User blog:Annacaza/Transporter

A new story by me. As usual, content might not be suitable for those under 13. Censored somewhat. Note that this is first draft writing and nothing will ever be perfect. The reason I do this is to get everything out, and revisit it later(not really, revising sucks). Feel free to comment.

I am plotting a brand new "series" consisting of about 10 of roughly 50k words (kind of like Nanowrimo, but I need to set goals for myself when it isn't November). It will be based off of all the maps of the Survival games (101, 202, 303, 404, and Finale).

Story notes:

1. The Mainland tribe (Mithril Mountain) is located where the cows usually are, and it stretches over the whole expanse of the plain.

2.There is a cave in Spire, located right by the first area with snow on it, that has sulphur, coal, and iron in it. It requires a lantern, and makes for a great hiding place. That is where the spire survivor lives.

Chapter 1
Thirteen islands loomed in the distance. The morning fog had burned off and the sun was steadily climbing in the sky. The boat on which I stood moved slowly, rocking gently with the waves. I stood at the bow, looking out towards the islands.For the fifth time that day, my mind began to think about the sole reason I had come here. Not too long ago, word had spread around my home island of Bermuda about free islands, not claimed by any country even though they were the most advanced pieces of land you could find. They weren’t colonized, and the people there had reverted back to simple times, where it was all about survival. My boyfriend had gone first, to see if they were okay. He was an outdoorsman, and he always loved to explore. Some people from the transport boat on which I now rode had told me that he was living in a thriving village and looked pretty good. Hardly even thinking, I jumped on the next transport boat that sailed off. Thankfully I was the only one as I had boarded the ship that sailed during the night. One of the crewmen walked up to me, and I looked over my shoulder, the sea breeze lightly playing with my long straight black hair. “We will let you off at the Mainland,” he said. “Then you will be left on your own.” I nodded.

“Understood,” I said. “Do you know which island Ryan is on?” The man shook his head.

“No,” he answered. “There are three developed tribes here, and one of them is not peaceful. There is one on the Mainland; maybe you can ask them where he is, and maybe get a ride.”

“Good to know,” I said.

“Before you go, take this. You need some sort of defense.” He offered me an iron sword, in its sheath. I took it and wrapped the leather belt around my waist. “Thank you,” I said. He nodded, and then there was shouting from the other end of the boat. “We’re getting close to the Mainland,” he said, and then left. I turned and continued to look out towards the islands. I could see a green expanse of land stretching out across the sea. The Mainland I thought, and then left my place at the bow. The ship was slowing down, and I knew that I along with a few other crew members would disembark. I was starting to get excited over the fact that I would finally get to see Ryan, who I had not laid my eyes on for over a month. I took a deep breath, and then the ship stopped.

I walked over to the place where the ramp would come down for disembarkation, where some crewmen and harbour workers were communicating rather loudly and harshly to each other. I sighed as one of the crewmen raised his arms. “Well how ‘bout I come down there and kick your ass you lazy moron!” he called out. (by the way, i was watching this Family Guy episode in the background when I was writing this [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6jz4-U8jF9g) I watched with amusement as the harbour worker stood up and shouted back a few rage-filled insults at the crewman. I wanted to see them go down and fight, but I doubted that it would happen, as there were way too many people around.

Finally, after a war of insults and anger, the ramp went down and five of us disembarked from the ship. I thanked the crewmen, and then walked off. I could already see the tribe on Mainland, protected by huge stone walls and gates. There were bowmen in the towers that I could see, and I hoped that this village was peaceful. As I got closer, I could hear some calls from the towers, and then a couple people climbed down from their spots on the tower, and started walking towards me. I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself down. I didn’t think that they would hurt me, as their bows were at their sides, and I wasn’t threatening them by touching my sword. We got about twenty feet from each other when I stopped. One of them called out to me. “Peaceful?”

“Yes,” I called back. “I just arrived here and I need to ask you some questions.” The two guards looked at one another, and one of them shrugged. “Alright,” he said. “Come on in.” I walked over to them, and they walked on both sides of me. We walked over to a huge gate, and stopped. One called out something that I didn’t understand, and then the gate opened up for us. We walked inside, and I looked around at the village. We were in the town square, by the looks of it, as there were many people walking around, stopping at shops and buying food. I didn’t look around very much as the two guards on either side of me were on a mission and they walked fast. I didn’t question where we were going, I just followed.

We go out of the town square, and walked along a path that led to a huge house at the end. “Let me guess...leaders house?” I asked. One of the guards nodded.

“He knows everything there is to know about the islands and their tribes,” he said. “He’ll be able to answer whatever question you have.” We stopped at the door, and one of them knocked. There was a pause, and then the door opened. A young man in his early thirties stepped out, his brown hair pushed back slightly and his brown eyes were narrowed slightly. The guard who knocked conversed with the leader in another language, and then the leader made a flicking motion with his wrist as if to send the guards away. He turned toward me and smiled. “Welcome,” he said in a heavy French accent. “I hear you are new, and you have questions.” I nodded. “Well come in then,” he said, and motioned for me to come inside.

The house as quite large; it was made of stone and thatching, and a few windows were spread around the walls. There was wooden furniture inside the first floor, which was completely open. There was a large living room where a knife with a purple gleam, and I assumed that it was mithril, the strongest, most rare ore in the islands. It was even stronger than steel, and it was always sought after, from what I had heard on the transport ship.

“So what are your questions?” he asked, motioning for me to take a seat in the living room. I sat on a chair and he sat on a couch straight across from me. “Do you know someone named Ryan who lives in the islands?” I asked. The man sat back.

