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“Julie, don’t run..!”

A soft and gentle sigh falling out past her soft pink lips, Isaura smiled softly, her head shaking lightly from side to side as she watched after the young girl, making sure that she wasn’t going to hurt herself in any way as she hurried back to where they were sitting… to where her amazing and ever loving older brother was waiting for their return. This was it… it was finally happening; they were finally on their way..! London, England- the very first stop on their big trip. It was their first real trip together; their first real trip as a family… and truly, that meant everything to her.

Lifting her hand up, she gently brushed some stray strands of her long dark hair back and off her face, neatly tucking them back and behind her ear as she shot a glance around- it wasn’t her first time on a plane; and she was damn sure it wasn’t going to be her last either. She loved travelling… always had; and the fact that she had managed to find someone who shared that same love, that same passion was more than she could have ever asked for. Her arms coming up on either side of her body, she let her fingers brush lightly over the corners of the seats that she passed them by, her footsteps careful as she began to make her way back to her seat, her smile seeming to grow the very moment she caught sight of her boyfriend and his sister sitting and watching a movie together.

Gods he was perfect… they both were… and she was beyond lucky to have them both in her life.

“..Theo, mind getting up so I ca-...”

Stumbling slightly, she reached out, her hands gripping tightly to the back of his seat and the seat on the opposite side of the aisle as she did all she could to keep her balance through the small bout of turbulence. Once… twice… three times… As the fourth bout came around, both longer and stronger than the ones before it, Isaura frowned, her nails digging into the material covering the cushions and her feet fumbling about underneath her as she did what she could to keep her balance, waiting for the moment when it would be safe enough for her to let go, and to return to the safety of her seat by the window- and that was when she heard it…

The creaking… the groaning… A flitter of worry spreading through her being, she slowly began to lift her head, her soft pink lips parting ever so slightly from one another as her gaze was drawn up and to the overheads- the rattling… she could see it. The luggage that was held within pushing against them rather violently, the compartments threatening to burst open, and to shower them in the very things they had filled them with before the flight had even begun.

“..T-Theo…” Her voice was soft, though very quickly overshadowed by a loud explosion, the ear-shattering sound ripping through the plane causing her to fly backwards, her back arching and a pain shooting through it as she was smashed against the seats behind her, the sudden lurch causing her head to whip back with the motion. Her ears were ringing… the loud buzz clouding her mind as she slowly drew herself back to the present- her head… her neck… her back… they were all hurting worse than they ever had before, but she couldn’t let that stop her; she had to get back to them… she had to get back to Theodore…

Scrunching her face up as the pain shot through her person, Isaura pushed herself back up as best as she could, the flash of yellow swaying back and forth from above them letting her know that the oxygen masks had deployed; she had to reach them… Theodore… Juliette… she had to make sure that they were okay. Shooting her arm out in front of her, she reached towards him, the panic and fear behind her eyes clear as the shrill screech of metal filled the cabin, causing the plane to once more jolt, and the next thing she knew, she was on the ground, her body curling and her arms lifting up to cover her head as the overheads began to burst open, showering her with luggage.

Slowly lifting her head as she no longer felt heavy items colliding with her body, Isaura pushed herself up, her gaze flicking about wildly for a few moments before eventually, the familiar sight of her own bag caught her eye causing her to instinctively reach out and grab it up before she flung it over her neck, letting it rest on her back as she once more rose to her feet, struggling against the cluttered aisle on her way back to where Theodore and Juliette were still sitting safely within their seats. Things were bad… the worst possible scenario- the plane was going down, and them along with it, that much was more than clear, but as long as those two were alright-...

That was all that mattered to her…

“..Theodore..!?” Reaching her arm out in front of her, Isaura scrunched up her face, her body fighting against the angle the plane had leant at as she struggled to reach him, the very tips of her fingers brushing lightly against his before it was gone, her body once more thrown, however this time, she knew it was the end, the tears sparkling behind her eyes as she shot one last look at him as she was pulled back, ripped from the plane as it tore apart, causing her words to be lost within the noise and the rush of air as she fell towards the dark abyss of the ocean below.

“..I-I love you…”

Waiting for Isaura and Juliette to return, Theodore watched the clouds go by the window, a little deep in thought. This was the first trip he had taken, since his parents had died, and he wanted to try and make it as grand as he could for Juliette. He tried so hard to do right by her, and yet still sometimes he worried it wasn’t enough. At the sound of Isaura’s voice, Theodore looked over, smiling as Juliette came running towards him. He would have been utterly and completely lost without Isaura… she had been the rock that had kept him steady, and had helped out with Juliette every chance she could.

Theodore was lucky to have her in his life, and he couldn’t imagine it without her. Leaning over to help Juliette buckle herself in, he gave her back her headphones, settling back himself, waiting for Isaura to return as well. The last year had shown him just what it would be like, to truly be a family… they’d been together for what felt like forever, at least to Theodore, and he wanted it to last forever. He wanted Juliette to have a home again, instead of just a place to come back to. He tried to desperately to give her a home, but… he worried it wasn’t enough.

He could never give her what their parent’s would have… but he’d damn well try, and he knew that Isaura would to. Looking up, meeting her gaze, returning her smile, Theodore knew that everything he wanted in the world was right there with him. Isaura… even the thought of her filled him with warmth. And her smile sent him over the moon… There really was nothing he wouldn’t do, for her, for Juliette. And there was no one he’d rather have by his side to help raise his little sister. It had been hard so far, but he knew it would have been a million times harder without Isaura.

He was already reaching to unbuckle himself, to then rise and sweep her into his arms, when the turbulence happened, the bumping in the air-the change from the smooth flight-forcing him back into his seat from where he’d been, poised to undo his seatbelt. Not terribly concerned-turbulence occurred on just about every flight, so he didn’t think it was anything to worry about-And then it became worse, stronger, longer and he reached out, flinging his arm across Juliette, as if that could stop her from flying out her seat any better than her seatbelt, the motion was instinct, not something he stopped to consider as foolish, and when making sure that she was okay, his gaze searched for Isaura, reaching out to her despite the distance.

As the creaking and groaning began, he reached for Juliette’s hand, gripping it with his right, even as he reached across, twisting to try and reach Isaura, forgetting about his seatbelt, that he hadn't yet unbuckled it, not sure what he was even trying to do. Save her from falling luggage? Or pull her back, towards him, to protect her and Juliette? It didn't seem to matter... either way, he just wanted to have her hand in his.

"Isaura!" he cried, just wanting her safe beside him, even as his mind sped up, trying to make sense of the situation and telling him that maybe there was no safety anymore. Maybe they were going to go down... maybe this was it... he gripped Juliette's hand tighter, keeping his gaze on Isaura, "I love you, I love you both... Isaura!" His words were drowned by the explosion, and he screamed, frustrated that he couldn’t do anything for one of the few people he loved, stretching his fingers out further as if he could do something about it, pull her back to him with sheer force of will, keeping the tight grip on Juliette, as if he could stop her from disappearing from his side.

”ISAURA”

As the mask’s came down, Theodore rather furiously pulled one down, but his touch was gentle as he put it on Juliette, forgetting everything he’d been taught about plane safety, and just wanting to make sure that she was okay. Forgetting a mask for himself, he reached to undo his seatbelt, his mind finally recalling that that was why he couldn’t get up. His fingers, shaking with adrenaline, thumbled for the release, all the while, he kept his eyes on Isaura, as if afraid taking his eyes off her would mean she was gone from him forever. He couldn’t bare to see the pain and fear in her gaze, in her beautiful eyes, and his heart almost broke when she reached towards him. He hated seeing the look, hated being too far away. He’d do anything to take her in his arms, and shelter her, protect her… and Juliette.

He couldn’t lose either of them. ”Isaura” He whispered, trembling fingers grasping the clasp, to unbuckle himself, to go to her, when the sound of metal breaking, screeching apart was added to the sounds the plane already had-screaming, crying, fearful sounds piercing through through everything, and he screamed Isaura’s name again, twisting to protect Juliette as much as he could, seatbelt forgotten as he held his sister, tears pricking his eyes, but he refused to let them fall. He couldn’t let Juliette see his tears, couldn’t let her know he was afraid.

”it’s going to be okay… It’s always going to be okay, I’ll always be there, I’ll always save you” He said into his sister’s ear, wanting to reassure her, wanting to let her know that no matter what, he’d always be there to pick her up, and make things right. Even if they only had a few moments left, he wanted her to know that her big brother would go to the ends of the earth for her. He wanted to say the words to Isaura, wanted to le her know how much he loved her, that he would be nothing without her, but he couldn’t, and now he choked back a sob, painfully swallowing around a lump in his throat, closing his eyes tight, still refusing to let the tears fall.

He couldn’t do anything for Isaura and it was killing him, tearing his heart out.

At her voice, Theodore looked up, turning to look to her. reaching for him, he reached for her, his grasping fingers suddenly brushing through air, and then she was gone from him, "ISAURA" He bellowed, the word tearing through his throat painfully, ”Isaura!” He rasped, once more having a near death grip on Juliette, as if he could defy gravity, as he watched as half of his existence was torn away from him, tears fallen unbidden down his cheeks.

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Dorian was a heavy sleeper. The deepest sleeper he knew. But, even this level of turbulence caused him to stir in the sleep state he was in. Lifting his sleep mask he found himself looking irritated until there was a pause in the plane's temper tantrum. He deserved this sleep and damn it he was going to enjoy it. He had after all, just sold one of his malamutes. A deep red colored female named daisy he had been especially proud of and now he was sleeping off the odd guilt he always had after handing over one of the canines. Resulting in a lot of praise and the continued support for the dogs.

Before he could put the sleep mask back on he heard the creaking...the groaning. Not good sounds to hear coming from a plane. Probably not good sounds for any flying instrument, but thats beside the point. He watched as the luggage banged against their captors and eventually broke free. Instinctively he grabbed his very steampunk styled yet sturdy water proof back pack and put it on. Seat belt still on this proved very uncomfortable, but with the idea of the plane going down....he very much wanted to keep some supplies on hand. Especially the gas mask held within given that he had no idea if when he possibly found land that it would be entirely safe to be on.

