The Sea Lords - A Rough Seas Revival

[Dirty Spaceman]

Pierre's platter of food had been ruined in all the commotion and the cannon's impact, and he was now rather [&@%!] off. "Shall we board them, Captaine?" he asked Ambrogio. He had pulled out his butcher knife from the pocket in his apron, and in his other hand he carried his flintlock.

[Baloth-Kul]

The Italian Rapscallion quickly nodded thanks to those who picked him up before shouting his orders."Boarding planks and hooks, gentlemen! Take that ship, leave none alive! Everybody else, as soon as they're aboard, weigh anchor, prepare to sail, and man the guns so we can take apart their escort!" Captain Ambrogio made his way to the helm, and would steer the ship towards the enemy escort once his boarders were on the merchant ship.

"The usual cannonballs while we're at range! Grapeshot when we close!" Ambrogio called to his crewmen. "Take what is yours!"

[Unionhack]

"Come on then, you [&@%!]!" Morgan roared as he was approached by his soon-to-be opponent. Keeping his cutlass low, he watched his opponent's approach as he remained stationary. He attempted to get the first strike in, with some luck and initiative.

[The SheoDovah]

"You'll pay for that." Nelson growled upon seeing a few members of his crew being killed the british whilst Bones growled at the same time. "Make those [&@%!] pay with their blood! Full volley before they can reload and i want their cannons knocked out of action to avoid those [&@%!] damaging the fist before we can break their legs! Wait for the perfect moment and unleash hell before throwing the devil's barrels in their path!" He ordered the crew.

Hidden:

Waiting to fire until i have a decent chance of hitting their broadside and throwing flaming barrels in their path to slow them down afterwards.

[VirtualWeasel]

Hidden:

Alright, so here's the deal. I was under the impression Pom was going to be managing most of this RP, including its story progression and storyline, and so far it's clearly been sporadic when it comes to those posts. So, we're just gonna start moving things on to a point in the story where I actually know what's supposed to happen, then we'll have a much more frequent post rate going again.

For now, I apologize for the delays.

The Narcissa Caro
With a fumble, Morgan's blade met the charging Brit's, clanging under stress. The sailor, clearly no expert with a cutlass, fiddled around with the blade while they were locked together, trying to find a way to break free without opening himself for attack. Finally, he pushed off of Morgan's blade, setting himself backward a bit, and losing any chance of block as he cast the heavy cutlass aside in his follow-through.

Ambrogio took the helm, steering the ship into position of the merchants, avoiding the escorts as much as possible. He was successful, and lined his starboard side up with the merchants' port, in clear boarding range. His men prepared hooks and boards, getting into position, but waiting for the official order from their captain. Cannons were manned and everything was going according to plan—except the approach of the escort along the portside, who would be sure to line themselves in broadside firing range, sandwiching the pirates between two hostile ships.

The Devil's Skull & Fist
The ship's cannons fired, with only about 30% of the shots hitting their mark, due to the strange angle, and the Sixth Rate's superior maneuvering capabilities. The ship had successfully moved itself out of harm's way, and was charging behind the Devil's Skull & Fist, turning sharp to position itself in broadside range. As it turned, rather close, men on the decks shot muskets toward the upper decks of the Devil's Skull & Fist. A few crewmen were killed, but the overall damage was rather small.
The sixth rate carefully moved itself into broadside range on the Devil's Skull & Fist's starboard, and fired off a volley into their side. The shock rocked the ship and blew several holes through the hull, one or two of them low enough to begin taking on water. Without patching, the holes could soon cause a full sink.

[Baloth-Kul]

Hidden:

They're not boarding until I say so? Well, I did say to get their stuff ready, and then "take the ship and leave none alive", but nbd. Time to pop that escort in the face.

Narcisa Caro
"Board quickly! I must maneuver!" Ambrogio shouted to the men with boarding equipment. He quickly ran the trajectory and speed of the approaching escort in his head--if the Caro could get its boarders onto the merchant ship, and then turn so their port was facing the escort's bow, he would do so. If there wasn't enough time to commit every last boarder before the escort closed on them, to hell with it--he would turn to hit the escort on the bow, rather than potentially take two broadsides. If the boarders were any fewer, they could still likely take the mangled remains of the merchant crew.

