-Black sail boat incoming! Shouted the navigator standing on the crow's nest. They are preparing for battle!
The captain panicked. What he predicted would soon result. They had little time before preparing.
- Everybody at the deck! Screamed the captain. Grab your weapons and prepare for battle! It's an emergency!
The captain's shouts woke up almost all of the crew who were sleeping in there cabins. Everyone still immediatly understood the signal and grabbed anything worth for battle. cutlasses, hatchets, blunderbusses, cannonballs, everything. Only a minute later and everyone was flooding the deck and the cannons, awaiting for the captain's orders. Even the navigator joined the deck, he would have been useless up there. While some were excited to finally see blood drawn from battle, most of the ship was scared but didn't admit it. The cannons were already charged in the morning and the captain could clearly see that the ones who controled the cannons just wanted to shoot them. To that, he replied;
- Do not open fire at the enemy boat! They are too far for us to hit precisely!
- We don't care! Responded one of the crew. We are pirates! Precise or not, we will shoot and ravage them!
The captain shouted;
- No. I don't want unnecessary shots. If you really want to pillage, just wait and then you can fire!
Everybody grinned. Orders were orders, and if they weren't respected, death would come. No one replied, they weren't too stuborn or stupid to understand that the captain is serious.
The crew waited, preparing for combat. The captain had no emotions in his face. Well, nobody with a crew of forty people, including themselves, risking their life for their prosperity and freedom, would have a happy face or a sad one.
pirates were starting to shiver. It was common for ennemy boats to take time before arriving to the other ship. It was a clever mental torture. The person would anticipate something, gets anxious about it, and when he becomes aware that it will soon happen, he panics. If the thing would have happened suddenly, the person wouldn't have the time to anticipate. This trick is viciously perfect for fake ambushes.
The captain, though, isn't buying it. It was too easy. The ship goes directly through them, gets bombarded, and falls into the abyss. They had the avantage. It makes no sense. Usually,the attacker would always try to get the upper hand. What is going on? Maybe the invader was an unexperience captain. Or maybe. . . Suddenly, the captain realised.
- Everyone go to the opposite side of the the ship! Now! Half of the cannons immediatly shoot at the fake ship!
But It was too late. From the other side, cannonballs were shooting through the captain's ship. Another ship, wtih a gray flag this time, ambushed them from the other side, a bit further than the last one. They were trapped.
It was an illusion. An expensive but flawless illusion. The assailant puts a ship near the victim's boat. The assaulted ship would focus on it, leaving a perfect opportunity for another ship to ambush the ship. It was really hard to make the illusion. It would take a lot of planning, money and precision to realise the plan. Only the best pirates and notorious corsairs could do it. either way, the plan can be only be performed on big names. It would be a waste not to.
It took seconds for the captain to deduct all of that, and every seconds count. In this case, only time was their advantage.
YOU ARE READING
Tylor Claridge's Journey { Pending }
AdventureThis story is about a captain who as been targeted to a mutiny. He will now need to build a new crew, a boat and his reputation. In this "book", you will see the journey of captain Tylor in search of a new crew that is decently competent and get a p...
