I don't own Treasure Island.
The Only man he was Afraid of.
Ben Gunn watched as the boat which had just put him ashore with only a few meagre supplies and weapons and a few digging tools pulled away and headed back for the ship, the boat crew loudly jeering and swearing at him while the crew on the quarterdeck of the Walrus were laughing and cheering at him. Ben knew he had made a big mistake in pushing Flint this far and making him put him ashore.
Captain Flint was one of the best pirates out at sea, and the crew had been accumulating a lot of gold and other cargoes they had captured and plundered from a host of ships for years. Unlike a number of other pirates, Flint possessed a logical mind. Whenever he felt the hunting grounds he chose were becoming dried up, or warships closing in on them, he didn't bother staying. He would resupply the ship and then travel somewhere else. Flint was not stupid. He knew the longer the stayed and plundered ships, using members of the crew to look into ships leaving from harbours and then reporting their findings to him and then forming a plan to plunder it, the easier it would be for the Navy to catch them.
There were few complaints. The crew knew he was looking out for them. And their treasure.
But that was the whole point. For a long time now, the Walrus under Captain Flint had plundered dozens of ships carrying gold and jewels and other precious cargos for which the pirates sold off as legitimate cargoes, some of the money added to the treasure. But for all their success the crew had been hunted by ships of the Royal Navy. They were surrounding the pirates on all sides in a pincer movement. After a number of close calls, Flint decided the only way for them to get away was to hide the treasure somewhere, wait a few years, come back and take it. He had decided to bury the treasure on a remote island and make plans to return for it later.
It wasn't a popular decision. The crew had been killing everyone they crossed for it, and now Flint was telling them he wanted to bury it.
Ben wanted some of that treasure.
So did the rest of his shipmates, what was wrong with that?
Ben had been one of the many crew members who had loudly protested, but where Flint had quickly regained law and order onboard Walrus, Ben hadn't seen the signs. He was a sharp, quick man but he had become so frustrated by Flint's approach to handling the treasure. Flint had been furious when he had needed to explain his reasonings for burying the treasure. There were hunting parties out there, wanting to find the Walrus and bringing her crew to justice. The only way they could be avoided was if they took the treasure and buried it on a remote island.
All he had wanted was his fair share of the gold, silver and jewels which he and his shipmates had been plundering for the last few years. But Flint had been firm. Several men who'd taken the treasure with him ashore and remained on the island with their captain for a few days had not come back. Their bodies were somewhere on the island, and now he was going to find them. He had plenty of time.
Ben ignored the jeers from his ex-shipmates. He regretted demanding some of the treasure now because Flint had ordered him to be put ashore with Silver's backing because he had no way off.
Thinking of Silver made Ben shiver. Flint was a terrifying man when he aroused; he might sometimes find his way into the rum bottles, but out of all of Walrus's crew, Long John Silver was the most feared. Silver possessed a naturally cunning mind and he was unafraid of playing long games to get what he wanted.
When Flint had announced his plans to bury the treasure, there was a lot of protests until Silver stepped in. That meant Silver supported the decision, meaning it had been his idea in the first place. Flint was a damn good leader, but he had been steadily losing power on the Walrus for some time. And he had noticed. He knew like everyone else that Flint was afraid of Long John Silver.
Oh, Silver possessed the same level of ferocity as Blackbeard himself. But he was as slippery as an eel. Flint was cunning, but there was a manipulative streak in Silver that Flint even on his best days simply could not and never could match, even if he tried. There was no doubt in Ben's mind that sooner or later Silver would find a way of undermining Flint, and then he would become captain of the crew. But if he waited for a while to get the treasure and the map Flint had worked on and announced its presence to the crew, Ben Gunn didn't know.
But he knew Long John Silver would find a way.
He always did.
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