Chapter Eight: The Volcano
Moseby clamped his eyes shut tighter. He could smell bacon. So strong he could almost taste it. The sand beneath him felt like silk. He did not want to wake up. Whatever dream he was in, he never wanted to leave it. But he knew as soon as he opened his eyes, he would be met by the vast expanse of the ocean. That familiar salty, fishy smell. The sand burning into his skin, scratching, irritating his sunburned body.
After a few moments, when the smell did not fade, and some experimental movements on the sheets did not turn into harsh sand, he curiously opened an eye, looking at the room around him. It was not the Tipton, but it was not the Island he was on.
Slowly the memories of yesterday came rushing back to him. The boat approaching, the kids finding them, going back to the kids island. The house, the food, the drink, the beds. The feeling of defeat and depression faded, and was replaced by curiosity and elation. The bacon smell was real. He could hear it sizzling.
He got out of bed, and pulled on his tattered clothes, walking out into the corridor and following the smell into the kitchen where he saw all five kids sat around the table.
"Morning Moseby" Zack greeted
"What would you like to drink? Juice, Water, tea or coffee?" Bailey asked
"Um" Moseby stuttered, not sure what he wanted. "Coffee please" he said, his body having not tasted the drink for so long, he wondered how the kids managed it. He watched them pour from a ready made jug, passing him a second jug of milk, and a bowl of sugar
"How did you make it?" he asked
"We found beans on the island and a grinder on the wreck" London replied, sipping her own drink. Moseby took a cautious sip and nearly moaned. It was the nicest coffee he had ever had. And not just because it was the only coffee he had in months.
He was distracted when Emma walked in to join them
"Whatever is cooking smells delicious" she complemented
"Bacon, eggs, fried potatoes, mushrooms and tomatoes" Woody listed as he started bringing plates over
"You've outdone yourself" Zack complimented as they all sat down, filling their plates
"It's pancakes tomorrow" Woody teased, as they all began to eat.
"How do you get pancakes?" Emma asked, wanting to wait until her mouth was empty, but her food deprived body was in such intense need, she couldn't. She still placed her hand to cover her mouth as she asked her question.
"Milk from the cows, eggs from the chickens, and Bailey made a mill so we can get flour. Sugar from the beat, syrup from the trees, and lemon juice from the lemons. Fresh fruit and cream to go with" Woody explained
"I can't believe you were able to manage all this" Moseby replied
"We all had to pitch in. We have a rota for routines" Zack explained
"We are happy to do whatever we can. Give us jobs, give us tasks. Tell us how we can help. It's the least we can do" Moseby replied
"We have a few irregular routines. Once a month we clear the leaves from the guttering" Zack begun
"I mean. Hasn't rained since we arrived here, but just in case" Bailey joined in
"And once a month, we rod the plumbing. Just to make sure nothing could back up" Zack replied
"It's a shit job" Woody chimed in, getting a chorus of laughs
"That was quick!" London teased Woody
"I never usually get one in. I couldn't resist" Woody laughed
"We have daily tasks, So Woody is exempt, as he cooks meals for us. We all usually chip in, but he's chief chef. London and I feed the animals, collect milk and eggs if needed. I kill the animals for dinner, and London usually picks the fruit and vegetables" Zack explained
"Cody and I feed the fish, get some firewood and stoke up the Beach fire" Bailey explained
"What can we do?" Emma asked
"Well, Moseby, you can come help me and London. Might be easier to get meat with more than one person. Emma, you can help Bailey and Cody with the feeding fish and collecting fire wood" Zack replied.
"Anything we can do to help" Emma agreed
"And then, when we have projects, we all pitch in to help build. Whether it's physically building, collecting materials, or just helping out, making drinks, food, things like that" Zack added
"Of course" Moseby replied. They had all finished so they went to the kitchen, and helped washing up.
"So kids" Emma started as she finished drying up a handful of forks "I thought that I could teach you about one of the world's greatest explorers, Christopher Columbus" She began
"No" Zack said bluntly
"Excuse me?" she asked
"No. No teaching, no school, no learning" Zack replied
"But … We have to learn" she insisted
"No, we don't. This is our Island. We have jobs, responsibilities, things to do, priorities. We're not on the ship anymore. We have bigger problems than homework" He explained
"He has a point Emma, we've accomplished so much because we've been able to focus our knowledge and attention on this" London added
"The purpose of school is to prepare us for being adults. We're probably more adults now, here, than if we were back on the ship, or back in civilisation" Cody explained
"But … Here I can make sure you do your homework, and you understand …" she begaun
"NO!" all the kids shouted. She pulled her hands up defensively
"Alright" she conceded
"They have a point Emma" Moseby said quietly "They don't want to be taught; they've proven that they don't need it. And we're on their Island. We must respect their rules" he added
"Ok" she said
"So … Aside from the routines, what are the rules?" Moseby asked
"Zack is the leader" London explained
"Really?" Moseby asked
"Yes" Cody, Bailey and Woody agreed
"Why?" Emma asked, shocked
"We would be dead without him" Bailey admitted
"But it's Zack" Moseby said in disbelief
"And he's the one who saw your smoke, found you, rescued you, welcomed you to our Island, made accommodations for you to stay here …" Cody listed
"Alright. So, Zack is the leader. What else?" Moseby asked
"No murder" Woody stated. They all nodded in agreement
"We're a tight group of friends, in a confined space. The Island is big but other parts are hard to live in. We stay together. If we have an argument, we have two or more sides. Explain their argument to the group. Everyone listens, everyone has a chance to speak, everyone can ask questions. We take a vote. Most votes win. End of" Zack explained
"And we have routines to do. We usually do those first thing. Before it gets too hot. The monthly ones we pull straws. Luck of the draw to see who does them" London explained
"That's it?" Moseby asked
"That's it" they confirmed
"Understood. What's the plan today then?" Emma asked
"Routines first. Then we said we would give you a tour of the Island, so we'll do that. It will probably take most of the day" Zack explained
"We have Paella for lunch, and a traditional roast dinner for dinner" Woody explained
"What do you need us to collect?" London asked
"Rice, Prawns, Onions, A red pepper, Peas, Tomatoes, Potatoes, Carrots, Green Beans, and some Spinach please" Woody listed
"What meat?" Zack asked
"I think we have a beef joint in the refrigerator from when we had steak" Woody said going to check "Yes, we do. Just a chicken for lunch then please" he added.
