Slave Of Destiny

by Derek Easterbrook

  “Come about, Dayang” stressed Vijendra.

  “Can’t Cap’ain, we’re stuck fast” he retaliated.

  Michael managed to stand up and crawl up to the deck.

  “I think we’re holed, Captain” he shouted over the noise.

  “What did you say, lad?” Vijendra asked, beginning to stress.

  “Water is coming through the hull, I think we’re holed” Michael shouted.

  “How bad is it?” he shouted.

  “It’s too dark to make out clearly, but there’s definitely some water coming through the hull” Michael replied.

  “Go back down and see how bad the leak is and see if you can slow it down” Vijendra ordered. “I have to stay up here.”

  Michael slid his way back down to the depths of hell and groped around for a hurricane lamp. He struggled to light the lamp, but once he had struck a flame to the wick the weak light illuminated the havoc. Constance and Sally were lying crumpled against the lockers, blood pouring from head wounds.

  “Uhhh…” Connie groaned as she moved slightly, before she slumped again.

  “Connie…Connie” Michael shouted as he crawled over to her.

  He pushed away the pots, pans plates and anything else in his way. Her blood was sticky on my hands as he tried to straighten out her body and make her comfortable. As Michael checked to see if she was breathing, the hull shuddered violently as another wave slammed into the schooner’s side. He couldn’t tell if she was breathing so Michael attempted mouth to mouth resuscitation. He couldn’t remember what to do, but her lips were warm and he felt the faintest of breath on his cheek.

  “She must be alive!” he thought; his hands shaking were shaking with worry.

  Michael left her and crawled over to Sally. Her limp head was flopping from side to side with every wave explosion and he began to panic.

  “Is she dead?” he thought; falling over as another wave hit.

  “No No No, she can’t be dead.” he screamed at the top of his lungs.

  The bilge began filling with water and he cried out. “They’re going to drown!”

  Suddenly there were arms and hands around him, pushing him aside. Connie and Sally were carried up to the top deck by several crew members, so Michael crawled up after them.

  “Mabye” shouted Manshur happily.

  “What did he say?” Michael asked Dayang.

  “He said, they live” he replied.

  “Where’s Vijendra?” he asked the group.

  “Alane keni” Shafwan replied.

  “What did he say, Dayang?” Michael asked again.

  “He said he’s gone. The boom crashed down and knocked him overboard, so George went over to try and rescue him” Dayang replied sadly.

  The schooner was resting against a rocky reef, just off an island. The seas had begun to calm down again, but the heavens had opened up and the rain was teeming down, heavier than before.

  “We’re sinking, but the water is shallow. We will not submerge this time, but the Mabuhay could slip into deeper water at any time. We must take what we can now and go ashore. If the schooner stays in place we can come back for more provisions. You must take the women ashore while we collect what we need and follow you. You have to go now” he urged Michael.

  The two women were placed on the floor in one of the small dinghies, so Michael climbed in hesitantly.

  “You need to go now” he urged Michael as he cast off the line and pushed him away from the schooner. “Go.”

  The beach appeared to be about nine hundred yards away and the sea was still too rough for such a small craft, but Michael had to give it his best shot.

  Where in the hell are we? He wondered as he rowed. The last time Michael heard the captain talking to George, they were talking about the Thousand Islands and Sunda Strait. I wonder if that’s where we’re shipwrecked. Michael finally made it to the beach, but the surf was rolling in. He clambered out and dragged the dingy further up the sand as each wave broke.

  As Michael strained his eyes and watched the drama playing out on the schooner, he realized it was beginning to get dark.

  “I couldn’t find him” an exhausted voice sounded to his left.

  Michael turned around to see George standing there clutching his left arm.

  “I searched and searched, but I couldn’t find Vijendra” he said sadly, almost crying. “How are the others?”

  “Connie and Sally are unconscious, but I think the rest of the crew is still on the Mabuhay” Michael mentioned, remembering he should check on the women. “How are you?”

  “I think my arm is broken. I…I couldn’t keep looking” he said, sitting heavily on the sand.

  “It’s getting dark and we need to look for some shelter. We probably could use the upturned dingy as a roof” Michael mumbled, not really knowing if they could. “I need to keep my eye on the two women.”

  “I’ll take a look around now” George said as he walked away.

  The island we were stranded on didn’t look very big, but the survivors needed to make the most of what they had. The wind started picking up again, so Michael assumed it would start to rain again. He looked up again and he could just make out two dark shapes, about thirty yards out in the bay and coming towards him. The tide was ebbing now and his little dingy was high and dry, but the roar of the angry sea continued on, relentlessly.

  “How’s the hull?” Michael asked Dayang when the longboat hit the sand.

  “Not good” he replied grimly, scanning the miserable faces around him. “The Mabuhay’s hull had been built for speed, not strength.”

  “There is some shelter amongst the trees” suggested George as he approached them. “We can lay the upturned dinghies over a log and cover them with palm branches. There is another storm approaching us, so we need to hurry and keep the women as dry as we can.”

