Free Arcene: The Island by Al K. Line Page B

in the now, taking in as much of the experience as possible, not letting other things crowd your mind and stop you truly experiencing the real world. It was easy to go through life only half-awake, never present, so Arcene became one with herself, opened her mind and her senses to the moment and lived life to the fullest. How it was meant to be. Something the few people still alive on the planet seldom accomplished.
    The tiny community was beautiful, in its own way. Arcene stood on the edge of the harbor wall and turned in a circle, looking first out to sea then at the buildings crowding the edge of the ancient paving, cobbles peeking through the moss that made a beautifully compact carpet of green, contrasting sharply with the white seagulls wandering around, seemingly unafraid of Arcene and her companion.
    "Leel, you leave them alone." It was no use, Leel had stayed by her side long enough and she was practically ready to burst at the sight of so much free food, apparently asking to be eaten. With her body trembling with anticipation and excitement, Leel bounded after the gulls, only to find they weren't the static snacks she had believed. The birds took to the air as one, screeching their warning to others, mocking Leel as she jumped at them, huge jaws snapping on nothing but air.
    The houses that fronted the quayside made Arcene think of dollhouses she had discovered over the years, the doors tiny, windows allowing glimpses into ramshackle interiors where nothing remained but broken furniture and the chaos wrought by infrequent flooding over the years. There would be nothing to find, little of any use, certainly no food.
    At the thought, her belly rumbled, but it would have to wait. Unless Leel somehow convinced a gull to land in her mouth there was little chance of them getting anything fresh to eat. And besides, the night was coming soon, they would have to make do with a little of what was in their pack and suffer the hunger pangs. She could deal with a lot, had, and would, but hunger was almost too much to bear.
    When a child and alone, mother lost to The Lethargy, Arcene had come close to starving on many occasions, and it explained why she was so obsessed with food now. It was almost as if her childhood experiences had dictated the kind of person she was — food was life, and Arcene wanted to live forever. She might. Being Awoken meant death was defeated, at least in the normal sense of aging.
    All she had to do was ensure she didn't get killed. Not easy when you had a keen sense of adventure and a total lack of concern for personal safety. Arcene felt invincible, believed she was put on the earth to make it a happier and more exciting place, so made it her goal in life to enjoy as much as she could — consequences for actions were not always big on her agenda, and the truth of the matter was that she often didn't care.
    "What's that smell? Ugh." Arcene lifted an arm and sniffed, she was stinky. The wind was dying down but sent a farewell breeze skirting across the harbor, rippling the calm water and blowing a lock of hair into her mouth. "Tastes like fire. I really need a wash and a change of clothes." Her hair was filthy, and as she inspected her bare arms she noted for the first time just how covered in soot and dirt they were. Her legs were almost black and she didn't even want to think about what her face would look like.
    A fire, I need a fire and something to warm water in.
    Arcene had been the scruffiest, dirtiest, most unkempt child imaginable, never thinking of cleaning or personal hygiene, but as she got older her outlook changed, and now she found the memory of that crazed child amusing. Maybe she was becoming an adult whether her body allowed it or not. The smell of her own stink was definitely unwelcome, but worst of all was having dirty hair.
    "Come on, Leel, let's see if we can find somewhere nice to spend the night, and get clean."
    Woof, woof, woof.
    Leel barked into the sky at the birds that