Carissa had been swimming breaststroke at a medium pace, not enough for her to build up a sweat but she could feel her heart beating marginally and it gave her a little more time to work out the capabilities of the skin tight grey suit which had fixed itself to her.
Friction was reduced although not to a massive degree and relying on her own swimming ability meant that she was able to make some distance in the random direction that she had chosen earlier. The water remained warm and the sun bright enough but the air itself tasted different in a way, purer even without any hint of pollution.
The lack of salt in the water when she had tried a mouthful and found that it made the inside of her mouth tingle slightly but little other reaction was another sign that she was wary of.
There was no signs of land or boats, noise carried well though across the waves and she heard vague sounds but nothing clear enough. The suit itself maintained her thirst and hunger though, that or she had been drugged and fed through a drip to make sure that her body was sufficiently full for the experiment.
Stopping for a moment and letting the suit to the floating she lay on her back and gazed up into the blue skies. Carrisa was unable to gauge how far she had swum; it had been partially to de-stress given that she was unable to still access her shark tooth necklace.
She did find though that by concentrating on her previous messages she was able to read through them once more. Besides her body modifications being restricted the rest of the messages made little sense to her aside from the set tasks that she was meant to perform.
‘A test subject, or a candidate. The levels and equipment mean conflict especially when it comes to group survival.’ said Carissa.
It was then she heard a sound, a human voice calling out from a distance away. Given the water carried sound she wasn’t sure how far away it would be, but it might provide her with some answers.
At least it would progress her time in this experiment and if they proved a threat well her teeth were still sharp and she had more than enough experience dealing with those who saw themselves as predators in her old life.
A female voice, younger than her but not by much. A few years at most. Not panicked but looking for help.
‘Hello? I need to make a group, over here! We have a boat. I repeat, we have a boat! Join our group for safety!’
She saw in the distance a vague blob on the edge of her vision. Hard to make out but her brain was able to filter through unnecessary distractions and make out the colour.
Yellow, bright yellow. Inflatable.
Safety.
Another test subject.
Or a trap.
The design looked simple enough but it only looked large enough to hold two or three people at a time. Not quite a group unless that was want counted according to the instructions.
Either way, Carissa had little choice. She had next to no equipment if she counted her suit, and any of her physical enhancements and augmentation had been disabled. To work out exactly what she been deactivated through drug use or surgery she would need to examine her own body and run several through checks.
Even if she could remove her suit entirely, she would lose the floatation support it provided and lastly, she was stuck in a large body of water with no memory of how she arrived.
A boat could provide her with the illusion of safety and perhaps even answers. And if the young woman and her friends or fellow group members proved a threat. Well, Carissa needed protein regardless. Her lack of hunger and thirst weren’t going to last forever.
‘Here! Over here!’ shouted Carissa, pushing more than a little emotion into her voice.
Liam had always said that her secondary calling should have been an actress the way that she could switch her voice and personality to match different situations. Still, it was emotionally draining and there was only so long that she could disguise herself. As long as the young woman didn’t recognise her immediately on sight there was hope.
‘I’m here! I’m going to swim towards you! Thank you so much! Please wait, don’t leave me!’ shouted Carissa.
The young woman heard her shout and cupped her own hands to amplify her own voice across the waters in the vague direction of Carissa.
‘I heard you, swim over to me, follow the sound of my…oh screw it. Follow the flare! You need to follow the flare before it runs out! Can you hear me! Wave your arms if you can hear me!’
Carissa complied by halting her swimming and waving both arms above her head. She had been expecting a large amount of colourful smoke to waft across the waves but was met with a single bright light shining on the ocean, sparks blazing outwards.
‘I can see you waving, come over in my direction! The waves don’t stop the suit, use the suit to move faster! I’m here for you, come over here!’ shouted the young woman.
Carissa made the swift decision to continue with breaststroke but push herself harder to reach the small inflatable orange inflatable. She didn’t trust the flare to not die out and although the skies were bright and clear she wanted visibility.
Just in case this is a trap.
For all Carissa knew, they could have several people waiting underwater as soon as she approached. She’d try her best though. Rather than wasting her breath on replying to the young woman she kicked her legs harder and pulled her arms through the water, willing the suit to boost her swimming and found that the friction drag on her body had reduced.
‘You’re doing it! Great! Come here! We need to make a group! Follow the flare!’ shouted the young woman, enthusiasm in her voice at the reaction from Carrisa.
