Into The Storm

Becalmed in the middle of a silent ocean. This was where he had thought he would end up one day. But of course, the universe had had other plans.

The ocean part was true all right, but it was far from silent. Bang! Another blast echoed through the air. Peter had to hold on for dear life when the cannonball shot past him. It missed its intended target only by inches. But there was no time to celebrate, not even to take a steadying breath. More and more shots were howling through the air, but not only from the enemy’s side.

As he was making his way aft, the boards shook beneath him. One of the cannons on the deck below had just been fired. Peter did not wait to see whether it had hit its target. All along the starboard side the cannons were being discharged and reloaded, both on the open deck and the one below. The majestic three-master was carrying eight on each side. This, unfortunately, did not guarantee victory, since the other ship was a formidable opponent, both in crew and weaponry. This was not their first confrontation, but perhaps would be their last.

Another near-miss. Another gush of water. The ship was being rocked by the waves and the cannon blasts. Peter was not sure how long this could go on. Then a thud – and splintered wood raining down on him. He stumbled and almost lost his balance, then flung himself to the floor just in time to avoid being crushed by parts of the rigging which had just been blasted off the main mast. It had not been a fatal blow but would impede their manoeuvrability quite significantly.

So far, the captain had been able to keep her in a strong position against a howling gale, but another well-placed hit could knock them off their course. Peter had to get to the bridge to see what he could do to help. He had not been hit badly by the falling debris. Another sailor had not been as lucky, but a single glance sufficed to know that he was beyond help.

A bit less steady on his feet, Peter barely managed more than ten steps before darkness engulfed him. He neither saw nor felt anything. The roaring of the winds and the sounds of the battle were gone. If he had been able to look upon the scene from above, he had seen himself lying amongst a handful of other sailors below deck in a heap of wood, both from the side of the ship and from where he had been standing moments before.

There was a massive hole where the cannon had hit, and it was not the only one to have done so. But they were not lost, not yet. Peter, however, did not know any of this, as he was lying unconscious beneath a fallen beam. And he would stay there until the fighting had ended, and one side had won, or rather lost less than the other.