If you have not read parts one and two of Molly’s time on the island, I have linked them here and here, respectively. Additionally, at the end of this, you may want to read #DontForgetFlakeCity. If you are a loyal reader of the blog, then you have already read this, and you should just take this moment to say, “hey, wow Abbi, you really are getting better at this whole blogging thing, look at you, linking things, correctly, at the start of the post…” And to you people, I say “thank you, you give me life.” I hope you enjoy this final part of the first half of the story of Molly on the island.

-Abbi

The next morning, the storm finally broke, and the sun began to warm the small island once more. Molly added logs to the fire and urged the coals back to life, before leaving the shelter and surveying the island. Molly was not prepared for what she saw.

            All around the island, small pieces of beach glass had been deposited all along the sand. Many larger shards were a beautiful purple glass. Molly picked up a few of the larger flat pieces that were so stunning, before spotting a small black trunk on the sand. The trunk was a sturdy military grade plastic, the kind that kept contents water proof. This was labeled “MOLLE” And Molly knew this to be a great brand of gear.

            Molly dragged the trunk up to her shelter and opened the latches to reveal the contents inside. On top, a small note, folded over, signed with Roxy’s usual signature.

            “I will get to you, somehow. This place is not normal. Magic? Here are supplies. Viva la vacation!

-Me”

            Molly set the small note aside, wishing Roxy had clarified anything else, and looked into the contents of the trunk. A small camping cook set, including a large pot Molly could purify water in. A bed roll, with a sleeping bag, and an extra blanket and pillow. A small toiletry set, and a small cleaning set for cleaning her cookware. Molly dug through the trunk and found tarps, as well as a small tent, which she set aside. She found dehydrated meals and dry snacks. A few canned goods, some bottles of water, water purification tablets, a small survival handbook, and some clothing. Molly smiled, grateful that Roxy had packed a nice trunk like this.

Molly, after assessing her inventory, got to work. First, Molly unpacked a couple of the tarps, and removed the rain cover from the tent packaging. Molly never cared for commercial tents, but did like to utilize the materials that came from a small tent, including a rain cover, which could help water proof and protect the shelter, or could also be used to make an awning in front of her shelter, extending the space. The tent itself could also be used in the same way, and the poles could be used for not only helping with the structure, but also for traps or fishing polls. Molly didn’t normally eat meat, except for fish, but she had yet to bring up the courage to try and eat fish from the ocean, it didn’t seem right to eat fish from the ocean when she had been brought to this magical island by a dolphin.

Molly worked quickly, using the wind and rain cover from the tent to help reinforce the shelter, tying the ties off to the stakes and digging them deep into the ground, Molly then grabbed a large rock and pushed/carried the rocks to each of the stakes to keep them in the ground. Molly used Para cord and tarps to reinforce the shelter further, after removing any damaged parts of her roof and walls, and replacing them with new branches.

Molly kept a close eye on the sun and the sky, wanting to gather more wood and fruit before the night fell once more, but also wanting her shelter protected against any elements that may come. The weather had not warmed up as much as Molly had thought it would with the sun, and that made her have a deep sense of mistrust in regards to the weather.

With the shelter patched up, Molly turned her attention to her sleeping area, which she added branches to get it off the ground, and lashed them together with some rope from the trunk, before placing the bed roll and sleeping bag on top of the sleeping rack, which was now nearly the height of a small cot.

            Molly turned her attention to gathering supplies from the island, and began gathering up fruits and wood for the fire. The storm the night before had left much wood on the beach and tree line, and Molly used a tarp to pile up logs to carry back larger piles of wood for her fire. The wood supplies had dwindled pretty low, and with the lower temperature, Molly needed the fire running hot. After amassing a larger pile of wood, and adding some to her fire, Molly began gathering up food. Molly had spotted more coconuts and pineapple than she had previously, so she gathered a large supply of the tropical fruits up with the oranges before exploring the tree branches themselves which all seemed to drip with ripe fruits. Apples, grapes, blueberries, and strawberries all greeted Molly, as did kiwi, raspberries, and more lychees.

            Molly was worn out from working so fast, so she sat down next to the trunk in her shelter and sorted the food that had been sent, helping herself to the cashews while she did so, washing down the salty, buttery nut with fruits and berries. Molly had a decent assortment of food, as well as a cooking set to cook up some of the foods. Molly opened the food kit, and inside found the tools needed to set up a steam distiller to purify salt water, and Molly got to work setting that up. After an hour or so, Molly had the fire going evenly, and a container of salt water slowly being distilled into drinking water, and was off to gather more wood to keep the fire going at the temperature.

