The sound of the crashing waves surrounded the man, as he gasped for air while trying to catch a barrel floating in the sea. The images of the sinking ship lingered in his mind, although the cause seemed unclear.
"I have to get it!" The man said through his gritted teeth.
His light brown hair soaked and making it more difficult to see.
The image of the old man aboard his old ship flashed in his head, "Gyll, no matter what you do, don't ever let this barrel get damaged!" the old man said.
"Gyll, don't you ever look inside this barrel!" the old man said.
"Gyll, under no circumstances, should you look inside," the old man said.
A flash of lightning brought the man back to reality, A massive wave darkened the already gloomy sea, forcing the man to hold his breath as the wave crashed on his head.
As his vision darkened, and as he slowly sank lower and lower, he finally saw the barrel ahead of him, and with what little strength he had left, he grabbed the barrel, judging by its buoyancy its insides were at the very least mostly water-free.
The man opened his eyes, laying on the sand, he jolted up and coughed out a mouthful of saltwater.
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The man gasped for air, "I'm alive! barely..." the man frantically looked around checking to make sure the barrel was there.
The barrel was half buried in the sand, the man crawled over to the barrel on his knees, "I'm sure the old man wouldn't mind me having a little look!" the man thought.
"Not that I particularly care what he thinks." The man thought to himself.
He opened the barrel, its lid made a gritting noise as he did.
The man was in total shock as he peeked into the barrel.
It was a barrel full of...
"It's porn..." the man said out loud, a mix of disappointment and defeat in his voice.
"I risked my life for porn!!!" The man screamed out into the horizon.
The barrel has filled the brim with magazines, books, posters even single piece of paper,
The man spent a few minutes sulking before noticing a stained piece of paper pinned to the lid of the barrel.
The man removed the pin and unfolded the piece of paper.
"If you are reading this, you probably found my treasure, which means you are most likely heavily judging me, but rest assured I'm no mere degenerate, for you see this barrel is cursed and whoever opens it shall be forced to carry this barrel, you cannot empty it, you cannot destroy its contents. and most importantly..." The man threw the paper away before finishing reading.
The man looked around hoping to find a house or road but was disappointed to find himself completely isolated, on a sandy beach littered with planks and seaweed.
The man suddenly felt a tug on his leg.
"I won't let you leave!" a small figure laying on the ground in place of where the barrel once was.