Chapter 13

  Jonathon woke to the sound of seagulls cawing overhead and the rhythmic crash of waves against the shore. Each screech and crash reverberated through his skull, splitting his head with a pain that matched the turmoil in his gut. He blinked against the harsh light of the sun, forcing himself upright with unsteady arms. Sand clung to his clothes as he sat up, groggy and disoriented. He knew this beach. He was back on the beach of Brightstone Bay. Somehow, they’d made it back.

  He slowly looked around, being careful not to move too quickly lest he lose what little remained in his stomach. Speaking of, what did he have left in his stomach? It felt like he hadn’t eaten in days. That tracked, he thought to himself, the last thing he remembered was standing in the temple with The Matriarch. For him to be here now, he must have been out for at least a week! As he looked around, he noticed a number of bodies lying on the beach. One. Two. Three. Four. Four bodies. Four? Shouldn’t there be six? He jumped to his feet and instantly regretted it. His head began to spin as his stomach did backflips. He lost his balance and fell back down on the sand.

  He called out weakly, “Cas…Cassie?” No response came from his first mate. “Beckett?” Silence. Jonathon's stomach stopped doing backflips and started sinking. He attempted to stand again, this time being slower and more deliberate. After a few minutes, he found he was able to stand without falling and began slowly making his way toward the first form he saw. Judging by the hair, it was Cassie. He crouched down next to her and felt for a pulse. Thank the gods, it was still there! Despite everything, her pulse felt like a small victory against whatever darkness they had left behind in the jungle. He shook her slightly. “Cassie, get up. I need your help.”

  Immediately, her eyes opened. She quickly hopped to her feet, only to land straight on her butt as Jonathon had. She groaned in misery as she fell back on her back.

  “Take it easy, Cass,” Jonathon warned. “We’ve been out for at least a week now, and I suspect whatever they used to keep us asleep is probably not meant for long-term use.”

  She groaned again as she slowly pushed herself onto her elbow and began massaging her eyes. “Captain, is that you? What happened? I remember the feast and going to sleep, but that’s all. How’d we end up here? Wait, did you say we’ve been out for a week?! How did this happen?”

  “Right,” Jonathon began, “about that. See, I managed to sneak through the ziggurat into the room where they kept the piece of The Spectre hidden away. Only, when I got there, the compass was gone! That was when The Matriarch caught me. It had been a setup! She knew I was going to go after the piece and had moved it ahead of time. She confronted me about my actions, and then they shot me with one of those stupid darts! I woke up here just now. I suspect they knocked the rest of you out while you slept shortly after I was captured.”

  He saw Cassie’s nostrils flare at the reminder of their prior interaction before he had left for the ziggurat. The anger subsided quickly as Cassie closed her eyes briefly and took a deep breath. When she opened them again, she calmly asked, “So, you still didn’t find the piece then?”

  “No,” Jonathon replied, dejected. “I was so close, and now, now I don’t know what to do. I’ve lost my best chance at finding a piece. It almost feels like it would have been better to have never found the tribe in the first place…”

  He heard a snort and a nearby voice say, “Well, that seems a bit dramatic.”

  Jonathon jumped and looked around. That was when he noticed the figure sitting on a nearby rock. Her dark complexion, garb, and figure left no doubt who it was.

  “Banshee,” Cassie said before Jonathon had a chance to say anything. “What are you doing here? Did they leave you behind to kill us as we woke?”

  “And what sense would that make?” she replied, amused. “Why would we not have just killed you in our camp and saved the four-day journey back to the beach? Perhaps you think we merely wanted to drag you around for sport? And again, my name is Naomi, not Banshee.”

  “Good luck with that,” Jonathon said dryly, “I’ve been trying to get her to call me by my name for three years now, and she still only calls me ‘Captain.’” Cassie scowled at Jonathon. “Wait a second,” he said, turning back to Naomi, “Did you say four days? How did you manage to get us here in four days? It took us seven before we even found you!”

  Naomi chuckled, “Yes, and it would take a toddler longer to walk across her tent than her parents. You do not know our jungle as we do, Captain Harding.”

  Around this time, the others were beginning to stir. Jonathon quickly remembered his original quest to ensure his crew’s survival. He scanned the beach again and looked at each form as they roused and sat upright. He noted the two rowers they took with them and Beckett, but that was it. There were two of his crew not accounted for. Where were the twins? He looked back at Naomi, “Where are the–”

  The Banshee chuckled, “Do not worry, Captain Harding, your boys are fine. I told them I was hungry, and they both ran off into the woods claiming they would find the largest prey.”

  Jonathon shook his head. That tracked, they’d rather go off to impress a girl than check on their crewmates. He’d have to talk to them about that one. He looked back up at Naomi and said, “So, not that I mind your presence, but what exactly are you doing here? Surely you aren’t worried about us stealing something else, you would have simply searched us prior to leaving. And we never actually found your tribe, so it’s not like we can go back. Is there something you want from us?”

  She smiled, “You are right, Captain Harding. There is something that I want from you.” She paused, her eyes searching his own as she found her words. “I want you to take me with you.”

  Stolen story; please report.

  “What?” he and Cassie asked in unison.

  “Why exactly do you want to come with us?” Jonathon continued. “And what exactly makes you think we’d take you anyway after losing our treasure to your people and being banished from your tribe?”

