The Princess and the Pirate, Ch 17, The Waterfall

Fioretta had never felt so human in her entire life. She had always felt loved and protected by her parents, but ever since her doomed trip had begun, she had undergone such a range of emotions and experiences that she never even knew existed. She had felt base fear at being captured by pirates and almost being drowned in the sinking vessel. Helplessness through her captivity had tried to envelope her. Hope and a sense of renewed purpose had surged through her breast in finding her long lost brother. Sheer terror had choked the breath from her as Christopher's life hung in the balance during and after the sword fight on the beach. An undeniable sense of loss and humiliation had descended upon her when Captain Matthew's father had discovered her secret. A distinct note of depravity had clawed through her body as she fought starvation and the filth of her next imprisonment. Now she felt a lurching in her stomach unparalleled with anything she had ever experienced as she free fell over the waterfall.

Down, down, down she went with arms and legs splaying out in all directions, desperately trying to slow her descent. Then, remembering a tidbit Christopher had once given her, she scrunched her body up into a ball, knees and head tucked up to her chest and arms clinging tightly to her legs. She thought maybe she had reached the end of the world somehow, for the water just kept falling and falling. She could see nothing but foamy spray and volumes of water all about her. Only the rushing roar of the water filled her ears. She had just managed to reign her panic in enough to start praying when she hit the pool of water at the bottom of the falls.

The force of impact felt like a giant's hand slapping a fly. Yet she did not stop there. She continued down, down, down as the powerful physical forces sucked on her tiny body. The currents tugged her this way and that, and she could see nothing under the water that even gave a hint as to which way she should try to go.
Her lungs screamed for air, but she refused to give in—not until the very last second. She reached out, searching for something, anything, to help her find her way out of certain death. Her hands found only more water. Clouds of blackness began to fog her mind and her strength and will began to fade rapidly away. Then she knew the utter nothingness that exists within the unconscious mind.

The next thing Fioretta knew was the violent, bruising force of strong, grasping hands that gripped her arms and pulled her up from what surely should have been her watery grave. As her face broke the surface of the water, air screeched into her body like some bird of prey diving in for a kill. The water still tugged at her, trying to re-stake its claim, but someone much stronger than Fioretta was fighting it and winning. A strong arm went around her neck, buoying her head as her body drifted along like an afterthought.
"Take her!" a man's voice directed firmly as the arm about her slackened. She felt lifeless and limp as more strong hands grabbed her arms and legs and pulled her out of the torrent. Not knowing who had survived or who had saved her, Fioretta blacked out completely, come what may.

Fioretta awoke some time later to the sounds of manly voices. Before she opened her eyes, she felt the warmth of a crackling fire caressing her face. Her body still had that prune-like feeling of being extremely waterlogged, but she lay on a blanket on firm ground and no rain pelted her face. She listened very carefully for the sounds of her female companions, but she heard none of their sweet voices. She was afraid of opening her eyes. She did not really want to know who had survived this catastrophe and who would never again smell the sweet scent of flowers along a garden path.

The smell of stew crept into her nostrils. She wondered if she were dreaming. The last she knew, they had no food and no hope for shelter. She allowed one eye to flutter open. She lay so close to the fire she could almost reach out and touch it from where she lay. The voices became more distinct all around her. She heard Christopher, and she saw him sitting on a log near her feet. Matthew's voice began to register as she saw him sitting next to Christopher. She opened both eyes fully then propped herself up on one elbow.

"Hey, hey!" Christopher cried jubilantly. "She lives!" He got up and helped her get into a sitting position. As she looked around, Fioretta felt her heart sink. The party had been markedly reduced. Laura and Mirabelle were both, thankfully, resting near the fire as Fioretta had been, but only Matthew, Christopher, Captain Sweeney, and five other men remained.

They were all in a cave - it had to be one of Christopher's. A pot of stew bubbled over the fire, and one of the men was just bringing over a stack of bowls and spoons. Matthew began serving the stew.
Not long after Fioretta woke up, Mirabelle and Laura also roused. Everyone looked their very worst. Sticks were tangled in the ladies' hair. Everyone's clothes were still wet and muddy. Bruises had begun to show on the ladies' arms and faces. At least this many had survived. Fioretta had a million questions, but for now each person simply occupied himself with getting his fill of the delicious stew. As they ate, Fioretta could still hear the storm pounding away at the mud and splashing the water, but they were all distant sounds.

When Fioretta finished savoring her last spoonful of stew, she said, "So! Who made the fabulous stew?"
Christopher grinned, "We landed right in front of one of my caves. This one was loaded with jerky and vegetables and spices. You ladies slept like the victims of a fairy tale, so I had plenty of time to come up with something tasty."
Mirabelle hesitatingly asked, "And what of the other men? Did they survive?"
Matthew answered, "I'm afraid we could not save everyone. The others were well out of our reach. We were lucky to have saved ourselves and you three."

All three ladies shuddered involuntarily. Then each of them offered their heartfelt thanks for the men saving their lives. None of the men would own up to who saved whom. All of them stoutly stuck to the idea that it was a team effort to save the three women, though they did try to save the other men as well.
"We can't lose sight of what we're trying to do here, though," said Captain Sweeney matter-of-factly. "We have suffered great losses, but we must go on. Christopher says this little catastrophe has brought us within a few miles of the castle."

Tears welled up in Fioretta's eyes. She had never felt such a mixture of emotions between the loss of the men and the thought of the possibility of seeing her mother and father as soon as the next day. Christopher put his arm around her shoulders, and she hugged him back for the longest time. Mirabelle and Laura were also crying, and the pair pulled them into their embrace. The other men busied themselves with cleaning up after the meal.
When everyone was all cried out, all of them laid out their sleeping mats and fell into exhausted slumber.