New Homeport Island Part 5

The sea's stayed rough for the next two days as the s.h.i.+p headed south west more than a thousand miles from the coast of southern Mexico. The weather was fair and the ocean didn't show any sign of how violent the waters had become, but the s.h.i.+p was in a tortuous throw. Green water across the decks had resulted in the weather decks secured and made off limits.

The USS Paul F Foster had been built in Pascagoula Mississippi in the early nineteen seventies, construction began February sixth nineteen seventy three and the s.h.i.+p was launched on the twenty second of February nineteen seventy four. It was listed as a united states navy s.h.i.+p and commissioned as of the twenty first of February nineteen seventy six. The s.h.i.+p had been a home and duty station to over a thousand navy service members for twenty years. Upon its decks walked the future of America and now she was in need. The ocean, given time will claim all it can reach and fate had been tempted far too long by this grey girl.

The hull began to rumble as the s.h.i.+p cut the seas; the crew was unaware of any danger. The beams began to sing and the intercostal girders provided the percussion, pipe hangers resonated like tuning forks and then like cello strings. It was six p.m.

Chapter Four.

Leviathan The sea was dark and cold the sun had set only moments before and I scanned the horizon for the life rafts, they are designed to pop up once the s.h.i.+p has gone down. I struggled to remember how long I had been in the water and what happened as I left the s.h.i.+p.

All I could recall was seeing a whale or a submarine beneath me under the water in realizing it was diving and that was pulling me down, there were air bubbles I swam toward as a crus.h.i.+ng pressure caused my ears to ring. Once I reached the bubbles they seemed to just hang there, but the pressure and ringing in my ears subsided, apparently this is how I die. All at once the bubbles started moving up at a faster pace than I could keep up with and I realized the bubbles and I had been rising all along. As the pressure subsided the bubbles grew larger until the popped into smaller bubbles. At one point I actually swam down to get into a bubble and managed a single hissing breath, ready to spit out any water I inhaled, so I chanced another breath as I kept my pace with the rising bubble. Once it popped I figured I must be about to break the surface, as it turned out I was wrong by at least one hundred feet. I swam as hard as I could in spiraling patterns looking for an up current and glanced down to look for more bubbles. The only bubbles rising looked to be a football field's length away and three hundred feet down. That's when the dark thing swam away. Once I broke the surface I looked for the s.h.i.+p and didn't see anything, I had been abandoned, left alone in the middle of the ocean. I felt betrayed and cursed, I realized I never got along with anyone in that back stabbing crew, and had made a fatal mistake joining the navy. I would die alone on the ocean.

I recalled a particularly bad sinus headache I had in my teen years and how I feel asleep floating on my back in the pool seeking some relief from the pain and concluded I could float for three days. As I went through these emotional throws and realizations it occurred to me I had been hearing someone yelling, "Help!" just as they slipped under the water again. I looked around and saw Athena Williams and Chief Casius, Athena was yelling for help as chief Casius was treading water, and repeating over and over again, "son of a b.i.t.c.h...son of a b.i.t.c.h..."

I swam to Athena and pulled her from under her arms into a back stroke, Athena said, "Oh s.h.i.+t...oh s.h.i.+t" I replied, "Don't panic, you have to float..." Casius interjected, "she doesn't know how to tread water she's dead and so are they!" as she pointed at a crowd doing the same as us. I repeated loudly, "Don't panic...you have to floated on your back with your arms interlaced." Athena uttered, "Ya, f.u.c.king right" and she saw others that seemed to be struggling to swim and said, "Take us over there, please...take us over there, don't let go, don't let go." I swam us toward them and yelled for Casius to join us. I said, "Chief! Get over here and stop treading water you're going to exhaust yourself!" A female voice yelled out, "That's what we're supposed to do a.s.shole!" I replied, "Congratulations you're now on the Coast Guard standard...the navy standard just sunk its own G.o.d d.a.m.n s.h.i.+p!" It was Mulner's voice I heard earlier and she then said, "What's the coast guard standard?" I replied, "We'll interlace our arms and float on our backs taking turns sleeping! But please G.o.d someone tell me you see a life raft!!" Mulner replied, "I don't know if I can float, what about the waves?" I said, "It's just a waterbed."

It was Hudlow nearby I heard say, "It's ...just a water... bed" with chattering teeth and he flipped over on to his back. I called out, "Is anyone else rescue swimming right now?" A voice I couldn't recognize called back, "No, these guys are drowning."

I drifted in and out of consciousness and that was all I could recall and it was so surreal I had hoped it was a nightmare, so much more likely that Captain 'Douchebag' threw me in the water himself. But I recall waking to a starry night sky to quivering voices playing 'Marco-polo' but that was the positive.

The negative was hearing an echoing voice as I rouse to consciousness, "This guy just died." echoing over and over and I blurted out, "I'm not dead I'm asleep." As I awoke it was morning I saw us chained together through our arms, mine were numb; as the waves rolled under us I saw how many of us were daisy chained together, it was as if the whole crew had survived...people I only knew from where they sat on the mess decks and people I knew from personal interaction, a crew of two hundred and eighty-six. I called out, "Anyone seen a life raft?" The reply was another unfamiliar voice but then my ears had been underwater for quite some time, he said, "No dude, it's been days." I glanced around and made sure the people I was with, Williams and Casius were still alive. There was a rumor of dolphins with us, but the portal sound they heard was what I saw come from some of the crew as the wave rolled under them; at the crest of the swell is when you slightly submerge and while in the troth it may as well be a swimming pool.

I was in and out of consciousness repeatedly for what I was told were days, it's as if once I woke my circulation increased and chilled me right back into a hypothermic sleep. The winds seemed relatively calm but the clouds seemed to be moving by at a hundred miles an hour, at least the winds weren't las.h.i.+ng the surface. Chatter started that we must be close to land, someone had seen a bird about three hours latter a voice cried out, "Land ho!" A roar rose from all the bodies interlaced upon the sea followed by the utterance, "you better not be f.u.c.king with us."

A voice called out, "Don't let go of each other yet...it's too far away; but kick that way!" The current must have been helping us, it was less than an hour later we could all hear the surf on the beach and we noticed bugs flying in the air.

