A pirate's promise

3.10. The purpose

I arrived at the harbour and looked for those pirates. There were lots of ships there, so it took me a while. I walked and walked, but I couldn't recognize anyone. Suddenly, a pirate put his hand on my shoulder and made me turn around. I recognized him inmediately even thought it had been some years since I last saw him on a not so good experience.

- Aren't you Derek's woman?

- Ummm... I suppose you could say that... I'm his girlfriend.

- Are you sure? Last I heard you were married to his brother.

- He's dead. I moved on and Derek was pretty insistent, also, we had feelings for each other for a long time and they resurfaced after the tragedy passed. Wait, why do I have to explain myself to you?

- It's a good thing you did or I would have lost any respect towards you. I don't like people that only have interests to be with someone. But why did you marry his brother?

- He was my fionce on an arranged marriage... I didn't have much choice. I tried to delay the wedding until Derek came for me but he was late and Edward manage to win my heart. He really cared for me, you know? While Derek was out there on a wild goose chace. Maybe this time I can be his priority.

The pirate looked at me, thinking about what I had just said. The captain came and asked about him.

- Where is Derek? He was the one I was counting on to come, not you. Although you did give us some trouble by taking our girls.

- Derek is recovering from an injury, he was stabbed... He would be of no use to you, that is why I came here in his place- I explained.

- I'm surprised he let you come alone.

- He'll find out I'm here when it's too late.

The captain laughed out loud and the other pirates started laughing as well.

- You have guts, I like that. Welcome on board- he said showing me the way.

The pirate that interrogated me grabbed my suitcase without asking and took it to my room. I learned his name was Nate and I started calling him that. The ship set sail and only then I went to ask the captain where were we headed and for what purpose.

- Didn't Derek tell you? We're going to the end of the world to see the gods on the other side- he gave me a smirk.

- Very funny, tell me the truth, please. What can I help with? What did you need Derek for?

- You both know the way to the treasure island, I need to get to that cave.

- But there isn't any treasure left.

- I'm looking for the old underground temple, the entrance is found in the treasure chamber.

- That's it? What do you want from there?

He looked at me, wondering if he should tell me.

- Well... I guess I can tell you since you aren't going anywhere. Don't you dare interfere, understood?

- Understood- I smiled.

- Legends say there is a lost civilization living there. I find it hard to believe anyone can live underground, but I do believe there might me some interesting artifacts and valuable objects down there. It ought to be interesting, should be worth it.

- I still don't see how I can be of use to you...

- We need a bait, don't we?

- Excuse me?

- To test the traps.

I swallowed. Was he serious?

- I heard you have some knowledge from all your journeys. You must guide us through everything to get there safely- he explained.

- Even so, different place, different traps... if there are any.

- But you have your little brain there to work it out- he poked my forehead with his finger-. None of us here have any experience of the sort. We are counting on you.

- Does Derek know a lot too?

- Actually we needed him most because he has actually been there, but never told anything about it and said that the only way for him to help us is to go there himself. I wonder if there is something there that cannot be described or explained. Or maybe he is hiding something.

- Well if he went there for the first time and survived, it's not impossible for us either- I tried to encourage him.

- I hope you are right. Unless he had some previous knowledge...

I started to worry about it, since Derek didn't want me to go without him. Maybe he knew of the danger and apparently he only trusted himself to protect me. I had a bad feeling about it.

Days went by and we were closer and closer to arriving at our destination, but it wasn't going to be so easy. The crow's nest pirate shouted: "Whirlpool!". We all panicked and the captain tried to think clearly.

- Is there a way around?- he asked the crow's nest pirate.

- The other way leads to some rocks close to an island, it will cause a shipwreck!

- We have a higher chance with the island than the whirlpool, let's head that way and get on the boats as soon as possible.

Things didn't go exactly as planned. The current was strong and we didn't have time to get the boats out. All we could do was jump off the ship when we got passed the whirlpool and just before it crashed into the rocks. Some got caught in a current that lead them to the whirlpool and some were carried by the waves towards the beach. I was part of the few that were headed towards the rocks. I held onto a piece of wood and got on it. There I stood until I finally reached the shore.

It was a disaster, we had lost everything and there was no way of going back from there. Before reaching shore, the water got clearer and clearer and I could see ships sunk at the bottom of the sea, taken there by the whirlpool. I felt shivers down my spine, not just from the cold water. When I reached land, I let myself drop on the sand and laid there, resting from the effort I made to paddle with my hands and feet while holding onto the piece of wood, in order to get to shore faster.

I looked around and saw some pirates walk on the beach, gathering and counting. The captain came to me and made me get up.

- A storm is coming, you can't rest here. There's a cave not far from here.

I got up and went with him to where the other pirates were heading. I tripped a few times. My knees were weak and I really needed some rest. Fortunately, we soon arrived at the cave and went inside. Some had taken branches and sticks for an improvised campfire inside. We warmed up by the fire for a while, but then a breeze caught our attention. It was coming from the depths of the cave. That meant the cave lead to an exit and maybe it held answers. We lit some torches and stepped forward into the unkown.