"Hard to port!" Ambrogio shouted, one way or another, and steered the ship so that their portside was facing the escort's bow. "Both decks, portside, fire on the escort when you have a shot!"

Hidden:

The lower deck's guns are either going to make a splash, or they're going to punch some serious glug-glug holes

[VirtualWeasel]

Hidden:

It's a matter of avoiding insubordination. Anything could have changed, circumstance-wise during the positioning of the ship, so better for a crew to wait for a clear order from the captain before proceeding.

[POMC S117]

Narcisa Caro

The boarders cast their hooks and ropes across the gap between the Narcisa Caro and the merchant ship. Some hooks were cast into the water, or failed to gain purchase against the enemy hull and deck, but the majority of them were successful. The remnants of the merchant crew made frantic attempts to cut the rope or throw the hooks over board, but only a few times were they met with success, the ropes being thick and the hooks heavy, and their swords quite blunt from misuse and lack of use. A large part of the pirate force designated for boarding thus made it across onto the merchant ship.

The escort came back around, coming into range of the Narcisa Caro. The crew attempted to carry out Ambrogio's orders, but the escort was superior in manoeuvrability, and it would be difficult to catch it in the way that Ambrogio desired. Both ships opened fire at the same time. Smoke and the acrid smell of gunpowder rose in the air. Screams were heard on both ships. The sickening crunch of cannon on wood or cannon on flesh was ubiquitous. The Narcisa Caro had more guns than the opposing brig, but was also a larger target and a larger of the brig's shots hit their mark compared to the Narcisa Caro, though Ambrogio's ship struck better in terms of total hits. Ambrogio also knew that his ship could take more of a beating than his opponent, and even thought he could hear the quake and groan of the enemy ship as it whined in complaint of its injuries.

Spoiler:

Roughly, how many boarders are you sending across to the merchant ship?

[Baloth-Kul]

Hidden:

I'm not entirely sure. However many, at Ambrogio's best estimate, can take the merchant ship, without sacrificing too much of the Narcisa's capabilities. Like, if the enemy crew is 100 strong (though softened by the grapeshot), he'd send maybe 80 aboard. Just...whatever makes sense.

Narcisa Caro
If there were a good many crewmen on the top deck of the escort, Ambrogio had one word for his gunners. "Grapeshot!"

Beyond that, Ambrogio maintained the battle against the escort, attempting to outmaneuver the nimbler ship.

[The SheoDovah]

"Get us broadside and fire half of what we have at those [&@%!]. Wait for them to move and unleash the other half at them and prepare to ram those [&@%!]. Fix any holes we have and throw some fire barrels into their path. I don't want any more damage to our paint and i want them dead!" Nelson ordered his crew and did not want to ship get out of his range again. "Aim for the [&@%!] mast if we have a decent shot and make them [&@%!] their pants by blowing it up!"

Hidden:

Basically, half of my cannons will fire at their broadside and if they move, the rest will be fire to try to slow it down. Barrels are lit on fire and throw into their path. If i have a very good chance shot, i'm firing at their mast to bring it down. If i don't have a chance to or it's less then 50%(Don't know how it works with the dice rolls), i won't do so to avoid wasting a shot.

[Unionhack]

With his opponent's block dropped, Morgan pressed the attack with a slash to the side, aiming for the ribs.

[Dirty Spaceman]

Hidden:

I've been a little bit stuck as for what to do so is this okay? Or is it godmoddy to say he already made it over to the ship?

Pierre was part of the boarding crew and had made the transition over to the merchant ship's deck. He looked for any opposing crew members who would put up a fight - he'd wait until the battle was done before helping to put the grievously injured out of their misery.

[POMC S117]

Narcisa Caro

The merchant ship and the Narcisa Caro originally met each other with similar strength of arms, perhaps two hundred on board each ship. However, the merchant ship had been raked by grapeshot, and more than once, and was much depleted in arms, with perhaps but one hundred and twenty men remaining, of which only one hundred were in a position to repel the boarders. What was more, some of their best fighters had gone on board the Narcisa Caro, and now lay dead or soon-to-be-dead on its deck. Eighty or so boarders had attempted to scale rope and hook on to the merchant vessel. Of them, around sixty to seventy had made the crossing successfully, Pierre among them. The pirates were outnumbered, but found themselves with significantly higher spirits and had trained for such things before. These mariners which faced them were a divided bunch; some were hardened veterans, who had fought in the War of Spanish Succession, and had fallen in love with the sea, but most of them were young, and had not expected to be fighting for their lives against fierce pirates.

