HMS Resolute Victory

1.02

Jeremy walks down the steps to the hold. The interior of the ship, especially this part, had changed very little over the decades. The obvious exception being the No Smoking signs which were, by most people, ignored. The hand hold ropes were another more recent addition, but they looked so aged you wouldn’t have guessed.

Jeremy had been working aboard the Resolute Victory for 3 months now, he decided at 18 after leaving college that a year working on the waves would be great fun and an experience he might not have the chance for again in his lifetime. He's regretting that decision a little as he’s learned he often wakes up in the night feeling sea sick, also he is expected to do a lot more manual labour than he expected.

Last night was a real bad one, his nocturnal nausea had him hurling yesterdays evening meal and a few bottles of beer into the sea, as if an unintended offering to the deep.

Damn sea eats better than me. He thought after losing the nights meal.

At least I get to see the stars like this when I’m out here at this hour.

Jeremy would often spend a few minutes in the early hours after throwing up admiring the nights sky, the stars looked beautiful and he was in awe of the crew who could use them as navigation.

The interrupted sleep meant that today was going pretty badly already. There’s a lot of rope and barrels which need shifting from the hold up to the deck before breakfast. It’d only take an hour if he worked quickly, but he really would like another hour in bed or even a 10 minute rest on top of a pile of rope would be a lot better than the constant lugging up and down the steps.

Oh well, when we get a new cabinboy I won’t have to do quite so much of this shit.

Thinking about how things will be easier in the future can be enough to keep you going when things are looking a little bleak. It works for Jeremy, but he’s a self-confessed optimist. Strangely nearly all the crew of the Resvic, as they’d often abbreviate it, were over-the-top optimistic. Jeremy thought that great at first, now he’s not sure whether it’s truly a blessing.

After shifting all the supplies Jeremy wandered to the mess and sat down to some porridge that the ships cook had spiced up with some cardamom. Also on offer was coffee, the first caffiene of the day is always the best and is even more valuable after a patchy and unfulfilling sleep. By 8am the whole crew was in the mess.

So much for needing the barrels on deck before 8! Urgh