by Blake Hoena
“Silver,” the captain shouts, “I haven’t the slightest desire to talk to you. But Jim says we should listen to what you have to say.”
“And I’m grateful for that,” Long John replies. “That Jim’s a good lad.”
Long John hops across the sandy clearing and to the fort’s entrance. Captain Smollett meets him there.
“Whatever you have to say, say it,” the captain spits.
“Well, here it is,” says Long John Silver. “We want that treasure, and we’ll have it. Your lives for the map. That’s our terms.”
“That won’t do with me,” the captain says. “Once we give you the map, who says you won’t just kill us?”
“Me, that’s who. You have my word as a gentleman,” Long John says. “See, as things stand, all that’s holding my mates back is that map of yours. I told them you’d exchange it for your lives.”
“Well you steered them wrong,” the captain replies.
“By thunder!” John Long curses. “Refuse, and you’ve seen the last of me but for a cutlass.”
“Now you’ll hear me,” the captain answers. “You can’t find the treasure. You can’t sail the ship—there’s not a man among you fit to sail. You need us more than we need you.”
“That so,” Long John says. “Well, I’ll give you till sunup to hand over that there map of yours. After that, I ain’t responsible for what the rest of my lot does.” Long John turns and hops back into the woods.
During the rest of the night, you don’t see any of the pirates. But you can see the glow of their fire down by the beach. You can hear them shouting and laughing amongst themselves.
“They must have brought some of the rum ashore,” Trelawney says.
“This might be a good time for me to seek out Ben Gunn,” Livesey says.
“Be back before sunup,” Captain Smollett orders. “We’ll need all hands armed and ready for their attack.”
After Livesey leaves, Captain Smollett assigns the rest of the men each a shift on watch. “Holler, if you see anything suspicious,” the captains tells them. “We don’t want to be taken by surprise. We may have more firepower, but they have us outnumbered.”
You try to sleep. But between nervousness at what tomorrow will bring and the pirates’ laughter rolling up from the beach, you’re unable to get any rest.
You think about the Hispaniola. There are only three pirates aboard. They have been drinking rum all day. Maybe you could use Ben’s boat to sneak aboard and retake the ship. It would be dangerous, but you will eventually need the ship to sail home.
On the other hand, would it be better to stay in the fort? The captain seems set on defending the fort against the pirates. You have guns, and the pirates only have swords. Surely you can win any battle against them.
What will you choose to do?
Sneak aboard the ship.
Defend the fort.
Trying to recapture the ship is too dangerous. And besides, you want to find out what Livesey learns from Ben Gunn. With nothing more to do, you close your eyes and try to sleep.
The doctor returns just before sunrise. All the men meet him in the middle of the fort to hear what he has to say.
“We’re doomed,” Livesey declares. “Ben Gunn knows where Flint’s treasure is. He wanted to offer us each a share of it for passage home aboard the Hispaniola.”
“But we don’t control the ship,” Trelawney says.
“We are such fools,” the captain exclaims. “We should’ve tried recapturing her last night.”
Your thoughts echo the captain’s. The idea crossed your mind, but you weren’t brave enough to act.
“I’m afraid Ben Gunn planned to offer Silver the same deal,” Livesey says.
You run and peek over the walls of the fort. The sun casts its golden light over the ocean. On the beach, you see the pirates loading their two boats with sea chests and other items that sparkle in the morning light.
The men gather next to you. You all watch as the two boats bob in the waves while the pirates row out to the Hispaniola. It takes them less than an hour to get the treasure loaded onto the ship.
The sails are unfurled. They billow in the wind, and slowly the Hispaniola sails out of sight.
Weeks go by. Then months. One by one, members of your party starve or suffer fatal illnesses. You wonder how Ben lived so long on this island alone.
Eventually, you are the only one left. You spend your days searching for something to satisfy your never-ending hunger. What you wouldn’t do for a simple bite of cheese! Your nights are filled with dreams of home, of your mother, of your life at the Admiral Benbow. A life you will never know again.
You can only hope that some day a ship will anchor off the coast of Treasure Island—and that you will live long enough to see it.
Try again.
While you trust the captain’s instincts, you realize that you won’t be very helpful in a battle. So you don’t feel bad for thinking about leaving. You might be of more use by sneaking onto the ship. While the pirates aboard are sleeping, you could run the ship aground so they can’t sail away.
Everyone at the fort soon falls asleep, except for the sailor keeping watch. While he isn’t looking, you sneak over the wall, where a beam has splintered in half. After a quick glance around to make sure all is clear, you dart into the forest and disappear from sight.
Ben told you that his boat was down by the shore and hidden under a fallen willow tree. It takes you a couple hours to wind your way to the beach and find the boat.
Go to the next page.
Ben’s boat is actually a small raft made up of a few logs tied together. There is also a paddle crafted out of a tree branch and palm fronds. You drag the boat into the water.
