Week 2 Story: Witches Island

   
Update: This story can now be found on my portfolio, here.

     On a faraway island, there was a colony of cannibal witches.  These witches were not the old, ugly, and foul-tempered kind--in fact they were very beautiful.  Despite this, they were also evil.  They hated humans, especially men.  Men were, in fact, their favorite kind of food.  While men were not around too often, it wasn't rare for pirate or merchant ships to stop at the island for rest or refuge from tropical storms.  When men did venture into their home, it was only too easy for the witches to acquire their prey.  For men are not the smartest, especially when dealing with seemingly beautiful women.  These witches were clever as well; they would play to the men's weaknesses in order to get them to stay.  It wouldn't be very long at all before the witches convinced their men to stay on the island and get married.  Within a few days time, all of the witches would feast upon their husbands.  After years and years of practice, it became too easy for a witch to trick a man into becoming her dinner.
     One day, a lost and tired ship stopped by the island.  The Captain, Morgan, realized that his men needed more supplies and knew that stepping on land would do his men good.  Seeing smoke from the island, they pulled right up to the beach where the witches' village lay.  The men from the boat, tired from the long months on the sea, were instantly wooed by the inhabitants.  Even Captain Morgan, an honest and intelligent man with good leadership qualities, was dazzled by the witches and fell into the Queen Witch's snare.  Before long, just as always, the men had found their new wives and were ready to start seemingly heavenly lives on this new tropical paradise.  One night, just before the wedding ceremonies, Captain Morgan heard his wife-to-be speaking to one of her subordinates. But it was not her usual voice.  It was a raspy, hungry voice that chilled Morgan's bones to the core.
"Tomorrow night, we will feast on this batch of men," the Queen Witch exclaimed to her fellow witch.
"These men are just as dumb as the rest.  And I imagine, just as tasty!" The Witch then cried out, laughing maniacally.
     Captain Morgan knew that he and his men were in grave danger.  The next morning he told all of his shipmates about what he had heard.  While a few heeded his warning, many were too far gone under the witches' spell of beauty to willingly leave the island on their wedding day.  Morgan ordered his men back to their ship, and while many followed, many more still stayed behind.  Morgan and his followers quickly made their way to the beach and set sail.  The men who stayed behind were never heard from again.


Author's Note: I was inspired by the story Goblin City when writing this piece.  The story I wrote is very similar to the original, though there are some differences here and there.  I thought the story would be better if there were witches on the island rather than goblins, so that's what inspired me to write this story.

Bibliography: "Goblin City" from Indian folk-lore by W.H.D. Rouse 

A beautiful lagoon located on Pigeon Island.  This is how I imagine the tropical island that the witches inhabit.  

Source: Commons