THE LADY OF STELLAMARE

Act IV

Faithful Florian,

let me tell you about

my latest adventures.

I captained a ship

called the Intrepid

from the port of

Mai Tornar,

but,

due to a sudden storm,

our vessel was

struck with lightning

and caught fire.

The flames

that engulfed our ship

reminded me

of that eventful night

when you saved

Chiara’s life,

courageously

charging into the barn

as the wooden beams

holding up the roof

started to collapse.

But back to

my story.

Everyone was so focused

on the fire

that no one

was at the helm!

Just as the lightning flashed,

a man attacked me,

but with a dark storm

brewing around us,

I couldn’t

see him clearly.

At first I thought

I saw a ghost,

for he looked like

that old villain

Gonzalo.

Later,

I learned that

it was no ghost,

but was truly

Gonzalo himself.

I thought he died

like everyone else aboard,

and thought myself

the only survivor.

The ship hit a glacier

and the whole crew --

including myself --

fell into the sea,

but this was just

the beginning,

dear friend.

Then it began

to rain.

Lucky for me, when I turned  

around, I saw my skiff floating

aimlessly in the water, so I swam

towards it with all my might.

I pulled myself in,

and I looked under the

old blanket that covered the

top and was happy to see that

my hidden chest was still there.

Then I looked quickly inside

to make sure my things

were all right,

and I saw that the

candle and scroll

were still there

and were still dry,

so I latched the chest shut

to protect them

from the rain.

In the distance

to the north

I could see

the flames of

intimidating

Inferno Island.

I was carried

on the waves

directly towards

that island,

and I shuddered

momentarily

with horror

as I remembered

Petrio’s words.

The closer

I got to the island,

the stronger was

the wind --

which almost seemed

to be purposely

steering me there.

The closer

I got to the island,

the stronger was

the rain that fell,

until I was about

a mile away

from the island,

and the terrifying tempest

twisted about me

as if in wicked glee,

with lightning

uncontrollably exploding

all over the sky

as if it were

going mad.

The thunder

became deafening,

and it sounded like

five hundred legions

of warships

were continuously

firing their

cannons at me.

It was as if some

unseen evil force

had caught me

like a wriggling fish

and were reeling me in

towards the isle.

The fiery red eye

of the volcano

seemed to stare

at me

as if it were

obsessed

with me

somehow.

So I approached the isle,

and I could vividly see

the black-sand beach

completely encircling it,

engulfed in

perpetual flames

that seemed to

welcome me with their

contorted and convulsive

dance of delight.

Only when the waves

crashed onto the shore

did the flames

briefly die out,

but other than that

the fire formed

a formidable fence

around the island,

as if it were a prison

of some sort.

I was on a collision course

with the coastline,

and I realized that

I was heading

right at those

furious flames.

A large wave was forming

underneath me,

so at the last moment

I leapt off my

battered skiff

and dove under

the surface of

the water.

I thrashed about

under the wave,

before it burst apart

on the beach.

I found myself

facing downward,

on the wet and toasty

black sand.

I quickly looked around

and saw that the flames

had been momentarily

murdered by the wave,

but after only

a few seconds,

I saw the flames already

returning to life again.

So I snatched my

chest and

clumsily crawled

and scrambled

off the beach

like a crab,

then I turned around

and sat up against a palm tree.

Florian,

please pay attention

to what you

will now read,

for I’m certain

that it will utterly

amaze you,

much as it

has amazed me.

When I saw that the

wave had subsided,

and the ring of fire

had fully fenced me in,

I realized that

I was now a prisoner

inside this

fiery fortress.

But, oh, what an island!

As I turned and

looked about me,

I almost thought

that I was in paradise --

so different it was

from its forbidding exterior!

First of all,

I felt like I was in a

protective bubble.

Out on the sea it was

cold and windy and stormy,

but on the island

it was tranquil.

I could still see the

rapid-fire lightning flashes,

but they were silent,

and there was no thunder --

a very peculiar sensation it was!

I looked up,

and I could see

that it was night.

The sinister squinty eye

of the storm was

directly overhead,

and it must have been

about the same size

as the island itself.

It was a dark sky,

but I could see stars.

I could also see the clouds

of the cyclonic tempest

whirling like a giant

wheel overhead.

Thus, it was raining over

the Sea of Shadows,

but not over the island.

The temperature

was warm,

delightfully warm.

As I looked away from

the coastline,

and towards the

island itself,

I saw before me

what seemed to be a

tropical paradise.

I could see lush green

trees and shrubs

that had a unique

beauty to them,

and they wafted

to and fro

in the light breeze.

Here and there I saw

peaceful volcanic rivers

branching out from

the eye of the

volcano.

