It was 9:15am, 11th of September 2009, African Flight 815 was flying over the Sahara desert. On board were over 315 passengers, John Portland a car salesman heading to Kuwait is minding his own business, reading 'A Carman Tale' when the pilot is heard over the speaker saying, “The plane is experiencing a severe turbulence and as a safety precaution we will be lowering the oxygen masks. The flight attendants will instruct you how to correctly put them on.”
A few moments later the masks drop and the attendants instructed everyone how to put them on. A few minutes of turbulence passed by and a lady a few rows up from John threw up and was forced to take off her mask. Just as that happens a loud explosion is heard from the left side of the plane. Straight away people on the left side started screaming, then the pilot is heard on the speaker phone, "We are going to have to make an emergency landing as the left engine is destroyed, please do not panic and make sure you are in your seats."
The flight attendants immediately started knocking on toilet doors checking to see if anyone was still in them. Then they strapped down and prepared for landing. Moments later another explosion was heard and the plane's right wing is blown off spinning the plane wildly. Everyone was told to brace for impact. Suddenly a broken shard of glass punctures John's neck spitting out blood, John shouted out in pain while clenching the wound. Bags fall from the roof and people were screaming inside their masks. Seconds passed and then everything slamed forward. John's head smashed into the soft seat in front of him instantly knocking him out.
An unknown amount of time passed when John woke up. He looked around and saw people sitting with their heads downs and masks still on. John realized they're dead and tried to get up. His left leg was stuck between his chair and the one in front of him, he then used his right leg and arms to push the chair away freeing his leg. He got up slowly, grunting in pain he stumbled to an opening in the plane and fell onto the sun baked hot sand of the Sahara. He looked at the plane and noticied half of the fuselage was missing and was about 200meters in the other direction. John noticied several cargo on the ground went and see what he could salvage limping to the crates. To his surprise there were several bottles of spring water and a backpack in another crate. He grabbed all of the bottles and he headed to the other side of the plane to see if anybody was alive.
Once at the front side of the plane John climbed up onto the inside, he headed to the cockpit to check on the pilots, they' were dead but it seemed the radio was intact John used the knowledge from his dad being a Nam vet in the war, John knew how to program a radio to repeat a message, he set it to repeat an SOS on a FM frequency, he used one of the gauges to find his coordinates and repeats that he was 15degrees longitude and 30degrees latitude, John's plan was that anyone within a 100km radius of the plane might hear the message. John then grabbed the bodies and put them outside, he found a tarp inside a box on the outside of the rubble and he used this to cover the opening in the plane, John then fell asleep in one of the chairs.
The next morning John woke up with a thump, right into a 9mm gun held by a lady. "What the, who the hell are you, what are you hell are you doing pointing that at me!" John yelped.
"My name is Haley and I was the Air Marshall on this plane, are you another survivor?" Haley asks.
"Yes I am, my name is John, John Portland." John answered.
"Good at least you’re not a looter, I was sleeping when I was awoken by the crash what happened?" asked Haley.
"The plane ran into some turbulence, severe turbulence and then the left engine blew, we were going for an emergency landing, and then the other one blew we just started falling, real fast next thing I remember I'm stabbed by something in the back of the neck. Then everything just stopped and was thrust forward and... I woke up, with everyone else around me dead." John replied sadly ,"You’re the first survivor I've seen since the crash, i was on the back section."
"Dear God," Haley Replied with the sound of genuine grief in her voice.
"I found water bottles in some cargo that fell out of the plane when it crashed. We should stay here i set up a distress call for help." John said.
"We're in the Sahara Desert. it covers most of Northern Africa trust me we have to walk to the nearest town." Haley said unenthusiastically.
"The nearest town? How far?" John asked.
"My cell has full charge using the GPS it is about... 100kms away." Haley replied.
"Wait your cell works why not call some kind of rescue party or something, GPS works why wouldn't you call someone for help?" John asked
"Because there's no cell coverage out here GPS is satellite, meaning no matter where we are it will always work. I had a satellite phone but when the plane crashed I lost it." Replied Haley.
"Fine well its hot and its probably mid day we'll rest inside the plane until tomorrow plus my leg is still aching, is that fine with you, Hale can I call you Hale?" John commented quickly.
"Fine by me," replied Haley.
The next day went by and Haley and John got up, They grabed all the water and non staled food they could find and took off heading north which they determine using their analogue watches. They took of their t shirts and wrapped it around their heads to avoid getting heatstroke all the while getting to know one another well. Days went by they slept in homemade tee pees made using palms tree that Hale cut down using her sharp Swiss army knife. All the while John got a feeling that this Busty, skinny brunette has gotten the better of him and he has started to actually like her.
"Hale how far are we way from the nearest town now?" John asked reluctantly as it’s the 7th time he'd asked her today.
"20kms pretty good progress if you you ask me, hey how many water bottles left, and what about those scorpions I killed in the morning they still okay to eat?" Haley Asked.
"We have 3 bottles and 4 scorpions." John replied.
"Good," Haley said.
Another day went by and John woke up with the boiling hot sun in his face and with a feeling that he is going to die in the Sahara he asked Hale if she has anyone back home, in which she answered no. John then confessed his attraction for Haley and Haley admited she found him somewhat cute and if they got out of "this rotting desert" she'll buy him some drinks. Another day goes buy they are 10kms away from Kawa the nearest town they still had a day’s walk ahead but only half a bottle of water between them and in a desert like the Sahara you do not want to be dehydrated. So they refrained from drinking too much and stuck to taking sips to wet their lips.
The last day of the walking arrived they woke up from their sleep and John knew that they will both die if he drinks the water so he told her to have what is left of the bottle and that'll he'll try and survive the rest of the walk. They walk 5kms and John collapsed, face planting into the burning hot desert floor, Haley worried about John takes a few sips out of the remainder of the bottle and gives John the rest. When he didn't respond. she pushed him over. Telling him to get up. In one last desperate move to make him wake up, she leaned in, tilted her head, closed her eyes and pressed her lovely lips to his, this instantly awokes John from the shock in which he responds by holding the kiss, for a good long while, when they were done not a word is spoken they just got up holding each other’s shoulders walking north.
They made it to Kawa it was night so it was dark and gloomy and John collapsed again due to dehydration from not drinking. Haley using whatever is left of her energy sprinted to the local doctor, requesting aid. John woke up a few hours later to the sight of Haley sobbing over him, He caressed her face and stroked her hair, so she looked at him and smiled and started to laugh thanking god that he is alive. Then they start kissing erotically, cheering because they survived. Surviving 10 days in the Sahara creates an unbreakable bond between two people and Haley and John are no exception.
The End
