Two more days passed. D'Artagnan used the time to gain Jules' trust in feeding the prisoners. His plan was to ultimately ask to take over the feeding duties, thereby opening the door to asking for the key.
Athos, Porthos, and Aramis, having proven themselves fight-worthy thanks to their demonstrations of their particular skills, were guests of Captain Collaart.
D'Artagnan, for his part, was no more than an unnecessary appendage, and therefore relegated to menial duties such as cleaning the deck, and assisting in feeding the fishermen held hostage. As a result, Collaart's decision to unofficially deem him a lower class of crew member meant that his interaction with his three brothers was extremely limited. His separation from his partners also gave license to the other pirates to insult him, and also made him have to endure both verbal and physical blows, when the opportunity presented itself.
"You heard the Captain," Jean, one of the pirates, taunted. "Ya think his talents lie in- lying with his mates?"
Jules pushed D'Artagnan as he laughed at Jean's comment. "Probably," he said.
D'Artagnan held his tongue- and his fists- thinking it not the best time to cause a ruckus. Best to brave the taunts for now.
In the Captain's quarters, Captain Collaart asked Porthos, Aramis, and Athos: "I must say, I was impressed with the talents each of you demonstrated the other day. Where did you learn your respective skills?"
Athos said, "In the military. However, as each of us come from modest backgrounds, after we served at La Rochelle, it seemed the King had little use for his soldiers, and we floundered, underfed and unappreciated. It was then that we decided to- fend for ourselves, using the skills we learned."
The Captain seemed to be considering Athos' story. Then he said, "Unfortunately, the King's Musketeers captured and killed some of my most skilled crew members. I would like you three to accompany me into Barfleur tomorrow. I will need sufficient muscle to convince the locals that our hostages are weak, hungry, and sick, and that the time to pay the ransom is here."
"We would be honored. But- what is our cut?" Aramis asked. Not doing so, he thought, might raise suspicion with respect to their true intent.
"You are crew members now. The sharing will be the same as the others. The details of which can wait until after you prove yourselves. My other crew members will join us tomorrow as well, of course, and you will be under scrutiny until I am convinced you have earned the right to join our ranks."
And with that, they were dismissed.
Athos wasted no time in sharing his thoughts, as he knew time alone with his two brothers would be limited. "Accompanying Collaart with his men would be eight against three, assuming they all join us. if we fail, they will still have their ship. Plus, it increases the odds that some citizens in town might be injured, or worse."
"So what are you saying? it sounds as if we should try to blow the gunpowder barrels up before he can accompany us off the ship," Aramis said.
"Exactly," Athos said.
Porthos said, "I found fuses. Could be used to ignite the barrels from a distance safe enough to light, then escape the ship."
"Perfect," Aramis said.
"We gotta see where D'Artagnan is with getting' 'is hands on that key," Porthos reminded them.
"He must act quickly," Athos said.
Porthos then asked, "Blowin' up the ship is one thing, but then what of Collaart and his men? We jus' allow 'em to escape?"
"No, then we track them down here in Barfleur. Once the Revenge sits on the bottom of the Baie de Seine, they are impotent to cause any further harm. Once that is done, I have no doubt that the four of us will be ably assisted by all the townsfolk and bringing them to justice should not be a difficult task. That is, if they even manage to escape the ship before it sinks."
Unbeknownst to his older brothers, D'Artagnan had finally been successful in entreating Jules to relinquish the key to the hostages' gate. Jules, never one to work any harder than absolutely necessary, seemed all too eager to turn over the feeding duties completely to D'Artagnan.
However he needed to find his brothers to ensure his release of the hostages was coordinated with the attempt to sink the ship. They needed to know that he now had the key to the fishermen's release.
He was under the watchful eye of Petr, who would question any attempt on his part to reach the upper deck of the Revenge.
But his gut was telling him that Petr wasn't the sharpest tack in the box made him try something.
He went up close to Petr and said, "I need to retrieve something of mine in my quarters."
"What?" Petr asked.
"This," D'Artagnan said, punching Petr square in the face. Petr recoiled backwards, giving D'Artagnan the opportunity to come from behind him, choking him until he was unconscious. D'Artagnan then moved the insensate Petr behind some crates, out of sight.
He ran past the hostages, to the upper deck.
Several of the fishermen, witnessing this, yelled at him: "What are you- LET US OUT!"
D'Artagnan, hesitating, told them: "I- need to tell my friends- I will be back, I promise-"
This did not sit well with the men. "What do you mean? You cannot abandon us! Let us out!"
Now the row and men's yells exploding from the scene he had created could not be quelled. If the pirates hear on the upper deck, their plan would blow up before they could do the same to the ship.
As their shouts grew even louder, D'Artagnan hesitated, then opened the gate.
"Keep quiet and as soon as you get above, make for the dock and get off! Take cover if you see any of them, as they might engage…"
None of the fishermen seemed to be listening, as escape seemed to be their only concern. They raced past D'Artagnan quickly, headed above deck, possibly ready to be shot by any of the pirates as soon as they appeared at the upper deck.
Oh, this is going to go well, D'Artagnan thought to himself. Athos is going to kill me- now getting to light the fuse might be impossible…