[quote]"Don't think you can trick me with your words, witch!" she exacted with conviction. "I'm no fool as to listen to the words of a demon, whose foul magic I just suffered!" It didn't seem like reasoning with her would be fruitful, the unhinged woman's judgment entirely clouded by fearful prejudice and distress.[/quote]

Sonia had grown tired of hearing it to the point of complete numbness. She had given her options and would not force any of them upon them. But to think about it again, it was the child that matters now. She deserved better than... this. And to have Sonia almost turned away from them had been such a sorry state of affair. 

Then, came the second voice of reason, delivered with such impact. The slender mage stepped forward. 

[quote]'Listen to the woman, if you know what's good for you-- There's only ONE witch around here, and it's ME.'[/quote]

He boomed, and then the air changed, winds howling and the sky darken. He lifted up his hand, and suddenly an arcane aura formed. He stood before the woman seeming now tall beyond measurement, terrible and ethereal. And needless to say, such a display of power replaced the woman's fear and distrust with pure, real terror. And between her pleadings and cries, she shifted to Sonia, asking for it to stop. 

Then the mage let his hand fall, and the aura faded. After a few more words, he left, just like a subsiding storm. Sonia was equally stunned by the show but quickly recovered, and now in front of her was the same mother, full of suspicion and bigotry she was, but now terrorized and scared. Sonia couldn't say in which state she would be more reasonable. 

With all that was left of her now-dwindling kindness, she smiled at them. "Please help yourself and rest. You are free to join us... or not."

The last part was uttered with clear frustration. On one hand, she was glad there was someone who put his trust in her, in another hand, she felt patronized by him butting up on something she can resolve peacefully. [i]Might as well beat the mother into submission if we are to use fear to control.[/i] 

Sonia was far from being illusioned by the grim reality they were in right now, and she knew there will be a time when she had to use a similar method to keep people in line. But that was as far as her premature consideration went. If someone expected her to be in charge, she needed people to trust, listen and be willing to work with her. Awfully optimistic and probably would get them so far, but she had to try, and maybe time will weed out those who did not adhere to the same principle. 

But once again she thought it all too prematurely. Surely she could not be the only one with a plan. That would be incredibly helpful if someone else would come up with a better solution. 

Being a leader had never been her strong suit. She kept reminding herself of that fact. 

__________

The smell of grilled seafood was thick in the air and everyone had gathered to have their fill. Looking up to the sky, it was already past noon and certainly, time would not wait. If they wanted for some coordination, now was the time to lay out a plan and find the common ground. 

Standing upon a half-buried boulder, Sonia was ready to make an...announcement? Like any other normal person, public speaking was a Yikes for her.

[color=a187be]"Everyone, would you be so kind to spare a bit of your time, please? Thank you. My Name is Sonia Al-Hathya, a hunter by trade. As you might have noticed, we are in a very difficult situation now and-"[/color]

Stopping mid-sentence, Sonia decided to discard her formal demeanor and be more direct. After all, they are in the wilderness, her hunting ground for goodness' sake!

[color=a187be]"We are stranded, to put it simply. On an island somewhere in the equatorial zone. That could possibly mean help will be weeks or even months away. Fortunately, being a tropical island means food will not be a difficult resource to obtain provided that this group conducts a thorough exploration of the interior of this island on a regular basis." [/color]

Sonia glanced at the so-called group and mentally assessed their capability. A few mages, a traveler who travels a lot, some cabin crews, and many civilians, mostly upper-class citizens, usually not much of survivalists, but she hoped the men could at least do some physical work. Could be a pain in the neck to deal with all that pompous attitude. A speculative assessment, yes, nevertheless if there was a different view, she wanted to hear it now. 

[color=a187be]"Now I am sure some of the upstanding gentlemen here already have a better grasp of our situation even before I addressed this matter. Let us not dawdle any further, does anyone have a plan? Let's hear it."[/color]


    [@spiral origin][@Grade][@A5G][@Eviledd1984][@wierdw][@Zim0cron]