“Ryan!” he called out, throwing his hands in the air. “He was a nice boy, eager to learn, and in top condition for surviving out here.” I held out my hands as if to stop him.

“Wait, was?” I asked, starting to think that Ryan might not even be alive at all.

“We let him go off on his own,” the leader said. “He wanted to leave, so we let him. He’s on Plateau now.” I smiled. My boyfriend was alright. I guessed that he had come to the Mainland tribe first, much like I had. I started to feel as if I was following in his footsteps.

“If you don’t mind me asking,” the man said. “What is your relationship to Ryan?”

“We are dating,” I said. “At least, I think we still are. Long distance relationships never work out.” We both chuckled a little. “Well, if you want to, we can get you over there,” he said. “Surely you just arrived, with only that Iron sword for protection. We’ll leave soon. Feel free to walk around the town square and maybe get something better for that Iron sword.” He stood up, and I did as well. “I’ll tell you everything you need to know about this place on the ride to Plateau. It should take us until the moon rises high in the sky,” I smiled.

“Thank you...um, what’s your name?” I asked, slightly embarrassed. He just grinned at me.

“Francis,” he said, and then disappeared around the corner.

I walked outside, and along the stone path. This looked to be the residential area of the town. It was along the edge of the stone walls that surrounded to whole village. I knew that there were guards up there, patrolling and watching for intruders. There were paths leading off to other stone houses, and it reminded me of a city block. Each house had a front yard and a backyard. Some of them had stables. I knew that there were cows on this island, but I knew that horses were not domestic. There were other ships that brought them in. Of course, I had yet to see one. If there would be anything I wanted in the world it would be my own horse. But I knew that these horses were probably hardcore workers, and not kept as pets

I got out of the residential area of the town and followed the path to the marketplace, which was still busy with people. I had to navigate carefully, just so that I blended in a little bit more. However, I was already out of place, as most women were wearing pioneer-type clothing and I was wearing jeans, a beige T-shirt, and a sweater.

I saw a stand where a merchant stood behind the counter, with weapons hanging on the wall behind him. The shops were stone, as well as everything else. The whole town seemed to be a sea of gray stone walls and orange thatching roofs. I walked over to the stand, and unhooked the belt which carried my sword. There were a few people at the stand, giving out gold coins for weapons and tools such as knives and spears. I waited a little ways back until the merchant behind the counter of the gray-walled building was done trading with his customers, and then he turned to me. He was the typical island-goer as the people on the ship described, about late twenties or early thirties and heavy-built, with lightly tanned skin. He had brown hair, with curls, and it wasn’t very long. “How can I help you, newcomer?” he asked. I had been expecting it, and I smiled, then placed my iron sword on the stone counter. “I need a better tool for this,” I said as he placed his hand on the hilt, and then pulled to sword out of its sheath a few inches. “An iron sword?” he asked, not looking up at me.

“Seems to be the default for what the people on the transport ships give you,” I replied. “Is there anything I can get for that that is better?”

The merchant put the sword back in its sheath and then looked up at me. “A steel spear,” he said. “Swords are in high demand here, so I can offer you a better weapon.” I smiled.

“Deal,” and held out my hand. We shook, and he pulled out a steel spear from below the counter, and placed it on the counter. I nodded thanks, picked up the spear, and walked back to Francis’ house.

Chapter 2
As I walked into the rows of stone houses again, a steel spear in my hand, I wondered about the tribe the Ryan was in. Was it a friendly tribe, such as this one? Or was it an enemy tribe, that raided and murdered people for fun. I knew the Ryan would never do that, but if it was a matter if life and death, he would. I would do it too, if I was forced to.

I got to the end of the path and saw Francis seated on a tall, light bay horse (for those of you who don't know, bay is a colour where the body is brown, and the mane and tail are black). The horse was tossing its head, and I knew it had to be young. He was moving his legs constantly, and he looked as if he would throw Francis off, but he never did. The leader of the tribe was talking to someone else who looked to be a sailor from my judgement. I walked over to the the leader of the tribe. He looked down at me. "Got a new weapon, I see," he said. I nodded.

"Are we almost ready to go?" I asked, and he nodded.

"Yeah, just getting the ship ready," he said. "This is the captain of the ship." Franics gestured to the man who he had been talking to. The man tipped his hat a little bit towards me and I smiled and nodded. "Good to know," I said. The bay horse shifted a little, and Francis looked down at him. "I'm gonna take this guy for a run," he said. "He's pretty skittish right now."

"I can see that," I said. Francis turned the horse so it was facing me.

"We are leaving in a few minutes," he said, "I'm going to go get the rest of the crew for the boat. Go with Danny." Francis turned to the captain of the ship. "Alright," I said, and then the horseman took off down the path. I turned towards the captain of the ship. "Follow me," he said, and then we walked behind the Francis' house and down the wall, going towards the ocean. There were some trees in the corner and what looked to be a wild lynx, but it didnt seem to care about us. There was another gate there, but it was open, as there were many people walking in and out. Then I saw the magnificent harbour.

There were at least three huge merchant ships, ten fast sail boats, or Catamarans, as the harbour people were calling them, and countless large sail boats. Danny must have known that I was impressed because he smiled at me. "Who made all of these?" I asked.

"The shipbuilders," Danny said. "They live in those houses." He pointed to a row of stone houses outside of the wall. "Are they safe out here?" I asked.

