"The blink of an eye- that's just how quickly life can go from being sunshine and daisies to being a complete and utter cluster-fuck. In just the blink of an eye, a girl could go from having her whole life ahead of her, to not knowing which moment may be her last. At least, this is how I see it from where I'm sitting. And where I'm sitting, I should add, is in a damp, dimly moonlit cell, tied tightly to an ungodly uncomfortable chair, in the middle of an Amazonian jungle. Yep, my life officially blows more than George Michael on a Friday night."

"Christ, do you ever shut up?" A man's voice came from the other side of a door just before it loudly creaked open.

"What can I say? A girl's gotta find a way to pass the time," Valerie answered, a bit annoyed to have been interrupted. "And trust me, I've had plenty of time to come up with a little monologue, which you ruined," she added. The man took a few more steps into the room until he could be seen by the beam of moonlight shining through the single, barred window in Valerie's cell. Atoq Navarro, a mercenary who, in Valerie's opinion, took himself way too seriously, had a smug smile on his face as he looked down at her in such a pitiful state. He unlocked the door to her cell, pulled a chair for himself and sat in front of her.

"And I wonder, have you had enough time to reconsider your story?" he asked. Valerie rolled her eyes and let out an exasperated huff.

"I already told you my story. You just don't believe me. And, I'd say 'that sounds like a you problem', but you've really got my hands tied, here. That kinda make's it my problem. I really wish you would listen; you could easily fact check this," she explained. Navarro slowly got up from his seat and paced the length of the cell, presumably recalling the details of Valerie's explanation for being on that particular island. He stopped his pacing right next to her, and without warning, slapped her hard enough to leave a mark that would last well after the sting wore off. She gasped, completely caught off guard.

"That story is bullshit. Now, tell me what you know, or this won't end well for you," he threatened her, his face inches from hers, his eyes glaring, trying to intimidate her. She slowly exhaled, trying to remain calm.

"I'll say it again. I'm on an expedition by myself. I received a grant from my university to do field research here, and that's all. I'm here looking for fossils- I'm studying evolution. It's my job. I gotta tell ya, I'm getting really tired of repeating myself," she explained calmly. Navarro let out a small, fake laugh.

"Come on. Help me help you. Do you honestly expect me to believe that these supposedly intelligent people let a lone woman come to a dangerous, uncharted island on her own to research some stupid fossils? Please, make it easy on yourself, and tell me something I can believe. And think long and hard about what you choose to say next." There was a long pause before Valerie was ready to answer.

"Okay," she sighed. "Do you have hair growing in your ears or something? I mean, you're obviously blessed with thick hair. It's just- you seem to have a bad hearing problem. You should really get that checked out," Valerie said with a smile playing on her lips. She may have started laughing, but her smile was quickly wiped away when he struck her so hard that he knocked her seat off balance. She collided with the cold, hard stone floor and fought the urge to let out a loud groan. She instead settled for a silent cry. At least he couldn't see her tears. She could hear the shuffling of his feet behind her, coming closer. He kneeled beside her and stroked her matted hair before roughly grabbing it and lifting her head off the ground.

"I'm going to leave you here for the night- just like this. And tomorrow, I'm going to give you one more chance. If I think you're lying, I'm going to put a bullet in that pretty face of yours. So, rest up. You've got a big day tomorrow," he said before letting go and leaving without another word, leaving Valerie lying on the floor. She took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. She could feel the panic slowly boiling up inside her. She continued to take slow breaths until she could suppress the sensation of drowning that she always felt when she was panicking.

"Yup," she said to herself. "definitely more dicks than George Michael on a Friday night…on a gay cruise. Let's be real here; I'm probably going to die tomorrow. I don't have the energy- or time- to process this, so I think I'll skip denial, anger, depression and bargaining and just go straight to accepting that I'm fucked. I guess I've lived a full life for twenty-six, and this is a hell of a way to go out. It's a better ending than I could have ever imagined for myself. All I can do now is come up with my famous last words and wait," Valerie thought out loud to herself.

Plip…plop…plip…plop

A harsh rain had come earlier in the day, and what was left was now slowly dripping and collecting in a pool in the small, barred window of Valerie's cell, keeping her from getting any sleep. She resorted to counting drops, rather than sheep, until the first signs of daylight could be seen. Footsteps could be heard just outside the room, and Valerie became more tense as they approached. The door swung open loudly, and a different man walked in. He looked down at her lying on the floor, shivering, and she glared up at him.

"Let me guess- you must be 'good cop', right? 'You gonna pretend to be my friend, offer me some coffee, maybe a cookie, and try to get some info out of me? Look, I already told your fuck-face friend everything, so do me a favor and get it over with," she said, feeling particularly bitter. This new man smiled and laughed.

"I like you. You're fiery," he said as he unlocked her cell and joined her inside. He gently lifted her seat upright and sat directly in front of her. "He really did a number on you, didn't he?" he marveled as he looked her over, gently touching a cut on her face from falling on the floor, and then pulling away when she winced in pain. "I bet he didn't even ask your name. Would you tell me?" he asked. Valerie couldn't help rolling her eyes.

"You're seriously doing the good cop routine. Fuck off."

"You're upset. I get it. Why don't I start with my name? It's Eddy." There was a long pause while the two stared at each other, Eddy waiting expectantly, and Valerie disinterested. "Okay, look," Eddy started when he realized they were getting nowhere, "I believe your stupid fossil story. I think you may be able to help us find what we're looking for. We find strange artifacts all the time. We have hundreds of pictures of imprints and markings taken all over the island that we don't know what to make of. When dipshit comes down to interrogate you later, I suggest you tell him what he wants to hear, and you make him believe we need you, got it?" There was another long pause, yet he seemed more confident that he'd get an answer now.

