The Transistion of Elijah Brooks

Concepción buzzed around me as dusk settled upon the city like a mantle. Bright city lights ticked on one-by-one, illuminating the streets and shops in the small district. I watched two young artists from one of the many universities set up canvases on tripods while musicians found their corners, instrument cases open to accept donations.

It was a young city full of beautiful men and women. Alive with a frenetic energy that was contagious. I smiled as a man took his date by the hand, twirling her away before pulling her back into her arms and hugging her close. A grandfather, relaxing in a well-worn chair by an old shop, shouted out encouragement. The girl blushed and pulled her lover through the growing crowd.

I watched them for a moment before turning back to the letter in my hand:

Elijah,

I'm sending this letter back with the captain. I don't have much time as the captain seems eager to be off. We weren't greeted at our arrival but we have a map and your father and I are well suited for finding our way. If we were able to survive our time in the Amazon then I'm sure we'll be fine here.

It's an interesting area (and now I have to write faster, the captain is already trying to leave, he's grumbling behind his scarf about storms and spitting quite a lot like a fat old, angry llama) with broken, weathered columns overgrown with moss and ivy. A light mist covers the ground but the sun should burn it off shortly. There's a certain smell but I think (hope) it will lessen as we move inland.

Oh, the captain is yelling at me now. I have to go. Give my love to Delilah and I can't wait to see you both in three days!

With love,

Mother

I couldn't hear the distant sounds of the port but I could see it from where I sat. The ocean lay beyond and, somewhere over the horizon, the island of New Raleigh waited for me and my sister. I checked my watch and sighed. Delilah should've been here by now. She'd last texted that she was touring the library at the Universidad de Concepción and I had no doubts she'd lost herself in the depths of it.

With a last check of my phone, I texted my sister to let her know I would go meet with the captain. I folded my mother's letter, placing it as a bookmark into my Bible and then left, apologizing to everyone I bumped into on the crowded street.

The old streets in this district were cobblestone and made for foot traffic. The amount of noise was nearly overwhelming: laughter and loud, fast conversations blended with enthusiastic music. I passed a slim young man quietly singing what sounded like a love song and then, later, a quartet blaring the local flavor of Chilean rock. A crowd gathered around the latter, singing and dancing and I had to squeeze through all of them.

I was sweating by the time I left the largest of crowds behind. A cool breeze wafted from the nearby water, bringing with it the salt of the ocean. Far into the distance, I swore I saw a bright flash of lightning. My sister and I had waited two weeks for Captain Agustin to return. Port Authority told me a bad storm had hit shortly after the captain had dropped my parents off. They'd only regained communication yesterday.

The captain should've arrived this morning but I didn't want to harass the man until he'd had time to unwind from his extended travels. Someone from his crew had left the letter at my hotel with a note to see the captain in the evening and so I made my way to where he'd docked.

It took only five minutes to find the Pampero. In the darkness, I could only see a few crew aboard, moving slowly at whatever tasks they had. The ship had been a yacht before (so I'd read while waiting) the captain purchased it and refitted it. Now it served to ferry people along the coast or for longer distances when needed.

The ship looked worn. Barnacles clung to the sides, just above the water line and a scummy patina covered the sides. The ship's name was nearly completely covered by a slick green film that seemed to glow in the light. I shivered and pressed my palm against my nose as a sudden chilly wind sliced through me, carrying a foul stench with it.

A loud popping sound startled me and I caught a shower of sparks from the corner of my eye as one of the nearby lights went out. A few men shouted behind me and I watched them walk to the lamp, pointing and arguing over it.

When I turned back to the Pampero, a dark shape stood on the dock next to it. Water lapped at the dock and it swayed but the man (or woman) stood preternaturally still. Unmoving as if rooted to the planks. I saw him from the side and as my eyes slowly began adjusting to the darkness, I saw clothes that hung loosely over a thin frame. As if a child wearing his father's clothes.

I waited for a few minutes, unsure of what to do. I felt unnerved for some reason, shivering again. The figure never moved and I began to wonder if my eyes were playing tricks on me, confusing a large sack for a person in the darkness. Yet, it wasn't there when I'd turned to watch the men working on the light.

