What Lurks Below

The bells rang in the harbor as three men boarded a small ship, all of them carrying the final items for their journey.

"I can't believe it," spoke the chestnut haired boy. "An island filled with pirate ghosts! And also a mysterious tree said to be on its cliff!"

A tall redhead walked past him and set a large case down on the boat's wooden boards. "We get it, Bertram. You're super excited about seeing a ghost."

Bertram turned to his elder friend and smiled. "Well, I've never seen one. This will be a new experience for me!"

"This better not be fake like the werewolf rumor in Germany..." spoke the third man. He walked up to the ropes tied and wrapped to the railing of the small sailing ship, pulling one off and adjusting it. "Thomas, will you help me with getting the sails done?"

The redhead nodded and walked over with the blond, both of them untying ropes from the railing. The afternoon sun lit up all the items around them, giving them an easy sight of what needed to be done.

"I'll release the sails," Bertram yelled as he ran across the ship deck and made his way up a ladder. He soon reached the top of the sail and walked on it with almost perfect balance, kneeling down every once in a while to untie a rope.

Even with such a small sailing ship, it took the three men almost two hours of getting ready to set sail. It was once they finally launched the boat that they took a break, the blond steering them in the direction of their destination.

Thomas flipped open a small square box, looking at the red and white painted needle spin a few times before settling properly in its direction. "Amos, we need to head southeast. We're going northeast right now."

"Got it," Amos spoke and began to turn the wooden wheel, his thin fingers wrapping around each handle as he did so.

The wind blew against them but gave a pleasant breeze that blew the sweat off of all of their arms and necks. Gentle waves crashed against the wood of the ship as it creaked in its movement, the two brought a sound of tranquility around the men. The sounds and feeling around them was enough to make the men relax greatly. They sailed into the growing night sky, the sunset behind them almost gone completely.

"Thomas," Amos began as he turned to look at his friend. "You take first shift for tonight. Bertram and I will go rest."

The ginger stood up with small struggle and said a small, "Sure," in a groan as his knee popped. He took hold of the wheel and nodded to Amos, who let go of it and walked down the stairs. Bertram followed behind the blond, hurrying to keep up with his long strides.

Thomas watched them enter the bedrooms below him before his gaze returned to the stars ahead. The night was still young, and they wouldn't reach their destination for another seven hours.

• • •

Amos slept soundly under the thick blankets, his light snoring proving it. A light in the room was lit and soon began to glow brighter and brighter towards him, a silhouette of a man's shadow touching the covers.

Bertram held out his hand, ready to wake up his comrade, but paused. The idea of waking Amos was something he feared, knowing that he ended up with a black eye the last time he tried to do it. He then lowered his hand and set the lantern on the nightstand next to the bed, making sure it didn't fall as the boat shifted. A pair of oars were placed in the nearest corner to Bertram, the long wooden objects being the perfect item for him to use in his mission.