A Pirate in Time (Completed)

38

"Land ho!" A shout drifted down from the Crow's Nest. My eyes slid up to the top of the mast to see a man pointing just off the starboard bow. I followed his line of sight out to a faint strip of land on the horizon.

I looked to Jay, who had set down his cleaning supplies and was now clutching onto the banister as he peered out towards the island. I decided to join him.

"I was right," he said in a distant voice. "It was here all along."

"How can you tell?" I asked as I looked back out at it. I wasn't sure how anybody could know there was a small medallion on an island from this far away.

His gaze slid to me, "Can't you feel it? It's pulsing through the air, screaming through the water. It's calling to us. It's calling to us like a beacon in the dark."

That was strangely poetic, in a way, but I decided not to mention that. Instead, I closed my eyes and tried to feel all the things Jay said he was feeling.

And in truth, I could feel it. Something was different about this island. Something was off. It felt... dangerous.

As I reached out for those invisible signs with my mind, I started to hear a faint ringing in my ears. It reminded me of the time Jacob Cox had blown an air horn in my face at one of Emily's parties, except it was a quieter, less annoying ringing.

"I can hear it," I said as I reopened my eyes. Jay was still staring out at the island with his brow furrowed in concentration.

As we got closer, I noticed that the ringing got louder. Perhaps it truly was the medallion calling out to us. To me.

"It's..." Jay trailed off as he closed his eyes and clutched the railing tighter. "It's not on the island."

"What?" I asked as I looked out at it again.

"It's in the water."

I looked down at the choppy blue waves. The water seemed almost darker than normal, but that could've just been my imagination.

"I'll look for it," I volunteered after a few moments.

"No," Jay said as he looked down at the water. "You don't have to."

I looked at him with slightly narrowed eyes, "Are you telling me you can somehow, miraculously breath under water?"

"What? No."

"Then it seems as though I'm one of your only options to find it."

"It... It could be dangerous."

"Yes, it could be. It also could not be."

"Elizabeth," he warned.

"I can do it," I told him. Then I looked up to Uncle Paul, who was at the helm.

"Captain!" Jay beat me to it. Uncle Paul looked down at us expectantly, "Just here will be fine! There is no need to step foot on the island!"

Uncle Paul nodded and began shouting orders to his crew. It took an army to get one of these vessels to stop moving. Dropping the anchor, hoisting the sails, and about ten million other things needed to be done. I looked back at Jay as the crew began to run around like headless chickens.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" he asked me.

"I'll be fine," I assured him.

He looked at me for a few moments, and then, without much warning, he reached forward and pulled me into his chest. I hugged him back.

"Be careful," he said into my hair before he pulled back to look at me again.

"Don't worry about me," I smiled at him. Then I asked, "Any idea where it is?"