Drabble Series: 'An Execrable Business' (46/?)
400 words, with thanks to my dear hereswith for beta reading, editing, and excellent suggestions.
Previous bits...
1. Tortuga
2. Happiness
3. Festive
4. Last Minute
5. Calm
6. Truth
7. Bargain
8. Spook
9. Down
10. Wounds
11. Moon
12. Monsters13. Beauty
14. Name
15. History
16. Service
17. Advice
18. Captain
19. Awe
20. Cross
21. "You've made a big mistake"
22. Heroism
23. Gold
24. Echo25. Greed
26. Advance
27. Challenge
28. Adventure
29. Sentence
30. Treasure
31. North
32. Coat
33. Good and Evil
34. Sickness and Health
35. Lost
36. Court37. What if?
38. Island
39. That can't be
40. Prophesy
41. Ten Years Later
42. French
43. Deed
44. Tea
45. Scarlett & Giselle
And here's today's...
46. Link
~ An Execrable Business, continued...
“They’ve struck their colors!” Jack cried, and a roar went up around them. Bill saw Barbossa and a number of those near him scowl and curse, but the majority of the Pearls were overjoyed to have such easy pickings this time around - a few were still recovering from wounds they’d taken in recent weeks, in other successful actions. Their leave in Tortuga hadn’t been near enough, not for any of them, and if it hadn’t been for the promise of home there’d be more discontented than just Barbossa and his mates.
Jack turned to him and yelled over the din, “Run down to the orlop for Nell, she can watch from the afterdeck.”
Bill went to fetch the girl, and found her sitting all forlorn on a stack of spare sails, the single lamp barely lighting her little corner.
"Mr. Turner! What's happening?" she asked, rather fearfully.
"They've struck their colors, and Jack thinks it's safe for you to come topside to watch, if you don't make yourself conspicuous. Not a shot fired, nor like to be now."
She brightened. "How wonderful! But why?"
Bill shrugged. "The Pearl's well known in these waters and faith, she looks a terror coming up on you, guns and hands all ready for sport."
"Sport!"
"You know what I mean. Let's get up there!"
When they reached the main deck, the Pearl had already drawn much closer to the French ship, and as Bill towed Nell through the crowd toward the companionway to the quarterdeck, grapnels were being thrown. "Seas are so calm we might be able to stretch planks across, once she’s secured," Bill told her.
As they reached the afterdeck, Jack and a few others swung out over the water on ropes to land on the Frenchie’s deck. Nell gasped, sounding both thrilled and horrified. Bill nudged her, and directed her gaze upward. The sharpshooters could be clearly seen, and Nell gave an, “Oh!” of relief.
“Stay here, or go down to Jack’s cabin if you get bored. We’ll be a while moving the swag over. See how low in the water she rides? ‘Pears she just headed out from Hispaniola, though why she lacks an escort is the question. Not that we’re complaining.” He smiled at Nell, standing by the rail, her eyes glued on Jack. “You keep your head down, lass, just in case,” he admonished, and took himself off.
TBC...
Previous bits...
1. Tortuga
2. Happiness
3. Festive
4. Last Minute
5. Calm
6. Truth
7. Bargain
8. Spook
9. Down
10. Wounds
11. Moon
12. Monsters13. Beauty
14. Name
15. History
16. Service
17. Advice
18. Captain
19. Awe
20. Cross
21. "You've made a big mistake"
22. Heroism
23. Gold
24. Echo25. Greed
26. Advance
27. Challenge
28. Adventure
29. Sentence
30. Treasure
31. North
32. Coat
33. Good and Evil
34. Sickness and Health
35. Lost
36. Court37. What if?
38. Island
39. That can't be
40. Prophesy
41. Ten Years Later
42. French
43. Deed
44. Tea
45. Scarlett & Giselle
And here's today's...
46. Link
~ An Execrable Business, continued...
“They’ve struck their colors!” Jack cried, and a roar went up around them. Bill saw Barbossa and a number of those near him scowl and curse, but the majority of the Pearls were overjoyed to have such easy pickings this time around - a few were still recovering from wounds they’d taken in recent weeks, in other successful actions. Their leave in Tortuga hadn’t been near enough, not for any of them, and if it hadn’t been for the promise of home there’d be more discontented than just Barbossa and his mates.
Jack turned to him and yelled over the din, “Run down to the orlop for Nell, she can watch from the afterdeck.”
Bill went to fetch the girl, and found her sitting all forlorn on a stack of spare sails, the single lamp barely lighting her little corner.
"Mr. Turner! What's happening?" she asked, rather fearfully.
"They've struck their colors, and Jack thinks it's safe for you to come topside to watch, if you don't make yourself conspicuous. Not a shot fired, nor like to be now."
She brightened. "How wonderful! But why?"
Bill shrugged. "The Pearl's well known in these waters and faith, she looks a terror coming up on you, guns and hands all ready for sport."
"Sport!"
"You know what I mean. Let's get up there!"
When they reached the main deck, the Pearl had already drawn much closer to the French ship, and as Bill towed Nell through the crowd toward the companionway to the quarterdeck, grapnels were being thrown. "Seas are so calm we might be able to stretch planks across, once she’s secured," Bill told her.
As they reached the afterdeck, Jack and a few others swung out over the water on ropes to land on the Frenchie’s deck. Nell gasped, sounding both thrilled and horrified. Bill nudged her, and directed her gaze upward. The sharpshooters could be clearly seen, and Nell gave an, “Oh!” of relief.
“Stay here, or go down to Jack’s cabin if you get bored. We’ll be a while moving the swag over. See how low in the water she rides? ‘Pears she just headed out from Hispaniola, though why she lacks an escort is the question. Not that we’re complaining.” He smiled at Nell, standing by the rail, her eyes glued on Jack. “You keep your head down, lass, just in case,” he admonished, and took himself off.
TBC...