Commander Percy Jackson
Percy awoke from his light slumber to the Boatswain's call. The Captain's cabin was dimly lit. Rays of light cut through the twilight from the stern windows closed shutters. Even this small refuge was not enough to escape the sweltering heat. No, his Cabin. Even after two weeks, he hadn't been able to quite get used to that. At least down here, the sun could not find him. Everyone who could, had fled the quarter and poop decks. Percy felt as if his shirt was sticking to his skin.
After pulling on his boots and arming belt, but leaving his jacket resting over one of the dining room tables chairs, he put on his hat and stepped out onto the main gun deck. His ship's main battery of twenty-six twelve-pound long guns, thirteen on either side, lined up in front of their closed gunports. The main hatch had been covered with a large sheet of canvases to keep out the sun and rain.
"What's going on?" asked a young man, poking his head from the doctor's quarters.
"How should I know, Dr. Solace," Percy asked lightly and clambered up the stairs to the quarter-deck with its sixteen nine-pounder guns just as the first mate, a bull-like man by the name of Charles Beckendorf rushed out of his cabin.
He was the only black man on board, and despite knowing that down the line his decisions would be second-guessed, he had breveted him up to Lieutenant Commander and advanced him to first mate. Charles Beckendorf, the illegitimate son of the minister of war, did not talk much. Something that kept him in good standing with the officers, and had until very recently served as Quartermaster. He was fair, intelligent, and most importantly had served on the Argonaut for more than two years now, ever since her shakedown run, and had earned the respect and confidence of the crew. Something Percy was not sure he himself had at that point.
The Argonaut was the smallest ship had had so far served on, having spent his previous career on the Royal Judgment, a first-rate ship of the line. His last posting had finally been as her Navigator.
At almost two hundred feet feet in length, and one thousand two hundred tones the Argonaut was a sleek and powerful firth rate. She was a true warship. While not the heaviest armored vessel out there, the three-masted square-rigger was built for speed. She was a beautiful vessel, with a polished dark hull, with a yellow stripe painted along the length of the ship under her red railing.
Squinting from the glare of the sunlight he then proceeded up to the stern where the wheel was positioned behind the mizzen mast.
Her full canvas was set to make the best out of the faint breeze, but he doubted they were making more than five knots.
As he stepped onto the deck, the Boatswain lifted his whistle again and blew the tune that let the crew know he now had the con.
"Report," he ordered.
"Sir," Travis Stoll, the second mate replied. "We have sails on the Horizon, due south West. Crows Nest just called it down."
Just then he saw Katie Gardener also stepping out on deck. She was one of a few women on board. Having only served in the Homefleet, and under a particularly strict captain, this had been completely new to him.
The young woman turned around and looked up at the weather deck and to her husband. Percy called them married in the very loosest terms possible, for formally they were not married. Shortly before deploying his first office, Travis Soll, ardently a childhood friend of Ms Gardener, had reconnected with her during a visit to his hometown, only to learn that she was stuck in an unwelcome engagement with an older Gentleman. Apparently old feelings had surfaced and she had somehow agreed to join him. Now, two months into the trip, it seemed like Ms Gardener was smoothly slipping into the role of an officer's wife, and with a pretty face, long brunette hair, and generous curves, she was decorative to say the very least. So were a few of the others. Though as far as he could tell they usually weren't along for the ride, only now that the Argonaut was moving to a new homeport.
Despite his initial reservations about going to see with women, there hadn't actually been problems. Most of them were not at sea the first time, and those that were quickly learned the rules. The first was to stay out of the way. Second was to not get in trouble. That aside, they performed important tasks on board and watched after any children, either their own, and also the young boys that started going to sea at the age of ten like he had. Helping with repairing clothes, and sails, helping the ships' cook, and also helping keep the stores in good order.
Another of his main concerns had been that the majority of the crew, not having wives of their own, would grow jealous and undermine discipline. But so far it had worked out just fine. When he had inherited the position of shipmaster one of his first actions had been to make clear that messing with any of them would result in ten lashes. It was simply too hot to fight and argue. All that was left for him to do was get used to being around a lot more women than he was used to.
Percy pulled his Spyglass and searched the horizon. There was nothing yet.
As he watched looked a few of the other women and crew members had also popped up on the quarter deck to find out what was going on.
"Well," Percy said, "Nothing to do about it. Stay on course for now."
"Aye, Capitan," Travis replied and glanced back at his younger brother, the new quartermaster.
"Why is no one cleaning?" Percy asked curiously. There was always work to be done, and if there wasn't, you weren't looking hard enough.
Travis hesitated. "We were, but one of the men got the heat stoke and Dr Solace asked us to stop for a while. I will have them pick up the slack when the sun sets and we maybe get a breeze. I hope that is acceptable."
"Seems like a prudent course of action," Percy agreed, figuring that considering he too had fled the deck, any other response would be hypocritical. As they watched the horizon in silence Katie finally came up back stern.
"Is everything alright?" she asked curiously.