As I stumbled onto the beach I realized never before had my land legs left me quite that bad, I crawled up the beach still dizzy from the ocean. I glanced back and sat down watching the remaining survivors make land fall. They rolled in with an explosion of cras.h.i.+ng waves behind them as if they were being swallowed up and vomited out upon the sh.o.r.e. I collapsed falling back onto the sand and looked at the sky and noticed it seemed to be early afternoon probably about ten in the morning.

Some of the survivors were so close to death as we landed they had swallowed enough sea water during intermittent black outs in the cras.h.i.+ng surf that they vomited up the ocean as it had vomited up them.

My nostrils burned from the sea water and I could smell the island fragrance, some sort of floral scent. The sand felt rough on my feet as I lay there with my knees up and on my back and I realized the sand must be hot. As I crawled up toward the rocks and brush I noticed some were headed back to the cool wet sand.

When I hung my coveralls out to dry I noticed my cigarettes were soaked, but the bag of sun flower seeds was unopened; those I would save. I had a tendency to wear pajama bottoms in place of underwear when I was in my coveralls this was true now as well. As my coveralls hung drying I lay on some rocks with some soft leaves and gra.s.ses spread a crossed it. The other survivors noticed and called out to me, "Is the sand hot up there?" I replied, "The sand is, but this rock is okay; I laid down some gra.s.s and leaves over it." We were from Everett Was.h.i.+ngton, sea lions sunbathing on rocks was a common enough sight, and that's what we became...sun bathing sea lions.

I was cold, wet, and exhausted as was everyone else, I knew we would have to find fresh parasite free drinking water very soon but as for now I needed sleep. I slept there with them huddled up until dusk and that's when I was wide awake. I noticed I had taken my boots back off in my sleep, I put them on and started fumbling through the deepening darkness looking for any signs of light and any path through the brush to the highest vantage point I could reach.

I remembered my survival training and discovered I must be delirious or just dehydrated, because I didn't get any survival training; I could however feel the cool air rising from some source of moisture. The moon light lit my path; the brush was heavy with only the occasional palm tree. I was hoping for coconut but found none. I decided I should sleep until morning but remembered I was searching for a light source, any indication of anyone else there or even a satellite phone or radio repeating station and I searched on.

I moved toward the moisture and noticed a clearing shaded from the moon light by trees and tall brush. As I moved into the clearing I stepped into what I had hoped was a fresh water pool, I put some on my lips... I narrated my thought saying to myself, "Bad news...salt water; Good news...no mosquitos; don't need to discover malaria." I had moved inland far enough to notice through the brush beyond the clearing there was a mountain ridge; that was the best vantage point.

I headed toward the hilly slopes always aware of certain island hazards, staph infection, malaria, snakes, I had even considered the possibility of poisons tree frogs. I made my way up the hillside digging into soft mud and clay, occasionally a rock would slip away and I realized given the size of the rocks one could slip while I am one it and I would likely break my neck surfing on a rock down a slope on a wave of mud. Once I reached the top I looked up, I had seen that night sky clear enough to see the milkyway far from any lights before under much more pleasant circ.u.mstances and I dwelled on those memories for a while until I started craving a hamburger, chili dog, and Ice cream float from my favorite burger joint.

I took a deep breath and sighed, navigating that hill I like was already aware of what I could yet admit to myself, and I looked down. From the vantage point of the hill I could see the entire island from sh.o.r.e to sh.o.r.e, some of the detail was lost in the darkness but that in itself was an unwelcome discovery, no lights at all. We were alone on some south pacific island and that was not where we had hoped to be. Heartbroken with a deep pain in my chest I laid down and went back to sleep, I'm sure I cried a little but I wouldn't admit that.

The following day I woke well after the sun rise and it was just starting to warm up, I stood up and looked at the island in the light; I couldn't see the survivors of the s.h.i.+p wreck crew, the ridge in that direction had enough tall brush that only the ocean was visible and none of the cras.h.i.+ng waves on the beach. It made me dizzy to see the whole world in a tea cup like that, and seemed odd to me that have sailed even in the heaviest of stormy seas I was dizzy being able to see the ocean in all directions. I headed back down the slippery muddy slope I had ascended the night before to make my way back to everyone else. The path I had taken was through mud and brush, the mud was easy enough to retrace my steps the brush wasn't impossible to figure out.

When I reached the clearing I had stepped into the night before I discovered it was a marshy tidal pool and I saw the rest of my path back to the beach front we landed on. I pushed through the brush and made me way to the ridge top, I could see them there wandering around in circles, starring out at the ocean, and ranting and raving both at each other and to themselves, though some looked as though they were speaking to imaginary people. I glanced down at my boots and noticed the mud, it was red and had streaks of white, it made me think of red bricks and in turn, a kiln...we would have to boil water to drink it, in fact we would have to evaporate the sea water and collect the steam and contain it until it condensed, typically washed ash.o.r.e we should expect to be on a three day clock for fresh water production or we die of dehydration. But, it seemed we were on the other clock, three days of waiting for the rescuers to show up, followed by the remainder of a two week period hoping they find us, and finally the last week of a three week period praying the s.h.i.+ps hoping to win the hero lottery hadn't given up yet. But in this case we'd been on the water without so much as a life raft for days, we were sent into those waters on a 'special mission' from a great distance away because no one normally operates in those waters.

I continued down the slope of the ridge and chief Pete saw me come out of the brush and noticed the mud on my boots, he came to me in a hastily and asked with his head down, standing to the side of me, and in a hush, "Who's here?" I replied, "I woke up in the middle of the night and found the highest point, there's no one here...no air strip, no radio tower or repeater, no helipad, and no lights. There were no s.h.i.+ps on the horizon this morning and no air traffic. No fresh water pond and I didn't see anything I recognize as edible." Chief Pete's eyes went wide and he teared up a little. He asked, "Are you sure?" I replied, "The island isn't that big, maybe a mile...mile and half long, quarter mile wide." He was choked up when he uttered, "We heard a bunch of people in the bushes last night...don't tell anyone." then he walked over and spoke with chief Brosuer. Chief Brosuer covered his eyes then slid has down over his mouth to his chin and I read his lips as he said, "I want to see this highest point" Chief Pete looked over at me and said, "Which way?" I pointed and said, "My path is noticeable; be careful on the mountain slope." and they headed off in that direction. As they left chief Brosuer looked over at me and said get someone to start collecting firewood, and I nodded saying, "Alright". Some of the others saw him call that out and about twenty people headed out searching for fire wood. I headed along the brush line collecting wood and looking for a good place for the fire.

