Jeff the Accountant Escapes the Wretched Burning Depths of Hades

3 Days Aboard The Revenge

Death let the ship drift once he got it to calm waters. The mood onboard was somber.

The crew all processed the news of Stede's death differently. Jim and Frenchie, of course, had memories not shared by the others, and Ivan and Fang had memories shared with the two of them, but not with Scar or Death.

"So the little boy was made of wood?" Death asked Frenchie when he told them all about Stede reading the story to the ship's crew at night.

"Yeah. Well, for the first part of the story. But he gets his wish, you see. He becomes a real, live boy."

"But...bein' made of wood," Scar was trying to get a better understanding. "...how could he wish for anything?"

Frenchie still had some difficulty interacting with Scar. Jim answered the question with "It's just a story. You have to accept that not all the parts are gonna make sense."

"Speaking of parts that don't make sense," Death said, "Blackbeard and Stede Bonnett?"

No one, not Stede's earliest crew members, not the two who became his crew members when Blackbeard and Stede became co-captains, not Scar, who had the same question, until accepting that the need to find Stede Bonnett was what drove Blackbeard every day, attempted to respond to Death.

Respect for their captain brought them all to a state of quiet reflection.

After a while, Scar said "Well, I'll take
Lucius and Izzy something to eat, see if there's any change."

Frenchie took note of the fact that it'd been quite some time since he heard anyone grumble "Izzy" under their breath.

"Oo, pasties! Thank you, Scar. What kind?" Lucius was probably the crew member happiest with Scar's cooking. A lot of the cook's dishes reminded him of home. Before things got bad.

"Just potato and carrot, I'm afraid. Meat is running short. We'll have to stop for provisions soon." Scar was tempted to sneer at Izzy, as though he was the one responsible for what the ship lacked. But the vigil he and Lucius were holding for Blackbeard kept the cook from acting on that temptation. A simple nod and "you're welcome" was the reply to Izzy's "thank you."

"Has he had anything, said anything?"

"Moaning. We hear moaning from time to time." Izzy answered.

"Don't know if the crashing stopped because there's nothing left to break, or if he's worn himself out" Lucius added.

"Or if he picked up something to throw that stopped him in his tracks, bringing him to his senses, so that he knew, if he broke that one thing, the only thing he had left of his friend, that it..." Scar realized Izzy and Lucius were staring. "...any way, I'll bring you something later. Try to get him to eat."

"Where was that story going, do you think?" asked Izzy, a look of incredulity on his face.

"I don't know. I'm learning that just about everyone on board has secrets, that there's more to us all than what everyone else sees." Izzy didn't take the bait. Lucius realized it was foolish to think the man would open up and spill his guts about any of what he was feeling.

"But, in the meantime, 'just potato and carrot' ? I see a lot of little green bits and black flecks in this pasty. The Revenge sure got lucky when Ivan and Fang convinced Scar to come aboard, am I right?"

"True enough" Izzy said, biting into his food.

Ivan, Fang and Jim spent the second day of Blackbeard's withdrawal, with Death, exchanging tales of conquests and close escapes.

Jim shared stories of Stede that brought about laughter. But they were told with affection. Keeping it real didn't mean keeping it hateful. Blackbeard saw something special in Stede. Jim chose to think on that when remembering his former captain's quirks or inadequacies.

By the third day, Izzy and Lucius had started playing twenty questions. Lucius got to 17 before guessing that Izzy was a seagull. He was about to reveal that he was a cloud when
Blackbeard opened the door.

"I think I need a bath" he said.