Then, it happened. That sucking sound of something torn in two and one half diving toward what Dorian suspected was the ocean due to the heavy tug of gravity. Dorian had luckily put on the oxygen mask that had popped in front of him and kept his hands on the seat belt. He would not drown in a plane in the middle of the ocean dammit. Next time I'm offered a private plane...im taking it No thoughts of death simply a sarcastic thought as the plane plummeted closer. What did that say about him he wondered briefly.

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The call from his Father had brought him shock, more so than the call he had actually been expecting less than a night ago. How had his Father’s health had taken a turn for the worst so quickly? How had he degraded in health within a few years since his son’s departure for the US? William was woe to have to return to the UK, dropping a story of a murder out in LA in order to take the earliest flight back possible.
Why did he feel like this was his fault though? Why did he feel like his Father would’ve been perfectly fine had his son not gone off to become a reporter? Had he stayed in the UK and ran their business together, a surely safer job than being a reporter, would his Father not have had a heart attack? William knew it wasn’t his fault that his Father had a heart attack while driving, he had always lived a high cholesterol and high stress life. But now that his Father was in a coma with a brain injury from the crash he caused, perhaps he could’ve avoided the dangers with no stress from worrying about Will.

He pushed the thoughts out of mind and focused on his work at hand, typing up a report and letter to his boss on his current situation from his laptop. He was happy to have gotten the thing from his Father on Christmas, even more happy that it had come with all the features he needed to do his work without having to spend extra time searching for it .Everything about it screamed being streamlined for journalism. ”Thank god my old man at least has the sense to support me in doing what I want to do,” He said as he hit the enter button, sending the mail and closing his laptop with a sigh.

Will stood and advanced towards the rear of the plane, heading for a bathroom, when the turbulence hit and he was forced to brace himself against the seats as the plane shook. It was nothing new to him but he knew better than to test his stomach and try to move against the turbulence. He also wasn’t too keen on falling over from a sudden bump and onto another person. The last time that happened, he ended up getting a black eye.

When the creaking and groaning started, it didn’t worry him all that much. Planes did it all the time after turbulence, just the metal shifting a bit after being knocked around for several minutes.Yet, this went on for too long and the sudden cracking sound that filled his ears, similar to the explosion of a car which he had heard a while back. His body was launched back and into a seat, causing a sharp explosion of pain through his body.

William tried to push himself up, to gain some sort of leverage against the angle the plane had taken as it was going down yet found that the pain in his arms was far too great. He knew he would definitely have terrible bruises from this if not a hairline fracture in his forearm. As he rolled over to look down, he saw his case clatter against the seats, almost falling past him had it not gotten hit by another one. There wasn’t much inside, just a pencil and some clothes, but if the plane was going down then he would certainly need it.

He could hear the plane groan ever more until it tore itself apart, forcing the two halves to fall apart and baggage to scatter to the wind, he curled up his body as tight as he could against the seats his body was forced against and covered his head. William knew that this may be the end of his life if he gets unlucky or leave him with many broken bones if he was lucky. But he wasn’t about to give up quite yet.

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Valen grasped his head firmly with both hands, pushing in positive directions until his neck made a series of four cracks. Exhaling through his nose, the man repeated the motion in the opssite direction, forcing his neck to pop multiple times before released a heavy sigh and leaning back into his seat, popping his fingers one by one.

His beck was tense, but there was nothing he could do about it now. Valen disliked being in such cramped spaces for prolonged periods of time; he was unable to move, stretch, or do anything to change his situation until the plane landed. While he wasn't claustrophobic, tight spaces had always worn on his nerves, leaving his muscles tense and his temper short.

Valen unbuckled his seat belt and stood, grabbing on to the back of his seat to steady himself as he removed his bag from the overhead compartment. The girl in the row behind Valen's chair stared blatantly at him, her unblinking eyes watching him with the utmost curiosity. Valen offered a small smile to her and wiggled his eyebrows, sitting back down to escape her prying gaze.

Valen placed his laptop in the bag he had pulled from the compartment overhead before sneaking a look between the seats behind him, confirming that the small girl was still observing him. The older boy next to her, most likely her brother, didn't seem to notice the quiet staredown. Valen sighed and turned back around, ignoring her prying eyes as he pulled out his phone and tuned out he rest of the world.

The first wave of turbulence surprised Valen, however he pushed it aside, unconcerned with a small amount of rough air. As the disruptions began increasing in intensity and frequency, he loooked around, alarm displaying on his features. A few started exclaimations came from the back of the plan, reflecting the concern the entire cabin felt.

The shrieking howls of wind outside began to batter the plan, drowning out the crackling voice of the flight attendant over the speaker as gravity suddenly shifted, pulling Valen towards the back of the plan.

The boy behind him began screaming a word, possibly a name, frantically, however the groaning of the hull overpowered his voice. Valen's heart rate quickened as he fumbled with his seatbelt, strapping himself in as masks dropped from the ceiling.

Screams filled the air and the cabin pressure dropped suddenly, pulling away bags and people as the plan began to rip in two, swirling downwards towards the cold, unforgiving darkness of the waters below. Valen's scream was ripped out of his mouth before it passed his lips, leaving him behind as he plummeted downward with the plane.

Martin Lowry

The air contains water, though in small fractions, it is water nonetheless. Thusly one can consider the sky an extension of the ocean, if that brings them a certain comfort as they would have if they were on a boat for example. It certainly did for Martin. His pen danced over slightly yellow paper, leaving scrawls unreadable except by his own eyes, like those old dusty diaries used as primary sources when referencing a particular piece of writing. And just as each depth of the ocean has a name, each height of the sky too has a label attached to it, Troposphere, Mesosphere, Exosphere, etc. So I can say with great certainty, and much to my own comfort, that the sky is the ocean and I am safe to enjoy this flight. Closing the book with the pen stuck between the pages and dropping it into his lap, Martin looked out of the plane and felt the knot in his stomach loosen a little. But not disappear. Some things do not change so easily I suppose.

The spritzer tinkled on one hand and the tip of his cigarette glowed in the other hand, in recent years airlines had been curbing the amount of planes they allowed smoking on, a practice that Martin considered bothersome and thusly he was doubtful of its longevity. Still however he found his transatlantic options dwindling with every cigarette. He crushed the glowing head of the burned away stick into the metal ashtray in his arm rest, twisting it one way and then the other, like turning a knife in his heart as he grieved for the negligible amount of tobacco yet unburnt at the end of the smoke. As he tipped the glass towards his mouth to take a sip a shiver ran through the spine of the plane, making his drink jump and slosh in its glass vessel. For a few moments Martin observed it, and once the plane stilled brought the glass yet even closer to his mouth, cautiously eyeing it and feeling the motion of the plane around him.

Sailing a ship had taught him that the vessel itself spoke more than the sky and even the sea. The waves and the wind could only speak the blatantly obvious, but the labored groans of a mast and the invisible tensions in ropes and boards spoke more deeply of what was to come. The plane spoke in foreshadowing tones of things to come, every thread of its being was being pulled tight in all directions outwards, Martin felt it in chilling clarity before every sudden jerk. Like watching a crack wind it's way randomly through a plane of glass. The fuselage of the plane shrieked as a sudden amber flash consumed the evening outside the window, and the plane lurched to the right as a shred rippled through the plane. A wing torn off. The plane began to nose down and lose altitude quickly. The Sky is not like The Ocean. The Sky is not like The Ocean Martin shrieked in his head as he gripped his hand rests, fighting the weightlessness as the clouds zoomed past in a brief instant.

As the ocean drew near the front of the fuselage tore open, the smell of sea water and smoke flooding the cabin. Martin propped his legs up on the seat in front of him and leaned his head forwards, adopting a bizarre version of the brace position. Before the airplane struck water Martin muttered to himself, "Well isn't this pleasant."

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He wasn’t sure why he was looking out the window - the night sky was just as black as the way he liked his coffee. He had made this trip dozens of times and yet, he never seemed to get used to the time zone jumps that made the days much shorter and the nights much longer. Sighing, Rhett decided that his distractions from confronting the obvious had been well used up. He drew down the window covering and shifted in his seat, his dark eyes looking over the most beautiful creature he had ever set eyes on. And she just happened to be very upset with him.

”Would you like a drink, or something?”

“..something…” Her attention anywhere but on her fiance, Nadia crossed her arms tighter over the front of her chest, the anger still clear over her features as she shifted in her seat, making it more than obvious that she hadn’t gotten over what had happened. Sure he had apologized to her… multiple times at that; but it didn’t matter. Two hours… and not so much as a call- not even a text.

That was just inexcusable; especially after how many years..?

Narrowing her eyes, she crossed her leg over the other, her body slumped slightly in the seat as she looked out towards the isle, watching on with her eyes narrowed in annoyance towards him as the air hostesses moved about the cabin offering drinks and snacks to the passengers.

Rhett inwardly winced. Her bite was much worse than her bark. Much, much worse. And it was his fault. He was supposed to pick her up from the parlor after his shift at the hospital with a promise to take her out to dinner before having to make their flight to Los Angeles to connect them to the flight they were on currently. How was he supposed to know that a twelve-year old kid would be sledding down a hill straight onto the highway? The truck never saw the kid coming, and it took Rhett hours to put him back together.

He lost track of time by saving a life. He could admit that. He could apologize for that. But really now, it had nearly been a full day. She couldn’t be angry with him forever.

Sighing softly (more to himself), Rhett twisted in his seat, motioning towards the stewardess to grab her attention - ordering them a couple of beers. Gods knew he would need it to survive the rest of the flight.

”I promised I’d make it up to you. We’ll land in London, connect to our next flight to Greece, and first thing I’m going to do is take you to that restaurant we love so much. Capiche. You loved it there, remember?” Rhett paused, wondering for half a moment if his compromise was falling on deaf ears. ”And. And I’ll leave mamá at home this time. Just the two of us.”

Snapping her head around, she shot him a glare worthy of death himself as she listened to what he was saying, his later words seeming to not help his case any as she practically spat her response back at him, “..I can’t believe you brought her last time anyway; it was a celebration… for just us.”

”Nadi… you know how mamá is… After patéras died, she’s… well she hasn’t been the same. I couldn’t just leave her at home alone. She does that enough when I’m not there…”

“..we were there for just over a month; one night spent just to ourselves was not going to kill her.” Her jaw clenching for a moment, she forced it to relax, her beautiful dark orbs closing as she took in a breath, doing what she could to calm herself before she got to the point where her emotions would get the better of her like they always seemed to do when things grew heated, “..it was only my third time visiting Greece… and the longest we ever stayed… I love madre, as I do my own, but did you honestly think that I just wanted to sit by her side every moment of our trip..?”

