The Adventures of the HMS Harlot

Depravity part 3: Captain Victoria Neckett

Witherford was the first to see it. He stood by my side, as he pointed to the sky. The second most terrifying ship in the Armada navy. She was a fast ship, outfitted with more weapons than a Union armory. I had only faced her once before and even then I could only watch in horror, as she and her brother ship broke our defenses and delivered the final blow to the Monarchy's greatest warship; sending it spiraling down into the darkness; leaving only one survivor.

Otto and Odessa were familiar with the ship through their Armada ties, but only Witherford, Roy, and I had faced her in battle. I knew the situation was dire and we had to get out of the colony immediately. The Harlot was strong, but she was not big enough to take on this giant. Our only saving grace would be Roy and he was nowhere to be found.

Otto approached Witherford and I.

"We have to go now!" Otto urged

"We WILL wait!" I responded firmly.

"All due respect, Captain, the time for decency to your crew is past. They'll be within range in a matter of minutes."

"He's right, Captain." Witherford said in a rare moment of agreement.

"Who will pilot the ship?!" I asked with anger and panic in my voice

"You excelled in your piloting classes at the academy!" Witherford announced

I paused for a moment, stared into the colony, and turned to Otto, "Tell Odessa and the crew to ready the ship!" Otto nodded and walked off

"I'll go below deck."

"Not yet! We're still going to wait."

"Captain..."

"Just 30 seconds!"

"But - "

"My inexperience lost me one crew and I will not make that mistake again."

Odessa ran to me.

"The ship is ready, Captain! And The Gabriel is fast approaching!" Her voice shaking a little, probably from the excitement of battle.

I took a deep breath as I realized we could no longer wait. I ran to the helm and gave the signal.

As the ship began to push away, I had lost all hope for survival. Then Roy, Connor, and Eldon dove onto the ship. I let out a sigh of relief. Roy ran up to the helm, as Connor and Eldon took their places.

"You're late." I said snidely, pointing at The Gabriel

Roy immediately took the wheel with great determination.

A loud yell came from below deck and the Harlot quickly accelerated away from the dock; nearly throwing everyone to the deck. Roy clenched the wheel so tightly his knuckles were practically white. His eyes were fixated on the sky and he had a look of deep concentration on his face.

Roy steered us deep into the clouds for cover; for a moment we were hidden. For a moment, we were safe. But then the Gabriel appeared behind us; like a sea monster rising from the depths to attack its prey. I could feel the gears below my feet working as hard as they could. Roy tried every maneuver he knew, but the Gabriel was too quick.

Suddenly, I heard a familiar sound and Seymour yell "Prepare for impact." Everyone hit the deck, as a Cannon ball hit the ship. "We've been hit!" Seymour yelled down to us. Oh had we Seymour? I hadn't noticed

I ran below deck to send Barty and Sydney to the cannons. A quick glance toward the cannons showed me Sydney, joined by Otto and his men, was already in position, but Barty was in the engine room taking the usual verbal abuse from Witherford.

"Barty! Get to the cannons!"

"Aye Aye, Captain!"

"Eldon!" Eldon came running into the engine room. "Eldon, powder monkey, now!"

Before Eldon had time to respond Barty grabbed him by the collar and pulled him toward the cannons. I ran to the stairs where Rowena was waiting. She heard me call for cannons; she knew her duty.

"Wait for my signal."

"Aye!"

"Roy!" I yelled approaching the helm "Keep a safe distance, but get us in position to fire the cannons."

"We're really going to fight The Gabriel?" Odessa said chasing me as I ran around the deck preparing everyone.

"What choice do we have?"

"We can follow our original plan!"

"Our original plan is not working!"

"Captain, The Harlot cannot take down that huge ship! This is a suicide mission; we have to run."

"Well, Odessa, you know what they say..."

"What?"

"The bigger the ship; the harder they fall!"

Odessa had fear in her eyes; ringing her hands together nervously. She looked like she wanted to say more, but said nothing, as she stormed off.

I stood at my post and waited for Rowena to give me the ready. She waved her hand, but it was not soon enough.

Seymour yelled again and The Harlot took another blow. She was strong, but I could tell she could not take much more of this. "Fire!" I yelled. A quick flash and a loud bang sent two cannon balls flying into The Gabriel, but it seemed to have no effect. We might as well had Eldon shoot it with his slingshot.

Roy continued to bob and weave through the clouds, trying to avoid being hit. I continued to yell for them to reload and fire, but was not sure how much longer we would be able to keep this up. Then, suddenly, The Gabriel stopped and retreated.

A few crewmembers stopped and cheered.

But I knew better.

Something much worse was coming.

Captain Victoria Neckett