Clasping my hands to my mouth I called out, "Hello!"

It, He (for it surely was a man), turned to me. First his head swiveling on neck and then shifting, his body turning. I took a step and then hesitated.

"I'm- I'm looking for Captain Agustin!" I said, loudly.

The man said something but I couldn't make out the words. I swallowed, took another step and then nearly laughed at myself for being foolish. Shaking my head, I walked forward.

And then stopped. Facing the man. My sweat turned cold and I shivered involuntarily.

He stared at me through milky, unblinking eyes. Even in the dim light, I could see how white his skin was and I swore it glinted in a distant light. Despite the heat, he wore a thick, ragged scarf that covered his neck and hung to his waist. His dark hair clung to his scalp in odd patches and I couldn't tell how old he was. He looked as if his skin was stretched over another man's frame.

"Is," I swallowed hard. The man's gaze was unnerving. Could he even see me through his cataracts? I clutched my Bible close my body as if it were armor. "Is Captain Agustin h-?"

"Are you the boy?" the man rasped.

"I'm sorry?" I asked.

"Are you the boy?" the man said again, in the exact same tone he'd just used. Water dripped from the man's scarf and it hung heavily on his shoulders. I swore I saw it shift around his neck for a moment.

"I don't know who you're looking for," I told him. "I'm Elijah Brooks and I'm looking for Captain Agustin. I'm supposed to meet him tonight to plan my trip to New Ra-"

"I'm Captain Agustin," the old man replied, cutting me off again.

I opened my mouth to reply and then closed it again. Fat angry llama, my mother had written. The man before me seemed withered and unable to rouse any kind of emotion but he had a scarf like my mother had written. I shifted my weight and saw dull silvery light shining at the back of the man's eyes but when I blinked, it was gone.

The hair along my neck seemed to stir and I swallowed. Some instinct pulled my gaze and I looked up to see six men standing at the railing of the ship, staring down at us. They moved as one when the ship rocked and I could feel their eyes upon me as if it were a physical pressure.

"I'm sorry," I explained, looking back at the man. "I don't mean to be rude but I was expecting someone else. Captain Agustin was described to me by my mother and-"

The man before me suddenly animated at the mention of my mother. He blinked and I swore I saw his cataracts shift as his eyelids closed. He clasped his hands together beneath heavy sleeves and bowed his head, giving me a good view of the mottled skin of his scalp. He began rocking back and forth before me and I turned as I heard the crewmates beside us murmuring.

The men on the ship had their heads raised, swiveling back and forth while they hugged their bodies. I struggled to hear what they were whispering but I was certain they were just repeating "The mother" over and over again.

"We leave in two hours," the man told me, jerking my attention back to him. "You will come with us, boy."

"I- but, captain," For who else could it be if not the captain himself? "It's night. Surely it'd be better to leave in the morning? I don't mean to tell you how to do your job but sailing at night seems reckless."

"Kek," the man gasped, as if his tongue had rooted itself to the top of his mouth. He touched the scarf along the side of his neck, pressing water-wrinkled fingers against the fabric. Water welled around his fingers before being sucked back into the thick wool. "We leave in two hours."

I watched the captain shamble up the simple plank leading to his ship. His crew had settled and continued to watch me until I turned and made my way back into the city.

-----

"I'm telling you, Delilah, something's wrong." I sat in the room I shared with my sister. My Bible was open and I held my finger to mark my place in the middle of Matthew, chapter three.

My sister stood at the side of her bed, arranging her clothes. Barely thirty minutes had passed since I'd left the port and I still felt out-of-sorts. I'd been reading my Bible to calm myself until my sister came back. She seemed unperturbed by the news and was excited to be off.

"Elijah, you always worry about everything," Delilah said. Her voice dropped deeper as she mimicked our father. "Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always."

"You didn't see him," I said. "The entire thing was just incredibly creepy. I think we should write to mother and talk to the officials in the morning. Maybe it was the wrong ship."

"There is no other Pampero, just the one. You know that, Elijah," Delilah replied. She turned to me and sat on her bed while placing a few of her smaller clothes in her backpack. I sighed as she assumed the exasperated older sister look. I was very familiar with it. "Look, I know this is your first mission. I remember mine when I followed mom and dad to Africa and I remember how terrified I was. It's okay to be scared, truly. But New Raleigh isn't Africa. Or the Amazon."

