3 bar menu

The Ghost Ship Queen Berry – Part 01

---

Translator: Kell

---

—Monologue 2—

Someone was shaking me.

When I opened my eyes, I saw jet-black eyes peering at me with concern. Her long hair, black as her eyes, was hanging to the floor.

It was a beautiful girl, about the same age as me.

“Ugh…”

As I tried to get up, the pain in my head made me wince.

The girl gasped and propped me up with her small hands.

Where are we?

What happened?

Holding my head, I looked around. It was a huge lounge, dotted with chairs and high-quality round tables. Bottles of alcohol lined the bar counter in the corner. There was a small stage, where a music sheet was left open.

Boys and girls around the same age as me were lying on the gleaming, wooden floor. There seemed to be more than ten of them. Every one of them was holding their head, grumbling about the pain.

The children were all of various races, with the overwhelming majority being caucasian. A large German-looking boy with blond hair and blue eyes, and a boy with sun-dried, curly hair who looked like he had grown up in the Mediterranean. A small, yellow-skinned boy who looked Chinese. There was also a boy and girl with the same dark complexion, but when they spoke, they became confused when they realized they were speaking different languages.

I could understand the English and the French murmurs, but not the other languages, especially when they talked fast.

The yellow-skinned boy came up beside me and helped me get up. I thanked him in French, and he nodded, as if he understood what I said.

“Where are we?” asked someone in clear English.

Their loud voice drew all the kids’ attention. A thin, caucasian boy with short hair and healthy tanned skin, was standing there.

“A grown man in a strange carriage took me. After feeding me, I fell asleep. Next thing I know, I’m here. My head hurts… What’s going on?”

I stood up and told him that the same thing happened to me.

“You guys too?” the boy asked anxiously.

The kids who understood English nodded. The freckled boy looked around the lounge. After pacing restlessly around the room, he lifted his head and stared at the door. He reached for the doorknob… and opened it.

I approached the door and peered outside. There was a long corridor. Glaring lamps illuminated the magnificent wooden walls and the crimson carpet.

The freckled boy looked at me with an anxious frown.

“Hey…” He cocked his head. “Is it just me, or is this place rocking?”

“…It feels like it.” Now that he mentioned it, the floor seemed to be swaying from side to side in regular intervals.

Where are we? What are we doing here?

A girl holding her head suddenly looked up. “Maybe it’s an earthquake! That’s gotta be it!”

The lounge stirred. Some kids rushed to get under tables. Just before everyone started panicking, the Chinese boy who helped me up said in elegant English, “No.”

Everyone turned to look at him.

“It’s not an earthquake.”

“…How can you be so sure?” the freckled boy asked.

“Because we’re not on land,” the Chinese boy said in a level tone.

“What?”

“This rocking is caused by waves. We’re at sea. This room is probably one of the cabins. We’re not in a building on land. I think it’s a ship.”

The lounge fell silent.

---

The freckled boy took a few kids who had recovered from their headaches out into the corridor. Among them was the Chinese boy from earlier and the dark-haired girl who woke me up.

Lamps brightly illuminated the corridor. The red carpet was so premium that it looked like it had never been stepped on before. My foot sank softly with each step; I felt like I was going to fall over.

“I’m sure we’re somewhere on the upper decks,” the Chinese boy said.

“How do you know?”

“On a cruise ship like this, the upper floors are reserved for first-class passengers who pay higher fares for the luxury. That’s why the lounge, the cabins, and even the corridor are so extravagant.”

“I see…”

“The lower you go, the cheaper the cabins become, cramming in second and third class passengers and facilities for the crew. The lights are dimmer and the carpets are old. Further down are the cargo hold and the boiler room. It gets filthy down there that it’s hard to believe it’s the same ship.”

“You sure know a lot,” the freckled boy muttered dubiously.

The Chinese boy gave a wry chuckle. “No need to be so suspicious. I’ve been on a ship like this as a third-class passenger.”

As we walked, we began introducing ourselves. The freckled boy’s name was Huey. The Chinese boy was Yang.

“What about you?” one asked.

“It’s Alex,” I answered. “Nice to meet you.”

“Are you French? You spoke French first, and your English has a bit of an accent.”