Pierre found himself a willing sparring partner. A big, tanned [&@%!], nearly seven foot tall, easily the tallest man Pierre had ever seen, taller even than himself, a hardened sailor on the high seas, with a cutlass in hand, presenting Pierre with a tricky obstacle.

The fight between Morgan and the sailor seemed to continue, even while all this unfolded around them. It appeared that they were in some sort of bubble, uncaring about the world around them, uncared by the world around them. All that the two sailors in it cared about was each other, and surviving to escape this bubble, to be brought back into reality. Morgan now had the initiative, as he pushed his chance. His blade slashed into fabric, and then into flesh. Blood came forth from the wound, some landing on the deck, some landing on Morgan. His opponent let out a scream, as the blade was driven further into him, and then stopped, finding too much resistance. The blade may have stopped, about a third way through his flesh, breaking ribs and tearing muscle, but the screams did not, and the man begged of Morgan to put him out of his pain.

As for the more important duel between the brig and the pirate ship, the Narcisa Caro had a distinct advantage. Yes, the brig was fast, but it was weak and could not dispense with the damage necessary to take full advantage of its extra speed. A few of the sailors on the brig were taken down by grapeshot, and in return, the Narcisa Caro was robbed of a few more of its broadside cannons. Soon, however, the brig broke hard, moving away from the pirate ship, firing its rear cannons and missing with them. The crew was preparing to desert the merchant ship, and flee if they still had the chance.

The Devil's Skull & Fist

The two ships exchanged broadsides once again. This time, the Devil's Skull & Fist could be said to have gained the upper hand in the exchange, with most of the cannonballs finding their marks, and having more cannons to fire than that of the sixth rate. The crew of the sixth rate, however, had superior gunnery skills, and managed to get in a few good shots, taking out some more cannons on the pirate ship. The real success for the pirates, however, came when firing upon the sixth rate's mast. Most of the shots missed, but one ball struck true. With overwhelming force, it slammed into the thick wood holding up the central mast on the British ship. There was a groan, and some rigging came down. Then, the mast collapsed, flattening anyone upon whom it landed, killing a few sailors and pushing some deck cannons overboard. Almost immediately, the sixth rate slowed down, allowing the Devil's Skull & Fist to catch it with its ram.

There was a sickening shuddering as the two ships collided. The strong wood of the sixth rate proved unable to withstand the penetrating force of the steel ram, quaking once, then giving way with explosive force. Splinters went everywhere, killing Royal Navy personnel and pirate alike. A great gash appeared in the hull, letting water in immediately. Screams were heard, and frantic shouting, as the crew of the sixth rate struggled to react to this sudden event. The fallen mast of the sixth rate netted in among the rigging of the pirate vessel, entwining both ships, and ripping the sails of one of the Devil's Skull & Fist's own mast. Both ships came to a halt, the pirate vessel halfway inside the sixth-rate, both crews lying flat on their backsides because of the force of impact.

[The SheoDovah]

"Now, you are mine." Nelson commented as the 6th rate ship lost it's mast thus caused it to lose it's main advantage over his 5th rate. "GET OFF YOUR [&@%!] ARSES AND SEND THE [&@%!] TO HELL!" Nelson shouted as he recovered from the shock of impact and withdrew his cutlass. He would attempt to put a hole in the nearest british sailor's head with his flintlock and would attempt to shove his sword through another one. "WE ARE THE DEVILS AND IT'S TIME TO UNLEASH HELL!" He shouted in a bid to inspire his crew. He knew his crew would man the swivel cannons to try to slow down the sailors and to try to prevent them from overwhelming them with numbers.

[Baloth-Kul]

Narcisa Caro
"They're cowards, men! Back to the merchant ship!" Ambrogio called as he steered back towards the boarded merchant vessel. He knew that it wasn't worth pursuing the escort--he'd simply anchor the ship beside their remaining enemy, and allow the rest of his men to board. "Show no quarter! Leave none alive!"

