Terry opened her eyes and couldn't understand where she was. Again. This time, though, it wasn't a hotel room.
She was laying on the narrow bed in a tight room of wood, in the twilight, and in the round window she could see some sky colors of red, with lines of clouds on the horizon. At the first moment, she thought that she had vertigo again, but then she realized that she was on a ship, and the whole room was swaying with her inside.
Trying to sit up, she dropped the blanket on the floor with a quiet rustle and fell back down, with no energy whatsoever.
"You're finally awake."
Terry turned her head on a woman's voice, but couldn't find her with a gaze. "Who—"
"Gimme a minute."
And truly, in a minute a woman appeared out of the corner of the room. She was small, short-haired and desperately tanned, wearing just shorts and a thin shirt with rolled-up sleeves. Her smile was timid, as if she had slightly forgotten how to do that. "How are you feeling?"
"Decent, I guess," Terry tried to sit again and swayed visibly.
"Yeah, I see. 'Decent'." She said it with a brief sarcasm in her voice. "Poor girl. Do you need something? Water? Toilet?"
"Everything." Terry tried to smile.
"Poor girl," she repeated, supporting her as she stood up. "Come on. You're just in time, the dinner is almost ready."
"Dinner!" She suddenly realized that she was ravenously hungry. "I should thank you for—"
"You should shut up for a minute," the woman said with a subtle tender, while they were walking over the room — cabin, thought Terry, it's called a cabin, "don't spend energy on speaking. There will be time to chat."
They were eating in the silence. Terry tried to say something, but caught the woman's look — uncontented, almost angry — and stopped.
"Eat. Don't speak." She was, it seemed, a bit upset by something Terry was yet to understand. Finally, they sat back on the benches and stared at each other with a studying look.
"Alright. Now we can talk, but not for long — you need to sleep. So, bringing you up to speed, you're on my yacht. Name's Clara. Yacht name. My name is Eve. Don't mix." She laughed shortly, and Terry timidly smiled.
"I only remember that I was on the beach," slowly said Terry. "And oh! Where is my manners! My name is Terry."
Eve nodded. "You were on the beach, fainted. It was such a surprise — I haven't seen how you appeared. Just puff! And you're here. Mind explaining? No," she interrupted herself, "none of my business, my apologies. One can have own secrets."
"I... Much obliged."
Eve just waved it off. "Yeah, many thanks, yada yada...do you think I'm a kind of person who can just leave fainted girl laying on the beach? It's not even a big deal. Thank someone for a thing one done out of a normal."
Terry felt again how her other part popped up, and even her voice had slightly changed. "No, I think it's a big deal."
Eve froze, her eyes widened. She clearly heard the change of tone too.
"I didn't mean that you can leave someone in distress. I thank you not only because you've done that, but also as a reminder of what normal is, even if you don't need me to remind."
After a long minute of silence, Eve gave a voice. "You're too adult, aren't you?"
Terry laughed devilishly. "It's a freaking destiny or what? You're the second who told me that this week."
"More interesting and more interesting!" Eve said it with a curiosity, "but now you need to sleep."
...
Terry has awoken in the darkness. She was feeling much better, so she stood up and went upstairs, on the deck, where she found Eve sitting on the edge, looking away into the darkness. She didn't even turn to look at her.
"Restless." She said it with no emotion. "Why are you not sleeping? Sea sickness?"
"I'm fine, just an insomnia." Terry stood along. "And you?"
"Just an insomnia. I broke my sleep schedule a long ago." Eve glanced at her, then back into the night. "You're doing great for a landlubber."
"Uhh, thanks, I guess?" Terry chuckled. "I know that isn't my business, but what are you doing here?"
"I live on the yacht, but every so often I like to take a step or two on solid ground. So I should be on the beach for today's night. Counter-question. What are you doing here?"
"That's...complicated. I'm starting to hate this word, though, too many things are become complicated last days."
"We have all night."
"What a generous offer! Uhh. Where to start? Alright. A week ago, I had awoken in my house in Budapest..."
Eve was looking away throughout the story, but Terry felt that she was listening very mindfully. "That's..." she said it slowly, when the story ended, "in the other circumstances I should've said that it's just freaking unbelievable, but here is a plot twist. I believe in your story. Guess why?"
"No clue." Terry was surprised, but hid that.
"Do you know why I'm named my yacht 'Clara'?"
"How can I know?"
"True," Eve chuckled, "well, it's a complicated story." They laughed. "But short... I know someone named Clara. But we lost each other a long ago, I mean, literally lost, we got into the storm one day, and...yeah. I was yet to find her." She hesitated a little. "Do you believe in mermaids?"
No. It's impossible.
Terry forced her voice to not crack. "Clara the Mermaid. Green eyes, blue and green tail. Of course." Silence became absolute, and in this silence she heard Eve sobbed. Oh, poor girl. She hugged her from behind and felt how she flinched.
***
Later, they were sitting in the cabin again, with a single light barely dispersed the darkness, Eve's face was hidden in shadows.
"Are you okay?" Terry asked with an uncertainty in her voice.
"I don't know," she replied in a dead tone, "it was years. I almost gave up."
Years. Terry felt like a cold ran through her spine. Hell, years. It was just days for me and it was like an eternity. Can't even imagine how years would feel.
"Well, now you can find her for sure. She is in Esztergom. Or you can contact The Counterbalance, tell them I sent you. They will help you."
"How is she?"
Terry understood the question. "More than alive, thriving. I'm sure she will be happy to see you." She looked at her. "Hey, look at me."
Eve raised her head.
"You need to sleep. And I need to sleep too. Tomorrow I will move forward, but if you want to move as well, you need to rest. Do me a favor."
"Yeah?"
"Don't lose your head, okay? Clara doesn't forgive me if you crash somewhere."
