The last moments of Brynmor Ap Dewydd (Part I) - Bran

This is the story of my grandfather, Brynmor Ap Dewydd. My grandfather lived from 1929-1960. This account tells of his adventure that he had in 1960. Some of this tale is fiction some is truth. This story is taken from the journal of Brynmor which he kept all of his life. This is the last testimony of Brynmor Ap Dewydd. My life is nearing its end. As I write, I can feel the darkness closing.... It started about a year ago. I met Mr. Stanton at a party for my dear cousin, Edith Spam. At first he seemed like a charming fellow, and we got along splendidly. He said that he was a traveling sales man, and I was enough of a fool to believe him. But how could I have known? How could I have known that......But wait, I'm getting ahead of myself. Where was I? Ah, I remember. The following week Edith approached me and offered me a chance for "adventure". Her proposition was simple: She had a group of men all prepared to look for the lost treasure ship, The Sinking Rock, and I was invited. It was straight forward. All I would do was tag along for a relaxing trip, and of course I would finance the expedition. For the next couple of weeks, all I did was sit back in my favorite chair and write checks which wasn't that bad since I had my trusty pipe nearby. When the preparations were complete, I kissed my uneventful life goodbye and boarded the ship bound for adventures untold. This is part one of my grandfather's adventure. The rest of this story will continue when I translate my grandfather's journal out of welsh. ---- This is the second part of my grandfather's adventure. It was about a couple of days into our voyage when I learned that Mr. Stanton was the leader of this expedition. I met this news with a glad heart as the company on the trip, besides my cousin of course, was not what my Aunt Gwenydd would call "polite". It never struck me as strange that Mr. Stanton, who said he was a traveling sales man, would be leading such an expedition. Maybe the seasickness had dulled my senses.. Or maybe I just overlooked this in my excitement. As I started spending more time with Mr. Stanton, the trip became much more enjoyable. Mr. Stanton was about my age, and, as I mentioned before, we got along just fine. It was about the third of July when we spotted the island that was supposed to be in the vicinity of the lost treasure ship. For the next couple of weeks, we looked over a fifty mile radius for the ship. We had no luck... As the days tore on, Mr. Stanton became less and less pleasant to be around. As Mr. Stanton became less pleasant, I spent my days roaming the island. The island was small, with a size of about two square miles. In the center of the island was dormant volcano. This Piece of landscape intrigued me greatly, and I spent many days wandering around, up, and down it. On one such day I found the room. Near the top of the volcano I found a hole. As I explored this hole, I found a room that looked like it had been cut out of the rock by human hands. In center of the room was a hole, and in this hole I found it, the treasure. As I looked at the treasure with great excitement and amazement, I noticed another hole in the side of the big hole. Looking at this hole, I started to imagine there was something moving. I took a closer look, and that is when I saw IT.... IT was something that resembled a snake but with the size of an elephant. I didn't really stay long enough to biologically classify it as I was out of the cave and down the mountain in what would have been a record breaking sprint. When I arrived back at the boat, I told everyone what I had seen. Mr. Stanton did not seem to like what he heard. This would have been normal, but Mr. Stanton seemed to be angry at me! In what was a very short time, I found myself locked in the bottom of the ship with my cousin, wondering what had happened. The next day I finally learned the truth about Mr. Stanton. The adventure of my grandfather will continue at a later date. ---- This is the third part of my grandfather's adventure. He called himself a priest, and as I looked into Mr. Stanton's eyes, I saw a crazed gleam. He explained to us that the god, Ra-tu-binyon, must be appeased. He said that he had nothing personally against us, but that the serpent must feed, or he would destroy the world in his anger. I was in unbelief. Would my adventure end with me being consumed by a snake? Mr. Stanton claimed that he had planned this from the very beginning. He said that we were just unlucky to find ourselves the object of his duty. His duty, he explained, was to find suitable candidates for the monthly feeding that was required to keep Ra-tu-binyon appeased. Ra-tu-binyon only accepted the "superior" beings of society, he stated, and when he met my cousin and I, he saw the perfect sacrifices. The plan couldn't have gone more clockwise, he bragged. I felt helpless. What could I do against such a lunatic when I was tied up in the hull of my own ship? Over the next couple of days, I thought through at least 100 or more different ideas of how to escape the situation. I thought of bribing Mr. Stanton and I even thought of bribing the snake..... But every time I thought through the plans, I would always come across a flaw. So here I am, a prisoner in the bottom of my own ship, and I'm waiting....just waiting. Mr. Stanton has informed us that the sacrifice will occur tomorrow. I have never felt so hopeless in my life. What should I do? What can I do? Will I become supper for a reptile? I don't know..... But wait. An idea has just occurred to me..... It might work. It will require a life. But I would gladly give my life to save my cousin and countless other future sacrifices. Will it work? It needs to work...It must work..... The fourth and final installment of my grandfather's adventure will continue...soon.   ---- (Just to avoid confusion: Edith = My first cousin twice removed = My grandfather's cousin, and also Brynmor = My grandfather = The son of Dewydd) This is the finale of my grandfather's adventure. I patched the finale together from the stories that my first cousin twice removed has told me over the years. Since my grandfather is not here to confirm all the facts presented in this finale, I can not assure you that it is all true. With that being said, I give you the fourth and final installment of my grandfather's adventure. There might be a word that would have described what Brynmor did in his final moments. Of course there might have been more than one word which would have been appropriate. I guess it would depend on your point of view. The word "Impossible" might have come to Mr. Stanton's mind. While the word "Amazing" might have come to the mind of my grandfather's cousin. Whatever the case may be, there is one thing that is certain: The "snake" perished. When the time for the sacrifice was at hand, Brynmor seemed to be in good spirits. As they traveled up the small path which wound up the mountain, Mr. Stanton became increasingly annoyed with my grandfather's demeanor. When the small party reached the area where the ritual would take place, Mr. Stanton started to perform the lengthy ceremony which preceded the sacrifice. Completing the ceremony, Mr. Stanton asked my grandfather which of the sacrifices wished to be first, and without a second hesitation, the son of Dewydd stepped on to the small platform which extended over the pit. While Brynmor was lowered into the pit by a rope, the snake could be seen slowly moving toward the center of the pit. Looking hungrily at Brynmor, the snake came to a comfortable rest right under the spot where Brynmor was being lowered. As Brynmor neared the bottom of the pit, Edith turned away from the sight which would undoubtedly follow. When Brynmor was only a few feet above the bottom of the pit, Mr. Stanton gave the word and the rope was cut... What followed surprised everyone. Brynmor fell the final few feet to the ground, and the snake approached him hungrily. But just as the snake was within a few feet of my grandfather, the snake stopped. My grandfather's cousin held her breath and stared in unbelief as the snake turned away. Everyone waited for what must have seemed like eternity, but the snake would not touch the son of Dewydd. Then Mr. Stanton, obviously upset, ordered his hench-men to go down and pull Brynmor out of the pit. As the hench-men approached my grandfather, the snake suddenly turned around and charged at Brynmor. My grandfather rolled out of the way as the snake came crashing down upon him. The snake, enraged, turned his wrath upon the hench-men of Mr. Stanton. The hench-men had little time to act as the snake was on them in seconds. Only one of the five managed to escape the first assault of the snake. The remaining hench-man pulled his pistol and emptied the entire clip into the onrushing snake. The snake rushed on, seemingly unfazed by the bullets. The brave hench-man tried to lunge out of the way of the snake, but was not quick enough. While this was happening, Byrnmor quickly climbed out of the pit and rushed Mr. Stanton. Before Mr. Stanton had time to draw his hand gun, Brynmor was upon him. The fight that followed was quite brutal as my grandfather and Mr. Stanton were equally adept in the art of unarmed combat. Slowly the fight took the two combatants toward the edge of the pit. When they reached the pit, Brynmor dodged a kick from Mr. Stanton and dived at Mr. Stanton's legs. The force of that dive knocked the two down into the pit. Before my grandfather and Mr. Stanton had the chance to recover from the fall, the snake was upon them. Brynmor was caught by the leg and would have been swallowed by the snake if not for the quick thinking of his cousin, who at that moment dropped a rock onto the snake. The snake easily shook off this unexpected attack, but the momentary distraction was enough for the son of Dewydd, who with his free leg was able to land a well placed kick onto the snake's head. The snake was dazed by this attack, and Brynmor was flung against the wall of the pit. When the snake had recovered from the attack, he unleashed his rage onto the first person he saw, Mr. Stanton. As the Snake reared for the attack, Brynmor grabbed a gold pike that was lying in the great pile of treasure contained in the pit and flipped the pike to Mr. Stanton. Holding the pike, Mr. Stanton looked up and gazed at the snake for a few split seconds. Then, throwing the pike away, Mr. Stanton smiled and, as the snake engulfed him, shouted his last words, "A willing sacrifice!'. Then, consumed by his "god", Mr. Stanton was gone, and Brynmor was left alone in the pit. Slowly the snake turned toward Brynmor, who, with record timing, clambered out of the pit. With the snake close behind, Brynmor grabbed his cousin's hand, and they raced from the mountain down to the edge of a cliff which ushered a 300 ft. drop to rocks and sea below. Telling his cousin to keep running, Brynmor turned to meet the snake. The snake stopped for a moment, and the two stood, staring at each other. Time stood still in those tense seconds before Brynmor raced to a weak outcropping of the cliff. The snake slithered slowly at first after my grandfather. The distance between the two quickly diminished as the snake, increasing his speed to an alarming pace, sped toward Brynmor. Just as the snake reached Brynmor, the ledge gave way to the tremendous weight and smashed down onto the rocks below. With a cry, my first cousin twice removed saw the death of the snake.... and the last moments of Brynmor ap Dewydd. As far as I know, Edith Spam never had any training with the handling of boats, but she was able to make her way back to Wales. She then settled down near the peaceful town of Llanberis where I would often visit her to hear the stories of my grandfather. And what of the treasure? Edith did bring the treasure back with her from that wretched island. Having no desire in the end to keep the treasure, Edith gave the treasure to my grandmother, who, only a week before, had given birth to my mother, Gwendolyn. Yes, the treasure still sits to this day under Min y Coed Manor. It sits there far below the earth in tunnels unknown to the world. It sits there, an unwanted piece of legacy. A broken heart, tucked away from the world. A heart that never healed. So the treasure sits. It waits...