Rhett remained silent. They had this argument once or twice or five times before. It wasn’t what she was angry at right now anyway, not really.

Her attention drawn to the stewardess as she brought the both of them their beer, she gave her a weary smile before taking the glass, lifting it straight to her lips so that she could take a swig of the liquid, letting it settle for a moment in her stomach before her mind was brought back to the conversation once more, her head shaking lightly from side to side, causing her long dark locks to brush back and forth over her shoulders as she continued to watch what was going on around them, “..two hours, Rhett… you left me alone, in the cold, for two hours… you didn’t even call…”

”I know. I know, but baby… I saved that kid’s life…”

“I know you did; and for that I will always be grateful… truly… I am so proud of the things you do- the lives that you sa-...”

There was a slight shift in the aircraft, making both Rhett and Nadia turn their gaze away from one another for a moment to look forward. Though the first class cabin wasn’t small by any means, they could see that the other patrons sitting within their seats seemed to be just as alarmed and alert as they was.

”This time it will be different, alright? This time-”

The plane seemed to level out for a moment, but just as soon as Rhett began to speak, it began to creak and groan, the turbulence starting up again, seemingly getting worse.

Her arms breaking away from her chest at the worrying sounds, Nadia reached out, her hand seeking his own before she took a hold of it, all anger she had towards their argument disappearing for the moment in light of their present situation, “..wha-... Rhett, what's happening..?”

”I… I’m not sure. I’ll… I’ll go find out.”

If there was anything more terrifying than a woman's (who was incredibly mad) desperate touch for comfort, Rhett never wanted to experience it. He could simply tell from her voice just how concerned she was, which wasn’t exactly helping his already hammering heart. He had made this flight loads of times… but this was the first time the turbulence had been this bad.

Standing up from his chair, Rhett began stepping across Nadia before the plane shifted again, seeming to drop a few feet before leveling out again. Rhett pressed himself as close to Nadia’s chair as he could, his body forced to squat down and hold onto the armrest for dear life. The lights flickered, and the oxygen masks came falling down. His gaze spotted them, and he felt his entire body freeze. The only thing capable of moving within that very moment were his dark eyes, looking up at his fiance as the color visibly drained from his face.

“..R-Rhett… please…”

Her voice soft… pleading as she met with his dark gaze with her own terrified eyes, Nadia once more took a tight hold of his hand, her heart pounding with pure fear, and her chest heaving with each breath as the realization of what was happening dawned on her. He knew what she was asking of him- no, what she was begging for him to do…

If this was to be the end; then she wanted him right there, by her side… perhaps then the restraints if their belts would give them a chance…

Her body twisting so that she was able to face him better than she already was, she reached her free hand out to him, her arm shaking visibly as she gently stroked his cheek, tears she hadn't even realized were forming now streaming down her face- all the fights… all the arguments… they meant nothing. They never did.

“..I love you…”

Sweat began to accumulate at his brow. She was terrified just as much as he was, but he couldn’t show her that. He had to be strong, for both of them.

Forcing his hands to let go of the armrest, Rhett raised them up to hold each side of her face, forcing her to look down into his eyes. He could see the tears spilling from hers, and his entire soul began to ache. It took everything within him to not just stand up and pull her into his arms, simply holding her for their last moments like she wanted. No, he had to give her hope. He had to give himself hope.

”It’s going to be okay, Nadia. Everything is going to be fine, okay?” he told her with much more confidence than he even knew he had in that moment. He used his thumbs to brush away her tears. ”Everything is going to be just-”

The compartments overhead began to rattle and in some cases, bang. Rhett stared them down, as if daring them to burst open. They did.

Standing from his position quickly, Rhett held himself over Nadia, putting his hands on either armrest with his back hunched and head bowed, just over the top of hers, keeping her shielded. The plane was tilting making his position more and more difficult, but Rhett remained strong. He saw nothing but the back of her seat, though the sound of people’s luggage being thrown this way and that - crashing into miscellaneous things and assaulting his back let him know that he had made the right decision. Though not being hit by anything lethal, he was sure that there would be a half-dozen bruises when this was all said and done. The plane was going down for sure, but they could make it. They always made it through the tough times… together.

”See?” Rhett said to her through grit teeth, feeling his footing starting to slip. ”Nothing to i-”

That was when it happened.

The sheer force of the deafening blast coming from somewhere behind them forcing her further into his body, Nadia shut her eyes tightly, her arms both shooting up to take a hold of the front of his top as she was shoved as far forward as her buckle would allow. He had said that everything was going to be okay… that they were going to be fine…

..she knew he was just being brave for her…

The ringing in her ears almost unbearable, she slowly opened her eyes, her head turning to the side so that she could shoot a glance around where they were positioned on the plane, watching as those around her opened and closed their mouths, the panic and fear written clearly across their faces, though if they were screaming… yelling for help… she couldn’t hear- why couldn’t she hear..?

Shutting her eyes tightly, she shook her head back and forth, her usually gentle features scrunching up as she strained her ears; trying her best to hear something… anything that was going on around her.

Rhett was looking down at her, trying to get her to meet his eyes once again - trying to keep her focus on anything but the chaos of what was going on around them. Shrapnel, amongst everything else, was flying, but Rhett refused to leave his protective stance over her. He tried speaking to her again, but his words were lost to the dull ringing in her ears.

He froze. Blood suddenly splattered over her entire front - the majority being directly over her heart. Rhett sucked in a soft, gurgling breath, any color left in his face completely drained as realization dawned upon him. His dark eyes looked down to his abdomen where his shirt was stained with blood far worse than Nadia’s. A sharp, flat piece of the plane could be seen sticking out from within his breast, having entered his body from his back, skewering him all the way through. Shakily, he lifted his head back up to look at his fiance, eyes wide and fearful before his body slumped down into the isle of the plane soaking the cream-colored carpet with his blood.

The sound of her shrill scream slowly but surely began to fill her ears as the ringing dulled down, once more giving her the ability to hear. This couldn’t be happening… this just couldn’t be happening…

Her hands shooting down to the belt that kept her strapped into her seat, Nadia began to fumble with it, the tears blurring her vision slightly but eventually, she managed to get free of her bonds, her body lifting from the seat only long enough for her to drop down into the aisle, her hands hovering over the injury for a moment before she forced them down over what little of the wound she could get to without touching the shrapnel. pressure..! He had always said something about applying pressure..! At least… that’s what she thought it was…

Gods, she hoped she was right about this…

“..no… no, no- don’t you dare leave me here..!” Turning her head slightly, she looked down at him through fearful eyes- she couldn’t lose him… not now; not like this, “..w-what do I do..? Tell me what you want me to do. Rhett..!”

”...l-live...”

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The wind whipping past her as she fell, Isaura shut her eyes, letting go of her body as she allowed the thought of death to consume her. This was it… this was the end. The roaring silence of the raging waters was almost as deafening as the explosion that she had heard hitting the plane as she came into contact with the ocean, the freezing cold temperatures of the waves only helping to cement her thoughts as they pulled her under, dragging her down into the abyss that was waiting below.

Her body was aching… worse than ever before. The sharp pain from the sudden impact with the water starting in her back, before slowly, it began to spread outwards through her limbs only helping to make her feel worse. This wasn’t the way she wanted to go- not the way she had imagined it. She hadn’t gotten married… she hadn’t had kids of her own-...

She hadn’t lived.

Opening her eyes as the burning in her throat became more noticeable due to the lack of oxygen, she lifted her hand, her face scrunching up in a panicked fear as she pressed her palm against the front of her neck, frantically looking around in the darkness for any sign of which way was up.

That’s when she saw it… a gentle orange glow pulsing from somewhere just above her. It had to be the right way; there was no way it couldn’t be. Forcing herself to push past the pain and fatigue that began to consume her body, she began to kick her legs, her arms both scooping madly through the water as she headed towards the light; her lungs working overtime to suck in a deep breath the very moment that she managed to breach the surface. Taking a moment to rest, and to gather even the smallest shred of energy that she was going to need in order to find a way out of the water, Isaura turned, her head moving on a swivel as she searched the surrounding ocean, her legs kicking back and forth as she continued to wade, doing what she could to keep her head above the waves.

“..T-Theo…”

Her voice hoarse as she spoke, she widened her eyes, watching on in horror as the plane, or what was left of it, plunged down into the icy depths, taking with it the only two people in the world that she cared about at that moment, “..n-no… Theo..!”

Fighting against the constant back and forth of the ocean currents trying to carry her further out, she began to swim, her legs kicking hard behind her as she began to close the large gap that was between her and the wreck, her eyes darting about frantically as she searched for survivors of any kind- anyone besides her, though her mind was set strong on finding Theodore and Juliette…

She wasn’t going to lose them… s-she couldn’t…

---

---

As the explosion continued to rocket the plane, Theodore kept his grip on Juliette, unwilling to let her be ripped away from him as well, his gaze on the spot where Isaura had been, only to be torn away. He could hear his heart beating in his ears, and he tore his eyes away, looking to Juliette, knowing she was terrified, and unable to do anything about it. Wrapping his arms around her, he held her tightly, looking to give her any comfort he could, as they plummeted towards the ocean.

Some part of Theodore that wasn’t filled with fear, with heartbreak, remained calm. He had heard stories of people surviving plane crashes by staying in their seats, but the looming ocean rising up to greet them told him there would be no surviving if they were buckled in. They’d drown, and the last thing he’d see was Juliette gasping for air. He twisted, releasing his death grip on Juliette, to reach down, and pull at her seat belt, gripping the clasp tightly, he watched the water continue to grow, the length of the ocean widening, becoming more vast, and closer as they drew nearer and nearer.

”Make your way to the top, Julie” He said in her ear, his voice rough, ”And I’ll come find you” As they met the water, Theodore pressed on Juliette’s clasp, releasing her, and shoving her out the seat, towards the ocean, ”Get clear, Julie! Get clear!” He cried, fumbling with his own seatbelt, he didn’t see where she went under, and he closed his eyes, hoping he hadn’t just killed his sister. The tears he hadn’t let fall in front of his sister unable to be denied any longer, and when he opened his eyes again, it made it nearly impossible to see.