“No. I’m from Sauville.”

“Ah, right. That country’s official language is French.”

The dark-haired girl couldn’t understand English nor French. But she seemed to grasp that everyone was introducing themselves, so she pointed to her face, and said, “Lee.” She then used her fingers to indicate that she was fourteen years old.

As Yang explained, the floor with the luxurious lounge was located on the upper level. As we climbed the staircase, we immediately found ourselves on the deck of the ship.

One by one, we stepped out into the open. The boys’ steps made thumps on the worn wooden deck. When we all made it up, we froze.

We were really at sea.

The sea at night…

A darkness so deep enveloped the surrounding, the kind you wouldn’t imagine were you in town. Black waves made gentle, crashing sounds. A pale moon sat in the distance, casting a line of light over the sea. A dark ocean as far as the eye could see. I couldn’t see anything but the cruise ship.

One of the boys raced across the deck.

“Hello!” he shouted. “Is anyone there?! Please help us!”

There was no sound, save for the breaking and retreating waves.

The Hungarian girl scurried after the boy. She was large and chubby. She leaned over the railing and was about to scream when a sharp sound cut through the air.

A shrill scream followed.

“What’s wrong?” Huey asked.

“Something just grazed my face,” the Hungarian girl said. “When I stepped around here, something flew from over there and into the water.”

Huey reached for the girl’s face. The viscuous blood on his hands was clearly visible even in the dark.

Something had grazed the girl’s right cheek, causing a shallow gash. Blood was dripping from it. As soon as the girl noticed it, she shrieked and sank down on the spot.

Huey and Lee helped her up. They looked toward the direction the girl had pointed, but the darkness hampered any sort of vision.

Yang, who went in the wheelhouse, came back, shaking his head. “It’s no use,” he said. “The rudder’s broken. No, it was destroyed.”

“Why? Why are we even here? And there’s no sign of anyone on this ship besides us. Why are there only kids here?”

Yang shook his head. “I don’t know.”

Huey got to his feet. “We’re just stranded out here. What about the radio? A ship like this has to have a radio, right?”

“Right. Hey, Alex. The radio room’s in the bow, right?” Yang asked.

I shook my head. I didn’t know since I’d never been on a ship like this.

“It should be there!”

Huey and Yang started running, but soon came back, their heads hung low.

“What’s the matter?” I asked.

“No good. There’s a really big funnel blocking the way. We can’t get to the bow through the deck. It’s probably just a decorative funnel, but it’s too big. Like it was built in that size on purpose. We can’t get to the radio room.”

“Then what do we do?”

Huey looked up. “There’s a way. Not up here, but back inside. Go down the stairs, through the corridor, and up the stairs on the other side. That’ll take us to the bow. Let’s go radio for rescue.”

“Good idea.” Yang nodded. “I’m sure they’ll get here fast.”

I felt a soft touch on my arm. An anxious Lee was sticking close to me. We couldn’t understand each other, so I gave a nod to tell her that it would be all right.

We went back down the stairs, supporting the Hungarian girl from both sides.

The lamps still lit up the corridor brightly. The soft, red carpet felt different from a moment ago. It seemed as black as the color of blood. The Hungarian girl began sobbing quietly. Lee and I exchanged glances and put more strength into the arms supporting her.

Back in the lounge, the boys, having recovered from their headaches, looked horrified when they saw the injured girl.

They were sitting on chairs, hanging their heads down nervously. Their faces, illuminated by the chandelier, were pale, and their eyes were dark. They stood up.

“Hey…” one called.

“Wh-What’s going on?” another added.

They approached us, and Huey held them back. “I’ll explain now.”

On behalf of the others, Huey told them what happened on deck. He then suggested that we all head towards the bow where the radio room was. No one objected; they simply nodded weakly.

We all gave brief introductions. Names, age, and country of origin. And how we ended up here.

There was one thing different between all of us—our nationalities.

Britain, France, Germany, Austria, Hungary, Italy, the United States, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, China, and Sauville.

There were several people, including Lee, who did not understand the language, but apparently none of the eleven boys and girls were of the same nationality. It was as if we were gathered from all over the world.

And we had something in common.

We were all orphans. No one would come searching for us even if we disappeared.

---

---