Captain Artimus called out, "We have to stay here; this is where the currents put us and where they will be looking." One of the female called out back to him, "We're collecting firewood sir."

As I collected the firewood, dry gra.s.ses, and bark chips I came up a rock face completely vertical with dirt rather than sand at the bottom, the best spot for a warming and cooking fire I had found, the signal fire would have to be more conspicuous.

When I returned Captain Artimus was having a group of sailors build him a lean-to, one of them STG3 Trooks was arguing with him, "Why the h.e.l.l am I doing this for you!?"

Artimus responded angrily, "Because I'm an officer and your captain" Trooks responded, "Your s.h.i.+p captain is at the bottom of the ocean, as is your command, and you are probably the only captain to have lost his s.h.i.+p in the navy in a hundred years!"

En3 Justina Mier was helping Trooks build the lean-to and interjected, "Pearl Harbor wasn't a hundred years ago...let's just get this done." Ebony Allick added, "Still lost his s.h.i.+p..." To which the Captain snapped, "Thank you, I almost forgot!"

Allick replied, "No you didn't...but those guys over there starring at the water are in denial. They askin''who you think stole the s.h.i.+p?'" Artimus looked over just in time to see GSM1 James Hudlow say, "I think it was the Chinese...Iraq couldn't do it."

Artimus glanced down at her and said with a tone of concern and remorse, "They may have a fever..." Ebony retorted, "All I know is they is first cla.s.ses and they never do anything." Artimus attempted to console her by saying, "Well, they did." Justina interjected, "Then why are we here...if they're so G.o.d d.a.m.n good, then why are we here?" Artimus replied, "Just stay busy...okay?" Justina replied, "Yep."

I saw bad things coming in that, so I walked over in my pajama pants and white tee s.h.i.+rt to see if my coveralls had dried.

The bottoms of the legs were still wet but I wrung them out and put them on. Then I headed back into the brush and over the ridge, looking for another site should things go bad, or for when thing go bad. I glance through the trees at the end of the clearing and saw Brosuer and Pete at the top of the hill. Chief Pete looked like he was smelling something in the air and Brosuer was standing with his arms folded. I decided to avoid them seeing me and realized I needed to cover my trail. I headed over to the other beach to follow the coast line, maybe something of use had washed ash.o.r.e. We needed a high volume of fresh water right away. Our s.h.i.+p, in its day, had reverse osmosis desalination plants...just a high pressure filter, the older s.h.i.+ps however had evaporative condensers and those we had schooling on as well. I walked to the coast of the island far and away from our landing site and found it was much rockier where I emerged, but no signs of any debris...not so much as an empty plastic bottle to hold any water I might find or find a way to purify.

Further along the sh.o.r.eline the rocks stopped and back to soft, but hot sand. I looked up to the hill top and noticed the chief's had left their vantage point. There on that hillside was the red clay I had on my boots, I don't know if the white streak was peat moss or just volcanic clay but in any case it was all I had as a building material and I would have to test it. I walked up to the hillside glancing around for anything worth noticing...still no s.h.i.+ps or aircraft, the palm trees were surprisingly tall and there were tall reeds near the sh.o.r.e at the western tip, at least western was my best guess given the position of the sun and I needed a sense of direction to find the spots again. With that observation I realized I would need a sun dial, I decided I would find a relatively straight stick as long as possible and plant it up right in the dirt and mark the ground for the hour, if I could remember the celestial navigation I learned on my first s.h.i.+p I would have a better sense of where we were.

Once I had reached the clay I dropped to my knees, it was time to get dirty. I clawed at the soft clay with my hands, sticks, and rocks forming clay bricks and got them ready to be carried down to a more suitable location to try and burn those bricks solid, on point of humility I didn't want anyone to observe my attempt, so I moved them down near the reeds I noticed earlier. I was there all day moving those bricks and bringing scoops of clay in the hopes of making a chamber to boil water in, it would need to have a spout and the main opening would have to be sealable either with wood or a clay lid.

I dug out a trench to put the fire in with rocks and a large chunk of wood that must have once been a trunk of a bush and rocks. I took a palm and pulled white feathery material out of it, it was much like thread and wound it together. That gave me a small piece of string I was planning on binding wood together building a lattice over the trench to burn the bricks, but the string would take forever to make and only had a chance of surviving the heat if it were coated in the clay; so that I set aside.

Back at the landing site they had built five lean-tos and circled them like pioneering wagons, some were calling it 'The Pentagon'. Near the surf they had removed their tee-s.h.i.+rts and were attempting to reduce the amount of salt in the water by sucking it out of their s.h.i.+rts. Linda, our corpsman was explaining they might be better off drinking each other's urine.

The command master chief actually survived the ordeal, a shock to everyone, they kept asking him if he was a ghost and telling him he could go into the light, he was forty eight years old, but there amongst the twenty something's and early thirties in the case of the other chiefs he was taken as a sixty year old. The swim left him pale and he had lost his gla.s.ses so he stumbled through the sand with his arms extended cursing everyone and everything that had the misfortune to cross his path.

In the center of the circle of lean-tos was a pile of wood and about sixteen people trying to start a fire by smas.h.i.+ng rocks together and rubbing sticks together. BM3 Tim Brock was rubbing sticks together and said, "It just won't start." Artimus said, "It's all we have all the cigarette lighters are water logged."

GSE3 Gabriel Noson said, "If I had a battery and some steel wool I could start it." They were desperate for fire they attempted every method and old wives tale to start a fire. The 'ghost' found his gla.s.ses in his pocket were he placed them while floating in the chain of s.h.i.+p wreck survivors, they were a little bent but serviceable so he tried to focus the sun light on dry gra.s.ses. One of the former crew members now a castaway egged him on, "You can do it, just put those things back on and stare at it real mean like!" The master chief just kept asking, "Has it started yet?" occasionally adding, "I can't see a d.a.m.n thing."

There were some that had given up and were cooling themselves in the surf, sitting with their legs spread for the waves to wash over them, amongst them were Tammy Melad, Mich.e.l.le Syre, and Jessica Haydel, when a wave crashed over their knees and a crossed their chest they would cry out, "Oh...Yes! That's cold!"

