The Dark Of Our Worlds

Dire Circumstances

Lorelai did not know where she was, how she got there or who's loop she was in. All she knew at that moment was that there was a ship a mile from her and she needed to sink it. As she began to sing, the ship - as expected - changed it's course. There were no rocks on which to wreck it, so, when it got close enough, she simply hit the keel with her tail, feeling the wood splinter and fall away. Over and over again she hit it, from bow to stern, taking great pleasure in the screams of the sailors atop it. When the ship was suitable damaged, she surfaced, once again employing her peculiarity. She sailors, abandoning their fearful screams, were drawn to the side of the ship and, one by one, began to throw themselves over board. Once the ship was abandoned, and the ocean filled with men, Lorelai quietened. A few of the men looked around in confusion and horror, others kept looking at her. 

The next bit was the fun part. Lorelai bolted forward, stating with the men most eagre to get away, and hit each of them individually in the abdomen and chest with her tail. A few of them attempted to fight back, so she broke their limbs. After they fell unconscious, Lorelai could feast, digging her fangs into their throats and ripping the flesh away until their blood turned the water red. Forty three men, she counted, died in that attack. Add that to the hundred or so in the last one, and she somehow still wasn't satisfied. The hunger still burned deep inside her. So she set off again, in search of her next target.

***

The moment she realised how severe the situation was, Alma hurried back to the loop and drafted letters to Miss Nuthatch  and Miss Kea.

Dear Miss Nuthatch, 

I wish I did not have to write in such urgency, but there truly is no time for pleasantries. Lorelai is missing, and Horace tells me of something he read. It is my belief that the extended period of time she has gone without hunting has caused her to regress into a sort of primitive self. I found the wreckage of three ships in my loop and, as much as I hate to admit it, I believe it to be of Lorelai's doing. 

It is my belief that she will travel to a place of familiarity, and the only one I can think of is your loop. If you permit it, I would like to visit you in hopes of finding her.

Yours Truly,

Alma Peregrine. 

 Dear Miss Kea, 

I apologise for my lack of communication over the last few years, and I also apologise that this letter is sent under such dire circumstances. 

An issue has arisen in my loop which I do not have time to fully explain. Due to this I am having to leave for a while and have no one to perform resets and take care of my wards. I was hoping you might be able to send a trainee Ymbryne from the academy to watch over my loop while I am away. 

Again, I am very sorry to inconvenience you and I hope to hear from you soon.

Your ward, 

Alma Peregrine. 

She got a reply from Miss Nuthatch the day after the letter was sent assuring her that she would welcome her visit and that she will keep an eye out for Lorelai in the mean time. Miss Kea's response arrived two days after the first, saying that an Ymbryne is already on route and is happy to take care of her children for as long as is necessary. 

***

In the three days she had been gone Lorelai had sunk ten boats and killed nearly five hundred men in six different loops, and she showed no signs of stopping. 

It felt wonderful, after a lifetime of guilt about her peculiarity and the horrors that accompanied it, she was finally free to hunt and kill as she wanted. She was growing stronger too. While it had taken upwards of five minutes to lure sailors off their boat while she hid, undiscovered, in Alma's loop, she could now bring the entire crew into the ocean in a matter of thirty seconds. Her tail was stronger too. The muscles she had lost due to lack of use were back, and more still. She could swim faster, kill faster, and she felt wonderful due to it. 

She hadn't realised where she was swimming to, only that she recognised the small costal town in which she had recently arrived. She knew she had been there before, but her mind was so crowded that she couldn't figure out where from. All she knew was that there was a ship coming in, and that it would never reach the shore.