As the plane hit the water, the cabin- or what was left of it- began to fill with the biting cold, his fingers, sore from his earlier attempts to try and tear his own seatbelt off, fumbled with the buckle once more. He tried not to panic, tried to keep his breathing even, so as not to make his situation worse, but he couldn’t hold it at bay. What if… What if Isaura was dead? Who would look after Juliette? How was she going to survive in this terrifyingly cold ocean? Once, twice, he gripped the clasp weakly, trying to free himself as the water continued to rise. He tried not to focus on other passengers as they struggled to free themselves as well, tried not to focus on how cold, how rapidly numb he was becoming as the water rose, seeking to cover him completely. His fingers struggled even more with the clasp as the water made everything harder.

His last breath was more a gasp, as the water rose above his head. As the cold sapped his energy, the last dregs of warmth leaving his body, Theodore knew that he would die in that seat. He just… He had to believe that both Juliette and Isaura were alive… He had to die thinking that. His fingers grasped the clasp once more, his body striving to expel the air in his lungs, and bring in a fresh replacement, he finally freed himself. His body rose out his seat, and he had to turn away from others, still trapped, knowing that he was leaving them to doom, to death by drowning.

His lungs burning, growing ever painful with each passing second, Theodore kicked, trying to go for a powerful push that would take him out the plane. The cold sunk into his bones, to the point where he thought he might never get warm again. Was that how death felt like, the sapping of every last ounce of warmth, the furious need to breath, but being unable to? The pain of being torn apart from the only people you loved in this world? His eyes stung, but he refused to close them.

He kicked again, clearing the wreckage. His lungs were furiously demanding oxygen, and he knew that if he opened his mouth, that would be the end. He couldn’t afford to make a mistake, he needed to reach the surface, before his body overruled him, and sought the much needed air it was telling him he needed. He couldn’t swim down…

But he couldn’t tell which way was up.

Panic filling his brain even more- if that was even possible- Theodore kicked again, before he stopped moving. Some instinctual part of him told him, reminded him, that humans floated. For one horrible moment, he thought he had got that wrong, remembered wrong, or maybe his instincts were just rebelling as his body grew more and more angry at him. And then he slowly rose, and he kicked upwards. The last little bit of air he had in his lungs expelling, to blow a small trail of bubbles into the water, swallowed up by the bubbles his movements created. His lungs furiously demanded that he breath, and he fought that instinct, that natural mechanism.

Just a little bit longer, he told himself, a little bit longer, and then he could breath all he liked. A little bit longer, and he could find Isaura and Juliette. Please… don’t let him have killed his little sister…

When his head broke the surface, he almost didn’t believe it, his lung sucking in the blessed, sweet air in several gasping gulps, before he expelled it in one long shout, ”ISAURA, JULIETTE!” It wasn’t as strong as he would have liked, his abused throat, the shout drawing out into a near whisper, his tears stinging, and he furiously reached up to wipe his eyes, as he desperately looked about, for any sort of familiar silhouette.

”Please… be okay… “

---

The wind's screams tore through Valen's mind like a telepathic force, pushing aside all conscious thought. Try as he might, Valen simply couldn't concentrate. Every time danger came Valen's way, it was something he could either outpunch or outrun. But falling from the sky strapped to a metal shell with complete strangers? This was something very, very new to him.

The man's fingers found the clasp to the seat belt and readied to unclip the restraints. Assuming he didn't die on impact, he had to make sure the plane didn't drag him into the watery abyss beneath him.

A woman flew by him, screaming in agony as her body was brutally battered against the rows of seats before she was sucked out into the sky beside them through the back opening of the plane. An involuntary scream of horror escaped his lips as he saw another form dart past him, quickly meeting the same fate.

Valen shut his eyes and forced himself to begin counting, attempting to shut all outside sensory inputs out. His ragged breathing began to stabilize as he mentally counted up to ten.

One.

The wind's howl tore through his ears, almost pushing all conscious thought from his mind like a telepathic wave.

Two.

Valen fought back, fighting to retain consciousness and not give into the panic.

Three.

The screams began to fade away as people began to realize their impending fate.

Four.

The sounds of the siblings seated behind Valen shouting to each other reached his ears, providing a minuscule amount of comfort.

Five.

Prayers and desperate pleas to the void began being issued by almost every passenger on the plane.

Six.

The temperature began warming slightly as they fell from the upper atmosphere towards more amiable temperatures.

Seven.

The smell of salt stung Valen's nostrils, informing him that the ocean was quickly approaching.

Eight.

He would live. Come hell and high water, Valen would live.

Nine.

It was almost time.

Ten.

The freezing water knocked all breath from Valen's lungs as it washed over him, jostling his entire body. His fingers barely managed to unclasp his seat belt, releasing him from the firm grasp of his restraints. The ocean pushed him into a swirling vortex of metal, bodies, and icy water, throwing his helpless form into the current that dragged him away from the plane. Valen attempted to protect his head by curling into a ball, but the strength of the waves was far too violent, rocking his entire body into a frenzied series of thrashes and contractions.

Valen's screams were immediately caught by the water and captured into bubbles, floating up towards the surface of the water. Valen's eyes burned in the extreme salinity of the ocean, but he forced them to remain open to follow the bubbles' path.

Once he was certain of the direction, he desperately kicked his legs, pursuing after them despite his entire body screaming for him to thrash and panic. The burning in his lungs was immediate and crippling, but he pushed past it, quickly ascending through the water towards freedom.

A small object came across his path, obstructing his view of the bubbles and causing a wave of panic to surge through his chest. Valen shoved the object as hard as he could, however the water diluted his attempt, resulting in the mystery form to be pushed only a few inches. The ethereal floated of fabric around the form caused a wave of recognition to surge through him as he realized it was a small child, unconsciously drifting through the ocean. Despite his condition, Valen wrapped his left arm around the kid's waist and pulled them along with him towards the surface.

As soon as his head broke the water, he sucked in as much air as he could, gasping violently as he struggled to pull what he now recognized as a girl above water with him. Her small, hacking coughs brought an immediate sense of relief to Valen as he realized she was still alive; any form of attempting CPR while floating in the water would've failed without a doubt.

Valen gently laid her head on his shoulder and began treading water, leaning back into the water to further stabilize the pair. Once he had recovered his breath, Valen gently pulled the girl's form further onto his shoulder, patting her chest gently. He wasn't sure if it would do anything, but he figured it was worth a shot to help her breathe.

With a newly cleared mind, Valen looked around, hoping to spot any other survivors. "Hello! Anyone? Did anyone survive?!"

The cold water began tightening his chest as the terrible truth dawned on him. Up until that point, he had been so focused on surviving, he hadn't come to terms with the truth that he, and any other survivors, were stranded in the ocean. Alone, lost, and completely screwed.

---

As the plane plummeted further Dorian found himself thinking on survival. He shut his eyes and took longer deeper breaths. He shut out the noises around him. They were not of import. The plane got closer to the water and he inhaled longer.

Dorian calmly moved his hands to the buckle of his seatbelt. Another breath and the sound of the plane hitting the molecules of water reached him. Water would be following. In a swift movement he unbuckled and took off his oxygen mask. He remembered the seats of the plane float. He moved quickly remembering the instructions to removed the seat portion.

Dorian's luck was with him as the seat did its purpose. He soon found himself floating and cautiously opened his eyes. The darkness of the ocean along with various floating luggage met his eyes. Then a sound reached his ears. And then more, but his hearing corrected itself in time to hear one voice calling.

Dorian inhale and found himself responding. "Yes over here" The water luckily could carry sound. Seems his good fourtune was determined to keep him alive today. Relieved he kept his grip on the seat finding that he was using it more like an abandoned piece of wood...with his upper body holding it and the rest dangling in the water.

@December

It was in the horrible pit of his stomach did Martin realize he could die. The second wing had become detached and the body of the plane nosed forwards towards the bottom of the dark ocean. Martin assessed the situation, alert eyes darting about. He was still buckled in, That will not do., the emergency oxygen mask floated in front of him, bubbles occasionally burping out if he yellow cup. Bubbles.. To Martin's knowledge the plane was now completely submerged. Hands like spiders felt for the belt around his waist, the slowly growing heat in his chest a reminder that the air in his lungs was only good for so long. The belt fell apart with little effort and Martin pushed himself forwards towards the bobbing yellow mask, drifting towards it. The odd sensation of weightlessness reminded him of the astronauts he saw on the television. Taking the mask in his many fingered hand, Martin tugged it firmly towards himself and brought it around his mouth and nose, tightening it on either end. For the first few moments of air he struggled with water, but once cleared he looked about himself and breathed normally.

There were several blown out escape doors, however the closest exit was a few seats ahead of him, a large gash in the airplane fuselage that let in a guttering amber glow. In the overhead compartment Martin's bag bobbed about, no doubt every bit as soaked as the rest of the plane. But wet things dried. Martin moved out of his seat, climbing over the unfortunate passenger that sat beside him before being able to reach his bag. As he did the plane let loose another pained groan and the gnarly gash in the ceiling of the cabin began to claw its way around the plane. Like a bottle shattering around its circumstance the rend in the aluminium body moved around the plane and joined up with itself as it wrapped around. With a low grown the front of the plane began to lurch downwards, pulling the rest of the body with it before the nose and cockpit tore off and fell away, exposing the dark ocean below. The rest of the plane, or at least the rest of the plane that he could see, nodded forwards and began to follow the cockpit in a steepening downward dive.

Martin moved swiftly, getting to the surface as fast as possible was part of his naval training, incase he had ever been posted to a submarine. Martin slipped out of the plane silently, and went straight up, kicking behind him and blowing a steady stream of bubbles as he moved. In front of him, or above him, an orange light flickered and danced. At first Martin thought it was sunlight playing through particularly patchy clouds, but the closer he got he realized that it was burning aviation fuel. Martin paused and looked about, a tightness growing in his chest as he felt himself becoming breathless. Looking around him he was dismayed to find that that the surface above him was ablaze, if he surfaced he would probably be burned badly; if he didn't he would drown. His calm demeanor quickly melted away as his looking around became frantic. But as if by providence there was a dark patch in the field of amber glow, and he swam to it as quick as he dared. A few meters from the surface his body took over and allowed in a deep breath of briny water. The last few paddles Martin coughed and spluttered and choked, and as he surfaced and found floating debris to cling on to, began retching sea water and whatever had filled his stomach before the accident. For a few moments he lay panting on the section of board.