"I'm not scared," I lied. My things were already packed. I'd spent the morning arranging my things to rid myself of the nervous energy that had overcome me when I'd received word of the captain's arrival.

"They asked us here," Delilah said, zipping up her backpack. She set it on the floor with the rest of her luggage. "We're expected and wanted. We're not walking into some... some... hostile village trying to convert anyone. New Raleigh was founded by Americans back in the early days. I read about it at the library today. There wasn't much and the book was very old but a little before the 1800s, back in New England, a group of Methodists broke from the church after receiving some sign from God. They came down through South America before sailing off to found New Raleigh."

"We're not Methodists," I reminded my sister.

"Neither are they," she answered. "Not anymore. I didn't see the letter they wrote to the church or what the church told mother and father but, from what I gather, they've lost their way. They've been cut off a long time. Honestly, I'm excited about going and not just to spread the Word. I just really want to see what they're like now. How they've changed and adapted over the, well, the centuries."

I chewed on that for a moment, feeling my anxiety twist my stomach into knots. Although it was only for a moment, I couldn't stop seeing that flat silver light through the captain's cloudy eyes.

"Pray with me, Elijah, before we leave," my sister said. She knelt at the side of her bed, turning towards it and bowing her head.

I placed the letter in my Bible to mark my spot and knelt next to Delilah. Her presence was soothing. She'd raised me while our parents were gone, spreading the Word of the Lord as missionaries. She'd been firm but fair and never complained about her duties, even the times when I'd misbehaved. The many times.

"I'll lead," Delilah said, her hands clasped before her. "Dear Lord, please look over us as we set off on our journey. Watch over the captain and his crew as we cross the ocean to-"

I repeated the words in my head, feeling myself calm. And yet, twin tarnished silver lights stared at me in the darkness behind my closed eyes.

-----

The ship groaned around me, rocking and swaying and swooping on the open water. I lay in my bunk, my sister asleep above me. Her breathing was strong and steady with the occasional snort that was immediately followed by her twisting in her sleep and mumbling a sleepy "sorry".

The captain had met us without a word and barely acknowledged Deliliah. The ship was utterly dark and no crew members seemed to be aboard. We followed the frail man along the deck until he brought us below and to our cabin.

I couldn't help but plug my nose a few times along the way. And, even now, I could taste the faint scent of the ship at the back of my throat. I couldn't place my finger on it, whether it was sewage or swamp or just the smell of a ship constantly on the water but it was strong and sometimes made my eyes water.

Turning to the side, I stared into the dark. Pale shafts of mossy-green light flickered from the floorboards as the ship rolled. I looked for dust particles floating in the light but saw none. I expected the ship to be louder and was surprised at how quiet it was overall. Especially since I thought our cabin was located in the stern (I'd asked my sister what the proper word was) and, therefore, near the engines.

I lay in my bed, feeling the worm of anxiety twisting in my stomach. The darkness was heavy on my shoulders. I closed my eyes and whispered fierce prayers to the Lord to keep me and my family safe.

Eventually, I drifted in sleep.

And I dreamt.

I was alone in the cabin and the ship thrummed around me. I was surrounded by the same green light from when I was awake. Standing in it, my stomach twisted and I tasted bile in the back of my throat, mixed with the cloying stench of the ship. The light seemed to caress my skin with an oily touch that made me shiver.

I looked for Delilah but she wasn't there and so I left before I vomited. I ran up the short steps and stood on the heaving deck, gripping a metal handle set by the door.

The sky was black with red outlining gigantic ominous shapes that coiled and moved in ways no clouds could. Watching them made something deep within me - some ancient animal instinct, perhaps - recoil in fear and hatred. I wanted to find the nearest rock to cower under.

To the fore were seven dark shapes. Six of them arrayed in a semi-circle at the bow while the seventh stood behind them, facing forward. The thrumming that I thought was the engine was coming from them. Powerful chants that cut through the night, causing the not-clouds to twist and roil overhead. The lone seventh figure had its arms raised, screaming into the night. Something was wrong with its arms but when I tried to focus more clearly, the ship crested a wave and I lost my grip on the handle.