Travis glanced at him uneasily, aware that his woman had comitted a rather serious breach of protocol.
"Yes, Ms Gardener," Percy replied evenly. "Only some sails on the horizon. Nothing to be concerned about, Ma'am," Percy assured her, smoothly moving past the breach in protocol in the process. "We are back in more frequented sea lanes. There are multiple ports within a week of sailing so a lot of merchant and pirate activity."
"Pirates?" Katie asked, wide-eyed.
"Don't worry," Travis assured her. "Pirates wouldn't want to get anywhere close to a ship as powerful as the Argonaut. The stories about them sailing around in large men-at-war are mostly a myth."
"Oh," Kate said, looking rather relieved.
Percy couldn't blame her, romanticized and exaggerated stories of the the savagery of these locusts of the seas were all the rage. Stories of crews slaughtered, and passengers being pressed into slavery. Sure it happened all the time, but not to ships like the Argonaut.
"It is true, Ma'am. Unless they are sponsored by a major power, pirates will rarely put to sea in anything larger than sloop, or small sixth rate," Percy confirmed, much to Katie's evident relief.
"There she is," Beckendorf announced gruffly and pointed on the Horizon south of them. Percy brought his heavy spyglass to bear. Sure enough, there was the faint white smudge of distant sails.
"Doesn't look too big," Percy mused. "Though hard to tell, though I wager she'll be even slower than us. We won't be crossing her for many hours."
His words were proven false. Mere minutes after he had made the statement the first towering cumulus clouds appeared on the horizon north of them and a few minutes later the first relatively cool breeze washed over the flat ocean.
The sails rustled, as the wind they had been raised for finally filled them. Wood creaked, and ever so slowly, the Argonaut began to pick up speed, listing lightly with the wind as she did. "Six knots," Travis Stoll finally announced, receiving word from a deckhand who had been taking the measurement and sighed deeply.
With the wind picking up, helping drive away some of the worst of the day's heat, slowly but steadily the crew and passengers emerged from below and began to crowd the deck.
"Mr Stoll, I must tour the ship. Will you show Ms. Gardener how to handle the wheel?" he asked. "You have the Con."
The officer's chest swelled a bit in pride, clearly eager to take the chance to show in front of his woman. "Aye, sir!"
Percy nodded at Beckendorf and they made their way towards the bow, inspecting the rigging and crew as they went, exchanging a few words with them in the process. The great distance between officers and crew had always greatly bothered him on the Royal Judgment. Yes, there had to be a distance, but he had always felt that at times this was to the detriment of the ship. With the Argonaut being much smaller, he hoped he could maintain a slightly more casual tone.
"Might as well get the crew to work now," Percy finally said when they reached the bow. "I want her ready for inspection on arrival."
Two of the younger crew members were climbing around the bowsprit.
Beckendorf chuckled. "You know the Commodore?" he asked.
"Only by reputation, but that is beside the point. For all we know we will be spending years down here, let us make the right impression."
"That," Beckendorf mused. "And you do not want to hand off the rains on arrival to some other officer."
"That too," Percy admitted.
Beckendorf stared out at the water for a long moment. "Don't worry, Captain. We will make you look good."
They headed down the deck and inspected the main gun-deck. The deck officer blew his whistle when he entered, alerting all hands. "Open the gunports!" Percy ordered. "Let some fresh air in here."
When the deck officer, a young man by the name of Marcus Stimmis, echoed the order, the crew followed up with considerable enthusiasm. The heavily armored gunports were pulled open and locked in place. Finally, they proceeded down deep into the Argonaut's hold. They had used up a good portion of their stores, so it was a lot emptier than it had been when they set sails. The powder store was half full, with the spare space being used for spare twelve, nine, and two-pounder gun barrels, and also over five hundred muskets, and pistols. Down here, the women had their own area cordoned off by a sheet of sail from the rest of the ship where they could have their privacy away from the prying eyes.
With the temperature now bearable they spent the next few hours getting the Argonaut in good order. The ships was scrubbed from bow to stern and they. That was until Travis hailed him back to the stern, where Percy found the Argonaut's wheel in the firm hands of Ms. Gardener.
Travis nodded behind them at a wall of clouds that had now emerged from behind the horizon and was quickly turning darker in the progress. The wind too had grown in strength quite a bit and they were making a solid ten knots.
"Ah yes," he noted, only now appreciating how close the bad weather had truly come. "Down to storm sails, Mr Stoll," he ordered and then leaned down.
"Secure the ship for bad weather!" he yelled, the order being passed on down into the hold. Moments later he heard the gunports slamming shut again as the ship exploded into activity. Sails were furling and cargo was secured. Percy glanced back at Ms Gardener, who was following the happenings with growing apprehension. "Ms Gardener, I recommend you go below deck."
As the dark clouds loomed closer and the wind picked up, Percy assessed the situation. The storm seemed to be a typical summer thunderstorm, bringing rougher seas and heavy rain rather than extreme winds. At least that he hoped, that having read up on the local conditions before setting sails. He called out to the crew to prepare for the inclement weather, ensuring that sails were adjusted and the ship was made ready.
