Snippet #2678848

Nate stepped back over the plank from the Illustrious to the Acheron. He noticed how slanted it was becoming as the navy ship slowly sank and he smiled a little to himself. Of course he would have preferred to have more time to harvest the ship’s sails and spars, but the contents of the hold would have to do. Around the gundeck of the Acheron was strewn spare shot, powder, stores, and myriad things from the Illustrious that would be useful to the ship’s journey. There was even a little dog that was being fed a small piece of salt beef by one of the powder monkeys. The little boy’s hair was wild and his powder blackened face was split by his great smile. As he saw the captain looking at him the smile disappeared behind a somber expression as he snapped a salute, positioning his legs in front of the dog in an attempt to hide it. Returning the salute with a frown Nate pretended to have not noticed the dog. In the past the decks of the Acheron had hosted monkeys, real ones, parrots and small dogs before. One more would not make a difference.

Mr. Peters the bosun was hanging above the chaos of the gundeck, using his mouth trumpet to shout orders. Slowly he was organizing what needed to be, the shouted records of items being passed back to the quartermaster and his logs. The hold had already been half filled by the raid on the town, so the experienced crew was now performing a balancing act to keep the ship level with its large amount of cargo. Unfortunately, the new crew was more of a hindrance than a help. A few snarls reached Nate’s ears as he walked along the gangway towards the quarterdeck.

“Mr. Dogood!” Nate called at the top of his lungs. The giant of a man turned from his work near one of the hatches leading down to the hold and stood to attention. The glint in the man’s eyes betrayed the remaining adrenaline from the brief battle, and sweat coated the bunched muscles of his forearms below his rolled up shirtsleeves. Nate had always liked men like Dogood, quiet, but intelligent. Dogood had the advantage of also being built like a brick privy. The bushy black beard only added to the Wildman look that was oddly accentuated by his baggy shirt and well cared for trousers. Dogood’s appearance had an animalistic effect on the rest of the men, even with silence he was able to quell any troubles, and he could always smash some heads together if needed.

“Mr. Dogood. Congratulations, you’re my new coxswain. Get to work on the lubbers down there with you.” Nate gave Dogood one of his rare smiles and indicated the new crewmen, who were bustling about and knocking into one another as if they had never been on a ship before.

“Aye sir!” Dogood replied before wading into the chaos of the gundeck and shoving new crewmen into chains or onto ropes to help with the loading.

Continuing to walk towards the quarterdeck Nate noticed Ren talking to the new cook, Thuron… Jacqueline Thuron. The name clicked in Nate’s mind. That was the name of the bounty the German girl had been chasing. Stopping in his tracks Nate fixed the group with a glare. Why would a bounty hunter be chasing a tavern owner? Granted she claimed to have skill with a blade, but that had yet to be seen. The itch at the back of Nate’s mind grew stronger as he stared at the woman. Where did he recognize her from? Not knowing was infuriating. Though it may be totally inconsequential, he decided he had to know. He could not focus on the running of the ship properly unless he got rid of this itch.

He was shaken from his reverie by the appearance of Carrington. The man was a dull red colour from his actions during the battle, and one shoulder slumped a little. “Captain, we should talk Sir.” Nate followed the direction of Carrington’s thumb to see Ren pass a piece of paper to Jacqueline with a big smile on her face, the two continuing to talk animatedly. Narrowing his eyes Nate turned back to Carrington.

“Come find me in my cabin in a minute Carmichael.” Normally outside his cabin Nate would never use Carrington’s first name, but he had his suspicions that any information relevant to that woman could be extremely volatile, and it was important that this was handled carefully.

Placing his hand on Carrington’s good shoulder for a moment Nate turned and stormed up the steps to the quarterdeck, standing at the rail overlooking the gangways and gundeck. Nodding to Mr. Peters, Peters blew hard on his bosun’s whistle, halting the chaos around the hatches and turning all eyes to the captain.

Nate waited a moment before he spoke, scanning the expectant faces of the crewmen. His eyes alighted on Jacqueline and Ren, and he shot an icy glare their way before turning his face back to the crew. Clasping his hands behind his back Nate drew himself up to his full height and took in a breath.

“I am disappointed men,” Nate paused, glaring around at the crew, the disdain he had hoped for present in many of their faces. “I am disappointed that the Royal Navy could not put up more of a fight!” Here a roar met Nate’s words, the men shouting their agreement as the last of their adrenaline died down.

“It just goes to show how pathetic these dogs in their wooden tubs are. One ship against two and we still come out on top.” Nate smirked down at the crew. “You boys, you dogs of hell, are worth any ten of those navy pisspots. Admiral Nelson, God rest him, would turn in his grave if he saw the useless excuses for navy men they have now.” Here Nate paused for a second, letting the men’s elation die down a little. “You’ve done well lads, and as such you will all have an extra ration of grog today.” These words were met with a deafening cheer. Nate pitied the quartermaster, whose job for the evening had just been made even more complicated.

Nodding to Dogood and Peters the two men shouted down the other crewmen, the latter beating about with his stick to quiet them down. Nate continued, “but routine is the same from now on. Our lady needs to look shipshape again, and you boys will be doing gunnery training every other day till I am satisfied. Church will be as usual on Thursdays, so make sure your bests are ready for then.” Nate made a mental note to have Peters do what he could with his best uniform. He had the suspicion that splinters and maybe a musket ball or two had gone through it in the fight that had seen the Acheron brought to the town.

“Doubtless you are all anxious to know where we are going, but you’ll have to wait for a destination. For now our course is Sou Sou West.” Nate smiled to himself at the confused expressions on the crewmen’s faces as they tried to guess where they were going. He did not doubt that there would be many conversations over dinner that night, and many speculations as to where they were going. But for now he wanted to keep it to himself and the officers, when he had a chance to talk to them.

“Last thing men, did we take any prisoners on the Illustrious?” Despite his order for no mercy Nate expected a handful of men to have survived. Usually kept so they could point out the places where loot was hidden, they could be offered a chance to join the crew. Or they would, if they weren’t navy men. Nate’s eyes narrowed at the small group of bloodied men clustered around the mainmast. “Send them back over to their ship, then push off.”

“Lieutenant Thompson, when we are clear do the honours and sink that hulk. I want it on the bottom in twenty minutes. That’s all.” With that Nate stepped back and began the walk to his cabin, the wails of the captured sailors in his ears. Motioning to Carrington to follow him he went down the steps and turned, passing through the door and into his cabin. As soon as the door was closed Nate sighed and collapsed into a chair, placing the sextant on the table. Suddenly the pain from his wounds caught up with him, and Nate winced as he rubbed his cheek where the splinter had sliced it.

“Now Carmichael, what have you found out?”