"Nice and easy then. Zack commented.
"I'll make you some more clothes today too" London offered
"Thank you" Emma replied
"Well then, Moseby if you come with us, Emma you go with Cody and Bailey and we can get routines done. You guys can start to see what we do" Zack offered
"Of course" they agreed
Moseby came with Zack and London, whilst Emma walked the other way with Cody and Bailey, going to feed the fish and get the firewood first.
"How far is the farm?" Moseby asked as they walked
"Not far" Zack replied. "We'll give you the full tour later on, then you can learn your way around. We'll take a shortcut today through the woods"
They walked the short distance until they came to the farm. Moseby raised his eyebrow as he saw it
"This is ridiculous" he commented
"Ridiculous?" London asked
"The fact that you were able to build all of this" he explained
"It took a lot of effort" Zack reminded him
"It's such an achievement though" Moseby complimented. They walked around and showed Moseby the pens, the animals, the irrigation system to water the animals.
"Where's the feed?" Moseby asked
"Over in that barn, it's all labelled up" London called. Moseby walked in, and from outside, they heard him shout "How did you make barrels!" They both chuckled to themselves. Helping him to feed the animals.
Once fed, Moseby asked what they needed to kill for dinner
"We have the joint for dinner, so Woody has just asked for a chicken for the Paella" Zack replied
"Allow me" Moseby offered,
"The red room is round the back" Zack called as Moseby walked off. He threw a thumbs up above his head as he walked away.
"So strange with them being here" Zack said to London
"We didn't even know they came off the boat" she agreed "They must have gone in the night we did"
"We were so lucky" Zack replied
"We had you, Zack" London complimented "We've worked hard"
"You should have seen their Island" he said softly to her
"Was it really that bad?" she asked
"It was horrible. It was small, no shelter, no animals, just fish. We would not have survived" Zack explained
"I think Moseby and Emma are impressed" she replied
"It might be more relief at the moment" Zack asked
"It feels weird calling her Emma" London mused
"She said to. And she has a good point. Here, we're all the same. Though, without sounding too ominous, we have the rest of our lives to get used to it" he reminded her
"True. I'm sure it will come with time" she said sadly
"Come here" Zack called, pulling her in, and pressing his lips to hers softly. "At least we're here together" he reminded her. A few moments later, Moseby returned with a dead chicken.
"Nice room. Very well put together. What else do we need to do?" he asked
"Animals are done, food caught. We have enough milk, cream and eggs. Should we get some more alcohol?" London asked
"We could do with some more wine, and beer" Zack listed.
"Let's get some bottles" Moseby joined in. The three walked round back to the feed barn, then into one door coming off. Inside were bottles stored, and some more brewing. London walked out, and came back in a few moments later with a large container of rice.
"What else do you have in here?" Moseby asked, looking to the other doors
"We'll show you on the tour later" Zack offered. He agreed, and they walked out the farm yard, into the vegetable patches
"What did Woody want?" Zack asked
"Um … I got the rice. We need Potatoes, Carrots, onions, pepper, tomatoes, green beans, and spinach. Cody and Bailey will get the prawns" London listed
"You remembered all that?" Moseby asked
"London has a phenomenal memory" Zack complimented him
"I guess the Island has done some favours" Moseby complimented.
"That's an understatement" London replied softly. The potatoes, carrots and onions were all in one section, and growing well. They picked enough and London picked up one of her handwoven baskets she had made specifically for carrying fruits and vegetables.
She then went to the climbers and got the beans, tomatoes and peppers, picking some spinach too.
"Did Woody say we were having fruit with the pancakes tomorrow?" she asked
"He did" Zack confirmed
"Do we have any strawberries and blueberries?" she asked
"I'm not sure. Shall we get some more anyway? They'll get eaten regardless" Zack offered
"Sounds good" she replied.
Baskets full, the three made their way back to the house. A few moments later Cody and Bailey returned with Emma.
"Where do we go?" she asked the kids
"We sectioned off a bit of the ocean so we can keep and breed fish, and we don't have to worry about them swimming away, or drawing sharks in" Cody explained
"How have you managed that?" Emma asked
"Well, we have prawns over here, in a large rock pool thing. We had a few in here but we worked out that they like decaying matter. So we put the bones and leftover dead meat from the animals in here. They love it, and the numbers have shot up" Bailey replied
"Amazing! And the fish?" she asked
"Very much like you would at home. When the tide is in, they can feed on their own algae. When it's out, we scrape the dry algae off the rocks store it and then we can feed them daily" Cody explained
"Amazing. When do you collect the algae?" she asked
"When we go out and it looks dry" they replied. "We did it the other day so we should be good for a week or two"
"How many prawns do we need?" Cody asked
"Um... It's lunch and we'll have chicken too so maybe three each. So Twenty-one" she replied
"Can do" Cody pulled a bucket with holes in from the side, into the water, pulling it out to see it full of prawns.
