G. Fields - Under Vanishing Skies

“You must all keep absolutely quiet,” Michio said to the boys. “We are here to take you home. So do as I say.”

The boys looked like they were in pretty bad shape. Michio’s kid had only been held captive for a couple weeks and even he looked bad. The other boys looked like they had been there a lot longer. What clothes they wore were ripped and full of holes. Two of them were shirtless. Their skin was pulled taut over their rib cages. I flinched when I saw the scars that covered their bodies like some kind of sick roadmap.

I hoped that none of these boys was too far gone. I didn’t know what I’d do if they started to call to the pirates for help. But they stayed quiet and seemed to understand Michio’s directions.

Michio looked at me. “I will take them to Yoshirou. You two continue in this direction.” He pointed along the coastline. “I will meet you at the rendezvous point.”

Kamish and I both nodded.

“Don’t worry, Aron,” Michio said. “We will find Shannon.”

I nodded. But after what I saw back by the bonfire, I wan’t sure that I could handle finding Shannon in this condition.

Kamish and I zigzagged back and forth along the coastline. We slowly worked our way towards the rally point. Another patrol walked down the beach. We took cover behind some rocks. Kamish kept his eyes glued on the patrol. I kept my eyes glued to Kamish. The last thing I needed now was him taking off on another pirate killing spree.

There were two of them, a man and a woman. They stopped about twenty-five yards from our position. The man looked towards the tree line and waived. Then they continued down the beach.

When they were out of sight, I looked up ahead and could make out some light. It was the main pier. A half dozen pirates wandered in and out of the circles of light created by the torches that lined the pier. The red smoldering glow of their cigarettes gave away their positions.

Kamish put his hand on my shoulder and I turned to look. He had his finger up to his lips and he nodded in the direction of the tree line. He must have seen something else.

He motioned for me to stay where I was. I nodded. He turned and went back in the direction we had come from. I waited. At least ten minutes passed. I didn’t see or hear anything. The waves crashed on the shore and the jungle canopy swayed wildly with the wind. I was getting worried. Kamish was taking a long time.

I heard something up ahead. It was the sound of branches breaking. I crouched down, but kept my eyes focused on the tree line. My heart began to race. I pulled the knife from my belt and almost dropped it.

Then, just as quickly as the noise began, it stopped. My heart beat faster. I felt like I had to do something. I took off towards the trees. The knife felt light in my hand. Just as I was about to enter the brush, Kamish stepped out. I almost stabbed him.

We both crouched down in the bushes.

"Where’d you go."

"I saw a sniper,” he whispered. “But he is no longer a problem.”

I noticed fresh bloodstains on his shirt. One of the stains appeared to be growing bigger.

“Are you okay?”

“I am fine.” He nodded towards the jungle. “I heard a woman cry out over there.”

He took off. I followed. We worked our way through the thick mash of branches. Kamish stopped at the edge of another clearing. I came up beside him and saw a single hut with a light coming from a window. We waited. I strained to hear whatever it was that Kamish had heard, but I didn’t hear anything.

“Are you sure—” The subdued cries of a woman cut me off. It sounded like Shannon, but I didn’t trust my own ears. My nerves were shot.

Two pirates walked around from the back and stood on the front deck. They smiled and joked with one another.

I heard it again. This time, it sounded like she was in pain. The guards chuckled. My anger boiled inside of me. I had to help her.

Kamish must have sensed that I was about to charge, because he placed his big hand on my shoulder and held me firmly in place. I glared at him, but he shook his head and then calmly motioned towards the hut. It only took me a second to understand what he wanted me to do. I pulled out Senil’s knife and nodded.

Kamish moved to the right and I took off towards the left. We each circled around to opposite sides of the hut. I listened to the pirates talking. The talking stopped. I heard a scuffle. Kamish must have struck. I ran around the corner.

Kamish knelt next to a dead pirate. The other pirate brought his rifle up. He aimed it at Kamish who smiled and nodded. The pirate turned. I lunged and thrust my knife up into in his gut. He started to step back, but I reached around with my free arm and pulled him in close. Eyes wide, he tried to speak. I twisted the knife and lifted the blade. I felt a gush of warm liquid soak through my t-shirt and run down my legs. His eyes rolled up into his head. Then I felt his full weight. I let go of him and pulled the knife out. His body slumped on to the deck.

Kamish got up and motioned toward the door.

I nodded.

A scream from inside the hut triggered something in me, something that I’d been trying to keep in check. It was a dark and mindless hatred. I went to the window and looked inside. It was Shannon. She was pinned on the bed under a naked, dark skinned man. He bucked her like a wild beast. Her head moved from side to side and she cried out over and over again.

The man had a tattoo on his back. It was a circle inscribed with a crescent moon and a single star. He flung his head back in a primal display of ecstasy. I saw the scar on his cheek. It was Jamal and he was raping Shannon!

Everything moved in slow motion. I felt like I was watching the horrific scene unfold from a distance.

I don’t remember barging through the door, but I remembered burying my knife into Jamal’s back. I don’t remember skinning the tattoo from him, but I remembered the look on Kamish’s face as I held the bloody swath of skin in my hand. He looked proud, like a father who had just witnessed his son take down his first deer.

Suddenly I was back in my body. I looked at Shannon. She was trapped under the bloody corpse. She screamed and cried out as she fought to get out from under him.

I dropped the skin on the floor and ran to her side. I flipped Jamal off of her. His body fell to floor with a loud thud.

“Shannon, it’s okay,” I said. “I’m here. I’m going to get you out.”

Eyes wide and panting, she looked back and forth from me to Kamish. She kept repeating, “No! No! No!” I tried to hold her, but she whimpered and pushed herself back until she sat up against the backboard. Her knees were up against her chest and she cradled herself with her arms. “No! No! No!”

I knelt down on the floor next to her. I placed my hands on her shoulders. She pulled away and buried her head in between her arms. Then she let out a primal groan.

“Shannon, it’s me, Aron. Look at me.”

She looked up. I saw recognition in her eyes.

“What are you… how did you find…?” Her mouth quivered as she spoke.

“I’ll explain everything, but right now we need to go.”

She looked at Jamal and began to cry. Her tears washed lines through the blood that was smeared on her face. She looked at me and nodded. I grabbed a sheet from the floor and draped it around her.

Kamish said, “Come on.”

I looked over and nodded. Kamish went out first. He waived us on and we followed. I kept one arm around Shannon’s shoulders as we worked our way back to the shore. On the far side of the pier, I saw a row of huts along a boardwalk that stretched out over the water. It was the rendezvous point. Michio would be waiting for us underneath the boardwalk.