  The camp was made as quickly as they could and the two women were placed under one of the dinghies, but the rain began while the men were collecting the palm fronds. At least the women would remain reasonably dry for now.

  Chapter 16

  The dawn came up and poked its golden head over the small hill, displaying pink and light-grey clouds, heralding the end of the storm. The sea was still an angry colour of dirty green with some white breakers, but the wind was calm. Michael felt as if he needed forty-eight hours sleep, as he looked towards the Mabuhay. The jibs were still flapping away with the steady breeze as waves smashed into the broken side of the schooner. Five out of the original crew had survived the shipwreck and they sat around, jabbering away. Sally was still unconscious, but Connie was awake and still in shock, but Michael had managed to stay up with them all night. George had a broken arm and Dayang had managed to set it with a splint.

  Vijendra. Dead. Michael still couldn’t believe their captain was dead.

  “Where are we?” Michael asked the group of men.

  There were a lot of anxious voices around him, before Dayang replied “The men seem to think we’re on East Penjaliran Island; the outer island of the group known as the Thousand Islands.”

  “How far are we from civilization?” he asked them curiously.

  Again the forlorn looking group talked amongst themselves, before George replied “We’re probably about twenty nautical miles away from some people, but the main city, Batavia, is at least forty-five nautical miles away.”

  “Do we have enough water and supplies?” he enquired.

  “Hindi!” Shafwan replied.

  Michael didn’t have to ask for the answer to that reply.

  “We will go back to the schooner now and take what we can. Then we must leave for Batavia” George admitted.

  George and Michael watched the five men row the estimated distance of 700 yards to the schooner in the longboat. They towed the second small dinghy, hopefully to fill it with water and food.

  “How are we going to row all the way to Batavia, George?” Michael asked.

  “The men will probably set a sail, bu
t you will have to be one of the six rowers in the longboat. There are nine of us left, so if the seven men ride in the longboat the two dinghies can be towed behind us. If the men can jury-rig a sail and the seas stay calm, the journey could be reasonably swift; about two days, but if it becomes rough….” He said, leaving the end of his reply hanging.

  “I’m just going to lie down for a short while” Michael mumbled, before yawning.

  He made his way over to the women and lay down. Michael was just going to relax for a while, but he promptly fell asleep.

  * * *

  “Let’s have a look at that chart, now that the hard work’s done” Michael heard George suggest loudly, waking him up from his slumber. His eye lids fluttered as he tried to focus on his surroundings. The sun was still well up in the western sky, so he must have been asleep for about four hours. The heat was sweltering and the men were grumbling as they tried to cool down, now the breeze had dropped.

  “This is where we are now and that’s where we have to go” George said, as Michael rose unsteadily to his feet and stumbled over to the group.

  His tongue was thick and his mouth dry as a bone.

  “Aye, this ere’s the island” said Dayang pointing to the first island in the group of three.

  “Aye” the others agreed in unison.

  “The seas are calm and the tide is nearly at its lowest. It’s probably best if we leave now. We might be able to reach the nearest island before dark” suggested George, assuming the leadership role.

  “Aye” the others agreed again.

  The breeze had utterly ceased and the currents were unknown around here, but the forlorn looking group was willing to take the risk to save themselves. The men must have gone briskly and willingly about their task of setting a mast and sail to the longboat, which Michael noticed rocking gently on the water’s edge. The passage they had to undertake would be littered with danger, but Michael knew they couldn’t stay here and perish.

  “Is there any water to drink?” Michael asked George.

  “Here lad, but just take a few mouthfuls because there’s barely enough for all of us” he said as he passed him the water bag. “There’s only one barrel left.”

  The first two hours survivors had one to two knots of current against them, but they enjoyed the boost of a two-knot current for the next six hours. Today Michael saw huge logs, barrels, tree limbs, and other unusual items floating with the currents. Probably all the things washed out of the creeks, off the schooner and off the beaches by the violent storm. The group was certainly not looking forward to any more thunder and lightning shows, strong winds and rain. The reddish-brown eagles flew majestically over our heads, looking for a free meal.

  “That’s the Langkawi eagle” mentioned George. “They get their name from what they are; red-brown eagles.”

  The seas were still silky-smooth and the winds were light. The only compensation they had while rowing was the fantastic wildlife. Beautiful hornbills were out in the tops of the trees on the first island they came to. Michael had hoped the rain would stay away, but he knew he should remember the old saying - be careful what you wish for, because it may come true. The men had been wishing for sunshine and they got it today, big time. It enhanced the areas natural beauty, but with the sunshine comes the heat and sunburn; something he didn’t need.

