The Little Glass Bottle

The clear blue ocean is as long as the eye could ever possibly hope to see. The ocean, deeper than any man could ever go, holds darkness for those who are brave enough to sail its water. Sitting on top of the water, drifting calmly upon the rushing waves, is a small rum bottle. The clear green glass of the bottle darkens the light that passes through it. The light that is let out shows a small note tucked inside of the bottle.

Without eyes or even the idea of sight, the bottle sees a pirate ship coming over the horizon line. Being pushed in the wind and tossed by the water, the mighty boat pushes through the water. The bottle starts to float towards the boat like the north end of a magnet to the south end. The wind changes directions as the ocean changes its course so the little bottle can make it to its destination.

“There is something off the port side captain!” The slender, pale man yells down from his perch on top of the nest. His crowning gets the attention of the captain at the wheel.

“Take the wheel ladi while I see what he is yelling about,” The big captain bellowed out boldly to the skinny toothpick man standing at attention next to him. The toothpick man nods and grabs the wheel as the captain walks away.

His heavy steps creek the ship with each and every one-ton foot that hits the wooden deck. He pounds down the stairs so quickly you could have sworn he jumped off, for there was an indent the size of his foot in the ground where he stepped.

“Let’s see what we got here,” The captain says, looking over the edge to see the little bottle rubbing up against the side of the boat. “Looks like a rum bottle…” The captain pauses to squint his eyes down at the bottle glaring the sunlight off of its shiny surface. “New boy, get the bottle!” The captain bellows out. The boy runs down into the bottom deck. Soon the window to a cannon opens up right next to the bottle. The boy reaches out to try and grab the bottle but misses by a few inches.

“I can’t reach it!” The boy yells up at the tall captain looking down at him from his high perch as a pawn in the clouds.

“Ya want something done right ya do it ya self,” The captain mumbles as he thumps his way across the deck to the stairs that lead to the intestine of the ship. The many workers in the very low ceilinged room move out of the way for the captain as he walks over to the cannon window. He pushes his head through the window to look out into the blue sea. He turns his head slowly and methodically down to the side to see the rum bottle just out of reach.

He pulls a hand through the window and reaches for the bottle. His fingers lightly slid by the side of the bottleneck. The smooth glass gives no way for the captain to grab it. He grumbles in anger as he reaches for it again. This time his thick fingers wrap around the bottleneck. He smiles as he pulls it up to his face. It is at that moment his face turns into disappointment as he pulls himself back into the dark, damp ship.

“Dang, it’s just a rum bottle,” The captain says as he looks it over. The green glass is an almost unnatural green. Green like the grass you see out in the wild lands of the new world. A world untouched and unbroken. The captain was about to throw it back out when at the last second he saw a brown, paper-like thing stuck in the bottle.

“What is this?” The captain says as he tries to get the thing out. “Ar, could you help a captain out a new boy?” He says, handing the bottle over to the little boy.

“I think so,” He responds as he takes his nimble and slim finger and slides them into the bottle. He grunts a bit as he stretches his long finger further than they ever went before. After what felt like days of grunts and gurgles, he finally pulls out the little piece of brown paper.

“Is it a note?” The captain asks.

“There is something written on it,” The boy replies as he puts down the rum bottle.

“Then read it ladi,” The captain demands with his booming voice.

“Jan 1, 1864. I am John Jones who writes this letter. My ship is sinking fast with treasure on board. I am where it is marked on the enclosed chart on the back,” The young boy flipped the paper over to see a small map. Engraved in ink is an x way off the coast of Australia and deep into the Indian sea.

“Give it to the charter boy, see if he can get us there,” The Captain demanded in his deep dark voice. The boy frantically nodded before running off and up the stairs as quickly as a leaping leopard in a jungle. The captain followed after him slowly and methodically like a hippo out of water.

“I think I can chart it,” the charter man says, squinting down at the little paper with his glasses pushed to the top of his nose.

“Then get on with it,” The Captain said kindly. His voice now is not bold or big, but soft, like a butterfly. His words come out like saying hi to a really old friend.

