I am awakened by the splashing of waves, struggling to open my eyes. My bed, though twenty years old, is soft and comfortable. I don’t want to leave it. But, I have to. I sit up and stretch my thin limbs as salty air fills my lungs. Without my sheets to protect me from the autumn breeze, the hairs along my arms and back stand on end. Every part of me wants to go back to sleep, but there isn’t any time for that.

My staff is by my bedside, slightly dusty as I had forgotten to clean it the previous day. I grab it as I head for the door, my dark blue cape flowing behind me.

I step out of the rundown cottage decorated with moss and bushes, the old place I call home, under a pink and purple dome. The dome outstretches over my small island, covering the sky and sunlight in an amethyst tint. The naked sky has been hidden for years, so long that I can't recall ever seeing it blue. I always imagined that it looked like the blue gem at the tip of my staff–deep and mesmerizing.

I bring my staff over my head, firmly holding onto its slim and white base, pointing its deep glowing tip to the pink and purple sky. With an exhale, the blue gem turns a bright shade of purple, glowing with the energy I let seep through it. Within moments, light bursts from my staff, and the protective dome grows darker, broader, stronger.

Strengthening the dome, keeping outsiders off of this small island, has been my family’s duty for countless generations. It’s a small, distant island, several hundred miles deep into the ocean. But, every so often we have visitors, all in search of one thing this island holds: the Sea Temple. Its bright blue doors glistening in the sun's blurred purple rays, its peak almost touching the dome, it stands tall and imposing. It is a gorgeous building, but one that I cannot enter, else I would provoke my family’s curse.

One of my ancestors, my long-distant grandfather–a reckless mage who hardly held any control over his magic–had tried to steal the sapphires and rubies hidden within the Sea Temple. As punishment, the Temple’s guardians placed a curse on him and his descendants. We were prohibited from ever leaving the island, tasked with the duty of using our magic to protect the Sea Temple. For generations, my family upheld their duty, until my parents refuted it. “The only written account of our distant-grandfather is from the Temple leaders,” they announced, “we won’t be held back by their demands any longer.” They took to sea, taking me and my siblings with them.

It pains me to admit now, but when I was taken aboard their small ship, I felt like my life was about to begin. Sailing the world, exploring different islands, and facing challenges that would make me feel alive–the idea made my heart sour. I willingly went with my parents, but my aunts and uncles warned me not to go with them. I didn’t listen. The curse wasn’t real, I thought, we would live freely as sailors. 

Then the storm came.

My head was under water before I had the chance to scream. My sister and brother were within arm’s length, but I couldn’t touch them. My parents were reaching for us, fighting against the violent waves, only for the pressure from the raging sea to crush their lungs. Their staves had fallen from their grasp, and without them, they were powerless.

When I regained consciousness, having struggled back onto the island, I found the island torn into pieces. Several of the trees had fallen over, our homes had been destroyed, and the Sea Temple, once flawless and divine as a god, had been covered in cracks.

I was the only one who survived.

It was with this I knew: the curse was real. Because my family had decided to flee from their duty, we were punished. But, I was kept alive. I don’t know why, but I was given a second chance. Taking the staves that remained intact after the storm, I restored the Sea Temple to its divine stature, built a small cottage for myself, and regrew the trees that bear fruit.

I am the Sea Temple’s only protector. It was easier to recharge the barrier when several mages poured their magic into it, but I manage on my own. After twenty years, I have gotten used to it. Sometimes, when sailors or pirates try to pass the barrier, my eyes sting with my lost dreams. A part of me still wants to travel, use my magic for something more. But, I see my parents’ eyes rolling back in their heads as their lungs die, and someone else stepping into the Sea Temple and taking its curse, and I shiver. My place is here.

Once the dome has been recharged, I pick up my staff and channel my magic into the earth. Blueberries, apples, bananas and small rocks levitate towards me. Using my magic, I carry them back to my cottage, where I scrape away at the rock until it’s flat and smash the fruit until they smear. Then, I paint. I don’t count the hours that pass, my focus stolen by the ocean and ship I bring to life on the flat rock.

I can never see the outside world. But, I can imagine. I can pretend.

I finish when the sun reaches its peak. Sitting back, letting my shoulders drop, I stare at my latest creation: a simple boat sailing along the ocean. Not my best work. Gazing at my other paintings: a ship, a blue whale, a dolphin, and many more, I sigh. Perhaps I should come up with something else to occupy my time. Imagining what could be will only make my heart yearn more for something I will never have. I am already thirty–it’s time to let go of nonsense dreams.

