The Belladonna

Chapter 5 - Pirates

(WARNING; This chapter gets a rather graphic and gory. But hey, we are dealing with Pirates here) Enjoy!

Sky heard Lieutenant Barker sware and begin yelling orders to the men. "Man the cannons. Every hand to starboard side!"

Sky looked up at the Captain as he took control of the wheel his hand holding it tightly; even from down here Sky could see the tension in his shoulders.

"Let down all sails. See if we can out run these bastards!" Captain Rucuss called. Sky stood helpless at the railing with Lucus as the ship grew closer.

We won't be able to out run it. It's too fast. Her heart beat furiously in her chest.

"You two!" Lucus and Sky spun around to face Lieutenant Barker. "Get on one of those cannons. We will need all hands if we are to make it out alive." He gave them each a hard look before moving on up the deck yelling more orders.

Sky and Lucus looked at each other for a full second then ran to the closest cannon.

"You take the back and light it. I'll aim." She told him. He gave her a curt nod and ran to find something to light it with while Sky filled the barrel with gun powder. She prayed she was doing it right and watched the man next to her lift a cannon ball and slide it into the front. She did the same grunting with the effort of lifting the heavy ball. Lucus returned with a small stick about the length of Sky's for arm with string tip. The end was glowing orange.

She heard Lucus curse and she looked up from her work and saw that the ship was much closer. It was smaller than the Brig but bigger than a schooner. It had two masts with square fitted sails that captured the wind propelling it closer to them at an incredibly fast speed. It was loaded with more cannons than any other Brigantine Sky had seen before; nine on each side. Sky's eyes drifted up towards the flag.

Definitely not the Kings colours. The flag was a dark blue, the same colour as the sea in a storm with a lighter blueish purple colour in the shape of flower. The flower was wilted; its sharp petals were facing backwards and bulblike point in front. One petal was detached from the rest of the flower and appeared to have fallen off. Sky racked her brain for what type of flower if was for she knew the shape.

"It's the Belladonna," Lucus whispered. Sky looked at him and felt her stomach drop. Deadly nightshade. That was the flower and the ship was named as such because of its ability to sink navy vessels. This was the ship Sky had heard about in The Pig's Pen less than a week ago. They were all going to die.

"We're done for," Lucus' hands were trembling.

"No, we might get through this." Sky reassured him knowing that he was right but desperately wanting to believe otherwise. "You have to get your sister her house, remember?" And I have to find my brother. We can't die here.

At the mention of his sister Lucus gripped the stick tighter and nodded. Sky prayed they both got through this in one piece however impossible it seemed. She did not want to die, nor did she want to lose this boy who loved his sister so much, who remeinded her of James. She did not want to lose a friend.

"Cannons!" Lieutenant Barker yelled at the scared men. "Ready?" The Pirates were close enough to hear now and Sky forced herself to focus on aiming her cannon. It was difficult as her hands didn't stop their shaking but she fitted it into a position she figure would hit if the ship continued the way it was going.

"Fire!"

The shout goes out and the officers moved their lighters toward the end of the cannon barrels. Lucus did the same. The sound was almost defining and Sky struggled to keep her position as the weapon bucked back with the effort. She forced herself into reloading the gun powder for the next wave when she was suddenly pulled down by her arm. Cannon balls bombard the side of the Brig and sent splinters of wood flying up into the air.