Death Is Unpredictable

“Vines in meadows, flowers in swamps. The magic in the water, the delusion in the sand. Kept under the clock, with a singing key. Do not stare into the eyes of the fog. Follow the trail that has been outlined. No boat, no plane, nothing can survive. And the brothers with power, are the ones who know what to do.”, Alison says, grouchy from being woken up. “There, happy?”

“Delighted,” Dylan says smugly.

“Don’t push your luck with me,” Alison mumbles, lying back down on Melody’s couch, preparing for sleep.

“Okay, so … we’re going to the land where everyone who passed, usually died,” Connor says sarcastically, rolling his eyes. “This should be interesting.”

“Well, you guys are already dead,” Dylan says confusedly, scratching his head.

“Yeah, but there’s ghost down there, Dylan. They don’t like strangers.”, Nina says, frowning.

“’Vines in meadows, flowers in swamps.’”, Kevin thinks out loud. “Possibly a river.”

“A river?”, Dylan says doubtfully.

“Yeah … think about the Mississippi River!”, Nina says, smiling excitedly.

“Maybe it means that there’s a safe way to get to the Bermuda Triangle.”, Roxana says, smiling.

“Maybe,” Kevin says, frowning grimly. “But I doubt it.”

“Well, think about it a minute here. Don’t most people usually try going into the Bermuda one way? Wouldn’t it sort of make sense that there’s a specific way to get in? Like a gate or something?”, Eric says, looking around.

“Yeah, that would make sense,” Max says, nodding in approval. “Where are we now?”

“We’re over Florida, and not moving,” Brendan says, looking around.

“Okay, so how exactly are we supposed to find this ‘river’?”, Kevin asks, irritated slightly.

“Hmm, maybe the riddle isn’t a riddle?”, Nina says, thinking out loud. “Maybe it’s more like a scavenger hunt? Maybe all those things are circling the Triangle, and once we find them, it won’t hurt us!”

“Or, maybe it’s like a code? Maybe we have to say the words to get access into the Triangle? Like clubs usually have codes so they can know who’s in and who’s not.”, Jolie says, looking around.

“No, I think it’s both,” Kevin says, smirking. “Well, kind of. I think that we have to go looking for these things, and then they send some kind of code to the Triangle.”

“That does, sort of, make sense.”, Dylan says, nodding. “We collect the things, and then — I’m guessing — only one of us moves forward.”, Dylan say seriously. “I’ve been examining how this game seems to be laid out. Whoever he is, he knows what he’s doing. And we’ve already agreed that he isn’t human. The Bermuda Triangle has power. And it’s an ideal place to hide something — or someone, in our case. And, if I’m correct, I think what he’s trying to do is confuse us. Think about back in Spain? We had to have Max translate it from English to Spanish to figure it out. He likes messing with heads.”, Dylan says, staring around the table, where everyone sat. “He may be getting tired of mind-tricks. Or realize that we’re smart enough to figure out these riddles. He might have some kind of barriers or shields around Melody. Or, he could wanna fight.”

Everyone was silent, considering what Dylan had just said. It all made perfect sense to everyone. “I say, if only one of us goes, it should be Kevin.”

“Why me? What could I do? This guy could be ten times more powerful with us all combined. Maybe even more powerful if we joined forces with Thunder. And he’s obviously smart. He figured out how to break into Melody’s house without waking Dylan or disturbing the cats and dogs. And he’s powerful enough to contact Alison from long distance.”, Kevin says, looking around.

“But she said this was all part of her vision, Kevin. She saw this before Melody got kidnapped. Remember? ‘Because chances are, you’re gonna be wishing that you were here.’”, Nina quotes sadly. “She probably memorized them, then just wrote them down.”

“That is a very likely possibility,” Max agrees, nodding. “She talked about the dream a lot.”

“So, lets think a moment. If only one can go any further, Kevin’s going?”, Nina asks, looking around.

“Yeah,” everyone but Kevin says.

“Okay, here,” Nina says, handing Kevin the piece of paper that Alison had given them. “You’ll need it the most.”

“I don’t get why I have to go? Why can’t one of you all?”, Kevin asks, annoyed.

“Because, it mentions a brother with power, Kevin. You’re a brother to Josh, and you’re the most powerful. Plus, since it mentioned you, it means that you’re the only one who has a chance at understanding what it says.”, Nina says sadly.