The quest for fire became a Neanderthal endeavor; its futility was matched only by its absurdity. Gunner's mate Smity had been a gunner's mate guns petty officer second cla.s.s for three years and a navy sailor for a total of eight years, he ran like a frantic five year old into the ocean yelling, "I can't believe we can't even start a camp fire!!" Hudlow saw this demonstration of fatigue and disbelief and said, "I can start a camp fire..." he strolled over to the 'pentagon' kneeled down with some dry leaves and gra.s.s and said, "Behold! Fire!" as everyone cheered and stepped back he produced a cigarette lighter from his pocket, a nice silver zippo refillable lighter and struck its thumb wheel...and struck it again, and again. Hauldbalm fumbled putting his gla.s.ses back on and said, "well we got that started..." after his gla.s.ses were on he noticed the zippo lighter and commented, "Fire huh?...that one would have more water in it than these plastic ones." Hudlow looked up surprised at the handful of lighters the master chief was holding and said, "I didn't know you had lighters" Everyone there in that circle sat back in defeat and disillusionment as they watched Jim Hudlow try all the lighters again. Seeing him fail repeatedly took all their hope, and they wander off along the beach to huddle up with each other. The whole day had been spent trying to start a fire and now dusk was approaching and the winds picked up chilling everyone on the beach.

I had finished making clay bricks and realized a kiln would require too much time and fresh water was needed immediately, I had no idea why I wasn't already dying of thirst, so the bricks would be used for a firebox and a ceramic boiler was my goal. I had also finished the bottom half of the boiler it would probably hold three gallons. I searched my pockets for my cigarette lighter and tried to strike it, to no avail. I then held it to my ear to listen for any hissing butane from it and there was no sound.

The sun would be setting soon and I needed fire, when I held up the red plastic lighter and looked through it I noticed particles floating in the fluid, it had filled with sea water. I looked around and grabbed a couple of sticks and tried rubbing them together and I laughed saying to myself, "Well...no lighter, but I still have my shoe laces! haha." I pulled out a shoe lace and tied the ends to the ends of a somewhat flexible stick and then searched for the driest wood I could find. I took the bow I had made and wrapped the string around a dry stick and placed the tip on a dry piece of wood and surrounded the tip with dry gra.s.s; holding the top of the stick with a rock and with the tip on the dry wood, surrounded by kindling, I used the bow to spin the stick, working up the heat with quick movements.

It had been about an hour and had grown dim, embers started to form in the kindling. I hushed at it with whispering breathe without stopping. As a small flame started I threw more kindling on the small flame. I scooped up the small fire with a piece of palm from the palm trees and my hands and placed it on the kindling in the trench. The fire grew just as the sun set then I settled near the fire putting my shoe lace back in. I was concerned about spiders and snakes and thought I should sleep somehow elevated up the ground...this area was not the sand of the beach, but a dirty mud pit I had been digging in all day.

Small black birds were darting around the fire and some sort of moths were there too, I found that comforting until I realized those were bats. I heard rustling in the brush and thought I saw dark eyes peering at me for a moment. I thought of how I didn't want to other survivors seeing my attempt to build an evaporative desalination system, and how embarra.s.sed I would be if it were just a fool's folly. Many times I had seen smart guys on the navy s.h.i.+ps lose their social creditability over an impulse or bad idea and the ridicule it solicited, I had managed to avoid that throughout my time at sea, and now as a castaway 's.h.i.+pwreck' I was definitely going to avoid falling prey to that nightmare. I laid there starring at the moon, trying not to think of anything, focusing on the tasks at hand; fresh water, shelter, food. It's do or die time.

At the landing they were huddled in the darkness moving to and from small groups huddled together like cat burglars.

Artimus and Mormus were closer to the surf so the cras.h.i.+ng waves would drown out their voices. They could be seen in the moonlight and most of what they had to talk about was how beautiful the horizon looked as it seemed to mingle with the sky, the perfumed aroma of the island now seemed to have a sandal wood like accent to it, which was actually due to my fire on the other end of the island.

Artimus said, "This would make a good spot for a club med." Mormus smiled and starred at the horizon, it had been in his training to keep spirits up...even his own, and over the years he learned that it was a simple matter of re-contextualizing the circ.u.mstances. He replied, "It may be yet, Dave." Artimus yawned and said, "We need to maintain order until all this sinks in with the crew, a rescue might take a month." Mormus laughed and replied, "A month at club med is what I need! But, I'd like to see some rain...might even dance in it or drink it right out of the sky." Artimus laughed, and added, "The one thing I am sure of is fresh water will be here before the fleet. haha" The captains comment was taken with good cheer, for a simple reason; history, should it actually be written is dependent upon survivors to write it, there was no point in contemplating failure in a survival critical category, if you fail you die.

Ebony Allick had been the last helmsmen to stand watch aboard the s.h.i.+p and she feared an interrogation, she hung back and away from the crew sleeping in the brush. The Pentagon had the chiefs and Junior officers sitting around speculating as to where in the world we had ended up and how long it would take to be found; after all the mission failure would require some other unit to attempt it. Just under a palm tree rested Frances...o...b..llium and Monica Villa they were nestled together for a cold night. They whispered in each other's ears promises and rea.s.surances, they would stick together no matter what may come. Charlie Mcree slept with a rock in one hand and a stick in the other, she was prepared to lash out at anything that may come for her. Eric Milson and Philip Doary slept back to back to share their warmth. They entire crews list rested in these fas.h.i.+ons spread across the beach, they stumbled about going to each other for comfort, some walked in their sleep and cuddled up to another only to fall back to sleep and have that partner get up and walk to someone else.

I woke as my fire began to die and the heat it afforded began to dissipate, I tossed in more kindling and watched the flame spring back to life and tossed in more wood. There in the fire light I examined the bowl shaped bottom of the boiler and the bricks checking for cracks and tapping a rock on them to test for hardness, earlier when the fire was larger those clay pieces were engulfed in flame. The shock I had been through offset my sense of isolation, it felt better to be alone while I came to terms with the circ.u.mstances. I was far enough from the surf that its sound was not as deafening as it had been before and I no longer felt dizzy. I lacked the comfort of a blanket and looked at the piece of string I had made earlier and wondered just how long it would take to make a blanket. I checked the fire and decided to try to go back to sleep.

