Brandon lies on his cot. Next to him on a small table sit small bunches of berries, half eaten. As he lays there, he hears voices. He quietly gets up, peeks his head through the hut door opening.
Outside stand two pirates, swords held high. They wear fifteenth century pirate clothes. Brandon jerks around, grabs his sword, holds it high as he stands in the doorway.
Brandon challenges, "Who the hell are you two?"
"I am Red Legs, he, Diablo. We be waiting for you mate. Come out and draw your sword."
Brandon answers, "Damn...my dreams are real."
Diablo glances at Red Legs, curls one side of his mouth and flashes an evil grin. "It’s been too long since I drew new blood. Come out and fight man."
Brandon reasons. "Why should I fight you. Hell, you’re not even real."
Diablo inspects Brandon. "You want to take my gold, you have to fight me." he pauses, smiles. "Not real eh." he smacks Brandon on his shoulder with his sword.
"Owww! Now you’ve pissed me off!" Brandon grabs his sword, swirls it around several times, smiles. Red Legs sheaths his sword, backs up, folds his arms.
Brandon raises his sword. "Prepare to die barnacle brain!"
Brandon slams his sword at Diablo, he blocks it. Brandon stands in attack mode, shuffles toward Diablo. Each jab at one another as they move back and forth. Diablo slams a high overhead, Brandon blocks it, jabs at Diablo’s gut. Diablo leaps back, blocks it down, swings his sword overhead and down to Brandon’s shoulder. The sword slices his shirt from the shoulder to the stomach.
Brandon jerks back, glances at the cut, grins, moves forward and pounds blows down on Diablo, who moves backward and blocks. Both pause.
"Not bad mate!" compliments Diablo.
Diablo spins a three sixty, whacks at Brandon, he blocks it. Brandon does a three sixty, crouches and swings at his legs.
Diablo jumps, swings at Brandon’s head, he ducks, then attacks, moves forward. Diablo retreats as their swords clash against each other.
Diablo is backed up between a tree and bushes. Each stand their ground as they spar, stab, and block each other.
Diablo asks, "You ate a yellow berry?"
"And a blue one." responds Brandon.
Diablo pauses. "Bravo mate, good!"
"Why is that good?" asks Brandon.
Diablo grins. "Because they make you think you swing a sword better than you do."
"I'm good enough for you." says Brandon as he swings at his head. Diablo ducks as sliced branches fall to the ground. Both duel back and forth as Diablo forces Brandon down the path, each twist and duck to avoid the others sword. Brandon tires, he makes wide, awkward swings, finally stops.
Brandon grins. "Had enough yet?" He breathes deep, sighs, moves forward with jabs, slices and stabs as Diablo easily blocks the blows. He sees Brandon tires, he smiles and pummels blows which Brandon manages to block.
Both pause, both breath heavy. Brandon smiles. With new found strength, he slices his sword upward, makes contact, the sword flies out of Diablo’s hand.
As Diablo pulls out a long knife, Brandon punches his sword into the pirate's gut. Diablo moans, bends over. Brandon pulls his sword out, covered with blood.
Red Legs exclaims, "Bravo, well done mate."
Brandon swaggers, drops to his knees, passes out. The blood disappears from his sword. Very faint, he hears a voice.
Treena squeezes his shoulder. "Brandon...Brandon."
Slow, his eyes flutter open, he awakens.
"You ate the berries?" Treena asks. He nods yes. "You’re lucky you weren’t killed. Let’s get you cleaned up."
Chiron and Treena relax at the table, watch Brandon play with the two little girls, Alison and Isabel, in the lagoon. In the water floats an old life preserver with the name ‘HUNTERS GALLEY’ on top. Brandon holds a coconut. He shoots, it bounces off the edge, Alison grabs it, Brandon defends. Alison drops it in front of her.
Brandon tries to explain. "Hey little lady, you shoot it at the hoop, not lay it down."
Alison shoots Brandon a huge smile.
"Oh really? Okay, I’ll show you how it's done and I'll take the points."
As he approaches, Alison leans back and splashes her tail. The coconut flies over Brandon’s head to Isabel, who drops it in. Isabel smiles. "Did you mean like that?
Chiron and Treena clap.
"No fair." Brandon protests as he shoots stares at the two girls. "Fine. My turn, you defend."
As Chiron and Treena watch, Chiron grins.
"What is it?" Treena asks.
"It's just...just not what I'm used to. This world, here, your world, is so different, so peaceful."
Treena smiles, rubs Chiron's hand. "We are at peace with all in our world...your world now."
"Yes, I feel it, I belong here. I think I always knew it. I don’t want to go back Treena, but...Sean."
"Worry not, our mother makes plans."
Chiron pauses. "I want to be called Tina again."
"I was hoping you felt that way...Tina."
Treena holds her arm out to Tina. She displays a bracelet on her wrist. Tina inspects it. "It’s beautiful!"
"I have worn it since I was a child, it has never left me.
Come, I want to show you something."
They enter Treena's hut, Tina sits at the table. Treena reaches into a hole in the wall, feels around and pulls a worn cloth bag out from it. She sits, smiles at Tina. Slow, she unwraps the bag. It reveals a bracelet identical to hers.
Treena picks it up, inspects it. "Mother gave me this after we talked yesterday. She has kept it since I was a child...it was her hope for your return. Hold out your arm."
Tina holds out her arm as Treena clasps the bracelet on her.
