Category: tales
LB – Looming
Outside they check the airplane carefully. The antenna is in perfect condition, but the tip of one wing and the left wheel are crooked. For the rest, everything is fine. Against Bruce’s fear, the plane is firmly placed on the ground, next to the cliff but not in the brink.
“To be a forced landing, it was perfect…” says Sylvia admired.
“It’s me, please… What did you expect?”
Sylvia, ignoring his joke, looks closer the damaged wheel.
“If I had some tools, maybe I could fix it…”
“Really?”
“Yeah, it’s not completely broken. I can try at least…”
She didn’t finish her phrase that Bruce runs into the plane.
Minutes later, he comes back notoriously disappointed.
“No tools.”
Sylvia slowly moves her head; she didn’t expect tools, all in all they went to a nice ride through the sky and a picnic.
Bruce looks up to the sky.
“Isn’t it weird that it’s so cloudy?” he asks.
Sylvia looks up too.
“Yeah…”
“It wasn’t this way when we started the flight.”
“True.”
They both look at the sky but no explanation shows up.
“Maybe it’s going to rain?” she suggests tentatively.
“Mmm… Yeah… It could be.”
But it’s obvious he isn’t much convinced.
“Anyway. Let’s have our picnic.”
Bruce turns and gets in the plane followed by Sylvia.
BD – Sylvia
It’s the 1st day of summer, Sylvia is tired of her work and decides to take a proper holiday… she decides to go on a journey, so she goes to the nearest bus station with her luggage, searching for a way to finally relax herself. She waits for the bus, for an unknown destination… bus is late as usual, but this allows her to make new acquaintances. Sylvia sees this guy on the floor and looks away; he reminds her too much her former boyfriend, a guy that she hopes not to see ever again. She also hopes not to see any of his or her friends. All of them got her completely stressed, sick and exhausted. She needs a start over urgently.
LB – Landing
After the forced landing (the glade was too small to make a proper one), they look each other and the landscape through the window.
“Hope we’re not in the brink.” says Bruce.
“Seems to be stable…”
“By now…”
Bruce looks at her face for a moment.
“That compass…” he says.
“Which one?”
“The real thing.”
She takes it out of her pocket again.
“It’s beautiful. Who gave you this?” he says taking it to behold.
It’s a careful handicraft, made in the style of the ancient instruments, wrapped by a box of leather and thin hard wood. It has a tiny lock and a ring for attaching purposes.
“Why you think it’s someone who gave it to me?”
“I know when it’s a gift.”
“Oh! David gave it to me.”
“Which one?”
“The Scottish.”
“Ah! Is he into you?”
“Well… I didn’t ask…”
Bruce makes a noise somewhat similar to a laugh. After studying it a bit more, he gives it back to her.
“Really good.”
Sylvia saves it inside her pocket. The compass still looks like if it went mad, but moving slower.
“Yeah, he said that given I’m always traveling and taking photos, it would be of use.”
“Oh, yeah!”
Bruce carefully stands up to see if any inner damage was done to the aircraft. Meanwhile, Sylvia takes the radio to make an emergency call.
“Mayday Mayday Mayday. Aircraft…”
Bruce comes back thinking she stopped because she didn’t know the airplane data.
“It’s written there.” he says pointing a paper hanging at her right.
“No. It’s not that.”
“What’s wrong?”
Sylvia pushes the radio button; only the noise of opening/closing communication is audible. There’s no radio signal, not even background noise.
Sylvia looks at Bruce in despair. If they can’t communicate, who’ll seek them… And when.
Bruce ponders for a moment, moving nervously.
“Let’s go outside. Maybe we can fix the antenna.” says Bruce.
“Okay.”
They open the door, loom and jump outside.