Then Martin started to laugh.

---

---

---

---

The groaning grew louder, and with it, Nadia leant herself further over his body, her grip tightening as she felt them slipping, the plane tilting at an unnatural angle causing them to fall from the aisle, and into the icy cold depths below them. This-... This wasn’t happening… this couldn’t be happening- not to them; not now. There were so many things they still needed to do together… travel around and see the world… get married- oh God, their wedding was in only three days time..!

No; she couldn’t lose him- she loved him..!

Shutting her eyes tightly as they plunged down into the dark waters together, she held her breath, her lungs burning with a searing pain she had never felt before in her life as she tried to make sense of it all. She couldn’t… what was there to make sense of..? None of them wanted this- they never deserved this fate. So why was it they had been forsaken like this..? Refusing to let the ill thoughts of fate consume and panic her, she shifted her grip, her arms leaving his body for only a few moments before they were wrapped back around Rhett once more, though this time from behind. She wasn’t going to leave him- no matter what he said; she wasn’t about to let go so easily.

Doing what she could to remain as calm as she could possibly manage through the fear dancing behind her eyes, she hurried to look about through the water; the gentle orange glow of what she assumed was flames catching her attention, and immediately, she was on the move, forcing her searing and tired limbs to work overtime as she kicked through the waters, slowly though surely dragging the both of them up until they were able to break through the surface together, her lungs viciously protesting against her as she sucked in a large breath of fresh salty sea air.

Rhett inhaled a deep breath, only to sputter and cough as what remaining water seeped down into his windpipe. Air - that was all he could comprehend. He was breathing (albeit painfully and with a lot of salt in his lungs) and alive. The plane had not killed them. But as soon as that thought registered, unimaginable pain ripped through his entire core, sustaining around the entry and exit wound of the shrapnel that had impaled him back on the plane. He wasn’t clear yet - and his fading vision started to make sense once more.

“N-Nadi…” Rhett was wheezing, air suddenly very hard to come by after his first few breaths after breaking the ocean’s surface. She was all that mattered - he had to know that she was safe - that she would make it. But as his mind slowly came to terms with things going on around him, he was then very aware of a pair of arms wrapped around him from behind. Nadia. She refused to give him up, despite his words. She was a fighter and he loved her for it. But the second she started to struggle…

Where were they, anyway? Reason told him that any moment, the amount of blood he was spilling into the ocean would alert any shark within three miles of their location. And… their location was where? Even with the light of the fire from the plane illuminating through the dark, Rhett could see nothing. So if he was not to be doomed by impalement or a plane crashing down from the sky, then it was to be by drowning.

She had to get him out of the water- she wasn’t about to lose him; not to anything. Nadia’s fear-filled dark eyes shooting wildly around them for a moment, she paused, allowing her mind to wander back over the safety instructions that had been issued by the stewards on the plane… something about life rafts, follow the lights on the ground; bracing yourself in your seat with your head on your lap, or as close to it as could be- none of that was going to help her now..!

Letting out a hoarse yell of frustration, she turned her head away, her gaze falling upon a few of the seat cushions that had come loose during the crash- they were floating… the small though unmistakable sense of hope filling her body, she once more adjusted her hold around the man she loved, making sure that he was laying on his back as she began to pull them towards the cushions, her hand reaching out, straining for a moment before she was able to get a hold of one, dragging it over them and slipping it down and under him as she moved to grab the next one.

“..almost-... almost there baby- just, please… please hold on…”

The salt water against his wounds was excruciating. Rhett grit his teeth, refusing to cry out in pain knowing that it would only worry his fiance even more. He was beginning to see spots in his vision - both black and white though he was never able to concentrate on one of them long enough to identify their color at their precise moment. He was a doctor, sure, but he didn’t have to diagnose himself to know that it wasn’t particularly a good sign.

Clutching onto the floating seat (though now somewhat submerged due to his weight), Rhett tried to relax his body as best as he could - struggling would only bleed him out faster. She wanted him to hold on. To what, he didn’t know. But if it gave her hope, he would endure. He would endure every last painful breath he could take into his body for her. So long as she lived. She had to live.

A bark - Rhett lifted his head, his heavy eyes scanning through the darkness towards where he thought he had heard the sound. Over all of the screaming and pleadings for help, a single bark stuck out to him enough for him to expel enough energy to want to seek it out. There was a pause, another bark and then a series of whines and splashing.

“Boris…” Their dog he had brought on their trip with them. He had been issued to the undercarriage - sedated and easily transportable. He didn’t even think about him until now. Sure there may have been other passengers transporting their dogs, but Rhett knew his dog enough to know what Boris sounded like. It was definitely him. He survived, just like the rest of them. But to what end?

Turning her head back as the sound of the familiar bark hit her ears, Nadia searched the waters surrounding them for any sign of their beloved dog. Boris was just as much part of their family as any other, and if anything was to happen to him… she knew that Rhett would never forgive himself… Shutting her eyes tightly for a moment as if to shove the very thought from her mind, she let her attention draw back around to her fiance as she felt him move over the cushions, her hand automatically lifting to press lightly over his chest in an effort to try and still him.

She had to keep calm… for him; she had to be the strong one right now…

“..I-I’ll get him… try not to move…” Her voice was soft… weak. It hurt to talk, but she had to let him know that she wasn’t going to be giving up anything, not without a fight.

“N-Nadi, no…”

Pushing away from him, she turned in the water, her face scrunching up in concentration as she strained her ears, once more searching for the bark as she fought against the waves, her body pushing through them as she forced herself to swim in the direction she could hear Boris struggling against the current.

Rhett could only watch as Nadia swam away from him, determined to rescue the third part of their small family. Without Boris, they had nothing to remind them that they could be a happy family - one even without children. But still, Rhett didn’t believe that the dog was worth her risking her own life.

“..Boris..!” At the sound of his name, the canine looked over, his terrified whimpers causing her heart to sink as she pushed herself harder… faster through the water, eventually managing to wrap her arm around his middle- by God, he was heavy… since when had he gotten this heavy..? That was it; the minute they managed to get home (if they ever got home), he was going on a damn diet. Struggling for a moment as the dog squirmed against her body, she groaned, her legs kicking back and forth to keep her up as she lifted him over her shoulder, holding him in place with a single arm as she began the tiring swim back to where she had left Rhett laying over the cushions.

As much as he wanted to be impressed, all Rhett could see was her struggle. She was getting tired and weak - the one-hundred plus pound, scared dog not helping her in the least. While he knew she was a fighter until the very end, if she died because of that damn dog...

“Nadia… please…” He could taste blood in his mouth - a very metallic-bitter taste combined with the salt water that washed up into his face with every pulse the ocean fought back from the plane crash with.

It was getting harder to go on; but she had to. She didn’t have a choice; or at least, not one that she was ever going to be happy with. Her whole body practically screaming at her in protest to all she was doing, she fought on, pushing herself forward until she once more reached his side, her eyes closing and her free arm lifting up onto the cushions beside him to help keep her above the surface while her legs began to slow underneath her.

She was tired… so very damn tired… but she couldn’t give up; not like this…

“..Rhett… I’m gunna-... I’m gunna find a way to get us out of the water, okay..? Please… please, just hold on baby…” Taking another moment to just rest, Nadia forced her head to lift back up, her dark eyes opening allowing the reflection of the flames to dance lightly over the surface of them as she looked around them, searching for something she could use- anything that would get them out of the water.

Her head dropping slightly as the cold winds changed direction blowing the smoke and ash towards them, she narrowed her eyes, her legs kicking slowly back and forth under her before a glint of pale yellow caught her attention through the grey smoke. No way… was that..? All the way out here, in the middle of the ocean..? Her eyes shutting completely, she buried her head into the inside of her elbow, her coughs coming out spluttered… chesty; causing her already pained throat to hurt even more. Turning her attention back to where she thought she had seen something once her small bout of coughing had come to a rather painful end, Nadia once more narrowed her eyes, squinting through the smoke in an attempt to see, “..I think-... I think I see something… a lighthouse…”

Rhett slowly lifted his heavy head up from the somewhat submerged seat cushion that was acting as a floatation device. A… a lighthouse? All the way out here? Rhett tried to see what it was that his fiance was seeing, but was unable to. Was his vision getting blurry? Or was it getting darker? The fact that he couldn’t tell began to worry him some.

“I… I need to lay down…”

“Soon baby… soon- and then we’ll get you all fixed up; I promise…” Things were becoming worse; and it was more than obvious that she had to make a choice sooner rather than later. But that was the problem… what if she made the wrong decision..? Things could get worse than they already were; but if she didn’t choose soon-...

She didn’t even want to think about it…

Scrunching up her face in a silent prayer that she wasn’t wrong, Nadia forced her tired legs to move fast back and forth, her attention lifting to where she could see what she hoped was the looming structure of a lighthouse as she began to move the three of them in the right direction, her movements slower than ever before due to being weighed down by the dog and having to push her fiance; though she didn’t care, “..I’m not about to lose you, Rhett…”

He could feel his body gliding slowly through the ice-cold water, though the reason behind why he could no longer feel his legs was uncertain anymore. He was forgetting things - why they were on a plane and where they were headed. Really there was only one thing he was absolutely certain of. Turning his head with great effort, he watched as Nadia pushed them all forward through the water, Boris even too scared and cold to whimper anymore. He smiled.

“I love you, Nadi.”

That smile… it was heartbreaking, and as much as she had been trying, the tears she had been fighting back once more began to well in her eyes, only helping to blur her vision as she maneuvered them slowly through the flames and debris of the crash, the once hazy figure of the lighthouse eventually coming into focus as it towered over them.

