The couple walked down the cobble-stone street laughing pleasantly and holding one another close. In the dim light of the streetlamp, only the bright clothing suggested any reason that they should be out so late. The young woman's large, powder-blue party dress sparkled as the silver and blue threads caught the light. The young man wore a plain black suit and a top hat that kept tumbling off his head and onto the road below. The houses around them were dark and not a sound could be heard form anywhere except for the staggering steps of the couple. The moon shown with a smile and a few stars sparkled overhead.
The two paused beside a towering house and stood very still on the doorstep. Only one light shown brightly in one of the upper story windows and it was momentarily blocked by a figure looking down upon the couple. The young woman glanced up briefly but was soon preoccupied when the young man whispered something softly in her ear. She laughed and pulled away from him, but he caught her hand and held it. She turned back to him and they stood motionless for a period of time. Then, they embraced once more and shared a passionate kiss. Afterwards, the young woman left and opened the door to go inside. She blew the young man a kiss from the doorway, and shut the door quietly. The man stood on the doorstep for a moment longer and then continued to walk to down the dark cobble-stone street.
The room was extremely dark; not even the moon shown through the windows. Catherine Bell was lying, asleep, on the large four-poster bed and was motionless, lost in her dreams. Then, a flash of light lit up the night sky, succeeded by a loud BOOM. She woke with a start and sat up in her bed. Another light flashed and was followed by another loud BOOM. Catherine shook her head and slowly got out of bed. Her feet touched the cold wooden floor and she walked quickly to the large window that faced the street. Looking curiously out, she could just see the lineup of ships sitting patiently in their docks. Squinting, she could just make out a dark shape a little ways away out in the water.
When the third flash of light flickered brightly, Catherine gasped and quickly withdrew from the window. The light had illuminated a frighteningly large ship sitting in the dark water. A ship sailing black sails, hardly recognizable in the night sky. However, a growing red glow had started down by the water. With a certain horror, Catherine realized that a fire had started and was slowly rising higher and higher in to the sky. In the silence of her uncle's house, she could hear the faint sound of screaming.
She stepped back form the window and nearly tripped over a chair that was nearby. Thinking that she would warn someone one, her uncle maybe, of what she saw, she whirled hurriedly around and ran to the door. Suddenly, she paused and listened. It may have been her imagination, but it seemed as if the screaming was growing louder. But then someone yelled out nearby and Catherine realized that she could now hear the sound of running footsteps and the sharp retort of gunshots. Hastily, she threw open the door and made her way down the hallway. Coming upon the railing of the stairs, she could see her uncle and the doorman open the door. Her uncle spotted her and paused before rushing out.
"Catherine! Stay in your room! Lock the door and hide! Do not come out until I come get you, do you hear me?"
She nodded and then they were both gone. Catherine looked around on the lower floor, but saw no one else. Wondering where the other servants were, she listened intently to the commotion outside. More people were screaming and yelling, and now there were the sounds of clashing swords and even more gunshots. Her heart pounding fiercely, Catherine made to go back to her room when a loud THUD issued from the other side of the front door. She stopped moving, the blood freezing in her veins. Turning her head ever so slowly, her eyes fell upon the door. There was a period of silence and then another BOOM resounded loudly off the thick wood. Catherine stood there for another minute before actually starting to move back to her room.
The door finally burst open in an explosion of wooden and splinters. Catherine only looked back once but that was enough to give her a good look at the fearsome man standing in the doorway. He was a large burly man with a long tangled brown beard and he wore a pair of very dirty brown trousers and thick shin-length boots. He had on a waist-length overcoat but had on no shirt. Instead, his whole chest was covered with the straps of gun belts which contained a variety of shotguns. He turned his large head in Catherine's direction and grinned, his brown teeth popping out of his mouth.
Catherine raced to her room and shut the door quickly, bolting it tightly. She backed away right into the side of her bed. Breathing deeply and listening to the uproar outside, she watched the door warily. Then, she could just make out the sounds of heavy footsteps making their way up the stairs. Catherine's breath caught in her throat and she closed her eyes, whispering a silent prayer to the heavens. There were sounds of more footsteps walking around outside of her door; more than one person seemed to be pacing the hallway outside. She took several slow, deep breaths and sat resolutely down on her bed, waiting for them to come bursting in.
