Crossbone Children and the Orphans of Avalon

by Gregory Ellis

  As the pair talked about the lagoon, Scurvy Jones silently hobbled up next to them and said, "Know ye the secret of the rocks?"

  John shook his head, "What do you mean, Scurvy?"

  "Scurvy knows the secret of the rocks. The rocks are here to protect Scurvy and the Crossbone Children and none shall pass that don't know the secret, hee hee!"

  Mr. Cumberbatch placated Scurvy, "I don't think you know secrets, Scurvy. You be playing games with us."

  John asked, "You said Crossbone Children. Who are the Crossbone Children?"

  "You be!" he said. "This be Crossbone Island. Them what lives here be destined to be pirates under the Crossbone flag!"

  John tried to humor Scurvy. "We're not pirates!"

  "Mark my words… Scurvy knows! Ye see them statues on the mountain with their bones crossed? Then this be Crossbone Island."

  Cumberbatch was more interested in the rock wall. "Scurvy, what about the secret of the rocks?"

  "Yes… yes, I knows it for sure." Scurvy laid a finger across this nose. "If'n you want to go through, you just speak the words and the rocks obey!"

  John played along, "The rocks can't obey a command. They're just rocks!"

  Scurvy smiled revealing his crooked teeth. "I shows you. He walked forward a little and then whispered, "By the Crossbone Children, open says I!"

  Suddenly, there was a deep rumble and the ground began to shake. John and Cumberbatch found it hard to stand and stumbled about as if on the deck of ship in a storm. The rocks began to part in the middle creating a passageway from the lagoon to the ocean. Wider and wider the rocks moved until it was wide enough for a large ship to pass through into the deep lagoon. The land locked lagoon now became a harbor deep enough for ships to anchor in.

  Every one of the other children gathered on the wide sandy beach between the two bodies of water when they heard the rumbling of the rocks and watched as the opening appeared between the lagoon and the sea.

  "Hee hee, didn't Scurvy tell yah? I knows the secret of the rocks!"

  John and Cumberbatch stood paralyzed at what they just saw. Cumberbatch mesmerized by the spectacle said quietly, "There be strange goings on here, Mr. Henry. That be the truth!"

  Without taking his eyes off the place opening, John asked Scurvy again, "Who are the Crossbone Children? Was there someone here before us?

  Scurvy shook his head, "No, you be the first. This part be Crossbone Island!"

  "I don't understand." John said flatly.

  Without answering, Scurvy simply walked away but said over his shoulder, "Scurvy knows the secret of the rocks I do!"

  Cumberbatch smiled and whispered to John, "Aye, he knows, but something be strange here. It tain't natural if you knows what I mean… moving rocks, fresh water from the mountains, sacred place, fresh food for the tak'n and something about Crossbone Children and pirates. Tain't natural I say."

  Scurvy must have heard what Cumberbatch said because he suddenly stopped, turned around and replied, "Tain't natural says you, but real says I. Tis all here for the children and them what be slaves, but soon the children be those what sits at the Round Table and takes Avalon."

  John furrowed his brow. The Lady of the Lake said she lived on the Isle of Avalon. "What did you say about slaves, a round table and Avalon?"

  Scurvy started dancing a little jig as John and Cumberbatch walked towards him. John repeated, "What do you mean… slaves, a round table and Avalon, Scurvy?"

  "Scurvy don't know no slaves, no table and Avalon, Scurvy is soon free! Then he stood quite still, turned and faced the ocean as he quietly said, "By the Crossbone Children, close says I!"

  The entire group watched as the ground shook as before and the rocks slowly moved together again shutting out the ocean and the rock wall was as before.

  Cumberbatch intoned, "By the devil's moon! That's just great!"

  Scurvy ambled away to his hut, the rest of the group stood still not believing what they just witnessed. It would be the topic of conversation around the fire tonight, that much was certain.

