Into the Storm

by Samuel P. Fortsch

  “To you, perhaps. For us island animals, it’s just home,” says M.

  “Negative! We’re on official Navy business,” says Jag.

  “You brought us gifts, we must repay you. It’s island code,” says M.

  “You wouldn’t want to violate island law, now would you, Jag?” says Jet.

  Jag glares at Jet for a moment and then gives in. “Well, if it’s island code, then no.”

  “Let’s get some chow and rest up. What else have we got to do?” I ask.

  I look to my fellow Pawtriots—Lindy, Brick, Franny, Smithers, and Penny—they all look exhausted from the mission down in Texas. And to be honest, so am I. This detour to the Oasis just might be the R&R we all deserve.

  CHAPTER 3

  BLOOD RED MOON RISING

  Location: The Oasis

  Date: 16MAR21

  Time: 2000 hours

  We made it through the thick jungle and entered what the locals call the Oasis: a secret and secluded place where they can live protected by a fortress of trees. There’s a blood red moon high in the sky that illuminates the entire area with a soft red glow. We were happily greeted by some of the local animals that were having a feast. They invited us to sit down, relax, and enjoy their food, their fire, and their company.

  I can’t help but smile in between mouthfuls of food. Nothing makes me happier than seeing my unit happy.

  “Do you guys always feast like this?” I ask M.

  “Only on special occasions,” says M.

  “And what makesss thisss day ssso ssspecial?” Smithers asks in between bites.

  “It’s a long story,” says M.

  “Well,” Penny begins, “we’ve got plenty of time.”

  M lets out a soft whistle and motions for everyone to come closer. Then we all watch as the other local animals—young and old—gather around the fire, as if called to a ritual, forming a half circle around M.

  M sits motionless on a large rock he uses as a makeshift stage. He takes a deep breath and begins.

  “This is a dark and twisted tale from a time long ago—a time when pirates commanded the seas. It’s a tale of a cursed crew, a cursed sword, and a cursed ship,” M begins. He brings his face closer to the fire. “This is the story of the Thrice-Cursed Pirate . . . ,” he says as the flames light up his face, “. . . Sea Wolf!” M finishes.

  The mere mention of Sea Wolf’s name sends shudders down the spines of the young and the old animals. I watch as the young ones embrace each other more tightly. They’ve clearly all heard this story, year after year, but M is still able to instill fear among his locals.

  “Oi! The ole triple curse—love it!” laughs Brick.

  M continues, “Sea Wolf was an Irish wolfhound whose long gray fur was as weathered as his leather pirate hat. He was a brave and honorable dog with his sword always at his side. He sailed these very seas on the Calico Jack, a fast ship famous for its black sails and the big red skull that stretched across the main sail.”

  I look over to Brick, who isn’t laughing anymore but is instead holding Penny closely. They both look scared. But I’m not. I’ve heard stories like this. Soldiers used to tell them all the time in the Army to scare the young privates. I know Sea Wolf is as real as the Loch Ness Monster or Bigfoot.

  “Life at sea was dangerous and not for the faint of heart,” M continues. “His crew was the Cutthroats, and they were perfect for the job: a band of six ferocious feline pirates stealing from the rich and giving to the poor. Sea Wolf was a modern-day Robin Hood. Above all, it was freedom that Sea Wolf and his crew wanted. Freedom to sail the open seas. And freedom for his fellow animals.”

  Out of habit, I do a quick head count to make sure all the Pawtriots are accounted for: Penny, Brick, Lindy, Franny, Smithers, Jet, and Jag. Everyone is here, listening to every word M is saying.

  “But as the years passed, the life of a pirate became harder. And as the world was rapidly changing, so did Sea Wolf. Riches and treasures ran dry. Law and order replaced lawlessness. Soon, Sea Wolf claimed to have no choice but to steal from innocent island animals—the very poor ones he once swore to protect. His ruthlessness began to know no bounds. In time, the Calico Jack became a sight to be feared. Sea Wolf and his crew sailed from island to island taking whatever they wanted. Cutting down anyone who got in their way,” says M, making a slashing motion with an imaginary sword that sends the animals in the front row lurching backward.

