68 lines
2.9 KiB
Markdown
68 lines
2.9 KiB
Markdown
---
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title: "The Islands: Part 1"
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author: "James Pace"
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date: "2024/10/08"
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---
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> "The Islands" is a fictional series that take place in an chain
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> of islands in an alternate universe.
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>
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> I'm writing this as an excuse to improve my writing skills,
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> but I hope you also can derive some joy from it.
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>
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The boats constant bobbing up and down in the rough seas made the island up
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ahead appear even more intimidating than it did on a normal day.
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We may have been pulling up to the southern beach of the island, but it was the
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mountain that set on the northern shore that dominated the scene.
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The mountain was grey and almost dreary looking, with asymmetric sections
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that jutted out every such way, almost like little bolts of lightning.
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The southern beach, where we were headed, was gorgeous, with the blue water
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reflecting the image of the palm trees growing out of the pearl white sand.
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It was hard to miss the contrast.
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"Mahalo!"
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I hear a deep friendly voice yell as the boat bounces into the dock.
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A cheery round man waves at us passengers from dock as the captain
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moors the small charter boat.
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"Welcome, welcome", the man says at no one in particular.
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"Make sure to grab all your belongings and form a line!", he says cheeringly,
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"I'll bring you through customs shortly."
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The boat is quickly emptied and we follow the man through a gate towards the custom
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building.
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The man starts chatting with the man at the front of the line and provides some tips
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for the best places to eat on the island.
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The man is extremely cheerful.
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I notice the irony that we're following short Santa Claus through a gate with guards
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holding guns, fingers on the trigger, on each side.
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The customs building is built from rock from the mountain and looks like a fortress.
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If it wasn't for the men in the black uniforms holding M16s, you could be forgiven
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for assuming you were in a medieval fortress.
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On the left side of the door into the customs office is a sign that reads "Welcome!".
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On the right is a shield for the Second Royal Regiment, which proudly displays the motto
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"As the moutain protects the north we protect the south." under a drawing of a body crushed
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under a boulder, only the legs sticking out.
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I found my self mulling on the contrast of a "Welcome" sign next to a sign showing death,
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when out guide smiled at me and said "Your next!" while pointing towards a desk where a
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custom's agent stood.
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I borught my brain back into reality a smiled at the guide before walking towards the agent.
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I already had all the paperwork I needed in hand.
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The customs agent looked through all my paperwork and then looked again, before looking at me
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in the eye and completely dead pan saying "You may proceed through the double doors.
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Enjoy your stay."
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I walked through the heavy wood doors, and was immediately attacked by the light.
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I took a deep breath in and then repacked my documents.
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It was time to make it to my next destination on the island.
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