  That night John was awakened by the screech of a bird. He sat up and looked around. He could not see, nor hear anything, except the constant crash of the ocean waves on the nearby beach. He was just about to lay back down when he heard someone walking outside the hut, very close by. He stood up and had to step over Buster Jack who was sound asleep with his arms covering his face. He quietly moved to the doorway, looked outside but saw nothing. He stood for moment then he heard the sound again from his left. It was the sound of someone shuffling through the sand. He glimpsed a man in a dark hooded cape walking very quickly towards the lake. John left the hut and followed the figure as he made his way toward Scurvy's hut. The figure stopped for a moment. John stopped as well trying not to breath, afraid he had been heard. Then the caped person walked on and entered Scurvy's hut.

  John moved closer, then stopped to see if he could hear anything. The night was silent, not even the waves could be heard from where he stood. He moved closer and stopped. Nothing. He moved next to the hut and waited. He heard a rustling inside like someone sifting through papers. Then an hear- splitting screech sounded overhead. John looked up and saw a large flying creature circling. He heard the person inside the hut move toward the hut's opening. John threw himself down and crawled behind a nearby tree and lay still.

  The hooded person emerged from the hut and appeared to be looking around. John could not see his face but he could see that in the right hand the stranger held a long wooden staff. On the end of the staff was a stone of some sort. A dull-red glow seemed to come from it. The stranger held up the staff and the flying creature suddenly swooped down and landed not far from the hooded figure.

  In the darkness, John could just barely make out the creature as it stood patiently waiting for something. It was then he recognized the bird as a Griffin. The same one that had flown over the Weymouth a few months ago and a chill ran up his spine.

  The hood person walked quickly up to the Griffin, climbed onto its back. The creature pushed off the ground with its large lion-like paws and flapped its large feathered wings as it rose effortlessly and silently into the night sky. The Griffin and its passenger flew northward and out of sight.

  John felt himself shaking. He did not understand where the shaking was coming from. He could not move but the shaking increased steadily. It was then he opened his eyes and heard Buster Jack saying, "Wake up, John! You gonna sleep all day?"

  Chapter 10

  A Plan to Leave

  Three weeks had passed since coming to the island. Life was easy with everything provided for them. All were very happy and content except Buster Jack. To him, it was not paradise. It was infinitely better than living in the dark hold of the Hopeful and it was even better than life on the streets of London. Each day though, he became more worried and frustrated over the fate of his sister, Ava. Was she alive? Had something happened to her in route to Jamaica? Perhaps pirates had boarded their ship and had taken the girls as prisoners or maybe something far worse had happened to her.

  His frustration came from not being able to do anything about their situation. Here they were marooned on a mysterious island with no way to escape. He knew they could be stuck here for years. Perhaps forever like that crazy old man, Scurvy Jones. How long would it be before they all looked and acted like him, he wondered.

  One night, as everyone sat around the fire, tired and lazy from another day of doing nothing, Buster Jack confided in John. "I got to find a way off of this island and get to Jamaica to see if Ava is well! I can't just sit here not knowing."

  "We don't have a boat Jack. How do you propose we do that?" John asked.

  "I dunno, but there's gotta be a way! How far do you think we are from Port Royal?"

  John still had his sextant, compass and telescope from the Hopeful and had used the instrument to try and fix their position. "I don't know for sure, Jack, but if I were to guess, I'd say three or four days at least."

  "Maybe
we could build a small boat from logs."

  John smiled, "I understand, Jack. I would feel the same way, but we don't have any tools to cut the tree or to hollow it out, and it would not be deep enough to go out in the sea."

  Buster Jack suddenly had an idea, "What about the boats Captain Roscoe had on the other side of the island? We could go get one of them and try it!"

  John nodded as he said, "Yes, and what about the natives? Do you think they will just let us walk down the beach and take one? We don't even know if they're still there."

  "Wait. Remember when we come over the hump below the mountain, we could see the beach where we was? We could at least go back up there and see if the boats are still on the beach. You got that telescope. Maybe we could spot them from up there."

