Daisy collapsed onto her bed, completely exhausted. She had been filming her new movie for 4 months sraight, with hardly a break to relax or have fun. Today had been especially rough. 14 hours in a giant swimming pool, hooked up to wires, wrapped in a harness, surrounded by fish and cameras. Take, after take, after gruesome take.
She was in great shape, thanks largely to being cast in The Force Awakens. Lucasfilm had made sure to hire the best personal trainers, to take her from a skinny young girl into a fit, fierce fighting machine. But all of that training didn't prepare her for her newest movie. Her new director wasn't as understanding as JJ Abrams. No, this man was a tyrant. Verner Vollstedt was known for being a perfectionist. One or two takes wasn't enough. He wanted you to not just read the lines, but LIVE the part. Which, when doing a simple period drama isn't a big deal. A $200 million underwater adventure movie, however, was a different beast.
Daisy was playing a mermaid, who was sworn to protect the enchanted coral necklace from mankind. If a human was to wear it, it would unlock untold powers that would upset the balance of Mother Nature. Daisy wasn't impressed with the story, but she had really wanted to work with Verner. The cast was also great. A few former Oscar winners, Emma Watson, and even Liam Neeson. The $15 million paycheck also didn't hurt.
She looked across the room to a wooden stand about 3 feet high. On top was a glass case, which held the enchanted coral necklace. Verner insisted that Daisy take care of the necklace, even when not filming. She didn't see the point, but Verner wanted her to become attached to it. To protect it, just as her character would.
It was just a bunch of "method" bullshit that Daisy had had enough of. This dictator of a director was getting a great performance out of her, but she felt like she was losing her mind. She had been forced to take this necklace everywhere, but never allowed to wear it. The prop master had been very clear about that. Apparently it was some old heirloom of someone that had worked on the film during pre-production. They loaned it to the film under the condition that it was never to be worn. Towards the end of the movie, a man (Daisy the mermaid's love interest) steals the necklace and is granted powers. Yawn. Another popcorn brain melter. That necklace that was to be worn was a replica. But all close up shots were to be done using the original.
It was made out of different colors of coral, that were each extremely unique. They looked more like coloured diamonds than coral. It was one of a kind. The woman who loaned it to the film wouldn't say where her family had originally got it, just that it should never be worn.
Daisy had to sign a liability waiver and everything. The necklace was insured for quite a bit, but today she was feeling adventurous. Verner didn't allow them to use any electronics while on location. No phones, no computers, no TVs. Once every other week the cast and crew would fly an hour north to a small city and rejoin the 21st century. Otherwise, they were stuck to old magazines, or books that they had read at least once.
Daisy was tired of reading The Da Vinci Code. She was tired of reading Harry Potter. She was tired of reading Us Weekly. She wanted to have fun, but more than anything, tonight she just wanted sleep. She could barely move. But she felt a fire in her, a fire to "fuck" the man, and to say "Fuck you" to Verner. She was going to wear the necklace, if for no other reason than because she had been told not to about a million times. She was supposed to protect it and baby it and love it, but how could she truly do that if she never felt it on her collar? She knew no one would ever find out, so what harm could 5 minutes do?
She slowly got up off of her bed, and winced. Nearly every inch of her screamed in agony. She had to stop and catch her breath half way through, but she eventually recovered and stood up. She threw on her pink slippers and began to shuffle over to the stand. She had been in a pink mood the past few days, so everything that could be pink, was pink. Her slippers. Her bathrobe. Her finger and toe nails. Her bed sheets. Her earrings. Pink galore, just like the majority of the coral necklace. It was just another excuse to wear it. It would match her aesthetic.
She got to the stand and took a deep breath. She carefully placed her hands on either side of the glass case, and picked it up. It was fairly heavy, and with her tired muscles it was quite the chore. She had to bend with her knees to get it close to the floor before she sat it down. She stayed crouched down and looked up at the necklace. Some last rays of sunlight were shining in through her curtains, and they perfectly illuminated the necklace. It almost had an eerie glow to it. Eerie, and yet at the same time it seemed to call to her. It was practically begging to be picked up. To be worn. To be listened to. She didn't know what she meant by that last part, but it made sense, somehow.
She grabbed the top of the stand and used it to help lift her up to her feet. She put one hand on the necklace, and felt some warmth from it. It almost seemed to radiate heat, but that wasn't possible from a necklace, was it? It must have been the sunlight. She grabbed it in her palm, and still felt the heat, soothing her aching muscles in her hand. God, it felt so good. So...right. She had touched it before, but it had never affected her in this way before. It had always just been what it should have been: a ridiculous prop necklace.
She had had enough wasting time. She took the ends of the necklace in each hand and put it around her neck. She was halfway through tying the little string when she felt it. It felt like something...opened a door in her head, and then just walked through. It was a feeling that no one could be prepared for. How could you? Things like this don't happen. Can't happen. And yet, here she was, tying this necklace, and feeling like something else was in her head.
She finished tying the necklace, and immediately felt the heat from it on her collar. It felt amazing. It started with her collar and her neck, and soon began to move upwards towards her head, and outwards towards her arms and her chest. As it moved past each inch, the warmth seemed to melt away any aches and pain she had, and she soon went from feeling exhausted to feeling more awake than she ever had in her life. She was bursting with energy. Daisy felt like she could run from one side of the country to the other without stopping. It was intoxicating.
Until she remembered that feeling she had just a minute before. That presence. She had been so preoccupied with the warmth and the energy that she had nearly forgotten it. And despite the immense heat flowing from the necklace and her limitless energy, she felt a chill go down her spine.
That was when it spoke.
"Hello, Daisy."
What the fuck? It was a woman's voice, but distorted. Like it was coming from an old military radio. But, where is it coming from? She looked around the room. It sounded like it was behind her, but there was nothing there but the door.
"You can look all night, little miss, but you'll never see me. Can't look at something, if there's nothing to see. Know what I mean?"
Daisy didn't. But she wasn't sure she wanted to know. That voice was coming from somewhere, but it sounded like it was coming from everywhere. She couldn't place it. "Who are you? Where are you?"
The voice spoke again. "I am Alcina. And as to where I am, why, I'm in you, Daisy."
Daisy's heart began to pound in her chest. She was having a nervous break. Her mother had warned her about working so hard for so long, and now her mind was finally snapping so that she would be forced to quit the movie and give her body the rest it needed. Yeah, that must be what this is.
Alcina spoke again. "Daisy, you're not having a nervous breakdown. This is all perfectly fine. You're just confused."
"I know I'm confused. I'm having a conversation with a voice in my head. That's about as confusing as it gets. What do you want? Why are you in my head?", Daisy asked.
"It's a long story, dear. I was a fairly influential demigod back in my time, but after a run in with some more powerful folk, I've been in that damn coral necklace for 800 years. And, thanks to you, I'm free to roam about the planet."
Daisy couldn't believe this nonsense. "A demigod? Living in a necklace until I freed you? Okay. Sure." She rolled her eyes. "This is probably just a trick from Verner. If you're free to roam about the earth, then why don't you roam somewhere else?"
Alcina chuckled, and Daisy could feel something in her arms and legs. Like they were suddenly attached to strings by an unseen puppet master.