“I-...” She wanted to say it- to tell him that she loved him too, but she just couldn’t. It felt too much like a goodbye. Tearing her gaze away from his for a moment, she let her terrified dark eyes flick up to the lighthouse as they approached it, the waves slowly calming down to almost nothing with each inch they drew closer, “..I was right… Rhett, I was right- it’s a lighthouse. We’re going to be fine- you’re going to be fine…”

The red haired woman rested quite comfortably in her seat, despite the fact the plane was full. She was of average height, and curled nicely in her seat, snuggled against the wall, looking out the window. She watched the clouds move by the plane, and let her mind wonder. Hopefully, her flight back would be filled with the joy of having successfully gained a long term job, and a grant. The money would be welcome, but she was more interested in the project… if she could pull it off… she’d change the world. So she was nervous, filled with anticipation and excitement as she went through the presentation in her hand, again and again, fiddling with a small cube more commonly known as a Fidget cube, which she’d had before the craze- honestly, why couldn’t people leave well enough alone when they didn’t need the things? She absolutely refused to get a Fidget Spinner- they were for those that needed it, not for those that just had them cause they were “Cool”. She sighed to herself, rolling her finger over the ball, hearing the excited cry of a child, and the soft murmur of a voice, perhaps reassuring them.

Lavena smiled to herself, shifting from her position to glance about her, just as things seemed to go pear shape. Turbulence rocked the plane, perhaps the most violent she had ever come across, and she immediately sat up straight, buckling her belt on, she gripped the fidget cube tightly in her left hand, feeling her heartbeat speed up. For the first time she realised just how small a plane was. And that it was metal, flying in the air. Even though she knew how it worked, knew how a plane could fly, suddenly Lavena found herself utterly terrified, and she closed her eyes tightly.

As it steadily became worse, Lavena dug her fingernails into the palm of her right hand, the nails cutting into her skin, warm blood flowing around her fingers, dripping steadily onto her leg, the ground. She shook violently, ”It’s going to be okay” she whispered to herself, over and over again, as if by saying it and wishing it so, she could make it so. Then the plane made sounds that Lavena knew she never wanted to hear, ever again, had never wanted to hear on a flight. Groaning, creaking... was that breaking? Rattling- was her luggage going to fall? Was her prototype going to shatter? And why was she worrying about that?

Her breathing came hard and fast, short and shallow, and she recognised that she was panicking, she could feel her heart beating furiously fast, as if it actually wanted to burst out of her chest, and the sickly powerful feeling of adrenaline, the need to run, but there was nowhere to run on this stupid metal box. As the explosion rocketed the ship, Lavena screamed, the raw, primal scream tearing through her throat painfully, and she drew in a breath to let out another one, but she was near sobbing now.

Each breath that she managed to get in was painful, and they were exploded out into sobs. This wasn’t something she could fight- there was no way she could beat the plane up and tell it to get its ass back into line. It just wasn’t possible. She couldn’t do anything, and she hated the feeling of helplessness, the feeling of fear nearly paralysing her. This wasn’t who she was, but she couldn’t get her body to obey her.

She was huddled in her seat, eyes closed tightly, shaking, and hyperventilating. She couldn’t stop it. The thuds of the luggage falling jolted her into some semblance of action, as she searched for her own bag, her eyes, red and stinging, opened as she searched. She swallowed, her throat still painful- was it possible to make your throat bleed by yelling?- her fingers reaching for the clasp, to unbuckle herself, her blood making the buckle slippery. It took a few seconds, but she managed to do it, her need to make sure her prototype was okay overpowering the fear, for a moment at least.

She fell into the lap of the guy next to her, the old guy probably thinking all his dreams had come true as she just about ended face up in his lap, before she managed to get back to her feet, stumbling towards the isle, she fell into the luggage, and in moments she had her black case in her hands, the waterproof case seeming to be alright. She huddled there, shaking and shivering, tears falling down her face, sobs still coming out violently. She rose to her feet shakily, and for a moment she didn’t think her legs would support her weight, they felt so weak. She was just about to get back to her seat, when the plane began to tear apart.

She gripped the case with one arm, the other, dropping the fidget cube, snatched at the arm of the chair closest to her, as some girl was thrown out the plane, towards the darkness below. Within seconds, Lavena knew that she would follow the girl, her grip weakening on the chair by the sheer force of it, her fingers slipping. One last sob escaped her, as her hand was torn away from the seat, her body slamming into the chairs on the other side painfully, and she thought hard enough to crack a rib or two, before she was flung to the ground, sliding towards the tear in the plane, she tried to reach for something, anything else, to keep her on the plane, but it was impossible.

She fell towards the ocean, another scream tearing from her throat, to end in a breathless cry in seconds, and then she plunged into the ocean, slamming into the water painfully, she dropped like a stone, still holding her case, now tightly against her, wondering if she was being a fool for doing so. If she was dead, what use was it to her? But she just couldn’t let it go. It was her life. It meant too much to her.

As she seemed to sink forever, Lavena tried to orientate herself, but the pressing closeness of the water, the blackness, the way it enveloped her and seemed to want to drag her down… the way her lungs were burning… Lavena knew that she would probably die. She kicked wildly, hoping that she was going the right way, even as she recognised the hopelessness of the situation.

She was going to die here.

Her eyes stung, whether from the saltwater or her own tears, she didn’t know. She wanted to close her eyes, and to just give up… Fear clutched her, squeezing her heart, and for a moment, she couldn’t tell the difference between then, and the past. A silent scream of fear and rage escaped her. She was not a helpless child. Not anymore.

Bags floated around her, handbags and other such bags spilling their contents, and Lavena tried to ignore the shapes of bodies around her, her lungs burning, she wasn’t sure if her eyes were going black from lack of oxygen, or if it was just water pressing on her. She kicked wildly, and held onto her case with one arm, using the air to try and propel herself up. She crashed into… something that was sharp, she didn’t know what, causing a swallow cut to appear across her brow, blood leaking into the water, the salt stinging it painfully.

She was nearly ready to give up, her body refusing to work properly, and her mouth opened against her will, water filling the space, forcing its way into her throat. She tried coughing, which just made things worse.

Her eyes continued to fade into blackness, even as she kicked feebly.

Her body reacted instinctively as she broke the surface, bringing in great gulps of air that probably made her look like a fish out of water, gasping, and then coughing violently, watery blood falling into her eyes. The coughs racked her, her body shaking with the force violently, until everything in her stomach came up, purging itself into the water, she cried weakly, reaching up to wipe her mouth, tears rolling down her face, a horrible taste in her mouth.

She could hear others crying, calling out to people, but she couldn’t seem to get enough air, enough energy, to call back. It took all her strength to hold her case, and stay afloat.

She was alive. And that was something to cherish. She reached up with her free hand to press it against the wound along her forehead, grimacing, as she looked around, ”H-hello?” she called weakly, hearing someone else shouting, asking if anything else had survived. She started to laugh wildly, uncontrollably, soon becoming breathless, her stomach hurting, her chest painful, until all she could do was gasp, as she fought to get her breath back.

It took a few moments, but eventually she was able to call back ”I survived”

---

---

Theodore was growing more frantic by the second, unable to find either Isaura or Juliette. Had he…. He hadn’t kill her, when he pushed her into the water? As that thought sunk in, Theodore began to panic, thrashing in the water. He knew he couldn’t live with himself if he had… he knew that Isaura wouldn’t be able to live with that knowledge, not live with him. He’d lose everything, in the space of moments.

He didn’t think he could survive that. Didn’t think his body would be able to keep going. ”Juliette” he screamed, frantically swimming through the water, looking for his little sister, looking for Isaura- if he found one, he had to find the other. ”Julie, where are you! JULIE” Fear, panic and worry lent his voice strength, as he bellowed his sister's name out, again and again, throwing in Isuara’s name as well, needing to find both of them.

He could hear other survivors calling out, but he didn’t care about them, right now, he needed to find the only two people he had left in the world. He needed to know they were alright, with every fibre of his being. It wasn’t a question of want, it was a question of need. Where would either of them have fallen? Isaura could be further away than Juliette… ”Isuara?”

He looked around, trying to use the fire from the wreckage to see if he could find either of them, squinting his eyes, as if that would make it easier to see, as if it would make him see further. Finally, he thought he saw someone, swimming towards them, by the flames… His heart leapt, was it Isaura? He started towards the figure, calling out ”Isaura, Isaura” Over and over again.

Her limbs were burning… with each and every stroke that she took through the water, she grew slower, her body growing heavier with the exhaustion that was slowly trying to overcome her. It was so cold… she could barely feel anymore where her skin ended, and the water began.

The flash of warmth coming from the flames as she grew close had her stopping dead within the water, her (now rather blue) lips parting slightly as she lifted her tired gaze to look around- there was fire everywhere… the debris, and fuel having leaked out from the sinking plane causing the fire to rage on even when it seemed impossible. Instinctively pushing herself away from the fire as the heat intensified, Isaura turned away, panic and fear filling her features as she looked out over the water around the crash; searching for any sign of the two people she loved most in the world, “..T-Theodore… Julie…”

Theodore had lost sight of the figure for a moment, falling under the water once more, appearing in a few seconds, scanning the water once more, searching, his heart in his throat, beating hard, making him feel sick to the stomach, and then he saw them again. Theodore tried to make his body go faster, tried to push himself further, needing to know it was her.

If he could find Isaura, they could find Juliette together.

As he drew nearer to the figure, Theodore still couldn’t make out who it was, blinded by the flames, and he crashed into them. It became immediately clear to Theodore that it was not Isaura, and he muttered something close to ”Not it… Sorry…” before he continued to swim, as if nothing was amiss. He hurriedly searched the water again, fear once more rising in him- had he ever known anything other than fear? It seemed like it had been going on forever.

Suddenly his gaze was drawn to another figure, very close to the flames, and his motions became almost frantic, before he began to swim smoothly again, his own aches, pains and freezing body forgotten as he closed the distance. His heart leaped as he drew closer and closer, soon hearing her calling out.

”Isaura!” With a few strokes, he was near enough that he could reach out, and touch her.

At the sound of her name being called out, Isaura turned, her eyes opening just that little bit wider as she caught sight of a figure hurrying to get to where she was treading in the freezing water, “..T-Theo…”

Relief washed over her, and within moments she had reached out towards him, her arm shakily wrapping around the back of his neck as she worked to pulled herself closer, holding herself weakly against his body- he was here… he was alive. That was all she could ever ask for. Her breath shallow, she shut her eyes tightly, her lower lip quivering with the chill as she dropped her head, not caring about the water splashing up into her face as she took the time to just revel in the fact that he was okay, “..I-... I was so scared…”

Theodore pulled Isaura into his arms, treading water, a little harder now, but nothing would make him let go of Isaura, not at that moment as he hugged her to him. It took a moment for him to find the will to speak, his voice soft and relieved when he did, ”I was… god, it was frightening… “ He didn’t seem capable of making a full sentence, instead he shifted, making sure she wasn’t sinking into the water.

