As the waves crashed against the shore, Jake, an adventurous kayaker, gazed at the horizon. He had always been fascinated by the mysteries surrounding the Bermuda Triangle. Today, fate had brought him to a remote island off its infamous coast. Guided by an old map, he discovered a hidden cove sheltering an ancient shipwreck. Eagerly, he approached the eerie vessel, its timeworn planks beckoning him. Ignoring the sense of foreboding, he stepped inside, only to be greeted by an unexpected sight.
The Bermuda Triangle was a place Jake had only ever dreamt of going to. The mysteries surrounding the place intrigued him, but he had not gotten a chance to go there—yet. One fateful day, Jake stumbled upon an old map in an antique store. The map showed a series of uncharted islands within the Bermuda Triangle, with a marked location for a hidden cove. Soon after he found the map, he flew to the island of Bermuda. Once he arrived at the island and settled into his Airbnb, he went to the shore and hired a kayak for the next few days.
The following morning, equipped with his trusty kayak and a backpack filled with supplies, Jake set off to the sea of the Bermuda Triangle. Jake quickly set up camp at the beach and retreated inside his tent. There, he ate a bit of the food he had brought but was careful not to eat too much of it—he didn’t know how long he would be there. The hot morning sun woke Jake up the following day, and he quickly jumped inside his kayak. To his surprise, it wasn’t a big search as the mark led him straight to the big black shadow he had seen yesterday evening. But this time, in the light of day, Jake could clearly see what the shadow truly was: an ancient shipwreck.
Jake’s eyes grew wide with shock and excitement. “This ship must be at least 100 years old, if not more!” he thought. He kayaked around it to see the state of the rest of the ship and noticed a large hole in the side. Jake was nervous, but his curiosity was much stronger. He simply couldn’t resist the urge to explore the ancient shipwreck. With his heart pounding in his chest, he maneuvered his kayak through the narrow opening and finally entered the ship. He was frightened, but he wanted to continue deeper inside. But before he could do that, he heard a loud banging noise echoing through the ship. A million thoughts raced through Jake’s mind. If there really were people living on this island, they would definitely see him as an outsider—an intruder.
Jake panicked, knowing he needed to get away from this place as soon as possible. The sound was almost deafening, and he felt it through his entire body as he finally made his way out of the ship. Jake felt very tense. He stopped paddling and took a deep breath. What was he doing? The sole reason he came here was to find where the map would lead him, and he did just that. But was he really about to throw this adventure away because of people who might live here? What if it was just the wind banging on the ship’s exterior?
Driven by a sudden change of mind, Jake turned around and paddled inside the ship again. This time, ignoring the banging sounds, he paddled until there was no more space for his kayak to go through and got out. The shipwreck was capsized, so walking through it would be a challenge, but it was not impossible. Jake carefully walked deeper into the shipwreck, using his flashlight to find a way through the labyrinthine corridors. In front of Jake was a metal door, locked shut with heavy chains and a padlock. The chains looked rather new, as there wasn’t a lot of rust on them.
Suddenly, Jake felt a sharp pain in his head, and everything went black. He woke up—God knows how much later—inside a room he had never seen before. As he got up, a sharp pain shot through his head. He placed his hand on the painful spot and realized he was bleeding. Through the dizziness and pain, Jake ran to the door, desperately trying to push it open. However, he quickly realized that this was the very same door he had been standing in front of before losing consciousness—only now, he found himself on the opposite side. What was going on here? He wanted to scream, hoping that somebody would hear him, but he paused. What if his captors realized he was awake?
He turned around and looked around the room. That’s when he realized how dangerous the situation actually was because, throughout the room, in various positions, lay skeletons. What had happened here? And would he be next? Jake could hear noises coming closer and closer to him. He thought as he tried to find a place to hide, but before he even had time to find a spot, the doors swung open, and a group of men entered the room. Jake’s heart pounded in his chest as he held his hands up in front of him. These were no ordinary people. Jake was terrified. He had no idea what kind of tribe he was dealing with and what they would do with him.
