them.
“Let us go back to the ship, cap’n!” A deckhand whimpered, yet Rike was not so easily scared.
“Let us see what they be wantin’ first, lad.”
“We should return, Rike,” Lupino interrupted “there be no chance o’ agreement with the dead.” The captain glared at the stray captain with fury in his eyes.
“I ‘ath ‘eard enough o’ your stories, you bastard! You think it be a game to rile mi crew up?”
“This be no game, cap’n, what be upon this isle aint for the livin’. You shall regret approachin’ the cursed souls o’ the locker.”
“There be masses o’ ‘em, cap’n, are you sure this be a wise choice?” I shouted out myself for looking at the jungle, for as far as my eyes allowed me to follow its line the lumbering entities were encroaching upon us. Shaking his head the captain turned about towards the thick fog upon the ocean.
“Back into your boats, lads, ‘urry along.” With great haste we rushed back into the small paddle ships and with a hurry returned back into the thick fog, however we were in as much turmoil upon the ocean as we were upon the land, for we could see scarcely many feet in any direction.
“They be followin’ us into the waters, captain!” With those words I began to row our paddleboat with a new found vigour, for I could not see the deckhand who had cried out, yet it was enough to cause my mind to expect those lumbering things to rush out of the fog at us.
Finding Roselyn became a considerable task as the crew began to desperately call out to Aran Fox. In a brief period of time that seemed to last forever for the gripping fear, we found our way, everyone worked together to drag their crewmates back aboard Roselyn and with immediate haste we prepared for combat. Upon vessel there was a strange atmosphere, we were each on edge and knew not what we had truly just witnessed. Liner went straight down beneath the orlop. Whatever he had seen had shocked him into a state of near paralysis.
“‘urry aboard, lads!” The captain called out to the few remaining crew aboard the paddleboats, “be ready with rapiers drawn, if you should see anythin’ that aint o’ the crew aboard then butcher it where it be stood! Samuels, raise ‘er anchor, matey, and be turnin’ ‘er about starboard, get us some distance away from this rock then re-drop ‘er anchor.”
“Can’t we just return to Royal, cap’n? This place’ll be the death o’ us all.” The deckhands continued to plea with the captain though I knew once his mind was set upon something he would not let it rest until he had attained his goal.
“Lupino, Sailor, Sollertis, with me, lads.” We followed the captain as he made his way towards his chamber.
“What of Achilles, Rike?” Sollertis asked curiously.
“‘e ‘ath been chained down beneath the orlop until we are rid o’ our guest. The crew be fearin’ ‘e’s gonna start eatin’ ‘em all after Lupino’s little charade within ‘is chamber.” Shaking his head with frustration, Rike opened the door to his quarters and we each stepped inside.
“I ‘ope you shall start talkin’, Lupino. Who were those people, and ‘ow can a man walk to these caves that you speak of for the jungle be denser than any that I ‘ath ever seen. No more lies or I’ll leave you ‘ere to suffer the fate o’ that we just steered clear o’. An’ what the ‘eck be wrong with Liner!” Rike slammed his hand on the great table which held his collection of maps. Sollertis seated himself down and I remained standing with Lupino, I recall feeling almost sorry for the man at times, for all that he was, he was not a bad person.
“Whatever Liner saw, cap’n, it were most likely nothing more than ‘is imagination. People would say, there were somethin’ in the air o’ the place, that’d affect only a few, yet those which were would be driven to death for their own imagination. The isle’ll do that to a man.”
“Lupino, it seems you know more about this isle every time the subject is brought to attention. Do you make up all things as you go along, or do you simply know a lot more than you are leading us to believe you do?” Lupino looked over to Sollertis.
“I know only that which I ‘ave been told, stories o’ the place, did that which you just witness not convince you that this place be unnatural?”
“Most certainly not, there is a rational explanation to all things which man can see, to suggest otherwise would be ludicrous. This is certainly a place of wonder, however there is a place for the suggestion of unnatural oddities upon the earth’s surface, and that is within myths and legend.”
“What o’ the treasures, lad?” Rike interrupted, “if you be tellin’ n’out but stories be we wastin’ our time ‘ere? Do not test mi patience.”