"There must be fifty in there" Emma said in surprise
"We don't need them all" Cody replied, throwing some back. Satisfied he had enough, he walked over to Bailey who was feeding the fish. Done, they then started to walk back
"That's it?" Emma asked
"Well, if we have fish for dinner we need to catch them too, and kill them" Cody explained
"What do we do with the prawns?" she asked
"Woody will sort it. He has a knack for preparing meat and seafood" Cody replied
"Now we'll just pick up some fire wood, stoke up the beach fire and then go back to the house" Bailey replied. They walked back through the woods, picking up wood as they went. Emma, who had an armful of larger pieces, offered to go and soke the beach fire, leaving Cody and Bailey slightly out of earshot.
"I wasn't expecting Moseby and Emma to turn up" Cody replied
"It was quite a shock" Bailey agreed
"Was their Island really as shit as they said" he asked
"It was worse" Bailey admitted
"Really?" he asked
"Yeah" she replied
"I'm so surprised that they were cast away" he stated
"I don't know what they would find more surprising. That they got castaway, that we found them, how well we're coping, the fact Zack and London are together, or the fact that we haven't killed one another" Bailey listed
"Intentionally killed, or accidently?" Cody asked
"Both?" Bailey asked
"Accidently, Woody" Cody suggested
"Agreed" Bailey replied
"Intentionally …" Cody railed off
"Well?" Bailey asked. Cody sighed
"Me?" he asked
"Well... Yeah, kind of" Bailey agreed reluctantly. Cody laughed
"Yeah. Be some argument, I would disagree with Zack. Be banished or you'd all gang up on me or kick me to the wreck" he mused
"Just because your morals are stronger than ours" she agreed
"You're sweet" Cody replied. Kissing her softly. Thinking for a moment before stopping "You wouldn't live out in the wild with me?" he asked with a raised eyebrow. Before she could defend herself, Emma came back over, the beach fire now roaring.
"Nice work!" Bailey complimented
"Thanks" Emma replied. The three walked back to the house, as London and Zack returned.
Once all back together, drinks in hand. They got themselves ready to go out for the Island tour. Cody and Bailey offered to stay in the house with Woody, to help him cook lunch whilst Zack and London took Moseby and Emma up the mountain, through the farm, fisheries, brewery, mill and caves. Then lunch.
After lunch they agreed they would all get into the lifeboat for a trip around the island to see the shipwreck. Emma was not overly keen on getting back on the boats, but was worn down and conceded when everyone else agreed to go.
They finished their drinks and Moseby, Emma, Zack and London walked outside to the front of the house
"Where do we start?" Moseby asked
"We'll start with the mountain, the pool and the view. Then we'll go to the farm, and the caves. Should take us though to lunchtime nicely" Zack explained
"Sounds like a plan" Emam replied "Which way?" she asked looking round. Zack smiled and took the steps towards the woodland, the rest following soon after. They walked in relative silence as they approached the mountain. Moseby and Emma taking in the route and trying to remember which way they had come.
Both were a little taken aback by the layout of the Island. The Mountain, as they approached it, seemed huge. And yet, even when they docked on the Island, on the beach yesterday, neither of them could see it as anything more than a small hill. It was deceptive, but they were sure that it would be worth it.
"This track is the main route to the mountain. It only has one fork in it. From the house, stay right and you go to the mountain, take the left and it goes to the farm" Zack explained as they approached the fork, the right clearly going to the base fo the mountain, whilst the left went up into the woods.
"We went a different way to the farm earlier" Moseby commented
"We did. But that was just a shortcut, otherwise it's a long walk through the woods" London explained
"Can you show us that way?" Emma asked
"Soon. Not today, we won't give you too much. You'll end up getting lost" Zack assured them as they started to climb the mountain
"There;s only one track on the mountain but it takes you right up to the top" London explained as they climbed.
"Round this corner, we have the pool" Zack stated, rounding the corner and watching the adults eyes widen as they saw the pool, the waterfall lazily flowing into it
"If it doesn't rain, how is there water?" Moseby asked. Zack and London thought about it for a moment.
"I'm not sure. Perhaps air temperature condensing?" Zack finished
"You learnt something in my lessons!" Emma exclaimed proudly.
"Of course" Zack replied. "This is all fresh water, the top pool is drinking only, the bottom is for swimming" he replied
"Doesn't it go from the pool into the house?" Moseby asked
"No. We didn't want to lose the pool, do we chipped a ledge on the water reservoir, and that flows to a collecting pool, which then feeds the water intake into the house" Zack explained
"Genius" Moseby complimented
"Thank you. Though, I must admit, Cody and Bailey thought of all that" he explained
"None the less. It's a brilliant idea" Emma replied
"Thanks. Now come on, if we go up here, we can see the rest of the Island" Zack explained. They walked up the other half of the mountain, before reaching the top. All slightly breathless, but not overly exhausted.
"If you look, you can see the wreck in the distance" Zack said pointing. Moseby and Emma squinted to see, but eventually were able to. Nodding in agreement
"That was a good spot!" Emma stated
"Woody actually found it" Zack replied
"Really? Wow, I must say I'm surprised" Moseby replied
"If he hadn't of suggested we look, we never would have found the wreck and everything on it we used to make life easier" London reminded them
"Is that the caves over there?" Emma asked, pointing.
