Chapter 95. The Footprints on the Ship
An island.
A landmass that was several times larger than the Coral Archipelago appeared before Charles and his crew. A pensive mood shrouded the crew as the island took shape on the horizon. They were all acutely aware that the next leg of their journey held the greatest peril.
This island was different from the other islands that they had encountered. A formidable wall encased its edges, effectively concealing its interior and leaving everyone guessing about the mysteries it held within.
The walls were pale white and seemingly appeared to be made of cement. Their blank surface was devoid of any distinguishing markings or symbols. It remained uncertain if the walls were constructed by humans.
"Captain! Look, there's a ship there!" shouted one of the crew members.
"I know, I see it too," Charles responded curtly.
The brilliant searchlight cast its glow ahead, revealing a steamship significantly larger than the Narwhale. The distinguishable white triangle emblem on its hull denoted its owner. Unmistakably, it was the ship of the Divine Light Order that had failed to return.
"Ready your weapons. Steer closer to the ship," Charles instructed. He hoped there would be clues on board for them to avoid the same fate as the disappeared crew.
As the Narwhale grew closer to the ship, more details were presented before Charles. The ship's anchor hadn't been hoisted; that indicated the crew had willingly anchored the ship here.
Everything was arranged orderly on the deck, suggesting that the Divine Light followers hadn't engaged in any sort of physical conflict on board.
However, the moment Charles stepped on the deck, he realized that a layer of dust had settled in. Judging from the thickness, he estimated that the ship had been abandoned here for close to two months.
The steamship showed signs of wear from the sea breeze and neglect due to the absence of a crew to maintain it.
"Let's head to the captain's quarters first," Charles suggested. He believed that the captain's voyage diary would offer the fastest insight into the events that had transpired.
The group proceeded with caution and opened the door to the ship's interior. Inside, the layout mirrored that of the Narwhale: a slender hallway flanked by doors on both sides.
Just when Dipp was about to take the lead, a metallic hand extended and halted the young man in his path.
"Captain, what's the...?"
Charles slowly crouched down and lowered his volume. "Shhh, look at the floor."
Everyone's gazes lowered and fell upon the clear trail of six-toed footprints in the dust. Someone—or something—had been here.
Charles and his team carefully followed the footprints as they delved further into the ship.
At every door they encountered, they softly nudged it open, scanning the room with both their flashlights and the barrels of their guns. Yet, the ship remained eerily quiet. All they found were ordinary items with no hint of life in sight.
Finally, the last door appeared before the group. Charles' ears twitched; his keen hearing had picked up on some faint sounds from within the room.
"Be careful, there's something inside," Charles whispered.
Conor nervously gulped down a hard lump in their throat. With trembling hands, he took out a blue candle from his bag.
The door was abruptly pushed open with a loud bang as seven or eight gun barrels immediately pointed into the room. However, the gun wielders were immediately disappointed by the sight.
They found themselves in the ship's galley, where the noise originated from a handful of rats munching on stale biscuits. Alarmed by the abrupt intrusion, the skittish creatures abandoned their treats and scattered away into the darkness.
The kitchen looked like the rest of the ship. Apart from the decayed food chewed apart by rodents, there were no apparent anomalies.
The crew quickly dispersed, combing through different parts of the ship for clues. Meanwhile, Charles was lost in thought as he rested his chin on his prosthetic hand.
How can there be no one? If there's no one here, where did those footprints come from?
Just as he walked past a silver kettle, the reflection on its shiny surface caught Charles's attention. His pupils constricted in alarm, and he looked up.
A grotesque, purple creature that resembled a massive toad hung upside down on the ceiling. Realizing that Charles had spotted it, it pushed off of the ceiling with its strong hind legs and pounced at Charles with its mouth full of razor-sharp teeth agape.
At this pivotal moment, Charles lifted his left arm.
Swoosh!
The grappling hook shot out and pinned the creature back to the ceiling. With a swift, powerful yank from Charles, the creature crashed to the ground. The crew members finally reacted and opened fire at the monster. When the gunfire ceased, the creature had become an unrecognizable mess.
Charles half-squatted and inspected the remains before concluding, "It seems like the creature is from the sea. It probably climbed on board recently in search of food."
Dipp heaved a sigh of relief. "I was worried that it would be something else. So, it was this creature that left those footprints?"
Charles' gaze shifted to the creature's webbed limbs, and he shook his head. "No, it couldn't have made those prints. Something else left those footprints."
At Charles' words, a palpable tension once again settled among the crew members.
"Let's continue our search somewhere else," Charles continued.
Very soon, Charles and his crew had done a thorough search of the ship but found no clues. Even the captain's expedition diary was nowhere to be seen.
"Maybe those from the Divine Light Order don't even keep a diary? I mean, which normal person would write a diary?" Richard voiced out in Charles' head.
Charles ignored the voice in his head and continued pondering. There was a nagging feeling that they had overlooked something important, but he couldn't really pinpoint it.
Just as one of Lily's mice scampered past him, a sudden idea bloomed in his head.
"Lily, can you gather the rats on the ship and ask them what happened?"
"Sure thing! Wait a moment," Lily answered.
The white mouse then let out a high-pitched squeak, and the black and brown mice scurried away in all directions. Shortly after, a trembling gray rat was nudged forward by the horde. A series of squeaks alternated between Lily and the gray rat.
"Mr. Charles, it said that every so often, something would board the ship to take something and then return to the island."
"What entity? Is it a human? A creature?" Charles asked.
Lily turned to exchange a few more hurried squeaks with the gray rat. With a tinge of annoyance in her voice, she then reported, "This rat is so dense. It can't explain properly."
Charles didn't want to place too much expectation on a mere rodent. However, from its words, he could deduce that there was some living entity on the island, and those entities periodically ventured on board to retrieve items.
Thinking of the towering walls, a fleeting thought sparked in Charles' mind: Could the beings that the rat had witnessed be the Sottom pirates?
However, he immediately dismissed the notion. If the unknown entities were the pirates, they wouldn't have left an exquisite ship like this untouched. It didn't match their modus operandi.
As he exited from his thoughts, Charles realized that everyone's gaze was on him.
"Captain, what's our next step?" a crew member asked.
Charles gazed at the imposing walls on the island and instructed, "Drop the anchor, ready the dinghies. We're heading ashore."
No matter what, they had to explore the island. There had to be something concealed behind those towering walls.
Standing at the base of the towering walls, an oppressive aura weighed heavily upon the crew. They felt as if they were approaching a slumbering titan. Their voices became hushed whispers as they instinctively feared that any slight noise might rouse whatever dwelled beyond.
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