have liked; she knew she had a time limit before her life would be ended.

Instead of acting on the functions of her own mind, Marianna allowed her instincts to take over and let her head slump forward. The body pressed against her stiffened as she moved against the blade, allowing it to cut deeper into her throat. Blood trickled as the skin broke, but she paid no mind to the sting of steel. In one violent motion she jerked her head back, ramming her skull into the face of her captor, successfully slamming the back of her head into his nose and causing him to stumble. As he fell back, she moved with him and raised her hands to grasp his forearm. She managed to snake a foot behind his ankle, and the next stumble sent her captor sprawling to the floor. Alongside him, she fell as well, rolling off of his body to crouch at his head before withdrawing a dirk from a sheath attached to the back of her belt. The short yet sharp blade was pressed against the throat of the man, and she grinned triumphantly at him.

"Check mate, Eddy boy."

The face of her crewmate and close friend grinned up at his apprentice, then he pushed her dirk away and rose to his feet. He brushed the sand from his trousers and shirt before looking back to her.

"Shit, mate. You're damn good with a dirk." Marianna smirked at the praise as she returned the dirk to its sheath. Wordlessly they began the trek back to the camp, as had become habit after she found a way to best Edward in their spars.

"Thank yah. If those damn cannibals come after us then you can bet your ass I'll be ready."

"Mm. A month has done a lot for ye."

A murmur of agreement came from Marianna. It had been a month since the first planned attack on their new enemies, and since then various raids had been planned and executed whilst the youngest crewmate practiced her swordsmanship. Her trust in Edward had escalated quickly every day that he held his word not to tell the crew, and relief had swept over her at the mere thought of it. Her gut still sunk, however, whenever she reminded herself that that would change when Carlisle made an appearance.

That could be a long ways away though, she realized. Despite her insistence to the crew that Carlisle would sail to find them, how could she be sure? Even Edward believed it, and while he knew the captain the best, could he really be placing his faith in him?

Regardless of where Edward placed his faith she knew it was her job to keep this band of men together against any and all odds. She knew that, should she be faced with the abrupt decision, she would place her life on the line before those of her friends and comrades on the crew. It was they or she, and frankly she knew she'd be able to sleep better knowing she went with the more selfless decision.

It was in her reverie that Marianna found herself losing her attention as her thoughts clouded over her eyes, and whatever she walked past became a simple blur in her peripheral. She noticed Edward join the other mates by the fire as they whittled- a hobby they had taken to recently to pass the time- and strode right past the group. Her eyes were ahead and watching the horizon. Waves crashed, creating caps of white froth before softening and disappearing under the water. Marianna found herself stopping at the edge of the beach, numbly watching as the water stretched its limbs toward her ankles, then receded with reluctance.

A sigh faded from her lips, then she blinked, then a shape suddenly caught her eye. As she focused on it, it become very clear to her what the object gradually increasing in size was, and her heart leapt in both joy and sunk with dread at the thoughts it caused to stir within her.