Fear was still heavy in his heart, no matter the relief he felt at finding Isaura, it wasn’t enough. He clutched her tighter to him, not wanting to utter the words that he had to. ”I haven’t found Julie yet… “ his words were almost a whisper, feeling like he had failed them both. ”I… I told her to get to the surface, but I can’t find her”

Fear clenched at her heart once more. He-... He hadn’t found her yet… he hadn’t managed to find Julie yet. Attempting to pull herself closer against him, though unsure whether or not she had managed to achieve it or not, Isaura shook her head gently from side to side, her voice soft… shaky as she spoke, “..we’ll find her… I-I know we will…”

Theodore closed his eyes, unsure if he could believe that they would, still terrified that he had sent Juliette to her death. “I can’t lose her, too” He said softly, opening his eyes again, clutching Isaura tightly, not wanting to let her go, but knowing that he had to, if they were to find Juliette. While the ocean was big, the plane falling should have been contained over a manageable area… but Juliette was a child… if it was hard for them, then… He let out a slow breath.

“We were close to the water when she went in” He said, looking away from Isaura, to search for the no doubt sinking cabin they had been in.

She closed her eyes, her breath coming slowly… strained as she continued to stay close to him, Isaura listened, her body shaking lightly against his as she lifted her head, her eyes eventually opening so that she could follow his line of sight, her gaze sliding over the waters in an attempt to see if she could find the young girl, “..we’ll find her, Theo… I promise… we’ll find her…”

Theodore brought his gaze back to Isaura, knowing that they all needed to get to land soon, and although he wanted to get Isaura to safety, he knew she wouldn’t go until they had found Juliette. ”We will” He echoed, looking back over the water, his heart heavy. He could see that Isaura was tiring, and probably couldn't continue for long, if at all. He wasn’t going to let her swim, if she couldn’t, and he held her for a moment or two longer, as he tried to figure out what to do.

When he’d been learning to swim, and when he’d help Juliette learn to swim, they’d learned several different ways of helping if someone couldn’t swim. There were a few ways, but Theodore chose one of the easier ones to do, that wouldn't involve diving under the water, which he never really felt like doing, ever again. He faced Isausa, saying ”I’m going to do a carry, okay?” he gently guided her hands to his shoulders, making sure that she kept her arms extended, before he gently lifted her, kicking hard, until her legs were around his waist, letting her lean on him.

”Heads up breaststroke” he muttered to himself, making sure that Isaura was secure. ”Are you okay?”

“..c-cold…” Her voice shaking lightly as though to reflect her answer, Isaura closed her eyes, her blue tinged lips parting ever so slightly from one another as she let her head come to a rest over his back, her body shivering consistently as they swam through the waters together, “..I-...I can’t f-feel my legs…”

Theodore knew that that was bad, and for a moment, he wished there were two of him, so he could get Isaura to safety, and find Juliette. “It’s the water” He said softly, knowing that wasn’t much help. Feeling useless, he started to swim, looking for any sign of Juliette, not knowing how much longer he himself could go on. Periodically he began to call out his sister’s name, desperately hoping to hear her calling back.

---

”H-hello?”

The voice was faint, and it barely carried itself over the surface of the water. At first, Valen thought he imagined it, however the woman's voice came through once again. "I survived!"

A wave of relief rushed over Valen as he realized that among all the carnage, at least one other person had survived. The prospect of another adult, or at least someone who sounded like it, boosted his spirits, however it couldn't debunk the fear he felt from the ocean's vastness beneath his feet.

"Hello? Hang on, I'm on my way!" The man began kicking his legs and using his free arms to backstroke towards the sounds of the woman's voice, doing his best to keep the little girl on his chest. Her hair was soaked and clung to her face in odd patterns, obscuring her features. Her lips were a cold blue, and the only movement from her chest were tiny, sporadic heaves. She was alive, however, Valen wasn't sure how much longer she would stay that way. Without warmth and a dry place to rest, her small form would succumb to the cold wetness far faster than that of a fully grown man's.

Pausing mid stroke, Valen hoisted her further up onto his body, pulling as much of her as he could out of the water. He gently tapped her cheek with the tips of his fingers, attempting to coax her into consciousness. "Hey, sweetie, can you hear me? Wake up. Come on. Come on!"

His voice became increasingly more frantic as his attempts were met with fruitless results. The voice of the woman came floating across the water once again, however the floating debris shielded her from Valen's sight. Growling in frustration and distress, Valen began backpedaling with both arms, churning the water as he bolted towards the woman's voice.

"Hey, can you hear me?" Valen shouted. "I'm following your voice. Keep talking! I don't know where you are!"

The fighter surveyed the nearby wreckage in the hopes of discovering something he could drift on top of, however between the jagged metal edges, which he wasn't positive how that was floating, questionable substances, and various sizes, nothing appeared to be readily available to support the girl, much less the both of them.

Panic began to rise in his chest as he struggled to find any kind of hope for the girl. He shouted again to the woman, cautiously swimming around a questionable piece of wreckage before calling out again. "Where are you?!"

Lavena treaded water for a moment, hugging her case to her, as if that would give her extra warmth. Already the water was trying to sap away all her energy, making her limbs ache, with the pain of it, but she knew that was good, it was when her body went numb that she knew she would be in trouble. Still, she was shivering, and she wanted nothing more than to be out of the water, and to never see it again. The only bright thing about it was that at least it wasn’t a small space. Although she was still only going to have showers from now on. And never go swimming again. And she was going to get a dishwasher. No water immersion for her, ever again.

And then the voice replied and she couldn’t help the relief that spread through her, the relief a warmth spreading through her extremities, but that was sapped from her pretty quickly. It was just too damn cold, and there was so much ocean… and maybe she was going into shock, she didn’t know. She reached up to dash blood out of her eyes, the wound on her her stinging, but she couldn’t do anything else about that. The stinging meant she was alive, at least. Her eyes, salt abused, hurt, as did her throat, from her screams, and from being violently sick. She wondered if you could sear your throat with your own stomach acid. Seemed like a possibility. Maybe she should look it up later.

For now though, she had to concentrate on staying alive. She wriggle all her fingers and toes, and grimaced as she realised that she couldn’t actually feel her toes. Were they even moving? How cold was the ocean? Frigging freezing just didn’t seem to describe it. ”Oh, i could talk for days normally, at the moment? Not so much. I’m cold. Very cold. Are we going to freeze here? Or will the fire get us first, ya think? That might be interesting. Die both hot and cold. And in rather painful ways. I suppose fire is better than drowning, but not by much”.

She was babbling. She knew she was, she couldn’t stop herself. Was she in shock? Had something come loose in her mind? Something wasn’t right, that was for sure. ”What do you think? Personally I’d rather die doing something i love. Which, technically, could be said, but… by that I mean eating chocolate and watching a movie. Maybe playing a game or two. You know. Normal stuff… Are we going to get home? Do you think they’ll find us?” Unshed tears caused her voice to thicken, heavily, and she bit back a sob. What was the use in crying? She could feel herself beginning to shake, rather violently.

She was babbling, and quite possibly she was talking to herself. Who's to say anyone else survived? Maybe her mind had simply snapped, and she was talking to a figment of her imagination. ”You’re not my imagination, are you? Wait. You’d probably say no even if you were… “ So how did she know if the person was real or not? She hummed to herself.

Maybe she had hit her head.

She glanced about her, tilting her head. The voice did seem to be coming from somewhere, she just wasn’t too sure where. He seemed to be panicking- He! A gender! Well, it was nice to know her voice had a gender. She pursed her lips, thoughtful. She had to move, anyway. Maybe she should hunt down the voice and see if it did belong to someone. She paused a moment, before she started to swim, following the guy’s voice, hearing other voices now, calling out, possibly for others, but she pushed them aside, trying to focus on the one voice that was calling to her. She swam one armed, not wanting to drop her case, and finally, swimming around a piece of debris, she spied someone. A man, with a child on his stomach. A little girl, who didn’t seem to be fairing well.

She swam over, and immediately passed her case off to the guy, treading water, she began to shrug herself out of her jacket, and shirt, not an easy feat in the water, she took the child from the man, holding her to her body, she dressed the child in her clothes, knowing that even if they were wet, they could provide some insulation from the water, the biting cold.

Of course, it made her own body that much colder, dressed now in only her pants, and bra, but… the girl was so small… She didn’t seem to care that she was only half dressed. What did it matter? She was in the water, and if people wanted to look, they could look.

Before she could say anything to the man, she heard someone shout out. ”Has anyone seen a girl? A little girl?” The voice sounded desperate, and Lavena looked to the child in her arms, before shouting out ”We’ve got her, get to land! Its hell trying to find people in the water, just get to land and we’ll find you!”, looking to the man once more.

”Hi.I’m Lavena. Do you think we could find some land? I’m kinda cold, and this one needs to get out the water” She said, returning the child to the man’s arms, and taking her case back, glancing around her… she couldn’t be certain, but she was sure there was something looming in the distance… a building? Maybe a light house, if it was on the coast… ?

”Do you see something, a building?” She said, nodding towards what she was seeing. ”I’m not feeling… stable at the moment… “

---

Valen conserved his breath and focused on getting to the voice while keeping the girl above water. The woman's voice began to ramble, and she was clearly attempting to stave off the intense sense of impending doom and despair. Her words jumped topics faster than Valen's overtaxed brain could keep track of, so he decided to only focus when it was essential.

Once they were within eyesight, he allowed himself to feel relieved. She was young, and her body seemed capable, so that significantly boosted the likelihood that she would survive and not become another burden. By this point, his own body was beginning to lose all feeling in his toes, the numbness creeping up his legs like a virulent plague.

As Lavena, as she introduced herself, began dressing the child, Valen shook his head. "You should keep your clothes on, you'll expire faster. I'll take care of warming her."

As he exchanged the case with the woman and received the girl, he kicked the water violently, leaning backwards so that most of his body was above the surface of the water. The case caught his eye, eliciting a small amount of curiosity. It would have to be worried about later; right now, he had much more important priorities.

