Lycanthropy; The Ascend (#Wattys2018)

Chapter 5; The Isle Of Wolves

The wind howled in their ears as the ship docked onto the rough sandy beach and they departed, shoes sinking softly into the ground while hungry waves came up licking at their heels. Leslie breathed in deeply, taking in the fresh air of the island which carried many scents along with it; many never smelled by her. It felt surprisingly clean, unpolluted by the flames and smoke of the past, and the island was full of greenery. Emily was right. Only a few decades have passed and if she was never told, she wouldn't have guessed that this island used to be a heavily bombed battlefield. Trees towered high above them, bushes scattered all around with aromatic berries painted in bright colours growing freely on their soft branches.

Leslie was startled when noises of loud chirping filled the air as a small group of Arctic Terns, small white birds with a black 'cap' and red beaks, chased each other in the air either for fun or for a small piece of meat held in one's beak. It was astonishing to see life thriving on this lately destroyed island and she silently thanked countries for forbidding people from entering this island for many years to come. She felt like they would destroy all of this immediately, just like humans normally do. That's all they do.

The beauty of the place filled her with joy and sadness at the same time, and tears began welling up in her sparkling eyes until she felt a soft hand touch hers. Looking to the side, she saw Zy watching their surroundings with amazement. He looked at her and smiled reassuringly, she saw his eyes tearing up and she grabbed his hand, holding it in hers. It was obvious it was a huge moment for both of them; their ancestors were murdered here and now they're here, seeing the island thrive like never before and they both knew it would bring great opportunities for them.

"It's beautiful." Emily gasped behind them and they turned around to see Emily leaning onto Chris, her jaw dropped open as she took in the landscape. Chris nodded in agreement, but he didn't seem that impressed, he couldn't see what was special about this place and it made Leslie wonder if he knew. If he knew about the history of this place, or if he knew at all about Zy being a werewolf. She decided she would ask him later.

"We'll go into town, put down my boxes and your bags and then I'll have to leave." The old man stepped in front of them after he tied the boat to a nearby tree, checking the time on his watch briefly. Leslie and the others looked at each other, puzzled.

"T-town?" Leslie stuttered, eyes narrow. She didn't know what to make of this information. What does he mean? There's a whole civilization here? She thought they would be the only ones... Or at least most of the people on this island. The old man looked at her, then at the others, as if asking for someone to explain to her, but everyone in front of him was just as clueless as Leslie. He sighed.

"Yes. What do you think I live off of? Certainly not from your small input into my moneybox." He laughed as he turned around and began walking towards the forest, dragging a large white box behind him, where a small track was revealed as he brushed a stray branch away. The others followed him silently, waiting for him to continue talking. "Town is an exaggeration really, it's only a few recently built wood houses with a shop and a café, or bar. Nothing special." He explained.

"But they... bring you your income?" Zy asked; he was still quite baffled. It really didn't seem like people populated this island, especially after what happened. With houses and shops and bars? When did they come, and why?

"Oh yes. Apart from shipping people across, I also bring in some of the products they need, like seeds for plants, some farm animals sometimes and equipment they order from me. That's why I brought these boxes. But they mainly manage on their own, and I have to sail in less occasionally. But they still have to pay for their residence here, since my family built most of the few houses here when we heard people want to visit this island. Don't ask me where they get their money from to pay for all of this, most of the people I bring here are very rich and don't stay very long." He continued while they walked along the silent track. The forest was getting thicker and thicker, the canopy almost shutting out the sun and Leslie wondered why they call it Iceland.