Someone knocked twice on her door.
Catherine lifted her head but made no other movement. Her eyes watched the door, but it was as if she wasn't really seeing anything in front of her. The sounds of screaming had lessened but the gunshots had not. They seemed to be more active then ever.
The knock came again, louder this time, and followed by a voice.
"We know you're in there, my dear." It said. The voice was gruff and had a slight unrecognizable accent, but was soothing and soft. "Just open the door, child, and we won't hurt you, no, not one bit." A chuckled issued quietly and was immediately hushed.
Catherine knew that whoever was out there was lying, but a thought suddenly sprung to her head. She stood up slowly and walked briskly to the desk that was pushed up against one wall. Quickly opening the first drawer, she pulled out the only thing there was: a dingy, folded piece of paper. She paused, in the process of concealing it, staring down at the small, fragile thing. Then, someone rammed into the door with all the force of a charging rhino and Catherine jumped. She shoved the paper up the sleeve of her nightgown and turned to face whoever was at the door. There was another shove and the locked buckled and popped. The door swung violently inward, revealing the horrible man who had come through the front door. Behind him were two others, as ugly and as horrible as he was.
"Well, what do we have here?" He purred in a deep voice. The man took a step towards Catherine and she flinched. "Where is your uncle, my dear?"
Catherine stared blankly at his face. She wanted to say something, but her voice seemed to be caught in her throat. Had they not met her uncle as he rushed out the door to help? She was trembling all over and had to use the desk as something to lean on. The man smiled and motioned to his two cronies. They entered the room and began to search the bed covers and the closet. Catherine watched them warily, her eyes flicking back and forth as they moved about the room. The large man was now looking around the walls and ceiling with curiosity. Trying to decipher what he was so interested in, she followed his gaze.
The room they were in was a spare, used by her only when she came to visit her uncle. Her father's brother was an avid sailor who used most of his time charting and drawing detailed maps. His specialty was small, forgotten islands, one of which this room was completely dedicated to. For years, her uncle had been trying to find an island known only in myth and children's stories. An island called Illiath. Of course, that was its true name, one that seemed much more professional than what children called it: Never-land. It was a magical island that contained all sorts of strange creatures and populations. Though most thought that this island didn't exist, Catherine's uncle had said that he had proof that it was real.
He had dedicated this room to the mysterious island, painting pictures that depicted the strange and wonderful things he thought could be found there. The ceiling was a beautiful night sky with an eternal full moon shinning in one corner. Around the walls were brightly colored flowers and plants. Among them were dark-skinned faces that stared out from the foliage, watching serenely with calm brown eyes. There was a lagoon that showed beautiful mermaids sunning themselves on rocks jutting out of the water. One other wall, dancing fairies were flying with intricate wings as a herd of deer watched on. There was one painting, however, that was particularly special. It showed a young boy, dressed in a garment of woven leaves and vines, perched on a large toadstool. He was smiling, a mischievous smile that made you think that he had been up to something very bad and he wasn't telling you. This painting was important because it portrayed the image of the Boy Who Lives Forever. A boy who had never gotten old and stayed eternally young.
Behind him, you could just see the beach, and beyond that, a massive rock that rose sharply out of the water. It had two gaping caves that resembled eyes and one a bit lower that looked like a nose. The rock sloped down into a row of jagged rocks that made one think of sharp teeth. It was called Skull Rock and it was a fearsome sight to behold.
This island had fascinated her uncle since his childhood and he had then become convinced that it was real. He had often told Catherine that, in the center of the island, was a ruined castle, once a grand place with golden tapestries and wonderful paintings. There were silver goblets and swords encrusted with jewels. He said that if someone happened to find this palace and the treasure inside, they could become the richest humans in the world. When Catherine was little, she would stare for hours at the walls of this room and play imaginary games within the four walls. This room gave her a certain comfort when she was away.
The large burly man could not seem to tear his eyes away from the pictures painted on the walls. He seemed awed by them. Then he said something very strange.
