Dreams of Gold and Pearls II

The Basilisk was a beast to reckon with and one that I hoped we would never run into before. None of the stories at the bar ever mentioned such a beast before. None of the stories I got from pirates and saylors alike gave a clue that something like that lived in the sea.

We've seen sea monsters before in Carlisle, from a distance. But the damage that this one created was different from what we've seen.

I maneuvered over the holes that were made by its teeth sinking into the deck. Burnt wood and hair could still be smelled from places where the cannons went off and slammed into it but did nothing. Nothing besides somehow causing a slight fire that made things get worse.

Pieces of the railing that had been on the ship were missing, making those areas dangerous; even with the little work Masque did to them. Some had been smashed from the Basilisk tail, almost taking the ship with it.

The stairs up were cracked, one broken from a misfired cannon as the ship had been rocked at the wrong time. The wood that had been there to use seemed to have been moved. My eyes dropped to it just before I went to go to the step.

The door that went below deck caught my attention as Jacob stepped out. He raised a sun-burnt hand to block the glaring sun from bothering him. He was wearing a tattered black shirt that Saul had tossed to him once everything had calmed down and we were able to get free of the beast.

Lorena had said we were lucky that it was just a baby Basilisk.

I didn't know if I could believe that or not but if that was just a baby, I knew that I never wanted to see a Basilisk again.

I turned to the sea to stare off at it.

"Why did you come with us?"

My eyes drifted away from the ashen sea and to Jacob. He looked just what I expected everyone did by that point: a sunken face and clammy skin. His question caused me to wonder what made him ask it now. We had been with the pirates for months and yet, he never asked it before.

"Because I would have been hanged otherwise." I looked towards the others sitting on the deck. "And I didn't think having you on Charlotte's ship was the best thing after what happened."

Jacob looked unconvinced, and I knew he would try to get more out of my answer. Hanging out with pirates didn't do the boy any good. He was starting to question things more and more.

"There must be another reason."

Juliet was watching us from her spot on the stairs. She didn't appear interested in what was happening. Bondi was at the helm, though it did no good. Still, he attempted to get the ship to go in some sort of direction.

He didn't listen to Saul and Gregor when they told him there was no point. The pair of them weren't far from Jacob and I either. All four of the pirates were within hearing distance.

"I was going to leave Carlisle one day and doing it after I got charged with piracy was as good a time as any." I looked back towards the grayish water.

Maybe he would leave it at that.

"Why were you planning to leave Carlisle?"

"I had a dream that involved leaving it." I didn't expand on the answer.

"What sort of dream? Did you give up on it?"

A sigh escaped me, my eyes closing as I dropped my head. When were we going to find an island? Or a boat that would share their food with us? Or even a spot where we could actually catch some fish.

The sea was a cruel mistress.

"Did the dream involve becoming a pirate?" Jacob pressed as I ignored his others.

"If I tell you will you stop asking questions?" I mumbled, raising a hand to my temple.

Fried fish did sound good about then. Or even silence that let my mind wander in ease.

"Yes."

Lifting my head back up, my hand still pressed against my temple, I opened my eyes to the bright sun to continue staring at the not so pleasant water. I pictured how different it could look in my head.

"No, I never dreamed of becoming a pirate." A laugh escaped me. "My ma would have killed me but my pa would have just laughed it off and thought of it as some sort of honorary thing. They're officials, ya know, so branching out into being a pirate was never the plan. Neither was getting into smuggling until I met George."

For a moment I forgot about the act that Jacob, William, and I were putting up for this crew of pirates. For a moment I was taken back to my family and the dream I doubted would ever happen. For a moment, I thought about George without feeling the pain of losing him.

"I dreamed of becoming an explorer. When I was a kid I heard a lot of things about them. How they dressed all fancy even when they were going to be on the sea for months. How they got to travel the vast world that we live in and see new things."

A soft smile played on my lips.

"I wanted to be just like the great explorer, Marco, who was said to have found a place that was out of this world. With its golden rivers that hid the most beautiful pearls any man or woman could hope to find. White Pearls."

An old wives tale came to my mind that involved the two explorers known as Marco Polo and Kay Cottee. It was said that they had explored to find a number of treasures. The ending of their tale I was told as a young girl was how Marco didn't give up until he could find a dozen pearls so that he could propose to Kay. I liked that ending the most out of all of them.

