Aurora Borealis

The Northern Lights

It was a glorious trip. The sky was blue, the breeze light and refreshing. From the luxurious deck of the Ice Princess everything always seemed perfect. We could see the outline of our next destination Seward, Alaska in the distance. We're told it's a quaint little fishing town with sidewalk stores and a Sealife center. After a day of lounging by the pool we were getting hungry having spent most the day on liquid refreshments.

We were inside partaking of the elaborate buffet when the ships Captain announced that the Northern Lights or Aurora Borealis (as Chase called it) was putting on quite the performance outside and was a rare treat to see this far south.

Carson met a young lady who was now eager to follow him around. We saw the the shimmering curtains of green and yellow as it flowed across the far horizons in sheets. It was beautiful and unique in a way I'd never seen before. Almost unreal in it's sheer magnitude.

Handing my iPhone to Carsons new friend I asked. "Could you snap a few pictures of us with the Aurora Borealis in the back?"

"Sure Stan!" She replied happily. As we posed in different stances the sky itself took on different shapes and colors.

Around us we could hear the oohs and aaahs of amazement. As people took selfies.

Just as she was taking the 5th picture a flash of an extremely bright  blue light suddenly covered the entire Ship and the ocean floor seemed to opened up pulling The Ice Princess into a dark swirling hole. We were all immediately thrown off our feet down to the deck violently. I could hear one passenger yell aloud as she saw her partner get thrown from the railing into the water.

Holding onto the railings we fought to make our way to the deck doors and reached for nearby passengers who found themselves sliding on the deck helplessly.

Carson crawled through one  door and extended his hand to me. Reaching out against the centrifugal forces of the spinning ship he was able to pull us into the safety of the hall one by one. Carsons young friend dropped my phone as she tried to stand  up and began crawling  off down the hall in search of her friends. The lights began to flicker before they went out throwing us all into darkness. Reaching for my phone I put it in my breast pocket before finding a handle to brace myself with. Chase closed the door against the rushing water and wind from outside.

With a crash the spinning stopped and the sound of ripping metal and breaking glass echoed in the hall. After a minute of settling the ship stood still but at an angle.

"You guys OK?" Carson asked as he started to stand on the uneven floor.
"I'm all in one piece." I replied.
"What did they put in my drink?" Chase joked.
"Whatever it was I don't want any more of it." I replied dusting off my now torn tan trousers.

As we opened the door to look outside we were instantly hit by a blast of hot humid air.
"What the Devil just happened? Why is it so hot out here?" Carson asked.
"I have no idea." I replied as I stepped outside in shock. The air was thick and I felt myself beginning to sweat instantly. The sudden change of pressure made me dizzy enough that I had to brace myself against the metal door frame to keep from fainting.

The ship was grounded on a sandy beach and leaning at a 15 degree angle. Not far off was a lush green tropical forest and a smoking volcano to the East.

From the outlying forest I could see a large group of half clad cinnamon colored natives with spears peering at our ship in amazement.

"I don't think we're in Alaska anymore." I heard Chase say aloud.