            The sun was starting it’s trek back down, and the ocean was alive with the sounds of the sea creatures. Molly wanted so much to rest, make up one of the dehydrated meals that had been sent to her, and enjoy the island, but she knew she should finish securing the shelter and purifying water before settling in for the evening. Molly hadn’t seen another plane fly over yet, but she had enough food to be good for a while, and, recalling her opinions on camping gear the day previously, Molly felt she would be quite rude to not accept how much better her situation was. 

             Molly finished securing her food, and stacking all the gathered wood for the fire. Molly added a few logs to the fire before double checking the shelters modifications she had made with the tent parts and the tarps from the trunk.

            With the camp sorted, Molly checked out the clothing that had been sent in the trunk, and removed a pair of light linen pants that could double as sleep pants and a loose light tee shirt. Molly washed off in the ocean water, using a bit of the soap from the toiletries kit, her usual eco-friendly brand, lavender scented soaps, in fact, all of the products were her usual products, the benefit of having a best friend who always got you exactly what you wanted or needed, specifically. Molly finished washing off in the ocean, not worrying about the soap she left in the water due to the natural qualities of the soap, and returned to the camp to dress in the clothing from the trunk, grateful for a clean change of clothes. Molly brushed out her hair and braided it neatly, before sitting on a log by the fire, looking out of her shelter toward the ocean.

            “This is nice.” Molly said, sipping some of her rain water from the night previously. The camping equipment had made all the difference in the world for Molly, more so when she had a container of water from her distillation process of purifying ocean water. Molly filled up her empty bottle with the distilled water once it had cooled enough, and set another pot of water up to distill while she munched on some of the lychee fruit, and assorted berries she had gathered, while she listened to the whales and dolphins sing, and watched the waves of the ocean all around her.

            Molly watched the sunset, enjoying the beautiful colors as they shot across the sky, and when darkness set in on the island, Molly used a bit of water and one of the cooking pans from the camp cooking set, to rehydrate and cook up some of the dehydrated vegetarian chili. Molli was grateful for the selection of food, more so when it contained several batches of her favorite back pack friendly camping meals, including this chili, which was full of tomatoes and beans, loaded with a warm spice, that always left Molly feeling content.

            A full belly later, Molly cleaned up, and settled in with her book, this time opting to read over her survival manual. Molly, while eager to survive, did find herself wanting to read another chapter of the fiction book she had been reading, so after reading a few important chapters in the survival book, Molly treated herself to one more chapter of the fiction book before turning in for bed.

            Molly placed a few more logs on the fire, and snuggled into the sleeping bag. Molly was blown away by how much more comfortable her sleeping arrangements were, and having finally eaten a meal with substantial protein, and drank enough water to be semi hydrated, Molly fell into a deep, peaceful, sleep.

_

            Molly woke the next morning, deeply unsure of what time it was, and groggily trying to remember dreams she had been having before something woke her. Molly remembered a whale, and she was underwater, but not like the nightmares she had suffered from before.

            Molly exited her little shelter and eyed the sky, wondering what time it was. The sky was dim, the clouds dark and ominous. The wind wasn’t blowing strong yet, but a few gusts and strong waves told Molly that she would be experiencing a proper storm in a short time.

            Grabbing her bag, Molly eyed her wood stack and realized she would probably need more. The weather had dropped once again on this odd island, the oncoming storm would drop the temperature further. Molly quickly made her way to the small group of trees, wondering, as she had been, what the area under the trees would hold. Sometimes, it held an impossible amount of wood for fires, other times, fruit. The island seemed to be manifesting whatever she needed most, and Molly was grateful to find that this time was no exception.

            Molly used some rope, a tarp, and her bag, to quickly gather wood and fruits. The ground was littered with fruits, and while gathering wood, Molly had found no small amount of berries, this time with a fun collection of herbs. Molly identified chamomile, lavender, mint, and lemon balm, all of which she gladly gathered up. Molly had stacked a large pile of wood and had a bag heavy with fruits, all of which would be impossible to grow together in the few tree’s on this small island, and made her way back to the shelter. In the short time that Molly had been gathering, the wind had picked up, and the temperature dropped. Molly deposited her fruit into the trunk, added some logs to the fire, and returned outside. Molly grabbed some more wood, and also found some large leaves, so she opted to use the time before the storm arrived fortifying her shelter a bit more.