  M places his paw over his heart and continues: “This devastated his first mate. He could not bear to see Sea Wolf this way. He begged Sea Wolf to stop, but Sea Wolf would not listen. Greed had corrupted Sea Wolf’s soul and all traces of love had left his heart. And on a night just like this . . . ,” says M, pointing to the sky behind us.

  We all turn to look up into the sky at the blood red moon that looms overhead.

  “. . . Sea Wolf sailed the Calico Jack to this very island and looted everything in sight,” M continues. “He spared no one. The Cutthroats destroyed the island and left the locals with nothing. This was the last straw for Sea Wolf’s first mate.”

  “So what did the first mate do?” Brick asks, nervously.

  “Well, my bulldog friend, in the dead of night as Sea Wolf slept, the first mate stole Sea Wolf’s sword and snuck it off the Calico Jack.”

  “Why would he do that?” asks Lindy.

  “Because this island was not only famous for its hospitality but its curses as well. And in order to set a curse, you need an object. But not just any object! It needs to be something of great importance to the animal that is to be cursed. So the first mate found the leader of the Oasis and did the only thing he felt he could.”

  “What’sss that?” Smithers asks.

  “Good question, my serpentine friend. He handed over Sea Wolf’s sword to the Oasis elder, who placed a curse on it, the Cutthroats, and the Calico Jack. Then, the Oasis elder took the sword down to the Crystal Caves, so it could never be recovered,” M says.

  “Crystal Caves?” I say with more than a hint of skepticism.

  “That’s right, Sergeant. Deep below the very earth we are standing on exists a labyrinth of crystal caves—a blue lagoon of treachery, if you will. And protecting the caves is a terrible tentacled beast—a gigantic and ferocious squid that will devour anyone foolish enough to enter. We call it the Kraken!” says M.

  “Sounds lovely,” says Franny, jokingly.

  “If by lovely you mean the sound bones make as they are crushed to dust, then yes. Quite lovely, indeed,” says M.

  “What about Sssea Wolf?” asks Smithers.

  M points out into the dark sky. We all turn to follow his paw. In the distance, deep in the jungle, there is a tall building with a flame burning just beneath a large bell with a crack running from top to bottom.

  Then I hear a rustling going on behind me.

  “What was that?” I whisper to Penny.

  “What?” she says.

  “That rustling. There’s someone—or something —in the trees.” I say.

  “Rico, quit it! You’re scaring me,” Penny says and playfully nudges me. “Pay attention to the story.”

  “I’m not kidding around,” I say, but I can tell Penny doesn’t believe me.

  I turn my attention back to M but can’t get my mind off the rustling. I swear I heard something.

  “Without his sword, the locals swarmed Sea Wolf, tied him up, and brought him to the top of the bell tower. Sea Wolf begged his first mate to let him go. But it was too late. His sword, his crew, his ship, and, of course, Sea Wolf himself were cursed. His very soul was trapped inside the eternal flame,” says M.

  “Eternal flame? Like it can’t be put out?” asks Penny.

  “Not quite. The flame is tied to Sea Wolf and Sea Wolf to the flame. If the bell were ever to be rung, then Sea Wolf would have until sunset... to rai
se his crew, his ship, and retrieve his sword before the flame dies out and Sea Wolf with it,” says M.

  “And what of his first mate?” asks Franny.

  “Ah!” M hollers out and steps down from his rock. He approaches Franny and kneels down to speak closely to her.

  “That is the saddest part of this tale. For his first mate did not know that cursing the crew meant cursing himself as well. He was cursed to live forever on this island. Sworn to protect the church bell from ever being rung,” M says.

  “Oi! Anyone ever seen this first mate?” asks Brick.

  “Maybe he’s here now listening to this very story,” says M. I look over to Brick, who is nervously looking around.

  A silence falls over the group.

  “Or maybe he’s right behind you!” Lindy hollers out, spooking Brick and Penny and some of the other younger animals. I let out a howl of laughter.