"Yes! We'll go look at those in a bit, but it's quite a walk to get there" Zack warned them
"That's alright. It's a nice day" Moseby said
"It is now, it will get very hot after lunch, then we'll get on the lifeboat and try to keep in the shade a bit" Zack explained. The four began to make their way back down the mountain, and back to the fork in the track. From there, they went towards the farm.
Zack and London walked Moseby and Emma through the farm. Showing them the irrigated vegetable and fruit gardens, the herb garden and where Woody was growing some spices. Into the animal pens, with their supplied water troughs, which never needed filling, only checking to ensure that there was no leak in the pipes. The barn which held the wheat and corn stores, where to collect the eggs, the milking room, and the room off the back which was used as a brewery.
Both were amazed by what they had built. Once they had examined the farm, they followed the beach path back to the water, where they were shown the section of ocean which had been netted off, where fish were being bred.
"How do you feed them?" Emma asked
"Dried algae. When it's hot and the tide is out we come out to scrape it off the rocks. It's kept in that tub there" London explained
"And they put in meat from meals" Moseby added, remembering from their walk earlier
"Amazing" Emma complimented, muttering it more to herself than the others. Finishing the walk, they went through the woods to the caves
"We don't really ever go to the caves. Or, as of yet we haven't had a need to" Zack stated. "So there is no need for you to memorise this path. If we need to go, we wouldn't send you on your own" he added
"So why are we going?" Emma asked. Aside from the obvious; to kill time, which they had infinate of now, Zack explained that he wanted them to feel like home on the Island, and therefore they should know the ins and outs of it. Accepting his polite explanation, Emma smiled and they continued walking.
Eventually, though shaded it was still blisteringly hot on the walk, they reached the caves. Walking inside and relishing in the coolness compared to the rest of the island.
"Are they broken bottles?" Moseby asked
"Yeah. We took the ones which weren't broken for our wine, but we think that the shipmate, as we call them, made camp in here before they died" Zack explained
"Are you sure there was someone on the Island?" Moseby asked
"We assume so. It looks like the animals were being transported on the boat, and when it crashed here they were set free to graze. The vegetables seem to be planted, as there is a bit of organisation to it. So maybe a few survived but the Island wasn't ready for them, or they were injured" Zack suggested
"Regardless. The animals and fruits and veg here aren't native to this part of the country. They are to the Philippine's and Britain. We know the Wreck was a British Ship, and we guess they picked up food as they went before crashing here. Them releasing the animals and planting produce is the whole reason we're still alive" London replied
"How do you know it was a British ship?" Emma asked
"British books and British newspapers were inside" London answered
"Makes sense" Moseby replied
"Do you think there's a dead body here then?" Emma asked cautiously
"We don't know" Zack replied, having not really thought about it much. "Anyway, let's go back. We'll have lunch soon and then we're going for this boat trip to see the wreck" he added
"I am quite looking forward to seeing this boat" Mosbey commented
"We have literally stripped it bare. It's like a ship skeleton now" London reminded him.
They made it back to the house in perfect timing to wash up, ready for lunch, which was cooking, and smelt incredible.
They ate with compliments to the chef flowing. Iced teas, and cool drinks being passed around. Once finished, they decided to head out. London offered to stay behind to wash up, so she could make a start on the clothes for Moseby and Emma. Bailey offered to stay and help. Kissing London goodbye, Zack led the rest out to the dock.
They chose the lifeboat, as it was more stable than the barge. Emma, whilst still reluctant to get on the boat after her ordeal, was convinced by Moseby that it would be interesting to see the wreck, and fill in the gaps of how the kids were able to survive as well as they did. She eventually agreed.
Zack rowed them out to sea, Moseby helping as they rounded the Island. Woody decided to do the commentary.
"Now if you look behind us, you will just be able to see our bit of the Island" Woody narrated, they all turned to see Bailey and London on the water's edge, waving at them. "Oh look! It's London and Bailey!" They waved back, as they floated out of view.
"Excuse me, how long will this take?" Emma asked, raising one hand to ask her question whilst also gripping onto the side of the lifeboat with white knuckles
"It will depend on the sea!" Woody announced raising his hands up towards the crystal-clear sky "And also, the tide, how hard Zack rows, if we stop to get a better look..." Woody listed "Probably no more than about an hour or so" he answered much less dramatically. Emma nodded, but did not reply
"Now here, as you look through the trees you can see the run up to the Beach Hut. This is where we cut down the trees to be able to have a sea view. I admit, that one was not my idea for the house but I am glad we did, sometimes you can see dolphins from the living room decking" he explained
"Dolphins?" Emma asked, more interested, or perhaps distracted from the thought of drowning, by the prospect of seeing a dolphin.
"Here" Woody continued, ignoring her comment as there were no dolphins to be seen at that moment; "As we go around this side of the Island, you shall see the vast beach and many potential fishing opportunities. This was a consideration for where we might set up camp, back before we built the house. However, as we discovered walking up the internals of the island, the woodland here is thicker, and no easy to make paths so we would have to track in our own" he explained. "It was also awkward to get to the farm and the mountain, which were already established, and we wanted to maintain those links"
"As we go up here, you will start to be able to see the shipwreck. If you look closely, you will be able to see it's missing quite a lot. It's looks to me, like a half-finished jigsaw puzzle now. Beautiful in its own way" he explained pointing it out as it came into view
"Are we stopping to have a look?" Moseby asked
"If you want to" Zack offered. The kids looked between an eager Moseby and an indifferent Emma, deciding that they had not much else to do that day, and they could spend half an hour looking around the remains of the shipwreck.
