Recluse Island

Chapter 1 - Pigscula Keys

An excerpt from Held Captive: The True Story of Life Under Rafanoli. By: Asher Tibbles

The island of Pigscula Keys was first discovered by an indigenous people that called themselves the Weimeiji.

Traveling aboard the slave ship the Philomena, they were abandoned in the summer of 1798 after the crew contracted an infectious disease that had rapidly begun to spread among those onboard. The captain at the time Louis Walsh believed the disease was caused by the slaves so he forced them all to disembark onto the island assuming the remaining crew would recover. After leaving the island Captain Walsh, his crew and the Philomena were never heard from again.

Miraculously the slaves recovered from this troubling illness. The island was named after Neiketa Pigscula who stumbled upon the cure to their condition. Or in his words the "key" to their survival when he discovered the mysterious and vibrant flower with potent healing capabilities that revived those suffering from the unknown disease that had been wreaking havoc on the Philomena

Pigscula Keys is in the Southern Caribbean and is approximately fifty-nine miles long. It is roughly two hundred miles from Barbados or about a three-hour boat ride and is surrounded by a series of formidable rock formations making it difficult to dock onto shore. It is known primarily for its lush rainforests; these can be found on the southernmost end of the island. Here one may come across many species of birds, insects, and flowers. The rainforests are also home to various species of monkeys, lizards, and frogs. Pigscula Keys, however, is a society of herbivores, therefore you will not find any wild cats, bears, or wolves here.

It consists of a plentiful array of abundant vegetation and diverse nutrients. The island has three beaches, two sand and one rock. The rock beach is named McKinley Exposition. It can be found just off the Toritano Cliffs and is the least visited of all the beaches as it is so difficult to reach. Lincoln Ford and Kennedy Dallas, the remaining beaches have beautiful white sand and are home to many sea turtles. One walking along the shore would inevitably come across numerous sizes and shapes of seashells, colorful fish, and an incredible sunset. The oceans provide the Weimeiji with plenty of food and resources. Seaweed as rope, fish bones as fertilizer, and gold and silver for jewelry, goblets and for the purpose of decorating.

In the fall of 1808, a shipwrecked crew from England washed upon their shore. Their destination had been Virginia, but a particularly destructive storm pushed them off course.

The Weimeiji and British clashed quite often during this time as attempts were made to repair their ship the Guinevere. The British felt the slaves should help fix their ship and planned to take them to America where they could be sold once repairs were completed. The Weimeiji however (who no longer associated themselves as slaves) refused to get locked into a lifetime of grueling labor a second time. By the time the British had arrived the Weimeiji had become remarkably familiar with the island and so were able to evade the British and demonstrate their knowledge and independence.

However, after many months the captain of the Guinevere, Alexander Lambright, had to concede they would not be leaving the island and a truce was made between him and current leader of the Weimeiji, Hamden Nessa. It was at this point the British joined the Weimeiji at their camp.

The agreement that was collaborated on was quite simple. They would respect each other's customs and beliefs in addition to creating and celebrating their successes and achievements but most importantly they agreed neither side would attempt to claim any part of the island. It was its own entity, they simply existed on it.

The Weimeiji live in treehouses interconnected by rope bridges. This was introduced by Cyrus Livingston and Cyprian Thirlwall in 1810 and provided a way for swift communication as well as protection from the sun, insects, and wildlife.
Thirwall designed the tree houses while Livingston created the bridges and subsequent linking of houses.

The Weimeiji (which now included the British who had also adopted this name) chose to live exclusively on the south side of the island beginning in 1820 as this is where the rainforest was most prevalent and therefore most logical to build their homes going forth.

The Weimeiji relished in the solitude Pigscula Keys provided, the lack of restrictions imposed on them but most importantly the sense of community. They all looked out and cared for each other, despite the difference in cultures between those from England and Africa these were seamlessly commingled, and a new era was born. That is until a man named Rafanoli arrived and drastically changed all their lives.