text: “Fear not my lady Abby, thy renowned confidant is here to retrieve thy mislaid soul from the island ‘The Unknown’, said Kat whilst gripping a plastic sword and pointing its sharp end towards the sky. Abby was in a seated position about a meter away. Upon hearing Kate’s hilarious statement, dissolved into laughter and leaned back. Almost lying down on her back. Amid her ceaseless laughter, she managed to word a suitable reply, “Oh, great Kate, make haste and catch my hand in yours and therefore redeem m bewildered humanity”. “Great Kate?”, Kate pointed out, “I think I like that”, she said with a smirk on her lips. Lifting her chin in pride. In classic Abby and Kate style, they were performing in public, at an airport. It didn’t bother them that people walking by stared at them. Neither did they feel embarrassed. Just before Kate could utter another iconic phrase in front of their audience, she was interrupted by the airport announcement. “THIS IS THE FINAL BOARDING CALL FOR ABBY HADE AND KATE COLLINS BOOKED ON FLIGHT 385A TO MIDDLECAM CAY. PLEASE PROCEED TO GATE 2 IMMEDIATELY. THE FINAL CHECKS ARE BEING COMPLETED AND THE CAPTAIN WILL ORDER FOR THE DOORS OF THE AIRCRAFT TO CLOSE IN APPROXIMATELY FIVE MINUTES. I REPEAT. THIS IS THE FINAL BOARDING CALL FOR ABBY HADE AND KATE COLLINS. THANK YOU”, said a female voice through the speakers. Abby snapped out of their fantasy play without delay. “You hear that Kate? We have to go now!”, said Abby and began hauling their bags. While Kate, on the other hand, dragged her feet and groaned with her back slouched. She ultimately accepted that it was time for them to leave. After all, they were late. “Come on Kate, we’ve been waiting for this moment since forever. Since high school. We’re finally going to Middlecam Cay”, said Abby in a soft voice. She put her hand on Kate’s shoulder to reassure her. “Cheer up, we’re going to the island at last”, she continued, in an enthusiastic voice. Abby noticed the change in expression on Kate’s face when the announcement came on. But that didn’t stop her from looking forward to the trip. There was something about that feeling she had. Abby couldn’t wait to arrive at Middlecam Cay. She read and heard stories about the island, such as that spirits are wandering in the area and that not everyone survived more than a few months after arriving. Only the pure in heart with pure intentions flourished. ‘The Unknown’ island was indeed a real place, although some people believed it to be a myth. It hadn’t been mapped out yet by cartographers, as they could not attain the accurate measurements of the island’s perimeters. It was rumoured that cartographers would get lost and unearth new plots of land. Thus, forcing them to retake measurements and so the cycle continued. Abby knew all this information but did not mention a word to Kate. She only told her that the hotels were hiring young people and that is why they were travelling there. She knew that Kate would change her mind about leaving home if that were not the reason. As soon as they boarded the plane, the pair was met with two air hostesses. They paged through their papers and cleared them to go on the plane. They walked straight for a few moments and found their seats. Within seconds after fastening their seatbelts, the pair fell asleep without hesitation. Kate and Abby had been best friends for more than a decade. Both told each other everything. Anyone who did not know Abby and Kate was would recognize them as sisters. Meanwhile in Middlecam Cay, ‘The Unknown’ island awaited them. Named by previous army troops centuries ago. The men claimed to have seen and heard a woman’s voice at night. No one believed them. Throughout all their efforts to ask for help, none of it worked. The mysterious woman-like spirit said to one soldier that her name was Samira. There had also been a story about some magical key. It was crucial in finding a way out and going to wherever you wished. To Abby, this was all a mystery to be solved. According to Kate, Middlecam Cay is a city full of job opportunities for young people. Following six hours of sleep from home, Bailee Town, Abby and Kate woke up just moments after touchdown. They listened through the announcement made by the flight attendant. Still drenched in sleep they rubbed their eyes to fully wake up and start departing the plane. The pair felt a force push them from behind which caused them to skip a few steps before landing on dirt with their faces. They spotted unfamiliar insects crawling around with glowing little legs. Abby and Kate stared at each other’s dirty faces in confusion. “Where’d the plane go? Where is everyone else?”, asked Kate in a tight voice. She examined her environment but still could not make out her location. Kate also received no answer from Abby, who seemed to have an idea of what was happening. She presented no sign of amazement. Lost in her thought about where she was, she had long forgotten about Kate’s questions. “Abby, hello? Answer me. You look like you know where we are don’t you?”, Kate shouted at her. “It’s not... not really like that. I-” “You what? Huh? What? Why aren’t you freaking out?” Kate stood up, shook off the dirt on her jacket and skirt, picked up her backpack and began searching for other people. Abby couldn’t let roam alone in this strange place. Not on this Island. She took her backpack and dusted off the dirt on her face and clothes. She saw a glowing ring-shaped object buried in the soil and dried leaves, but didn’t pay much attention to it, Kate was more important. She trailed on Kate’s trails. Abby then felt a tingling sensation along with a dash of warmth travelling down her spine. Droplets of seat running down her forehead, her heartbeat accelerating almost as if it wanted to evacuate her chest. Abby could not wait any longer to enlighten Kate about the information she came by. She leapt closer to Kate and caught hold of her arm and turning her