ISLAND OF THE LORD: PARTE DOS

                   ISLAND OF THE LORD: PARTE DOS




Taking a small rowing boat, the seventeen men propel themselves to the island.  Gliding across the black water, two men row the boat as the other fifteen look around in the dark, with anxiety building up.  Not knowing what they will encounter on the island that was not there a few hours ago.  Captain Figueroa cannot imagine how a boat full of sailors overlooked being raided, especially over a ton of gold.  Still they move on, being seamen, they are used to sailing into the unknown, but not with unnatural conditions. 
One of the sailors looks into the dark water to find a reflection on the surface.  But the more he stares the more he begins feeling on over whelming dread of despair.  Quickly he falls into a deep depression, and then thoughts of the grim situation the crew are in shatters his psyche.  Unsheathing his knife, he commences with stabbing his chest repeatedly.  The other men witness this atrocity and try to detain him.  As they arrive at the beach of the island one of the sailors takes the bleeding man's dagger and throws it into the ocean.
"What the hell is he doing," Rivera asks.
"He went mad for a moment," William said, "but it looks like he is settling down."
"Then you are going to stay here with him William," Figueroa orders, "the rest of us will go into the jungle to search for our cargo."
The men, with Figueroa leading, cautiously march up the beach and into the only opening of the thick forest.  The tops of the trees cover the moonless sky, but a faint moonbeam lights the trail for the men.  Ever vigilant with fear as a motive the men check all around them more than twice with each step.  They collectively judge the island a godless land.
The air is still, as the men walk on very close to each other.  Marcos is a burly man with legs shorter than other men.  He has lost the rhythm of the other men and falls a few feet behind them.  At the distance to the left of him he sees a sparkle from very captivating eyes.  Marcos unknowingly stares at them in a trance.  Not seeing where to step, he trips over a tree root that is jutting out of the ground forcing him to stumble to the ground.
Feeling foolish, Marcos quickly rises to his feet and notices that he has lost the crew.  He takes out his sword and scans the jungle around him for any sign of danger.  The eyes that entranced him before appear again.  They are a few yards away in the dark forest, and Marcos is being hypnotized increasingly.  His mind falls into a haze and his sword drops from his grip.  Walking into the thick jungle and not in control of his senses, Marcos follows the gleaming eyes.  As he reaches them the eyes individually, turn around to reveal that there are actually two large flying insects, which have their tails shaped like human eyes that glow.  Coming from the darkness hundreds of eye-bugs descend upon Marcos to feast.
On the moonlit path, the crew drudges on.  Henri who now is last in line turns to take a glimpse but does not see Marcos behind him.  Alarmed, he yells for the attention of the other men.  They all run back the way they came from but the stop to hear a blood-curdling cry that sounds like Marcos.  The look back to Figueroa for an answer,
With fear in his eyes and shame on his face, Figueroa says, "We keep going, the cargo is our first responsibility.  That is a lesson for every one not to go alone.  Stay with the group." 
He turns and marches up the path.  Rivera looks at the men to show that he wants to search for Marcos, but turns and follows the Captain.  The men fall in line and progress with the pursuit of the cargo.  One by one, the men think about poor Marcos and the fear in their Captains eyes.  Yet they walk and without way a word.
Figueroa hikes down the path, looking ahead but seeing that there is no end in sight.  His mind starts to wonder.  He thinks about the decisions he had made in his life.  How he would be a wealthy man if he had stayed in the Spanish navy, and how he would not be in this hell of an island if his damn wife had not made him take that emasculating vow.  Only men that take chances become rich and respected.  No one in his family respects him, they don't even come over on holidays.  None of his peers think highly of him, not even a letter of praise.  If he were in the Navy, he would have retired and be living in Barcelona, happy and content with his life.  But instead, he is sweating and endangering his life for other people's riches.  At least hi crew respects him, or at least they used to until that young upstart Rivera came into his life.  The crew is probably thinking of mutiny and putting Rivera as Captain.  Not if he can do anything about it.
