The Island

The ship began to swarm around. If it wasn't for the ropes around everyone's waist most of them would have fallen over and into the water. As much as the captain was trying to push the wheel and turn the ship around, she couldn't do it alone.

"EVERYBODY HOLD ON TIGHT!"

Eleonora yelled.

"Daaamn it! This sucks!"

Christina exclaimed loudly while holding onto the railing of the ship next to Eleonora.

Sib and Sophia were holding each other tight around the foremast. Right beside them, Alexandra was holding onto the parapet.

They had no idea the vortex would be that large; if someone fell into the water, they would be swept in and lost forever.

Everyone on board the ship was jolted by a sudden, enormous wave.

As a result, the princess slipped, slid off the ship's railing, and fell overboard.

The rope around her waist was the only thing preventing her from tumbling into the vortex.

"PRINCESS!"

Sib yelled.

"SIB DON'T!"

Alexandra shouted.

He let go of the foremast and was immediately dragged to the parapet of the ship. Sib grabbed the rope the princess was hanging off of and started pulling it.

"SIB!"

Sophia yelled. She tried to climb the rope but to no avail. The air and the gravitational pull of the vortex were too strong. Sophia began to panic. Hundreds of thoughts filled her head. Was this the end of her adventure?

Is she really going to die like this? A familiar voice, however, managed to get her to snap back to reality.

"I GOT YOU, PRINCESS! DON'T WORRY!"

Sib screamed. But what he failed to notice is that Sophia's rope was starting to rip apart.

When Alexandra turned towards it, she looked at the parapet she was holding and then towards Sophia's rope. She let out a sigh and said.

"Bloody hell!"

The First Mate let go of the parapet and head straight for the rope. She managed to take it before it had ripped.

On the other hand, The captain was still struggling to turn the wheel.

"Shit, shit, shit!"

Eleonora exclaimed

"CHRISTINA!"

She said turning her head towards her.

"I need your help!"

"*sigh*Son of a bitch!"

She said as she let go of the railing and slid to the wheel. Together with the captain, they pushed the wheel as much as they could. Alexandra and Sib were holding Sophia's rope for dear life.

"CAPTAIN, WE CAN'T HOLD ON MUCH LONGER!"

Alexandra yelled.

"WE ARE TRYING!"

Christina yelled back at her.

"Okay, Christina listen! On 3 we turn as hard as possible! Got it?"

Eleonora turned to look at her.

Christina nodded and responds.

"Alright! One! Two! Three!"

They exerted every last bit of effort they had left to turn that wheel and they avoided slipping in the water on the floor.

Sib and Alexandra were holding the rope as tightly as they could while Sophia tried to climb up again.

"Come of you darn old thing! Turn!"

Eleonora said and delivered the final push.

At last, they succeeded in turning the ship away from the vortex.

Sophia was propelled back into the ship by the sudden turn. The moment they turned the ship and Sophia was back on deck, Sib went towards her and embraced her into his arms holding her tight while Alexandra was pushed back by the impact and fell to the ground.

Meanwhile, Christina and Eleonora managed to get the ship far away from the vortex rage.

After a brief period of time, the vortex cooled down. The sky became clearer and the sun shined in their eyes.

The captain and the quartermaster turned towards each other, smiled, and collapsed to the floor from exhaustion. They were breathing heavily but began to cheer because of their success. They could barely move to do anything but smile and fist bump one another.

"Is everyone alright?"

Alexandra asked while standing up slowly, holding onto the parapet for support.

"I... think...so"

Christina said in between breaths

Baki came out of the captain's cabin at that moment and jumped on Alexandra's shoulders.

"Good thing you're okay"

She said while petting Baki.

Sib looked down at the princess in his arms.

"My lady, are you alright?"

He took her hand and helped her stand up. She looked at him but before she could answer him, she turned away from him.

"Princess, what's wrong?"

Sib stated in a concerned tone.

She didn't respond. Instead, she dashed to the railing and began to throw up.

"Holy shit!"

Christina said while laughing together with Eleonora.

"*Cough cough* yes... I'm fine... little dizzy but fine..."

Sophia answered.

Eleonora and Hristina slowly stood up.

"Um, captain?"

Alexandra asked

"What?"

"Look"

Eleonora turned around to where Alexandra was pointing. The moment she laid her eyes on it her knees felt weak and her heart felt like it had stopped. It was a small island that the captain knew very well.

"No, it can't be. It's not possible! There is no way we could have ended here!"

Eleonora remarked that it was clear she was in a panic.

"Captain, calm down."

Christina said putting her hand on Eleonora's shoulder.

Eleonora's body began to shake. Her breathing became heavy again.

"Captain please, it's been years there is nothing to panic about."

Christina exclaimed again turning Eleonora around, facing her.

Alexandra and the others noticed the captain's reaction and slowly approached her.

"Captain, what's going on?"

Sophia asked, worry in her tone.

"Hey, Captain, it's fine. We are here. You're not alone."

Alexandra then said getting a little bit closer to Eleonora.

The Captain took deep breaths. Alexandra's words seem to calm her down and after a few more seconds her breathing was back to normal.

"You're right. It's been years and I'm not alone. Everything's fine."

Eleonora stated. Looking at everyone around her with a soft smile.

They smiled back at her.

"So what's the plan? Do we stop on the island or do we continue on-words?

Christina asked

"Hm, do we need anything from the island?"

The captain asked looking at her men on the deck.

"We are short on food, ma'am!"