  John gave Buster Jack a sideways glance. He knew there was no way to talk him out of this one. Swallowing his doubts, he said, "Ok, we'll go up there in the morning. If the boats are still there we'll make a plan to commandeer one."

  Buster Jack smiled as he said, "Thanks, John." He turned back to gaze into the fire.

  During these long days, John's thoughts turned to his mother. She had been sickly when he left and he was worried she was not fairing very well. Spring was here and he hoped the warmer weather would help her gain her strength back.

  By the time John and Buster Jack climbed up the steep mountain to the area where they could see the beach on the east-side of the island, the sun was high in the sky. The day got hotter by the minute. The two had left before any of the others were awake. John knew some of the others would want to come and he did not want anyone but Buster Jack to come.

  They settled down behind some rocks to shield themselves from anyone looking in their direction. John took out his telescope, quietly opened it and used the boulder to steady it. He could see the bay and the rocks where the Hopeful had been destroyed. Very little was left of her, just a few pieces of wood and canvas draped over the rocks as a memorial. He moved the telescope along the beach where he found the boys on that first day. Then he saw two boats laying on the white sand apparently undisturbed from where they had been left by Captain Roscoe and his crew. He could not see the third boat.

  Still looking through the glass John whispered, "Looks like we're in luck. There are two boats on the beach. They look to be Ok."

  Buster Jack said gleefully, "I knew it!"

  "Not so fast, Jack. We don't know if they are intact and we will need oars to paddle. I don't want to go down there just to find out there aren't any."

  "Well, what should we do? Can't you see from here if they are still there?"

  "Can't tell from here."

  Buster Jack took a deep breath, "What you want to do, John? You've got more experience with this sort of thing."

  John quietly closed the telescope. He turned and leaned against the rock. "Maybe we could make some oars back at the lake. We could break off some tree branches with forks in them. We could take some palm leaves and cover the forks. Then we could come back here even earlier tomorrow and make our way down the trail to the beach. We'll just have to hope the natives won't be up that early. We'll drag them to the water and then paddle to this end of the island."

  "Sounds like a good plan John." Buster Jack smiled, "Let's be off then."

  The two scampered back down the mountain side and made it back to the lake. They took Mr. Cumberbatch aside and told him of their plan. He scratched his head through his thick red hair. He didn't like them going alone. "If you two are going to do this, I should go with you."

  John said, "We appreciate that Mr. Cumberbatch, but if something should happen to us, I would feel much better knowing you are here with the others."

  Cumberbatch nodded, "Aye. I suppose so."

  They spent the rest of the day making two paddles. They covered the forked branches with fronds and tied them onto the branches with thick reeds that grew along the lakeshore. When they were finished, they tested them in the lake. John said, "Well, it's all we have. Don't know how long they'll last, let's just hope the real oars are still there."

  That night they told the rest of the group what they were about to do. Some said they wanted to go, but John talked them out of it. Mr. Cumberbatch was going to stay with them, and with any luck, they would be back with a boat.

  "If we are successful, then a few of us can sail to Jamaica, where I'll try and see if what Black Bart said is true and Jack can find out about his sister and the other orphans."

  The next morning, before the sun had even brightened the eastern sky, John and Buster Jack started their climb up the mountain once again, each carrying one of the crude oars. When they reached the spot where they were the day before, it began to get lighter. John estimated they only about an hour before sunrise.

  John whispered, "From here on, we don't talk unless we whisper. We have no way of knowing where the natives might be." Jack nodded in agreement.

  Down they went, stopping frequently to listen and to make sure they were on the right path. John didn't tell Buster Jack but he knew the only thing that could make a path like the one they were on were the natives. They must use it often enough to keep the jungle from reclaiming it.

  They could tell they were near the bottom because the path flattened out. A few minutes later, John stopped suddenly and whispered. "Do you hear the waves?"

  Buster Jack cocked his head. He smiled and nodded. "How much further you think?"