The next morning the fire was still burning and the winds were dying down, I checked the bowl and bricks, some of the bricks had chipped and crack but would still be useful the bowl that would be the bottom half of the boiler was intact, I formed it with great concern for the possibility of it cracking. It was still hot so I picked it up with sticks and used a sock I had drenched with water to cool it and check if the clay would just rub off, fortunately it didn't. I formed the top half to have a spout with a neck; I didn't think I could pull off using a coil; I just wasn't experienced enough with the clay. Once it set it on the somewhat burnt lattice I had built I went to collect more wood, and tossed it into the fire, I didn't have to go far the brush seemed to have been drying, winter had just ended in Everett, but we had gone south of the equator here summer was just ending.

The rest of the survivors were laid out still recovering and exhausted from a night of hide and seek. The chief petty officers attempted to hold a formal quarters and daily muster; it was pointed out that reporting to your a.s.signed s.p.a.ce for work wasn't going to happen because no one can hold their breath that long or swim that far. The arguments in sued.

Chief Brosuer said, "Hey...! Guys...I need to take muster, we need to know if we lost anyone." EN3 Gruble and EN3 Mier rushed up and said, "Mier and Gruble reporting for duty, oh and f.u.c.k you for losing the s.h.i.+p." and they walked off. Hauldbalm said, "We need to get things going...like a fire for example, so we can keep things going." Williams yelled out, "I can't f.u.c.king believe you guys! Take a head count we aren't playing any more games." Chief Dotz said, "d.a.m.n it, we're still in charge!" FC1 Forester said, "The h.e.l.l you are. I'm with them." Atrisia Wells interjected, "You f.u.c.king r.e.t.a.r.ds stay in the pentagon we'll take a head count and..." Hauldbalm interjected, "Who's going to start the fire, who's going to find food, who's going to find water..? That's what you ..." Atrisia interjected, "...it sure as h.e.l.l isn't going to be any of you! So shut the f.u.c.k up!" The chiefs started looking around for the captain and found him still asleep near the surf with the X.O. Chief Casley nuddged him and said, "Captain...Captain, they won't do what we tell them sir." Artimus rolled over as he said, "Tell your mother; I'm sleeping." he then realized his face was in sand and blurted out, "Hold on...what did you say?"

I started piling the bricks and s.p.a.ckling it with clay to form the firebox and set the bowl into the center, it fit nicely so I was able to s.p.a.ckle the gaps in the corners easily. I knew the burnt wood would serve well as charcoal and burn longer, hotter, and cleaner than the wood but to keep it dry I would have to wrap it in paper. Fortunately in Seattle crafts like these had become a fad, soap making, clay working, and even paper making had been featured at Pike's Place market, small kits were sold from a book store there. So, on to making paper, as I looked for suitable plant materials to mill down into pulp and screen dry with my tee-s.h.i.+rt I realized If I found a long enough hollow stick I could make bellows out of paper to fan the fire in the fire box.

After I had gathered my additional materials I took a step back and looked at what was so far my best hope for survival. It was over whelming beautiful to me, it looked exactly right and I thought to myself, "Did I really build that?" Then I touched my bottom lip with my index finger to check for Moisture, maybe dehydration was already getting to me. The boiler had a quality to it dark burnish red bowl with a groove on top to receive the other half, nice round sloping contour to the now red clay s.p.a.ckled fire box, it could have pa.s.sed for a lawn ornament or fountain at a hardware store. I glanced over at the top half still burning on the lattice and thought, "I may not die after all."

I walked back to the clearing toward the ridge to check on everyone else and what progress they had made, and I heard angry yelling. Once I reached the ridge I peered through the trees to the group on the beach. They were wrestling and shoving each other. The only words I was able to make out were yelled with a tone of disbelief and anger, "Captain's mast...?

Where is his s.h.i.+p?!...Captain of what, there s.h.i.+p wreck!!??" I watched for a while trying to determine what groups had formed out of this and felt thirst kick in hard, it seems it was hotter on this side of the island the breeze was not on us at all. Realizing that for the first time I had heard the term 's.h.i.+pmate' mocked as 's.h.i.+p wreck' in a now completely accurate way, I stumbled back to my work.

The arguing continued Tom Norrie paced back in forth at the sh.o.r.eline examining the rougher sand, metallic looking sh.e.l.l fragments caught his eye. Hudlow stood watching him and commented, "I think he's looking for his virginity." Mr. Capes found a straight stick about an inch wide and a foot and a half long and started carrying it as though it were a Billie club.

Clarkson sat next to her roommate Spayner seeking comfort and an answer as to what to do without any feminine hygiene products to which Joanna Spayner replied, "Oh ya those and you know... food, water, eventually clothes, ya the little things."

Clarkson asked, "Why can't you just be good to me?" Spayner replied, "Why would you say that dear?" Clarkson deemed that to be mockery Joanna was not her mother and it seemed they traded of roles when these things came up.

Atrisia paced back and forth through the sand enraged to the point of tears, this was another example of a behavior Artimus knew they should not be aware he had noticed, without a reaction from him it either becomes a personal understanding of familiarity between them or it is legitimized by his acceptance or silence. Artimus strolled down the sh.o.r.eline to give them time to calm down and realized the pentagon didn't afford privacy to either of them and he would need something more substantial than a lean-to on the beach. Artimus then grabbed a tee-s.h.i.+rt from the pile of 'drinking cloth's' and got it wet it in ocean and sucked some water out of it.

It was still day light and the top half of the boiler casing was visibly inspectable unlike the bottom half that had been 'cooked' overnight. I told myself it didn't have to be perfect, just hardened on the surfaces and free of cracks. I decided to pull it off the lattice, I was very careful with the bottom half and that was just a large bowl, this half had an elongated neck forming a spout and I would have to be even more careful. Once I pulled it down I left it to cool and fetched more clay to form some deep cups to catch the water as a receptacle, as I got the clay I noticed animal tracks in the mud and said to myself, "Somewhere around here there's a cheeseburger running around." I had been up since early in the morning it felt like three or four hours had pa.s.sed and it seemed to be ten in the morning I thought I had slept in but must have awoken just a half hour after dawn. The sun would be high soon and I wouldn't want to be hanging out fireside, so after I formed a couple of vases and deep bowls I made sure the fire had enough wood and headed up to the hill top for another 'look-see.'

I scanned the ocean for any signs of s.h.i.+ps and the skies for any aircraft and there was nothing, as I looked to the sky I asked myself, "If the rumor of reprogramming a satellite was true why wouldn't they have sent an aircraft?" and then I remember Artimus and his reputation. I had handled the road closures due to snow, it was more high profile than I wanted it to be but he was seeking some credit, any kind of clout at all. He must have needed this mission to offset the holy h.e.l.l he brought down on us by making such a big deal of the legal technicalities of utilizing public and private resources as the military, calling it martial law. For all I know the U.S. Navy attacked and sunk us in some d.a.m.n political game.