Jake’s mind spun with ideas. He held his head low as they walked over the beach and into the jungle. The jungle was dense, and it would be almost impossible for him to find his way back, so he paid close attention to his surroundings. Jake knew that every tribe has a chief, and they could be ferocious. This one would probably be the one to decide his fate. But suddenly, an opportunity arose. The men suddenly stopped and waited. Jake didn’t know what they were so focused on, but it was clear their attention had shifted. It was now or never. Jake slowly turned around and saw the two men behind him look the other way. Jake couldn’t wait for another second and took off running for his life. He could hear the men yelling behind him as he ran away as fast as he could. They started chasing him immediately and got real close until Jake felt the ground fall away underneath him, and he rolled down a mountain. He rolled down the mountain, hitting his arms, legs, stomach, and back against rocks and trees. Miraculously, his head only had a few scratches, but one of his legs was severely hurt.
And that wasn’t his only worry. Now that he had fallen, there was no way he would find his base camp again, and how would he get his kayak back? Jake eventually fell asleep inside the hollow tree. He was rudely awakened by something—or actually someone—pulling him out. It was the same men that had captured him before. They looked furious and pulled roughly. Jake yelled in pain and reached for his leg. The man was confused and looked at Jake’s leg; it was covered in blood and didn’t look good. The man yelled something to the other men, and Jake could swear that he saw him lick his lips. Then one of the men took Jake’s legs, and the other grabbed him under his armpits. Together, they carried Jake back to where he had left them.
They had arrived at the tribal camp. The tribal camp was huge, with huts and fire pits, and women and children running around. They were carrying Jake toward the table of food, and he couldn’t help but notice a huge—and I mean huge—fire pit behind it. The drums that were playing were silenced, and the chief appeared out of one of the huts. The men carrying Jake lowered him so he came to eye level with the chief. The chief’s eyes inspected every bit of Jake’s body, from his ears to his knees and fingertips. He yelled something that Jake couldn’t understand, and everyone started yelling—or actually, they were cheering. They jumped up and down and started hugging each other.
What was going on here? Were they celebrating their next meal?
Jake cleared his throat, and everyone stopped what they were doing. “Um, hello. My name is Jake,” he said.
“Jake,” the chief repeated, trying to say Jake’s name.
“Yes, Jake. I—I come in peace. I mean no harm. Please let me go, and I will never return,” Jake felt tears well up in his eyes as he said those words.
The tribal men placed him in a makeshift jail made of thick branches tied together. They guarded the jail for the rest of the day until nightfall. Then, as it got darker, the tribe began chanting and dancing around. The drums were playing again, and everyone was having a blast. Jake cried softly, as he didn’t want the tribal people to see him so weak. Then the chief suddenly opened the jail and grabbed Jake by the arm, pulling him to his feet.
“This is it,” Jake thought, and he said his goodbyes in his head.
The chief guided him to the fire as everyone watched. Jake closed his eyes as he approached the fire but opened them quickly when he felt that they suddenly turned in a different direction. They weren’t going toward the fire after all; they were heading toward the table full of prepared meals. There was one chair at the head of the table, decorated with leaves and branches, probably for the chief. But Jake—Jake thought wrong again. The chair wasn’t for the chief; it was for him. The chief sat Jake down at the table and took a seat next to him. As soon as the chief sat down, the others sat down as well, and they all looked at Jake in anticipation of something.
Jake frowned and looked around him. It looked like they were waiting for him to do something. Suddenly, the chief stood up with a cup in his hands.
“Jake!” he yelled.
Now, everyone stood up and yelled Jake’s name. After
that, they started laughing and happily eating together. When the chief noticed Jake’s stunned look, he grabbed a piece of meat and held it in front of him. He mimicked that Jake should eat it. So, Jake took the piece and carefully took a bite. This was not how he expected the night would go. Suddenly, he heard a rustling sound in the distance, and a man dressed in normal clothes emerged. He greeted the tribal people in their own language, but he seemed to be from the mainland. Then he spotted Jake.
“They were celebrating your arrival,” the man explained. “It’s all a misunderstanding. After I came to the island, bringing food and water with me, the tribe began idolizing our kind. They saw you arrive and kept a close eye on you for a while. They wanted to know your intentions, you know. And then you entered their ship. They see that ship as a symbol.”
Jake suddenly realized what was happening. He was blinded by his assumptions, too blinded to see that they were actually celebrating him. Jake decided to stay for a few more days on the island. The other man stayed to be his interpreter, and Jake learned a lot more about the tribe. When he left, he promised to stay silent about the tribe, as they didn’t want to be colonized or bring their land into danger.
As Jake looked out of the airplane window, he looked at the island he had visited the past few days. He chuckled a bit at the thoughts he had while being there. It was an adventure he would never forget. His leg was looking a lot better after the healer of the tribe treated him, but he still planned to go to the doctor as soon as he got home.
