Plunder and Pillage

Another story for my Creative Writing class. Not my best effort, but I like it.

Cannons fired and the air filled with smoke, despite the heavy rain. Footsteps thundered down on the deck as the men rushed around, shouting to one another over the exploding cannons, thunder, and the roar of the ocean. The crunch of splintering wood added to the cacophony as the cannonballs found their mark.

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                The ship glided smoothly through the waves. Benjamin Turner enjoyed a few moments of peace while the captain, Edward Thomas, took control of the ship. He glanced at the sky. What was once a clear shade of light blue was now a deep gray, and the ship wasn’t gliding as smoothly. Little whitecaps interrupted the ship’s travel, roughening up its path. The captain sighed and furrowed his brow, concentrating on steering the ship. The rest of the crew fastened everything down and prepared for the storm.

                Suddenly Nathaniel Booth, standing at the ship’s stern, called out, “Ship to starboard!” Benjamin squinted at the horizon. A dark smudge was growing larger, and Benjamin could see a black flag raised. “Demanded surrender…” he whispered to himself, fear slowly spreading throughout his body. He raced across the deck to tell the captain.  

                “Prepare for battle!” the captain shouted. “O’Shea! Man the ship! The rest of you, grab your weapons. It’s time to blow the man down!” He gave a maniacal laugh and drew his own cutlass and pocket pistol. Benjamin scrambled around for his cutlass, but only had his dagger ready.

                The other ship loomed ever nearer. Suddenly, cannonballs ripped through the air, hurtling towards the deck. Most missed, but one found its mark. It slammed into the edge of the ship. The wood splintered, and the resulting crunch made Benjamin clamp his hands over his ears. Glancing at the hole, he saw a fire had started. The flames lapped at the sky, completely oblivious to the rain that was now soaking the crew.

                As soon as the ships were close, the other crew leaped onto Benjamin’s deck. They roared and charged, waving their swords around and stabbing the air. Although terror almost rendered him motionless, Benjamin managed to stay his ground as a large, sweaty, screaming pirate attempted to run him through with his cutlass. Benjamin parried the blow with his dagger, leaving his arm shaky and tingly from the impact. He blocked another blow almost instantly. Without warning, the ship tilted back sharply. Benjamin slammed into the mast, and the pirate’s cutlass pierced the wood just an inch away from his ribs. Desperate not to be on defense, Benjamin kicked out at the pirate’s knee. The pirate glanced down, and Benjamin stabbed his dagger into his stomach. He clutched his stomach and sunk to his knees as Benjamin spun away to find the next challenger.

                By now, the flames had engulfed about a third of the ship. Benjamin watched as a few of the opposing crew fell into the fire. A few others fell into the ocean. Smoke billowed around, filling every crack and corner and lung.

The captain appeared by Benjamin’s side, taking him by surprise. “The fire needs to be put out now, lad, or the ship will be gone, and we’ll have fought for nothing!” Benjamin nodded and ran towards the fire. He looked around for something to help him put it out, but he had no idea what to do. Another crew member tossed him a bucket. But where could he get water? It wasn’t as if he could just bend down and fill the bucket with seawater, unless he could extend his arms another twenty-five feet. The rain wasn’t falling fast enough to fill enough buckets to put the fire out, and it wasn’t putting the fire out anyway.

The other pirates started falling back, and Benjamin noticed only five or six of them left. The captain shouted orders to the rest of the crew to secure the other ship. If the fire destroyed this one, they could at least steal the other, along with all the treasure onboard.

The enemies were dead. The crew had fastened the other ship with ropes and crossed onto the other deck. Benjamin dropped the bucket. He raced towards the edge of the ship and sprang up. He landed hard on the other deck. Finally, the captain severed the ropes and leapt onto the ship. Half of the other ship collapsed in the fire. It slowly sank as the crew sailed away.