“Well, what if I need a translation? Then what? I can’t be expected to just turn around and come back asking for one!”, Kevin says, standing up from his seat.

“Kevin, chill! The Triangle is powerful. Sort of like a stone. It should help you keep a mind-link with everyone.”, Max says, smirking. “Either that or drain you. But I don’t think whoever kidnapped Melody would take her to an island that would possibly drain him, too.”

“Yeah, that wouldn’t make sense,” Kevin says, feeling the wind as they start heading for the Bermuda.

“He’s aiming for power,” Dylan says, frowning. “He wants an upper hand, too.”

“That could explain the odd riddles,” Jolie says, nodding in approval. “He wants control over the situation. He probably wants to fight.”, she adds, looking around.

“He’ll probably mix it up, use magic and then go with skill. He’ll be aiming for weak points. He may pull Melody out if he’s desperate enough.”, Roxana thinks out loud, nodding.

“Maybe play a few dirty tricks? Throw a punch and kick, then maybe a fireball?”, Nina says, laughing slightly. “But, seriously. He basically wants the element of surprise.”

“I’m expecting that, then.”, Kevin says, looking around. “Wow,” Kevin says, as the cloud is jerked, wind screeching into everyone’s ears. “Looks like we’re here.”

“Lets work fast,” Dylan says, gripping the table so tightly that his knuckles were white. “Hey, go south for about a mile more, then jerk east!”, Nina yells over the wind, her eyes stinging as she blinks from the harsh winds mixed with the ocean’s salt water.

The cloud did as Nina said, and the waters immediately calmed, along with the wind, making only a slight — scarcely noticeable — breeze. The sky was clearer, and some wondered if they were completely off course.

“It should be along here,” Nina says sheepishly, blushing slightly.

“Okay, then I hope nobody’s scared to get wet.”, Kevin says sarcastically, already flying down. Ash and Nina soon follow, helping Dylan, as the rest follow more slowly.

“Okay, I would’ve thought that this would be deeper!”, Dylan says, staring at the water oddly, as they all start walking through the water, looking around, studying and noticing every detail along this river. It was quite odd. Bits of white-sandy shores surrounded them on both sides, with rocky dirt to give it a more stable appearance. There were tall and thick trees, with vines hanging around them, and flowers that were growing from the bottom of the river, and their rainbow colored heads poking out at the top through some kind of floating mold. It looked like a meadow around them, and a swamp that they were swimming in.

“’Vines in meadows, flowers in swamps.’”, Nina says, laughing slightly. “Isn’t that the truth?”

“I’ll say. And I finally get what it meant. One part of it was a meadow, while the rest is swamp.”, Ash says, laughing with her. The water, only to Nina’s waist, was suddenly going up to the guys chest, making the girls have to ride on their backs through the thick mossy water.

“Okay, so what was the other part of the riddle?”, Dylan asks, looking around.

“Lets get to the shore, and we’ll find out!”, Kevin yells over his shoulder, swimming toward the thin layer of white sand, before it turns into silvery-black rocks. The rocks were glittering, looking slick and wet, as they seemed so smooth. Everyone follows Kevin, sitting around on the white sand, trying to get rid of the excess water in their clothes and hair.

“I hope this never happens again,” Jolie grumbles, twisting her once light brown hair, that was now an extremely dark brown, close to black from the waters.

“Oh, lighten up, Joe. It really wasn’t that bad.”, Roxana says, shaking her strawberry head, trying to get her curls back, and soon twisting the bottom of her shirt.

“Personally, I enjoyed the brief swim.”, Eric says, twisting his shirt, his chest bare as most of the other guys were.

“I thought it was fun!”, Nina says, smiling, twisting the bottom of her shirt, where an excessive amount of water fell out.

“What did you do? Just stand under the water?”, Ash teases, laughing slightly as he rings out his shirt, soon pulling it over his head.

“Maayyybbbbeeeee,” Nina says, smirking, shaking her head a little, where only a few drips of water fell out.

“Okay, so the next part of the riddle was, ‘The magic in the water, the delusion in the sand.’”, Kevin says, rolling his eyes. “Sounds like we just dried off for nothing guys.”

Jolie and Roxana groaned, while Nina and Ash rolled their eyes at them. “Just hop on one of the guys backs again,” Nina says, shrugging. “Ash?”