Mr. Mormus was struggling to keep a positive context in his perceptions as dehydration really took hold, this was not a club med situation. He tried to recall what he was doing in his last moments before the loss of the s.h.i.+p but could only recall making sure he grabbed his hat as he left his stateroom. Now he thought, "How absurd...I needed my hat didn't I? It's lost at sea somewhere but in this disaster the one thing I must be sure to grab in the last minute is my hat?" He stood there looking bewildered and was noticed by EM1 Haydel, she made a point of walking past him in his confusion and uttered as she pa.s.sed, "I see I'm not the only one that's forgotten what my tongue tastes like." which only further confounded him. He said to himself as she walked away, "No I was...my hat? my hat??" He looked around and said, "I was...there was...I was thinking..."

EW3 Dannette Ramsley was with her boyfriend Dale, they had taken to hiding together in the shade so as not to be noticed, as did Francesco and Monica they had each other and this concealment resulted in their being more hydrated than the others, so long as they were with their partner they were where they should be. Everyone else seemed to be driven to find something or get somewhere, though it seemed only a few had a drive to do something. Dannette struck a coy demeanor which was unlike her she tended to want to prove she was a party girl and was definitely involved in any work or action that was going on. She asked dale as she leaned over with her head toward his shoulder, "So where are going to build our house?" and she gleamed a smile that brought a brightness to her face. Dale responded short of breath from the lack of food and water, "Texas" She laughed and caressed his hair and said, "I think we may need one here for a week or two, you know a vacation home." Dale's vision was blurred and he pointed right out at the center of the beach and said, "There." Danette noticed his condition and said, "I'll get you some water." and she grabbed his tee s.h.i.+rt they had been using as a sponge and went to the surf to wet it.

Monica was resting in Francesco's arms beneath the shade of a small lean-to he had made far away from the pentagon against a tree. As she napped in his arms Francesco spoke of making a fis.h.i.+ng pole to get some fish and finding a lighter that still worked to start a fire for them. Francesco said, "When your awake I'll start making a fis.h.i.+ng pole and wade into the water, we might be able to get clean water out of one of these trees.

It'll be okay, then they'll rescue us and we never set to sea again. We'll move to the desert." Monica interjected, "Not the desert...a lake"

Hauldbalm was doing his ghost bit again, stumbling around tripping in the sand and Charlie Mcree took pity on him taking him by the arm and guiding him to the shade saying, "C'mon master chief" Hauldbalm asked with a dry high pitched raspy voice, "Any chance of milk in those things?" Charlie smacked his b.u.t.t and said, "Not yet." Hauldbalm laughed but sounded as though he were coughing up his dying breath. Dave Artimus one time captain of a destroyer and now the senior officer of a beach collapsed near a young mess specialist and asked, "What's for lunch?" MS3 Wildly ran his fingers through his blonde hair and said in a hush, "There's the choice of boot leather or seaman recruit." Dave put his arm around Robert Wildly and whispered right against his cheek, "Don't even joke about that." A chill shot down Wildly's back.

Mitch Hackel was with the gym room crowd, Tinnel, Washam, Candelia, and Nuema was sticking close to them as well. They decided to dig a trench to filter the water through the sand, once they started digging Hudlow further down the beach also started digging saying, "Mine doesn't need a mote it'll be bigger with a tower." FC1 Forester figured 'what the h.e.l.l, why not' and joined Hudlow making sand castles.

As Hudlow dug he suddenly yelled out, "uh, uh huh...ooow ooow!" James Hudlow had made a discovery...it was a sand spider. He stumbled around scratching at his buzz cut hair kicking sand and uttering bizarre sounds. Forester had been bent over making his sand castle, he stood up and pushed his gla.s.ses up to his face and looked on in astonishment. As Hudlow continued the sandy beach version of the 'I saw a spider and am freaked out' dance, Forester looked around to see if anyone else had a reaction and no one did. So, forester shook his head and went back to building a sand castle calling over to Hudlow, "I think mine will have a mote." Hudlow hoped around on one foot and then the other losing his balance but managed to reply, "Mine too."

Tammy Melad saw the sand castle endeavors and the trench and she was staying close to Michele Syre. Michele was sweet and tammy was coy they were a perfect tease when it came to the older guys, they had given up their tee-s.h.i.+rts for the attempt to reduce the salt content by using them as Drinking cloth and they only had a couple of b.u.t.tons done on their dungaree s.h.i.+rts. They were supple young women, both blonde and buxom, they considered tearing there dungaree pants down to shorts and the guys were tempted to just let them, but there was no telling what weather they may need to endure or when rescue might occur; so they rolled up the bottom of their pant legs to about knee height. They strolled down the beach fleeing leering looks and keeping distracted by talking about music and movies.

Athena Williams was also quite the looker she stuck close to Amber Alley. They had also surrendered their tee-s.h.i.+rts, but instead of rolling up there pant legs the hiked up their s.h.i.+rts and tied off the tails, their s.h.i.+rts would fall open in the front revealing their bra's but it was a warm pleasant beach and everyone was conserving energy, perhaps only until the next night of hide and seek which up until now had been a search for a sense of security from a trusted s.h.i.+pmate...turned s.h.i.+p wreck.

It was Tammy and Michele that had set the mood with their stroll and it moved through the survivors like an electric pulse.

The men started gathering soft plant materials for beds and were shooting grins at the women as they made their nests, this was true of all of them with the exception of most of the married men. Athena shouted over to someone that had glanced her way, "You guys are getting' any!" Amber added, "We can make beds ourselves...you want to see something, then start a d.a.m.n fire!"

The heat exhaustion had taken its toll so most of the guys just sort of fell back on their beddings. EM3 Eric Hubart laughed and called out, "It's too hot we'll get it going after the sun starts to set." Amber pushed up on her b.r.e.a.s.t.s and did a twisting motion at the hips as she sat there next to Athena and said, "Okay...no fire, no play."

Michele strolled over to amber and asked, "Are you really whoring us out for fire?" Amber replied, "It's just a motivator, their near dead from heat exhaustion anyways." Linda Hays was laying on her back with a palm branch over her face and interjected, "Dehydration, this is dehydration." Amber looked over concerned for Linda and said, "Okay, that then."