One of the men said.

"*sigh* As much as I don't want to, I guess we can stop for a few hours"

The captain stated

"Are you sure you'll be alright?"

Alexandra asked

"Yes. I will be fine."

...

A few moments later, they arrived on the island. When Eleonora set foot on the island's sand she sighed again but step forward.

"Alright, Ladies and gentlemen listen up. We will search for anything edible on this island and then meet up again here in 3 hours. Some of you will set up the camp while others will search the place, understood?"

Eleonora exclaimed towards her crew.

"Yes, captain!

"Good. Let's go then."

Eleonora signaled to Alexandra and Christina to follow her.

As the three of them were about to enter the forest the princess followed them as well.

"Hey, where do you think you're going?"

Christina asked pushing the princess back.

"Huh? I want to explore this place as well!"

"No, you should stay inside the ship. This is a dangerous island."

Alexandra said

"Come on, please! I just want to explore with you guys!"

Sophia begged.

Christina and Alexandra looked at Eleonora. The captain sighed

"You're giving me a headache. Fine! You can come. Just stop that whining"

Sophia was more excited than ever.

"Um, captain?"

"What is it, Sib?"

"May I come with you?"

"Absolutely not."

Alexandra said

"What? Why not?"

Sophia asked

"Cause. You're lucking I'm even allowing YOU to come. Besides he has work to do here."

Eleonora said

"But he can help us with looking around. Come on, please."

Sophia grabbed Dilianas hand and pleaded with her till the captain had enough.

"For heavens sakes, FINE! Just stop it!"

"Thank you, captain"

Sib said.

Sophia grabbed Sib's hand with a smile and she dragged him onwards.

"Fantastic, now we're stuck with the 2 love birds."

Christina said

They continued deep inside the forest.

...

Hours passed and yet there was still nothing edible in sight.

"Aaaa, can we stop for a few minutes? My legs are hurting!"

Sophia complaint

"You wanted to come with us so don't complain."

Eleonora exclaimed

"I can carry you if you want, princess?"

"You're so sweet but no need."

"Would you like me to massage your feet then? I know that can help ease up the pain."

"Oh, you're adorable Sib but no it's fine.

Christina glared at both of them and then at Eleonora.

"If they continue being so lovey dovey, I'm gonna throw up!"

"Captain, I think we should rest for a bit. We've been walking for hours and I think we might be lost"

Alexandra said

"Wait, are we lost?"

Sophia asked looking at Eleonora, who had her back turned.

"...nooo.."

"We are lost! Fantastic work captain!"

Sophia said sarcastically

"Oh, pardon me princess how about you take the compass and guide us then."

Eleonora said sarcastically.

"I gladly will!"

She took the compass out of the captain's hands but stopped walking when she looked at it.

"Let me guess, you don't know how a compass works"

Eleonora said

"I do!"

Sophia said.

Eleonora raised an eyebrow.

"The compass points at the north, my lady. You have to rotate your body so you know where you are."

Sib said

"I... I knew that! Come now follow me!"

They followed her and then Christina turned to the captain.

"Um, captain. How did we get lost exactly? I thought you knew the place well?"

She whispered

"I haven't been here for almost 5 years. I don't remember it much anymore and I try to forget about it."

Eleonora said as she looked to the ground.

"Hey, It's understandable. If I were you, I would have done the same."

Christina exclaimed, putting an arm around the captain.

Suddenly, the princess stopped.

"Ummm... aha! Here."

"Princess, you have no idea where we're going, don't you?

Alexandra said mockingly.

"I do! We should be back to the ship if we-Aaaaaah!"

Sophia was cut off as she stepped backward and fell into a deep hole.

"Princess!"

All of them yelled and ran towards the hole,

"Princess are you okay?"

Sib shouted inside the hole.

Sophia shook her head. Luckily, she fell on her butt so nothing was broken.

"I'm alright!"

All of them sighed in relief.

"Princess, what do you see?

Christina asked

"Almost nothing! It's pitch black!"

"We have to get her out of there!"

Sib said

"And how are we going to do that? We are lost inside this damn island away from the ship. We don't have any rope on us or anything!"

Alexandra said

"Princess, is it just a hole or are there tunnels around you?"

Eleonora asked

Sophia stood up and looked around for a bit before noticing one tunnel in front of her

"I think there is a tunnel!"

She yelled back in response.

"Good. Follow the tunnel. It should lead you to an exit."

Eleonora said.

"What!? I can't go in there in the dark, alone!"

Sophia shouted

"You won't be alone"

Alexandra stated

"What?"

Sophia asked

Suddenly, Alexandra kicked Sib inside the hole. He landed on his butt too.

"See, you are not alone"

"Sib! Are you alright?!"

"Yes yes, I'm fine."

"First Mate! What were you thinking?!"

Sophia asked

Alexandra just threw a box of matches, a cloth, and a stick.

"Light that up and use the compass to navigate yourself. We will try to find the exit from up here."

Alexandra then looked at Eleonora and Christina, who was just staring at her in disbelief.

"What? You were both sick of them."

Eleonora and Christina nodded their heads.

"Are you three really going to leave us down here?!"

"The exit would be a wooden trap door on top. There should be a ladder for you two to climb."

Eleonora said

"Good luck, princess!"

Christina yelled. The three laughed and left.

"Ugh, unbelievable!"

"It's okay, princess. We'll find a way out!"

Sib said while putting his hands around her shoulders.

"Come on, help me make the torch"

He said.