His right hand covered the girl's mouth while his fingers pinched her nose shut, blocking any water from entering her body as he quickly stuffed her into his shirt, stretching the neck opening and pulling her head through. It was a difficult maneuver to pull off in the water, much less with half-dead hands, however, with some tearing of fabric and a little brute force, he was able to pull it off without keeping her head under water for more than a couple seconds.

He positioned her so that she faced over his shoulder, letting him swim forward without her going face-down into the water. As he struggled to position himself and the girl comfortably, he nodded towards the woman. "Valen, by the way. We need to get to something buoyant."

”Do you see something, a building?” Her voice pulled his attention form the girl towards Lavena's floating form, which had drifted away a few feet. ”I’m not feeling… stable at the moment…“

She's gonna pass out if you don't get both your asses out of the water. Valen growled gently and forced himself into action, swimming towards her. The girl's head bobbed gently next to him, staying above surface level at all times.

"There aren't going to be any..." Valen trailed off as he swam around a piece of wreckage, granting him a line of sight to a massive looming structure in the near distance. Light blazed brightly from its apex, shining through the hazy night in brilliant glory. Relief surged through Valen as he realized Lavena hadn't gone bat shit crazy. They were most likely hundreds of miles from any significant land mass, but by some miraculous stroke of luck, they had ended up by the only damn piece of land in the quadrant.

"Well, fuck me, you're right," Valen chuckled. "It's a lighthouse. We might survive this hell yet."

Valen turned his neck to face Lavena, slowly treading closer as he shot out information rapid-fire. "We need to get to land soon, or we're going to die of frostbite anyway. We might be fine, but the kid's gonna die a lot faster. We need to go. Now!"

Without another word, he kicked off, taking off as fast as he could without drowning the girl. Every few seconds, he would check over his shoulder to make sure the woman was following and not lagging behind. Normally he would've continued to bark instructions at her, but the cold sapped every ounce of energy remaining away, leaving only enough for swimming and breathing.

---

---

Theodore didn’t know what options they had left. The response he’d gotten did nothing to assure him that it was Juliette, but… if he stayed in the water much longer, Isuara was going to be seriously compromised, more so then she already was. He didn’t, right then, care for himself. He just had to have hope that it was Juliette, because he couldn’t choose between saving Isuara, or saving Juliette. Feeling like he was ripping his heart from his chest, Theodore looked about, for any sign of land, looking to isuara to make sure she was still awake ”Isuara” he said softly, wishing things were different, wishing that they'd gotten on any other flight, wishing he could just make sure that they, that Juliette and Isuara, were safe.

Looking about them once more, he was sure he saw something…. A building? Or was that just his imagination, him hoping that it was land, like a mirage? Did he want to risk Isuara’s life, on that? What choice did he have? There wasn’t exactly many options, but he really only had one shot, he didn’t think that he could go much further. If it was just his imagination… he’d effectively kill them both.

Even the thought of being responsible for Isuara’s death chilled him to his very core, and he tried not to think that he may already be responsible for Juliette's death. ”Do you see that building, too?” he asked Isuara, wanting confirmation before he wasted energy trying to swim there.

Opening her eyes, Isaura tilted her head lightly to the side, lifting it only slightly so that she was able to look in the direction that they seemed to be headed. Building..? What would a building be doing in the middle of the Atlantic ocean..?

“..b-building..?”

Her body shaking constantly due to the freezing temperatures of the water reaching into her core, she squinted her eyes, her now blue lips parting ever so slightly as she continued to gaze in the direction he seemed to be focused on, a large dark mass emerging through the smoke catching her eyes causing to try and tighten her arms around him further than they already were, “..y-yeah… I-... I think I d-do…”

Taking that as confirmation, even though it was strange to think of a random building. There wasn’t anything else to indicate land, but what choice did they have? “Alright then. We’ll head there” he said, taking a breath and beginning to swim, it was perhaps the hardest thing he’d had to do, push his battered, tired body through the freezing cold water. Stopping or faltering was not an option, and he continued to swim towards the building, ”Just stay awake, okay Isuara? That’s all you have to do”

He tried to judge how far the tower was, but it seemed like an impossible task. ”Nearly there” he said, not knowing if that was true at all, but wanting to keep her awake.

Stay awake… yeah… yeah, she could do that… she could-...

Her eyes drooping slightly, Isaura once more let her head come to a rest over his back, a soft mumble of understanding falling from between her lips as she felt herself slipping into the sleep both of them knew she needed to stay out of. The situation was bad enough as it was; if she went to sleep now-... well, there was that possibility that she wasn’t going to be waking up anytime soon…

Theodore looked to isuara, wanting to make sure she was okay, seeing that she was falling asleep, and not knowing what to do. He slowed, as he tried to think of something to do., before making sure she was close against him, as he tried to think of ways of getting her warm, if only somewhat. Just until they got out the water.

He stopped, treading water a moment, trying to figure out a way of getting her out of the water, at least better than what she was. ”I’m going to try and get you out the water a bit’ he said, hoping the sound of his voice would give her something to focus on, bring her back from the edge of sleep. He tried to figure out how he could get her on his back, ’Do you think you can get on my back?” he asked softly, hugging her close.

His voice… it sounded so close. She had to focus; she had to-... she had to open her eyes, if even a little bit. Her head turning slightly, she forced her eyes to open just that little bit more than they already were, her tired gaze resting upon the man she wanted to spend the rest of her life with… no matter how short a time that might be.

“..I-I’m so c-cold…”

”I know, Izzy, I know. That’s why i want you to get on my back, okay? Get you outta the water a bit” he said, ”Please, I don’t want to lose you, izzy. You’ll be out of the water more on my back” he said, trying to keep his own fear from his voice, giving her a quick soft kiss, wishing that it was more, but knowing that was possible, right then. ”Then it’s not far… “

“..I-I’ll try…” Forcing herself to move, she shakily brought her hands back to press weakly into his shoulders, doing what she could to move herself further up his back.

Theodore did what he could to help get her on his back, and once she was settled again, he started to swim once more, wondering if he had actually made any progress to getting to the building, he couldn’t quite remember how far they had been. Which he recognised as a dangerous sign. He grimaced, continuing to swim. They had to make it. They’d find Juliette, and survive.

He continued his diligent, if dead-tired swim, his entire mind focused on that task, on the task of getting to land, and finding Juliette. Nothing else seemed to matter, right then. ”Is it better, Izzy?”

“..a-a little b-bit…”

Her body still shaking against his, she shook her head lightly from side to side, doing her best to shake the fatigue from her body as she turned her attention up to the large towering structure of the lighthouse drawing closer with each moment that passed them both by.

A bit was good. A bit could mean the difference between life, and death in these waters. He tried not to think how Juliette was faring, She was so small… looking ahead as the lighthouse drew closer and closer, but still seemed so far away. He blinked, reaching up to brush water out his eyes, frowning when he realised that there was something just ahead of them. Someone else swimming? But it seemed more than that… Where they trying to tow more than just themselves? The silhouette was rather strange…. But he supposed his was too, with Isuara on his back.

Whatever they were doing, it seemed they were struggling, and Theodore found himself making his way towards them- they were along the way, closer to the lighthouse than Isuara and himself. As he drew closer, he saw that the woman- for it was a woman- was struggling with a dog, and a man. How did she get the dog out? For surely the dog had been secured? Shaking his head as his thoughts went off on tangents, Theodore found himself calling out ”You need a hand?’ He knew he should think about Isura, getting her out of the water, of getting himself out the water.

But the woman was trying to save a damn dog, what was he meant to do? Try to save the damn dog as well.

---

---

Frowning slightly as Valen told her to keep her clothes on- and she bet not many guys would say that too often!- Lavena shrugged back into her jacket, with a little bit of difficulty. She was nearly just going to give up and put it back on the child, the water just seemed to want to keep the it, before she finally got it on. She watched the girl worriedly, knowing that the child was the most vulnerable in the water, being so small, and young… Lavena just wanted to get the girl out the water, and to some safety, some warmth. This was when she wished magic was real, so she could just go Poof! And get them all out of there. Of course, if she had magic, she could have just done that instead of using a plane to travel. Musing on that for a moment or two, she shook her head, a dull ache in the back of her skull appearing as she did that. Had she hit her head? She couldn’t remember. Feeling herself starting to shake violently, Lavena let out a small distressed sound, looking to Valen and the girl, watching as he stuffed the girl in his shirt, like a mama kangaroo with a joey in its pouch.

She found it sweet.

Treading water, she waited for Valen to be ready, a little fazed, ‘I’m okay, really” She said in a bit of a monotone tone, but she smiled, floating from side to side as she stayed above the water. She couldn’t feel her fingers, nor her toes, and that biting cold numbness was slowly spreading up her limbs, the cold biting deeply into her bones, and her tongue feeling thick in her mouth as she spoke

"Well, fuck me...,"

“Maybe later” she said without thinking, “Kinda hard to do that, right now. What, with a child in ya shirt” she said in a drifty sort of manner, looking towards the lighthouse, and kicking the water to remain afloat. Her breathing was beginning to slow, as was her heart rate and she recognised the dangers of that. Were her fingers frozen to the handle of her case? She wasn’t sure. Was she even holding the case? She lifted up her hands, seeing that she did still carry it. She blinked, slowly and lethargic. “Maybe I’m not so okay… “

When Valen delivered his life or death sentence, Lavena blinked a little stupidly after him when he started off, before blinking and realising that she should be following him. Doing so, she began to swim, her limbs feeling heavy, her head filling with fog, the cold seeming to get worse even as they began to move. Would she be able to make it to the lighthouse? She looked up towards the seemingly far away figure, blinking stupidly, trying to figure out how far away it was, but unable to do so. Was that voices, faint and carrying over the water? She recalled the guy that had been shouting out for the kid, wondering if that was him, but found that right then, she didn’t particularly care, all her attention focusing on simply not falling under the surface, knowing that if he did, she probably wouldn’t make her way back, and she’d fall into the darkness, the abyss, never to be seen again.

How much blood did it take to lure a shark to you? That frightening and horrible thought filled Lavena, and if she had been capable of it, she would have panicked. She was sure there was enough blood in the water to lure sharks to the crash site. Were they going to survive only to be eaten? She thought that she’d rather drawn. Deciding not to say anything to Valen, she kept on swimming, still refusing to let her case go, although it was foolish to keep it.

”Valen… How much further?” she asked weakly