I step out from my cabin, stretching. Though no one will ever break the barrier, I think a good use of my time would be building strong doors for the Sea Temple. No one else will be here to protect it when I am gone, and I must consider how to keep out intruders and keep the curse from spreading to another family. Before I begin my trek to the Temple, a familiar sight over the horizon steals my attention.

A simple black ship is approaching my island. I roll my head over my shoulders, turning to head for the Sea Temple. I don’t want to watch another pirate ship try to break the dome; it will only revive dreams I need to leave behind.

Crash.

The sound of breaking glass echoes across the island, while cracks form along the dome. After mere seconds, it disperses, leaving trails of purple dust in the air to fall to the ground. My eyes are assaulted by the bright yellow sun, the neon blue sky, and the sharp white clouds.

The violent glare blinds me.

I whirl around. The black ship is touching the island’s edge, its dark flag flowing in the wind. On the island with me, hunched over, teeth bared, is a pirate. Their large purple hat is tilted forward, scarcely covering their sharp face, while their long dark ponytail flows in the wind with their purple cape. In their large hands is a long, jagged sword, larger than their body, glowing with a blue aura. They look up at me with wide, excited brown eyes, their lip stretched into a wide smile to show their crooked teeth.

“Finally,” they say, “it’s about time that thing came crashing down.”

They look past me at the Sea Temple, their eyes lighting up like those of a hungry child presented with an apple. They dart past me with unimaginable speed. My throat tightening, I bring up my staff, and take hold of their body with my magic. I swing them back, sending them flying over the island’s edge. 

My heart begins to race. I don’t know what to do–I’ve never heard of a sword strong enough to break my magic.

The pirate scales the island’s cliff within moments. With a hardy laugh, they hold up a pistol. To guard myself, I create a small shield, similar to the dome that had been destroyed. The pirate continues to shoot my shield, inching closer, their twitching hand over their sheathed sword. Once they’re close enough, I thrust my shield forward. It pushes against them, bruising their face, and they push back. I push harder, strengthening my shield, knocking them off their feet.

As they roll over their shoulder, they draw their glowing sword, cutting through my shield. They’re back on their feet in seconds, and kick my staff from my hand high into the air, holding the tip of their sword against my neck. I don’t give myself time to think. I grab the blunt of their sword and pull them forward. Once I kick at their head, forcing them to take several steps back, I’m free to grab my staff once it falls back on the ground.

The pirate, putting a hand to their bleeding head, laughs. Taking a moment to think about why they're laughing, recognizing my position, I realize I'm smiling.

“You’re way too good to be cooped up on this island,” the pirate exclaims. “Oh, if only you weren’t standing between me and my treasure–I’d ask you to come onto my ship.”

Something flips in my stomach. Holding up my staff, gaining a slight frown, I reply, “It’s my duty to protect the Temple.”

“You really like the treasure in there, don’t you? I almost feel bad for taking it for myself.”

My scowl deepens. “No one can have the Temple’s treasure. It was my grandfather’s greed that cursed me to never leave this place.”

The pirate’s smile falters. They tilt their head and furrow their brow. “Have you ever read a book on the old guardians of the Temple?”

“What?”

“They couldn’t use magic; they were incapable of blessing or cursing. They were nothing more than shut-ins who loved their money.”

A rebuttal dies on my tongue. I stare at the pirate, my damp hands tightening around my staff. “You’re lying,” I manage to blurt out. “We’ve been protecting the Temple for hundreds of years. Do you honestly believe we would give ourselves to this island for a lie?”

The pirate’s expression softens. They look at me like I’m a bird on the verge of death. “You really think they cursed you,” they say softly. They almost remind me of my mother when she would console me. “You don’t need to stay here and protect an empty building.”

I don’t know what to say. It can’t be true. It was the curse that killed my family, that punished this island for their disobedience. I kept myself here for twenty years to honor my duties. It couldn’t have all been for nothing.

“Well,” the pirate says after a period of silence, “do whatever you want.”

They sprint away, their focus fixated on the Sea Temple. I start to panic. I can’t let them in the Temple. I yell at them to stop, stretching out my staff, sending a surge of energy into them. It pierces them like a knife. I can almost hear their bones breaking as their head rolls back. Their eyes roll upward, back into their skull, while blood gushes from their mouth. They’re dead.

I’m still for a moment, holding their lifeless body over the ground. My stomach churns. Resisting the urge to vomit, I toss their body into the sea. The barrier is revived when I bring my staff over my head, spreading my energy over the island.

I had to do it. It is my family’s duty to protect the Sea Temple. The pirate was lying, deceiving me so they could harm the Temple. If I didn’t kill them, the curse would have done something far worse to them, and I would have suffered my family’s fate.

I look down at the pirate’s ship, and I can’t retain my sobs, knowing that I will never sail in one like it.