The Forgotten Island

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE:

DIE ANOTHER DAY

-Arya-

In a rare stroke of luck, Val’s fever broke the next morning, and she woke hungry as a hippo. We split the last of our fish jerky as we packed up our temporary home. Although our hearts were still heavy from the loss of our friends, we all felt relieved at being able to finally leave the tree and the trauma is represented in our story. Once we were all packed up, I took the lead and began to slowly lower a doorway in the wood of our sanctuary. Daylight streamed into the tree, and we were greeted by an empty forest and the sounds of birds chirping nearby. Cautiously we began to move, choosing to go the opposite way of the beach we had previously inhabited. The terrain was hard on Val, and we moved painfully slow. We stayed quiet as we walked, conscious of every snap and crack under our feet as we moved. Though we hadn’t heard the cannibals since the day of the attack, the possibility that they were still around was good. We didn’t know where Nate’a or Reggie had even found them, let alone where they had been followed from back to camp.

Despite the conditions in which we were here, the forest was beautiful. There was a mix of vegetation from every type of environment, including many I had never seen before. As we walked, I absentmindedly picked up some of the seeds that littered the ground, trying not to make Val see how slow we were walking for her. We hadn’t come across any possible game since we left, and I was beginning to get hangry. “Oy, Fish. Can you just, I dunno, water shoot one of these birds? My stomach is starting to eat itself.” We all stopped and looked at her expectantly at on my question. Fish looked up at the trees with concentrated look as she studied the upper canopy. “It’s hard to see them, I am not sure how big they are.” She spoke as she reached behind her, a small sphere of water leaving her reservoir to float above her palm. Darnell stood tall beside her “Perhaps I can make a current ta lead dem down” Getting on board with the idea of an imminent meal, I spoke next “I could shake the trees around a bit to get them moving into your current, and then Fish can target into the flock.”

Seeing that we were going to be here for a minute, Val sat down on an old stump nearby “I will sit here and look pretty”. Our plan set, we moved in tandem towards a set of trees ahead of us. Crouching down I placed my hand on the earth, pushing power through the ground like a lightning bolt. I shook the copse of trees a little more violently than I meant to but it did the trick. The birds came flocking out of the branches, blocking out the light as they took flight. Darnell sent up gust of air, forcing the birds to take a downward path towards us, keeping them in a tight area. Fish separated her sphere into a multitude of tiny water bullets, which I thought was clever. She would use a sort of shotgun approach, which would compensate for the inability to aim well into the moving mass.

Her tongue stuck out just a tad as she focused, and when she saw a clear window, she sent her bullets flying. Feathers erupted in the sky as a handful of birds fell to the ground. Darnell released his current, letting the birds fly free from our trap as Fish and I walked to grab our loot. I found one of the birds still alive, flapping one working wing frantically as I approached. Working quickly, I grabbed the bird by its neck and swung sharply, breaking its neck. If I ever get back to the real world, I swear I was becoming a vegetarian. This whole Alaskan bush people survival stuff was not for me. I met the others back at Val’s sitting stump after collecting two more fallen birds. Our hunt was a resounding success, with a total of eleven birds retrieved. The birds looked like mini peacocks, with bright teal and blue feathers on the main body, and beautiful green colors on the wings.

Darnell looked down at our spoils wearing a disappointed face. “We won’t be able to eat these down here in the open, we are too exposed.” We all grumbled but didn’t argue, strapping the birds by their feet to our packs we moved on. As we walked the trees began to thin out a little, letting in wide streams of light that made the area look like something from a painting. I saw some stringy, vine-like plants above the ground and stopped the group so I could dig them up. “Ha! Groundnuts!” I said triumphantly as I held up a handful of brown bulbs. Groundnuts are a potato like tube plant that are high in protein, and I had learned about them just last year. I felt like I had found buried treasure. The rest of the group looked at me like I was nuts, but no one said anything as I shoved a bunch in my pack, and again moved on. Val’s limp began to get worse, and she was moving slower and slower. I was about to say something to Darnell when he stopped and suggested we stop for the night. I looked around the area at his request, trying to find a way to shelter in the trees. The trunks were too thin to make another trunk cave, but the branches high up were abundant and intertwined in tight areas. I can work with that, I thought. I took off my pack and sat cross legged on the ground. Placing my hands on the ground I sent my energy up and into the trees to the branches above. I melded the limbs together, making a thick landing about twenty feet wide and ten feet deep. Plenty of room for the four of us to move around without being on top of each other. Just for good measure, I added a simple railing around the area, so none of us could accidentally fall off. I smiled up at the group who golf clapped at my creation, prompting me to stand and take a dramatic bow.

“We will need a way to cook the birds, but otherwise I think we should be good.” I said to them, motioning to the landing above. I raised my hands above my head “And for my final act! Our chariot awaits!”. Branches grew down towards us, with a flattened end like a spatula for us to stand on. We each stood on the ends, holding onto the branch for support. I then had the branches lift us up slowly to the platform, depositing us on one of the outer corners. We got to work settling in, Fish unpacking while I made divots in the wood for us to sleep more comfortably. Darnell went back down for a short period, bringing back a literal sack of dirt we could make a small fire on.

We cooked the birds, making small talk as the juices fell into the fire. The smell accompanying the sizzling fat made my mouth water, I was ecstatic to not be eating fish jerky for the first time since we were attacked. With the groundnuts peeled, chopped, and boiled, it almost felt like a bonified family meal of meat and potatoes. The sun began to set as we ate, bringing an eerie silence to the forest. As with every night, the darkness brought the screaming. It was louder here than it had been on the beach, going off like surround sound at a theater. Whatever the cause, we were safely high up and away from any danger. With full stomachs we laid down to sleep, gray eyes drifting through my thoughts.