  It was twilight when the group stopped off at the second island they came to, for a bit of rest. The water looked clear and clean and a huge monitor lizard walked toward them when they landed on the beach. He stopped and stayed quite a while, just watching them. It was quite a beautiful creature and, while they were watching it, a bird that looked very much like a huge crow landed on the beach to play with a coconut. Michael was amazed at this bird’s dexterity. She used her wings to roll the coconut and then try to peck a hole in it with its beak. The women appeared to be relatively comfortable under their rough canopy. Connie had recovered from her ordeal and she was looking after Sally who had regained consciousness. Once everyone had their allocated five mouthfuls of water and something to eat, the group was on their way again. They couldn’t stay too long on the island, because the tide was receding and the fringing reefs would make it hard for them to get back out to sea. The underwater coral wasn’t beautiful, but Michael saw one shark cross their path and there lots of little barracudas. One of the men spotted a huge lobster hiding in among the rocks and one of the crew was going to jump out of the longboat and catch it, but they saw either a very unusual sea snake or a very unusual eel hiding among the rocks which made him change his mind.

  “How far have we come already?” Michael asked inquisitively.

  “Probably only about six miles” George replied. “We’ll need to aim for the nearest Dutch settlement. There’s a naval base, just off Java, on Onrust Island.”

  From what Michael remembered about his history lessons, the Dutch naval base on Onrust Island was destroyed in the 1880’s by a huge tidal wave. Krakatoa volcano blew up, sending the entire region into chaos. China went through an entire year without seeing the sun; crops wilted, animals and people became sick and died. He certainly didn’t be around here when that happened.

  * * *

  Dawn heralded an overcast morning and a light shower of rain, but it soon cleared to a bright sunny day. The group saw more pipe fish and lobsters amongst the coral at the next island. Dayang suggested it could be Harapan Island. Everyone was tired, but in order to go ashore here, they had to pick their way through the coral. The longboat and the two dinghies were a very long, long way from the shore, but they eventually found themselves in deeper water with a sandy bottom near the beach. The rains came again that evening and they had very low visibility, so they decided to stay until it cleared and collect the rainwater to replenish their dwindling supplies. The camp was dry and two of the crew caught several lobsters and roasted them on hot coals, so everyone feasted until their bellies were full.

  “Now men are you still willing to follow me or does someone else want to take the lead?” George asked them, when they had their fill.

  “Aye, we’re with you” they all said in unison.

  “Well get some rest and we’ll head out in the morning” he suggested.

  Michael wandered over to the women and assisted Connie to help Sally stand up. They had to relieve themselves, so he helped them walk away from the camp.

  “Turn you back and wait for my call to alert you that we’re finished” Connie ordered.

  “Are we ever going to get to civilization?” Sally asked me as he helped them back the way they came.

  “I really don’t know” Michael admitted. “If we stick to the islands, we should eventually find some fisherman, or the Dutch armada. They may be able to help us.”

  “The Dutch would probably throw us in jail, or at the least keep all of us quarantined” scoffed Connie. “That’s if we survive the next four days.”

  The ebbing tide was making a strong rippling current, running south to north. The ripples and the tide were a hazard for their small crafts for several reasons. All three boats were overloaded, but worst of all they could be washed far away from any land and their designated course. The surrounding islands were sheltering them to some degree and they could also provide them with food and a place to rest. Their make-shift sail hung limply, so the men rowed on. All of a sudden the longboat began to turn; they were caught in an eddy and there wasn’t any control. As the dinghies spun on their axis in the eddy stream they drifted back out to sea and away from their security blanket.

  “Wind at last!” Dayang mentioned, pointing to the rippled water.

  The sail filled slightly, giving them some forward thrust. The group was now five miles away from the nearest island, but the slight breeze died down.

  “More wind” said Dayang enthusiastically.

  The sail rustled and then slapped as it filled, pulling them along at about three knots. The steady light breeze was all they needed to steer them through this mayhem.

&nbs
p; The group had been washed out at sea for five hours without having seen anything but sky, sea birds, clouds and water, when slowly they saw the rugged crest of a high mountain rising above a pile of thick gray clouds.

  “That would be the high hill of Samak Daun island” Dayang suggested.

  Little by little the low-lying clouds ascend like a drawn up curtain and the whole island laid spread out, larger than the previous ones they had encountered. As in all the lands lying in these warm latitudes, the works of nature are found to have more vigorous beauty than anywhere else. No one said anything as they approached the majestic scene. In clear and calm weather, the tropical sea presents an aspect of beauty and grandeur, with which the loveliest natural scenery of a tropical climate. It also helped to have been lost at sea for a while.

  “Land ho!” George finally said to the amusement of all of us.

  “It’s well and truly, land ho” Michael added.

  The group had to approach the island from the Southern side due to the fringing reefs, but all of them were glad to stop for a while. They were sun burnt, but happy to place their feet on dry land again. Everyone was worn out, enfeebled both intellectually and physically by the heavy strain and effort of being lost at sea and not seeing any way back to their designated track.

  They decided to spend the night on the island; not wishing to encounter more dangerous rip-tides. Michael solemnly believed in the truth that, had it not been for the living reality of this girl Sally, he probably would have given up long ago. She smiled when Michael hugged her and when she saw his smiling face, looking at her; but she did not know that she had saved him from a fate more dreadful than death.

  Chapter 17

  Michael and Sally lay together for nearly two hours, before she fell asleep. He left her and approached their new captain, who trying to use a device which Michael hadn’t seen before.