It was somewhere between two and three in the afternoon my watch was a casio databank watch and despite my love of it, it had succ.u.mbed to the depths when the great whale Paul f Foster found her resting place, and it was just as full of water as were our lighters. I had set the top of the boilers on and checked it for a good mating seal, it was far from perfect. I used handfuls of sand to grind down the imperfections until I had a reasonable match. I considered joining the two halves with clay but thankfully came to my senses I still needed to be able to put the sea water in it and clean out residual salt afterward, I figured I could make a lip for one or the other halves but my need for fresh water was urgent. I checked the deep cups and vases I made and decided they were well enough. I choose the most misshapen of the vases to carry sea water to the boiler, I made sure the vent openings in the firebox were clear and making a bellows out of paper to stoke the firebox would have to wait.

The s.p.a.ckle on the fire box seemed dry and the small opening I left to insert wood was un.o.bstructed; I had an extra brick I should have given a handle to, to block off the wood opening. I inserted the tinder and wood and added more tinder on top. Then I took the vase I selected and fetched some sea water, it was low tide so I was only slightly battered by trying to carry a vase into and then out of the surf. I made two trips and all the liquid was held by the boiler and vase without any leakage or softening of the clay. The fire in the trench was low and had smoldering edges, I strung dry gra.s.s around a stick and used it to carry the fire over to the boiler and lite the firebox wood. The air flow seemed insufficient so I tapped at the vent port I had left in the lower side, yet another problem to deal with after I had fresh water.

I sat watching the fire kneeled down with my face nearly to the ground, peering in. The flame was catching well and spreading through the wood but there was no sizzle or popping yet, I sat watching. They say a watched pot never boils I guess I'd find out. I placed the vase to receive fresh water at the base of the nozzle propped up on some wood. Then I sat back and hoped for the best watching the flicker of flame in the box.

I knew there would be next to no pressure and shaped the bowl so that the water should boil quickly, if I could just get it to steam I would know what I was working with. So heeding the old parable I listened for the popping and sizzling in the wood to start that would rea.s.sure me the fire had taken hold and would not be smothered by the now growing smoke, I ventured up the hillside to the peak again. The smoke was carried out well by the vent holes and it was a light smoke at that, though not visible for very long its smell was reminiscent of the smell of sandal wood incense. The peak of the hill that appeared to be a mountain from certain viewpoints felt as though it were under a magnifying gla.s.s under the sun, the water reflected the sun light, there were only a few clouds and it couldn't be any later than three p.m. I scanned the horizon and skies for s.h.i.+ps or aircraft and there was nothing, not even a high alt.i.tude pa.s.sing commercial air craft.

Chief Brosuer walked up to master chief Hauldbalm and STG2 Mcree and said, "Him really?" Charlie Mcree looked at him odd and said, "Well he's older, but he'll be alright." Brosuer scoffed with a hiss and Hauldbalm said, "She has no idea what you mean, and I better not have the right idea." Brosuer scratched his head and asked Mcree, "Do you like long romantic walks on the beach?" and he smiled. Charlie smiled back and then realizing what he originally meant turned pale and said, "Oh...I wasn't...he and I aren't...ah" and then giggled Brosuer said, "I'll let you think about it." then stumbled off and fell flat on his face in the sand which appeared to be a melodramatic performance. Mcree stretched her neck to see if he was still alive. Hauldbalm asked, "Is he okay?" she responded, "umm...He still breathing."

Atrisia was standing in the surf to cool off, with little water in their systems their sensitivity to heat had increased; it may have been as hot as eighty-six degrees Fahrenheit. She walked up as the cras.h.i.+ng waves came in and then standing in the wet sand, watched and felt the water recedding pulling sand over her toes, up the arch of her foot and cradling her heels. She wiggled her toes revealing them from beneath the sand exposing her French pedicured nails, she arched her back and deeply inhaled, stretching her arms then running them through her tight curly blonde hair, and with a couple of twisting movements to relax her lower back she noticed everyone was watching her and she blushed, with that blush Ebony Allick sitting about twenty yards away let out a soft moan, it was then that Atrisia realized they were stranded on an island for G.o.d knows how long with only the clothes they were wearing and she was wearing Tweety bird panties.

Scott Tinnel noticed the trend so he took his coveralls down to his waist tying them off with the sleeves; he had already given up his tee-s.h.i.+rt as well to the pile of drinking cloths. Scott walked out to the water and took a couple of handfuls and slowly caressed his well sculpted abs and putting both his hands behind his head, he flexed his biceps and leaned back throwing his legs further apart and also did a twisting motion loosening his lower back. Charlie Mcree seeing this started drooling, which was a remarkable accomplishment amongst so many dehydrated sailors, cast a sh.o.r.e in whereabouts unknown.

Becky Clarkson and Joanna Spayner had joined the corpsman lying under a palm tree with a palm over their faces.

They had taken off their shoes and socks to dry and there was a definite odor, they had hiked up their pant legs and loosened their belts slipping their pants down slightly and I pulled up their s.h.i.+rts, they did still have their tee-s.h.i.+rts and Becky hadn't shaved her legs in a week. The sight of that reminded many of the women another thing that was in store for them. Atrisia had gone over to the pentagon to check for progress as if there would be a computer or console of some kind she could check, once there she starred at the wood pile trying to figure out how to lite a fire. Ebony was laying on her stomach twisted at the hip and now looking at Ensign Clarkson's hairy legs and letting out an occasional, "uh huh" with a slight laugh to it.

As it grow later a cool humidity moved over the island and we were relieved of our nagging thirst though still in need of water. It was a sudden change and many of the plants visibly perked up, some flower blooms a yellow orchid looking 'thing' opened all a crossed the island, and a floral scent wafted over us all. There were only a few streakes of white clouds in the sky of the stratus type, no real danger of rain. Between the sudden moisture alerting the former crew to the need to be able to catch rain water and the fresh floral scent causing them to inhaled deeply through the nose leading them to the discovery of body odor, they started milling about all on the same task but in total silence. They needed to catch any rain water.