“It will be done in a few minutes friend,” The Charter replies as he takes to his map on the table. Grabbing a different tool made of metal with an ink quill in his mouth. He starts to chart out the path. Reading the time from a pocket watch and looking up at the sun, he quickly scribbled out a clear and short path.

“Thank ye,” The captain says before bellowing out to the crew. “Open the mast up! We have a treasure to find!” With the command yelled out for all to hear, the crew sprang to life. They opened the other sail as a few men looked at the sun to get the angles. The boy on the crow nest yells down the wind speed as the captain walks up to his wheel and turns it. The ship slowly turns to its port side as the crew runs around to their places.

The old boat took some time to get up to speed, but once she was, she threw the sea like a knife. No matter what wave hit her, she broke through like a man on a mission. The sun moved around them as day turned into night, then back again. The crew takes turns to sleep and wake. Finally, after many days of sailing the big blue ocean, The captain yells out.

“It’s here!” At the sound of the captain, the crew dropped the sails and dropped an anchor. “Where is my driver?” The captain says as a man lumbers over to the captain. The man is short and bulky like a warthog.

“I am here Captain,” The man says as the captain looks down at the diver.

“Get ya butt down there and find the treasure,” The Captain bellows out before the Diver jumps into the water. The Captain crosses his arms as he watches the water. After what feels like a lifetime at sea, the diver comes back up before grabbing a hold of the ladder.

His face was stricken with any emotion other than fright. His pale white face and his wide eyes that almost bulge out of his face are frozen on his face like paint. He quickly climbs up the ladder placed on the side of the ship. The man’s breathing was as rapid as a cheetah running. He pulls himself up and lands on the ground on his knees.

“Bilmy, what are you frightened of?” The Captain asks.

“T-t-there be something down there sir!” The man replies, looking up from his kneeing potion. “It was at least half a ship big, and dark red like man blood!” The Diver yells.

“Was there anything down there?”

“Only this,” The Diver says as he raises a sealed liquor bottle up. The Captain takes it gently in his hand before the Diver collapse onto the ground in a stuttering mess of groans, mumbles, and inconceivable speech.

The Captain looks at the bottle with a little worry slipping into his stern face. He notices a piece of paper wedged inside of the bottle like the last one. He smashes the top off with the side of the ship before carefully picking up the note left inside.

“Dec 3, 1880. Dear searcher, excuse me for the practical joke I have played on you. But it serves you right to find nothing for your foolish act except the deep dark dead ocean.” The Captain reads in his head. His face twists into anger as he lets out a message as loud as a whale. He rips the note in anger as a couple of men take away The Diver.

“Men! We’ve been tricked!” The Captain yells out. “Turn around and sail away!” He yells out, but before anyone goes to get the anchor and sail, the entire ship shifts and rocks as a loud crack of wood breaking echo throughout the empty air. “What the hell is that?!”

“The side of the ship! It’s been breached and now we are taken in water!” A skinny man yells over to the Captain.

“Fix it then!” The Captain yells back. The ship shakes again as another loud like thunder wooden crack rings out.

“We have another breach over here sir!” Another man yells out just down the line from the Captain. The Captain looks over the side and down to where the man was pointing. At the bottom part of the ship, just submerged underwater, is a giant hole. But not only the hole, a tentacle sticking out of it. It was giant and dark red with suction cups the size of a dinner plate.

“Full power!” Captain yells out as the tentacle slides back into the ship. The ship rocks again as two tentacle rockets out of the center of the ship before wrapping half the boat each with a tentacle. The boat creaks and pops as the two halves are torn apart.

The crew screams and runs in disorganized chaos as the ship’s center is ripped in half. The tentacles let go and the two parts of the ship fall over and quickly sink into the ocean as the men are flat and swimming away. One by one each man is dragged down into the dark, murky depths of the ocean.

The only thing left behind is a small rum bottle with a note inside. Floating on top of the ocean as it looks around for its next target.