  M finishes his story, “They say Sea Wolf’s first mate spends his every undying day in the jungle around the abandoned church, keeping watch, ensuring the bell won’t be rung. Because like I always say, ‘some rules—or curses—are meant to be broken.’”

  All the animals around the fire watch M as he gets back up on his rock. I watch as he grabs two paw-fulls of sand. He stands tall and motions past the tree line into the distance to the flame-lit bell: “For if that bell is rung on the first blood red moon of the year then Sea Wolf will rise!”

  M throws sand onto the fire, extinguishing it, sending out plumes of smoke.

  Penny and Franny grab me with fear.

  “It’s just make believe,” I whisper to Penny.

  And then I hear the rustling again. I take a quick scan of the group, but with no fire to light everyone up, I’m having trouble taking a head count. I see Brick, Lindy, Penny, Franny, Smithers, Jag . . .

  “Where is Jet?!” I call out to the group.

  We all look around through the smoky, dark night sky for Jet.

  “If I know my sister as well as I think I do, she’s headed for that church,” Jag says.

  “Oh come on. You don’t think she actually believes that story, do you?” I say back to him.

  Before he can answer, a loud ringing rips across the air.

  “Was that . . . ?” Penny begins to ask nervously.

  “The bell,” M says.

  CHAPTER 4

  THE THRICE-CURSED PIRATE

  Location: The Oasis

  Date: 16MAR21

  Time: 2245 hours

  The echo of the bell carries on through the jungle. I look up into the trees and watch as hundreds of birds flee from the church. Behind them is the blood red moon illuminating the night sky.

  M stares deeply into the jungle and is motionless, as if petrified by the ringing of the bell.

  I nudge him to break his gaze. “M! Snap out of it! What’s going on?” I ask.

  “Sea Wolf . . . ,” he begins, “. . . has risen.”

  “Come on, M. That was all just a make-believe story, right?” I say.

  “I’m afraid not,” says M. “That bell has set Sea Wolf’s plan in motion.”

  “Wait, what plan?” I ask.

  But before M can respond, Jag starts sprinting into the jungle toward the abandoned church.

  Thick fog spreads through the Oasis. I can barely see anything.

  “Pawtriots, into the jungle!” I howl.

  “Which way?” asks Lindy.

  “Follow me,” says M, sprinting forward.

  We all follow M across the beach, through the fog, and into the jungle. Heading into the unknown with reckless abandon.

  This is the last thing any unit should be doing.

  * * *

  ★ ★ ★

  Location: Base of Abandoned Church

  Time: 2345 hours

  We move as fast as we can through the lush, overgrown terrain. I jump over fallen branches, making sure to avoid w snare of twisted vines. The last thing I need right now is for my wheel to trip me up.

  “Make haste! The church is just through here,” shouts M, pointing to an opening in the thicket.

  As we burst out of the thicket into a cut in the jungle, I look up and can see the abandoned church.

  I quickly scan the low ground and see rubble, stones, and tall overgrown trees that surround the bell tower, but I can’t locate Jet.

  “Rico! Up there,” Franny shouts, pointing to the bell tower.

  “Is . . . is that . . . ,” Penny says, her jaw wide open and her eyes big and round.

  “Sea Wolf,” M says.

  “It can’t be,” I say, in complete disbelief.

  “Oh but it can,” M says.

  “We need to find a way up to the bell tower to save Jet,” I call out.

  “There’s only one way, Rico. Follow me,” says M.

  As I start to head for the church I turn and shout “Lindy, Jag, on me!”

  * * *

  ★ ★ ★

  When we make it to the top of the church tower by climbing a vine, I rise to my paws to get my bearings.

  “This way,” M says. “The bell is up these stairs on the upper landing.”

  Lindy, Jag, and I follow M up the stairs to the next landing. As if waiting for us, there is Sea Wolf.

  “Easy, easy. Just let her go!” I howl.

  He must be twice my size. I scan him up and down. His eyes are bloodshot and the moon paints his gray fur with an ominous glow.

