“How can we do that, Toby?” asked the Captain. “How is his body going to last the distance?”
Toby couldn’t argue.
“Now, you’d better go and get cleaned up, Toby. I’ll have my men clean Tiger up and we’ll put him into some fresh clothes. What do you think?”
Toby nodded solemnly and reluctantly left his beloved Tiger in the care of his crewmates.
Half an hour later, when the Captain began the ceremony, a strange calmness descended over Toby. The Captain’s speech became a distant noise in his ears and he felt as though he were looking at Tiger through someone else’s eyes. Even as he studied Tiger’s face, the handsome face he had fantasized and dreamed about so often, it looked different; like someone he had never met. The lips looked thinner and his tanned complexion a little paler. Closed eyelids prevented Toby from taking one last look at the mesmerizing, crystal blue eyes. The powerful, muscular body he had felt so close to his own only a few days ago, now looked slimmer and weaker.
Toby heard his name being called. He looked up at the Captain whose lips were once again forming his name.
“Toby, would you like to say something?”
Toby shook his head. Now was not the time to say all the things he wanted to say to Tiger. That was for another time.
Slowly the men stepped forward and reverentially lifted Tiger’s body up and carried him to the side of the ship. As the men raised their arms over the side of the ship and Tiger’s body slid from their hands, the Captain spoke one last sentence.
“As we commit Tiger’s body to the ocean he loved so much, we ask that God speeds his soul to Heaven.”
Toby arrived at the side of the ship just as Tiger’s body hit the sea and disappeared beneath the water before resurfacing again a few seconds later. He heard someone say, “Leave him.”
The other men finished hoisting the sails and the Captain took his position at the helm. Toby watched Tiger’s body bobbing on the waves.
The ship began to move through the water. A hand came down on Toby’s shoulder. It was Pete.
“Say goodbye to him, Toby. We’re leaving now.”
Pete patted Toby’s shoulder a couple of times then moved away.
“Goodbye, Tiger,” Toby began, his voice no more than a whisper, for his words were meant only for Tiger. “I know you didn’t think of me the way I thought of you. You were, are, a good looking man who could have his pick of lovers and I am just plain old me. But I’m sure you knew I loved you, secretly, and even though that probably doesn’t mean much to you, it means everything to me. I’m going to miss you, Tiger.”
He pursed his lips, sending a kiss along with his thoughts to Tiger’s spirit, wherever it was. Then, as Tiger’s body grew smaller and smaller, Toby took a deep breath and turned away from the side of the ship.
“What do you want me to do?” he asked Pete.
“Go and get some rest. We’re all right for now.”
Toby shook his head. “No, I don’t want to go down there and lie in my bunk thinking about…about everything. I want something to do to keep my brain busy.”
Pete nodded. “Then grab a mop and bucket and give the deck a bit of a clean.”
Toby nodded. It wasn’t one of his favourite jobs. In fact, he hated it. But it would take his mind off Tiger or at least distract him from his thoughts.
Chapter 6
With each new sunrise, Toby awoke to thoughts of Tiger. Occasionally he experienced moments when he half-expected to turn a corner, see Tiger, and realise the events of a week ago were just a horrible dream. But then reality would come crashing through like a bull through a barn door and drive home the fact that he would never again see Tiger.
The Phantom continued its course along the coast of East Africa, around the horn of Africa and into the Gulf of Aden where the men were expected to keep a twenty-four hour vigil in case the ship was attacked by Somali pirates, who were notorious for attacking anything from small pleasure craft to military ships.
Early one morning while Toby was on duty Pete joined him on deck.
“Any sign of trouble?” asked Pete.
“No,” replied Toby. “Thank God.”
“I brought ya some coffee,” said Pete, passing Toby one of the mugs he was holding.
“Thanks,” said Toby. “What brings you up here so early in the morning? I’ve got another hour until I knock off.”
“Couldn’t sleep,” Pete replied.
