Alone in the deep blue of the Atlantic was a bright white speck, which as you got closer, resolved into the shape of a large, sleek yacht, bobbing serenely in the play of the waves, churned frothy water spreading out behind it. A handful of men and women were on deck, some involved in the many tasks of running the ship, others simply enjoying the sun.
The captain of the 'Karma' reflected on the weather of the last twenty four hours as she leant against the rail of the forward deck, gazing contentedly out over the waves. It hadn't quite been a storm, as the highest swells of the ocean had crested at no more than twelve feet, but in any event, the captain thought proudly, 'Karma' had weathered it well.
Her thoughts returned to the present. The skies were clear, with only a few small ribbons of cloud off to the south patching the otherwise bright azure blue.
Nice sunbathing day, she noted to herself, glancing back wryly at two of her crew who had oiled up and were causing havoc for anyone wanting to cross the deck of the starboard side of the yacht.
As she turned back to the sea, a pinprick of light grabbed her attention. Her eyes narrowed as she peered at the horizon intently... seeing nothing but featureless - there! Another glint, and after a few seconds, another.
The captain turned from the rail to look for some binoculars, just as her friend's voice addressed her from the small bridge.
"Alison?" He called. "Radar's showing a blip ahead, you want to check -"
"I see it, Davey," she cut in, entering the small cabin and declining his offer to see the radar for herself. "Any idea of it's direction?"
She shifted a haphazard pile of papers from a desk and grabbed the binoculars hiding beneath.
"Doesn't seem to be going anywhere," Davey mused, tapping one finger on the radar display. "Sorta... drifting, or something."
Alison raised her eyebrows. "It's not anchored, then?"
"Nope," Davey replied, looking out of the window as if he might be able to see the ship. "We're closing on it, but it's definitely drifting eastwards. Might be drag from the Gulf Stream?"
Alison made a noncommittal noise, and trotted back out onto the deck with the binoculars. Once at the fore, she aimed her gaze in the general direction of the glint on the horizon and teased the binoculars into focus. It took several moments, but she finally latched onto the ship that was throwing the sun's light at them. They had gained a fair bit of ground on the drifting vessel, and with the aid of the binoculars Alison could easily make out it's shape and configuration. And the seeming absence of on-deck crew.
"Strange..." she murmured, lowering the eyeglasses slowly and staring at the distant white speck.
"What's up?" Alison heard her friend Rachel ask. The tall girl had interrupted her sunbathing, and had propped herself on her elbow to look in Alison's direction. The young, dark-haired man beside her woke at the sound of her voice.
"Probably nothing," Alison answered after a pause.
Rachel pulled a face and, slipping her feet into some deckshoes, stepped alongside Alison. "That doesn't look like a 'probably nothing' face," she said, pointing a finger at her friend's frown. She looked out to sea. "What is it? That ship?"
"It's another yacht," Alison told her, "pretty similar to the 'Karma' actually, maybe a little bigger." She raised the binoculars before continuing and scanned the yacht again, much closer now. "Good condition, a beautiful ship... rigging's okay, but..." Alison stopped, confused.
Rachel waited, but nothing was forthcoming. "But?" she prompted, hopefully.
"I can't see anyone on board."
Rachel looked at her friend intently, thinking she was playing a joke or something similar. Alison's face didn't change though, and no smile broke the firm line of her lips.
"That'll be because they're all below, then," she said, unnerved by Alison's manner, and looked back as if for confirmation to the others who had now gathered to see what was going on.
"Rachel," Alison said slowly, "they're not anchored, they're drifting, and there's no one on the bridge." She turned around to face her friends.
"That yacht's empty..."
Notes |
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