Adventure Into The Unseen Part II

The trireme had been beached at a small stone bay at the mouth of a narrow river. The sail in tatters, the mast collapsed half into the deck, and many, many holes and gashes littered the hull. The few men with shipwright experience already having been put to work fixing what they could, she would sail again, but the crew very aware that they may be needed to leave in a hurry.

The river mouth, and in front of the stone beach was a forest. The trees as thick as two round men and covered in thick vines, a air of moisture almost as if it w

ere a rainforest or jungle surrounded the trees, although the climate was definitely a type one would find at the foot of great snow capped mountains. The men had set up a few tents and a rough perimeter with guards in rotating shifts as per the captains orders but all of them were growing sick of being told to wait, they had been here for two days now and they had been led to believe that beautiful fertile lands awaited them, so why must they cower behind hastily made fences.

Finally, the two peaks the navigator had spoken of, stood in the near distance, the mist making them seem like regular mountains capped with snow, but from the beach they looked barren, one could make out jagged ravines and treeless slopes, they looked completely devoid of anything resembling life. This whole place, from the mountains to the bay, seemed completely still.

"Shift change complete sir, nothing to report as usual, the men have caught more fish and are continuing to distil water from the river-mouth, it's brown and is taking some getting used to but we are getting on" reported the Sargent, a hastily position made as the Captain had become aloof with matters of camp running, so an old war veteran had been voted in as makeshift leader of the camp until the captain could figure out the next move.

"Yes....excellent" replied the Captain, not even making eye contact. "have you seen the navigator"?

"Sir he left camp and has been at the mouth of the river, he has been talking to some of the boys and taking them down there too, seems like he is creating some sort of scouting group"

"Is he now, under what authority?" said the Captain now slightly tinged that his leadership may be in jeopardy.

"Well, he isn't saying he's in charge or anything, just he's suggested that the men bring out the small boats and we travel up river, most the men are keen, I mean we have been here two days now"

"We will stay until we have secured the guarantee that our ship can carry us home, should need arise, we know this bay to be relatively safe but I'd rather be certain before we charge into the unknown, thank you sergeant, you may go".

The Sargent nodded, turned and left muttering curses under his breath of a captain acting like a baby.

The Captain sat back in his chair outside his tent, watching the men go about their duties. He had placed his tent closest to the ocean, there was something about this place that didn't sit well with him. The trees seemed to move when there was no wind, also, there was never any wind. Upriver was completely shrouded in mist past 500 meters, like the riverbanks had overgrown with trees so much that it seemed to turn black. And those mountains, like giant looming gods angry at their intrusion on whatever this land may be, it all disturbed him. The sun was setting, he lit his pipe staring at the tree line, and for a moment felt as though the trees were staring back at him.

Night had fallen, those who were not on guard had had their dinner around the fire and had gone off to their share tents. The navigator had finally come back from the river mouth and was stoking a large fire in front of his tent, crossing his arms in prayer and throwing spices into the flame every now and then, each time making the flames leap.

"See you've come to re-join our little society then?" asked the Captain appearing from the side of the navigators tent, he had been waiting all day for his return.

"Re-join would be to imply that I was once part of it in the first place sir, perhaps I was once but I tell you I thrived once I cast off the protective cloak of this society you speak of, and look at us, a few tents full of men nearly starving and craving drink and something to do, we are closer to animals then we ever have been my dear captain" the navigators unexpected greeting throwing the Captain.

"How is the river, does it look navigable?" asked the Captain not even acknowledging the breathy spiel, "I know you have been speaking of running the small boats out and down into the river, I agree but we must secure our way home first"

"Wasn't this supposed to be our new home sir" said the navigator slyly.

"This was a place to make sure existed, it does, now the rights to any of the land here will be ours to sell upon our return, some may stay if they wish but I intend of going home".

"Very well sir, but I ask that you at least consider staying, from what I've gathered you would prosper here" the navigator now rising to sit in his chair. "We must leave soon, head upriver, between the peaks, they are the next gate, staying here will agitate the men and push us further into starvation, I implore you sir, tomorrow we must take the boats, leave a small station of men here if you must but we must go" the navigators voice now strangely agitated.

"Not yet, I don't feel comfortable leaving just yet, I don't feel comfortable anywhere here, what do you know of this place, who inhabits here?"

"I've only heard stories, but I do know there are a sort of people here, old ones, they don't look like us but they are of our kind, old stories from the times before say they left here and made it to lands all across the globe, that they are our progenitors" replied the navigator as he examined the stars, "I think that maybe whoever is still here, may know we are here, so as I asked before sir, we must leave soon lest we insult them by parking our broken ship here"

"I don't care if they are our great great great grandparents or not, I'm in no hurry to meet them, I feel watched, it sounds odd but this place, I feel it feels. I feel it hates us." The captain spoke slow but firm "and as such, we will not leave for the river till I have assurance that we have secured our way home, that is final".

"But sir!" pleaded the navigator now seeming worried and rising to his feet "I don't think you understand, there is a dea-".

"That's final!" growled the Captain, now flashing a look of coldness at the Navigator as he headed back to his tent. The Navigator sitting back down, crossing his arms ceremonially across his chest, prayed quietly with his head bowed and a smile spreading across his lips.

