CARIBBEAN SEA MARCH 1698
Flying Dutchman sailed past Port Royal, her decks filed with Royal Navy sailors and marines.
She'd been back in the mortal realm barely a day and already she had a full deck!
Something or someone was going around sinking ships port and starboard and Flying Dutchman had a feeling she knew who it was.
It wasn't the first time she'd dealt with the effects of rogue pirates.
They'd appeared before 10 years earlier, causing minor damage to British merchant shipping.
They'd gone silent following the minor plague outbreak in 1687 and Flying Dutchman had thought she'd seen the last of them.
But apparently she was wrong.
They were back and they'd gotten bolder too, attacking British warships in the region on top of other things.
Flying Dutchman sighed, knowing Britannia would be pissed when she learned of this new development but the young fluyt wasn't sure if she should tell her.
Her mentor had a lot on her mind recently.
France was at war with England again and Britannia's temper had been short, her days long and her nights almost nonexistent.
Flying Dutchman couldn't remember the last time she'd seen Britannia sleep!
The old ship had been pushing herself hard these past few weeks and Flying Dutchman was worried about her health.
The last time she'd seen her mentor, Britannia had looked thin and worn.
She hadn't been eating much either, limiting herself to a measly portion of grog and salted bread.
It was with some reluctance, but very little, that Flying Dutchman decided not to tell Britannia about the rogue pirates.
Her mentor had enough on her plate and Flying Dutchman would not make it worse. She should've known though that keeping a British security matter from the Protector of the British Empire was all but impossible.
As the sun went down, she sent up the green flash that'd by now become a legend and sailed into the locker.
Dropping the navy men off at either Port Royal or London, whichever they wanted, Flying Dutchman set her course for her home.
Britannia was there when she arrived, reading over important looking government documents.
She did not seem to notice Flying Dutchman.
"Britannia?" Flying Dutchman asked, nudging her as she drew up alongside.
"Back already?" Britannia asked, surprised.
Flying Dutchman winced at how hoarse her mentor's voice sounded, as though she'd been coughing.
"I had a full deck." She replied with a shrug.
"How did you fill up so quickly" Britannia asked, surprised.
"It's war Britannia, what'd you expect?" Flying Dutchman answered curtly.
"But there hasn't been a naval engagement for weeks. Surely you couldn't be that far behind." Britannia said.
Her eyes narrowed. "Is there something you aren't telling me?" She asked.
Flying Dutchman sighed, knowing she had no other choice but to tell Britannia the truth.
She was dreading this.
YOU ARE READING
The Damned: Part 1~ Innocence
Historische RomaneIn the late 1600s, a new ship is commissioned into the Dutch Navy and is mysteriously lost on her maiden voyage. Only, she wasn't lost, merely taken and re-purposed to ferry the dead. The story of the Flying Dutchman, as told by the ship herself.