As Figueroa is engulfed with rage, his thoughts are interrupted by the crew's yells of excitement.  They reached a waterfall and a pond.  Figueroa calms down and heads to the pond. 
"Luck is finally on our side," Rivera says, as he passes Figueroa on the way to the pond.
Figueroa thinks back and does not see an opening for a waterfall when he looked ahead.  He reasons with himself thinking 'The jungle and the one moonlight changes ones perception.'  He joins the men and sips the surprisingly refreshing waters of the pond.  The crew rejoices in the cool
water, the eerie atmosphere of the island has gone from their minds and now they relax and refresh them selves.
         High above the men, a group of ravens perch on the tallest trees.  They watch with their blacken eyes the elation of the men.  Simultaneously, the birds fly into the dark sky.  The moonless light reflects off their black feathers as they head towards the ship, circling over the boat as if seeking for prey.
         On the Duradero, the ten men that were left behind sit around drinking and voicing their concerns about the expedition.  Jorge sits alone up on the forecastle thinking about the horrors he has seen and the terror that the Captain's crew is witnessing.  For a moment, he thought that he heard a scream coming from the island.  The rest of the men did not hear it, so he dismissed it as paranoia on his part.  The feeling of dread is in him and does not go away and having a dead body and its murderer on board does not help.
         Unknown to Jorge, the flock of ravens that have been watching the ship, quickly descend onto the vessel.  The men are taken by surprise as the birds attack.  They furiously swat in the air as anarchy ensues.  The ravens stop and retreat from the fray and take off in configuration to the forecastle.  Aggressively the animals crash into the door forcibly opening it form its hinges.  Confusion and hysteria fill the minds of the men on the ship.
         Inside, the birds land on the inert body of Raul Castillo and begin to peck at it.  Jorge enters and with his hat, smacking at them.  Some of the ravens fly at him preventing Jorge from reaching the dead body.  The pecking ensues as each beak tears at the coverings of the deceased.  It is a scene from a nightmare and Jorge is powerless to act.  With the same speed the birds entered, they abandon their activity and abscond into the darkness with out a trace.  Jorge, drained from the fight with the ravens, leans in the doorway observing the others try to make sense of the ordeal.  Behind him, the lifeless body of Raul Castillo ... sits up.





         Down in the cargo area, Ricardo De Leon is averted from sleep because of his awkward pose.  He slouches down for a better position, but then his shoulders lock up, giving him tremendous pain.  In one of the few moments that he is comfortable, he doses off for about two minutes then wakes up in pain again. 
         Ricardo realizes that it is futile to try to sleep.  He sits in the dark with his mind wandering in many different directions.  One thought that Ricardo desperately struggles to disregard is the fateful decision he made four years ago.  He would wish all the physical pain in the world if he could only forget that memory, but it persists.
         On one of the many voyages he has been on from the Old Country to the New, Ricardo was once again a crew of Captain Henry Wyngaurd.  A British Navel man, he was one of the first recruits to follow Queen Elizabeth's secret orders for pirating Spanish ships. 
Ricardo has been with Captain Wyngaurd once before.  The first encounter was like any other ship of piracy.  After a week at sea, Captain Wyngaurd began berating Ricardo for being a Spanish pirate, because he  disliked anyone who dissent against his own county.  When the first tour was over, Ricardo quickly sought after a new Captain to work for.  Ten months later, and two different Captains, Ricardo was on another British pirate ship when the captain of that ship was suddenly exchanged for Captain Wyngaurd.
Miles away from land; Ricardo hoped not to be recognized by the Captain but to no avail.  During the first raid, the British pirates were over powering a small Spanish cargo ship with food supply.  Many on board were civilians who were moving to the New World, and hitch a ride with the Navy ship.  Captain Wyngaurd decided to test Ricardo's word, if money is all he wanted.  He lined up a family of four, father, mother, sister, and brother, and had three men plus Ricardo aim their guns at each family member.  Ricardo knew that if he refused not only would they kill the family, he also would be shot.  With no other option, Ricardo aimed with the rest of the men and fired.