The Captain fell asleep slowly, his dreams once again infested with grotesque images. Skulls piled up on a hill, trees covered in blood and vines pulling mangled bodies down into the dirt. He awoke in a sweat, standing up and stretching as he moved toward the dying fire at the mouth of his tent, then, the sound of crashing waves was intruded upon by the undeniable sound of a man screaming in terror.

"ALERT, ALERT, all men grab weapons, stand ready, get up get up out of your tents arm yourselves!," called the Sargent.

The Captain ran outside his tent and immediately felt a blast of heat to the side of his face, the ship that had carried them to these shores was now fully ablaze, engulfed past the point of saving, but this was not the source of screaming. the bewildered captain, grabbing his sword ran up to the main camp, the once still night now being pierced by screams.

As he approached the rear of the camp that faced his tent his eyes met a sight he would never forget, the guard at this post had been killed, his body having been placed standing, impaled through his lower back, his limbs outstretched, his head missing, and a gash in side where his entrails had been removed with bloody drag marks leading to the centre of camp. He ran past the grim site to where the men had gathered, some with fearful looks grasping weapons with shaking hands, the old warriors sternly looking outwards for a foe that had seem to come into camp unawares.

"What is it, what has happened?" asked the Captain of the Sargent who was trying to organise men to head to the centre of the tents.

"The guards, all 10 have been murdered, all butchered and placed in the same fashion, can you smell that sir?" asked the Sargent with a pale face.

"Meat? What is happening?" said the shocked captain as he sniffed the air.

"Follow me, to the centre of the camp" the two men led a group through the first line of tents, as they approached the centre the smell grew worse, the ground leading the way had drag marks with blood lining them. The sight that greeted them in the centre caused a cold sweat to roll down the Captains spine. All ten guards heads had been placed on pikes in a circle, their faces frozen in a look of terror as if they had been in mid scream with eyes open wildly. In the centre of the circle, was a huge fire, and in the fire the guards entrails burned.

"Put that out!" yelled the Captain directing more men to fill buckets from the shoreline and douse the flames, "do a head count, bring me the Navigator, someone has betrayed us!".

The fires were put out, the smoke and stench rising into the sky as a sun rose, turning the morning sky red, an acknowledgement in some tribes that blood had been sacrificed that night. The Sargent had arranged the remaining men into ranks, 73 remained, all of them had not slept, all were clutching weapons, all had their eyes darting left and right. Every man now suspected each other of sabotage. The men posted on watch last night where all veterans, it would of been hard to kill one let alone ten.

"All present sir" said the Sargent standing beside the ranks.

"Thankyou" replied the Captain, his eyes blood shot from the lack of sleep and smoke from the fires, he paced in front of the group staring each man in the eyes. "One of us has betrayed us, maybe more than one, to burn our only means home is to condemn us to death, so in turn death shall be the punishment, has anyone any information on anything suspicious from last night?".

The crowd was silent.

"Sir, I imposed a curfew after nightfall, the men on guard enforced it, and I stay awake longer then most to make sure everyone is in there tents, it's what I did back in my campaign days, so I do it still, I saw none of these men leave their tents, and it was a short time after I put my own head down that the screaming started, whoever is responsible is not here with us" said the Sargent.

The ranks all muttered in agreement, the more the captain thought of it the less it made sense, ten men, all combat veterans, butchered, then displayed as they were, without raising alarm or even fighting back, then there was the matter of no tracks. The Sargent had scouted the perimeter in the morning, looking for signs of intrusion, and had found none.

"It seems that fate has pushed our agender forward sir" spoke the navigator from the back.

"And where were you last night after we spoke, fair, you couldn't of killed these men, but you were so adamant on leaving our ship and heading inland" inquired the captain.

"I went straight to sleep sir, and I realize I can't prove my innocence, but you cannot prove my guilt, also you require me for the journey and our mutual relationship revolves around your trust in me, why would I put that at risk sir" replied the navigator smiling.

"Put the men to work salvaging what they can from the ship, you help as well navigator, be useful now since you're so needed" sneered the captain as he turned and headed for the river mouth. His thoughts were now all in disarray, he wanted to head inland yes, but not this early, now it seemed he had no choice, the remaining grain had been burned in the ship, and the men would soon go wild and start accusing one another of treachery, which would invariably lead to blood if they where not given something to do, besides, every man here had wanted to explore this new land, maybe it was time to go.

That afternoon, the carcass of the ship had been stripped of useful supplies and shelter, the Captain had ordered the camp to be struck down and the small boats loaded and put at the river mouth. The men moved quickly, talk of curses and watching shadows from the trees had filed the ranks, those that had been spending time with the Navigator had been telling tales of dark gods putting curse on this land, none gave them any mind but it was still something that put extra fear in a man.

The final goods had been loaded in the small boats, the men all loaded in and ready to go, four boats awaiting a fifth at the river mouth. The Captain stood at the rivers edge, the Navigator and twelve men waiting for him to enter the boat.

"There is nothing left here for us sir" said the Navigator, "it is time to leave this place and head to our destiny, you and I have great things waiting for us, great things".

There was a darkness in his voice that the Captain knew was intentional, there was no other options, he would keep a close eye on the Navigator, on all of the men. He climbed into the boat and gave the order to push off, leading the group, his boat flanked on each side by to others, the small fleet sat at the entrance to the river, dwarfed by a looming darkness.

And into that darkness they rowed.

Continued in part III