Iguanatopia - ONC 2021 (Completed)

11: Fogtopia

Purple fog laid thick as the Estrella sailed through the uncharted waters of the Forgotten Islands. It was as if the ship traveled through a dense porridge. Alba could barely see her hand in front of her if she stretched it out. Even though it was daytime it was dark all around them. Their navigational tools were the only way to know where they were and where they were going. The compass told of their steady direction and the sextant told of their position relative to the sky. They were close now. But to what? That was the question.

Or perhaps their tools were all wrong and they would end up circling the Forgotten Islands forever. Perhaps that's what had happened to all those other ships that had never returned from the archipelago. Forever in search of a treasure that wasn't possible to find.

Alba was perched in the mast to ensure that she would be the first one to see whatever there was to see. If there was something to see. From the crow's nest, she overlooked the violet mist. It was the same color as her hair. Which made it somehow seem inviting and safe. Purple was the color that dominated her earliest memories. Vibrant purple flowers outside a cottage where a woman picked her up and held her. Her mother perhaps. She didn't know. All memories after that were grey and dreary. Rain over cobblestones as she tried to make it on her own on the streets of the capital.

The water glimmered in a dark shade of purple as well. Alba wondered where among those endless waves Mirabel dwelled. Was the beautiful creature near or far? She shook her head to focus. Romantic mermaid dreams would have to wait until after the treasure was found. Then Alba could try to find her aquatic beauty again and find out why she had left in such a hurry.

Perched on the mast beside her sat Ignacio. The lizard was a great climber and happily scaled the pole in the same way he would a tree. Although he did leave huge claw marks behind on the wood.

As Alba scanned their surroundings once again a twinkle appeared in the fog. Just a moment and then it was gone. But she had seen it. Something was there.

In a rush, Alba hurried down the mast, with Ignacio following of course, and ran up to Joe and Pedro by the helm. Joe stood by a huge map of the region, where they had marked out the area detailed on Ignacio's body. It was, after all, easier to read a proper map than the scales of an easily annoyed iguana. No eye patch was in sight as Joe seemed to have decided to forego it completely in favor of full eyesight. His new nickname among the crew had become Two-eyed Joe.

"Look over there," she commanded them and pointed to where the twinkle had appeared. The men listened without the iguana having to take tone. "There's something there."

Pedro, who stood by the wheel, pulled up a pair of binoculars and peered out into the thick mist. "I see nothing," he said.

"It was there," Alba insisted. "There was a light. I promise."

Pedro and Joe shared a look. Alba sensed a sinking feeling in her stomach as she prepared for them to put down her idea.

But they didn't. "All right," Pedro said and stepped away from the wheel with a sweeping hand gesture. "You'll steer us towards it then, Alba. If you say it was there, we believe you."

Once she had recuperated from the shock of the men actually hearing her out, Alba walked up to the wheel and put her hands on it. She had stood there before, but it felt different this time. Like she had actually earned her spot there.

Pedro sat down by the captain's table, next to where Joe stood. "I need to rest my leg a bit anyway," he said and put his peg leg straight to take some pressure off it. Oliviero came out of hiding from under the table and jumped up in Pedro's lap for some cuddles. This earned the feline a jealous look from a certain lizard.

To satisfy the beast, Joe bent down and placed a few strokes against Ignacio's back. "You're a good lizard... I mean captain," he said. "Soon we'll have you back to your regular form."

No matter how much Alba wanted Captain Ignacio back she couldn't let herself believe that though. Whatever secrets dwelled at the end of their treasure hunt it wouldn't turn the lizard into their lost captain. But she was very curious about what they would find.

While she steered towards that unknown goal she saw the flicker again, brighter this time. Like a ray of sunshine breaking through storm clouds. Alba took aim at the light. And as they got closer the fog started to dissipate around them. Flecks of purple moved away piece by piece to make room for a bright blue sky.

A moment later they sailed on a still ocean, with no signs of fog anywhere around them. It seemed as if they sailed on glass because the water was the clearest Alba had ever seen. Seashells and rocks could be hinted on the sandy bottom way below them. Above them was an endless light blue sky, without even a hint of a cloud. The pale sun scorched down from above, but yet the air felt brisk and fresh. The whole place had an eerie feeling to it like it wasn't quite of this world. Everything seemed just a little bit off.

There was nothing but ocean and sky. Not a single cry from a bird or a splash from a fish.

Then the black dots suddenly appeared on the horizon. Three black blobs. Just like on the map that had been lost. Three black blobs with stars on them and then lines from those blobs that pointed towards an X in the middle. That's where the treasure had to be.

As they got closer the smudges came into focus. They became islands of green trees, yellow sand, and gray cliffs.

"This is it," Joe said from the map. Alba looked back to see him and Ignacio both leaned intently over the drawing. "This is the place where the lines converge. This is the X."

There was nothing but water. There were certainly no treasures to be found.

"There's nothing here," Pedro said, pointing out the obvious.

"Perhaps we should check out the islands first," Alba said. "That's where the stars are marked, after all."

The men by the table didn't hear her as they were too busy investigating the map and trying to make sure they were in the right place.

So Ignacio had to repeat her utterance for them.

Now they listened.

"You're right, Captain," Joe said. "The islands are there, so it appears we are in the right spot."

"Let's go ashore on one of them and see what we find," Pedro agreed. "Perhaps that can lead us to the treasure."

And with that, they set course toward the most eastern of the islands, where harsh cliffs and stingy cloud-like creatures would welcome them.