"Instead, I become this. End of story." I looked at Jacob who seemed to be frowning. "I told you my dream. Now let me die in peace."

His frown grew with worry. "You're not going to die."

I couldn't tell if it was a question, a plea, or just a statement that he wanted to believe. "Of course, not. If we're lucky we'll come across the Flying Dutchman." I patted his knee before staring back at the sea. "We'll be fine."

My mind was replaying the conversation as my attention drifted away from him. If he answered me back I didn't hear it.

Finding a place that had gold rivers was impossible but ever since that pirate was hanged I couldn't help but have some sort of hope. Hope that maybe one day, when I got these two boys off on an island where they could survive on their own, that I could go search for it. But being wanted would make that difficult.

I could only hope that there was no longer a bounty on my head.

The sun had nearly disappeared from the sky when it finally happened. The shout that we had been waiting for seemed to bounce around the damaged ship. It came out in a wispy holler that at first wasn't heard until it was repeated by Gregor.

"Land!"

One word was all it took to take this rough patched, sunken lot of pirates, and change them to beaming people who were ready to take on the world. Well, at least Saul, Gregor, and Jacob. The others looked as if they didn't believe in that one word.

Bondi and Juliet didn't move as they lay on the deck, letting the sun kiss them until they were as red as the blood moon. I couldn't blame them for not moving as the energy it took to get up was enough to make me long for a peaceful rest or to go back to Carlisle.

Carlisle, where George was with his bar and where I wouldn't feel like I've been starving for years. Where the silver water didn't bring such despair for drifting on a ruined ship. Carlisle, where I knew how things worked and didn't have to step onto anything bigger than a small boat to get around.

Pulling myself out of the thoughts of Carlisle, feeling as my stomach twisted at the thought of it, I searched for the land. Searched for something I had never seen before. There welcoming the descending darkness, opposite of the setting sun, was what I knew they were talking about.

I'd seen soil before, felt it on my fingers when I made sure that was what the customer wanted, but I've never seen so much. I've never seen it in the form of an island that someone could walk on. I've always been on top of the water in some way.

Making my way down the stairs and further towards the bow of the ship, I passed Masque who seemed to be joining us with the members of the crew who had fallen sick suddenly. From the glance I got, he seemed to have a slight grin on his face, and the others didn't look as pale.

Standing at the railing, my hands resting on it, I watched as we slowly drifted towards it. It was flatter than I would have imagined and like no one would be able to walk on it without sinking in. Was it possible to walk on soil? Was it not like water?

"Have you ever seen such beauty?" Captain Velwyn wondered out loud.

Glancing at him, I knew that he was having trouble standing up and that he wasn't well enough to be up top with us. Beside him was Wiley, his face lit up like a child getting ready to open a gift. The two were clearly different in appearance.

Wiley looked as if he hadn't been sick a day in his life, besides the slight sweat that built up on his forehead and bags under his eyes. I had no doubt in my mind that he would be bouncing if he had the strength.

Captain Velwyn was as pale as the dead, still. The bags under his eyes were darker and more noticeable compared to Wiley's. And he looked more fragile, which did not fit the captain of the ship.

"Is that Kulon?" Wiley wondered.

"Kulon?" I asked.

He nodded, looking around Velwyn. "It's supposed to be one of the only islands in this part of the world that is connected or close to the capital." The excitement about the place broke through as he talked slightly faster. "It's also called the Moving Island. People say that it'll be in one place one day and gone by the next, which makes it hard to put on a map. No one can figure out how it can move."

My lips shifted as I listened to him talk. It was a change from how the ship was just minutes before.

"Right, Captain? You said that we would one day find Kulon." Wiley looked back to me as his eyes left Velwyn, who nodded. "It's one of the reasons I joined. Or one of the reasons he brought me along. Says I'm a good luck charm."

This caused me to raise an eyebrow. If he was a good luck charm, what did he call us getting attacked by a Basilisk?

"I never said that, Kid," Captain Velwyn said. "Go see if you can figure out how long it'll take for us to reach it."

Wiley pressed his lips together. "I would say an hour. Right before the sun is completely gone but I'll go see what Lorena thinks."

His footsteps grew faint and slowly mixed in with everyone else that was hobbling around. Many were limping, while a few had to drag one of their legs. Even the dull thump from a peg leg was loud at that moment. 

I went back to staring at the slowly growing island. 

[WORD COUNT: 52,503]