"Mr Zack. Dock this boat!" Woody commanded
"Aye-Aye Captain Woody" Zack replied, bringing the boat into the launch point which they had created. Zack, Moseby and Woody jumped off the boat and pulled it into shore, holding out hands to help Emma and Cody off the boat. All five now on the shore, they all pulled the boat further up, so it wouldn't float away.
"Is this the wreck?" Moseby asked walking up to the remains of the ship
"There was a lot more, but most of the furniture got moved to the house, and once that was done, we took the wall and floor planks to build up the house, bamboo is not as comfortable as you would think to walk on" Woody explained
"We used the wires, metal, engine and other components for things in the house like the plumbing and air conditioning.
"Was there a radio?" Moseby asked
"Not none that we could find on the boat. But it was mid nineteen hundreds from Britain so even if there were I doubt it would be any use now" Cody explained
"Would have been worth a try" Moseby asked
"Can you still go into any of the wreck?" Emma asked
"Well … We stripped most of the rooms, and started this end to take the planks, it was more convenient, but about half the wreck is still intact" Zack answered.
Cody led the way through the hole they made, into the dining room, which now, aside from the floor and ceiling, had very little inside it.
"Some of these rooms were just storage, so they got stripped. That's why there's these few lone upright pillars" Cody explained, pointing the beams out
After a short while walking around the wreck, looking at the remains, getting a bit of an idea from the kids how it was once laid out, they eventually got back onto the boat, with the agreement they would row around the remainder of the island to be able to see the full 360 of the Island.
They continued their trip, Woody regaining his role as tour guide.
"Now over this side, as we lose sight of the wreck, we can see the mountain. You can't see the top from this angle. Funny as there is no clouds, maybe it is just that tall" Woody mused. "But that's where we get our fresh water from"
"I suppose, it does beg the question, if it never rains, how is there always flowing water. And climbing to the very top isn't overly long. I think you can get up, have a break and walk back down in an hour. There must be some science somewhere in there" he thought out loud
"Or magic. Maybe it was some magic and there's a wizard that lives on the Island..." Woody stopped, looking around cautiously, having scared himself. Zack and Cody were quick to his aid.
"We think it's a chemical reaction between the air and the rock which causes the creation of fresh water" Cody explained. It was bullshit, he himself had no idea how the mountain produced that much water, though he was not complaining. He just knew that woody needed some form of rational or believable excuse to calm him down. He nodded, accepting it.
"Woody, tell them about the sports centre" Zack said, distracting him
"Oh, you mentioned that before" Moseby replied to Zack.
"Ah yes! The sports centre" Woody stated, his fear of the water wizard long forgotten. Woody gestured to a large, flat bit of grassland the other side of the mountain. "We found this piece of land, when exploring the Island. We knew that it was not suitable to build the house on. It was too far away from the beach, which is our most likely form of being found. It was also the wrong side of the mountain, we would need to walk around the mountain before climbing up for water, and the farm was the other side of the stream and the caves. I suppose we could have built a bridge, and we will have to" he stopped to think about what he was saying
"Anyway" he shook his head. "We want to make this bit into a sports centre, either for a sport we already know like football, or we could create our own sport, the world is our oyster" he explained happily
"And then, as we come back around this side, you will see the fire at the end of the beach. This is far enough away that it won't catch anything, but also in what we though would be the most prominent position for any ships, planes or otherwise. I admit, got us nowhere so far, but it's better than nothing. And we still stoke it up once a day" he explained
"It's a very good idea. You never know when someone might come past" Moseby stated
"Thank you" Woody replied "And as we round the fire, you will see the beach again, oh and look. There's London and Bailey again!" They all waved, and soon the boat was back docked on the Beach. Bailey brought over a tray of cool drinks, passing them around everyone, whilst London had her arms full with various clothes for Mosbey and Emma.
She and Bailey had spent quite an enjoyable afternoon making these clothes. London had been teaching her for a while, and despite how they had their differences on the Tipton, both London and Bailey had got along well since arriving on the Island. Both willing to learn from and help one another.
They had made Both Emma and Moseby two pairs of shorts each, some shoes, underwear, a top each, not wasting too much time as they mostly went topless. They had made Emma three bras and one oversized lounging top.
Once they had finished their drinks, putting the empty glasses back down on the tray, they were given their clothes.
"These are amazing! It's like actual clothes!" Emma said in disbelief, rubbing the soft material against her cheek.
"Just got to know the right plants. Hopefully they're the right sizes" Bailey replied
Moseby and Emma walked into the house, coming out a few moments later, styling the new clothes. The kids cheering them as they mimicked walking on a catwalk.
"They're perfect, thank you" Moseby said, hugging London.
"Let's get some more drinks" Cody said, walking Emma and Moseby inside, out of the sun
"Oven is warming. Veg is prepped and the pork is in" London said to Woody as Zack came over, wrapping his arms around her.
"Awesome, thank you" woody replied, and the rest walked in to the house, ready for drinks, dinner and bed.
- The Next Morning -
The next morning, as promised, Woody had made pancakes. He had found a few recipe books on the shipwreck, and brought them back. Agreeing they should try as many as they could. Being British recipes, the book had many recipes they had not heard of before. The 'Traditional Roast Dinner' gave a recipe for Yorkshire puddings. Everyone had to agree they were delicious. Especially covered in the meat juices and gravy that Woody had made.