"Yes, this is it." He whispered it and Catherine frowned slightly, trying to understand what he was talking about.
A movement from the desk startled her and her attention returned to the two others who were searching her room. Turning, she looked right into the face of the younger one, who was grinning manically at her. She started and backed away quickly. The second man grinned and joined his partner, and they proceeded to begin searching through the desk drawers. Catherine continued backing up, her eyes wide, until the back of her shoulder hit the large man. Catherine blinked and whirled instantly around.
The man was grinning at her. He opened his mouth to say something, but one of the other men called out.
"Capitan, there's nothin' here but a couple a papers! There ain't no map s'far as I can tell." The man said, holding a handful of her uncle's papers.
Catherine recognized some of them; ones that her uncle had planned to throw out but had never gotten around to it. The only thing of interest was the paper that Catherine had already taken. Since her uncle had been rejected a ship to attempt to travel to Illiath, he had started moving his work elsewhere and had begun clearing and packing the information he had away. Somehow, however, one important slip had been left and Catherine had kept it, something to remind her of her childhood. She hadn't realized how important it was until the moment the man had entered her room.
The large man frowned, looked down once more at Catherine, and then stormed over to the other man. He swiped the papers out of his hand and held them close to his face to see what they were. He grunted and flung the papers down on the floor. Turing his head, he stared at Catherine with narrowed eyes.
"Where's the map?" He growled ferociously.
Catherine edged towards the door and grasped the handle. She shook her head, not knowing what he was talking about. The man was not fooled however and moved frighteningly quickly towards her. He grabbed her arm and pulled her away from the door with a great wrench. Catherine gasped as her hand was torn away from the door and she struggled to get away. The man held on as tight as ever, though, and he pulled her close. She could smell the mixture of aromas that clung to his beard and clothes: rum, body odor, salt, and something else she couldn't name. He leaned in and Catherine tried desperately to wriggle away from this smelly, obtrusive being.
"There is supposed to be a map!" He hissed angrily. "A map of an island. Your uncle was supposed to have one! Now, tell me where it is, or I will carve the flesh of your bones and feed you to the fishes."
Catherine gaped at him and began shaking again. The man only stared impassively at her for a moment and then put out a hand to one of his partners. The first man walked over and handed his captain a long, curved knife, a grin taking up the whole of his face. The large man placed the knife against Catherine's skin and pressed down gently. Catherine couldn't ignore the cold metal and her breath became sharp and ragged. The large man looked deep into her eyes.
"Now," he said quietly, almost lovingly. "I want to know where that map is."
Catherine opened her mouth to speak, and the large man lowered the knife a bit.
"I d-don't k-know where it is." She whispered in a squeaky voice. The large man frowned once again. He turned to his two associates.
"Her uncle must have it." He barked. Turning back to Catherine, he pressed the knife again to her neck. "We'll just have to find him and persuade him to give it to us." He crooned softly into her ear.
The two others nodded and began to run back out of the room. The man holding Catherine grabbed her wrist even more tightly and twisted it behind her back. Catherine gasped and tried to struggle even more.
"L-let me go!" She cried, her eyes wide.
The large man grinned widely and forced her out the door with a rough push. Catherine stumbled out the door and nearly rammed into the stairway railing. The large man laughed loudly and again grabbed her arm. Looking around, Catherine noticed that her uncle's house was completely chaotic. There were several other men running around the entire area, some with guns others with swords. When the men heard their captain, some raised their heads in recognition and smirked at the poor girl's distress. As the captain acknowledged them with a hearty laugh, he continued to violently escort Catherine down the steps and out the front door.
"Come on now, back to the ship!" He roared. Catherine stared at him with a frightened look on her face.
"Ship?" She squeaked in a high voice. The captain glanced at her thoughtfully for a moment and then smiled in a cynical way.
"And," he added to his associates around him. "We have a guest." He shook Catherine's arm in the air and the men around him yelled their approval. Catherine was shaking again and her eyes were flickering in every direction. The captain began to herd Catherine through the same streets she had walked the night before to the dock where the dark ship waited.