Fortify

Chapter Three

[Small edit: Banner is Mrs. Josie Hatfield, played by Allison Scagliotti]

  I didn't let the stranger tell me twice to get up on deck. If this really wasn't just a dream, it wouldn't be wise to disobey a pirate's direct orders.

Wind and rain assaulted me the second I was to the door. The ship swayed to the rhythm of the waves, shockingly not as violently as I would've thought. It made my movements sway, but I wasn't being thrown from one wall to the next.

The person at the base of the stairs huffed impatiently at me—although I figured I was meandering in the dark pretty well. Hands on their hips, they gruffed, "Hurry up, willya? I ain't decided if I'm just gonna throw ya overboard yet!"

His voice was annoying nasally and he was trying desperately to deepen it to sound intimidating. The result was almost comical, if I was in the mood to laugh. I had hoped he'd disappear up deck once I made my way towards him, so that way I could just go back to my bedroom, but he did no such thing.

When I finally reached him, even though he stood on a couple of stair steps, I could tell he was shorter than me—and I wasn't even six foot. Maybe it was Napoleon. Wouldn't that be hilarious? Probably wouldn't make too much sense, but then again I had no idea what time frame I was in. This man had no French accent, though. It was more British, although the dialect was throwing me off.

"A'wright, mate, yer testin' my patience now!" he growled.

"I, uh..." I floundered. "What do I need to do?"

It was too dark to make out his facial features, but I just knew he was rolling his eyes at me. "Batten down the hatches! Anythin'! Just git!"

I rushed up the steps and the sheer force of the wind knocked me off balance. It took me a minute for my senses to adjust to the chaos before me. Men ran about deck, tying equipment down and working furiously at the sails. There was a reason I had never traveled back and on a ship before. I hated the sea; hated water. It terrified me. And what was happening before me was my absolute nightmare. I wanted nothing more than to throw that gatekeeping pirate out of the way and go back below deck to return home.

But when I looked back it seemed he was content just guarding the door. I had an uneasy feeling in my gut. But I could just be getting seasick.

Someone shouted in my general direction and next thing I knew I was being thrown a rope. I barely caught the thick thing.

The pirate from before, crossing his arms across his tiny chest, commanded, "Tie it round yer waist, lad! So ya don't get tossed overboard!"

I gulped and quickly made the best Boy Scout knot I could. My old Scout leader would've been proud.

I still didn't know what the hell to do, though. But if I didn't at least look like I was trying, I had a feeling that pirate would make good on his promise and have me thrown overboard—Lord only knew if his skinny little self could. I wasn't particularly big, either, but I wasn't that skinny and short.

Orders were being barked left and right, but it sounded so garbled between the way they were speaking and just trying to shout above the roaring of the sea and the overwhelming thundering.

"Hurricane's a comin', lads!" someone shouted. "Brace ya'selves!"

I whipped my head up to the second floor of the deck—there was probably a name for it, but as a person who was terrified of being on the water, I'd obviously never learned the proper terms for such things. He was at the ship's wheel, his grip strong enough to hold it steady. Somehow his hat had not blown off his head, and I caught a dark ponytail swinging about in the wind beneath the hat. He had a black trenchcoat on and was clearly tall, even from down here that was obvious. When lightning flashed, I caught an almost maniacal grin on his face, a wicked glint in his eyes.