I slid and cried out, sure that I'd be lost overboard but I slammed against the railing and clung to it.

The ocean glowed a sickly green that made my bones ache. Bloated dead fish floated on the water, pulled along in the ship's wake. A few burst when they surfaced, spraying red blood that the very air seemed to absorb. My stomach heaved at the smell of them, thousands of dead creatures weaving in the water as if they were the trailing tentacles of a kraken.

And then the ocean opened.

In the dark beneath the green, a single baleful eye, wider than the ship moved. Focused on me. It knew me in a way I couldn't understand. I screamed, tearing my throat from the force of it. I tasted blood and the chanting filled my mind until I knew nothing else.

-----

I woke, sitting in my bed and drenched with sweat. My throat was sore and I could hear a torrential rainstorm outside.

Stumbling, fearful, I made my way up the stairs, opening the door that led to the deck. I held the handle while my heart hammered in my chest. Before I could stop myself, I wrenched open the door and stepped out.

The deck was empty and the sky was clear and full of stars. I still heard the rain so I rubbed at my ear. And felt wetness. My own blood was smeared along my fingertips, thick and red and speckled with black flakes. I touched my other ear and felt the same.

I heard a whisper above me that drew my attention but the sky was clear and quiet. Away from the city, the sky seemed afire with points of light. I found myself looking for the constellations. To find anything recognizable that I could anchor myself against.

Turning in a slow circle, I only felt my heart race faster.

No, I thought to myself, turning again. My fingers turned white while I clenched my hand on the handle by the door. No, no no.

Stars filled the sky but none were the constellations I'd always loved to find.

Where the North Star should shine was a single red star glaring at our world.

-----

I woke, terrified that I was still dreaming. Every muscle in my body ached.

"Hey, you're up," Delilah said. I startled and looked over at her. She sat at the small desk in the room, reading again.

"What," I rasped. Swallowing, I tried again. "What time is it?"

"You slept through the day," my sister told me. "Tossing and turning. I almost woke you but I thought you'd know how much sleep you needed."

I touched my ears, expecting to feel blood but my skin was smooth.

"I had the worst nightmare," I told her. I tried to remember it but it was all gone. Chanting. I remembered chanting. And a red-eyed monster. My head throbbed and my throat was incredibly dry. "Is there any water?"

Delilah handed me a plastic bottle and I gulped it without pausing to breathe until it was completely gone. I was still thirsty but I'd survive. I rubbed my temples and then my neck, massaging the tender skin while rolling my head.

Only then did I realize I had an erection. I shot a glance at my sister as my face flamed bright red. I quickly pulled the blankets up around my waist and sat there awkwardly, waiting for it to go down. It throbbed beneath the blankets, in time with the pain in my head.

"Is," I cleared my throat, looking at the stairs, away from my sister. "Is it still light out?"

"No," Delilah said, distracted by her reading. "You literally missed the entire day. The sun set nearly an hour ago. Are you hungry? I couldn't find the captain but I didn't look too hard. I've mostly been keeping inside the cabin except to go out and look at the water for a little bit. I have some food I brought with us."

The thought of food turned my stomach so I shook my head. I couldn't stop staring at the smooth curve of my sister's neck and I cursed my hormones while telling myself what a disgusting person I was. I didn't want my sister. It wasn't that. It was just that I was a young man and I couldn't help it. My father had taken me aside when I was younger to explain things. And he'd talked to me since then over the years. Sex was natural. Our bodies betrayed us. Hormones forced us to act like animals. Uncontrollable. But we weren't animals. And we could restrain ourselves. There was no shame in acknowledging that we had the urges but to act on them, that was the sin.

So, no, I didn't think of my sister in that way. But I also couldn't help a last glance at her smooth neck and collarbone and the way a few strands of her beautiful hair had escaped the lazy bun she'd made.

I found my Bible and read from Matthew, chapter 4 in order to remind myself of Jesus' temptation by the Devil.

I lost myself in the Word until I felt something thud against the hull of the ship. The ship rocked up and then down but was still.