It turns out that the pancake recipe he followed used the same batter, having made extra last night, he made pancakes that morning, keeping them warm in the oven, until breakfast was served with sugar, lemon juice, a fruit compote Woody made, fresh berries, fresh cream and maple syrup. It was divine
"Woody, I swear, every meal you make gets better and better!" Zack moaned, almost comatose by the delicious food
"I'm getting better with the oven, and the ingredients" he explained
"You're a master" Bailey complimented
"What do we want for lunch and dinner today?" he asked
"I don't think I can even consider another meal yet" Cody mused
"Something light for lunch" Emma mused
"I could do a simple chicken soup with some homemade bread" Woody offered
"That would be delicious" Moseby replied
"How do you get homemade bread?" Emma asked
"I have a sourdough growing. I just add water and yeast every day or so, then when I want bread it's ready to be used" Woody explained
"The recipe books?" Emma asked
"I think you mean the food Bible" he corrected with a smile, causing a laugh. "Dinner?" he asked
"Pick a book, to a random page, and we'll see if we fancy it" Bailey suggested. Woody nodded eagerly.
"Book 1, 2, 3 or 4. keep in mind, 4 is a dessert recipe book" he said
"Two?" Cody offered. Everyone nodded. They all looked between them in agreement.
"Pick a page number between … Seventeen, and two hundred and ninety-four" Woody offered
"Why start at Seventeen?" Emma asked
"Well, the first pages are notes on ingredients and the contents page" Woody explained
"Of course, that makes sense" she reasoned.
"One hundred and forty-six" Moseby offered
"Ohh. Fishcakes" Woody read. "We could do fishcakes, maybe with some new potatoes and some salad, as breakfast was quite heavy" he offered
"Sounds delightful!" they all agreed
"What would you like us to get?" London asked
"Well. Lunch we could do with some carrots, onions and peas for the soup. Then Dinner we would need potatoes, lots of them. Big ones and small ones. And some salad, lettuce, tomatoes, olives, cucumber, a nice sweet pepper. I think that would do us" he explained
"Do we need a dessert too?" Zack asked, eyeing up the other cookbook
"Leave that with me, young Zachary" Woody said whimsically "Leave that with me"
"I guess you'll need a fish too" Cody said raising an eyebrow. Woody dropped his smug look.
"Oh. Yes please, we'll need one" he replied. Cody smiled
"No problem. Bails, shall we?" he asked.
"We shall, my good Sir" Bailey said linking arms and walking out.
"We'll feed the animals and get the veg then" London replied
"Moseby, Emma. Do you guys want to get fire wood and stoke up the beach fire?" Zack asked
"Sure" they agreed, and they all went their separate ways.
London and Zack had fed the animals, collected all that Woody requested for dinner, and even made the most of their alone time, before heading back to the house.
"What did Moseby and Emma do to the fire?" London asked as they walked back into view of the beach, the thick plume of grey-black smoke coming from the end of the Island.
As they approached, however, they saw Cody, Bailey, Woody, Moseby and Emma all stood outside the house, watching the smoke, which they could now see was not from the fire at all, but instead from the sea
"A boat fire?" Zack suggested as he joined the rest of the onlookers
"Too much smoke" Moseby replied
"We need to go to the mountain, get a better look" Cody confirmed. They all agreed, and in a quick pace, they all jogged up the mountain. They could see from even the pool what this was.
There was a hole in the sea. It almost looked black as the smoke pulsed out of it. The weirdest part of it was, there was no water flowing into this hole, in fact it appeared to the flowing away from the hole
"SEA DEMON!" Woody cried, pointing at the hole
"It looks like the entrance to the underworld" Emma muttered to herself
"It's horrifyingly beautiful" Moseby commented
"Zack, what's going on?" London asked
"I think it's an underwater volcano" Zack replied
"That makes sense, any water which flows into it just turns to steam, which is what looks like so much smoke" Cody replied. They all looked out at the ominous smoke. The sea now starting to crash a bit more into the rocks. Harder.
"Where's safe?" Emma asked
"It depends how big the explosion is. We'd be safe up here from any tsunami and potential earthquake, and from the lava flow. But shelter and food would be hard to come by. We could risk staying in the house but then we might suffer" Cody listed
"The caves?" Moseby asked, pointing out to them
"Then we risk them collapsing in on us, trapping us if there was an earthquake" Bailey replied
"Let's start heading down. We can't stay here" Zack suggested as they began walking. "What's our biggest risk right now?" Zack asked them, clearly. Bailey and Cody did a quiet calculation with one another.