Toby sipped his coffee and stared out over the ocean. A school of fish, some of them skimming across the surface of the water, swam by the ship, followed by a dark shape that sped past, scattering the fish and causing some of them to leap out of the water completely. Toby watched the action play out, sighed, and sipped his coffee
“How are ya feeling?” asked Pete. He sidled up to Toby and gave him a playful nudge with his elbow.
“All right, I guess. Bit tired.”
Pete nodded.
“Ya know if ya ever need to talk to someone, I’m here.”
Toby looked at him, not knowing whether to be puzzled or annoyed.
“Talk about what?” he asked with a tone of defensiveness he wished hadn’t been there.
“Anythin’,” said Pete shrugging his shoulders. “If somethin’s on ya mind.” He paused to take a small sip of coffee. “Or even if it isn’t. We all need someone sometimes.”
Toby felt the lines in his forehead deepen.
“I still don’t under…”
Pete turned so that he was facing Toby directly. He glanced down at his feet, took a deep breath, then looked Toby in the eye.
“I care about ya, Tobe. I realise ya still thinkin’ about Tiger…”
Toby opened his mouth to speak, but Pete silenced him with a hand gesture.
“I just wanna say that I know ya had the hots for Tiger. He was masculine, good-lookin’, and even though I’ve never thought of him in the way you did, I can understand the attraction. I’m not handsome like he is…”
All of a sudden Toby felt an immense connection to Pete. Pete was in the same position he had been in with Tiger. Pete was in love with him the way he had been in love with Tiger, and neither of them had seen any returns on their feelings. With this realisation came an understanding of how difficult this conversation must have been for Pete, to reveal himself so openly to someone he knew did not feel the same about him.
“You are handsome,” said Toby. “You’re also a kind man with a good heart. And you’re wrong. I do care for you. I’m just not…” He had to pause to allow himself time to choose the next words carefully lest they unintentionally wound their target. “…able to be in love with two men at the same time.”
Pete nodded solemnly. “I understand.”
Toby put his coffee mug on the edge of the ship and wrapped his arms around Pete’s waist. He rested his head on Pete’s shoulder and felt Pete’s chin press gently down on his shoulder.
With a sense of hesitation Pete asked, “Could we at least be friends?”
“I thought we already were,” replied Toby. “The best of friends.”
They hugged for a moment longer, then Pete took his chin off Toby’s shoulder and looked him in the eyes. Toby looked back and saw for the first time how much Pete’s eyes reminded him of Tiger’s, although Pete’s were a darker blue and ringed by dark, almost black, lashes. At the side there were tiny wrinkles that lent kindness to his face.
A small movement, the action of Pete’s tongue being drawn over slightly parted lips, distracted Toby for a moment and when he looked up again at Pete’s eyes, they were a little closer. The next thing he knew Pete’s lips were upon his. At first their kisses were soft, tender offerings but then they blossomed into something much more passionate, with their tongues engaging in a sensual tango.
Toby’s arms tightened around the solid, muscular bulk of Pete’s torso, and in a heartbeat, he felt Pete’s arms tighten around him. Pressed together with their hands roaming over each other’s backs, their kisses c
ontinued with a zeal that had Toby’s heart doing more beats per minute than a Hi NRG dance record. He felt himself growing hard, his cock thickening against the solid muscle of Pete’s thigh, and when he started grinding his hips against Pete, he could feel Pete was equally excited.
Toby cupped Pete’s head in his hands. The bristles of Pete’s new crew cut were rough beneath the pads of his palms. He felt Pete reaching down into his jeans, his hand only managing to fit halfway down before it had to come back up and undo the button. As their kiss continued, Toby felt his jeans sliding slowly down his legs. At first the morning air off the deep blue ocean was cold against his exposed flesh, but as Pete’s hand worked its magic upon his cock, the warmth he was generating spread.
As Pete began jerking Toby off, Toby reached down and started massaging Pete’s cock through the fabric of his pants. Pete moaned into Toby’s mouth as his hand started pulling a little faster on Toby’s cock. With his free hand, Toby reached around and rubbed his own arsehole with his fingers. While one hand kept a steady rhythm at the front of Pete’s trousers, the other hand poked and massaged the puckered skin between his rounded arse cheeks.