  “Poor choice of words!” Sea Wolf calls out. I watch helplessly as he releases his grip on Jet’s neck.

  I race to the edge of the bell tower: “Jet!”

  But it’s too late. All I can do is watch as she crashes into a cluster of tall trees below, helplessly clawing at the branches in a desperate effort to slow her fall. She hits the ground hard, and I watch as the Pawtriots race over to help her up.

  I spin back around to face Sea Wolf.

  “We’ve got you cornered!” I growl.

  “You won’t stop me this time, M. You treacherous bilge rat!” says Sea Wolf.

  We slowly circle Sea Wolf, waiting for the opportune moment to pounce.

  “Let’s take him down!” says Jag.

  We inch closer and closer to Sea Wolf. He’s big, but we have him outnumbered and he knows it.

  “We’ll have to settle this later. Destiny awaits!” howls Sea Wolf as he grabs some vine hanging over the side of the tower and quickly slides down, vanishing into the fog.

  CHAPTER 5

  HIS CREW

  Location: Base of Abandoned Church

  Date: 17MAR21

  Time: 0030 hours

  M, Jag, Lindy, and I carefully slide down the vine, one at a time, and race over to Jet and the rest of the Pawtriots.

  “Why is it so hard for you to follow orders like everyone else?” asks Jag.

  “I’m sorry,” Jet says. “But if you tell me not to push a button or to ring a bell, well, then I want to push the button or ring the bell. I couldn’t help myself.”

  “Curiosity killed the cat,” M says with a menacing smile.

  I don’t like the look of M’s smile, and I’m not sure if I can trust him. I turn to Lindy and whisper, “Do you trust this cat?”

  “I don’t trust anyone on this cursed island,” he whispers back. “The only ones I trust here are you and the Pawtriots.”

  I turn my attention back to M.

  “So, M,” I begin, “now that Sea Wolf’s supposed plan is in motion, what do we do?”

  “We must act fast. There’s no time to dwell. Sea Wolf will head for Black Rock,” M says.

  “And what’s Black Rock?” Penny asks.

  “The highest peak on the island. He’s going to raise his crew from the dead!”

  “But how?” I ask.

  “
Sea Wolf’s strength grows with each passing minute that his lungs draw breath. He has power that we can never understand. He will raise the Cutthroats at Black Rock and then the Calico Jack from the water below. If we can’t stop him before sunset, he’ll be unstoppable! They will travel from island to island across the Atlantic destroying everything and anyone who tries to stand in their way. Three centuries of pent-up fury is about to be unleashed. We must act fast!” M hollers. “Follow me!”

  I turn back to the Pawtriots and motion for them to hold as M races deep into the jungle.

  “This isn’t our fight,” I tell the group.

  “You can sssay that again,” says Smithers.

  “And this definitely isn’t Navy business,” Jag says. “I want nothing to do with this. I’ll meet you all at the USS George Washington at 1900 hours.” I watch as he begins to walk away from us.

  “Jet, come on. Let’s move out,” he says.

  But she hesitates. I can tell she is torn.

  “No, I’m staying here. I started this mess and I’ll finish it, too” Jet says.

  “Negative. Our ship is going to leave with or without us. Now let’s go,” says Jag.

  “I can’t. I’m sorry,” says Jet as she hugs her brother.

  “Suit yourself, sis, but the ship will leave with or without you,” Jag says. We all watch as he walks farther away.

  Then Penny turns to me and gives me the “tilt.”

  “Rico, we have to help M. He took us in and gave us food. We were just strangers and he opened his home to us. I’m a good judge of character. Do you trust me?” Penny asks.

  “Oi! She’s right. Sharing food goes a long way in my book,” Brick says.

  I look around at all the Pawtriots and they all look back at me, staring intently, waiting for me to step in and decide. I have my doubts about M and that’s making me feel indecisive. But that’s a part of the decision-making process all leaders face. And then I think about Morgan and Sawyer and the rest of the Pawtriots back home at the TOC. We really got ourselves into a mess here. But sometimes the easy way out isn’t always the right path to follow.