I stood up on the hilltop and uttered, "Cistern" We needed a cistern to hold the purified water and catch rain water that would prevent contamination, we didn't need any parasites. I wandered back down to the boiler, and there it was about two cups of fresh water in the vase, it dripped down as condensate. I used a small reed that had aged and hollowed as a straw and drank some, no salt taste at all! I had started this project away from the others to avoid embarra.s.sment should it fail, now I had to make sure it was going to stay reliable and make sure the water in the boiling bowl was completely evaporated or at least mostly. It seemed to be near five O'clock and I was tired of all this guessing, I needed a sun dial, a compa.s.s, a shelter, and three more boilers to cover water rations for the 's.h.i.+p wrecks', I also needed a fis.h.i.+ng net and spear and at least a fallen tree to fish from, and there was one last thing I needed...a d.a.m.n rescue plane or s.h.i.+p.

Chapter Five.

'Jupiter' the rise of Chaos Without a foreseeable rescue and with no reasonable expectation of rescue we knew we were trapped, fated to be consumed into the life cycle of this island. Hope was neither lost nor discovered it just wasn't considered.

Artimus stood starring into the turbulence of the sea and saw utter chaos; he had lost control of everything, all the plat.i.tudes and gratuities were now hollow and meaningless this was his summation; this abject failure was his mantle. They had flattered him so often he came to expect it, the respect he demanded from men working in the trenches, no longer deserved...he had betrayed everything and everyone with his failure. He stood being deafened by the cras.h.i.+ng waves trying to find a way out of the disgrace that found him. His crew took their chances just like everyone else but visions of his wife led to visions of their families, wives, children, and worse their parents. From his dehydration and fatigue images that were absurd sprung forth, the Forestall fire and its captain, the Thresher and its captain, the Challenger and the seven astronauts lost because an O-ring failed.

Mr. Mormus was his only peer; the master chief was actually significantly older and had more scars. Mormus had pa.s.sed out over an hour ago, and by Captain Artimus's reasoning would not live to see the morning. As the sunset he was haunted by an image in the corner of his eye, bodies wrapped in sea weed washed ash.o.r.e. But all the crew had survived, who were they? Was it a vision of the future? He was afraid to look, he was educated and knew it was possible to hallucinate such things under these conditions, but he also knew it were possible to be so delirious that the shock of the sight of such a thing could block out the ability to recognize what he was looking at. He could a.s.sess himself, he could barely breath. He could only stand there lost in despair and continue to will his heart to beat.

Hauldbalm had allowed his age to meter his efforts and despite being older and of a slender build he was still well, the older officers were at a critical point of age, they did not slow themselves down having experienced a degree of frailty, they pushed on well past the safe limits of their bodies. For the master chief just having gone to sleep helped slowdown his system and helped him endure, nothing had been accomplished and yet a potentially fatal over exertion had occurred for Mormus and Artimus, not exactly the poetic meaning of wisdom but a very real meaning none the less.

As the sun started to set Forester and Hudlow were safely tucked into their sand castles which had dry motes. The captain strolled back to the pentagon and measure off lines to build some walls, so he would not be thought to have witnessed behaviors forcing him to interject himself or to be seen as condoning the behaviors. Athena Williams and Amber Alley lay buried in the sand wiggling their toes and playing I-spy. Ens.

Swishzel was treading water just beyond the cras.h.i.+ng waves and Ens. Lees was struggling to make a cross tying two sticks together with twine he had had from gra.s.s. Hauldbalm had played the old man role and rolled over lying next to Charlie Mcree resting his hand on her breast 'accidentally' pretending to be asleep, Charlie rea.s.sured herself by saying, "At least I'm not a chubby chaser." Haydel was sticking close to the survivors of her shop, the only girl surrounded by guys. Monica Villa had staked her territory with Francesco and they were waiting for 'what goes b.u.mp in the night'. Atrisia was trying to figure out how to conceal the cartoon character on her panties, while Jeremy Washam, Mitch Hackel, and Scott Tinnel, all lay peeking through squinted eye lids to watch. Scott Strut and Chris Gillis were driving themselves hoa.r.s.e in the voice with an unending argument about who was supposed to pump out the bilge. Elpers, Gruble, River, Ricky, and Rich were trying to use the lighter flints to start a fire by smas.h.i.+ng them in between rocks lined with tinder. And I was waiting on water to boil once again.

I needed one of the vases to be at least half full before I took it over to the landing. I noticed the floral scent and thought I must have been near death; I could smell that before I drank some fresh water. I would need to hurry so the other survivors wouldn't die before I got them the water rations. I walked over to the ridge at a hasty pace; the clearing was all wet again the tide must be up. I reached the ridge and noticed it was just after sunset with a beautiful glow just above the western horizon, and noticing that I realized my sense of east and west were reversed, I had been working on the eastern side of the island and the landing was on the western side. The sudden cool humidity that had washed over the island revitalized me more so than the few sips of fresh water I had gotten out of the vase. It had also revitalized the rest of our former crew.

They were arguing over exactly who's stupidity was why they couldn't start a fire, it was contagious they had observed Hudlow calling out 'behold fire' only to watch him repeatedly fail which robbed them of their confidence and hope, they had seen all the members of auxiliary division cover a rock with dry plant material then take a flint out of a lighter and smash it with another rock proving the definition of futility to everyone, they had seen people with gla.s.ses try to focus sun light to create a fire and noticed those people with their gla.s.ses off can't see how focused the light was, like a blind person trying to invent a light bulb; the fact that they didn't trust anyone else with their gla.s.ses was understandable after all they were apparently blind without them.

The night game of playing hide and seek seemed to have s.e.xual promise tonight until frustration set in. The cool air relieved everyone of great distress and gave a reprieve to lose collapsing due to the lack of food and water, but the second wind they achieved was their one last chance to get back on the ball and claim their own survival from nature. Atrisia yelled into the crowd of people working on starting a fire, "You Tennessee boy scouts should know how to start a fire!" Dipree responded, "Then don't look at me I'm from New York." Everyone looked over at Dipree and Atrisia said, "That's exactly what I am talking about...New York. I'm dead serious when I say, Tennessee, Arkansas, Georgia ...you d.a.m.n guys should absolutely know how to do this!" Linscoe asked, "What about you?" Atrisia replied, "I'm a girl." Ens. Swishzel back from his swim coughed out the phrase, "Thank you for pointing that out."

Athena said, "Well you can't do those things either!" Atrisia said, "I'm being honest...and honestly I don't even know what those things are." Haydel laughed and said, "Then you'll probably find out tonight." Chief Casius said, "I can't believe that you would even suggest that under these circ.u.mstances."