One Festive Night

The house was in an especially festive mood that evening for the holiday season. The dining room was decorated in holly and mistletoe. The candles in the chandelier over the dining table shone bright and warm. There was a beautiful golden suckling pig on the spit over the hearth that filled the house with delicious smell of roasting pork.

Uncle Mike was bringing a special friend Captain Sam for dinner that night which had everyone in the house keyed up with excitement. Captain Sam was an adventurous sailor who had traveled the world, and everyone was looking forward to hearing accounts of his exploits. The family met the pair in the front garden and there were warm greetings all around. Captain Sam was a tall well built man with broad shoulders. He had long black hair that was pulled into a queue in the back. His skin was tanned and weathered from his years spent facing the sun and wind from the deck of a ship. His eyes were lively dancing eyes with a twinkle of mischievousness behind them.

When the greetings were concluded the party was ushered into the house. As the Captain passed over the threshold the mouthwatering fragrance of roasting pork enveloped him. He instantly froze in place. The color drained from the Captain and a look of utter terror was very notable upon his face. Uncle Mike turned and seeing the distressful state that had come upon his friend he rushed to his side. Placing a hand on the Captain’s shoulder he asked, “are you ok Sam?” In a concerned voice, but he just stood there rooted in place unable to speak or move. Before the Captain could come too the whole family was surrounding him fretting over his condition.

Though it seemed like an eternity to the family, in a matter of a few minutes the Captain came to his senses then he promptly turned and rushed back out into the garden where crumpled down onto a bench as if all his energy had been sapped from his body. The family followed to find him head in hands weeping. Mike came to him softly and asked, “what happened Sam did we do something to upset you?”

“No. No. Of course not.” The Captain said in a choking voice lifting his head and wiping his eyes. “I must apologize for my behavior. I best explain.” He said calling all the family to gather together for his tale.

He still was pale and his eyes had a far off disparaging look. He began to speak.

It was years ago when I was aboard a whaling ship in the south seas. A fierce storm fell upon us one night. The worst storm I have ever seen in all my days. The waves rose high and crashed down upon the deck, lighting struck all around us, and the wind howled down on us with out mercy. The storm drove us upon a reef that broke the ship apart. The night was pitch black and the waves were high in the sea that night, and I found myself cast into that sea grasping on to an empty cask to stay afloat.

I passed out at some point and awoke coughing and spiting the sea from lungs on a sandy beach surrounded by pieces of the wreckage. After searching I found my friend Tom. He was the only other survivor from the wreck. Tom was a gentle giant standing over six feet tall with muscles like an ox, but he would not hurt a flea. He always had a big smile on his face. We made a shelter from the wreckage we could salvage and started a fire to keep warm as evening came on.

I walked away into the jungle to relieve myself when they came. There was about twenty of them. They were practically naked with tattoos covering their bodies. They all carried war clubs and vicious spears. I heard a commotion, and I hid in the foliage as they surrounded Tom and took him prisoner. I followed them at a distance back to their village. They had Tom trussed up like a deer with his hands and feet tied together then a pole shoved between the bonds, so he could be carried between two big men with the pole resting on their shoulders, and toms body swinging down from the pole between them.

I hid out of sight from the villagers, but where I could watch them in case an opportunity arose to rescue Tom. They tied Tom to a large stake in the ground at the center of the village. His hands were tied above his head, and his feet were fastened to the bottom of the stake. Poor big Tom. He never did anyone wrong, but these heathens danced around him in the fire light continually jabbing him with the points of their spears.

The Captain fell silent hanging his head in disgust for a second. He lifted his head with tears again in his eyes as he went on.

The cries that came from Tom. I can never forget those horrible cries! I watched as they cut flesh from his arms and legs while he was still alive. They roasted the flesh and ate it in front him. With this bloodletting the heathens began to dance and howl with a new fever. Their blood was up and I could see the unbridled joy on their faces as they continued their tortures on my friend. When they had finished torturing him they cut his still beating heart from his chest. I should have left at that moment as I knew there was nothing to be done about the situation, but I was paralyzed with dispear. I looked in through tear filled eyes as they dismembered his body and placed it over coals to roast. As his carcass was roasting over the coals and the fat would drip on to the coals with a loud sizzling sound. The jungle became fill with the smell of roasting human flesh. It smelled just like roasting pork!

Eventually I made my way to the shore and stole away in one of their canoes. I was a drift for two days before I was rescued by a passing ship.Ever since that horrible night I can not smell roasting pork with out reliving that horrific experience.

As Captain Sam came back into the present, he looked around into the faces of his audience. They were stunned and captivated by his tale. The women pressed handkerchiefs to their faces as tears ran down from their eyes. The children clung to their fathers pant leg in fear. The Captain slumped back against the the bench. His energy sapped from his once strong frame. The pleasant evening they had all anticipated before them now gone never to be.