Poseidon's Guide: The First Adventure // #Wattys2018

Chapter 13

"So do you actually have a plan for outrunning the most feared armada ever to exist?" Benjamin inquired with Edward, watching the pirate stew over his contemplation. No plan had been concocted as of yet, and if Edward was to believe Benjamin's advice, even the Falmouth wouldn't be leaving Ponta Delgada without Edward. "May I inform you that George is really focused on getting what he wants. He has been for as long as I've worked beneath him."

"Beneath? Don't you mean for him?" Edward questioned, pulling up the inaccuracy with his information.

Benjamin sighed, his hazel eyes rolling. "No, I mean beneath him. He is not a very... Good person to work under," Benjamin sat down on the ground, discarding his British naval outfit for a more messy and typical pirate outfit, a black shirt with a bland and tattered grey vest, his black pants covering the dirty brown boots, "He doesn't see you as an ally or even a person... You're an item, who's only purpose is to do his every bidding."

"And that's why you're here?"

"No, the little fiasco with the privateers sent after you really annoyed George. That's why I'm here, to kill you and seize Poseidon's Guide for George."

Edward inspected the waters where both the Guide and the Falmouth stood dormant, like two animals waiting for the other to pounce first. Benjamin wasn't in control of the Falmouth now, he hadn't revealed himself as a pirate yet but according to him, George was already suspicious of his allegiances. Benjamin feared that George ordered his crew to be aware of him at all times, he caught some out of place glances on his way into port. He'd also gotten rid of his uniform, much to Edward's dismay. It could've been useful.

Angelina, Maryanne and the five members of Edward's crew who had gone onto land with them all emerged from the shrubs, giving Benjamin confused glances. Edward smiled once his eyes fell upon Maryanne's worried and confused emerald eyes as she looked past them out at the Falmouth.

"Care to explain who has our company captain?" Maryanne asked. "Forgive my mistrust..."

Edward smirked. "This island hasn't left a good impression. This is Benjamin Henley, captain of the HMS Falmouth." Maryanne instantly drew her sword, the crew repeating the action with concerned haste. Edward side-stepped in front of Benjamin. "I meant he's the former captain of the HMS Falmouth... He isn't quite as loyal as the good Commodore would hope, leave him be!"

"He isn't quite as loyal as I'd hope either, he has the stones to betray Commodore Hadly, it would be much less scary to betray us!" Maryanne argued. "Who's to say that he won't betray us?"

Edward sighed and said, "And who's to say he would?"

The fury in those beautiful green eyes gave a small sense of fear to Edward. With her sharp tongue Maryanne argued, "I am to say he woul-"

"Maryanne! Has my word ever steered us wrong?" Edward attempted to reassure her. She sighed, forfeiting to his most successful argument yet, and placed her sword back in it's sheath. Edward smiled and stepped away from Benjamin. Angelina's eyes remained firmly planted on Benjamin, not daring to give him the chance to make a move.

"Now what? If we have his help, do we have his ship?" Maryanne asked.

"Not a chance. I suspect George exchanged some of my own crew with his, keeping spies on me incase I did something he isn't in support of," Benjamin replied. "The crew also have a tendency to fire on escaping ships."

"That your fault, or Hadly's?" Edward asked with a smirk.

"Mine..."

Maryanne sat down in the sand and began drawing with her thin finger. At first Edward simply thought she was doodling and decided to ignore her as a father would ignore his small child. But after some careful drawing, Edward's eyes fell back onto the sand, her drawings revealing themselves as a formulated battle plan. Edward and Angelina were astounded, usually it was them who came up with the plans whilst Maryanne sat two steps behind trying to figure it out. She sat quietly and finished her schematic.

Maryanne stood up, elated with a smile as wide as the horizon. Edward had never seen her so satisfied, through everything they'd done this was the proudest he'd seen her. Angelina sat down close to the drawings and began inspecting the plan, making her own edits in the sand, much to Maryanne's annoyance.

"Excuse me! You don't even know what the plan is and you're changing it!" Maryanne argued with defensive ferocity in her voice. She walked over to Edward and snickered. "She's just upset that I've actually got a plan and she doesn't!" Edward almost couldn't contain his plain amusement at the two childish women, fighting like fools.

Angelina gave Maryanne an empty smile. "I can tell when a plan is bad... Whether it's worded or drawn in the sand by a little girl." Angelina scorned.

"Got a problem señorita?"

"Oh! The dull red-headed pirate who keeps pistols down her blouse can speak one Spanish word! I'm so impressed!"

"You wanna keep talking? Show me if you can fight then..." Maryanne took her coat off, but Edward grabbed her arm and gave her a stern nod.

Maryanne tried to shake him off. "Let me do this, I'll be quick!"

"That's enough. Both of you." Edward ordered, forcing the two women to remain a few metres apart. "Now what's gonna happen is we'll hear out Maryanne's plan and then we will see if it needs to be changed," Edward looked into Maryanne's eyes. "Any grievances?" The crew remained silent, only some nods of agreement. "Good, let's get to work..."

_______

Seven men unloaded a cannon onto the centre island of the Golden Isles. The smallest of the isles, barely ten metres in length and width. The boulder in the centre was larger than the typical man, but wouldn't be solid enough to withstand a cannonball. George had some men row him back to The Executioner, waiting for the remaining men to carry out his orders.

BOOM

The cannon fired with a violent bang and the boulder shattered into multiple smaller pieces. George frowned as nothing immediately happened, but continued to wait patiently. Minutes passed, no sign of it having any apparent effect on the isle.

"Have a rowboat prepared... I'm goin' back ashore..." George ordered.

The man who George had given a copy of Vallenzo's journal placed his arm in front of the Commodore. "That isn't the best idea..." He warned.

The nameless man pointed to the isle. George looked closely, finally noticing the phenomenon. The centre of the island began to sink right before his eyes, the ocean slowly beginning to swallow the island whole.

"Drop the sails! Get us to open sea now!" George commanded as the isles around him also began to sink.

The Executioner hurried out of the archipelago and joined it's armada as quickly as it could. George faced the former islands, now a mass of bubbling water reclaiming its rightful place over the former islands. Not a single grain of golden sand was left behind. George growled and scrunched up his face, annoyed at the failure. The nameless man once more silently pointed, grabbing George's attention.

Easily a hundred seagulls all circled the former Golden Isles, leaving the entire armada in awe and shock. After what seemed like hours of watching the ocean settle and the seagulls fly around wildly in a perfect circle, the sea began to bubble and foam once more. George watched the small patch of water closely.

As if an act of god himself, black rotted masts began to rise from the water. The entire crew dropped their jaws. Black tattered sails followed the masts as they rose from the water, the figurehead of the ship also making it's way up. It was a decayed skeleton holding two rusted tridents in both his hands. The ship's remaining parts began to surface, some not attached to the actual ship. It was black and encouraged any ships around it to flee immediately. George counted at least 100 cannons, from what he could see.

The ship turned on it's own, revealing its stern. George was silent, a shiver running down his spine for the first time in his life. He read the name of the ship, written in bold and dark letters that would shake the sturdiest man. Neptune's Descent...