around. “What, you ready to speak now?”, Kate demanded. “Yeah, I do have something to tell y-” “Well then say it,” Kate interrupted” “Okay so listen. We’re at a cursed island according to legends and myths. It’s called ‘The Unknown’ island because no one knows how big it is. Even the most skilled cartographers have been trying to map it out. They keep getting lost and finding new places then getting lost again before they could write down their findings”. Abby let out a heavy sigh before continuing. “It is also said to be a female spirit called Samira that hovers over this strange place and apparently she is the only one who can give us a key to leave this place.” “What key is that and how do we find this Sameri?”, asked Kate. A cold wind blew in their direction, flowing with dried leaves and withered flowers. It seemed to have blown specifically in their direction. Silence. Moments later, Abby replied again to Kate with her now shaky voice. “It’s S-A-M-I-R-A okay, and I don’t know how we can find her. But she can probably see us. As for the key... I also don’t know how we can find it”, she said with her hands in the air and shoulders lifted. “Oh. Okay so let me get this straight Abby. You dragged me to this godforsaken island telling me that we’re here to get hired- “I know but- “No, no buts. You knew very well that this place is creepy, and you tell me about some spirit, magical key story. Make it make sense.’ “Look, we are lucky to have made it this far”, Abby protested. “Lucky? What do you mean lucky, we’re stranded? “Yes, I know that just listen to me. We will make it out of here soon. What I meant is that we have a shot of getting the key from Samira alright?” Abby attempted to convince Kate, but she wouldn’t listen. Kate walked away from her before she could say anything. She didn’t know what to make of the situation. It was nightfall and the cold winds blew again, this time even colder. There was no shelter for them to protect themselves. As it got darker, Abby and Kate grew hungrier. Their delicate skin shivered because of the cold and their empty stomachs rumbled loudly. Every now and then, they glanced at each other. Wanting to say something but couldn’t. Some trees had attractive fruit on their peculiar branches. The fruit looked edible, but the pair weren’t sure whether to eat them or not. The fruit did look different from the ones that they knew. It was now Samira’s time to leave her den and roam over her island as she usually does. In the middle of the night, when the moon has disappeared behind the clouds. What Abby overlooked was that Samira had long been hunted and harmed by notorious witch-hunters seeking to seize the island. They learned to conceal their auras which gave off their bad intentions. Samira had fought plenty of bad people while guarding her island. When she noticed Abby and Kate, she immediately fumed. In response to their presence, Samira sent out all her poisonous insects. One of them bit and infected Kate’s left ankle. Her scream was one with agony, she felt immense pain. Sharp shooting and endless pain. She failed to contain it. Abby was soon overwhelmed with intense worry. She couldn’t ignore her childhood best friend who was now in pain. Abby had studied some of the plants found on the island. She knew that some of them could wounds and bites. However, she had forgotten which leaves and plants to put together. Only a few could surface on her memory. Abby used what she remembered to numb Kate’s pain. This was the perfect time to apologize to Kate and mend their friendship. Samira’s ghost-like voice frightened Abby and Kate, making their hearts skip a beat. Samira demanded that they leave the leave her island. Throughout the whole night, Abby and Kate did not sleep a wink. The screeching sound of Samira’s horrific voice kept them awake. What worsened the experience was the darkness. Morning came and the second Abby and Kate opened their eyes, there she was. A pair of white glowing eyes stared dead into their souls. Abby and Kate froze in awe, allowing only their nostrils to keep the air flowing in and out. Finally, Abby gathered the courage and confronted Samira that instant, “Sa-Samira?... My name is Abby. This is my, my best friend Kate”, she paused to gather her words. “How and why were we able to enter this island? Okay... either way, we’re not here to hurt you, we just want to get to the city. You know the... the hotels and stuff. Ca-Can you please give us the key?” Abby could feel Samira’s fatiguing presence on her body. Kate had her eyes shut and faced to the side while tightly gripping Abby’s hand. Samira didn’t make a sound while Abby pleaded for freedom. She only heard the innocence in her voice. She realized that they could never harm her. A breeze blew through her long and flowing black hair. With that breeze came a kaleidoscope of pink shimmering butterflies. The dead leaves disappeared, and the trees bloomed to life. This left Kate and Abby astonished yet puzzled. Then the soil in front of the rose in the form of a mini-tornado. There a key appeared. “The key?”, said Kate as her mouth widened, “Is that the key?” she further asked. “So... you won’t kill us or make us vanish or something like that?” Abby added. Kate stood closer to Abby and cupped her hand on her ear, “Man I wish she said something”, she whispered. Samira replied, “No I shall not harm you because you did not harm me. Take this key to open the door behind you and leave this island.” A wide door decorated with glistening gold awaited them. Covered with fresh and the most beautiful flowers. Completed with the greenest leaves they’ve ever seen. “Woahhhhhhhhh, that’s so amazing, thank you so so much, Samira!” “My pleasure, and my apologies for last night. Here is some food”, Samira handed them a grass basket full of fresh fruit. Abby and Samira’s stomachs rumbled again. “No biggie, it's cool. At least now we can work at our dream hotel!” said Kate in excitement.