"Inhaling that smoke" they concluded
"How can we avoid that?" Zack asked. They looked between them
"We need to be inside somewhere, try and keep the smoke out" Bailey replied
"Second biggest risk?" Zack asked
"Acid rain" they concluded
"Level of damage?" he asked
"Immediate, minor. If we keep us and the animals out of it, we'll be fine. Longer term, severe. It will contaminate water for us, animals and plants. We'd lose our food and water sources" Bailey replied
"Anything we can do about that?" Zack asked
"No" they replied
"Keep the animals in, isolate the water to the farm and to the house. Then once the rains stopped, we boil water before drinking, and test with iodine strips we took from the wreck" Cody replied
"Can we survive?" Zack asked
"We'll have to"
"Third biggest risk?" Zack asked
"Earthquake, tsunami or lava flow" Bailey replied
"Likeliness?" he asked
"Earthquake, minor. Chances are it's already happened to trigger the eruption, and the house is built with flex which should accommodate it. Tsunami, moderate looks like the size isn't enough to cause a catastrophic tsunami, and the water isn't receding back yet. Lava flow, no way to tell. Depends how big the volcano is underwater" they concluded
"Anything else?" Zack asked
"We might be able to survive a tsunami. We wouldn't if the lava flowed over the island" Bailey explained
"Understood. Emma, Bailey, Cody. Go to the farm, lock the animals in, fill up their water then isolate it from the plumbing. Get the food and place it up high. Go to the brewery and put everything you can up high. Moseby, Woody. Get the lifeboat and bring it up to the pool. It will be awkward but it's not too heavy. Worst case, we can use the boat to find a new island. London and I will get what veg we can, if we need to store it in the house we will, at least if we lose growable land, we can maintain food for a short while. We'll also isolate water to the house. How long do you think we have?" Zack asked
"An hour, tops" Emma replied, looking at the smoke which was starting to billow out in pulses.
"Let's go. Meet back at the house as soon as we can" Zack instructed. Everyone agreed and walked off in various directions once they reached the bottom of the mountain.
They worked quick. Moseby and Woody found that the boat ran very well with a log under the front, and between the two of them, they made quick work of bringing it up the mountain, pushing it into the pool
"Why the pool?" Woody asked
"I believe that if the Tsunami was to hit, then it would hopefully not hit this high up on the mountain, which means the boat remains intact, and we can use it to leave the Island, if it becomes uninhabitable" Moseby replied,
"Zack is very smart" Woody commented
"Smarter than we gave him credit for" Moseby agreed as they ran back down towards the house, as the sky began to get grey from the smoke.
"Get in, get in!" Bailey coaxed, the animals, whilst not objecting to going inside, they were all acting rather skittish. She had been around animals her whole life, and yet it still amazed her how they were able to sense when things weren't right. Eventually, the animals went back inside, locked in their pens.
"You guys be good. I promise, it will pass soon" Bailey said, blowing a kiss to each pen before walking out the back to help Cody and Emma.
They had lifted all the animal feed back up onto the highest shelves, and were in the brewery when Bailey walked in, helping them lift the barrels to higher shelves, the wine was stored in bottles and they lifted that as high as they could.
Once satisfied that everything which could be moved, was, they isolated the water to the animal pens, and made their way quickly back to the house. Not without bringing back some wine, beer and spirits with them.
Zack and London picked up the barrow they had created when building the farm. They decided that the fruits and anything up high have more of a chance of not being tainted. That and it would spoil quicker than they could eat it. They targeted the root vegetables, things which would last a while, but also would sustain them. Carrots, onions, parsnips, potatoes. They also picked some things which might last, beans, spinach, broccoli. With a barrow full of food, they brought it back to the house, the same sort of time that the others returned.
"We got a feast!" Woody said looking between the booze and the vegetables.
"The smokes getting darker" London commented as she gripped Zacks arm.
"We need to go inside, close all the doors and windows. Any cushions off the couch we need to put under the bottoms of the doors. Just keep the smoke out" Zack explained
They did, and Woody got on with lunch, deciding that despite the unnerving conditions outside, they need a good meal.
Lunch was delicious, and they were able to eat before heading back to the living room, where through the closed double doors, they could see the volcano in the distance, its ash cloud slowly pushing up, darkening the sky.
Londo picked up the book she was reading, and Emma looked over to her
"London, you're reading!" she commented
"I am" London replied
"I'm so proud. Did you bring this with you?" she asked
"No. We found a bookshelf with hundreds of books on the wreck, I insisted we brought it over" she explained, pointing to the bookshelf in the corner of the room, next to the linen cupboard.
"How did I miss that?" she asked "Please can I read one?"
"Of course, you can" London replied, turning her attention back to her book. Soon, the only noise in the room was the flicking between pages.
That was, until a low thundering growl from outside, caused everyone to turn their attention to the doors, looking outside to the now pitch-black sky, the sea now had bits of orange flying up in the smoke. They watched as the sparks grew to flames, to a flow of lava
"This is amazing" Emma muttered to herself
The volcano slowly turned into a steady stream of lava. It rose a few feet into the air, before collapsing down into the sea. It didn't come near the Island, but there was a thunderstorm, the first rain since they had arrived.
"Acid rain?" Zack asked. Cody picked up a test strip which he had prepared before they took refuge inside the house. He swiftly stuck his hand out, the mug he had left out filled up quickly with the heavy rain. He replaced it with an empty cup and brought the full one inside, closing the door behind him, Zack placed the cushions along the bottom of the door again
"Raining quite heavy out there" Cody commented, pointing to his sodden arm. Bailey handed him a towel to dry off. He tested the rain, and concluded:
"Acid rain. But not as strong as we feared. The plants will be fine if it stays at this PH, it will get filtered through the soil. Probably best we don't drink it, nor the animals. But we should be able to make do" Cody explained.
It was not the news they were hoping for, but it was a lot better than it could have been. Satisfied with the state they were in, they returned to the living room window to watch the thunderstorm and the ash cloud from the Volcano.
The lava had stopped flowing now, they took relief in the fact that it was, it seemed, a small eruption. The ash cloud was thinning, and after an hour or two, it had subsided to what they believed to be steam from the water. The thunderstorm was still hammering down, but on Cody's next Iodine inspection, he concluded it was just rain, and he was sure that the amount of water would dilute the acid rain to a level which was harmless to them and the animals, though he would confirm before turning back on the water supply.
