Wordsmiths Fiction Week 1: The Disappeared Leader

The storm had been a beast, a churning, frothing monster that had tossed their small cargo ship like a toy. They'd been lucky to survive such a storm as their vessel kept getting battered and bruised, its radio dead, its navigation systems useless as the storm keeps them out of the grid. Luckily, they stumbled upon an island. The island they had stumbled upon was indeed a godsend, a green jewel in the vast blue ocean.

Captain Thorne, their leader, was a man of quiet strength, his weathered face a map of years spent battling the sea. He had kept them calm during the storm, his voice a steady beacon in the chaos. Then, the unthinkable happened, the next morning, he was gone. His small boat, usually tied securely to the ship's side, has also gone missing. What is going on? the crew was perplexed as doubt filled their faces.

Suddenly, a chill settled over the crew and they began searching, as they searched the island, their hearts kept sinking with each passing hour. The island was small, a tangled mass of trees and thick vegetation, but Thorne was nowhere to be found, just vanished with no words said.

image source; Pexels

The second in command, a gruff and like Thorne, a seasoned sailor and goes by the name MacAllister knew that they couldn't stay there forever, that they needed help. So he ordered the remaining boat to go searching for help, with the hopes of finding a passing ship or a nearby island where their radios could work to signal for help.

As days went by and by, the days stretched into weeks, at this point, the crew's hope of survival and help dwindled with Thorne's disappearance being a mystery to everyone of them, feeling abandoned by their caption, no one knew if he was taken away, dead or still alive as whispers of the unknown haunted their every waking moment on this strange island.

But then, one faithful evening, a flicker of movement in the dense foliage caught everyone's eyes. A figure, shrouded in shadows, emerged from the trees. It was Thorne, his face gaunt, his eyes filled with a strange intensity, and just like that, he was back, but he was different.

He spoke of a place, a hidden valley, a place where the trees whispered secrets and the air hummed with an ancient energy. He spoke of a creature, a being full of light and shadow, who had shown him the way. He also spoke of a knowledge, a power, that had flowed into him, transforming him.

He had spent his time in the valley all this while, learning from the creature, experiencing a world beyond their understanding, even as they went on searching for him. Suddenly, he had returned, he said, with a purpose, a mission to save them all. oHe spoke of a coming storm, a storm unlike any they had ever seen, a storm that threatened to swallow the entire world.

image source; Pexels

To the crew, his words were a mix of truth and madness, but then they were already exhausted and desperate for a saving, so they clung to his words. They knew Thorne was different, that he had been touched by something extraordinary, so they believed in him, in his ability to lead them through the incoming storm.

Thorne had returned, but he wasn't the same man who had left them. He was a vessel, a conduit for a power they couldn't comprehend, but then he was their hope, their salvation, and their fear. He had disappeared, but he had returned, changed, a beacon in the storm.

The island, once a refuge, now held a secret, a mystery that echoed in the rustling leaves and the whispers of the wind. The storm was coming, and with it, a new chapter in their lives. The captain had returned, but the man they knew was gone. He was a legend, a myth whispered in the wind, a story of survival and transformation, a testament to the power of the unknown.

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I want to take this opportunity to invite @starrchris, @ruthjoe and @ngoenyi.

Thank You for your Time

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NOTE: Always have a smile on your face, as you are never fully dressed without one.