Chaland: Island of Challenges Part 1

Brianna let out a long sigh as she flopped onto the bus seat. Reaching into her backpack, she took out her video game system and began to play a monster catching game. The school year was almost over and she was still drowning in work. At the thought of all the work and studying she had to do for her finals, she groaned and sat back in her seat.

“Junior year was and still is a bitch,” she muttered to herself. When the bus finally arrived at her stop, she gathered her backpack and lunch bag and proceeded to get off. She gave the bus driver a nod as she exited the vehicle and she headed home, following behind her sister, Daniella. Once home, Brianna dropped her lunch bag on the kitchen table and headed upstairs into her room. Once inside, she set her backpack on the floor and jumped onto her bed to continue playing the game. What she didn’t notice was a small note written in gold sharpie on a napkin on her bedside table.

Brianna was a short, brown-haired girl with chocolate brown eyes. She was around 5’2”, had very pale skin, and her hair was a couple inches longer than shoulder-length. Since it was summer, she was wearing a t-shirt and jean shorts. Daniella was the younger of the pair but was the taller one. She was only taller by an inch but she still liked to rub it in that she was taller than her sister. Daniella had dirty blonde hair that was a little shorter than her sister’s hair and it was almost always up in a ponytail. Her eyes were the same chocolate brown as her sister’s. Daniella had much tanner skin than her sister. Unlike her sister, Daniella had an athletic build and enjoyed playing volleyball.

A little later, Daniella came into Brianna’s room, holding an identical note on a fancy card in her hand.

“Get out!” Brianna growled.

“No,” Daniella replied. “I have something I need to show you.”

“What is it?” Brianna asked, still annoyed by her younger sister’s presence.

“I found this strange note on my bedside table and- Oh, you have one too!” Daniella explained, walking over to the table and picking up the note.

“Give me that!” Brianna demanded, snatching the note from her sister’s hands.

The note said:
Congratulations! You are one of the lucky 15 who have been selected to participate in a grand competition! You will be transported to the island within a few days. Be prepared for an experience that will change your life!
See you soon!
Your Gracious Hosts

Daniella read the note over Brianna’s shoulder.
“That’s exactly what mine says!” Daniella exclaimed.

“But what does it mean?” Brianna asked.

“I don’t know. We’ll just have to wait and see,” Daniella replied.

Later on, Brianna received texts from her boyfriend, Sam, and her friend, Rose. Both asked if she got a strange note as well. She replied that while she and her sister did get similar notes, hers was written in gold sharpie on a napkin as opposed to being written on a crumpled piece of lined paper or a piece of sketch paper or a fancy card. Nobody had any idea what the notes meant or what was to come.

A few days later, Brianna and Daniella had finished slogging through their finals and were done with school for the summer. They return home without any unusual things happening to them, so they began to think the notes were just a prank.When Brianna fell asleep that night, she began to dream that she was floating through an endless black void. In a moment of lucidity she frantically looked around, searching for something, anything to grab onto,, but there was nothing. Then suddenly a woman’s voice broke through the darkness.

“State your name and purpose,” its commanding voice echoed through the void.

“B-Brianna Lucille Emrich and I’m not sure what my purpose is,” Brianna softly replied.

There was no response, Brianna thought she may have said something wrong and started to worry.

Finally, the voice spoke; “What is your weapon of choice?” it asked.

Brianna was surprised by the question and she thought about it for a while before answering. “I guess I’d like a bo staff since that’s the only weapon that I at least know how to use,” she replied.

The voice went silent once again and Brianna waited patiently for a response,hoping that she made the right choice.

“That is all I require of you for now,” The voice finally said.

“Okay?” Brianna replied, wondering what that was all about.

Brianna awoke to the feeling of soft sand beneath her body. She was still too groggy to care however, so she fell right back asleep. Later on, she felt a swift kick to her side and a familiar voice yelling at her to “get the fuck up”! Groaning and holding her side, Brianna slowly opened her eyes, still heavy with sleep. She blinked and squinted in the harsh sunlight; “What was that for?” she complained. She looked up to find her sister Daniella standing over her.

“You need to wake up and see this,” Daniella replied, her voice taking on a more concerned tone.

Brianna, finally realizing that she wasn’t in her bed, shot up to her feet and looked around wildly.

“Where the fuck are we?” she asked.

Daniella shook her head. “I don’t know. I just woke up further down the beach and saw you laying in the sand.”

“Shit,” Brianna said. She stood there in deep thought. Suddenly, her eyes widened. “Of course! This must be the island the notes were talking about! Which means there must be 13 other people here!”

“Then we should go and try to find them,” Daniella said.

“Okay. So… which way should we go?” Brianna asked.

“Down the beach, you idiot!” Daniella replied.

“Bitch,” Brianna muttered under her breath as they set off down the beach.