The Island of Nanbuel

“The Island of Nanbuel” is one of the outstanding stories of the first biannual International Short Story Contest 2018 written by Fraser, Charter International School, Thailand.

The Island of Nanbuel

Jonathan came to a halt after hearing a grim, rumbling noise in the bushes. He suddenly became self-conscious.Sweat dripped down his haggard face. His dirty-blonde hair started itching, his eyes dried up, but worst of all, he felt like he was being stalked.

He decided that making himself known might be a good idea. But, he was wrong! The moment he opened his mouth, the creature came charging at him. Jonathan could only make out a slimy, purple blob before being knocked unconscious by a single swipe of the monsters fist.

The next thing he knew, he was in a warm and cozy bed. His mum, dad and a nurse crowded around him. He could feel the searing pain coming from the scratch marks produced by the mysterious blob. Many thoughts raced through his head. How did he get there? What was that thing? Why was Dad wearing a minion outfit? All these questions needed to be answered.

There was an awkward silence until the nurse looked down at her clipboard and said that Jonathan was free to go. As soon as they left the hospital, his mum informed him of what happened. She told Jonathan that he was in the forest of Nanbuel on a newly discovered island. Little was known about the creature and that the last time they had been sited, was in 2165-61 years ago-. But what really lit up Jonathan’s eyes was the fact that she told him that they would return to the island to find it.

“Land ahoy!” Jonathan’s dad had spotted the island in the distance. Once the boat touched land, the three of them went racing off. And there, the dark, dense forest stood before them. Jonathan’s mother gave a massive gulp and pointed feebly into the distance. The men looked. There it was, the purple blob. It had a single eye on it’s blue polka dot face and two T-Rex like arms but no legs.

Dad took a step back. Immediately, the monsters came charging at them at a menacing pace. Mum jumped out the way leaving the blob to go after Dad. Jonathan gave it a punch on the back but got stuck in the slimy goo. Dad was on the end of several punches. While all this was happening, Mum ran back on the ship and into the cabin. She opened a chest and found a gun. With an evil look in her eye, she grabbed the gun and bolted down to the beach.

She fired once. It missed. She shot again. This time she got a hit! Right in the face! “One last shot.” She muttered. She aimed and put her finger on the trigger, but in her nervousness, she slipped! A huge cannon ball came hurling at Jonathan. His mother was in a panic as she yelled at him to duck. However, it was too little, too late. Mum dropped to one knee. The reflection of her dead son sent a tear down her face. The gun slipped out of her hand. “Please don’t be dead.”

As this was happening, Dad turned the tables on the monster. He wrestled his way out of the battle. Mum’s sadness had turned into pure anger. She picked the gun up and blasted it several times at the monster. It flew 20 feet though the air before crashing with a loud bang against an oak tree.

Mum put immediately ran over to Jonathan. What a mess he was in: rivers of blood were pouring out of his arms, he was covered in slime and his face had more dirt on it than his plant collection.

Bleeeeep, bleeeeep, bleeeep, bleeep, bleep.

Jonathan's heart rate was speeding up. Dad gagged on a cola as he turned around in disbelief. Jonathan signaled for his Mum to come closer.

“What is it Johnny?” Asked Mum.

“Firstly, I need some water.” Mum poured water in a glass and handed it to him. “How did I get to Nambuel in the first place?”

“That’s a story for another time boy. All you need to do is recover.”