The lava sleepily

crept down the mountain

and through the forest

like harmless serpents,

before they emptied out

into the sea.

They gave off just enough

light to create a

wonderfully romantic,

yet eerie,

glow.

It was the most

enchanting place

I had ever seen.

Yet,

at the same time,

it was also the most

bewitching.

Then,

to top it all off,

the aroma of

exotic spices

filled the air.

It was hard not to

imagine

just how delicious

the fruit on this isle

must taste.

And then I noticed

that there were many

tropical fruit trees,

with large leaves

that were dark green,

and interspersed among them,

in great abundance,

was a fabulous flurry

of fantastical fruits.

They were round in shape,

about the size

of an orange,

but they were every color

of the rainbow,

multicolored,

even on the same tree,

ripe,

and ready to eat.

I began to wonder

if all this fruit

was dangerous,

or if Petrio referred only

to a certain color of fruit.

As I was wandering

around in this paradise,

and musing upon these things,

I suddenly heard

a woman’s melodious voice

speak my name:

“Cassano.”

I turned around abruptly

as if I had been

ambushed

and shot in the back.

When I saw this woman,

somehow I felt alarmed

by the sight of her.

She was strikingly

beautiful.

How can I describe

her to you,

Florian?

She was leaning,

in a teasing position,

against one of the

blooming fruit trees.

Her long, wild whirl

of thick black hair

sensually swirled down

over her shoulders

and culminated in

a comely cluster of

sweet serpentine ringlets

that dangled

to the middle of her back.

She wore an alluring gown

that was blood red,

and it draped over

and clung to her

voluptuous goddess-like body

like smooth

liquid lava.

With her head angled slightly,

she looked askance at me

with a lustful left eye

that was as

black as midnight.

Then she slowly and

seductively sauntered

towards me,

walking on the island sand

with her bare feet.

Now that she

faced me head-on,

I noticed that her

right eye was a

different color

than her left one --

it was a

sultry sea green.

Those eyes of hers were

mesmerizing.

As she neared me,

the right corner of her lip

curled upwards playfully

in a suggestive smile

of conquest --

she was like a warrior

going in for the kill,

knowing her opponent

was no match for her.

Then she fired

her secret weapon,

a stunning, bright,

captivating smile.

When she saw

that I was

dumbstruck,

she continued,

confidently,

in her melodic voice,

“My name is Thaliela,

and I am the queen of

the magic maidens.”

It was then that

I realized

that we were not

alone.

As I looked through the

green foliage,

I saw a myriad of

black and green eyes

peering at me

with curious delight.

Although I couldn’t

see them well,

I knew they were all

women,

because of the

musical sound of

their delightful giggling.

Thaliela drew unusually close to me,

and then whispered.

She said,

“I know you have

a scroll and a candle

with you,

and I’ve been waiting

for you to bring them to me.

“You see,

I am

the Lady of Stellamare.”

When she spoke that name,

I felt a sense of confusion

deep inside of me.

I felt a sense of excitement,

but also of danger,

on this strange isle.

Then she made a proposal:

“If you give me your

candle and scroll,

I will make all your

dreams come true --

even my lips are flavored

with spices!”

I could feel the warmth

of her breath

upon my face,

and I drank in its aroma,

which was that of

exotic spices.

Her eyes were

wide open and

alive

as she said this,

and she stroked her

sleek, silky fingers

across my cheeks

and onto my lips.

I was,

quite honestly,

breathless

and perplexed.

Thaliela had a magnetic

power over men

that was hypnotic,

and almost

irresistible.

She added,

“While you retrieve

your little treasures

for me,

I will prepare

unspeakable delights

and pleasures

for you.”

Next, she reached up

and plucked a

ripe red fruit

off of a nearby tree,

and its juice dripped like

bright blood

on her fingers.

She offered it to me.

I hesitated,

ever so slightly,

then took it in my hands,

which were moistened

by its sweet-smelling,

sticky juice.

I do believe

my hands were

quivering slightly,

and I immediately remembered

Petrio’s words of warning.

Thaliela persuasively urged me,

“Here… take this, Cassano...

eat of it.”

Then she drew even nearer

so that the tip of her

cool delicate nose

touched my

warm ear.

And she whispered,

even more softly,

“This luscious fruit

will help you relax,

and it will make our

time together

even more memorable.”

Then in a coy manner,

she stepped back slightly,

she slowly licked her lips,

she winked her black eye at me,

and briskly walked off

towards the interior of the island,

her hair bouncing in waves

as she strutted like a peacock

alongside the banks of a

lazy lava river.

Springing out of their

Hiding places,

The other magic maidens,

Like frolicking fairies,

Chased after her

In a sea of giggles.

To be continued tomorrow…