The Deaths of James

Mutiny

The mutineers locked us in the artillery, where the gunpowder was stored, or at least, that's where we woke up after they beat us unconscious. Since I wasn't part of the crew, I normally wouldn't work on the decks, or cook food, but after my father had left me the family business, a shipping company, I made it a point to help out somewhat, and keep on good terms with the captains, and the crews of the ships that worked for me. But, I thought wryly, as the crewmember next to me, Huffy, squirmed around in an effort to get up, pushing himself against me in the process, that I never wanted to get this close. I had been tied up, along with every other member of the crew that had remained loyal to the company and Captain Everly. Luckily, the ropes weren't tied extremely tight, and I managed to wriggle out of them. I scooted away from Huffy, who had gotten his hands and legs untied. Together, we woke up the rest of the crew, and untied them.

Once everyone was standing up, I turned to Captain Everly, and asked him if we had a chance of taking back the ship. "If we can get this door open, maybe." He said. "We have more men." More than half of the men were in the hold with us, so he was right about that. "They planned it to hit us at night, so they had surprise, and most of us were already asleep." He pointed at the door. "We need to get the door open." Huffy tried to open it, but it was stuck. "They've probably barricaded it, Captain."

"Captain Everly, why do they want the ship? Those men have been part of your crew for years." I questioned. It was true. The leader of the mutineers was Finn Margoody, and he had been part of this crew for five plus years. "Its probably what's in the crates." He said. He looked about to explain, but Huffy said, in a hoarse voice, "What's that smell?" Everyone paused, breathing in the air.

Smoke.

"Damn!" The Captain shouted. The man behind him jumped, slightly, in surprise. "They've lit the boat on fire!" At his words, the crew started beating on the door, to no avail.

"Men! Men!" Captain Everly shouted, trying to calm them. When they didn't work, he opened his mouth, and the most unexpected thing happened.

The Captain sang.

His voice was deep, and man, could he sing, I thought. I recognized the song, it was an old, old lullaby, the captain sang to his children, his two boys, before they went off to fight and got themselves killed. I knew, because he sang it at their funeral.

From the Captain, the song kind of billowed out, and soon, the whole crew was calm, or calmer, and they were singing. The fire came closer, we could hear it, on the other side of the door, and they tried, they tried, but the fire was huge, roaring, and we were in a room full of gunpowder.

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

1.  I don't know if Wattpad tells you guys if I change the description of the story, but I changed it, and it might add some more insight into where this story is heading.

2.  Also, I might not be posting every day anymore, probably like every two or three days.