[POMC S117]

The Devil's Skull & Fist

A cry went up on board the Devil's Skull & Fist. To arms, to arms, cried the pirates, their cutlasses out, muskets firing across from the broken hull of one ship to the other. And an opposing cry went up from the sixth rate, for Crown and Country! And those British sailors charged forth, meeting the pirates as they clambered over wooden debris and crippled mast and torn sail. The two crews met in the middle, some standing on the fifth rate, others on the sixth rate, fighting to win, winning to live, living to claim glory and gold and honour and infamy.

Nelson quickly found an easy target: a young British sailor, perhaps sixteen, maybe younger, barely old enough to know how to use his sword, overtaken by the thrill of his first battle. The sailor charged at Nelson, seeing the pirate captain and also seeing the potential for glory. He didn't seem to think about how he would kill Nelson, only that he should. And so, he ran, his cutlass swinging madly in his hand, without discipline, without order.

Narcisa Caro

The escort quickly made its escape, sailing south, presumably towards Jamaica, or one of the other British possessions in that region of Caribbean. The crew of the escort seemed happy enough to be alive, and didn't attempt to push their luck by firing off any parting shots. They left the crew of the merchant vessel to their fate, whatever that would be.

Without the distraction of the escort, the Narcisa Caro could engage the merchant with the full power of its cannons and crew. The merchant sailors put up a fight, as a man does when faced with no mercy. The first ones to fall were the youngest, those who had never been on a voyage before, who didn't know how to fight at sea. They fought and died, expiring quickly, most not even getting a single kill, leaving only the veterans, those hardened by previous wars under the British flag, or who had once been pirates themselves, privateers. They could fight, and fight they did, but they were overwhelmed and soon vanquished. The fight was won by the pirates, and all the spoils of the merchant ship lay open to them.

[Baloth-Kul]

Narcisa Caro
"Well fought, men!" Ambrogio called to his crew. "Bring our wounded back aboard and tend to them. ...Throw the dead into the sea. We shall eat and drink to the memory of our fallen tonight." He stooped over the fallen first mate to retrieve his necklace and rings. "Check our vessel for damages, repair any leaks. Assess the merchant ship for damages. If she is still seaworthy, or can reasonably be made so, fasten ropes so we can tow her. Bring all her cargo aboard the Narcisa. Search for valuables and provisions. Take what is yours!"

The Italian Rapscallion took out a handkerchief and coughed violently. Wiping his mouth and putting it away, he approached Morgan. "If you would, kindly oversee the...redistribution of wealth. Be sure to search every cabin, including the captain's. ...And see if you can find his corpse. --I trust our men not to hoard the valuables, but be certain they do not, and feel free to exercise your duties as bosun should you discover someone stealing from us. They are all to be given generous shares--they will not abuse my generosity." Expecting his orders to be followed, Ambrogio milled about the deck, overseeing the repairs to his own ship, and making sure everything was running smoothly.

[The SheoDovah]

Nelson knew that the young lad could be a threat to him due to the wild swinging but there was one thing the lad may have overlooked. He was the [&@%!] devil and he did not play fair. He attempted to shoot the lad before he could get into range and if that failed, he would attempt to block the swing and punch the lad in the throat. Bones growled and stayed with his master.

[Unionhack]

"Understood, captain." Morgan complied. "A ship well won. I'll let the boys know, then."

The first mate stepped aboard the captured vessel to search it, expecting the crew to know better than to take an unfair cut in their shares.

[Dirty Spaceman]

Pierre was exhilarated as the adrenaline of the fight wore off. Although he was surrounded by evidence of the carnage he had helped to cause, he had a most peculiar feeling, as if he had never taken part in it at all. Mentally brushing aside that strange sensation, he holstered his flintlock and wiped the blood off from his kitchen knife using his apron.

Trusting in Ambrogio and Morgan if not his crewmates to ensure that he would receive his proper share of valuables once the ship's riches had all been recovered, Pierre made immediately for the galley and storeroom, to see if there were any provisions worth taking back to the Narcisa Caro.

