Sophie's Fall

Sophie was having a great day. The air was so crisp and fresh in the mountains, and she periodically stopped to take deep breaths of the cool mountain air, letting it out slowly. She hiked frequently, loving the fresh air and the exercise that rode shotgun to seeing the beauty of nature. An experienced hiker and outdoorsman, she also enjoyed camping, rock climbing, fishing, and snowboarding, but she was always willing to try any outdoor activity. Some of her girlfriends had gone backpacking through Europe after high school. She would have loved to go along with them, but she refused to travel around Europe without a man by her side. She knew she was hot stuff, given all the guys that incessantly hit on her, and she didn't want to be a target for human trafficking. The world was just too cruel sometimes, and all it took was one mistake before the life was snuffed out of you, or worse.

Pausing at the top of an incline, she marveled at the scenery below. Looking out into the valley below a mountain was the best part about hiking, in her opinion. Sure, Europe was probably lots of fun to explore and experience, but she had her whole life ahead of her. With no man in her life at the time, she would simply have to wait before she visited the Old World. Taking a gap year before she went to college, she was getting her fill of the outdoors, rarely spending more than three or four hours indoors per day.

She set her pack down to get some water. Hydrated, she briefly checked the contents of her bag, as she often did when outdoors. Better to be safe than sorry, she always said. Glock and magazine? Check. Mace? Check. Phone? Check. Map and compass? Check and check. Knife? She looked at her belt and saw her knife in its holster. Check. Well, time to get moving.

The hike itself was never that bad. What Sophie found difficult about hiking was navigating. She never had a great mental image of her surroundings, so she relied heavily on maps on her phone or paper maps of trails. Dusk would be approaching in the next couple of hours, so she decided to explore for another ten minutes before turning around. Ten minutes came and went, and she hadn't seen another good view, so she sighed and turned around, aiming to get to her car before dark. Focusing on the trail beneath her feet, she almost didn't see the gap through the trees to her left. Curious, she peered through the trees to find a ridge overlooking the valley below. Excited, she stepped past a sign nailed to a tree and ignored it completely. One little mistake, and her life was about to be turned upside down.

Stepping out onto the ridge, she laughed in spite of herself at how beautiful the scenery was. How did she miss this on the way up? Furthermore, why wasn't there a clear path? Who cares? Picture time!

Sophie set her pack down and got her phone. She was careful not to get near the edge; her rule of thumb was to not get any closer to the edge than her height. She took a few pictures and smiled at the results. What a great day! I-

Just then, Sophie heard a rustling behind her. Spinning around quickly, she called out, "Who's there?"

No answer.

Must be a squirrel or a bird or something.

She returned her attention to the valley below and raised her phone. There was a flapping of wings, and then-

"HOO!"

Stumbling as a large owl was suddenly clawing at her, Sophie attempted to swat the creature away, to no avail. Just as her phone was falling from her hands and reaching for her knife on her belt, she realized that she was falling over the side of the mountain. Don't panic. You've prepared for this. Breathe. Straighten your body and spin. Close your eyes. Hands over your face. Hope for the best.

There was no way for her to know what she would be falling onto, but she hoped it wasn't rocky. She idly remembered a large tree, and-

-And now I'm falling through the branches! Fuck me!

Sophie cracked many branches on her fall to the grassy hillside below, making it incredibly difficult for her to focus on doing what she could to survive. All I need to do is spin and hope I'm somewhat parallel with the decline. And cover my face! Fuck Fuck Fuck Fuck Fuck! I love you, Mom!

A few seconds after she slipped over the edge of the ridge, Sophie impacted the ground with a breathtaking grunt, rolling for a long moment before she could draw another breath. Crying out into the wilderness, she rolled down the mountain, blind, afraid to open her eyes and find that she was about to fall again.

And then- she was motionless. When did that happen? Am I dead?