Despite the swimming going smoothly Carissa still had the sense of emptiness within her body and a greater fatigue placed on her body. Two dozen more metres and she’d be within close reach of the woman. Her arms pulled harder and she kept her head pulled up out of the water swimming in a steady progressive motion.
Details of the young woman and her boat became clearer. It was more of an emergency inflatable lifeboat but smaller than she had first imagined. No canopy, but a mixture of yellow and oranges, designed to enhance visibility when lost on the ocean. The figure came into Carissa’s view as the water that splashed into her face fell off as soon as it touched her.
Odd.
‘Almost…almost there! You’re doing it! Here, just here!’ called out the young woman.
To her surprise she tried standing up and waving the flare in one hand to make sure that Carissa knew where she was. Her actions on the relatively calm waters still almost made her tip off the small inflatable life raft and she swiftly sat down again.
Her limbs were beginning to ache and the suit, while reducing friction as she swam through the water hadn’t eliminated it entirely. Once she was in a dozen metres of the raft she stopped and waved a hand at the woman. Close enough for her to get a closer look, but with enough distance in case this was part of the experiment.
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‘Heya. Thanks for your flare, it really helped me find you fast. Are you by yourself or is there a group hanging around?’ said Carissa with a bright smile and a casual waving hand as she tried to relax her posture in the water.
The young women were better equipped than Carissa had been, she wore a grey skin-tight suit with a green life jacket, matching goggles, a hat and a colourful backpack. Her face showed her relative youth with an awkward smile attached.
Enough fat on her body that the skin tight suit was packed tight but her eyes were bright with the energy of youth. As Carissa had been once, frizzy blonde hair tied back in a bun with her head, face and neck exposed to the elements.
She bent down and carefully crouched over the side extending an arm for Carissa to grab onto. When Carissa didn’t respond immediately, she spoke.
‘Yeah, do you want to come on board? I’m not here to fight, I’m here to help and give you guidance and a safe place to stay for a few nights. My leader Mike, he’s got a bunch of us out looking for other survivors so we can help each other a little in this crazy game. Wow, I’m sorry, uh, if you swim over here, I can help you on board. Kind of a tight squeeze but we have more space back at the shelter. I’m Sheri. My flare worked, you’re my first new member of the group. Here, takes my arm.’
Tensing herself, Carissa allowed herself to float a moment longer. The young woman stopped and put her hand on her mouth.
‘I’m sorry, I don’t know sign language. Can you talk? You understand what I’m saying right? Some of us on the boat come from different places, I think. It’s confusing.’ she spoke softly.
Carissa sighed and gently pushed herself forward as she swam the last dozen metres slowly and extended her arm out as the young woman pulled her onto the inflatable life raft. If it was a make that she knew she didn’t recognise it nor the brand. As she was helped out of the ocean, water ran off Carissa in sheets and she emerged fully dry.
Her face turned into a bright smile and she replied to the young woman. The pair of them took a seat inside the inflatable, making themselves comfortable before Carissa decided to extend a hand. The fact that the other woman was holding a flare was a minor threat but she hadn’t used it to threaten.
Yet.
‘Hi there, thank you so much for saving me. I’m Carissa. Goodness, this is a situation. I understand you perfectly.’ said Carissa.
The younger woman showed a degree of surprise on her face at Carissa’s lack of equipment besides her suit but the smile put her at ease somewhat.
‘Uh, did you lose your stuff when you were swimming? I’ve got a spare bottle of water if you want but we’re meant to be rationing as best as we can. Mike has more answers than I can give, he’s there to help. We all are in our own way. Kinda odd that you started with nothing. Sorry, that came out wrong, I’m not saying we won’t help if you don’t have anything. I’ve been there, believe me.’ said the young woman.
Carissa made herself comfortable on the boat and looked at the still lit flare in the woman's hand before she flipped her open palm towards it.
‘Ah! I totally forgot that I was holding it, no wonder you kept your distance. Wait a second, it turns out by itself. The item description says that each one only has five uses at a time…there we go. Out now. Also, it said clearly that it can’t be used as a weapon against Starter Candidates. Did you see any other survivors?’ asked the young woman.
Shaking her head, Carissa pointed at the flare.
‘An item description? No, I didn’t see anyone else. There were shapes beneath the water and my equipment…well I wasn’t assigned any. Or it was lost when I was surfacing, I’m not quite clear. There are others, can you bring me to the rest of your group? I’d like to try and find a way out of this experiment before it gets dangerous.’
The young woman gave Carissa a curious look before shrugging her shoulders and putting the extinguished flare into her backpack. She had one hand inside and pulled it out offering a basic glass bottle of water with the top removed.