“Hop on,” Ash says, rolling his eyes as Nina hops on his back. Roxana and Jolie exchange knowing glances, shrugging and walking over to the nearest guy.

“Connor?”, Roxana asks, smiling sweetly.

“Hop on,” Connor sighs, rolling his eyes.

“Brendan?”, Jolie asks, already hoping on his back as they all swim into the water.

“Where are we headed?”, Jeremy asks, trying to keep his head over the water.

“Umm,” Kevin says, stopping to glance at the paper. “’Kept under the clock, with a singing key.’”

“Singing key?”, Dylan says, keeping his dirty blonde head above the water easily. “That probably means a bird.”

“Wait — that would make sense if the person we’re looking for’s name wasn’t Melody.”, Kevin says, smirking.

“What about ‘Kept under the clock’?”, Jolie asks, raising an eyebrow. “I doubt that there’s a clock anywhere near here.”

“What about a woodpecker?”, Ash says, struggling to keep his head above water with Nina on his back. Nina lets go, floating a little ways away, giving Ash an easier chance to breathe. “You know, the way they hit a tree in slow motion — from the cartoon’s I’ve seen — it could be confused with a clock.”

“Yeah, it could. And ‘with a singing key.’ automatically makes you think bird.”, Nina says, looking around. “And their pecking is their own kind of music.”

“Then it’s settled, we start looking for a woodpecker.”, Kevin says, nodding.

“While still swimming in the river,” Ash and Nina say together.

“Right,” Kevin says, rolling his eyes. They all start swimming along the river, the current slowly and very scarcely getting stronger.

“Wait, hold on! Do you all hear that?”, Eric says, looking around. “I think I hear a woodpecker over there by the shore!”, Eric says, swimming toward there.

“No! Eric! Remember the riddle! ‘the delusion in the sand.’”, Kevin growls, stopping like the rest of them.

“So? How are we gonna find a woodpecker in water? It has to be up on the shore!”

“Eric! We stay to the riddles. Now keep listening.”

And they all continued swimming, trying to ignore the woodpecker noises coming from the shores on either sides of them. They swam for close to an hour, and the current was harsh against their tiring, aching muscles. Kevin, Dylan, Ash, and Nina were the only ones able to keep their pace, as Nina was also the only girl who wasn’t riding on anyone’s back.

“Look!!”, Nina says, pointing in front of them. There stood a giant tree, growing straight from the rocks in the water, shocking in size. Millions of animals, which should’ve been up on the shore, were instead living in this giant tree.

“Anyone know what a woodpecker looks like?”, Dylan asks, looking around.

“Eric naturally can tell if someone’s right or not. But him and the others are trying to catch their breaths.”, Ash says, frowning.

“Good thing I know a thing or two about the outdoors.”, Nina says, smirking as she grabs hold of the tree’s bark, soon climbing up, ignoring the extra weight the water had given her in her clothes and hair.

She knew exactly what she was looking for. A small bird with a bright red head, and a yellow back. A small bird with midnight black tail feathers, a pointed beak, and a white belly with black scattered everywhere. It’s claws would probably be extremely long, for the bark on the tree was so thick and sturdy. She climbed up, nearly to the top, when she heard the sounds of a woodpecker’s beak breaking bark.

“I found it!”, Nina yells below happily. “Tell me the next riddle!!”

“’Do not stare into the eyes of the fog’?!!”, Kevin yells up the tree, his voice echoing down the river to the others.

“What comes after that, Kev?”, Nina yells down, trying to get a firm grip on the tree where she was.

“’Follow the trail that has been outlined.’”

Nina repeats that quietly to herself watching as the woodpecker starts flying down the river. “Follow that bird!!!”, Nina yells, falling out of the tree, feeling the rush of the water make her skin prickle, as it suddenly felt icy cold. She couldn’t feel herself going up, until someone’s hand was holding hers, pulling her up. As her head reached the surface, she saw Dylan and Kevin leading the way, and the others slowly catching up. She gasps a little, couching up the filthy water, spitting it back into the river.

“You okay?”, Ash asks, keeping her from going back under.

“Umm, yeah,” Nina says, shaking her head slightly. “C’mon!”, and they were off, following the tiny little bird.

“I thought this riddle was supposed to be the hardest.”, Ash laughs.

“I know. The clues are answering themselves now.”, Nina laughs with him.

