@InkedOuroboros // I agree! I'm going to make a group chat of the people who have expressed interest. I can add you to it and we can bounce ideas there if you like?
@InkedOuroboros // Thank you for the offer! A corsair could be interesting add on character, rather than the villain (I just thought they would be interesting to explore as one), so you're welcome to get involved if you want :)
*Five hours have seen the sky dimming tonight. Her feet sting from traipsing around town, trying to make sense of her new whereabouts. But she is calm. This all makes perfect sense.*
*The sun sinks towards the horizon, leaving a trail of pastel pink and blue. Idris watches the ocean draw closer. Her teeth chatter a little from the cool breeze. She isn't sure how she got here.*
*Idris is perched at the very edge of a park bench, as though she might take flight at any moment. She makes no movement, however, other than to kick at the gravel under her trainers and bite a croissant. She is three hours late for work.*
Toad men singing in falsetto. Giant worms with four heads. An alien poetry recital. Vampire fish, allergic to garlic. Dirt that feels. A landscape entirely of crystal. *bites into croissant*
There is a light at the back of my mind. It is warm and orange, like the glow of a street lamp. It never stays still. But it doesn't flicker, either. It pulses.
-- them onto the cloth, disinterested. It is an old routine. Above the collection of screwdrivers, lie three large books on birds. A television flickers in the corner of the room. She is not paying attention to any of it. She is far away.*
*Idris is hunched over a desk. She works at polishing screwdrivers, laying each shining slice of metal to rest on a separate piece of cloth before setting upon the next one. There are thirteen screwdrivers in total, all varying in shape and siz2. Two extend into carefully --
-- carved handles, depicting floral images; another marks the initials 'JS' on workworn wood; their neighbours include the bright plastic handles of the B&Q variety. She treats each equally, with an air of both dedication and passivity, taking care to polish before abandoning --