In front of you, the night sparkles with the light of a thousand stars. The Hispaniola looms like a dark shadow. Within that space, you see the dim light of one lantern flickering. That is your guide.
Paddling is slow, and waves toss Ben’s boat about. By the time you reach the ship, it’s well past midnight.
You circle around the Hispaniola until you find the anchor rope. You could never pull up the ship’s anchor by yourself, so you begin cutting the rope.
As you’re sawing away, you hear voices overhead. Arguing. Then an explosion of shouts. The crash of wooden objects being thrown. A clang of swords.
Once the anchor is cut loose, the ship starts to lazily drift. You hold onto the rope attached to the Hispaniola and are instantly pulled off the small boat.
The Hispaniola spins in the breeze and crushes Ben’s boat under its hull. You have no other choice now but to climb aboard.
All is silent as you peek over the ship’s railing. To one side, you see a fallen pirate. To the other side, you see another pirate lying just as the first. In front of you, Israel Hands is slouched down against the main mast. You can’t tell if he’s alive or dead, but he doesn’t flinch as you pull yourself, wet and dripping, over the rail.
The ship lurches in the breeze. Israel tips over and moans. His eyes roll open and find you. You can’t tell if he’s hurt. But he doesn’t move. He just watches you.
The part of your plan you didn’t think through is that you don’t know how to sail a ship. Maybe you can convince Israel to help you.
“Much hurt?” you ask.
“If that doctor was aboard,” he grunts, “I’d be right enough in a couple of turns.”
“Well,” you say, “if you help me, I’ll take you to the doctor as soon as we’re ashore.”
He looks at you sourly. “What do you be wanting me to do?” he asks.
“I want to sail the ship along the western coast and then run her aground,” you say. There, the ship will be hidden from the pirate camp.
“Okay, I’ll help ye,” Israel says. “
But first, help me sit up.”
You’re not sure you can trust Israel, but he looks barely alive. And his help is worth the risk. You grab one of his arms and tug until he is in a sitting position. Then you let go of him. His arm slaps down on the wooden deck.
“Now just do as I say,” Israel orders.
Soon, you have one of the sails unfurled. It flaps loudly as the wind fills it. You feel the ship being pushed forward. Then Israel has you go to the tiller. As the ship slogs forward, you steer it around the western shore.
When you’re far enough around the coast, you plan to beach the ship. The pirates will be less likely to attack your friends if they don’t know where the ship is.
“How am I doin’, Israel?” you ask as you sail through the dark waters.
There’s no reply.
You turn to see if Israel is okay, when suddenly a large shadow staggers toward you. It’s Israel; his knife glints in the moonlight.
“We’ve had about enough of this foolery,” he says, lunging at you.
You stumble backward, letting go of the tiller. As you do, it spins wildly. One of its handles knocks the blade out of Israel’s hand.
“By thunder!” he curses.
You back up against the railing. Israel is unarmed now, but he has you trapped.
If you have a pistol, click here.
If not, click here.
Luckily, you took the pistol from Captain’s sea chest. You pull it from your pocket and aim it at Israel.
“You aren’t gonna shoot your mate Israel, are ya?” he asks. His eyes dart from side to side, as if he’s looking for some sort of weapon.
“G— g— get back or I’ll shoot,” you stammer.
Israel smiles at you. “You ain’t never killed a man before, have you?” he says.
You say nothing. You don’t want him to know how afraid you really are.
He takes a step toward you.
You pull the trigger. Click! Nothing happens.
“Ha!” Israel laughs. “The primer must a got wet.”
He roars at you and charges forward like an angry bull. You scream back at the bigger man, but your cry is shrill and filled with terror.
Israel lunges at you. You try to leap sideways, out of his reach, but he has you cornered. You punch and kick and bite at his hands as he reaches for you.
Just as his hands entwine their fingers around your neck, the Hispaniola stops suddenly, tilting on its side. You and Israel are thrown across the deck. The hull groans as it grinds into the sand. The ship has run aground!
Quickly, you roll away from the pirate and spring to your feet. Israel lies moaning in front of you. Slowly, he sits up.
You look over the railing, but the sea is too shallow and the leap is too far down for you to jump.
You glance around as Israel rises to his feet. He stands between you and the captain’s cabin, so there will be no escape there.
Then you look up. You could climb one of the masts and hope that Israel can’t follow.
You quickly climb into the rigging, out of the pirate’s reach. You make it to one of the crosstrees. There, you sit on a wooden platform, breathing heavily.
You dare a look down. To your horror, Israel is ever so slowly making his way up the rigging. He is moving toward you with a knife clenched between his teeth.
If you’ve been to the fort, click here.
If not, click here.
You don’t have a weapon, but neither does Israel. You hope that in his weakened state, you’re able to fight past him. If you can find a cutlass or some other weapon on board, you might be able to defend yourself.
Israel roars at you and charges forward like an angry bull. You scream back at the bigger man, but your cry is shrill and filled with terror.
Israel lunges. You try to leap sideways, out of his reach, but he has you cornered. You punch and kick and bite at his hands as he reaches for you.
