Day One

where to start, where to start?

ok, ok, my thoughts are straight, this book, about this book.

This book, I found this book. Yes, this book was in the dark brown chest. Now what? how? why? yes! WHY? Why am I writing this?

I have chosen to write in this book I have found in the dark brown chest. I am writing in it because it is something for me to do, to tell anyone that finds it what happened or should I say IS happening and WILL happen. Yes, this is to be a journal of my time here, a journal, a diary if you will. I will add to it as things happen, yes yes. Now I have been here for five days, for five days in this hell. But no, I digress, I digress? digress, like a female miner? a diggers wife?

First I would like to apologise to the reader for my earlier outbursts in this journal. I feel better and calmer now, and ready to write.

So, where to start? It is the end of the fourth day here. Anyway I have four days to catch up with recent events. I must start writing of these days. I can only apologise to the reader about the earlier outbursts, as I have no way to remove this ink from the pages.

Day One
My name is Aelf, I have no other name I know of, I am a trader of furniture in the Vesper region. I often, however, have orders from further afield. Today (day one) I boarded a vessel with four other gentlemen with the intention of delivering a small amount of furniture, namely a forge and anvil to a customer in Trinsic.

The journey was good at first, but some hours into the journey the captain spotted a ship in some distress to the south. We gave the captain permission to investigate, perhaps a bad decision. As we came to the vessel, we saw that it was abandoned. No one was around, no evidence of people, just a tattered sail and a battered hull.

I am beginning to bore of this now, so I will try to speed up this tale.

We soon saw what had caused the damage to the ship, a beast of the deep, with tentacles twice the size of a man. This creature soon noticed us, and a chase ensued. Our captain cum tillerman was the first to fall, being snatched straight from the stern of the ship by a slimy tentacle with the strength of a daemon.

This left us with no-one to navigate the ship. To make things worse a storm was setting in, and us trapped in the bosom with no knowledge of our intended direction.

I remember waking up on an outcrop of rocks, alone, wet and cold. My clothes were torn and my flesh was cut in a thousand places, probably from the sea dragging me over the rocks while I was napping the deep sleep of the dead.

I can remember feeling bemused for a moment, as I could see that only a few yards away was a white and sandy beach. The feeling that only the luck of a man like me would see me dashed on a few rocks than washed to safety on this white beach. This is about it for this day and the day I write of, for it grows dark and the night does scare me so.

Day Two
Two, for it is true, things seem blue, like I do. Haha, day two, my dear friend the book. I remember day two! It was a lonely day, for that was for sure. I remember finding the dark brown chest, the chest which had the things in it. The food, the ale, the cloth, the furniture, the ink,the book. This book! Haha, this book you read now at this moment once had its lonely domicile within the dark brown chest.

The lonely day, day two, the day I found my friend, you the book! The island! My discovery of isolation and desperation. For it is true, I was lost, lost upon this island which I now hold so dear to my heart. I know it is an island, but strangely enough, it doesn't seem so. I explored a while and saw the island was flanked squarely by rocks on one side, strange I feel that nature should choose such an arrangement for an island of all things! The day I lived like a king on the rations of the dark brown chest. The ale that made me think I would be fine, and encouraged me to drink and eat the dark brown chest dry.

Day Three
This day I met a real person, his name was Shakarel. A strange name I know, and a strange character too. Very mysterious, very quiet and most of all, very clever. After I discovered him on a beach (ha! He has luck on his side) a long way along the coast, he told me little but about what we needed. He soon dissapeared into the jungle, returning a few hours on with armfulls of fruit and meat. The man didn't say much, only came and went, refusing to let me follow. Bizarre, but he kept me fed. I can remember little else about yesterday.

Day Four
At last, today! This I can remember. Today I have not seen Shakarel at all. I am beginning to wonder if he actually exists, he could be a vision, an angel maybe. I did find a pile of food this morning, right next to my makeshift fire. I must find Shakarel, and thank him for helping me. All I have seen of him is glimpses, nothing has really been said, although I feel slightly strange in his presence. It feels as if he is giving out some kind of energy, like he talks to unseen beings without moving his lips.

I have decided to start storing food, and came across the chest that I found on the beach. I found this book, and decided to keep myself busy by writing in it. I have also given myself another project. This morning I started to build a vessel to sail home! It is not much at the moment, just a pile of wood and leaves, but I have visions of a large ship to carry me home.

Day Five
Today I have done it, set myself free. I know what that man was up to! Haha, he won't do it any more! This morning I woke up to find my ship, my beautiful ship, was in pieces. Nothing but a pile of stinking old wood and leaves. The idiot. the fool! How dare he think that he could do this to me! ME! hehe, this is MY island. I found this island, I found him, he owed me. Now he is paying his debts that is for sure. You see, I know what he wanted, I know what he was doing. He destroyed my beautiful ship, he destroyed it because he knew I wanted to leave. He destroyed it to stop me from leaving. Haha, he won't do that again. You want to know why? why? yes, yes, the fool was feeding me you see! Going into the jungle for hours on end and bringing me back fruit and meat. He was trying to feed me, to make me fat! He wanted to eat me, you see, my little book that I found in the dark brown chest!

The man that was intent to serve me as his own personal feast now serves as mine, haha! The fool! The fool whose stringy flesh I now try to eat. Such a skinny man could have no hope of putting up with the might of a master carpenter, I hit him squarely on the back of the head as he bent down to drop his latest batch of food. He went down like a stone, and in his bleeding mess on the floor he started to mutter words under his breath. He was communicating with the devil himself! I know he was, he must have been! Haha, now the devil will surely fear me, for I am the master of this place now.

Day one hundred
Who cares for days now! I don't and thats for sure! I have beem here for a lot of time now, and stopped counting and caring when I ran out of flesh from that daemon creature that gave himself a human name. Even now I can see him laughing in Hell, as if this was all part of his evil plan. He wanted to see me kill him, he wanted to see me starve as I couldn't find food.
Why am I bothering to write in this stupid book! What good does it do me? Are you my only friend, dear reader? Someone I don't know, will never know, and who may never exist if I fling this cursed thing on the fire.

Day one million
I realise now, this book is a gift from heaven to me! This book is to be my salvation! My freedom!

I just saw a glint of light in the corner of my eye! I turned and saw a ship, they must have seen a fire. Even now, they head towards me in their vessel of salvation.

They are close now, I need to write my last entry here in my wonderful book that I found in the dark brown chest so long ago. I will give them this book, you, my book and only friend. I will give them this book, that they can take on their big ship. They can take the book away, and someone will read it, and someone will come and rescue me.

The fools! They refuse to take you! They want to take me away, away from this place. The fools! Can they not understand my plan? I cannot leave! I cannot leave as then my rescuer will not find me! I must get them to take the book and leave me behind, so I can be found by my rescuer that reads it. I have a plan, I will give them the book, and then throw rocks at them until they leave me alone. Then, when they are gone, I will wait for my rescuer to read you, and come and find me!

My book, I am taking you now, to give to them, they will take you to my rescuer, my beautiful book that I found in the dark brown chest.

The End