  "Not sure but when we can see the beach, we will stay just inside the jungle until we are parallel to the boats." Buster Jack nodded in agreement but didn't say anything.

  They quietly walked through the jungle being careful not to step on dried twigs, branches or leaves. A golden shaft of light slowly spread over the horizon. The small amount of light would make walking through the jungle a bit easier.

  All at once, they could see the beach through the trees. They crawled to the edge of the tree line and peeked out. They could see the rocks on the headland that destroyed the Hopeful. To their left, they could see the two boats still lying on the sand. The beach was steep and would not be too much of a struggle to pull one of the boats down and into the water.

  John whispered, "Right, it's too hard to try and stay behind the trees and make it over close to the boats. We'll make more noise crashing through jungle. So we'll walk on the sand staying as close to the tree line as we can."

  They stepped out of the jungle and onto the beach each carrying their precious homemade oar. Crouching, they hugged the tree line as they made their way toward the two boats.

  Finally they reached the area where they were exactly opposite the boats. They stopped for a moment to catch their breath. John said quietly, "Stay low. We'll go to the furthest one. It will be easier to drag it into the water. Let's just hope the natives have not put a hole in them. Ready?"

  Buster Jack did not smile. "Ready!"

  The pair dashed past the first boat and onto the furthest one which was laying upside down in the sand showing its exposed hull. With great disappointment they saw a hole the size of a cannonball through its bottom. "This won't do!" Buster Jack said with disappointment, "There ain't no oars either!"

  "Back to the first boat… stay low!" John whispered.

  They dashed back to the second boat which was lying right-side up. Upon inspecting it, John quietly said, "I don't see anything wrong but I don't see any oars here either."

  Both of them quietly tossed their homemade oars into the boat. John carefully took his telescope from around his neck and laid it in the bottom. They both grabbed the bow and pulled, but the boat did not move. Over time, the wind and surf had buried the boat about a foot down in the sand. They pulled with all their might but the boat did not budge from the clutches of the sand.

  John whispered, "It's no use, we'll have to dig some of the sand away." Working on both sides of the boat, they scraped at the sand with their bare hands. They scooped as fast as they could like a dog trying to bury a bone. John stood up and grabbed the side o
f the boat and whispered in frustration, "Jack, try rocking it back and forth to break it free!"

  They pushed and pulled but the boat was still stuck. "Dig some more Jack." They continued to dig then push and pull several more times. They were near the point of exhaustion and their fingers and hands were raw from the sand.

  "One more time Jack. I think she'll give way now." With all their might they pushed and pulled and finally they could feel the boat move a little and Buster Jack smiled. They rocked it back and forth with renewed effort. It finally broke free.

  They both grabbed the bow and tried to pull it again. It moved a little. "Jack, you pull and I'll push from the stern!" Buster Jack nodded, too out of breath to say anything.

  It took several minutes of pushing and pulling to drag the boat down the beach and into the water. Once the boat was afloat, they wearily pulled themselves up and over the side. The surf was not too rough, but it was a struggle to maintain any kind of forward momentum.

  John told Buster Jack to sit in bow and paddle on the left-side and he would paddle from the stern on the right. They grabbed their make-shift oars and began to row out to sea and away from the beach. The waves fought them at every stroke of the oars. They noticed too that water was seeped in between the planks in the hull. The boat's hull was dry-rotted due to the hot sun and lack of moisture. With despair, both boys felt they might sink at any time.

  Buster Jack looked up out to the open sea. There about a mile distance was a ship. Not only a ship, but there were three boats like the one they were in, rowing towards them. Buster Jack yelled, "There's a ship and boats coming!"

  John stopped rowing as he too saw the ship and the boats. He grabbed his telescope and leveled it at the ship. It was broadside to him and he immediately recognized the ship with the black pirate flag waving in the morning breeze. It was the Royal Fortune and Captain Bartholomew Roberts! John casually said to Buster Jack, "It's Black Bart's ship. Those are his men in the water coming toward us." The two stopped rowing, too out of breath to continue.