The wind grew stronger, causing the Argonaut to pitch and roll with the rising waves. Rain poured down in sheets, obscuring visibility and drenching the deck. Percy took shelter under a canopy near the helm, keeping a watchful eye on the crew as they worked to secure the ship.
The crew members scrambled to reef the sails, tightening ropes and securing loose items. Percy observed their swift and coordinated efforts, impressed by their ability to adapt to changing conditions. Despite the challenging seas and relentless downpours, the crew remained focused and determined. Perseus stayed at the stern, careful not to let the Argonaut veer off to the side.
The storm passed as quickly as it arrived, the clouds suddenly parting to reveal a pristine blue sky. Suddenly the ship was bathed in radiant light, the wet, dark red-painted deck almost blinding to look at as a ray of light cut through the clouds.
"And here I was, thinking this would last all night," Beckendorf announced gruffly.
"Just insane Scatter weather," Percy agreed drily as he watched the rainwater slowly drain off the deck and more crew dared. The curtains of downpour faded, suddenly revealing the green and mountainous landmass ahead still half hidden by the hanging haze. "Land ho!" the twelve-year-old deckhand on the crow's nest suddenly called out.
They were not the only ship either, a merchant appearing a mere two nautical miles off to the west.
Percy handed off the wheel and hurried to the bow across the rolling deck, where he joined the civilians and crew members beginning to form a crowd. After pushing to the front of pulled out his telescope and scanned the island. Through the humid haze, he searched for the outposts on the ridge line but for now, he could see nothing.
It was of course very possible, Percy conceded, that he had made some major navigation blunder. But he had spent half his career as a navigator's assistant and then navigator and had not made such a blunder yet. The Quarter Master had also confirmed his calculations. This should be it, or it could be any of the countless other islands and landmasses that dotted the Scatter, or Sea of Monsters as the more superstitious of his calling affectionately referred to it.
Finally, he spotted it, though it was hard to pick up through the haze. An observation outpost on the ridgeline, and a lighthouse further off to the right. Though it was not easy to see, he knew the bay opening would be right between them.
"Make sail!" he yelled over his shoulder. "Raise the colors!"
Sails unfurled in the wind and a large ensign was raised at the stern, laurels embracing a building with wide columns on a dark blue background. A second banner was raised on the main mast where it began to merrily flap in the wind. By now, Percy noted, seagulls had begun to circle the ship, and a pod of dolphins were chasing ahead of the bow.
As the sun began to sink towards the horizon, and the sky turned red, they finally reached the mouth of the bay, flanked on either side by cliffs, and a small spine of mountains that ran along the edge of the island and reached all the way to the waterfront. Apart from what looked like a small fort on the top of one of the hill. He looked up at it and saw men waving from the ramparts. Finally, they passed through the bay's narrow opening and got their first good look at Port Moray.
His gaze was drawn first to Fort Ashton. The bastion overlooked what seemed to him like an average bustling colonial town that had grown confined only by the ocean and a lazy river. The Fort itself was an impressive piece of military infrastructure with its thick walls and heavy long guns overlooking the bay, beaches, and the land approach from the town. A few ships rested at the docks or lay at anchor. The largest, a third-rate ship of the line that Perseus guessed was the Princess Andromeda, rested at anchor in the middle of the bay, her idle broadside facing the bay's comparatively narrow mouth. A few smaller brigs and sloops, along with a handful of merchant ships were scattered across the water like toys swimming in a bathtub. Another fast-looking fifth-rate looked like she was getting ready to put to sea very soon.
On the seaside, the fort throned on the top of a forty-foot cliff, making the fortification that much more potent. There was a second ring of walls facing the town, where any likely ground assault would from. Due to the outer walls' lower elevation, the batteries on both tiers would be able to fire down at the town, the plantations that dotted the terrain between Fort and town, and most of the beaches. At least the ones one could land on, the other side of the bay being dominated by a cliff face.
It was an idyllic scenery. Truly, it was beautiful. Perhaps close to perfect, if you ignored the hot humid climate and the swarms of mosquitos that had begun to descend upon his ship.
Thunder rolled over the bay as the ship of the line ahead fired a cannon in salute.
At Percy's command, the Argonaut returned the greeting with one of her nine-pounder bow chasers, much to the amusement of the crowd that had gathered on deck.
"Hoist sails!" Percy yelled over his shoulder once they had cleared the bay's opening. He had spotted the small skiff making the best speed towards them. As he had hoped, the skiff pulled alongside them and the pilot, and barely sober-looking fellow stumbled onto the deck of his ship. Fortunately, though, he managed to guide the Argonaut to a free spot at the Navy docks, next to a small Navy Brig.
"Well Gentlemen, it is time to meet our new Command," Perseus announced to his officers.
Be advised, this story will be both mature in themes and execution, appropriate to the setting. Though anything too graphic will be marked as such and you the reader will be advised.
HJL over and out