(Josie
Sayz: This is the other part of my duology story Moonstone Fortress:
Saviour of
Ships that I shared a few years back. This is the alternative version of the story - what would have happened if Peter made different choices. It isn’t finished yet; I am only halfway in writing
the
story. I am really interested in finishing this, but life keeps getting
in the way (all I seem to do is work and pay bills, but I guess that is
what being an adult is all about). I figured that if I shared this, it
would force me to keep at it, as I
hate sharing unfinished work.
This is my Mary Shelley piece - I would love to know if you get that reference.
If you are interested in checking out Saviour of Ships, you can find the
prologue here: https://josiesayz.blogspot.com/2021/11/mf-saviour-of-ships-1-blackout.html).
Moonstone
Fortress
Ruler
of Seas
Prologue
– The Charleston Mistake
Water flooded in through a crack in the
wood. The ground shifted portside. Sliding across the cell, his head slammed
into the metal barring. He seeped a breath through gritted teeth. Clenching his
fists, he cursed. “I’ll be lucky if I’m not killed before we even get to port,”
he growled to himself. His chains clattered against the bars, as he clambered
to his feet. With a sharp inhale, he held his breath. His ears pricked up. A
whistling grew louder. His heart raced. His eyes widened. Boom! The ground
tipped starboard. As a stool, broom and bowls clattered across the room, he
clung onto the bars. His head bashed into them once more. Kicking at the air,
he howled in pain.
Footsteps thundered on the
deck above. Bellowed voices, muffled cries and fearsome blasts echoed down to the
dungeon. The ground swayed. His heart jolted. Another round was fired. Water
tunnelled through the crack. It slimed through his toes. Snarling his nose at
the seaweed stench, he threw a hand to his stomach. His insides lathered.
The whistling returned.
Crouching, he balled himself into the corner. His heart pounded up into his
throat, as he clung to the railings. Boom! They were struck again. Everything
flung back portside. A bowl smacked him in face. He screamed out in pain. His
pulse pounced at his temples. Thudding neared him. “Footsteps,” he gasped.
Throwing himself to his feet, he rattled against the bars, determined to remind
this visitor of his presence.
A latch clicked. A door
creaked. Light shot into the room. The orange glow grew nearer. The footsteps
loudened. “All men on deck,” roared a mane of white curls.
“Thought I was a prisoner,”
he barked back.
“All men on deck,” the elder
man growled. Holding the lantern above his head, a ring of keys clattered about
in his other hand. With a screech, the metal frame opened. “Follow me.”
“What about the shackles?” he
spat, hair flopping against his forehead. The older man grumbled, before
crouching down to unfasten the shackles that bound his ankles.
“These too,” snapped the
prisoner, shoving his wrists into the man’s face.
“You had better be worth
this,” the elder warned, as the chains clattered to the ground. “Follow me.”
The tail of the man’s navy
justacorps billowed out, as he mounted the stairs. Following behind, the prisoner
slowed his breathing. Squinting, he strained his ears. Voices wailed. Footsteps
scurried. Another whistle sounded. Bang! A third explosion. Grabbing onto the
railing, he staggered back. The captain spun around, gripping his feathered
tricorn hat. “Get out there and help them man the Long Tom,” he ordered,
jabbing a finger up the stairs. “Quickly!”
“What’s in it fer me?” he
asked, prodding out his chest.
“I’ll clear your sentencing;
all charges dropped,” the captain told him with a nod. “If you’re any good, you
can have a place on my crew.” A smirk slid its way onto the prisoner’s face.
“Interesting…” he mused with
a slow hum. The ground trembled. Voices above roared. The ship swayed
starboard.
“Quickly,” raged the
captain. “Now!”
Clambering up the stairs, he
staggered onto the deck. Blue blurs whipped back and forth, gathering ammo and
feeding their weapons. ‘Like a well-oiled machine,’ he mused. ‘A guy could get
used ta this.’ As cannons were aimed over the gunwale, he heard the commander
yell, “Ready… aim… fire!” The ship shuddered. Staggering forwards, he took a
look out to sea. Across the waters, a triple masted, double decked, black
flagged ship had them cornered as its prey. He let out a whistle.