"I guess I don't have anything to lose. Either that, or die, right?" Valerie exclaimed, not so much answering Eddy as much as thinking out loud again. "I just wish I had some idea what to say," she added, looking up at him expectantly.

"You ever hear stories about El Dorado?" he asked her.

"The city of gold? Sure, I guess. Ancient civilization that I believe the Spanish were after? I dunno, why? Do you guys really believe a place like that exists?" she asked in disbelief that anyone could be so crazy. Eddy just shrugged and got up from his seat and stepping towards her in one motion.

"My boss believes, that's all I know. If you don't want to die, you better make them believe they need you," he said as he gently laid her on her side again. He then exited her cell and locked it behind him.

"Hey, wait," she stopped him before he left the room completely.

"I don't know why you're helping me…but thank you. My name is Valerie." Eddy slowly turned around with a disingenuous smile on his face.

"I'm not doing this for you. I don't get paid until we find El Dorado, and if I think you can be at all useful, I'm not going to let dipshit kill you just so he can feel tough," he said bluntly before closing the door behind him. Valerie wasn't quite sure what to make of her situation now.

"Oh, god," she suddenly thought to herself, "I hope he doesn't expect some weird, sexual favors if I manage to pull this off." The thought alone made her want to vomit. "I mean, how long has it been since any of us have bathed? No one ever comments on these things in movies or video games, but it's true! And it's disgusting." She kept thinking the conversation over and over trying to decide if this Eddy could be trusted. No matter how she looked at it, whether he could be trusted or not, the fact remained that she had absolutely nothing to lose. Just as she was beginning to grasp her reality, footsteps could be heard approaching.

Shit, that was fast. I didn't have time to think of a story, Valerie thought to herself, quietly for once. Her heart rate jumped to a dangerous pace when she saw the door opening. As she expected, Navarro stepped into the room, looking as smug as she had remembered the night before. Her blood began to boil the longer she looked at his face. Some people just carry a certain air of arrogance and douche-baggery that Valerie couldn't stand.

"Sleep well?" he asked, being blatantly condescending.

"Ha! You're too funny. What clown college did you graduate from?" Valerie asked in the same condescending tone. The smile now vanished from Navarro's face, clearly annoyed that she wasn't feeling more cooperative yet.

"You are so relentlessly annoying," he sighed as he unlocked her cell and approached her. He lifted her back up and sat across from her. She could see in his facial expression that he was in no mood for jokes now. She stole a glance at the gun holstered on his leg and again felt her heart rate jump. "So," he began, and Valerie quickly looked back up at his face, "are you ready to talk?" Valerie took a deep breath, if only for just a few more seconds to come up with a story.

"Okay," she began, "I am an archeologist, and I am studying fossils. That was true. But…" she stalled, not sure what to say. He looked like his patience had just about run out, and he quite conspicuously put his hand on his gun. "I'm not studying evolution," she lied. "Truthfully, I'm looking for evidence of a lost civilization, and that's all. I know the Spanish were here at one point looking for…something. I thought my background might give me an edge, so here I am." That was it. That was the best she could come up with on the fly, and she was praying to whatever powers may be that it was enough. Navarro was seeming notably interested now.

"Look- I don't want trouble. In fact- I want to help," she continued, and his expression changed from mild interest to complete shock. "You're looking for it too, right? The lost city? El Dorado?" she asked.

"Shut up!" he ordered her suddenly, and she froze, afraid to even breathe. He stood up and began slowly circling her, like a shark circling its helpless prey.

Shit, shit, shit! He's not buying it. I gave away too much. I think he knows someone helped me. Shit, fuck!

"I don't like you," he plainly stated. "I don't think you're being completely honest with me. But, your 'background' may prove useful yet. I would hate to kill you without giving you a chance. As it turns out, we've found quite a few strange imprints and artifacts that you may be able to shed some light on," he said. Valerie let out a sigh of relief.

"You don't say," she breathed.

"I am going to make you an offer that you can't refuse," Navarro said, now behind Valerie, his hands on her shoulders and his face inches from hers. "You work for me now. I'll give you a prestigious title as 'head archeological expert' on this little expedition. You help us find what we want, and be a good girl, and in return, I don't kill you." Valerie quickly nodded.

"Yes, I accept, thank you," she sputtered, just overwhelmingly glad to be alive still. He then untied her and she stretched her arms and legs before standing up for the first time in days.

"You'll be working very closely with mercenaries on this island. You'll quickly learn how things work here. I suggest you become acquainted with their leader, Eddy." He explained, before giving her a light shove on her back, suggesting her to get moving. Valerie began walking, Navarro behind her. "Oh, and if I think for one minute you're dicking around or lying, I will kill you," he nonchalantly added as he shut the door behind the both of them.

The blink of an eye. That's how quickly Valerie's life went from completely fucked, to only mildly fucked. Still, if she could live another day, she would take it.

"And that's the story of how I became a pirate," Valerie proudly stated from the passenger seat of Eddy's jeep about two weeks later. Two of his pirates in back groaned.

"Will you please shut up? We've heard the story at least ten times now," one of them said.

"Oh, you boys already know the answer is 'no'," Valerie said with a smile. She noticed Eddy silently smiling to himself as he continued to drive.

"Settle down you three," he said. "We're getting closer to the crash site. Be ready in case there are any survivors." They all nodded in agreement. Valerie struggled with the very idea of putting someone in the same situation she was in not too long ago. She wasn't a pirate, and she wasn't a murderer. She was only lucky to be slightly useful to these people, and she planned on riding that train as far as she could, always worrying about what she would do on the day that train finally wrecked. She had no idea though, that that day would be today.