         Ever since that day, Ricardo has always seen the little girls face every time he closes his eyes, except of course when he is extremely intoxicated.  For the past four years, he has been in a drunken stupor, and has been kicked off every ship he has applied to.  And now he is on his way to be executed for a murder he does not remember but will take full responsibility.
         Ricardo wallows in his self-pity now that he is completely sober.  He is interrupted by noise that is coming from topside.  The noise he thinks sounds like a thousand sheets of paper being smacked together back and forth.  Then wood cracking, next silence, and quickly followed by men screaming.  Ricardo tries to pursue the running footsteps but is lost by so much back tracking mixed with blood curdling screams.
From afar, Ricardo hears hurried footsteps getting louder and coming in his direction.  From the opening above, one of the seamen climbs down the ladder as speedily as his body allows.  The man searches for a hiding place oblivious to Ricardo's presence.  The look on his face is of dreadfulness with a mixture of bursting into tears.  Taking a moment to observe the seaman's frenzied search, Ricardo sits still so not to startle the crazed man.
"Hey," Ricardo tries to get his attention with a raspy whisper, "what is going on?"
The seaman spins around anxiously, he forgot about the prisoner.  The man looks up to the doorway he recently came from and begins to shake.  Wild screams echo through the wood ceiling and fill the storage room, then dissipates into the mucky water.  He opens his mouth to express to Ricardo the unimaginable scene that is taking place on the deck, but he has not fully registered it and only stammers.
"Listen...  Unchain me and I will see us both off this ship and to safety." 
"But the others..."
"The others are lost.  You can hear it yourself.  Unlock these chains and we will find the Captain.  Together, I promise"
"My name is Louise."  The seaman states as he takes the keys from the wall and unlocks Ricardo's chains.
Looking the man up and down, Ricardo takes Louise's sword from him.  He lets him because Louise understands that Ricardo is a much better swordsman.  Both men climb the latter leading to the deck of the ship.  Peering from the opening, Ricardo sees what lesser men like Louise will have nightmares for the rest of their lives.  Silhouetted in the light of the moon, a man with rotting flesh raises both arms in the air.  On hand clutches the throat of a crewmember as his other fist spears through the midsection of another. 
Jumping onto the deck, Ricardo grabs the slow Louise with one arm and pulls him from the doorway.  Before the dead man notices them, the two men run to the starboard side.
"There is where the Captain and the others went to."  Louise informs Ricardo about the island.
They ready a small lifeboat so to row to the island, but their plan is shattered by the detection of the dead Raul.  Ricardo evaluates the situation then takes Louise by the lapel and leaps into the dark ocean. The two men swim towards the island.  Ricardo, with sword in hand, swims a couple of strokes faster than Louise do.  Louise with all his might tries to catch up with his partner but thinks of hopelessness of his actions.  Louise suddenly stops swimming and searches for Ricardo but he is nowhere to be found.  With the dread of loneliness in him, Louise's body stops and he sinks into the ocean.  He closes his eyes, ready for the end.
Ricardo already half way to the island becomes aware that Louise is not behind him anymore.  He backtracks and dives into the waters in search of him.  Not being able to see, luck guides his hand to Louise's and Ricardo pulls him back from the void.  Now with both hands full, Ricardo swims back to the island.
Reaching the beach, Ricardo and Louise fall on the sand to rests for a moment.  Ricardo sits up because he hears mumbling.  Louise hears it too.  They see two of the crewmembers that left to the island an hour ago.  They sit on the beach one is cradling the other.  Louise walks up to them.
"William, William, what's going on?"  Louise asks but with no answer.  Not even an acknowledging glance. 
Ricardo takes Louise by the arm.  "They are fully taken by what ever tried to take you, they are gone."  Ricardo looks to the ship and sees Raul stand at the ledge then drops into the water. 
"I don't think he is going to stop."  Ricardo says to Louise.  They turn to the jungle and enter the passageway following the crew's footsteps.

                   TO BE CONTINUED...