Story: Dean and the Bird (Week 1)

Dean and the Bird

-I am the eater of man, fear me.-

They had almost finished with the loading. Outside stood the young Native Chief, his arms folded, his face sunk in gloom. Captain Dean walked leisurely down the gangplank of his great pirate ship, The Ugly Bastard, grinning.

"What's the matter?" he said. "You're the one who wanted this. You order us to come here and attack that other village did you not?"

The Native Chief said nothing. He turned away, collect his spear he had poked on to the ground of the earth and slowly walked away back to his own village. The Captain dragged the last puff of his cigar and threw on the ground.

"Just a minute. Don't go off. We’re not finished,” the Captain said.

"Oh?" The Native Chief turned with relief. "I am going back to the village." The Native Chief looked toward the treasures the pirates carried into the ship, which they had gotten from the other village they had raided. "I must make preparations to rebuild the village you had raided."

Captain Dean lit another fine Cuban cigar. "Why? What’s the point? You wanted us to raid that village in the first place? People who lived there are now all dead, there is no point in rebuilding it."

The Native Chief went off, wordless. Dean joined the first mate at the bottom of the gangplank.

"How's it coming?" he said to his band of pirate crew. He looked at the treasures around him, all the gold and silver they had gather from the village they burnt to the ground. "We got a good bargain here."

One of the crew, who was a young boy, glanced at him sourly. "How do you explain that?"

"What's the matter with you boy? This is what we do, we’re pirates and these dumb natives wanted us to kill and rob those people in that village, in return for all these gold that village had."

"It doesn’t seem right, Captain." The boy said. “the chief didn’t even took any of the gold.”

"My God boy!" the captain shouted. “These natives are stupid, that’s the only explanation why they didn’t take any of these gold. Now shut your mouth before I throw you out from this ship.”

"I'm sorry, Captain," the boy said, taking a seat on a barrel. Then Captain Dean observed him thoroughly and notices a bird standing on the boy’s shoulder. Dean walked towards him.

"What is it?"

The bird spread its wing with pride and threw a stumpy croak. It was a colourful creature, the bird had rainbow array of colours at the tip of its wings, from purple to yellow and everything in the middle. It was gripping on the boy’s shoulder, its eyes wide open, looking everyone who gathered around the boy and Captain Dean.

There was silence in the bottom of the gangplank.

"It's a bird," the boy said. "One of the native gave it to me after we raided the village. The native said it was a very special animal. Very respected among the islands."

"This?" Dean poked the bird with the rear end handle of his knife. "It's a wonderful meat to eat! A wonderful meal this would be!"

"Sir, this is a respected animal. I don’t think eating it would be advisable."

"As if I care. Look at the colour of this creature’s feather, it would make a great pen. And I wonder how if the meat is as colourful as its feathers." Dean grabbed the bird and took out a feather from the tip of its wings. The bird screech in pain. Its eyes widened further, big and moist.

Then its great beak twitched.

A tear rolled down the bird's cheek and splashed on the floor.

"Maybe it would not taste great,” the boy begged.

"We'll soon find out," Dean said.