“Now that’s a ship,” he
grinned. More than twenty gunned portholes faced them. He swallowed. ‘This is
bad,’ he noted, clawing a hand through his sodden curls.
Throwing his head over his
shoulder, he searched the deck for those manning the Long Tom. “Over here!”
called the captain, nudging his head towards two of his men. The prisoner raced
over, placing himself at the rear of the cannon. Scrunching his face up, he
forced his feet forwards. A groan escaped him, as his biceps strained.
“‘At a do it, solider,”
beamed the darker-haired man, patting him on the shoulder. “Watch yer back,
whilst I help Lawson load ‘er up.” He nodded.
Looking back out across the
sea, fog curled its way around the opposing ship. Holding a hand up to his
brow, he squinted. The rocks grew hazy. The opposing ship swayed. A wolf’s head
twisted towards them. Lightning flashed. He staggered back. Rain lashed on the
deck. Tossing glances to the sky, the crew groaned. “That’s all we need,” the
captain growled, from behind him.
“The ship’s changed
position,” the prisoner shouted. A roaring thunder buried his voice. “You’ve
gotta shift t’ port.”
“And who’s captain here?”
bellowed the tricorn leader. “We head starboard. Twenty degrees east,” he
ordered to the man at the helm.
Cursing under his breath,
the prisoner kicked the air. Clenching his fists, his heart hammered. “He’s a
fool,” he growled. Returning his sight to the sea, the other ship had caught up
to them.
“Fire!” bellowed a man over
his shoulder. Throwing his hands to his ears, the prisoner snapped his eyes
shut. His stomach whirled. The ground trembled. Smoke wafted into his throat.
Staggering forwards he let out a whooping cough. The dark-haired man thumped a
hand to his back.
“Careful,” the man muttered.
Waves lashed up the side of
the ship, as the crew prepared for another firing. Running an arm across his
face, the prisoner turned towards the captain. “Down!” the dark-haired man
gasped, from behind, grabbing a hold of him. Snapping his eyes shut, he dropped
to his knees. “Everybody down!” Whistling swung towards them. A flash flickered
through his closed lids. The ground trembled. Wood cracked. Everyone slid
starboard. Crashing into the wall, the crew howled out in pain.
Seeping a breath through
gritted teeth, he clambered to his feet. “You shoulda listened to me!” he
wailed, jabbing a finger in the captain’s chest. Water lashed over deck. Long
Tom rolled towards him. Dropping to the ground, he rolled out of the way. The
bow dipped. Wood cracked as the cannon lodged into the main mast. Clambering to
his feet, the captain raced towards the mast. “Leave it,” the prisoner warned.
“There’s no time.” The ship dipped aport, dragging everyone towards the sea.
“Bring ‘er around!” barked
the captain, with a snarled nose. “Bring ‘er around!”
The sea engulfed them.
Holding his breath, the prisoner grabbed onto the shrouds. His heart raged. His
arms tremored. Grinding his teeth, he pinched his eyes shut, allowing the
shouts and screams of the crew to drain over him. The ship tilted to the right.
Men toppled to their knees. “We need a plan,” he growled. Opening his eyes, he
ran to the portside gunwale. His eyes widened. He heart rapped at his ribcage.
The other ship was gone – lost to the fog. ‘But why?’ he frowned. ‘They were
winning.’
“Rocks!” came a yelp from
the crow’s nest. Spinning his head around, he shot towards the starboard edge.
Waves lashed over the deck. Drenched, he coughed the salty water from his
burning throat. His eyes pierced. His heart sank to his stomach. Turning to the
captain, his feet skidded. Rocks beat against the boat’s shell. They stumbled
portside. Wood cracked. They rocked back. The starboard bow tipped towards the
sea. The blood raged through his body.
“You didn’t listen to me,”
he screeched, as the ship hurtled into another rock. The mast trembled. “Look
out!” he cried, shoving the dark-haired man to safety. Plummeting through the
deck, the mast shattered. The bow plunged into more rocks. The ground quaked.
Wood splintered. The sea engulfed them. All went black.
- Josie -
