Blue Monkey Island

         “The storm seems to be picking up!” came a voice over the howl of the wind.

         The small, open boat rocked back and forth in the murky sea water. Dark storm clouds loomed above as the rumble of thunder shook its way across the gloomy sky. The choppy water pushed the ship back and forth along the waves, sending the two unfortunate men along for the ride.

         The larger of the two flipped his head back to keep his long black hair away from his eyes. His hands clutched the handles of two wooden oars as he tried to steer the escape boat to safety.

         Behind him tumbled a poor young lad, hands searching to cling to anything he could. His light brown hair framed a pair of light-blue eyes that were as wide as the endless waters around them. His whole body trembled as violently as the movements of the feeble boat.

         A bolt of lightning flashed across the sky as the virtual deluge almost took the boat under. The winds swirled about, throwing the boat back and forth in a twisted game of catch.

         Peering over the edge of his wooden safety, the young boy yelled, “I see land!” A mass of hazy green stood out like a single flame in a dark corridor.

         “An island! I’ll try to row us toward it! Hold on tight, lad!” the man yelled out as he pushed the oars through the troubled water.

         Just as a glimmer of hope appeared, a rush of water lifted from the sea and over the boat. The two captives looked on in horror as the weight of the water crushed them and their boat, sending both under and out of sight. Broken boards floated back above the water, but there was no sign of the travelers.

         The storm eventually subsided and on the shores of the island, broken pieces of wood decorated the sand. Waves rolled in, pushing the bodies of the two men toward solid ground. The only movements came from the water’s constant rolling in and out.

         The young man sputtered and coughed up a belly full of water. With some effort, he managed the strength to pull himself to his knees. Sand caked his face, arms, and what was left of his tattered and torn clothes. Forcing his eyes open, a swirl of colors formed all at once. He crawled on all fours on the grainy sand, reaching out for any sort of dry land. When his hand fell upon something soft and solid, he looked up to see a pair of hairy blue feet before him. A towering monkey with dark-blue fur staring down at him. With a grin, the monkey lowered its hand toward the boy.

         “Ahhh! Captain! Captain! Get up!” the boy screamed. His companion remained silent and unmoving. The monkey’s hand wrapped around the boy’s waist and slung him over its shoulder. Letting out a feeble cry, the boy struggled to get away from the death grip. The monkey turned and walked inland.

         “Hey, don’t leave him there!” the boy protested. The monkey stopped and grunted. The boy felt his heart come to a complete stop. Had he angered this strange beast? His heart jumped back to life as the monkey howled. Another, just as large and also covered in blue fur, stepped from the forest ahead and stomped toward the captain. The monkey lifted him into his massive arms and met his cousin at the edge of the forest.

         The lad’s eyes darted back and forth, looking for some means of escape. A dry cough turned his attention to his companion. “Captain! You’re all right!”

         The captain groaned in response, still not moving or opening his eyes.

         The journey through the forest seemed endless to the boy. He had never seen a scene so full of lush green. The monkeys moved quickly, pushing their way through the thick vines. They turned and looked over their shoulders from time to time, as if expecting something to jump out at them.

         Just as he was finally getting used to the lush green surroundings, the monkeys emerged from the growth. Unable to see ahead, the boy turned from side to side, seeing dry ground with bits of grass growing through the cracks. Before he could see anything else, the monkey dropped him to the ground.

         “Ow,” he groaned and sat up. Glancing around, he found himself in the center of a village. Several huts, constructed from animal hide, sat in groups around him. He felt along the ground and touched a log carved into a primitive bench. At least six of these full sized seats created a circle around a huge pit surrounded by stones. Ash covered the pit, remnants of a fire.

         After a quick scan of his surroundings, he saw movement beside him. The captain struggled to get up, opening his eyes.

         “Captain Douglas, are you all right?” he said.

         “Does it look like I’m all right?” he answered through heavy coughing. The captain looked around and turned back to his companion, “Where the hell are we, Pete?”

         “An island,” Pete began.

         “I know that much, you numbskull. How did we get here?” the captain asked.

         “You wouldn’t believe me if I told you,” Pete said.

         As Captain Douglas readied another question, he heard loud grunting behind him. He turned and marveled at the tall ape before him. Its entire body, save for its stomach, was covered in coarse blue fur.

         “This thing saved us?” the captain asked.

         “Uh huh,” Pete said.

         The monkey reached down and yanked them both to their feet. It gave them both a shove in the back, which about sent them tumbling over. Their feet led them around the fire pit and toward a hut that was twice the size of the others.

         Two monkeys stood like statues in front of the opening. The monkey behind the two men grunted and they stepped aside. It took another nudge to make them step inside.

         As they entered, they gazed at what was in front of them. The hide of a strange animal was laid out in the center of the room. It resembled a bear’s body with the head of a bird. On a wooden throne hunched a monkey even bigger than those that carried them to the village. Seeing the new guests, it lumbered from its seat and stepped toward them. The two froze in fear as the huge figure lifted Pete off the ground and threw him straight up into the air, catching him in a crushing hug.

         “Welcome to Blue Monkey Island!” the monkey said with a huge grin. Its voice boomed, but had a real feeling of welcome.

         “You can talk?” the captain asked.

         “Can’t...breathe...” Pete choked out. The monkey loosened his grip and set him down on his feet. Pete fell to one knee and took in a few labored breaths.

         “Of course I talk! I am Joe Blue, leader of the blue monkeys,” the monkey said proudly, “Who are you?”

         “My name is Captain Steven Douglas, and that’s Pete, a member of my crew,” he replied, a bit apprehensive.

         Joe Blue made an advance to hug Steven, but he quickly backed away and extended his hand. Joe Blue examined it curiously and held out his own hand. The captain grasped and shook the big paw, which Joe Blue clumsily tried to mimic.