[POMC S117]

Narcisa Caro

"Captain!" shouted one of the men on the deck of the Narcisa Caro, as Ambrogio began to inspect the damage the battle had caused to his ship. The man wasn't shouting out of urgency or surprise or anger, but rather because the effects of the adrenaline still pumping through his body had yet to wear off, and he was as nervous as a seal about to be butchered. "She's taken a beating, captain! We've lost a few cannons and a few of the men manning them. Some of the sails are ripped. The hull has a few holes in it! She's taken a beating for sure! But we're still ship-shape! We're still floating, and that's what counts, isn't it, Captain? We can get to where we need to go and then back to Nassau for repairs."

Pierre originally found nothing of interest in the galley and storeroom. Sure, there was slop, some grains, very salted and very smoked meats, pickled fish, stale bread and stale biscuits, rum and other such things as one would expect to find on a ship. Nothing that he couldn't find on his own ship. But then, when he came to inspect the merchant captain's own quarters, he found some foodstuffs hidden away, things that the crew wouldn't have been able to get their hands on, for the captain's own pleasure. Spices and herbs, from the West and East Indies, from the Middle East, from the Far East, from all manner of exotic places that Pierre had barely heard of, much less seen, things that may rarely grace the table of a French or Italian lord.

Morgan found all manner of useful things. The merchant ship was on its way to one of the British colonies in the southern Caribbean, Jamaica perhaps, and thus was stocked with things that would be of great use there. Swords and guns in plentiful amounts, and gunpowder to go with them, but also more commercial things, like fabrics prepared from English wool, some of which had already been tailored into shirts and hats and trousers.

Devil's Skull & Fist

The shot rang out across the deck. There was a brief pause. For a second, it appeared as though Nelson had missed completely, for the boy continued in his charge. But then, there was an explosion of blood from his forehead. He carried on a few more steps, kept going only by adrenaline, but then even that proved insufficient, and he collapsed at Nelson's feet, blood pouring on to the pirate captain's shoes.

[Baloth-Kul]

Narcisa Caro
Captain Ambrogio nodded understanding. "See to our dead. As for what repairs we can try to make ourselves, the hull is our priority, followed by our sails and guns. In that order." He scratched his chin, before calling out to those on the merchant vessel. "We have lost a few cannons! If there are any in decent shape over there, haul them onto the Narcisa!" He looked out towards the sea for a moment, before looking back to the merchant ship. "And take the time and care as you cross with what you find, that you do not fall overboard. I would rather we did not lose more lives...or cargo."

[Unionhack]

Merchant Vessel

Morgan smirked and plucked one of the finer-looking hats for himself and selected a choice sword as well.

Once he had taken a fair accoung off the plunder and sectioned off loot for himself, the captain, and other officers, he went to stand at the helm of the captured ship. "Alright, lads, now hear this! We've got arms and clothing aplenty here. If you broke a sword or your favorite bodice got a tear in it..." He taunted, tapping his chin. "Come and grab what you will! No man takes more than his own generous share, or you'll be returning it and a few fingers!"

[Dirty Spaceman]

Pierre's eyes lit up, and his face contorted into the rarest expression in his range of emotions - pure excitement. He immediately began stocking up his arms with as many bags and/or boxes as he could carry without risking one falling and its contents being lost. He bore his payload back to the Narcisa, trying to put the stopper known as caution on top of the agitated bottle of his eagerness. He asked no one for help along the way, not willing to entrust such a lofty and momentous duty upon an ordinary crew member or even his assistant, a Basque fellow named Hector. By the midpoint of the second load, however, he was beginning to regret not asking for any aid. At any rate, he was able to secure all of the spices and herbs within the storeroom of the Narcisa Caro.

He then visited the hoard of loot, and grabbed a modest share of gunpowder as well as a shirt. One could never have too many shirts.

Finally, he approached Ambrogio. "I do not know if you may have seen me going back and forth," he told the captain, "But I have taken the, ah, liberty of putting into our storeroom a great amount of spices and herbs from the captured ship. I hope that is not a problem, sir? These shall be very, very good for improving the quality of our meals."

[The SheoDovah]

Nelson didn't bother to reload his flintlock on account of how long it could take him and did not need to waste thos precious seconds. He didn't care about his victim and focused on the next fool that dared to invade his ship. "Leave none alive apart from the [&@%!] that leads this dead set of royally [&@%!]!" He shouted. If attacked, he would attempt to block the strike with his cutlass and attempt to kick the poor fool in their sensitive area before slicing their neck.