"They have the best weapons and tools," he said. "No one really tangles with us, as it never ends well for them." Danny and I kept walking towards the big merchant ships. "We'll be taking these ones," he said. "It's a long sail from here to Plateau, and it will take us until nightfall."

We stopped at a ship where two people were loading crates of supplies onto the ship, and putting it below deck. "Down below, there is a plae where you can rest," he said. "But I doubt you'll need to rest. Those transport ships are pretty nice to sleep on." I smiled

"Yeah, they are," I said. "Nice and smooth too, hardly any choppy water."

"Our ships sail smoothly too," Danny replied, and then looked behind and saw Francis galloping up on his horse, followed by about four other people on horseback. They halted as they came up to us. Everyone dismounted, and one of the crewmen took the horses and led them over to a stable close to where the sailors lived. "Okay, got everyone," Francis said. "Ready?" I nodded. The crewmen had already gone towards the ship, and were starting to board. Francis gestured towards the docks and we walked over to the ship. I found it a little odd that the leader would be leaving his town behind to escort someone across the islands, but I pushed it away.

I walked up the ramp and looked around the ship. There were wooden seats all around the ship, and a couple of the crewmen had sat down and were starting to relax. Since there was no work to be done, everyone would just take it easy for a while. Danny stood at the helm and Francis puled up the ramp. The ship was released from the dock, and we began to sail away.

Chapter 3
There were crates down below deck for trading to Plateau. Some of them wold be supplies for the trip to the island, but we would only have two meals on the ship, or at least, I would. We sailed close the the shore of Mainland, and I saw cows grazing in the grass, and corn stalks growing all around. There were some mountains around the island, and I could see some buildings on top of them, where people had settled.

Francis walked over to my seat. I looked over at him. "I'm sure you want to know a little bit about the islands," he said. Is straightened up in my seat and nodded. "Okay, I'll tell you about the geography then. There are 13 islands, named Mainland, Paradise, Plateau, Spire, Desert, Canyon, Rockma, Lynx, Bento, Spring, Magma, Teraphyx, and Flax."

He went on to tell me all about the islands, the ores they had, the animals, and the food. He taught me about the legendary things, such as mithril, bugshark, and fried chicken. It was a lot to take in, but I managd to catch it all. His lecture lasted until the sun was mid way in the sky, and the crewmen called for lunch.

"I feel like that could have been a lot shorter," I complained as I stood up and stretched. We were right by Bento island. There were deer grazing and wandering around. People had set up there already, and looked to be pretty advanced, as they had all stone buildings, much like the Mainland town, which was known across the islands as Mithril Mountain town. "Well, now you know a lot about this place," Francis said, walking over to wear the crewmen were handing out cornbread and cheese. I followed him, got two pieces of cornbread, and put the cheese in between them to make a sandwhich, as some of the others were doing. "I'm guessing that cornbread and cheese is something that you guys trade away a lot?" I asked. Francis nodded.

"Seeing as corn growns wild at Mainland, and it's the only place to get cows, we sell a lot of it as luxury items," he answered. "We can get a good price for them. We're going to sell some of it to Plateau as well." I walkd over to my seat again, but didn't sit down. I stood at the rail and looked over at Bento, while eating. It was supposed to be a hot spot; from what Francis had told me, it was an island that was almost always settled on, but he never knew why. It was such a target for raiding, and many tribes that lived on it rarely survived longer then a month. Francis had built Mithril Mountain form the ground up, and it had taken up six months to do so.

I finished my lunch and sat back down. Two of the crewmen went to sleep right afterwards, but I just relaxed for a while, looking over the side of the boat. We were getting close to Flax island, so I knew that the journey would soon be over, and I was happy. I couldn't wait to get off the boat and walk around.

I awoke suddenly to Francis shaking my shoulder. "Aw hell, I told myself I wouldn't fall asleep," I grumbled as I stood up, picking up my steel spear. The Mithril Mountain leader walked off the boat once he saw that I was awake and moving. It was night, and the sun was going behind the clouds, turning the sky a reddish brown colour. I knew that I had slept through dinner on the boat.

We had arrived at Plateau. Just as Francis had described, the island was elevated on a high rock ledge, hence the name Plateau. There were lanterns lit and hung along the docks where we had stopped. There were about five people loading crates onto a wooden platform, which was hauled up to the top of the island, where people stood to unload them. There were stone walls along the side of the island, much like Mithril Mountain had.

I walked down the ramp, and started to get a little bit nervous. Would Ryan even recognize me? I tightened my grip on my spear. Surely he had to, we hadn't ben aay from each other for very long, but focusing on survival only could do crazy things to the mind.

I continued to walk along the dock until Francis stopped me. "Thank you," I said. "For everything." He nodded, and we shook hands. "You're welcome," he responded. I smiled, and then we parted. Two people that lived on Plateau were waiting for me. I walked over to them and nodded. We then walked to a rocky pathway that got ery steep at some parts, and I needed to climb it. The people escorting me didn't seem phased by it, but they had to have walked the path a million and one times (I was listening to Jesus of Suburbia when writing this, so Green Day inspired that line).

The gate opened as we neared the top, and I moved through it quickly, hoping to see Ryan somewhere. My eyes sccanned over the island, but there was so much going on I could hardly focus on one thing. There were lots of buildings, and people moving around everywhere. Then, as if the moon had been watching, it cast its rays right to an area where the leader of the tribe stood. He had short black hair, around 6 feet, with gray eyes. I knew who it was instantly, and I smiled.