By four o'clock that afternoon, the skies were back to a clear blue. The sea was calm, and aside from the ground being a little damp, though most had dried in the blistering sun, there was no evidence of the morning's eruption.
Life returned to normal. After inspecting the water to determine it was perfectly drinkable, the water was turned back on for the farm and the house. Moseby, Zack, Woody and Bailey all pitched in to bring the lifeboat back down from the mountain.
"Brilliant idea, Zack" Bailey complimented. "But veryawkward"
"You should have tried bringing it up here with only two of you" Woody replied
"Fair play" Bailey commented.
Cody and Emma went to release the animals, and spread out the brewery, reversing what they had done earlier. Once done, they decided to go and check on th fi ey had built up a decent sied school in their netted off area, and worried that if the seas were particualrly choppy then the nets may have been compromised, or the fish may have been able to escape.
They were not as obvious as they were once before, although they both concluded that there was a good chance many were hiding in the sand which lined the bottom of the sea floor. There were still plenty of fish for them to get by.
London decided to go and check out how the plants had fared. She knew what she had picked earlier would get them by for a week or two, but she needed to know if anything needed replanting, or if it had died, then they would be able to plan meals accordingly.
The berries had not fared too well, the heavy rain caused them to wilt and a few drowned. She took them carefully out the ground and replanted them in the hope that they would grow. Everything else had survived. She considered them very lucky that their food source was no diminished, or even covered in the ash which had been forced out by the volcano. She assumed that the wind had been blowing the other direction.
They all returned to the house when Woody announced that he was going to get started on dinner. As he did, Bailey looked out at the small mound of cool rock where the volcano once was.
"Zack" she called; he looked over to her
"What's up?" he asked
"Isn't that where we picked up Moseby and Emma?" she asked. They all looked out to the spot; Moseby's audible gulp was all the confirmation they needed.
"I've said it many times, but I don't think it will ever be enough. Thank you, kids, you saved our lives" Moseby said softly.
"You're welcome" Zack replied.
"Has anyone checked the beach? We may have more things wash up" Cody asked. They shook their heads. Leaving Woody to cook, they all went out to inspect the beach.
"Anything rubbish, we make a pile, anything useful we keep aside" Zack instructed. They scoured for about an hour. A few nets, buoys, a life jacket and some pieces of wood were washed up. But everything else was deemed landfill. Bottles without caps, or with holes in. Torn up pieces of plastic.
They concluded their findings, their beach back to being neat and tidy again, they returned to the house as Woody was putting the final touches on dinner. Laying the table and pouring drinks, they took their seats. Before they tucked in, Zack raised his glass
"Thank you all for your efforts today. I know it wasn't easy, and most of it was luck, but we worked together as a team. We will continue doing so. And I vote that tomorrow we start plans to create a safe house, where we can live if something like this was to happen again" he announced. They all agreed and ate, complimenting Woody on yet another delicious meal
"I am afraid because of the volcano I did not get a chance to create a dessert" Woody said sadly as he took the plates from the table to the kitchen.
"That's ok Woody" Zack replied
"But I did create these candies" he announced, walking back with a bowl full of multi coloured candy
"How?!" Moseby asked
"Easy actually. Sugar and water boil to make hard candy, and add in whatever flavour you want. For example, this one is strawberry, this one is lemon, this one is orange, this one is grape and this one is apple. And wait until it cools, set in a log then slice up. Easy to make and now we have candy!"
"You never cease to amaze us Woody" Emma replied
"I think we should take these, with some drinks to the decking. Watch the sun set" Bailey suggested, they all agreed, picking up drinks and walking out
"To Zacowobalo" Zack cheered, raising his glass
"Zacowabalo!" The kids replied, Emma and Moseby raised their glasses too but looked between one another, confused
"Zaco... what?" Moseby asked
"Zacowobalo. It's the name of our Island" Zack explained. Emma did some calculations
"Your names" she concluded
"Exactly" Zack replied
"Can we add ours in?" Moseby asked
"Of course" Bailey replied
"We can be … Emma" Emma announced
"That's your name" Moseby replied
"No silly. Em from Emma and Ma from Marion" she explained.
"That's still Emma" Moseby reminded her
"Oh so it is" she replied, clearly having thought about it
"How about, Maem. Ma from Marion and Em from Emma" Moseby offered
"Maim?" Emma replied. "Little violent don't you think?" she asked
"How about we just stick with the kids names" Moseby conceded. Emma thought for a moment, waning her name to be in there.
"Alright" she agreed.
Slowly, the kids all went to bed, until it was just Emma and Moseby left out on the decking.
"I still think I'm dreaming" Moseby admitted
"Me too. This place is too perfect. I swear we died in the water and this is our brains dying. Finishing the story. It's too good to be true" Emma replied
"It's like a different version of Lord of the Flies" Moseby stated
"They have done brilliantly. I'm so proud" Emma added
"I'm happy they saved us" Moseby said, looking out at the remains of there Island. Emma sat next to him.
"Me too. I don't think we're going to get saved from here though, are we" she asked. Mosey shook his head, taking a sip of his drink.
"It's been too long. Anyone on land would presume us dead. It's been months. Any search and rescue missions would have ceased.
Silence overtook the pair as they listened to the waves crashing gently on the shore
"There are worse places to be" Emma said
"There's worse people to be with" Moseby said, smiling at her. She smiled back. "We can make this work. Come on, let's go to bed"
They cleared the empty glasses from the decking, closing the doors and said their goodnights.
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