         “Strange custom. What it called?” Blue asked, returning his hand to his side.

         “A handshake. We usually don’t go hugging strangers,” Captain Douglas said.

         “Oh, very sorry! Is he ok?” Joe Blue said, motioning to the cringing Pete.

         “He’ll be fine,” he replied, patting Pete on the shoulder.

         “Good, good,” Joe Blue said, turning back to his throne. Sitting down, he gave them a long, silent look.

         “We need a favor,” Captain Douglas finally broke the silence.

         “What is it you need?” Joe Blue asked.

         “My ship was attacked and we were forced to escape in a small rowboat,” the captain said, “We came upon a storm, which sent us both into the water and here onto your island. Basically, we want to go back home.”

         “I see. I don’t know if we can help. We don’t ever travel off the island,” Joe Blue said.

         “We only need to gather materials from the forest,” the captain began, but he was quickly interrupted by a howl from Joe Blue.

         “Oh no, no, no,” Joe Blue said, “You mustn’t travel far into woods.”

         “Why is that?” Captain Douglas asked.

         “Few days ago, little ones run from forest crying. They say a demon lives there!” Joe Blue said.

         “D...Demon?” Pete sputtered as he pulled himself off the floor.

         “It’s settled then. Pete and I’ll rid you of your demon so that we can go home,” Captain Douglas said.

         “What!?” Pete shrieked.

         “Good, good! You may rest for the night then,” Joe Blue said as he rose from his chair again, “We eat when sun goes down.”

         Captain Steven Douglas nodded his head. Pete felt his legs begin to tremble as Joe guided them from the tent.

         The next morning, Steven dragged the unwilling Pete out of the hut. They walked to the center of the town where a group of monkeys stood. Two of them stepped forward and held out wooden spears.

         “Primitive, but these should do nicely,” Captain Douglas said.

         “I’m still not sure about this,” Pete said. He reached out and reluctantly grabbed hold of the spear.

         “Why so worried, Pete?” the captain asked.

         “We’re not exactly demon hunters!” Pete said.

         “Come on, Pete. This will be good for ya. Getting into a little danger every now and then puts hair on your chest,” the captain said with a laugh.

         “A little danger?” Pete said, turning to look at one of the monkeys, “If that’s true, we’re going to look like these monkeys...if we survive that is.”

         “Quit complaining. Let’s go,” the captain said. He turned and made his way toward the edge of the forest.

         Gathering what little courage he could, Pete followed.

         They marched through the woods, pushing through the wall of growth to create a path. Pete stayed close behind his captain, eyes surveying all around. Anytime the captain made a sudden noise, Pete jumped and hollered.

         Time passed with no sight of anything but the colors of trees and leaves. As the sun began to slip toward the horizon, Pete stopped and plopped down beside a tree.

         “I’m tired and there’s no sign of this beast. Let’s go back to the village while there’s still light!” Pete pleaded.

         “Pete...”

         The captain stopped at the sound of something rustling.

         “What’s that?” Pete asked.

         A roar from somewhere in the distance caused Pete to crawl and hide behind the tree he leaned against. “Something’s over there!”

         Steven pushed forward and held his spear out in front of him. He moved quietly, listening for any noise. Another howl echoed through the silence. Taking a deep breath, he lunged toward the commotion with a warlike cry, shaking his spear menacingly. Digging his feet into the ground, he tensed and prepared for his battle. However, as he realized what he was facing, he lowered his spear to his side.

         “Did you kill it?” Pete said, crawling on all fours after the captain.

         “It’s one of the monkeys,” Steven said.

         A boulder lay wedged in the ground, pinning a child-sized monkey under it. It howled and screamed, frantically trying to get free. Captain Douglas took a step forward, pointing his spear toward the monkey. Noticing him, the monkey growled and swatted at the spear.

         “Calm down. I’m here to help,” the captain said. He thrust his spear into the ground, lodging it between the rock and ground. With some effort, he managed to lift the stone high enough for the monkey to free his leg. A crack and boom followed as the spear splintered into two pieces and the heavy boulder returned to the soil.

         The monkey pushed itself upright and howled as it placed its weight down on its freed leg. Steven knelt beside the monkey, who looked up at him with fearful eyes. The captain scooped the monkey into his arms and walked over to Pete.

         “Come on, it’s almost dark,” he said and headed back.

         As they entered the village, the monkeys wandering about let out a loud cry. Joe Blue emerged from his hut as Captain Douglas and Pete made their way to him.

         “You slay the demon?” Blue asked.

         “Here’s your demon. His leg was crushed underneath a rock. Poor little guy was out there alone and scared.”

         “You save one of our monkeys! Then there is no demon. I thank you both!” Joe Blue yelled out.

         A group of smaller monkeys ran toward them and jumped up and down. Captain Douglas carefully set down the injured monkey, who was lifted up by his friends and carried away. Pete followed them, leaving Captain Douglas and Joe Blue standing alone.

         “I’ve held up my end of the bargain. Are you going to hold up yours?” the captain asked.

         “You might want to ask your friend first,” Joe Blue said, pointing behind the captain.

         Captain Douglas turned around and saw Pete running around laughing with the young monkeys. He turned back to a smiling Joe Blue.

         “I guess we can wait until tomorrow to talk. Right now I just want a hot meal,” Captain Douglas said.

         “We feast!” Joe Blue hollered, eliciting a huge reaction from the rest of the monkeys.

         And so the celebration in honor of the two men’s heroic deed began. Through the night, the thought of home never crossed the minds of either Captain Steven Douglas or Pete. The pit was set ablaze, and its smoke rose up into the clear night sky.