The captain braced the wheel with all his strength, trying to keep the massive ship under control. The force of the wind tried its best to steal the safety of the ship and it crew from his pained grasp.

"Ernie!" he called to the co-captain, who was standing by the gears. "Drop the anchor! We'll have to just ride this out! I can't steer her!"

"Aye, captain!" Ernest replied. It was difficult for the two men to hear each other, even shouting, over the roar of the waves, the thunder, and the engine.

Ernest grabbed a thin green raincoat and turned the doorknob leading to the deck. The wind tore the door from his grip and hurled it into the outside wall. Water and debris began flooding the engine room. Ernest staggered outside, bracing himself into the wind, and used all his might to close the door. Once it had clicked shut, he began to make his way toward the anchor side of the ship.

The captain was watching his co-captain, hoping that the young man could handle this task on his own.

One of the sailors ran into the room, startling the captain. "Sir," he said, panting for breath. His name was Wassermann. "The cargo hold's completely flooded. All the perishables have been destroyed. And now the bunks are starting to flood!"

The captain, wide-eyed, shook his head in disbelief. "We must've hit something on the bottom and tore a hole in the hull!" he exclaimed, warily. He glanced outside at Ernest, who had made it to the anchor, but was having difficulty releasing it. "Wassermann, go help the co-captain drop anchor," he ordered. "Then I'm ordering an abandon ship."

"But, sir," Wassermann argued, "if we get into those lifeboats, the storm'll kill us!"

"Boy, those lifeboats are strong enough to hold up through a typhoon! And I don't want you questioning my orders again!" he roared. "Understood?"

"Yes, sir!" Wassermann saluted and exited the engine room to assist the co-captain.

The captain, his eyes trained on the two men struggling with the anchor sent out a short Mayday over the short wave system, hoping someone would soon come to their aid. He then grabbed the overhead loudspeaker that went to the bunks. "Attention all men below decks on and off duty: begin deploying lifeboats and rafts for an abandon ship. I repeat: abandon ship and don't waste any time!"

Ernest and Wassermann finally succeeded in releasing the anchor. The two men gripped the side of the ship, waiting for the sudden stop. The impact knocked Wassermann down. Ernest reached down to help him up. That's when the captain noticed the huge wave that was headed for the two vulnerable men.

Jonas ran to the window, flung it open and cried, "ERNIE! WASSERMANN! GET OUT OF THERE!"

But the two men couldn't hear him over the storm. The wave slammed into the ship, washed over Ernest and Wassermann, and when it had drained back into the ocean, they had disappeared from the deck.

The captain turned away from the window and put his face in his hands. If only it had been him that had gone to drop anchor. He could have gotten it on the first try, but instead, he had sent his good friend, and a poor, innocent kid, and they had been lost. He stood there, silently, taking in a quiet moment in their memory.

When he looked up, he saw the rest of the crew slowly creeping across the deck toward the lifeboats. He stood there, silently, as every one of them left the ship and entered the water in tiny boats.

The captain would go down with his beloved ship.

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NoV: Okay! That's chapter three! Let me know what you think!