Chapter 4
(Note: The first part of this chapter was inspired by the song Last Night on Earth by Green Day [surprise surprise]: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3zOn84yvGAo)

I had no idea how long I stood there, all I could remember was when Ryan turned his head and his eyes rested on me. I remember running into his arms, laughing and almost crying from joy. "I wasn't expecting you to be here," Ryan said.

"And I wasn't expecting my boyfriend to be the leader of a huge tribe," I responded, still hugging him.

"It comes to the surprise of many," he said as I released myself from his hug. "But yeah, I've managed to create a town not unlike Mithril Mountain. I heard Francis took you in?"

I nodded. "He taught me everything on the ride here," I said

"He came with you?" Ryan looked at the walls on the harour side of the the island.

"Yeah," I said. "Told me that you too went to Mithril Mountain when you arrived, and then went out on your own."

"Well, he is right about that. Anyways, want to take a look around my island?"

"I'd love to."

The layout of Ryan's tribe was not unlike Mithril Mountain. Many of the buildings were made of stone, with wheat thatching roofs and wooden doors. It was late, so there weren't many people with shops open, but some of the people that lived in the tribe were relaxing outside.

The farmland on the island was probably on the other two miniature islands that were still part of Plateau. Francis had told me there were wild onions that grew there, so I guessed that it was a good place to farm. There were walls all around the island, but there were aldders for people to get up and look out overtop of them. There was an area with rocks to the right, and a hole in the ground, which I guessed was the mine that Francis had talked about. It seemed like this tribe was living in luxury.

"Where is your house?" I asked.

"I'll show you," he said. "And I introduce you to my second-in-command."

We walked into the small town, past the shops, and towards a large house, slightly seperated from the rest of the residential areas. It was biggere than Francis' house, and I guessed that Ryan's second-in-command lived there. It turns out I was right in my assumption, as a young man stepped out of the house. He had sand-blonde hair and was smaller than Ryan, as Ryan was over six feet.

The man walked over to us, smiling. "Who is this?" he asked the tribe leader. "Your long-lost girlfriend?"

"Long-lost?" Ryan asked. "Not even close. I always knew where she was."

'But you didn't know that I'd be here by now," I said. "Anyways, I'm Maegyn, but people call me Mae." (creative way to spell Megan)

"Nice to meet you," the second-in-command said. "I'm Taylor."

Ryan pushed my shoulder lightly. "I'll show you the house," he said, and waved as Taylor walked off. We both walked over to the wooden door, and Ryan opened it. I stepped inside first, and was astounded by what I saw.

The first area had only a chair, but next to it, stood a full set of magnificent purple armour. Mithril, no doubt, reinforced. I walked into the next room, which was the kitchen. There were shevles of fresh ingredients, enough food to last for a long time. I kept walking, went up the stairs, and saw everything. Ryan never said a word until I turned around and looked at him. "You did all of this?" I asked.

"Taylor helped," he answered, smiling. I hugged him, and we were about to share a moment (this is where you cry), when suddenly, cries of fear could be heard from outside.

Chapter 5
(Note that this chapter contains torture. But it won't give you nightmares)

Fire.

It was the only thing that could be seen all along the once green expanse as my boyfriend and I raced outside. People were running everywhere, and already, a few lay dead. Ryan grabbed my hand and pulled me back inside the house. "What do we do?" I asked as he ran into the storage room.

"We fight," he said. "It's the Bento people, I know it is." He came out holding two mithril swords. He gave one to me, then went fishing for a crossbow and some bolts. "You still good with crossbows?" he asked

"Always," I replied.

"Then aim and shoot," he said, and both of us ran out the door into battle.

There was shouting from our warriors as they climbed down from their sentries on the wall. I knew that they were heading for the main gate. Ryan was close behind me, sword out. I slowed down as people were fighting to brace the gate from the army on the other side. Suddenly, there was a cry, and I hit the ground without even thinking about it. Not even a second later, the whole stone defense was blown to pieces. Twenty soldiers rushed in, and I picked myself up, drawing my sword. I charged towards the closest one. He met my sword with his, and sent out a ringing clash. I pulled back and swiped at his knees, which he dodged. He lunged, missing my shoulder by a half inch. I could feel the cold blade nearly touch my skin. I was fast to retaliate. He slashed near my face, causing my to fall back. He stood over me and raised his sword. He had a lok of satisfaction on his face as he went to decend the blade into my body, but then he stopped, and his sword fell. Not long after, his body followed. A bolt was sticking out the back of it. Ryan lowered his crossbow. "And that's why you neer mess with my girlfriend," he said. I smiled, got up, adnr an back into the battle.

I was able to kill three soldiers, but soon our own warriors began to fall, and Ryan and I found ourselves standing back to back, with at least six of the Bento warriors surrounding us. They all had their swords pointing at us, and we knew that fighting them would be futile. The leader of the Bento tribe ushed his way through, with his sword drawn. He quickly held up to my neck, and Ryan turned to try and defend me, but it was exactly what they wanted him to do. Three of them grabbed him and pinned his arms behind his back. The leader spun me around and pulled me against him, bringing the sword blade up to my neck. He then looked at his soldiers. "Bind them," he said. "I want them alive."

The soldiers not holding Ryan quickly began to gather rope from the storages that Plateau had. I struggled to keep calm, as the leader still had his cold sword help to my neck. Ryan turned and saw the soldiers standing next to a wooden post that had been used to tie horsses to. The leader shoved me forward, and we walked over to the post. Ryan followed.

