Edward Teach Died on a Beach (OFMD)

Chapter 10

"Sir?"

Izzy turned and raised a brow.

Ivan held out a magnifying glass and pointed behind them. Izzy rolled his eyes and took it from him. He frowned deeply.

"Oh, fuck me!" Izzy snapped.

"Is that what I think it is?"

"It's a fucking British navy ship. God damn it," Izzy hissed.

"Should you go tell Blackbeard about it?" Ivan asked.

Izzy glared at him. "Of course I'm going to go tell Blackbeard about it."

Ivan rolled his eyes as Izzy rushed away. He held his breath for a moment, listening to Izzy's boots as they went down the stairs and stopped by the door to the captain's quarters.

Izzy opened the door. The young man he'd assigned to watch Blackbeard was lying on the floor with a dagger in his shoulder. Izzy rolled his eyes, slowly looking around the room. Blackbeard was lying on the bed, his feet crossed casually.

"How'd you get another fucking dagger?" Izzy snapped.

"It's his," Blackbeard replied dryly. "Or was, I guess."

Izzy nudged the man with his foot. There was a pool of blood under him.

"'S probably dead. Been there for a while," Blackbeard said.

Izzy slowly turned to look at him. "There's a distinct lack of a dagger in your chest."

Blackbeard narrowed his eyes slightly. "Disappointed?"

"Relieved," Izzy replied, standing slightly taller. "Sir, there's a British navy vessel on the horizon."

Blackbeard raised a brow. "Let's go."

Izzy's face stayed neutral. "We'll be extremely outnumbered."

"Doesn't matter. I want to die anyway," Blackbeard replied. "Turn toward it. Be ready for cannon fire."

Izzy sighed. They'd just fixed the boat. "Yes, sir."

"May I have my weapons back, Izzy?" Blackbeard asked, oddly calmly.

Izzy nodded. "I'll send Fang in with them in a second. Don't kill him."

Blackbeard chuckled softly. Izzy turned away, quickly exiting the room. Izzy left it unlocked this time. Blackbeard rose to his feet. He was a little surprised that there was no glass on the floor.

Izzy had someone clean it up after they'd dragged him off of St. Augustine. His recent outbursts were apparently enough of a reason for Izzy to look through the entire quarters and take anything that could harm him. He'd had his rum taken away too, so his mind was terrifyingly clear.

The hangover had already come and passed, so his mind was able to focus, for once. It was both a blessing and a curse. He could stand without swaying, but he also remembered every terrible thing he'd done.

He crossed the empty quarters (a prison, at this point) and went through the door. Izzy, from across the ship, watched him warily. He didn't pay attention to Izzy as he picked up a bottle of rum.

Izzy quickly walked over to him. He held out the cutlass that Blackbeard recognized. Its handle was decorated with gold carvings. Blackbeard took the sword and nodded slightly. He opened a bottle of rum and began to drink from it.

He stared at the bottle for a moment before striding away. He went back into the captain's quarters. He heard Izzy following him closely.

"I'm not going to kill myself right now," Blackbeard snapped.

Izzy didn't reply. Blackbeard went to the empty bookshelf. He yanked the little wooden bust and listened to the door click. He kicked the door open, ignoring Izzy's surprised gasp.

"What the fuck?" Izzy hissed incredulously.

Winter jackets. Autumn vibe. Summer linen.

The closet directly behind the door was still filled with clothes. Ed hadn't wanted to get rid of it. Blackbeard grabbed one of the shirts and tore it out of the closet. He used his sword to tear it into strips. Izzy stood in the doorway of the secret room with wide eyes.

"Have you always known about that?" Izzy asked.

Blackbeard ignored him. He took another swig of the rum before shoving the fabric into the bottle. Izzy turned to face him.

"Again with the molotov," Izzy said. "Are you going to go in and fight this time?"

Blackbeard rounded on him. "I'll shoot your other foot if you don't shut up."

Izzy opened his mouth to reply, but Fang shouted something from above. Ivan rushed into the room.

"It looks... empty," Ivan said from the doorway.

Izzy turned to look at him. "What?"

Even Blackbeard paused to look over at him curiously.

He'd successfully swallowed down the pit of sadness and anger in his stomach, quelling it with rum.

"Yeah. It's not moving toward us," Ivan said.

Izzy frowned deeply. He quickly left the room. Blackbeard held the rum bottle in his arm as he went out onto the deck. He looked around and saw Izzy and Ivan at the bow of the ship. Fang stood above them all on the top of the foremast.

"I'm telling you, it looks empty," Fang shouted.

Izzy frowned deeply. "It can't just be empty!"

"Maybe they abandoned it," Fang replied.

Izzy looked up and glared at him. Izzy grabbed a magnifying glass from his pocket and raised it up to his eye as he faced the ocean again. He stiffened slightly.

"Edward, come see this," Izzy said.

Blackbeard crossed the deck. He took the magnifying glass that Izzy held out. He used it to look at the ship.

It was a British Royal Navy ship. He couldn't see much on the deck. It didn't seem to be moving.

"Bring us right up to it," Blackbeard said.

"Are you sure, Sir? It looks like-" Izzy began.

"Do it!" Blackbeard shouted, loud enough to make Izzy flinch slightly.

Izzy sighed and turned to the rest of the crew. "You heard him!"

The crew began to scramble. Blackbeard leaned against the railing, looking back through the magnifying glass.

The ship floated closer to the vessel. Blackbeard held his sword, but left his bottle of rum on the railing. He went to the box of rum bottles and grabbed another. Izzy followed him quickly.

"You sure about this?" Izzy asked.

"Izzy, I'd like you to shut your mouth and let me work," Blackbeard snapped.

As the Revenge approached the British ship, Blackbeard downed the bottle of rum. Izzy was watching him again, with that same disappointed and scared expression.

"Slow down," Izzy said. "You don't want to be drunk for a raid."

Blackbeard shrugged. "If I'm drunk, then I won't think."

Izzy looked back toward the boat. "Still nothing?"

Blackbeard shook his head. "Not even a mouse."

"Got a plan for this one? What if it's an ambush?"

Blackbeard shrugged. "What's the worst that can happen? I'll die?"

"Or they torture you," Izzy replied. "Until you break under the pressure and go mad."

Blackbeard pointed at him. "Might as well drink so I don't feel it."

Izzy looked dismayed.

They drew closer to the ship. The water around them was almost silent except for the waves. Blackbeard climbed up on the railing, holding onto the ropes above him. Izzy's eyes brightened, seemingly forgetting his worries about the empty ship they were soon to board.