The Forgotten Island

CHAPTER TWENTY:

ARE YOU ACHIN, FOR SOME BACON

-Arya-

“TANNING?” Nate’a said from inside one of the tents, a boisterous laugh following the comment. “Uh, let me check my schedule.” She exited the shelter, snapping closed a book in her hand “I guess I can make time for that” The three of us laughed, the ridiculousness of the comment not lost on us. There was a mischievous glint in her eyes as she walked up to Tammy and I, freshly twisted locs framing her delicate face. Today she was wearing a green maxi dress which complimented her dark skin perfectly, with a pair of brown sandals on her feet that looked to be two sizes too big. “Anyways, I found something that I want to share with you guys.” She pranced over to one of the suitcases, a hard-shelled bright pink one with a ridged design, keeping her back to us while she opened it up. After a minute of searching, she found what she was looking for and whipped around to face us with a huge grin on her face. “SANGRIA!”

In her hands she held two twist off wine bottles of sangria, I didn’t have any experience with wine as I was underage, but it looked like something you would get at a grocery store. “oooooh, yum!” Tammy said upon spying the treasure. She was sporting an oversized t-shirt, with a pair of khaki shorts, her light brown hair pulled back into a tight bun. Due to her fair skin, she spent most of her days under shade, turning as red as a strawberry if under the sun for more than a short period. Even on the boat she could most often be found in one of the corners where we had erected a sun shade.

I will admit, I have always been a bit of an emotional person. That hadn’t changed through all of this, and as I looked at these two women giggling about cheap bottles of sangria, surrounded by an eclectic assortment of all sorts of items in the middle of a deserted island; I felt overwhelmed. I had come to love every member of our little group, each with such brave and true personalities. It helped the ache in my heart for home become a little less noticeable.

We all changed into bathing suits, Tammy grabbing some sunscreen out of a suitcase that had obviously belonged to some tourist headed to the tropics. I had chosen a plain black two-piece swimsuit with a fringe design on the top, while Tammy found a tankini with green leaves against a white background and a wide brimmed hat to match. Nate’a wore a fire engine red cutout one piece, accentuating her large breasts and tiny waist. “OH MY GODS, Tammy!! I didn’t know you had an ass!” Nate’a exclaimed when Tammy presented herself. “Where have you been hiding that thing??” Tammy blushed all the way from her forehead to her toes at that comment, choosing to ignore it and head down to the beach where Fish was waiting. With loud, full bodied laughs Nate’a followed her, her teasing comments floating back to me as I hung back. We had the wine but surprisingly had yet to find any type of cups. With that in mind, I headed to one of the fallen tree trunks and knelt in front of it. I placed my hands over the rotting wood and pictured what I wanted. With all the practice I was getting in, my powers were getting increasingly easier to use and I was using it in more interesting ways than I ever had before. The wood responded to me, even in death, mounds becoming clear under my hands. As I focused, the shapes emerged; four barrels slowly erupting from the wood, forming into perfectly shaped cylinder cups. They were simple stemless mugs, but I loved them, and I knew the girls would too.

Catching up to them, I showed them my creations, preening under their admirations of my work. We finished our walk, and Nate’a poured us all wine while we set out our towels. This truly felt like a day at the beach with friends as we laid down, sharing the sangria, and chatting about everyday things. It turns out that Tammy had developed some feelings for Chris, and we encouraged her to act on them when he returned. We had just started on the second bottle of wine, more than a bit tipsy, when a sharp squeal down the beach caught our attention. I sat up, raising leopard print sunglasses from my eyes enough to see out into the distance. At that very moment, a pig came crashing out of the forest and ran straight towards us.

The initial shock didn’t last long, though we were all fairly drunk. We looked at each other, our inhibitions loose from the effects of the alcohol, before bolting up from our towels to take off running after the pig. Tammy, who I had forgotten was a wind-born, threw her hand forward, causing a gale that kept the hog from returning into the forest when it saw us. Nate’a, running like a madwoman, created a circle of fire around the pig, effectively trapping it. It started squealing, knowing its end was near, when Nate’a tripped over a half buried Grecian statue; falling forward in a mess of limbs and effectively putting out the fire ring. I started laughing at her as I ran by, and in my distraction, tripped over my own feet, falling next to Nate’a in a fit of giggles. Tammy and Fish were still left in the chase, and Nate’a and I cheered them on from the ground, whooping and hollering in encouragement. They worked as a team, with Tammy turning the pig towards the water while Fish began making a barricade of water walls to box it in. “Whoop Whoop!” I cried out “Get us some Bacon, girls!” Tammy and Fish had the pig right where they wanted it, each of them standing with their legs apart, panting and laughing. “How the hell do you kill a pig?” Fish asked Tammy, looking flabbergasted. Tammy couldn’t even get out an answer, she was laughing so hard, and could do nothing but throw her hands up as if to say “I don’t have the slightest clue”. I felt good, my body felt free, and without thinking I raised my arms up like I was stretching, clapped my hands together, and entwined my fingers. Imitating my movements, large vines erupted from the ground surrounding the swine, wrapping around it until it was immobilized in the plants embrace. “Whatever we decide to do, we gotta do it quick, I don’t want it to suffer and Tammy looks like she is about to name it and keep it as a pet.” Tammy did indeed look like she had gotten attached to the critter after the short chase, and I was worried she would start crying if we didn’t make a move quickly. Fish made a motion with her right hand and a tiny little ball of water came flying towards her from the ocean. She moved her arm towards the pig, and the drop of water obeyed, flying through the air faster than I could see. A second later the pig lay quiet, the water droplet piercing its brain like a bullet, giving it a painless death. Clapping sounded from up the beach, and we looked up to see all four of our other group members giving us a round of applause while laughing. I can only imagine the scene they witnessed; four drunk women tripping over themselves while chasing down a pig.

We gave the pig a burial of sorts, saying our thank-you’s to the swine for feeding us. Later that evening we all sat around the fire, feasting like kings. I was in figurative heaven, the pork tasted so much better than fish or crab, and I ate until my belly looked like I was pregnant. Fish sat with Darnell, his arm around her shoulders as she ran her fingers along the gift I made for her after today’s adventure. This island was not safe, and it would be unwise for any of us to ever believe it was. After witnessing Fish create “bullets” out of water, I realized there may not be any water for her to call upon quickly enough should she run into trouble in the jungle. So, I imitated my earlier cup making, creating a wooden vase of sorts. It had a bowl at the bottom, with an exceptionally long and narrow neck. The idea was for her to be able to keep water inside the bowl to call upon when needed, and the narrow neck would keep any of it from spilling when she moved around. To finish it up I used my powers to carve a scene of flying fish jumping through the water, a nod towards her nickname. After calling forth a vine to make a chest strap attached to the top and bottom of the device, I presented it to her while we ate. I watched her trace the design as I listened to the others recap what they had found while out on reconnaissance. Reggie and Darnell had not found any source of fresh water during their trip, and while Val and Chris’s outing had yielded no results as well, our hope was not swayed.