Cry of the Ghosts

Andrea stepped into the rowboat and headed for the Marie Celeste. A majestic pod of dolphins could be glimpsed in the water nearby, which took Andrea's mind off her fears. A part of her felt that this was all a dream and that she would wake up back at Croix Keep and be nagged at by her father just like she had always been. But the ache of her arms was all too real.

Once she had arrived at the ship and climbed up the riggings, however, she felt no relief. She knew in her mind that there was no danger on the Marie Celeste. But she found that now that she had experienced something else and was no longer used to it the silence of the ship frightened her more than the noises of the island. When she'd arrived on the ship it had been vibrant and full of noises. But now there was nothing. Nothing at all. Even the cries of the sea birds seemed distant--were they keeping away from the ship for a reason? No, that was madness. But surely an entire ship's crew and passengers disappearing was also madness?

She was about to dismiss all these fears from her mind and get some much-needed sleep when the silence was broken by a scream. It sounded far-off and ghostly at first but grew louder and louder. Andrea fought down the urge to scream herself. She had to keep her wits about her no matter what.

A ghostly figure began to appear in front of Andrea. It was a figure Andrea recognized all too well. This seemed to be Alys, a young woman from Malboncton around Andrea's age who'd been headed for the New World. Her family was poor and she was certainly no noblewoman, but she and Andrea had become friends. No, it was her--she had the same open face, the same dark blue eyes, the same dirty-blonde hair. But her face was contorted into a scream of agony. "Andrea!" she cried out. Her voice was loud but it seemed like a distant echo. "Help me! Please help me!"

Then other ghostly figures began to appear. Every single person who'd been on the ship seemed to be here. There was Stephen Urqhart, the captain of the ship. There was Thomas, the handsome young man from Gana whose attention Andrea had tried and failed to attract through all the voyage. Their voices joined Alys in a chorus of agony, every single one of them crying out to Andrea to help. Andrea wanted to run, but where could she run to? The ghostly figures crowded the whole deck.

Then, as suddenly as they had appeared, the ghostly figures faded away. Only Andrea remained, her heart thumping in her chest.

1. After a while, Andrea decides that this was a mere hallucination due to lack of sleep. She goes down to her cabin to get some sleep.
2. Then Andrea hears the soft padding of footsteps. She is not alone on the ship.

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