Within minutes we had both been tied to the post back to back, standing up. The Bento leader looked around at the island. There were only a few people left alive, the rest lay motionless on the ground. I had no idea if Taylor had survived or not. Five survivors were hudled against an old shop. The leader walked over to them, drew his sword, and slaughtered each one of them. I gasped in surprised and winced. How could anyone be so cruel?

"I'm sorry, Mae," Ryan said from behind me.

"It's not your fault," I answered. "It was just...bad timing for me."

The leader walked back over to us and waved his hands at his soldiers, who instantly backed away. The leader paced for a while, and then help his sword to Ryan's neck. "I've been waiting for this moment Ryan," he said quietly. "You have no idea. Shame that your girlfriend has to die with you."

"Leave her out of this," Ryan pleaded. "She had nothing to do with it."

"But now, she does," the leader responded, and I heard the sickening sound of a blade cutting through flesh.

"You aren't going to get anything from me," Ryan said. "Not a single cry."

"Oh, I'll change that."

The leader walked over to me, and put away his sword. Instead, he pulled out a knife. It was not unlike the one that Francis had back at Mithril Mountain. The leader began to trace the tip of the knife all over my face, not cutting my skin at all. My cry was heard all across the islands as it was driven into my shoulder. I felt Ryan fight against the ropes. "Stop!" he pleaded again. "Please! Leave her be!"

The leader smiled, and put his knife away. I was still gasping from the pain of my wound. I didn't even see where he a long linked-chain. All I felt was the pain again as it connected. I cried out everytime it struck me, wanting nothing more than to pass out and end the pain. My wish came true as I felt one last hard strike, and then I fell into blackness.

When I came to, the first thing I realized was that it was day. The soreness and pain returned quickly as soon as I flinched. I was lying on my stomach, completely free of the wooden post. I opened my eyes, and saw Ryan lying next to me. He too was free. I looked around, moving only my eyes, not my head, for fear that the Bento soldiers were still there. But I saw nothing, and heard nothing.

I pushed myself up to a sitting position, and looked at my arms. Nearly every inch of them was purple. It looked a lot worse than it felt, which was nice in a way. I knew that Ryan might freak out when he saw my injuries, as he didn't take my being injured very well; he never did.

We were still on Plateau, but it looked as if it had been hit by a nuclear bomb. There were no walls any where, just crumbled pieces of stone. The shops and houses were also disintegrated. I stood, and walked over to the edge of the island closest to Spire, a tall mountainous island. I looked down, and was in disbelief at what I saw.

Two big Merchant ships lay at the bottom of the ocean, right off the beach of Plateau. They looked as if they had been bombed. I held my hand over my eyes and looked out toward Spire, to see if there was anyone that lived on the snowy peaks. Spire was the miners paradise, as it had every single ore in the islands available, including Mithril. The ony downside was that there was no food, no water, and very limited space.

I could see no activity on the island, so I came to the conclusion that the ships below had been bombed by another party. They had been the Bento boats, as there were no survivors from the attack last night, besides Ryan and I.

I looked back over to where Ryan was starting to come around. He was in worse shape than I as. I had no idea what the leader had done after I had fallen unconscious, and I didn't want to know. Ryan stood, and walked over to me, a look of pain crossing his face with each step. "What are you looking at?" he asked as he reached me. I pointed down, and he looked over the edge. "No idea who is responsible for it," I said. "Is someone living on Spire?"

"There is a lone survivor living in a cave there," he said. "Not the one close to the peak, but the other one, if Francis told you about it."

"Yeah, he did," I said. "He told me everything he knew."

"Probably a good thing to go back to his tribe," Ryan said. "This place is finished. Too much work to do and not any people to occupy the space."

"Did Taylor survive?"

"Not likely."

At that moment, we both looked back at the mine. It was probably bombed, but Francis had told me of a hiding place within Plateau's cave. I began to walk over to the hole in the ground. It looked as if Bento had just left the mine alone. The torches inside of it were still lit and burning. The rope to get out was severed, but it was possible to get out of the cave without it. There was a high, rock structure inside of the cave that was high enough for someone to jump out of. Ryan came up behind me. "You want to go down?" I asked.

"I don't think I could haul myself out of there with my injuries," he said. "What about you? You feel okay?"

"Well, no," I said. "But I'm probably in a better shape than you are."

I shifted my sore shoulders and winced. Even though I was a massive amount of pain, it was somewhat tolerable if I wasn't over-exherting myself.

Ryan was able to get me a torch and lit it with some of the smoldering ruins. I slowly lowered mysel fonto the rock, and then ducked underneath the ceiling of the mine. There were brown and black ores nestled into rock, and I assumed it was iron and coal. "Taylor!" I called into the cave. "The Bento people are gone. Spire bombed their ships. Ryan and I are still alive." There was a rustling of rock, and then he came out from underneath the rock brigde I was standing on. "About time," he said.

"We can't waste any time," I said. "Both Ryan and I need medical attention. That Bento leader had a cast iron chain he used."

"I'll be up there in a minute," he said, and began to walk away from me. Withn a few seconds, he appeared on the rock bridge and we both walked to the entrance of the mine. When both of us emerged, Ryan was smiling, obviously happy that his second in command had survived.

"We need to get to Mithril Mountain as fast as we can," Taylor said. "Rockma's tribe has probably heard about the attacks already, considering that they can see Bento from their island. They are in close contact with Mithril Mountain."

"Is Rockma's tribe peaceful?" I asked.