“Or maybe he’s setting us up?”, Eric says, frowning beside them.

“Maybe,” they say together, picking up speed as the water’s current got stronger, and a fog slowly began forming around him.

“Everyone!! Close your eyes!!”, Nina yells, squeezing her eyes shut. “We can’t look at the fog!!”

“You heard her!! Close your eyes!!”, Ash yells, as he squeezes his own eyes shut. Everyone soon follows, and they all swim blindly. Kind of.

“Look!! When you close your eyes, you can see a trail!!”, Roxana yells over the water, clinging to Connor so that she doesn’t go under with Max’s help. Everyone had seen it, too. The neon color lined, different to everyone, but still managing to glow brightly and lead the exact same way. Everyone follows the line, occasionally bumping into one another, as screams and shouts echoed from surprise. The fog added a haze of moister, slowing them down with it’s thickness, making some think that they had gone under from the amount of moister in the thick grey fog.

“Hey, it’s gone,” Dylan says, no longer feeling the thick moister, as the line also had disappeared from everyone.

“Nina?”, Ash asks quietly, patting her hand.

“It’s … gone.”

“Think it’s okay to look?”, Kevin asks, unsure.

“Yep.”

And they all opened their eyes, to see no signs of the river they had just been in. Or of the thick fog that had surrounded them like sugary frosting on a birthday cake. No signs of anything but a screeching storm, as lightning streaked the sky, frightening Roxana enough to scream. And thunder soon followed unexpectedly, making Nina jump into Ash’s arms, frightened.

“K-k-Kevin?”, Jolie stutters, shivering from the freezing air. It was a perfect storm. Wind screeching loud enough to hurt someone who was deaf ears, and it was so strong that tiny Roxana flew up into the wind, clinging to Connor and Max’s arms, lightning streaking the sky like fiery trees, thunder roaring like the speakers in a teenager’s bedroom when their favorite song is playing, and the rain was like a thousand frozen bullets piercing your skin.

“’No boat, no plane, nothing can survive.’”, Kevin says, seeming un-phased by all of it. “I think it means we’re supposed to be looking for a cemetery!!”, Kevin yells over the wind, making his voice echo with it.

“A cemetery here?!”, Jolie yells, shaking her head.

“Maybe someplace where the bodies might have washed up?!”, Nina screams over the screeching wind, trying to make it so everyone heard her.

“Yeah!! That!!”, Kevin yells, already beginning to walk through the fierce wind, helping Roxana stay on the ground with Connor and Max.

“Maybe … somewhere near the water!!”, Roxana shouts, shivering through her wet clothes.

“Lets start moving!!”, Dylan shouts determinedly, already beginning to run — or stumble, as he fell a lot. But he kept managing to get back up, even as his knee began bleeding, and his hands, arms, and legs became scratched against the sharp rocks. “Over here!!!”, Dylan yells, staring at an astonishing sight. The wind picked up, as if by command, making him fall backward as he continued yelling for the others to get to where he sat.

“Wow,” Kevin breathes quietly, somehow managing to make it echo to the others.

“Oh my gosh,” Jolie sighs.

Dylan had found an endless amount of dead bodies. Or, what was left of them. Skulls and bones were all in a pile, right there in the middle of this barren place.

“Just like Melody described it,” Dylan breathes sadly. “No wonder she was so freaked out.”

“Lets just keep going!”, Brendan yells, walking closer to the dead remains of the brave people who had dared to come into the torturous Bermuda Triangle. There was a clear path, with bits of dust from the dirt and the withering bones all around, blinding some, but all kept moving forward.

Nina shrieks, as lightning streaks the sky and thunder roars, jumping up and having Ash catch her. “Oh, umm, sorry,” Nina says embarressedly, blushing.

“Nah, I’m just gonna keep you like that. Save us both the trouble.”, Ash says, rolling his eyes. Nina blushes a darker red, hearing Roxana and Jolie giggle knowingly at her.

“C’mon love birds, time’s a wastin’.”, Jeremy says over the thunder.

Kevin looks around, lost and confused as to where they were going. “The rest is up to you, Kevin,” Nina says, as her and Ash walk over beside him. “’And the brothers with power, are the ones who know what to do.’”

Kevin nods, walking ahead of everyone, as they all stay behind, the wind blowing in their faces as their leader leaves them to go and save their friend, Melody Jordan Knight.