Lowering her hands from her face, she lightly massaged her forearms, which she was sure would be covered in bruises in no time, if they weren't already. Tentatively, she opened her eyes and stared up into the sky. She lay prone as she practiced her yoga, becoming mindful of each part of her body, for injuries, before she tried to stand up. Remarkably, she didn't think that she had broken any bones. Sophie was certain that every muscle in her body would be raging at her for days, but for now, incredibly, she was alive, and in one piece. She looked up to where she fell from, to judge the distance she fell, but she saw a few ridges at varying heights, and to be honest, any one of them could have been where she fell. All that she was sure of was that she had rolled a mind-boggling distance down the mountain. There was no way for her to determine where she fell from, and for that matter, no way to know what the general direction of civilization was. Cursing herself for taking her pack off, she quickly noted that she probably would have died if she hadn't taken it off, because she surely would have broken her back.

Gingerly, she got to her feet and looked around, still amazed that she was alive and relatively unscathed. Priorities? Water. Shelter. Food. She wasn't sure that she was going to get any of that before she made it back to her car, and for that matter, she didn't think she'd be leaving the mountain until the next day. At the earliest! She groaned inwardly. Sunset was fast approaching, and then she'd have to be ready for whatever nature threw at her.

Grimacing, Sophie looked up at the ridges above her. Judging the distance from each one to the hillside, she concluded that she must have fallen from the ridge closer to the ground, because she didn't think that she would have survived the falls from the other ridges. However, she didn't really think she was going to survive at all, so she didn't know what to think. Looking towards the sun, she estimated where north was and tried to recall the picture of her map in her mind, failing spectacularly. All she needed was a general direction to walk in, and then she would be able to focus on walking and surviving.

After a few minutes of looking around, Sophie shrugged and set off in the direction of her best guess, taking tentative steps because she still couldn't believe that she wasn't injured more than she felt she was. She walked for half an hour before she reached another decline. Looking past the plateau below, she thought that this might be the last treacherous expanse of land. However, that hinged upon whether or not she was remembering her map correctly, and if she even knew which direction north was. The sun didn't set at the same place on the horizon every day, after all. Axial tilt made sure of that. She sighed. She stood at the border between plateau and hill, scrutinizing the grass and wondering if she should try to slide down the hill on her butt. The grass she had been walking on was damp, and she wasn't sure if walking down the hillside was a good idea.

Off to the right, she saw a less steep decline that opened up into a rocky outcrop. There was no way of knowing if she would be able to get back to civilization using either path, so she shrugged and decided to go for the safer route. All things considered, safer was better. A risk that you accept is a risk that you should be prepared for the consequences. Not ready to die, she opted for the safer route.

Sophie made her way over to the safe route and inspected the ground at her feet. A thin strip of rocks, perhaps ten people wide as they stood, lined the edge of the steep, grassy hillside. Her nerves about slipping on the grass weighed heavily on her mind, and she once again chose the safe route. Confidently taking a step onto the rocky path-

-she suddenly found herself tumbling down the mountain once again as the seemingly reliable path turned out to be anything but. Having the presence of mind to protect her eyes, she let the rest of her body roll down the hillside, screaming at the top of her lungs this time. Sophie vaguely observed that she had taken several breaths as she fell. Her speed seemed to diminish before she slammed to a halt against something, but before she could congratulate herself on surviving another fall, she sensed that her descent into the unknown wasn't quite finished. If I ever-

"Oh, fuck me," Sophie groaned, struggling to remember what happened. Surely, I'm dead, this time.

Opening her eyes, she saw nothing. Darkness had settled across the mountainside. "Ow, fuck!" she exclaimed. She tenderly felt her head at a source of great pain. Wincing at her touch, she was glad to not feel the wetness of fresh blood. Examining her body once more, she cried out in pain. Sophie was genuinely worried now. The moonlight gradually helped her observe her surroundings. The sound of four-legged footsteps approached. What now?! Should I play dead?

She heard the footsteps advancing toward her, so she tilted her head slowly in that direction. Wolves. Wolves were not to be feared. Most people don't know that wolves are more afraid of humans than humans are of them. She breathed a sigh of relief and tried to be mindful of her body for injuries.