"To a point," Ryan answered. "They come across as pasivists, but since they are close to Canyon, they control one of the sulpur sources here, so they have a bomb factory there. It's were the Mountain gets their bombs from."

"How are we going to get there?" I asked. "The Mountain is a days journey from here."

"We'll go to Spire," Taylor said. "I know the person who lives there."

Chapter 6
We walked down the rocky path of Plateau, and glanced down at the harbour, hoping for some sort of boat to be left behind. Most of them had been burned, but we managed to find a raft-type boat that all of us would fit on. Taylor pushed us off, and mainly steered, since Ryan and I were still in no shape for hard work. Thankfully Spire was very close to Plateau, and Taylor didn't have to work very hard. Still, it would be hard to climb up, as it was true to it's name. There was a natural rock-ladder inside of one of the many bases of rock.

We stopped, and waiting there for us was a young man, about mid-twenties. "Nice to see you again," he said smiling as Taylor pulled our raft to the shore. "I wish," Taylor said. "We were attacked yesterday. No survivors except us."

He looked past Taylor and watched us for a few seconds. "You don't look too good, Ryan," he called. Ryan rolled his eyes, and the boy turned back to Taylor. "What is it that you need?" he asked.

"We need to get to Mithril Mountain," Taylor said. "Francis is our only hope if we are to survive any longer here."

"You can take one of my Catamarans," the boy said. "Keep it; I have many more."

"Thank you," Taylor said, and the three of us got off our raft. The boy pointed around the corner, and there the Catamaran floated, three seats in place. Ryan and I got in passenger seats, and Taylor got in the driver seat. He waved to the person on Spire, and then we sailed away.

The catamaran held up to its name of being the fastest ship in the islands. We were able to reach Mainland in the course of and hour and a half. Most of that time I spent lying down on the wooden hull, feeling the wind, and trying to relax, though my injuries seemed to have minds of their own and kept making me uncomfortable no matter what position I was in.

Taylor docked the boat close to Mithril Mountain's harbour. There were a few people loading up the boats with supply crates. I glanced around, looking for one thing in particular. The bay horse that I had seen Francis galloping around on was no where in my sight. I hoped that no one saw us before Francis or the captain of the ship which had taken me to Plateau, Danny, did. They had seen me just yesterday, Francis had seen Ryan for sure, but I wasn't sure about Taylor. If he was with us I hoped that Francis was able to piece together that he was peaceful.

A couple of sailors had spotted us, and Taylor pulled out his Mithril knife that he had managed to save during the attack. I glanced at him. "It's okay, Taylor," I said. "They won't hurt us."

The blonde boy turned his gaze towards me. "I hope you're right," he said in a low voice that was nearly a growl. I looked at the two sailors that had run up to us. I recognized one of them as someone who had sailed with me last night. They stopped about ten feet away, and put away their weapons as they saw who it was. "Ryan?" one asked. "I thought you were dead."

"So did many people," Ryan answered. "I'm alive, but I need serious medical treatments. So does Mae." He gestured to me. "What about him?" the other sailor asked, looking at Taylor.

"I'm fine," Taylor responded. "I was the only other survivor of the attack last night."

"The Rockma tribe told us about it," the sailor said. "They could hear see the flames on the horizon line, and they watched as Bento's boats left. They also said that those boats had never come back."

"The survivor on Spire bombed them," I said. "Plateau is done. The villagers were massacred and the buildings bomved and burned. There is nothing left for us anymore."

"We can accomidate you here for a whle until you're healed," he said. "Come, I'll show you to our medical building."

The three of us and the two sailors walked along the stone wall. I didn't expect to be back here so quickly, and certainly not under these conditions. I was still in a good deal of pain, but I was dealing with it.

"Taylor, you can wait outside the building if you want," Ryan said, turning to his second-in-command. Taylor nodded and glanced down at the ground. I brushed my hair out of my eyes with my arm, and it was quick to protest with a small shot of pain.

We turned the corner, through the open gate, and into the huge walled-in town. There were lots of people walking around, and I didn't want any of them to bump into me. I wanted to keep the pain down as much as I could, but I knew that it could be something that I could only wish for. People almost ran right into me, and I started off wincing to try and maintain my image of strength, but I wasn't able to hold it, and I ended up snarling in my throat and giving a wild glance at whoever hit me.

Taylor waited outside the stone building while both Ryan and I were getting treated. My arm was broken, but that was it. Everything else was just really badly bruised. The medical staff set my arm, and handed me a green herbal remedy to my good hand. I drank it, the taste of the grounds of the islands quickly apparent. I was sitting for another fie or so minutes, and then the wooden boards that were used to set my arm were removed. I glanced quickly at them. "What are you doing?" I asked, a hint of fear in my voice, as I was expectng them to cast my arm, or something like that. "That remedy heals broken bones very fast," one of the medical staff said. "Your arm will be fine." The boards were brought away from my arm comlpetely, and I glanced down at my limb, not wanting to move it. Finally, I built up the mental strength to do so, and I lifted it carefully. There was no pain, at all. I looked up and around, making sure that I was still awake, and that this wasn't some sort of sick sensation. I bent my arm at my elbow, and again felt no pain shooting down it. "The medicine surprises us too," said one of medical staff. "It's amazing how nobody settled here before. This place is quite advanced." I nodded slowly in thought, still looking at my arm. I looked up suddenly as I remembered who I was with.