Before too long Toby realised his breaths were coming in short, sharp bursts.
“I going to cum,” he managed to say despite Pete’s tongue reaching down the back of his throat.
He pushed the tip of his finger past the band of muscle and slid the entire digit as far up inside his arsehole as it would go. The second his finger found the rock-hard base of his prostate gland, he felt his arse muscles clamp down around it and his cock deliver a large load of warm cum to the front of Pete’s trousers. Yet still Pete’s hand worked his shaft, sending shudders throughout his body. The action of Pete’s hand on the ultra sensitive skin of his cock-head was like pleasure and pain married to create a third sensation not yet awarded a name. It felt good but Toby wanted it to stop, and when it did, he looked down and saw the dark splatters and spots that decorated the fabric of Pete’s trousers.
“Sorry about that,” he said looking suitably guilty. “But it was your own fault.”
Pete laughed. “We’ll if truth be told it’s not all yours.”
Toby looked again and noticed there were dark cum marks coming from the other side of Pete’s pants too.
“I’m glad you enjoyed yourself,” he said with a broad grin.
“I sure did,” said Pete. “But I’d better go and get cleaned up before the others see the spoof marks on my pants.”
He turned to leave then stopped.
“And remember what we talked about. I meant every word.”
Toby nodded and pulled his jeans up. At that moment, something hit the side of the ship with a force that sent him crashing to the deck. He looked up and saw Pete too had been knocked off his feet.
“What the hell was that?” asked Pete.
Toby picked himself up and leaned over the side of the ship, just as an enormous tentacle with suckers the size of his head on its underside snaked its way into the air above him. His eyes were so wide it wouldn’t have surprised him if they fell out and rolled across the deck.
“Get down,” Pete shouted seconds before the oversized tentacle came crashing down onto the deck.
Toby rolled up against the side of the ship until he saw the tentacle rise into the air again.
“What the hell is it?”
“Octopus. Maybe a squid,” Pete replied. “Nah, definitely an octopus.”
“Do they get that big?” asked Toby as tentacles appeared over both sides of the boat.
“Not usually.”
“Shit, now there’s two of them.”
One of the tentacles came smashing down towards them, sending them scuttling into the hatch and nearly knocking Zeke off the steps.
“Holy shit. What’s the big hurry? What’s that noise?” growled Zeke as he leapt out of Pete’s way.
“Octopus,” said Toby. “Bloody big one too.”
Soon everyone was on deck, hovering by the hatch in readiness for a rapid retreat. Captain Bartlett had also been drawn from his cabin at the other end of the ship.
“What are we goin’ to do about it?” shouted Pete.
Captain Bartlett scratched his head.
“We’ll have to think of something or else we’ll lose The Phantom.”
Pete turned to those gathered. “Grab what ya can and do the best ya can. Axes, guns, even shovels and knives.”
“At least we don’t have to worry about pirates,” said Toby, hopeful that he might add some light-hearted humour to the moment.
Toby followed the men into the hold where all the weapons and tools were kept and found himself an axe. Without waiting for any further instructions, he returned to the deck and started swinging his weapon for all he was worth. He nearly spun himself over the side of the ship with his first blow, such was his eagerness and determination, but once he’d recovered, he swung again and managed to sever a good third of one of the tentacles from the body of the giant octopus.
There was no screeching, as he’d seen in science fiction movies, just a concerted effort by the enraged cephalopod for revenge.
Captain Bartlett had a machete in one hand and a pistol in the other. After firing six shots with little effect, he tossed the pistol aside and started hacking at the rubbery flesh with the machete instead. The rest of the crew swarmed over the deck, stabbing, hacking, and slashing at any part of the beast they came into contact with.
A loud shout called everyone’s attention to Bird, who had several metres of tentacle coiled around his body.