  “You mean our ‘treasure’? The ‘treasure’ you attempted to steal from us? That ‘treasure’ Captain Harding?” the Banshee chided before adding with a smile, “I am tired of the life I have in my tribe. I will one day be an elder too. I will be expected to rule them as my grandmother does, yet I know nothing of the world outside of our jungle. My grandmother assures me that this is nothing to worry about, yet I still feel a draw to the outside. I feel as though there is something out here that I am supposed to learn.” She paused, her eyes now scanning the horizon of the bay. “Regarding why you would take me with you,” she continued, a roguish smile spreading across her face, “I know where you can find your piece of the devil ship.”

  Jonathon’s ears perked and he stared in disbelief, “Really? You can lead us to the compass?”

  “No,” she replied simply, waving her hand as though his question were a bothersome fly. “That piece is gone from this world. But, I know where you can find another piece.”

  “And how exactly would you know where to find another piece when you’ve never left the jungle?” he asked.

  “Captain, I have been by my grandmother’s side for many years now. I have listened to the Seekers who have brought the pieces back and heard tales of each piece’s origin. While the locations are many, there is one area that has stood out from the rest.”

  After a moment of holding his breath, waiting for Naomi to continue her sentence, Jonathon impatiently asked, “And?”

  “And what?” she replied coolly, that roguish smile returning to her face as her eyes narrowed mischievously at the captain.

  “Where is that location?” he pressed.

  “Why would I tell you now when you have yet to accept my end of the agreement?” she replied, pretending to examine her nails. “If you wish to know the information I offer, you must first accept my terms.”

  Jonathon’s hand found his chin as he unconsciously picked at the scruff. Could she really know where another piece of the ship was? Could his dream not be over yet? Jonathon’s spirits began to lift from their temporary depression as hope wormed its way back into his heart. He stood up and extended his hand to the girl, “Naomi, you get me to that piece, and with me and my crew, you’ll see the world!”

  Cassie groaned, realizing their pursuit was not over, and Naomi smiled as she took his hand and shook it.

  It was at this point that Jonathon saw two figures emerge from the jungle. One had a small creature of some kind dangling from his hand, the other was trying to grab the creature from him. Even from this distance, there was no mistaking the twins. As they came within earshot, Jonathon could hear their ongoing argument.

  “C’mon bro, that’s not cool,” he could hear Ryden whining as Dryden approached with a rabbit in his hand.

  “M’lady, I humbly present thee with this bounty from the dangerous jungle,” Dryden said mockingly as he knelt before Naomi and offered the creature up to her.

  “Don’t listen to him Naomi! I caught that thing,” Ryden said, red-faced and panting from the exertion of his chase.

  Naomi looked at the two boys and said, “The credit for this catch seems rather important to you, my dear Ryden. Is there a reason why?”

  Ryden’s red face somehow deepened its hue as he quickly said, “N-No, Nao…Bansh…ma’am. I just thought it should be known who truly caught the rabbit, that’s all.”

  Dryden, who had kept his head down the whole time in mock deference, lifted it at the opportunity and added, “That’s not true, Ry. Didn’t you say you were going to catch the biggest rabbit in the forest and impress Naomi with your ‘manly prowess’?”

  Naomi raised an eyebrow and continued to smile at Ryden without saying a word.

  Concerned that the boy’s face might actually explode if any more blood rushed into it, Jonathon decided to end the poor boy’s misery. He put on his captain’s voice, placed his hands on his hips, and said, “Ah, boys, I see ye’ve finally reported back to yer captain. Any particular reason why I woke to find that two of me crewmates had woken before me and, instead of doing their duty and ensuring their crewmate’s safety, had rushed off at the behest of a woman to find food in the jungle?” The colloquialisms of being a pirate were by no means fake for Jonathon, but he was well-versed in both dialects and found it easier to fulfill his role as captain when utilizing the more…gruff of the two. He also found that the closer to sea he got, the more likely it was for him to slip into that way of speaking. The ability to switch masks so quickly had admittedly served him well on a number of occasions when he needed to blend in.

  It was Dryden’s turn to join his brother in awkwardness as the reality of their offense suddenly dawned on the two. “I-I-I…Well, c-captain…” they both stammered simultaneously as their previously hormone-clouded minds quickly cleared and were now racing for an excuse.

  “Well…” Dryden said.

  “...ya see, what had happened was…” Ryden said, continuing the thought for his brother.

  “We…uhh, saw that everyone was on the beach, right…” Dryden said, looking back at his brother.

  “...yeah, and then we saw Naomi…” Apparently it was going to take two minds to come up with this excuse.

  “...and she didn’t seem concerned…a-a-and said she was hungry…”

  “...r-right, hungry…and we thought…”

  “...well wouldn’t everyone else be hungry too? I-I mean, we certainly were…”

  “...right, we for sure were. So, we figured…”

  “...since you all were probably okay…”

  “...that we’d go and find food for everyone…” Ryden finished. They each paused for a moment, looking at each other. Apparently satisfied with the excuse they had crafted together, they looked back to their captain, stupid smiles plastered on both of their faces.

  “I see,” Jonathon said slowly. “And so ye thought that that rabbit was ‘nough to feed all of us, did ye? Additionally, you presented it to the Banshee instead of yer captain, who was standing right next to her. Is that right?”

  Naomi’s entertainment was practically uncontainable as the stammering started again.