Ryan was sitting on a table behind me, and I had to turn my head over my shoulder to see him. As I was in the motion of turning, I expected the pain to come back, but it didn't. The remedy had healed my bruises as well. Ryan had his shirt off, and for the first time I saw the full extent of upper body injuries he had sustained. Most of the damage was around his kidney and lower rib area, as the skin all around it was black. His arms were also in bad shape, as roughly half of them were different shades of purple. Everywhere else looked to have scattered bruises, but whereever there was a bruise, it was bad. I heard one of the medical staff say he had a broken rib, and a dislocated shoulder, and that he had to pop the shoulder back into its joint. I turned quickly, wanting to block out everything that was going on behind me. I knew what was going to happen, and I didn't want to watch. Thankfully, Ryan didn't cry out as much as I thought he would, but he was still showing his weakness as I heard the cracking of bones as they were lifted back into place.

I was allowed to go free as soon as Ryan's shoulder was back in place. I took the chance, and walked out, completely healed. Taylor was leaning against the stone walls, his arms hanging down, looking out towards the north where Plateau was located. I walked over to him. "What are we going to do now?" I asked.

"I don't know," he said, turning to look at me, and pushing himself up on the wall so he was straight again. "But I'm not staying here. I do have an idea of where we could go."

He gestured for me to come in closer. I leaned in towards his face a little more. "There's an island north of here, almost directly to the west," he said quietly. "It's a dormant volcano, and because of this, it has more ore veins than Plateas mine ever had. The ore cave is massive and can be blocked off easily. As far as I know, there is no one there."

"What's the island called?" I asked in a hushed voice, matching his volume.

"Magma," he answered. "Fitting name, if you ask me. We could easily defend it, but all three of us would have to take on a heavy workload."

I nodded. "I'm fine with that," I said. "I feel in top shape right now after they gave me that remedy, so I can take on any kind of work."

Taylor turned his head so he was looking north again. "That's good," he said. "Hopefully we can get a ship here, and suit up in mithril armour and tools. Then we would never have to leave the comfort of Magma at all if we can get a trade ruote established with this place and maybe Rockma."

I looked out into the town square, where it was busy with people. I saw no sign of Francis. "The horses are transported here aren't they?" I asked.

"The natural-looking ones are," Taylor said. "Most of the horses in this tribe have been transported. There are native horses, but they hide on an island called Canyon. They aren't natural looking."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, for one, they are a special breed; only this place has them. They're draft horses, but they are much taller than regular horses. Their height ranges from six and a half feet to over eight."

"What are they called?"

"They're generally referred to here as 'Sielle', which means warhorse in one of the native languages here. Sadly, the language has been lost as the native people here all died when there was a massive hurricane that swept through here. I believe that it is behind the reason that this place is so 'advanced', if you want to call it that."

I leaned against the cool stone wall. "We should go to Canyon," I said. "Surely, if Magma is the miners paradise it sounds like, then a workhorse would be a great asset."

Taylor shrugged. "Maybe, if we can convince Ryan to do so," he said.

I smiled. "Leave that part to me," I said.

Chapter 7
Taylor and I were only waiting for about five more minutes until Ryan came out. When he did come out, he looked a lot better than before, as there wasn’t a pained look in his face, but I was sure that we all looked better, with the exception of Taylor, who looked the same.

“We’re thinking of staying here until we have the tools needed to get back out on the islands,” I said as Ryan came over. “The island called Magma is the one we were talking about, but we would need mithril tools.” Ryan gave me a questioning look.

“Did Taylor tell you to what to say?” he asked, an eyebrow raised. I smiled.

“Just the info about the island,” I said. “And that it would be the three of us; none of this tribe crap. It just makes us a target.” Ryan nodded in agreement, and I continued. “There is one thing that I would suggest though,” I said. “And that’s if we could get one of the horses on Canyon as a workhorse. Just to keep us alive would be a challenge, since it’s only the three of us.”

Ryan also nodded at this point. “That is true,” he said. “Would we live inside of the cave?” “I would think so,” Taylor said. “Somehow, it’s very bright in there even though it’s a cave, so we wouldn’t need to hang lanterns every five feet, so we can grow crops inside, and it’s very easy to defend.” “We would have to get our tools here,” Ryan said. “And then sail around to get everything else by going to the other islands, as they don’t sell seeds here for some reason. Hopefully we can do something for Francis here.”

“Let’s go find out,” Taylor said, pushing himself off the wall with his shoulder. I turned towards him and nodded. “I know where his house is,” I said.

The three of us moved quickly through the town square, and I took the lead when we made it through th moving maze of people. The route that I had been down just twenty-four hours before was still fresh in my mind, as I turned down the path that ended at the huge stone house. Taylor, who had never been to Mithril Mountain before, was looking around as he followed me. Ryan wasn't looking around as much as Taylor, but it had been at least a month since he had last been inside of these stone walls. Nothing to me was new.

We reached the huge stone house, and I knocked on the wooden door, hoping that Francis was inside. I knew that he would recognize me and Ryan, but not Taylor. Hopefully it didn't hinder us.

When the door opened, I smiled as the leader of the Mithril Mountain tribe opened the door. I was the first one he saw, but when he saw Ryan and Taylor standing behind me, a new look of uncertainty crossed his face. "I'm so sorry about what happened," he said. "You guys look fine though."

"We were treated here," I said. "They took very good care of us. Trust me, both Ryan and I looked like hell before."

"It looked like hell on earth," Ryan said. "All our hard work, gone. What happened afterward was not something that Mae should have gone through. It was my own fault."

I turned my head quickly over my shoulder, shooting him a hard look. "Whatever it was, you can't change it," I said firmly. "The Bento tribe is dead and gone."