Before she knew it, two creature's footsteps rapidly covered most of the distance between them and her. Shit! Those aren't wolves! Those must be wild dogs, fuck! Screaming, Sophie rolled away quickly. Adrenaline coursed through her body, blocking the pain signals being sent to her brain.

Jumping up and assuming an intimidating stance, the wild dogs didn't flinch and continued advancing on her. Fumbling at her one chance for survival, she removed her knife from its hilt and braced for impact. A wolf might realize that the knife was a weapon, but she wasn't so sure that a dog would make the same conclusion.

Suddenly, she was knocked to the ground by a third dog as the first two continued advancing. Really? Three on one? Her knife was nowhere to be seen. She was outnumbered, weaker, and far less hungry than the dogs. Her willpower and her energy were fading quickly as she fought them, but then she saw a glint of her knife in the dim moonlight. Somehow, she made her way to it, and when she picked it up, she raised it menacingly in the air and screamed at the dogs in the deepest voice she could muster.

Surprisingly, the dogs had turned and ran off. Sophie squinted into the night and was able to detect a larger animal that she believed to be a baby bear. Fools. You'll come to regret leaving me. Mama bear is always near her cubs.

Sophie desired rest more than she ever had in her life, but she knew she couldn't stay there. She had to keep moving, but at the same time, she knew she shouldn't walk around a mountain in the dark that she already fell down a few times in the daylight. Taking a deep breath, she searched for any sort of opening in the mountain. Finding none, she wanted to cry. Sophie eventually sat with her back up against the rock of the mountain and held her knife in her hand until daylight. During the long hours of the night, she frequently jabbed the point of the knife into her skin through her clothing in an attempt to stay awake. She shuddered to think about what would happen to her if she fell asleep.

More than a few agonizing, slow-passing hours later, Sophie admitted to herself that she needed to get moving, having enough light to walk around more safely than if it were still dark. She struggled to stand- her muscles were stiff and aching severely. She wondered if today or tomorrow would feel the worst.

Proceeding even more cautiously than she had yesterday, Sophie trekked into the unknown. Having rolled down the mountain a few times, and not having the entire map of the area memorized, she hoped that she would be able to at least find water today, even if she didn't make it back to civilization. She wouldn't. She had no accidents as harrowing as her first night on the mountain, but she was keenly aware that she was getting very dehydrated. Headache and dizziness plagued her, and her infrequent, dark urine burned as it left her body. I am not going to die on this fucking mountain! I refuse!

Night fell once again. Sophie endured another sleepless night, then continued in an essentially random direction, having no idea where she was headed. She winced as her entire body revolted against her. Sheer willpower and adrenaline powered her now, and she unthinkingly put one foot in front of the other until she couldn't anymore. Wait- Where am I going?

The sun wasn't even halfway up the sky as she stumbled up a hill, with no idea what lay on the other side. Is the thing I need to do on the other side? Did I need to do something? When she got to the top of the hill, she cried when she saw a dirt road in the distance. Oh, is this important? One step after the other, she just had to keep going, so close to rescue. What was I doing?

She was distantly aware of her lips, the heat, her heart pounding in her ears. A ringing noise gradually consumed her. Sophie struggled to focus on her singular task of putting one foot in front of the other, even though she had forgotten why she was doing it, as confusion from dehydration had begun to consume her.

Stutter-stepping, she was faintly aware of the fact that she was a few dozen car lengths from the dirt road. Her body demanded she rest, but she was aware on a primal level that if she rested, she was surely going to die. Her steps slowed, and eventually came to a stop. Dehydration had caught up with her as she unsheathed her knife, raised it to the sky, and screamed until she dropped.

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Brad parked his car on the nameless dirt road not far from his house. Stepping out of his car, he wasn't sure what he'd find, if anything, but something seemed... off. Curious, he investigated, cautiously approaching the area that he thought he had seen something and gasping in surprise when he found an unconscious woman. Immediately dropping and checking for a pulse, his time as a corpsman in the Navy served him well as he then took note of other vital signs and inspected the woman for broken bones. Her dry skin didn't bounce back when he pinched a bit between his fingers. Opening her mouth, he was astonished to see a white tongue. Wow, she's extremely dehydrated. He briefly debated the importance of getting fluids into her versus ensuring she had no major injuries, and both won out in the end.

