H.M.S Valor: Treachery And Triumph: A war time adventure on the high seas by Cal Clement (best contemporary novels txt) 📕

own. Then, taking the sword in two hands and with a sweeping blow James relieved the sailor of his agony along with his head.

Lilith stood in a slight state of shock, she could feel her limbs trembling. James walked away as Chibs and the other crewman dumped the body overboard. Blood lay in small puddles at the foot of the chair, the wind had shifted slightly and was now in Lilith’s face. Despite the breeze she could feel her face flushing and her chest felt hollow as if she could not get enough air into her lungs to satiate the urge to breathe. The rolling of the deck exaggerated and suddenly the world around her started to spin. Lilith made her way to the rail and heaved the contents of her stomach overboard. There were shouts and cheers from the crew. Almost instantly feeling better Lilith turned, embarrassed by her lapse of constitution she looked for direction from Chibs. He gave the young girl a warm, knowing smile and escorted her up to the bow of the Maiden.

“You wouldn’t be the first among us to lose their breakfast over the rail girl. In fact, Trina spent her first month aboard looking green and spilling out everything we fed her.” Chibs said consoling her. The combination of the smell from the slaver ship, the motion of the seas and the sight of Captain James’ ending the former first mate of the slavers had accumulated and hit Lilith overwhelmingly. As they walked, crew from the maiden were already preparing the slave ship to sail.

“Who will stay aboard the Maiden Chibs? Where will the other crew sail to? What’s going to happen to me?” Lilith had so many questions she almost couldn’t get them out quick enough. Chibs could sense a nervous apprehension in her, more so than most newcomers and even most freed slaves that had come onto the crew.

“Well, I suppose we will find out soon enough. The Captain intends to hold a vote, he’ll ask for a dozen or so able sailors to go with our prize ship and most likely train the freed slaves themselves to crew it. I will stay aboard the Maiden; you are free to go wherever you decide. You could even leave the ship next time we make port if you so desire.” Chibs answered. He had pulled and packed a pipe with tobacco while he was talking, then pulling out a wick he stole some flame from an oil lamp as he finished answering Lilith he began puffing away.

“How long have you been on the Maiden?” Lilith asked.

“Since before she was the ‘Drowned Maiden’ girl. She started as the ‘Lord’s Maiden’ a ship of the East India Trading Company. I was her first mate. My last voyage under the authority of the company was a load of spice and tea from the far east to Kingston. We took on human cargo, much like that bugger we just captured, one of those we took on was our Captain James. He had been captured and bought and sold, whipped and beaten, hid as stowaway and betrayed, tortured and shot. He is probably the toughest person in the world, but I’ve never met a truer soul in all my days, I’d follow him to the ends of the earth,” explained Chibs.

“How did she come to be a pirate ship if you worked for the East India Company?” Lilith asked.

“Ah. We mutinied on her former Captain, dear. There were a few members of the crew who took issue with the leadership of our Captain and the decision to take on slave cargo was the last straw. We killed the bastard and took the ship.” Chibs recalled.

“How did James come to be Captain then?” Lilith asked, still intrigued that a freed slave like herself could become a Captain on a pirate vessel.

“We voted on it, though he wasn’t our first elected Captain after the mutiny. The Maiden was pursued by the company and naturally, the British fleet. We wound up in an engagement with a pair of large line ships. James came up with an idea to sail in a circle around an island, we set a couple longboats ashore with cannons. James and a few of the crew set them up right on the beach and when those Brits come around the bend those boys lit into both of them. The warships turned all their attention to the shore guns, they really had no choice in the matter, James had them dialed in after the first shot. Those big ships were at a disadvantage close into shore, they draw more depth under their keel, and we hove the Maiden farther out, pinning the bastards between our guns and James’ on shore. Between accurate fire from the beach and the volleys from the Maiden, those big warships didn’t stand a chance. James is a smart lad, he took two twelve foot lengths of chain with him, they heated those up red hot in a fire and loaded them into the cannons. They set those ships ablaze and the crews couldn’t reload and fight their fire quick enough to withstand the volleys we laid on em.” Chibs looked aloft into the evening as he spoke, pipe smoke rolling out of his nostrils. “The first Captain we’d elected was killed in that fight. One of the only shots they landed on us that day, hit our rail and cut the poor sod clean in half. Once we’d sunk the pair of warships and everyone realized James’ plan had made it all possible, it was unanimous.”

Lilith’s head had settled, and her stomach seemed more at ease. The whirlwind of events leading her here had seemed to escalate towards this very moment and she was thankful for the calm skies and steady breeze. Almost as if he were reading her mind, Chibs spoke again.

“It’ll likely be fair seas tonight and tomorrow. The red and pink hues up there don’t often lie. But we’ll