‘Sorry, did you want a water? We can feed you a proper meal when we arrive at the refuge. Chas is a decent cook. You’ll like him, although Mike is our leader Are you sure you didn’t receive any system notifications yet?’ said the young woman.
Carissa focused her suit on peeling back from her head and hair, if this worked then she’d try and free her arms and legs a little. The surgery recovery scars on her chest were best left covered in case they raised too many questions. It was a little odd how this woman Sherry had no recognition of her. She’d been one of the most famous and hated figures on her planet depending on which side you took.
‘...Sherry, do you know who I am? I’m going to take off this suit and show myself better.’ said Carissa.
The grey tight suit retracted according to Carissa’s will and her face, hair and neck showed. Anyone who had seen her image previously would know her immediately. She waited for the reaction from Sherry, the boat was useful, so was the backpack and supplies within.
She’d prefer not to resort to violence early on but she was confident enough in underwater to at least find a workaround to the suit filtration systems. Experiment monitoring or not, there would be conflict eventually. Humans always did in her experience. It was part of what had drawn her to become a true mermaid when she had only been a girl.
Sherry sat back and slid the glass bottle of water into her backpack holding it tight to her chest. Her face began to redden.
‘.…Are you coming onto me? For saving your life? This is…uh, I’m not clear on…uh. You are beautiful, oh my gosh. Are you a supermodel? Like, for real, are you an actual supermodel? You are so good looking. No, I need to be strong and put this aside. How about we visit Mike? He’s the leader of our group and has a better idea about your situation. I don’t feel comfortable trying to explain it by myself. Not everyone is accepting of their situation as you seem to be. You might find it a little tricky to accept.’ said the young woman.
Turning her back Sherry reached down on one side of the inflatable life raft and pulled onto a cable before she tilted her head towards Carissa.
‘I think we need to work together on this. You pull in the cord and I’ll take this end, it’s how we’re attached to the main refuge. If we both put in the effort we can be there in fifteen minutes.’ said Sherry before looking at Carissa’s unmasked face and features. ‘I’d keep the suit on your hands for protection. I mean, you don’t want to hurt yourself.’
Coming on to you?
No. Not like that.
Of all the reactions Carissa had expected she hadn’t expected compliments and a blushing face in response to showing her features. She knew that she was a rare beauty, Liam had always made it clear how good-looking she always was and had encouraged her to dress well but still, Sherry showed a complete ignorance of who she was.
‘Thank you, Sherry. I’ll pull on the cord and reel it in, and while we’re doing this why don’t you take the time to tell me a little more about yourself and how you found yourself here.’ replied Carissa.
Carissa gave her a smile hiding part of her teeth to avoid discomfort.
‘After all, we might become good friends. I mean, you did save my life.’ said Carissa.
In response Sherry flushed again and began the process of reeling the cable in out of the water and onto the small inflatable between her and Carissa.
‘Um, I’m a Gemini. I like seafood a lot and I get panic attacks sometimes. I was part of a team before but you won’t understand what I’m talking about. In happier days, one time in a restaurant my friends ordered this giant blue lobster as a practical joke on my birthday and…’ began Sherry.
Carissa listened to the younger woman prattle on as they both reeled in the line, drawing the inflatable boat closer to its destination. She needed to get clearer answers on the nature of this experiment from the leader of a group called Mike in a place that was called refuge.
Entirely elaborate but the fact that there was no engine attached to the inflatable boat aside from a cord didn’t make any sense to Carissa. Not that she was going to question the oddness of it yet, given the emptiness of the surrounding ocean it didn’t make any sense that it was able to randomly float exactly in her direction without either paddles or realistically an onboard engine.
Her attention focused on the odd details she had no answers for Carissa nodded and agreed with the strange new woman as she listened as the inflatable raft made its way across the calm waters of the ocean to its destination. A message drifted across her eyes.
[Candidate Number 5428119402
-Warning HTS Mode (34:00 Hours Cooling Countdown)
-Temporary Survivor Beacon Locator Activated]
Suddenly, Carissa was aware of Sherry next to her. As another candidate of this game, the location of her fixed in her mind. Ignoring the message which she dismissed as a clever visual effect and another factor for this experiment, Carissa focused her energies on a most important task.
Winding up the line as it was reeled in and making sure it was organised into a neat pile in the centre of the raft. The mindless chatting from Sherry continued as Carissa closed her eyes and tried her best to relax and slow her mind.