Ryan leaned back, as if he was standing down. I turned back to Francis, my gaze lingering on Ryan's face for just a second longer than normal. "We need a place to stay," I said. "Even a crude wooden hut would be fine, we just need some sort of shelter." Francis nodded, leaning on the doorframe with his shoulder, crossing his arms over his chest.

"We do have a hotel-type structure here," he said. "Everything you would need is there. Food, water, and medicine. Though I doubt that you will be in need of the remedies we have."

I shook my head. "I think we're all fine on that account," I said. "I'm healed, Ryan is, and Taylor wasn't touched."

Francis gave me an inquiring look, shifting his weight on his shoulder. "Why was that?" he asked.

"I took shelter in the mine," Taylor said. Just the way he said it gave me an uncertain chill down my spine.

"I see," Francis said, pushing himself up on his feet again and uncrossing his arms. "Go ahead and get settled. I'll tell the workers there your story, so they won't be harassing you guys for coins."

I smiled. "Thank you," I said. The leader nodded, and I turned, looking at the two boys behind me. "Shall we go?" I asked. Both of them nodded.

(next part of this chapter was inspired by the song Restless Heart Sydrome No profanity in the song)

When the three of us arrived at the hotel, it seemed like the staff there already knew about what had happened, which, to me, was weird, as Francis had not left his fortress of a house to tell them. Maybe the news about the fall of Plateau spread fast in this tribe.

The three of us had a single room, with two beds. The hotel was a six-floor building, and was made of the same gray stone that the houses were made out of. Every floor was a room, and we were on the fifth floor.

There was food on the bottom floor, but I wasn't hungry, I was tired. There were glasses of water and juice in the room, and it was only when I saw those that I realized that I was thirsty. Ryan and Taylor left to go eat, leaving me alone in the room. After I had downed at least four glasses of water, probably more, but I lost track after that, I walked over to one of the beds. It had a wooden frame, and looked to be covered in cow hide as a mattress, and it was stuffed with some sort of really soft material which acted like memory foam, which I found out as I put my hand on it. The bed itself was only about one and one half of a foot off the floor, but it looked very confortable. I laid down on it, and almost instantly fell asleep.

When I woke again, I saw that there was only one person in the room. I propped myself up on my elbows to see the backside of Taylor, who looked to be cleaning a knife. I laid back down, and looked up at the stone ceiling. "Where's Ryan?" I asked, indirectly, to Taylor.

"Town square," he said. "Getting some tools for you and himself. I already got mine."

I shifted on the bed and threw my legs over the sides. "I'm going to find him," I said. "I should probably get some better clothing thatn this as well." Taylor stood, almost in an offensive position, close to the door. "I'm sure that Ryan will be just fine," he said. I looked up at the former second-in-command, and saw something in his face that I hadn't before. His eyes, which were usually calm, were glowing with an emotion that looked to be anger. I straightened up, as I was sitting on the bed, and my eyes turned as well. "I know he is, I am doing this for me," I said. Taylor turned the knife in his hand, and I only glanced at it once, and I knew that my emotion had turned from one of strength, to one of fear. And it was then when the blonde boy jumped at me.

Chapter 8
I was quick to react, rolling on my back, and ending up on the oppoite ide of the bed, standing. Taylor was lying ddown on the bed, and I knew that I had only one chance, and I took it. I took off towards the door, fighting to get it open, but he was no sooner right on me, and I swung around, my foot lashing out and catching him in the side. He still held his knife, and I knew that I needed to get it away from him. The kick to hi side hadn't phased him much, but in his moment of weakness I was quick to kick his hand, and as he went to pick the knife up again, I had forced the door open and was running down the tight stairscase.

I had no idea what people thought of me as I ran down the stairs, and I didn't care. Ryan's second-in-command had tried to attack me, and that was all that was racing through my mind. I hit the bottom of the stairs and continued out the doors of the hotel, running almot blindly. I didn't want to look back, as I was sure that he would be right on me quickly.

I ran right into Ryan, and as soon as I impacted I looked up. "Taylor has gone mad," I said. It was all I could say. I wrapped my arms around him, trying to make myself feel comforted, and I managed to convince myself that I was. I looked behind only once, and saw Taylor storming towards us. I glanced up again at Ryan, heard the sound of a sword unsheathing, and it one quick motion, it was over. Everyone around u topped, and just looked. Taylor's form slumped down onto the grass, his head lying a few feet from his body. "I knew you had something to do with the fall of Plateau," Ryan whsipered to himself, and I held him tighter, not wanting to figure out how I felt.

* * *

Ryan and I didn't talk about Taylor at all. As far as he was concerned, Taylor was a traitor, and the indirect cause of Plateau's downfall. I had gotten over it, but Ryan never did, and I didn't blame him. He had but his heart and soul into that tribe, and to see it destroyed was one of the worst things that he had ever experienced.

We left the islands shortly afterwards. There was no need to continue on. With just the two of us, it would be very hard to settle down and start a new tribe, and we didn't want to live at Mithril Mountain, with no say in what happened. We left after a full week of my being there.

Even though I never got to live truely in the islands, I never forgot my experiences. Ryan and I became a lot closer because of it, and he was increasingly protective once we got back home. From my home on Bermuda, I sometimes watched the transporter ships sail into the port, and a few people boarding to go and try a new life. Ryan and I were the only ones who had come back from the group of thirteen islands, and we weren't leaving Bermuda to go back. As I always came to the conclusion of, there was nothing left for us there anymore.

The End