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Deck Hand
#708090
Deck Hand
#708090
It had been three weeks since she hopped ship and set foot on Zanzibar. Leaving her last crewmates to be afterthoughts in her mind. They had been different from the usual types she travelled with, and it hadn't helped that no matter how hard she tried she couldn't wrap her mind around the very basics of their language. She was usually far better at that, but this time she had spent most of her time onboard struggling to understand even the basic gestures. They'd been somewhat understanding, or she thought they had been understanding. Perhaps she had misread them altogether? It was certainly a possibility. The amount of issues that delayed them along the way to Zanzibar certainly hadn't been her fault, but she knew tensions were high, continuing to travel with them would have been a mistake and sooner or later they would have likely stranded her anyways. Ismeria refused to make that mistake again.
Ismeria didn't mind puttering around Zanzibar till the next viable ship came along anyways. Mostly spending her time hunched over glasses of amber liquid, biding her time with relaxation rather than work. She had the skills to barter and trade for what she needed - that had gotten her quite far already. But she knew her time was ticking away, day by day, she would need to get out of here soon. Before she went crazy. The stillness had already crept beneath her skin, an undeniable itch that begged her to get moving. She never knew where it came from, what wild energy had been instilled in her upon leaving her home planet, but she knew to listen to it.
Sometimes she imagined that it was her brothers spirit, his sense of adventure guiding her every step.
She missed him.
"My favorite customer! Welcome!" Cried the barkeep. Ismeria smiled - every customer was his favorite customer. His greeting had been the same for every patron that walked through the door. Even if it wasn't sincere it was endearing.
Ismeria slid into a seat, "The usual please," She spoke, folding up her glasses and setting them aside. It was easier to take them off indoors, where the brightness didn't pierce so deeply. She rubbed at the bridge of her nose, where the glasses usually sat heavily, digging into her skin. She should really find a better solution, but it always seemed like an afterthought.
"Going to the port today?" He asked as he slid the drink her way, the liquid sloshing over the side and onto the tabletop. She wondered briefly if it would be rude to ignore him - then decided yes, of course it would be asshole, and nodded before downing the drink in one go. She needed the warmth that the alcohol would bring. She had spent much of her time on Zanzibar freezing her ass off, unable to regulate her internal temperature with the atmospheric change. Even her cloak had been of little help - not to mention that her clothes beneath were the same rags she had been wearing thin for ages. She could definitely do for an overhaul. She hoped the next place she landed wasn't suspended in the air, she just wasn't built for places like this.
"Something interesting might finally come along," She told him, though the annoyance in her tone belied the message. Fingernails picking at the grooves in the wood grain. She was usually naturally chatty but the extended period of time stuck here had sucked the social pleasantries right out of her. She'd spent the last three days loitering around the port, scoping out the ships that came in and out. So far anything that caught her eye hadn't panned out. Either the ships wound up being less than ideal or the crews would have no need for her.
"Well, I wish you the best luck," the barkeep seemed to finally sense that she wasn't in the mood. Ismeria didn't like to come off as rude - she was a rather nice person by nature. But she also didn't mind having a little silence while she drank. He refilled her cup before he left, and she set about the task of drinking that one down as well.
But she would take his wishes of luck. She could certainly do with a little extra on her side.
She left a few coins on the table as she went, feeling the buzz of the alcohol in her system as she began the trek towards the port. She was there quite early, but there wasn't exactly a timeframe for when ships were coming and going. Sometimes the more interesting ones arrived in the dead of night, swatched in shadows, and sometimes it would be in the early creepings of dawn, riding the same winds that kept the cloud cover at bay. But being out and about in the open while it was so bright out was an issue. She pulled her cloak tighter, making sure that the hood was securely fashioned.
Usually she stayed well out of sight, though the workers had seen her there enough times that they didn't seem bothered by her presence anyhow. She simply chose a spot to get comfortable, and waited patiently. One eye on her surroundings, as she quietly picked through a book detailing the history of the city. She liked to pick-up as much information as she could on the places she had been. Books were the best tools by far to do so.
It seemed though that perhaps the barkeeps luck truly was on her side today. It wasn't long before she noticed the workers scurrying to get into their positions. A ship coming in to land. She set the book aside, watching the proceedings with interest. She had seen many ships of all shapes, sizes, and materials in her life. This one though. There was something about it that piqued her interest - that might have simply been the desperation to leave Zanzibar speaking to her though. She didn't know, but she did know that whatever else, she had to get onto that ship.