Eve nodded slowly. "I assure you I will be careful. This yacht is all I have. And Clara, of course." She sighed. "Eh. It's such a nice story, shame you can't go with me, so I can tell you everything."
"If... No, when I'll return to Budapest, you'll have a chance. Clara knows where to find me."
***
This time it's easier, looks like I'm getting used to it, Terry noted, when she found herself standing on the narrow backstreet. Her head was a bit spinning, but all in all, she was feeling good; tired like she was usually feels herself after the step, but generally fine. She looked around.
Greece? Huh.
She thought that she once again stepped into space instead of time; it seemed to her that it was the same very day, but it was just a hypothesis. She still was unable to fully control her power, but she clearly felt that this time she was on point. Not completely on point, Edith still was somewhere ahead, but at least this time she became a bit closer.
Terry went down by street — no matter where, just to get moving. She got a strange feeling that she just needs to move wherever, every step will render her closer to Edith somehow.
She stepped out of the backstreet into the tiny park with an even tinier pond, all dirty and smelly; a couple of trees were giving some shadow, and three old, dark wooden benches were here in a triangle around the pond. Terry shrugged and sat down on one, stretched her legs.
Traveling alone is so exhausting, it seems. She thought over it for a bit more. Or I just tired, not physically, but mentally, I dunno.
She at all of a sudden saw a dark figure on the edge of the view, and quickly turned around, but it was just a shadow; she breathed out. Beautiful, now I'm having ravings. What's next? Then she heard steps behind, loud, clear, is it real or? But they were real.
Martha was 16 and she was traveling with her family in Europe, and yesterday they decided to stay for a couple of days more in Greece. She seemed to have a good sense of the map, but this day her sense failed. She went for a walk and walked in the part of the city she had never been to. And when she realized that she might be lost, she walked into this park and found Terry.
"Ehh. You are literally the first person I noticed when I thought that I lost. I mean, I usually have a sense of the map, but today is the day when everything is off." Martha shrugged with a disappointment.
"Yeah, I just arrived, so..." Terry said it with a light smile. "But if you need a company, I have time to kill."
"You are looking unlike a casual tourist," Martha said when they stood up and went out of the park.
"Because I am not. I already hate speaking this word, but...it's complicated. Let's say... I'm looking for a person."
Martha quickly glanced at her sideways. "A particular person? Like a detective? Wow!" Her eyes lit up, Terry laughed. "No, not like this! I mean, kinda? It's more like a princess in a castle, and I'm a knight, but I have no idea where the castle is."
"That's even cooler!"
Terry smiled widely. "Well, a life of a wandering knight is complicated, don't be too fascinated." She made her voice more deep. "It's a hard life, actually. The road is bumpy, sleep is luck, and every so often you just want to send everything into the hell and just return home. But it's a part of life, isn't it? Occasionally, you need to chase down what you love."
Did I say that?
"Yeah..." Martha voiced being deep in her thoughts. "I think I'm more of a knight type as well. I've never been able to sit still in an ivory tower." She smiled, detached, they silenced for a while.
Such a lovely girl. I hope she will be alright.
"Book store!" Martha suddenly exclaimed, waving her hands. "I adore book stores!" She glanced at Terry. "Can we take a look? Just for a minute?"
"I have all the time, but shouldn't we find your parents? They probably worried already."
Martha pouted.
"I mean, you're an adult, take your decision," Terry said with a seriousness.
"No, you're right. I will get back when — if — I will have time." She proudly raised her head, and in the next second perked up and ran forward. "I think I see them! Come on, I will introduce you!"
It's time to go.
And a moment before Martha looked back, Terry stepped.
Hit the road again.
***
Hell knows how many steps it was. Each one was casting her closer to Edith, but she still couldn't catch her.
Terry has convinced that true, it became easier with each try, but now, instead of tiredness and vertigo, she started to have a headache so bad her vision was blurry, she was feeling sick and all-storming. It was so bad after the last one, so she even passed out for a second. Clearly, it was time to rest, or she will not make it alive.
She was laying on the floor in the bathroom, having no force to lay herself into the bed, with the cold wet handkerchief on her head.
Oh, God. I think I'm dying.
The floor was cold and hard, and it was uncomfortable to lay down like that, so Terry promised to herself that if she will sit now without sickness, then maybe she will try to crouch to the bedroom at least. Easy does it...
Terry found herself on the floor again, but at least it was a bedroom. She couldn't remember if she felt asleep or just passed out for a couple of hours, but in any case she felt herself a bit better, enough to stand straight.
I can't stop. Just see her one last time, say what should be said, and then die in peace.
Terry leaned against the wall, looking out to the window to the patch of blue sky with some pieces of clouds. The bird fluttered obliquely and instantly lost out of sight.
She tried to recall how many steps it was, how much time she spent, but failed miserably. Weeks? Month? No, not a month, probably just a couple of weeks. She was spiraling around, closer and closer.
It was all the same again and again: step, realization that she was missed, resting, sometimes eating or sleeping, step and all over and over. The headache became constant, she was falling asleep and awakening with it until it became just an annoying buzzer somewhere back in her head.
Then she started to see ghosts. She started to see Edith in people's faces around, but each time she looked more thoroughly, the delusion was dissipating. Last time she thought she heard her voice, but it was a ghost again.
Concentrate. You can't fail, that's not an option.
This time it was particularly bad, and in a blurred field of view she habitually thought that it's just a ghost again. The ghost was looking very realistically, though, just like a real Edith. Do I still remember how she looked like after this?
The floor plank creaked, and the ghost turned around, with a fear on her face, and said, it's so real, just like her voice. "Oh my God. Wh—"
I think it was the last. I just can't—
Terry fell deep into the abyss, and the abyss has swallowed her.