Just as his hands entwine their fingers around your neck, the Hispaniola stops suddenly, tilting on its side. You and Israel are thrown across the deck. The hull groans as it grinds into the sand. The ship has run aground!
You roll away from him and spring to your feet. Israel lies moaning in front of you. Slowly, he sits up.
You look over the railing. The sea is too shallow, and the leap is too far down for you to jump.
You glance around as Israel slowly stands up. He’s between you and the captain’s cabin, so there can be no escape there.
Then you look up. You could climb one of the masts and hope that Israel can’t follow. But it would still be nice to have a weapon.
You glance around the deck and spy an empty pistol five feet away. You lunge for it just as Israel regains his footing. Then you quickly climb into the rigging, out of the pirate’s reach. You make it to one of the crosstrees. There, you sit on a wooden platform, breathing heavily.
You dare a look down. To your horror, Israel is ever so slowly making his way up the rigging. He is moving toward you with a knife clenched between his teeth.
If you’ve been to the fort, click here.
If not, click here.
You’re trapped. You can’t climb any higher, and the only weapon you have is a useless, unloaded pistol. You throw it at Israel.
“Ouch!” he yells as it strikes him in the shoulder. “You’ll pay for that, sonny.”
You gulp in fear.
The tips of Israel’s fingers curl around the edge of the crosstree. You back up against the mast. A hand slaps down on the board in front of you. You kick it.
“Stop that now,” Israel hisses. His hairy and tattooed arm reaches up over the platform. Israel pokes his head above the crosstree. He smiles sinisterly. “I’ll make this painless,” he says.
You kick at him again, but he’s quicker than you. He snatches your foot out of the air before it can connect with his head. He gives it a tug, and you lose your grip on the mast. You teeter on the edge of the platform. Then a wave slams into the ship, throwing you off balance. Gravity does the rest. You fall toward the deck of the Hispaniola. And then your world ends.
Try again.
You’re trapped. You can’t climb any higher, but at least you have a pistol. And you have spare powder and shot to reload it. You just hope the gunpowder didn’t get wet.
You open the powder horn. You’re in luck! The powder is dry. You quickly reload the pistol.
Thunk! A knife suddenly sticks to the mast next to your cheek. Israel must have thrown it.
“Nearly got you,” he shouts from below.
You’re so frightened that you almost drop the pistol as you tap down the gunpowder. Next, you must put a ball of shot in the barrel.
You need to hurry. The tips of Israel’s fingers curl around the edge of the crosstree. You back up against the mast. A hand slaps down on the board in front of you. You kick it.
“Stop that now,” Israel hisses. His hairy and tattooed arm reaches up over the platform. He pokes his head above the crosstree and smiles sinisterly. “I’ll make this painless,” he says.
With the gun reloaded, you take aim.
Israel’s smile fades.
“Wait,” he says. “I calls a truce.”
You let your aim waver slightly, and Israel makes a grab for your gun.
Bang! The pistol goes off.
Israel wheels backward with his arms flailing. Then gravity takes hold of him and slams him onto the deck. He’s down and out... forever.
You’re saddened yet also relieved. You have control of the ship, so the pirates cannot sail away. You just need to tell your friends the good news. Hopefully you can get back to the fort before the pirates attack.
5. The Treasure
You scramble down from the riggings. Then you slide down the
anchor rope, onto the beach.
To the east, the sky is turning from black to a deep blue. Soon, the sun will break above the horizon. You must get back to the fort before sunup; Long John will be expecting an answer from Captain Smollett. And hopefully Livesey was able to find Ben Gunn. You also have news of the ship to share with your friends.
You run up the beach and into the forest. As quickly as you can, you trace your steps back to the fort.
Once you reach the clearing that surrounds the fort, you stay in the shadows. You do not want whomever is on guard to accidentally shoot at you.
You creep to the side of the fort where you snuck out earlier. Then you stop to listen.
Within the fort, all is quiet, except for the snoring of men. You quickly climb over the splintered beam and into the fort. Then, with your hands out before you, you stumble through the darkness toward the shack. You hope to find Livesey inside.
Before you get ten paces, you trip over someone on the ground. He turns and groans, without waking.
Suddenly, a shrill voice breaks the silence. “Pieces of eight! Pieces of eight! Pieces of eight! Pieces of eight! Pieces of eight!”
How did Long John’s parrot, Cap’n Flint, get inside the fort? You spin away—directly into the arms of a pirate, who grabs you by the wrists.
“Who’s there?” Long John shouts from the shack.
“It’s Jim,” the pirate holding you replies.
A torch is lit, and you see that four pirates surround you, plus Long John. Cap’n Flint sits on his shoulder.
Long John says, “Here’s Jim Hawkins, shiver my timbers! I wasn’t expecting you to just drop in on us.”
While he talks, you wonder what happened to your friends. You glance around the fort. In the torchlight, you cannot see any signs of a fight.