“There be pathways spoken o’ amidst the trees, they lead all about the isle ‘owever the caves o’ Davey’s ‘oard are said to lay ‘midst the very centre o’ the isle, amongst steep ‘ills and cliffs. For all the unbelievable things I thought I wouldn’t see mentioned upon the isle, if the dead truly walk ‘ere, I would bet mi life upon the fact that the treasures be layin’ ‘ere too.” As Lupino spoke Rike walked to his chair and sat slouched in it. He gazed at the walls of his chambers and for some time we each fell silent.
“The dead,” Rike huffed, “‘ow ridiculous. Sollertis, what ‘appened to the days when the strangest thing we knew o’ was a band o’ volunteerin’ cannoneers that ‘ad never fired a cannon in their lives.” The boatswain smiled and laughed lightly before Lupino spoke up.
“If you wish, cap’n, I shall scout the land come nightfall and search for any signs o’ pathways or anythin’ else which may ‘elp us upon our way. You said you shall let me free once we ‘ath made it to me ‘omeland, the least I can do is ensure you be findin’ your ‘oard before we part ways.” Exhaling a great sigh Rike replied to the stray captain.
“Nay, lad, we’ll go together, less o’ us, I’ll only take the crew who ‘ave the courage, those who will not panic for sight o’ an imaginary beast. We’ll wait for a few days off the coast ‘owever, with any luck those that we saw walkin’ upon the coast shall ‘ave dispersed. You shall no longer be treated as a captive upon ship, lad, you ‘ath kept up your end o’ the bargain.” The two men nodded at each other and with a suggestive slump back into oblivion the captain dismissed us. Stepping back out into the mist was most strange, ‘twas so thick, yet ‘twas warm, as though hot water and air was flowing over your skin at every breathing moment.
“Lupino, come, I have yet to test your wits at my table.” Smiling, the boatswain rested a hand on Lupino’s shoulder and escorted him towards his chessboard. For all that I could see aboard ship the crew had lined both the portside and the starboard with rapiers drawn, ‘twas as though they were expecting those who we had seen walking upon the land to begin climbing our vessels woodwork, and neither did I blame them for being so alert. I can recall being stricken with shock at that which I saw upon the isle, and though I knew Lupino’s words could not have been the truth, the bodies which lumbered towards us did not look natural. I have never seen men walk in such a fashion.
The following days past with haste, daylight was bleak for the fog, and night time was truly terrifying, the crew took shifts thirty at a time patrolling all entrances and exits of the vessel in the case that we should come under siege. For all I have seen these were possibly the worst times of my life. I have with intention walked aboard many an enemy vessel with the knowledge that my life may cease at any moment, however laying restlessly aboard a ship with a constant fear in your mind of intruders was enough to drive a man mad. Liner himself did not recover from his experience, he spent his days beneath the orlop laying upon a hammock whispering to himself that he had seen a monster, he alone put many of the crew into a state of paranoia, why the captain had chosen to return to the isle I simply could not fathom.
Throughout our time spent off shore Rike had Achilles brought up to his chamber and each day would have Lupino within the quarters with him, for the first day it sounded as though he had unleashed Achilles upon the man, for the dog was unrelenting in its aggression towards him. Within
the passing days however the sounds resided from the chamber, and by the end of the second day, out from Rike’s doors stepped Lupino, alone with Achilles, the colossal dog treating him as though he were any other man of Rike’s crew, ‘twas an impressive sight to see.
Whilst he was not within Rike’s quarters the stray captain spent his time with Sollertis at his chessboard, unbelievably the boatswain had lost every game of chess he had played against the man, repeatedly he was defeated in quick succession though he appeared to be thriving upon the defeats.
“Again!” Sollertis would yell, I had not heard the word used so often in all my time, his burning manic eyes focusing with greater intent with each passing loss. With what had occurred upon the island the crew too seemed to have laid a trust in the stray captain, he had earned their respect for saving Adam Liner from whatever he believed he had seen, and they had began to treat him as one of their own, many of them enjoying the sight of him defeating Sollertis at the game which they themselves could not.
Upon the evening of the third night anchored off shore of the isle the captain announced to the crew that at mid day the next day we would once more venture upon the land, and upon attaining the treasures that laid beneath its earth we would leave