            Molly had been working hard at waterproofing the roof and walls of the shelter, but she felt it wouldn’t be a bad thing to add more leaves to the outside layers. Molly made sure to leave a ventilation hole for the smoke in her fire, and added branches to the front of the structure to finish forming the last wall. Molly had been dreaming up better shelter designs, with the intent of gathering supplies and searching for a different camp ground, before the signs of the storm had derailed her plans.

            Molly didn’t have much time, however, for before long, the roar of wind become nearly overwhelming, and rain began to fall. Molly quickly finished tying off the leaves she had been adding to weather proofing, and returned into the shelter.

            As the storm hit the island, Molly’s stomach growled, clearly hungry from the many days of survival efforts, Molly decided it wouldn’t be the worst thing to spend the day gathering whatever water she could in her pots and cups, and rehydrating while also replenishing the lost calories.

            Molly first gathered a bunch of rain water, boiled it all to purify it, and then poured it carefully into one of her water bottles. When she had finished, Molly took the remaining water, and boiled a bunch of mint and lemon balm to make a cup of tea to sip on while she made some breakfast.

            Molly had spotted some oatmeal in the care package that arrived, but she also had a plethora of fruit with no idea how the first care package got there, much less when the next would come, so she tossed a bunch of berries into the pot with some of the juices, and made a warm berry medley over the fire for breakfast, topping it with couple handfuls of nuts she had been munching on. The storm raged, stronger than it had the night before, and as Molly enjoyed her feasting, she wondered if it would rage all night again. The day passed slowly, with just the storm, raging on and on, in massive waves, leaving Molly terrified.

            Miraculously, the island hadn’t flooded, though Molly stayed worried, concerned about the amount of rain falling from the sky. Molly huddled in her shelter as hours passed, and still, the rain fell.

            Molly had drifted off into a nap when the roar of the storm, the loud thundering, all stopped. A large, horrifying clap of thunder went off, and with it, Molly shot awake. The island fell silent. Molly got up from her spot and slowly exited her shelter.

            “Am I in the eye of the storm?” Molly asked, looking all around. The air seemed to glow, first a weird blue, then a purple color. The air itself seemed purple, and the pressure in the air made everything sound like some sort of dream.

            Molly stepped further outside, and spotted a small motorboat. In it, her best friend with a skinny, dark haired boy.

            “Holy shit! ROXY!” Molly yelled.

            Roxy turned, and waved to her friend, and returned to the boat. Before Molly’s eyes, the boat turned to a biplane, and powered up.

“ROXY!” Molly screamed. “Surely she isn’t leaving me. Surely she isn’t LEAVING ME!” Molly thought desperately as she watched her friend depart.

            Roxy’s eyes met her friends, and Molly recognized her. Molly stopped and watched, dumbfounded, as her best friend took off away from the island, her biplane took off, turning into her usual plane as it began to climb the skies.

            Molly stood, shocked, and finally looked to the new person on her island.

            “That was Roxy…from years ago.” Molly said, turning to the strange boy. “So who are you? And when?” Demanded Molly.

            The boy pushed his black hair from his forehead. “Hi, yes. I am Gordo, from about, uhh, I think two months in your present’s future? I just left Flake City, a few days ago, which will mean more to you in a month or so.”

            Molly breathed deeply, processing these thoughts. “The storm will be back soon.” Molly finally said, approaching Gordo. Molly picked up one half of the trunk Gordo had been dumped with, and Gordo picked up the other half.

            “She said you would handle all the time travel, pretty easily…” Gordo stammered as they walked towards the shelter.

            “And how did she think I would take being left on the island?”

            “Better after I explained everything.”

            “Do you think I am going to trust you? Roxy, I would have trusted.”

            “I know.” Gordo said with a sigh.

            “The storm is bad. We need to get you settled.” Molly said with a sigh. “Roxy wouldn’t have left you, or me, if it wasn’t needed. And that Roxy, the one you were with, she’s got a bunch going on so…Iuno. I guess…Welcome to the island.” Molly said finally, gesturing with her free hand. Molly led the two of them into the shelter, and the storm began to converge back onto the island.

            The rain began to fall and in the ocean, the ancient whale and Blue the dolphin swam near the island, communicating with the others. Someone had found a way to the island, but the kind one stayed.

This was all a part of what was to come.

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❤

Abbi

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