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Weather BalloonWHEN LUPIANNE OPENED HER EYES, a green hue tainted the tent’s sides. Calypso has just risen. She twisted in her bag, blinked. She was alone. She had not even heard the rest of them leaving!
She kept still, her ears drinking the soft rush of waves assaulting the beach.
As she shifted, her bladder reminded her of the beer she’d swallowed. By morning, the golden liquid had left a cinder taste on her tongue.
Lupianne got clothed and exited the tent through the sphincter airlock. Her puffer whistled to life. The spider was alone. Legs folded under its body, it looked less impressive.
She took a few steps towards the sea. The tide had left arabesques of dark algae on the sand. Blanche was picking up hardened salt concretions shaped like small statuettes.
