The Adventures of Pocahontas and John Rolfe: Book I

Chapter 8: Captain John Rolfe

The Adventures of Pocahontas and John Rolfe: Book I

Chapter 8: Captain John Rolfe

Manslaughter Sol got bored staring into the swamp, so he stood up and walked over to Tongueless Tom's post. Without Spike-Eyes, Flame, or Legless to keep an eye on him, Manslaughter had a bad habit of shirking his duties in favor of more enjoyable pursuits. He liked Tongueless Tom in particular because the man was mute. Manslaughter Sol preferred to do all the talking, primarily because he liked to talk exclusively about his favorite subject—himself. Short of putting a bullet through his skull, there was nothing Tongueless Tom or anyone else could do to shut him up once he got started.

When Tongueless Tom saw Manslaughter Sol approach, he tried to signal the idiot to go back to his own post. Naturally, Manslaughter pretended that he did not understand. He quickly plopped down on a charred log to recount the story of how he had slain, with his bare hands, an African crocodile that had made the mistake of swallowing a valuable diamond. Tongueless Tom rolled his grey eyes and turned his attention away.

Taking no notice of Tom's inattentiveness, Manslaughter Sol continued, "And after that escapade, the crew at the time set sail to the southernmost land of the New World. It was during the voyage there that we stopped at Hispaniola to pick up more crew members, yourself amongst them if ye recall. You're a lucky man, Tommy. I'm surprised Bleud let you join with all your shortcomings. Consider it good fortune on your part that you were commanded to mind the ship when we arrived on the jungled shores."

Tongueless Tom clenched his teeth, tempted to give Manslaughter Sol a good blow across the temple. "As ye know," Manslaughter said, "we had hoped to find a sliver of gold left by the Spaniards, but when we got there we realized they had combed the land so completely. We came upon burnt village after burnt village to find nothing but skeletal remains of the savage occupants, yet not one speck nor glimmer of riches."

Manslaughter shook his head, recalling the disappointment. "Journeying deep into the jungle, we had the good luck to stumble upon one survivor—a terrified and scantily clad maiden. We tortured the wench for information, though we gleaned nothing at first. When we raised our swords to end her, the lass's eyes turned black as coal as if she was possessed. She spoke in an otherworldly tongue through which a phrase or two in English could be heard: 'Kill the Spanish... slay me and you will be cursed for eternity'."

Tongueless Tom immediately perked up and spun back to Manslaughter. "Aye, I thought that'd grab your attention," Manslaughter gloated. "Only Bleud, Spike-Eyes, and I were there at the time and I was told never to tell. I'm doing you a favor confidin' in you, mate. So I expect you to keep me secret in return," he spoke with a hushing finger over his mouth. Tom blinked in surprise. Manslaughter held the pose for an extended moment and grinned, bursting into laughter at the notion of a man without a tongue trying to 'out' him. "I'm just foolin', mate," Manslaughter Sol returned, still guffawing loudly.

Manslaughter Sol calmed down after a few extended moments. "Well, we was all rather startled, to say the least. When the girl returned to normal, she immediately told us of a secret Spanish camp deep in the jungle. Said the gods had just revealed it to her to stop her torment. She led us there. It turned out to be an Aztec goldmine that had been taken over by the Spanish. We killed the miners and took the remaining gold for ourselves," he explained, grinning greedily at the memory. He held up his hands when Tom knitted his brows. "It was Bleud's command not to share with the crew! I had no say the matter," he blurted defensively, somewhat alleviating his companion's visible anger.

Manslaughter resumed the tale. "When we went back to the girl to thank her and offer her clemency for her life, she had vanished from the bonds adhering her to a tree trunk. There was no sign of tampering and no footprints leading away. It was the most bizarre thing, I tell ye. Bleud suspected she had somehow slipped out of the shackles and climbed up the tree, so we sent the cabin boy up to confirm this suspicion. The lad disappeared into the foliage and a few moments later, we heard a muffled scream. From a struggle up above, some of the branches broke away and we saw him—the lad was belly-deep and headfirst down the gullet of the biggest snake these eyes ever did see!" Manslaughter decried. He noted how Tom raised his brows. Then the man shook his head in disbelief.