The Light

Breanna Shaw was looking forward to this day. She had just completed a challenging week at work. While most of her days were hectic, Breanna subconsciously convinced herself that each following day would be easier.

She had started her marketing firm eight years prior. Shaw and Associates had begun with a staff of three, including Breanna, and now boasted a complement of two-hundred and six persons. Although she loved her career, she loved sailing even more. Today was one of those days she set aside on her schedule to sail.

Breanna packed her overnight bag and left the house. Her normal routine was sailing to Millings Island, where she would anchor offshore and spend the night on her boat. Today’s itinerary would be no different.

Arriving at the marina, she saw her boat in its usual spot at the pier. The “My Dream” was a Jeanneau, Sun Fast 3200. Breanna locked her vehicle and made her way down the pier in the cool and crisp morning air. After climbing aboard, she secured the groceries purchased on the way to the marina and prepared the boat for departure.

Breanna skillfully navigated the vessel out of the marina and out to sea. The sea spray peppered Breanna’s face as she sailed West, toward Millings Island. The sound of the gulls and wind in her hair made her feel like she was thousands of miles away from the complexities of work. She observed other boaters on the water and wondered how there could possibly be persons who did not like the ocean.

The trip to her place of mooring would take four hours and Breanna intended to take advantage of every second. As the tiny island appeared on the horizon, Breanna smiled to herself. A few hours later, she dropped anchor off the coast of Millings Island.

The afternoon breeze was warm, and Breanna sat at the stern of the boat. She opened a bottle of red wine and poured herself a glass. She listened to the ripples of water lapping against the hull as she visually absorbed the scenery around her. She was beginning to feel hungry and went below to make herself a sandwich. Breanna returned to the deck of the boat just in time to witness the sun setting on the horizon. The final flicker of orange and red danced across the water and signaled the end of a perfect day.

As darkness fell, Breanna decided to do some reading before going to sleep. She retrieved the novel from her overnight bag and brought it up to the deck. As she was about to open it, something caught her eye. Somewhere on the island, there was a faint glow. Breanna had never seen any sign of life on the island before and found this strange. Thinking it to be campers from another boat, Breanna got her infrared binoculars to search the waters along the coast for company. Seeing no other boats, Breanna refocused on the glow, but it was gone. This piqued her curiosity and Breanna began scanning the distant island for the source of the light. A few minutes later, she saw it again. She removed the binoculars to look at it with her naked eyes. She could see that it was a green light coming from one of two hills on the island. Breanna wondered if it was a distress signal.

She immediately put on a jacket, grabbed a flashlight, and launched the inflatable boat. It took her only a few minutes to arrive on the shore of Millings Island. She had explored the island once before. Breanna secured the inflatable on the sand and switched the flashlight on. It was at this point she wondered if she should have used the satellite phone on the boat to notify someone of her movements.

The foliage on the island was not dense and there were natural paths in many areas. As Breanna made her way through the bushes, a myriad of insects danced in the beam of the flashlight. She stopped periodically to keep a visual reference on the direction of the green light. The evening air was quiet, and Breanna could hear the ocean as she moved further inland. The hill was several feet away and She hoped that the climb would not be a tedious one. As she began her climb, Breanna pondered on where the light was coming from. Was it campers? Was it a stranded sailor? She was determined to solve this mystery.

The path leading up the hill was uneven and overgrown. Breanna kept the beam of the flashlight trained on the ground. She did this for two reasons; to not miss her footing and to look for signs of human movement. Thus far, the path appeared untouched. The sound of the ocean became faint, and Breanna inhaled the sweet aroma of the night-blooming jasmine. The glow of the light grew increasingly brighter as she climbed higher. The green glow was now illuminating her path. As she approached a line of trees, Breanna discovered that she no longer needed her flashlight. She was nearing the source.

As Breanna broke the tree line, she saw the source of the light. It was a small orb on the ground, illuminating a pulsing green light. Breanna stopped suddenly and observed it from a distance. Suddenly, she felt a need to approach the sphere. As Breanna moved closer, something caught her eye in the distant tree line. It appeared to be another glowing object. As she turned to run away, she found herself face-to-face with the being. As she opened her mouth to scream, a flash of light from its eyes rendered her unconscious.

Breanna opened her eyes to find herself lying on a table. She was not restrained but could not move. The room was brightly lit and the beings moving around her glided along the floor. Seeing her eyes open, one of the beings glided toward Breanna and looked at her with huge, oval-shaped eyes. It did not speak but Breanna understood what it was relaying to her. Suddenly, she was unconscious again.

Chad Brown walked into the boardroom of Shaw and Associates for the weekly team huddle. As the Chief Executive Officer, he always started the meetings. This morning’s gathering was somber as they marked the seven-year anniversary of the disappearance of Breanna Shaw. Although a massive search of the waters around Millings Island was conducted, her boat was never found. Breanna was deemed as missing at sea. Chad Brown, one of the original partners was voted as CEO when Breanna was officially declared missing.

After the meeting adjourned, Chad walked back to his office. He closed the door and poured himself a drink from the mini bar in the corner of the office. He walked over to the portrait of Breanna that she had hung many years prior. As he stared at the portrait, he felt a void. He missed his friend and former boss but knew that more humans were needed on his home planet of Zyvar. They requested an intelligent female for genetic studying and Breanna Shaw was the most intelligent woman that Chad knew. It was a huge loss for the company but a greater gain for his race.