“Hang on,” shouted Lennie.
Bird vigorously attacked the octopus with his carving knife, shredding large areas of tentacle in a very short space of time and sending frayed lumps of octopus meat splattering onto the deck, but it seemed the octopus was just as determined.
Toby ran at the tentacle with his axe held high over his shoulder. When he arrived at the writhing appendage, he slammed the metal axe head down with all his might, managing in the process to slice his way halfway through the tentacle, and resulting in the octopus releasing its victim. Bird fell through the air, arms and legs flailing, until he came down on a very surprised Toby.
“Sorry about that,” said Bird, rubbing various parts of his body.
“Don’t mention it,” said Toby, who picked himself up and launched himself at the injured tentacle with fresh zeal.
An almighty crash rocked the boat, almost capsizing the vessel. One by one the men picked themselves up as the tentacles were suddenly and mysteriously withdrawn.
“What’s she up to now?” asked Zeke lumbering over to the side of the ship.
Toby ran to the nearest vantage point and stared down at an enormous dorsal fin cutting through the water towards the ship. As the creature it belonged to neared the ship, the fin disappeared beneath the surface of the water, though the gigantic shape of the shark passing beneath the vessel was no less terrifying.
Toby ran across the deck to watch as the last part of the immense fish swam off into the distance, surfacing after it had cleared the boat so its circling path beneath the deep blue waters could easily be observed.
A succession of large bubbles broke upon the surface of the sea as a lone tentacle appeared, feeling about for the ship. Unfortunately for the octopus, the minute it found the wood and canvas of The Phantom, the giant white pointer found the octopus. The shark’s jaws opened, jutted out, and then came down onto the base of one of the octopus’ tentacles, severing the entire thing. The octopus retaliated by ensnaring the shark in two of its tentacles. The shark managed to get a mouthful of its head. As the water churned and bubbled with foam and blood, the octopus released the shark, which promptly took another bite from the octopus’ head, leaving a gaping, bloody hole.
“Let’s get out of here,” said the Captain, leaping up the steps to the helm and taking hold of the wheel.
The ship had been brought to a standstill and it was slow to make its getaway. As the sails ca
ught the wind and the vessel began to move off, it received two more tentacle slaps before leaving the battling giants behind.
* * * *
“Have you ever seen anything like it?” said Bird as he collapsed onto the deck.
Toby sat down with him, his back against the shroud. “I was going to ask you the same thing.”
“No way. I’ve heard stories about giant squid and even seen a dead one washed up on a beach in New Zealand, but I’ve never heard of an octopus that big. Or a shark.”
“It’s given me something to think about,” Toby admitted. “It’s hard to believe there are things like that out there we’ve never even seen pictures of before.”
Pete sat down next to Toby with a weary sigh.
“There are more mysteries on this planet than there are answers,” he said being uncharacteristically philosophical. “Always expect to be surprised and ya’ll never be surprised.”
Toby looked at him quizzically.
“I don’t think that makes any sense,” he said.
Pete chuckled to himself. “Maybe not, but it sounds bloody good, doesn’t it?”
“I guess there’s a logic to it,” added Bird. “At least I understand what you’re trying to say.”
“I’m glad someone does,” joked Toby.
Bird got up and wiped the blade of his knife on his jeans.
“I’d better get back to the galley. I may not be the smartest guy in the world but I know breakfast isn’t going to cook itself.”
“Yeah, I’d forgotten about breakfast,” said Toby. “Must be almost lunchtime by now.”
Pete put his hand on Toby’s leg.
“Are ya all right?” he asked.
Toby nodded.
“Glad to hear it,” said Pete before leaning over to kiss Toby on the lips. “I enjoyed myself this morning.”
“I had a good time, too,” Toby replied.
Pete kissed him again, this time with a hint of the passion they had shared earlier. As he worked his tongue inside Toby’s mouth, Toby could feel his cock growing hard inside his jeans. He also felt Pete’s hand reach down and grip his erection.
The Phantom Page 6