The serpents voice resounded into Thomas’s heart as it told its tail.

” When I was a child, this land wasn’t fouled by men as it is today. Without men, we had not a care in the world…or so we thought. There was one being, one infinitesimal creature that struck fear into all serpents. It wasn’t exactly an animal:it was a stone.”

As the great leviathan spoke, Thomas could hear its labored breathing and clutched tighter to the floating barrel by his side. ” This stone had the ability to see into our souls. No creature is able to withstand this desire, so they would flock to see the stone. When they gazed into it’s inner center, it would tell them the meaning of their lives. This brought many problems, and we began killing each other…clouded by the delusions of our future.

You, Thomas the Pirate, must go to bury the stone. You must bury it on an island far away from men. But you must remember…” With this, the mighty beast gave a cough and lowered its scarlet eyes for the last time.