Chapter
1 – A Big Birthday Surprise
What the heck is happening? What’s wrong
with the plane? I can’t control it and I’m going down! There has to be somewhere
safe to land. Where’s the runway at? I’m sure it was around here some-there it
is! Okay, hold on! Aghhh! Am I alive? I feel alive but am I really alive?! I
pinch myself, and yes! I’m alive!
“Whew!” I say aloud as I wipe the sweat
off my face, “Now, that was a close one!”
I look around to see that there’s
no one at the airfield. That’s strange. I remember when dozens of people filled
this airfield because they wanted to learn how to make planes. My plane is a Fokker
Dr. I triplane, which is what the Red Barron used in the recent war. At least I
crashed on the runway near a hanger, so I can fix it later. It isn’t too
banged up. It better not be for the price I bought it for. Who am I kidding? I
have enough money in the bank to buy two. Oh, the joys of living in a business
family.
It’s the reason why I’m back home.
They sent me a letter saying that they have a big birthday celebration ready
for me. One of my presents is supposed to be the family secret in how we’re so successful
in the world. This entire island is ours with different parts of it having
factories and offices for different industries. It’s amazing that none of the
nations decided to attack and take over our island, but I guess you shouldn’t destroy
an independent country that has companies and friends in all countries.
I’ve been away in other countries making planes and
flying them and I’m glad to be back home. It’s way too quiet here. This island
is usually bustling with activity, and I don’t hear anything. The only things I
can hear are the birds in the sky and the animals in the wild. Maybe they’re
all being quiet to surprise me. That seems like the best possible explanation,
but I don’t see anyone near the village I grew up in. Yeah, I grew up in villages
made of wood. It’s supposed to help us be humbler and to appreciate our roots,
but it always felt off especially since we have fancy hotels for workers near
their places of work. I guess I would’ve been a brat if I didn’t have something
to keep my opinion of myself down, so I guess I appreciate these old houses.
There’s still no one around. I’m half
expecting a tumbleweed to roll by for comedic effect. If that would happen, I would
know there would be a surprise, so I guess it’s just hopeful thinking.
“Hello? Anyone out there? I know
you’re here.”
Still nothing. Maybe they’re at my
home. They have to be. Here we go.
“Hey! Every…one.”
Nope. No one is here. Not here nor
there nor around this corner.
“Where is everyone?!”
…Still nothing. I was half expecting
someone to finally jump out, but nothing happened. Nothing in the house is
touched. It’s as if everyone suddenly disappeared. Maybe the neighbors are
home. I check the house next to mine and find no one, but I do find a note. It
says, “I was going to prepare the decorations for the surprise party, but the
others talked me out of it. Instead, they told me to write this note and leave
it here in the hopes that our returning family will see it and know that we’re
still on the island despite it looking like no one is home. We’re somewhere
else on the island, and you’ll have to use the skills we taught you to find us.
Good luck!”
So, I have to work to get my
surprise party. That makes sense. I’ve worked ever since I can remember. At
first, work was showed to me like a game and then slowly became actual work. By
then, I didn’t mind working because to me, I was still playing a game. A building
game to specific. I liked building and I wanted to fly, so I helped people make
airplanes. One of my favorite hobbies to do when I’m bored is to make paper
airplanes, draw different designs on them, fly them around, and put them in my
collection if I take a liking to them.
Speaking about paper airplanes, I’ll
make one right now. My neighbor who owns this house has very fine and colorful paper
that I like to use for my paper airplanes. I take a piece, make my airplane, and
fly it. It goes around the room before going out the open window. Dang it. That
always happens when I don’t realize the window is open. I chase after the
airplane and…is that someone in the distance. He looks like a normal worker.
“Hello!” I call over to him.
“Hey!” the man says as he waves
with a letter.
“Is that for me?”
“Ye-”
Suddenly, something in a white
mask, black hair, and white robe grab the man from the corner and take him away.
I run over to where the man disappeared and can’t find anything except for an
empty alleyway. The letter is on the ground though. I open it and read it as I look
around the area for the man. The letter says, “The rest of the family from the
rest of the world is here. All we have to do is wait for the birthday boy to
arrive. The workers are instructed to either stay in their homes or join us for
the celebration if they won’t say anything about it to anyone else. We can’t
have anyone else in the world figuring out our family’s secret to success. If
you’re reading this birthday boy, come to your old playhouse. If you find this
letter and you aren’t him, then bring this letter to him.”
Playhouse? Do they mean the repair
shop in town? That’s the only place I can think of. I can’t find that man who
disappeared nor his kidnapper. That mask and robe that person was wearing seem
familiar. I might’ve seen it somewhere on the island. There might also be some
significance to it, but I forgot what it was. It might be for some special
ceremonial thing that goes back all the way to the start of my family’s
business. I don’t know where the man nor the kidnapper could’ve gone.
Oh, here’s my paper airplane. I
almost forgot about it. Huh?! I looked up for a second and thought I saw that same
masked person from before.
“Hello? Why are you playing this
game? Does it have to do with the family’s secret?”
The only response I get is silence.
As I walk to the repair shop, I see figures in white robes and masks in the
trees around me. When I put my eyes on them, they disappear, but they seem to
reappear when I look away. The only way to look at them is to use the corner of
my eyes. Even then, are they really there or just a figment of my imagination? I
can hear something getting closer, but I can’t see what it is exactly. Is it
the people in robes, an animal of some kind, or am I just going crazy?
“Okay, everyone, you’re really
starting to scare me. You can drop the act now. AHHH!”
What the heck? Oh. It’s just a dog.
I pet the dog a bit and then it walks away. The noises have stopped, and I’ve
stopped seeing those people in robes in the trees. Am I just anxious or something?
Who are those people in robes? Are those my family? If so, why are they making
me work for my birthday gifts? Well, I guess I’ll find out eventually.
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