He was back from his car before he knew it, his legs moving him forward autonomously. Brad dropped to the ground with a bottle of water and bag of emergency medical supplies from his trunk. Cracking open the bottle of water, he dripped it onto her lips slowly as he searched through his bag with his other hand. A pair of heavy-duty scissors glinted in the morning sunlight, and he took them out so he could cut her clothes off. He capped the bottle of water and set it to the side so he could strip the woman and check for injuries before he moved her. Finding nothing that would prevent her from being moved, he knelt so he could lift her and carry her to his car. As he did, a flash of light on the ground caught his attention and he recoiled at the object. Eyes closed, Brad slapped himself in the face and muttered to himself, inhaling deeply through his nose, letting his breath out slowly through his lips until he could take a complete breath of air. Shaking his head, he returned to his task and easily carried the slender woman and his bag to his car.

Brad wondered how the woman came to be so far from civilization. The nearest town wasn't that far away as the crow flied, but was a three-hour drive through the winding mountain roads. He would have to take her to his house because she needed immediate medical attention. If she didn't receive fluids soon, she could die, or worse, she could end up with organ failure or brain damage, if she didn't have it already. He turned his rearview mirror down to gaze at the dirty, beaten body of the mystery woman in his backseat, clad only in bra, panties, and hiking boots, hoping he had got to her in time. He was glad to be so close to his home.

Arriving home in just a few minutes, he hurriedly laid her on his bed and gathered an IV stand and several bags of fluids from a supply closet. He wheeled the IV stand next to her head and prepared a bag as he again briefly scanned the wretched state of her body. The young woman was covered in bruises. Her arms, legs, and back, mostly, but there were a few on her ribs as well. Brad cleaned her arm to prepare for an IV. He'd done this countless times before, but rarely on an unconscious person. Having found a good vein, he inserted the IV cannula and taped it against her skin. He connected the end of the line to the cannula and got the drip flowing. An in-depth examination of her body internally, as well as disinfecting her cuts and scrapes, and then he could relax. He paid careful attention to her body as he checked everything he could think of, delicately lifting or turning her body parts this way and that. Some time later, he was satisfied that she wasn't in immediate danger of death, so he stood up to go get a sheet to cover her modesty and supplies to clean her flesh wounds.

When he returned, he yelled in surprise when he saw that the woman's eyes were open.

"Jeez! You scared me! I thought you were going to be out for a while. Uh-" he cut off, seeing a terrified look on her face. "Oh, right. Uhh, I'm Brad. You are in my home. I found you on the side of the road and brought you here. The closest hospital is three hours away. I made the decision to bring you here to get fluids in you," he said, pointing to the IV. "I'm sorry about your clothes, but I had to cut them off to check for major injuries. You don't appear to have any broken bones or internal bleeding, and you don't need a blood transfusion, so you'll be fine here for the next few hours. I can take you to the hospital after you are hydrated. I'll get you something to cover yourself with. Uhh... Oh, what's your name?"

The woman tried to speak, but her mouth and throat were too dry.

"That's ok. Don't talk just yet. Wait until you get some fluids in you."

Brad produced a straw and a glass of water. Fingering the end of the straw, he collected some water and told her to lift her head, so she didn't choke.

She whined. She obviously couldn't lift her head.

He gently cradled the back of her head so she could drink. Her lips were still badly cracked from dehydration, so he dropped water onto her lips as well. She must be in agony.

After he got a few straws worth of water into her mouth, he softly and thoroughly wiped her face, as if her cleanliness were a matter of life and death.

Finished, Brad stood up and said, "I'm going to get you some food. Do you have any allergies? Blink twice for yes."

She didn't blink, so he left and returned quickly with a tray with thick roast beef piled high on a plate, cheese, bowls of mixed veggies and fruits, a few slices of cold pizza, hummus and carrots, Gatorade, as well as various condiments.