Stranded Chapter 4 – S.O.S.
Recap: My only hope is that we get off this island before we find out what that "thing" actually is.
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A stiff breeze blew through the trees as the sun set behind the mountain. I'm not one to scare easily, but after 48 hours of being trapped on this dingy little island…well, let's just say odd things have been happening. Let me describe the events that's taken place.
On the first night we all crowded together near the roaring fire. We were all on high alert, especially since Heero and I told the others that something weird lived on this island. Maybe it was a harmless creature, but our soldier instincts told us to be prepared.
"What was that?" Duo whirled around and stared into the dark forest.
"Relax. It's probably just the wind blowing through the leaves." Heero didn't look as confident as he sounded. See what I mean? This is really starting to get to us.
"Did you hear that? A weird noise, it came from in there." Duo pointed behind us, straight into the heart of the forest. Ever notice how creepy and dark spaces are always home to sinister creatures? Yeah well, this is probably no exception to the rule. "Go look." Duo demanded, not taking his eyes off the 'spot'.
"Oh for heaven's sake Maxwell don't be such a wet blanket," Wufei sighed. "Fine! I'll go look. It's not like I'll find anything" He added to himself as he gently brushed the sand off his pants. He strode towards the undergrowth, and parted it between the leaves. "Nothing here. Nothing over there. And, oh look! A cute little squirrel." He smirked and looked at us over his shoulder.
"Ask it which way the talking llama went!" Duo countered, quoting a line from his favorite Disney movie, The Emperor's New Groove. Man, Duo will quote anything when given the chance.
Wufei was about to return when something caught his eye. He quickly disappeared into the undergrowth. "Wufei! What is it?" Quatre asked while he and Heero quickly walked over to the spot where Wufei had been standing only a few seconds ago.
"Um, guys. I think you'd better come and see this for yourselves." Wufei's muffled voice reached us. Duo and I glanced at each other. Ok, whatever Wufei found obviously wasn't going to be anything good. We parted the bushes and stepped through one by one.
"Whew! It sure is dark in here." Heero wasn't kidding. What little moonlight we had was mostly blocked out by the leaves, sending an eerie glow into the darkness.
Wufei was a little way in, stooping over something. "I'm no biologist, but this looks suspicious." He said while was using a stick to gently prod the object. It rolled into a patch of moonlight.
"Aaaaahhhhhh!" We all turned and ran for it. We didn't stop until we were almost at the water's edge.
"A skull, it was a human skull!" Quatre shrieked Poor guy was trembling all over.
"Now let's… not be too… hasty." I started, trying to catch my breath. "It could be…some sort of primate, a monkey if you will."
"Oh great…a monkey. Well, whenever you feel like telling us what ate Mr. Monkey, please don't hesitate to say." Duo sarcastically added before letting himself fall into the sand.
"It could have been a big cat, like a mountain lion or a jaguar." Heero stated. "If it were brighter, I'd have stayed to get a better look at the surroundings."
"Oh how nice, a giant sized kitty! And look, we're just a large meaty buffet waiting to be eaten up by Mr. Kitty. Isn't that wonderful?" Duo's a never-ending bucket of sarcasm, isn't he? Oh well, I've heard having humour in dark times can actually help lighten the situation. Let's hope so, 'cause the way things are going we may be here a while.
That was just the first night. In the morning of the second day, Quatre and Wufei demanded to see the area where Heero and I first encountered a similar event. Duo tagged along too, not wanting to be left behind alone.
The trip to the wrecked plane was uneventful. The wreck seemed to be just as we had left it. The burned luggages were strewn all over the floor, and bits and pieces of the plane was scattered around us just as before. The surrounding area screamed 'spooky' because it was all covered in thick vines and rotting logs.
"There." Heero pointed. "That's where 'it' was."
"There doesn't seem to be anything peculiar about this place. Just a little crowded though." Quatre said. He was riffling through the luggage trying to find anything we might be able to use later.
Wufei and Duo were examining the vine wall when Duo nearly fell through a hole in it. "Cool! Check this out. It looks like a cave. A dark, empty, hollow cave…" He gulped, backing away from the gaping hole.
"No wait!" I grabbed Duo. "This explains where that creature might have disappeared into when we saw it! I'll bet that if we explore this place, it might give us a better idea of what we're up against."
"But how'll we see anything in the dark?" Duo asked. "It's not like we have a flashlight or anything."
"Actually," Quatre turned towards us, smiling. "That won't be a problem." He pulled out a few dried branches from underneath a boulder. "See these branches were dried out by the heat of the fire. All we have to do is use a flint stone and light these babies up!"
"That's a good plan" Wufei started. "But once we're inside the cave, we'll have to hurry because I doubt these torches will last very long." Heero by this time had located a few flint stones.
"What do you guys think we'll find in there?" Quatre asked while handing out the branches to us.
"Maybe nothing," I said as I lit the torch. "Well, here goes." I pushed aside the vines and took the plunge. I could hear the others close behind.
"Creepy, creepy, creepy…ackh!" Duo had collided into a few wet and slimy vines that hung down from the low ceiling. "GROSS! What is this stuff?"
"It's water!" Quatre ran his hands over the slimy rock walls.
"But where's it coming from?"
"I'm not sure. Maybe the water's coming from a secret underground water spring…" Quatre held his torch higher. "Well, it's seeping through these cracks in the ceiling so maybe from somewhere above."
"Guys can we focus a little," Heero had taken over as leader and was far ahead of us. "We're supposed to be look-WHOA!" He froze in his tracks.
"Now what, Yuy?" Wufei muttered. He peered over Heero's shoulders and his eyes opened wide. We had found a little room off of the main pathway and you wouldn't believe what was in there.
"It looks like something's turned this place into their humble abode." Duo began searching through the things.
"Not something. Someone." I said pointing out all the man-made items. A damaged parachute had been turned into a sleeping bag. There was a compass, map, and a water jug on a rock table in a corner. In another corner was a pile of bones, the remains of the person's meal no doubt.
"Wow! You know what this means?" Quatre's face brightened. "It means that we're not the only people stuck on this island!