Tina's eyes well. "This is the most important thing I've ever owned. It makes me feel like I really am back, like, I'm really a part of my real family. So much of my life I've felt like there was an empty hole, a hole that I knew, deep inside me, could never be filled while I was on that island. But, I suppressed those feelings, acted like I really didn't feel them. But they never left me and now, now I know why. Thank you so much for welcoming me, for accepting me back."
Treena begins to cry. Both stand and hug each other.
DAY 9
In Brandon's hut, the guys relax, drink rum. Their swords lay nearby.
Derek says, "I still can’t believe Sean is alive."
"I can’t either." responds Kyle. "But then again, I didn’t believe in mermaids."
Brandon inspects his gold medallion. "You know guys, we have enough gold and treasures to live pretty damn well once we get back."
"If we survive this." responds Kyle.
Brandon muses. "I don’t know...I kind of like it here."
Derek muses, "It is a long way from the office."
Kyle, a bit hyper, exclaims, "My cube is history! Along with all the smug cubeheads."
Derek ponders, "Yeah, I didn’t expect this to be so...so life changing. Hell, I don’t even know if I want to get married anymore."
Kyle adds, "Well, that's two out of three. What's your life changing experience Brandon, wonder boy of all video games."
"Well, it's really two things." Brandon replies. "One is that I'm discovering I'm not the nerd everyone thinks I am, I like this crap. I love the danger, flirting with the edge of darkness."
Derek smiles. "Not bad, what's the second one?"
"Treena. I'm falling for Treena. I never thought I'd have a shot at someone as beautiful as her."
Derek, a bit surprised, says, "Are you kidding me? Seriously dude, I hate to break this to you, but...but, wake up, she’s a fish!"
Brandon, obviously hurt, responds, "That’s cold man."
"Sorry, but that's the reality of the reality." Derek replies.
Kyle echoes Derek. "The reality is that nothing seems real here anyway. I mean, really, think about it. Mermaids, Sirens, all this gold, and, and dead pirates that come back to fight us. We're like, in a dream
."
"What’s real is all that gold." Brandon picks up a sword. "And these."
He stands in attack mode, swings the sword in wide arcs. He jabs and fences as he moves forward with his other hand behind his back. He turns to the boys, holds his sword high with both hands and slams it into a coconut on the table, which splits in half.
Brandon smiles. "Your turn."
They shoot an uncomfortable glance at each other, then pick up their swords. They stare at each other, stand face to face, raise their swords high. Slow, awkward, Kyle swings at Derek who blocks it, then smiles. In practice mode, Derek swings at Kyle who blocks it, each jab at one another allowing the other time to block.
Derek nods his head. "We are so screwed."
Brandon grins. "Relax my man, the berries work."
Kyle stares at his sword, rubs the edge. "Let’s do it!"
Derek freaks. "Oooohhhhh sheeeet!"
Brandon rushes out, soon returns, drops a pile of colored berries on the table.
"You guys are crazy." a nervous Derek says. "I’m not fighting pirates!"
"Don't worry, they're dead pirates." chuckles Kyle.
"Stop being such a hair-berry." Brandon scolds. "We’re with mermaids, who don’t exist, on an island that doesn’t exist."
"Fighting dead pirates." Kyle pops a yellow berry in his mouth. "that don’t exist. So get with the program...eat the damn berries."
Brandon picks up a yellow berry, downs it, then a blue one.
"Crap...I'm gonna regret this, I just know it." Derek whines as he picks up the berries. He picks a yellow berry from the bunch, stares at it.
"If you don't hurry up and eat it, it'll grow teeth and bite you." Brandon scoffs.
Reluctant, Derek pops it into his mouth, then another, then three more.
Brandon holds up his hand. "Whoa! You don't need that many."
"If I'm gonna fight, I need all the help I can get." Derek responds.
They sit around the table for a while, a bit nervous and fidgety.
Finally, Kyle says, "I don’t feel anything."
Derek agrees. "Me either. My feet are sweating so let’s explore."
"Don't be in such a hurry." Brandon warns. "They'll hit you soon enough."
Each grab their sword and slither out. They stroll down a path, study the terrain. Thick, dense, vegetation fills the jungle. They stop.
Derek looks around. "I don’t remember this area looking like that, it’s more like a jungle. Look at all those hanging vines."
"Yeah...like lions, tigers and bears...oh my!" jokes Kyle.
Brandon smiles. "So lame man, so lame."
Off to their right, a small path winds downward. Brandon points, they amble down the path. Strange bird like sounds break the silence, monkeys jump through trees...an unseen tiger roars. They all stop, stand in attack mode and raise their swords.
"Maybe we should go back and think this over." says an edgy Derek.
Brandon, keyed up, retorts, "And maybe you should put your big boy panties on and follow me."
Brandon leads them down the path until they spot and enter an opening in the bushes. They amble through and step onto a white, sandy beach littered with rocks, dried out wood, logs, small trees, dead trees, and various sized boulders.
They shuffle into the sand, stop and inspect their surroundings. A bit barren, most signs of any living plants or animals are gone. About fifty yards out sits a large weather beaten rowboat tied to a battered dock which protrudes twenty yards into the sea.
Derek, nervous, asks, "I see the boat but no pirates. What do you think that means?"
"It means the berries haven't taken full effect yet." answers Brandon. "Let's walk to the dock, that's probably where they are."
As the guy's head toward the dock, instantly they see the pirates, swords sheathed. Brandon shoots a confident smile.
Derek utters, "It’s not too late."
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN