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Post by Ladorak on Jul 22, 2012 10:41:40 GMT -5
"OUT OR DOWN, LADS! OUT OR DOWN! RISE AND SHINE! YOU GOT TEN MINUTES TO GET OUT OF YOUR HAMMOCK AND UP TO THE MAIN DECK! OUT OR DOWN! OUT OR DOWN! BATTLE STILL IMMINENT!"
Caden moaned a little, prying his eyes open as the boatswain and his mates moved through the lower gun deck, shouting for the crew to get up. Well that was their wake up call whenever they slept in for the larboard watch. The fact they were getting this call though... was it 8 AM? Caden had slept well from what he knew... better than he had in a long while. But now it was time to get up... and it certainly felt like a full four hours' sleep.
He struggled to get himself out of his hammock, rolling out and letting his paws touch the deck. "Hoo!" he exclaimed, groggily blinking his eyes several times. "Wow! Morning!" he said, noticing the daylight streaming in from up above through the main and other hatches. Yeah... they had made it to sun rise and beyond! STILL no action though... what was the situation?
He removed his hat and placed it on his head, unhooking his hammock shortly afterward, and beginning to roll it up, getting down on his knees and placing the hammock on the deck to make it easier. "Morning Selvis!" he said to the weasel as he began rolling his hammock up and trussing it. "Morning Carrow!" he called over to the mouse, who was a bit further away.
Trussing up the hammock tightly, he began making for the stairs up to the main deck. He was stopped by the boatswain, but his hammock successfully made it through the ring. Smiling at Jal King, Caden moved on, heading up and up. He moved through the upper gun deck, and emerged into the bright sunlight, the wind still blowing strong from the west-northwest, but not at gale force like it had been last night.
Turning his eyes to the east, Caden squinted, scanning everything. OK... they were facing.... north. The sun was on their starboard beam. Well OK... a little to the east of north. The Rosferians were... off in the north-northeast. OK... so they were still ahead... but the Welkinite fleet still had the weather gage. The Rosferians were heading north for the most part. They were about... maybe two to three miles away now. So they hadn't closed distance much in the night. Still... it WAS better than five. The Rosferian ships were at least bigger in his gaze and they looked scattered, with several of their ships severely trailing behind the main fleet. That was pretty typical.
Caden then shifted his attention to their own fleet. OK... the Agamemnon was... well... Caden rubbed his eyes. Weren't they supposed to be toward the back? But no... they were near the FRONT now. Several ships were still ahead of them though... ironically enough some of them had been the old rear of the Welkinite fleet yesterday. The leaders were as follows, at least as far as Caden could tell as he wandered over to the hammock rail and dumped his hammock into its rightful spot: Victory (that big ship was in the lead), Culloden (way to go Troubridge!), Cumberland, Defence, Captain, Blenheim (surprisingly that clunky second-rate was right in front of them) and finally their own ship, with the 80 gun Gibraltar (a former Ferlusanian flagship that had been captured in the Mossflower War) sailing behind them. They were... seventh in line in that case... though it wasn't much of a "line" either. This meant only one thing...
A grin spread across Caden's features as he looked behind him now to the flags flying from Agamemnon's gaff and mizzenmast. It WAS! The flags read "General Chase"! They were in a General Chase! Meaning Ladorak had had to come all the way from the back last night to get here... but the old "Eggs and Bacon" was slowly making her way to the front, overtaking the bigger and more ponderous ships that now lay behind her one by one. But that wasn't all... there were two more signals flying as well... Caden struggled to read them, still getting the flags down. OK so... "Take Stations for Mutual Support" was one... and the other was... "Engage the Enemy as You Come Up in Succession." OK... easy enough. That meant Hotham wanted to fight at least.
He lowered his pink eyes slowly, looking now for Ladorak, who was of course standing by the ship's wheel. The stoat and marten caught each others' gaze for a moment, with the stoat breaking out into a smile, and giving his ward a small nod. Caden couldn't help but to smile back... but he knew too that he had precious little time to waste. Breakfast was only a half hour after all, as the Forenoon Watch would begin at one bell, or 8:30. Right! Time to find Selvis!
As it was not quite a week later, Selvis was still mess cook this week, though it was his penultimate day of being so. His first day had been on the 7th, and as each crew member had a week to be mess cook, it was still Selvis's turn. Rubbing his eyes again, Caden tottered a little (still finding his pawing) over to the long-tailed weasel. "Good morning there, Selvis." the marten repeated, smiling. He could eat with them! This would be something to remember! He obviously couldn't eat in the cockpit, after all, as the midshipjacks' table was being used as the surgeon's operating table now.
"Let's see... as Ladorak usually gives us eggs before battle from his private store of bollocks... I'd say I'd like those, some bacon, oatmeal, bread, and coffee, if you please." Caden placed his order with Selvis. Their benches were big enough to easily accommodate six if need be, so Caden would be able to squeeze in at their table. "Can't say how happy I am to be eating with you! We don't get to do this often, after all!" the marten informed the weasel, his smile becoming a grin.
"Sounds good!" Ocean put in, walking up to them, followed by Alleline. "Full course breakfast! I'll have everything there but the oatmeal, Jal Frenata, if you please."
"Ssssame." Alleline hissed. "As Jal Sleet there." There was no alcohol ration at breakfast of course, which was a bit of a shame in the monitor's eyes, but that was OK. They'd be getting some for dinner... if they'd be having dinner at this rate.
Ladorak watched the striplings from afar, smiling at how close knit a group they were. His arms were folded across his chest, as he usually did before a battle. He hadn't slept of course... but that was all right. He turned, heading for his dining room now, getting ready for his own breakfast.
Caden patted Selvis on the back, looking forward to eating with him, Carrow, and everyone else. Just like old times... which was why he particularly liked battles (despite the death and injuries they would inevitably bring). The marten now made his way back down, making for the stairs and the lower gun deck once more. He took the steps rapidly, having come awake now for the most part, and knew his comrades were following. The thudding of pawsteps was all about him as the hungry crew made their way below.
The tables were in the process of being lowered down here, now that the hammocks were out of the way. Caden reached them first, though allowed Alleline and Ocean to begin the process of actually lowering, due to the fact that midshipjacks did not participate in such an activity. He stood patiently by, Carrow by his side as they watched their table being slowly dropped into place between the guns. "You excited, mate?" Caden asked Carrow, grinning at the mouse as he slid into his seat, deciding to take a "window" seat near a gunport, but also making sure he'd be sitting next to Carrow as well. Along the northern bench it ran thus: Caden, Carrow, Ocean. Along the southern bench would sit Alleline and Selvis, though Alleline respectfully sat across from Ocean, so that Selvis could take a seat across from his good friend Caden.
They were now simply waiting for Selvis to join them, though the marten made himself busy by retrieving his plate and cup and utensils from the rack above their heads.
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Post by Carrow on Jul 25, 2012 18:51:44 GMT -5
Selvis was immediately roused by the wake-up call. He hadn't had the best rest for the previous while, tossing and turning more than he would have liked, but he supposed it had just been one of those times when he'd had a lot on his mind. Even still, he came awake immediately, opening his eyes and springing out of his hammock. The weasel knew that there was only one thing he'd need to focus on for the next while: the prospect of the upcoming battle. It didn't take him long to notice the sunlight coming through the hatches. It was 8am? Still no action? Well, that hadn't been what he'd been expecting, but the upside to this was that he was now almost fully prepared.
"Heh, good morning, Caden," he responded to his albino marten companion, unhooking his hammock and starting to roll it up. He never had too much difficulty doing it standing up, thankfully. He glanced over at Carrow, who was already out, and had already changed back into his usual clothing. "Good morning, Carrow!," he called over to his rodent friend, noting that the field mouse was trying to kneel on the deck. Carrow was indeed hoping to follow Caden's lead, but after a moment's consideration, he shook his head, standing back up and starting to roll up his hammock in earnest.
"Morning, you two!," the field mouse called over to them, unable to keep the eagerness out of his voice. He was already wide awake, it seemed. "I've been looking forward to today for a while. First full day back on the job, and we could be engaging in a few hours!," he exclaimed, beaming at them. His hammock was soon rolled up, and Selvis was done not long after his rodent companion. Caden's trussed-up hammock was first through the boatswain's ring, followed by Carrow's, and Selvis brought up the rear. The three companions started their ascent up to the weather deck.
Carrow knew his friends would be looking forward to breakfast, as this was the first time they had been able to eat together in a few months. The rodent just needed company again, as he enjoyed the atmosphere of eating in the mess quite a bit more than having his food carried up to him in the Sick Berth. He realised now how much he had missed it. "I didn't get to say this yesterday - at least, not properly - but I'd just like to say thanks to the two of you for being there for me over the last few days. I've been helped a lot by my friends recently, and you've all helped me decide to make some changes in my life," he told the pair of mustelids.
Selvis merely smiled in response. He'd let Caden take that one, as he knew the mouse had done a considerable amount to help the pine marten after he'd had his wrist broken by Spender almost two years ago. They continued their ascent, until the trio of friends were on the weather deck. In turn, they deposited their hammocks in the available rails, and while Caden went over to study the flags, Selvis did some stretches, whilst Carrow simply stood there, looking around him and taking in the morning air. The longtail was aware there would be six creatures at the one table this morning for breakfast, so he'd need to be swift, and was limbering up before he had to go about ordering breakfast for five; things would be even more hectic than usual this morning, as it was possible they wouldn't be eating again until 4pm.
The mustelid was in high spirits, all the same. He smiled broadly when Caden came over to him, and was soon joined by Carrow. "Certainly is a good morning, Caden! I have a good feeling about today. I can't put my paw on why, but sometimes it's better not to know. Right, no time to waste here, unfortunately, so... what'll it be, mates?," he asked, noticing Ocean and Alleline approaching. Caden was first with his order, and Selvis smiled as he made a mental note of it. "Ah, eggs! Thanks for the reminder - I may yet have some myself. Heheheh, eggs and bacon," he said, chuckling as he played on the nickname of the ship. Oatmeal, bread and coffee, too. Right, got it!
"I must say I'm very excited about the five of us eating together this morning, and we may even get to do so later, whether it's dinner or supper we sit down to. That is very exciting indeed!" His ears twitched as he heard Ocean's voice, and he smiled once again as the ermine placed his order, quickly followed by Alleline. "Good grief! You two are certainly making the most of the opportunity. Two full-course breakfasts, with everything save the oatmeal. That's fine, then... and just so I know what I'm getting for myself in advance... hmm." He thought for a moment before brightening up. "Think I'll have what Caden's having! That sounds good to me. Lastly, how about you, Carrow?," he asked his mouse companion.
The mouse was feeling quite hungry for this early in the morning, and even though he was never usually the type to eat that much, he'd potentially need to get through the next eight hours or so - if not more - on just his breakfast, so he wasn't going to hold back; at least, not in relative terms. "Eggs, bacon, bread, cheese, oatmeal and coffee, please. Heh, some coffee for the lot of us," he remarked, smiling." Selvis nodded, giving the field mouse a smile. It was the mouse's turn to stretch now, and he grinned. "Ah, I can't really say just how much I've been looking forward to this! And on top of having you with us, Caden, we have the luxury of having eggs for breakfast!," he exclaimed, licking his lips eagerly.
They went back the way they came, taking the stairs back down to the lower gun deck. Selvis gradually eased himself ahead of the rest of his companions, and then increased his pace to a jog, knowing he didn't have much time to spare. He reached the lower gun deck well before his friends, and proceeded down to the Purser's store, getting in line and waiting for his turn to come around. He hoped he could get all this out of the way quickly, as he had a hefty order to place. He whistled softly to himself as he waited to reach the head of the line. He was feeling rather cheerful this morning.
When it was his turn, he beamed at the ferret Purser. "Good morning! Can I have two full-course breakfasts, with everything bar the oatmeal; two consisting of eggs, bacon, bread and oatmeal; and one with eggs, bacon, bread, cheese and oatmeal, please?" The mustelid nodded, putting everything into a sack. Selvis took it gratefully, smiling. "Thank you, sir!" He went back up the stairs, and went to see the Cook next; the rat was being his usual surly self, and the weasel's 'good morning' didn't receive so much as a response. The rodent took the meat and pawed Selvis his numbers in return (346-350; he'd certainly been busy this morning!) in silence. The mustelid nodded his thanks. Hmm... mustn't be too fond of mornings.
Carrow, meanwhile, had reached the lower gun deck, and was currently watching his table being lowered by Ocean and Alleline. He smiled broadly in response to his pine marten friend's query. "Oh yes, absolutely!," he exclaimed, sliding in next to his companion, sighing happily. It made him feel so good to have Caden here with him, and made him realise times like this needed to be cherished. "I don't think I've ever actively looked forward to a battle before, but I'm relishing this one. Don't ask me why, though now I think about it, it could be because today's also my first day back on the job!"
He chuckled, retrieving his plate, cup and utensils from the rack and setting them down, at which point, Selvis arrived. The weasel had taken number 300 for himself, but placed the tags down on the table for each of his companions to take, before opening the sack and distributing the food. He dispensed Alleline and Ocean's hefty breakfasts first, then Caden's, then Carrow's, and then finally his own. The sack was now temporarily empty, so he set it down, taking their cups and placing it on his tray, which he then picked up. "Five mugs of coffee coming right up!," he told them cheerfully, going to see the off-duty Quartermaster's Mate who was pawdling the drinks.
"Morning," the mustelid greeted the striped polecat. "Five mugs of coffee, please!," he requested, and in a moment, there was steam rising from each of the mugs, and the smell of freshly-poured coffee was hitting his nostrils. "Ahhh... that's good. Thank you!," he told his fellow mustelid, before returning to his table (padding along carefully of course). Putting down the tray, he pawed out the mugs, before finally setting down his own mug and sliding into his seat, opposite Caden. "Well, that's the brunt of the work out of the way! Enjoy!" He'd purposefully taken the last number as he wanted to sit down for a bit. While he rested, he started with his bread.
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Post by Ladorak on Jul 25, 2012 23:25:37 GMT -5
"Thanks, Selvis!" Caden told his friend, giving him a wide smile. He picked up his spoon, and began working on the oatmeal. The eggs were cooking rapidly enough, and already the marten's nostrils flared with the luscious scents all round him. His coffee steamed in front of him, looking back at him as he reached out to take a short drink. The "coffee" on the ship wasn't what one would recognize as such today. It had biscuits boiled in it to create a frothy substance at the top. It also tasted rather different than "normal" coffee, but it did the trick at least.
Slurping the hot liquid, the marten downed it gently, licking his lips clean and nodding as Carrow spoke. "Oh yes! I am too! VERY excited! Been a rather active year for us after all, and we have yet another chance to destroy the Rosferians, so we'll see if we can do it!" he exclaimed.
He had been thinking of something while waiting for Selvis though, and just as his number was called for his eggs and bacon, he got up, and decided how best to form his question as he traveled down the deck to get his meats. The cook dumped them out onto his wooden plate, and soon, Caden was back with an absolutely delicious breakfast resting in front of him.
"Mmm!" he licked his lips, this time in hunger. "This looks particularly appetizing, and is a heartier breakfast than we usually get! So let's dig in" he eagerly declared, even though he was the first to get his meat. He sliced into the eggs with his fork, raising them up and beginning to get to work. "So Selvis..." he said to the weasel as he chewed.
"I've been meaning to ask... do you have any friends back home who were planning on joining the Ferlusanian Navy, or indeed, already did join the Ferlusanian Navy? Or if not that, any friends who had at least expressed an interest in such a thing?" the albino asked him after he swallowed. Alleline was called next, and the big monitor excused himself to go and get his meat. "Do you still keep in touch with them as well?" the marten further asked.
Ocean turned to Carrow as he nursed his coffee, using it more for the boost in the morning than anything else. "I'm glad that God answered my prayers for you, Carrow." the ermine informed the rodent. "I'm rather happy to see you alive and well. How are you feeling, then? You look very energized and like you're ready to take on the whole Rosferian fleet." He chuckled here. "Well I'm glad. Very glad in fact." he said, beaming.
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Post by Carrow on Jul 29, 2012 8:37:53 GMT -5
Selvis was waiting for his number to be called before he really started making inroads on his food, but the bread was nice as an appetiser. The coffee looked quite tempting as well - the longtail had to admit that he preferred the regular coffee they had whilst on land, but the frothier variety served on the ship was nice too; it had reached the point where the weasel was unable to decide which he preferred. The scents all around him were helping to ease him into full wakefulness; having not had as good a rest as his companions. it had taken the mustelid a little longer to come round than Carrow, who seemed to be a bundle of energy this morning, but the atmosphere at their mess table was doing the trick.
Carrow was enjoying his oatmeal as he responded to his pine marten companion, having really developed a taste for the stuff whilst he had been in the Sick Berth; he'd only touched it out of necessity (as he would have starved otherwise), but he was finally coming around to it after two years. He paused in his consumption of it to respond: "Even if we don't - and I'm sure I'm not the only one at this table who isn't holding my breath, considering who's giving the orders - it should be interesting anyway, especially as we've been after those Rosferian vessels for so long. Something tells me that we have all the motivation we need after days of searching; let's see if we can harness that!," he exclaimed gamely, keeping an ear out for his number.
Caden's was the first to be called, and the mouse watched his friend leave to get his meat, sipping his coffee, momentarily lost in his own thoughts. This was one of those mornings that he couldn't help but wonder about Tally - not in the sense that he was hung up on losing her, but more in the sense that he wondered if she was OK. Molly seemed well able to take care of her, though, so that was comforting to the field mouse, at least. He missed her, but she was probably going to have a fine time of things in Welkin - she was naturally curious, much like himself, and he hoped she was exploring her new home and enjoying being taken care of by the stoat jill. As for him, he needed to move on somehow, but knew he'd always have the memories of their brief time together, no matter what else happened.
His longtail friend, meanwhile, had the immediate future on his mind. He was hatching a plan that involved his parents and the incoming kit. He'd hastily scrawled some notes on a piece of paper before he'd gone to sleep at 8pm last night, and as he finished his bread, the mustelid looked about him curiously, as though he were searching for something. In reality, though, he wasn't; there was a sense of restlessness within him that was taking longer than usual to go away. Alleline's number was called, and then Carrow's. As the mouse stood up, he felt a twinge in his back, and had to wait a few seconds before proceeding down the deck; his friend couldn't help but notice this, but put it down to how little the mouse had been moving about over the last while.
His ears perked up as Caden asked him a trio of questions about the creatures he had known in Crittenden, and the mustelid's first impulse was to blush - fiercely. "Oh, confound it, Caden," he responded with a smile. "I guess I'm going to have to answer your questions one at a time now, which is fine by me, but if you're wondering why I'm blushing, well... I suppose I should answer your question about creatures who considered joining the Navy first. There was this one weasel jill who..." He took a hasty swig of his coffee. "Who I had feelings for. I'd made up my mind to join Ferlusan, and we... we really did seem to have something going, but she tried to join up, and was turned down. She didn't have the confidence to do what Elle or Polly did," he explained, "so moved up north with her parents to start a new life, and things... kind of fizzled out between us, I guess." He was unable to help sighing a little as Carrow returned with his meat and eggs.
"I have her new address, though. Obviously, she doesn't have mine, but I could certainly write to her... and that brings me to another of your questions. You asked if I knew anybeast who actually DID join the Ferlusanian Navy, and well, yes I do," he revealed, smiling as he thought of it. "I believe he'll be 15 in a few months. Yes, that's right. He's an old porcupine friend of mine named Dario Alvarez, and he was probably my closest friend during my last year of school. Somewhere along the way, we decided that we'd both like to join the Navy, but he definitely wanted to go with Ferlusan, and I hadn't made my choice by the time he had to leave. I ended up going with Welkin, of course. Maybe I should touch base with him and see how he's been getting on. I haven't been in contact with either of them in a while. I wonder if Carmelita even remembers me... that's her name. Carmelita Gutierrez," he revealed, swallowing nervously before taking another gulp of his coffee.
The weasel's number was then called, and he departed to collect his eggs and bacon. Meanwhile, Carrow had started on his eggs at this point, one ear listening to Selvis and the other waiting to hear from Ocean, as the ermine looked like he wanted to have words with him. He continued eating as the mustelid told him he was thankful to see the rodent back on his paws. "Heh, thank you, mate!," he said warmly, chewing and swallowing some of his eggs. "It's good to be back, and even if the last few days have been rough, at least I was kept from starting to despair by my friends. That helped a lot - as did the fact that I spent much of the previous two days in bed." He grinned, taking a good mouthful of his coffee. "Proper rest like that will re-energise anybeast!
"I'm feeling good - on the whole I'm feeling better than I have in a while, but I'm trying not to dwell on the past as much as I used to, because getting hung up on the past hampers one's future, and you helped me to realise that," he told Ocean with a smile, sampling some of his bacon. "Oh, yes, this was worth the wait!," he exclaimed, right as Selvis returned. "Ready to take on the whole Rosferian fleet, single-pawed - that's me," he responded to the ermine mischievously, winking at him. "Heh, in all seriousness, though, I don't think I've ever been this ready for a battle. A lot of things have changed for me over the last week, and I have a new perspective on life now, or at least I like to think I do. That's definitely helping with things," he said, glad that he was doing enough to keep recent events from troubling him. He'd been very scared recently and almost seemed to regress into his old, much more timid self. He was glad that it seemed to be behind him now.
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Post by Ladorak on Jul 29, 2012 13:31:11 GMT -5
Caden's eyes lit up as Ocean's number was called and he too excused himself. "Aha! A jill!" Caden couldn't help but grin here. It must've been first love, as he had never really known anyone his age to be seriously in love... but first loves, if nurtured, often blossomed into serious romances later on. "You should write to her! It's good to establish contact after all! Your friend sounds interesting too!" he commented, nodding.
"So you DO have a friend in the Ferlusanian Navy! Excellent! I had been wondering about that myself. I guess it'd be next to impossible to write him now, simply because you don't know what ship he's on, but maybe if he has parents, you could write to them and they could forward it to him. A porcupine, eh? I don't think I know too many of them." he added with a grin. "It would be interesting to get in contact with him... if such a thing is possible of course." He knew it would be difficult at best without knowing his ship, as that could change frequently, and without an address, it would be hard to reach him.
"Hah! Well take it easy." Ocean replied, chuckling. "Let's take it slowly here. One ship at a time." he winked at Carrow. "Extremely glad to see you in such high spirits. It can be infectious after all, and I'm sure we're ALL looking forward to this combat! A chance to smite our enemies and hopefully deal a crippling blow... though yes, the capybara commanding us might have other ideas." he said, shaking his head.
Their breakfast went very well indeed, short though it was. After half an hour, they were on duty and working away for the Forenoon Watch. Caden supervised the others in his subdivision as they went about their tasks. The wind moderated during the course of the Forenoon Watch, and shifted more to the south, allowing the Welkinites to keep the weather gage.
By noon and the start of dinner, the Rosferian fleet bore from the Welkinite van ships north-northeast, about three quarters of a mile off. However, the Welkinite fleet itself was in a disjointed state, and the slower ships were being left far behind in the distance. The Welkannia for example was viewed from the Agamemnon as a small shape eight miles behind them and to larboard in the west-southwest. Admiral Hotham would barely be able to see the battle from way back there, and it was up to the Victory to repeat the flagship's signals as they came in from way off in the distance.
Such a thing was shameful in Ladorak's eyes, as the flagship should've been able to keep up with the rest of its fleet, but Hotham had selected the slowest ship in the Welkinite Mediterranean Fleet to be his flagship, and it was certainly showing now. The wind drew more to southwest by west at dinner, and as they still hadn't yet arrived up with the Rosferian ships, Ladorak piped the ship's crew to eat right at noon.
As the crew ate and enjoyed their dinner, firing suddenly broke out at 12:30 as the wind changed to the north, bringing the Rosferians onto the weather gage and shifting the nature of the battle. The Welkinites were now to leeward, and both fleets adjusted course to the east, as neither could continue sailing directly north into the wind. The Victory, Culloden, and Cumberland were now able to fire upon the three rearmost Rosferian ships, the last of which was far behind her line. That ship was the 74 gun Alcide, and she was soon taking a heavy fire from the Victory, Culloden, and Cumberland.
As the guns boomed and the smoke spit across the water from the hulls of the ships, Caden and the others watched as they munched their food and craned their heads out the gun ports. Admiral Mann was pitching into the battle with vigor, the Victory in particular thundering her massive broadsides out against the Rosferian 74.
The firing continued through the rest of their dinner, and into the start of the Afternoon Watch, which Caden and the others had off. The Agamemnon was crowding on all sail to join the battle, but Victory and the others had been so far ahead of her that it would be a bit yet before she too could join them.
At around 1:30, the cracking of wood could be heard on top of the cacophonous pounding of the guns. As hulls splintered and exploded under the fire, the Culloden's main topmast could be seen fracturing and going over her starboard side. Captain Troubridge's ship immediately lost speed, dropping back a little, though the determined captain pressed every stitch of canvas he could get in order to bring himself back alongside his opponents. Ladorak was slightly envious of his friend... he was taking all the action for himself after all.
Something Ladorak noticed though with some worry was that rather than pressing ahead to engage more of the Rosferian fleet (as Hotham was ordering), Admiral Mann kept backing his topsails, and keeping Victory from pushing on. Ostensibly, this was so Admiral Mann could stay in sight of Welkannia at all times and continue to repeat her signals, but all it was really doing was preventing the Victory from taking advantage of her speed and getting up with the rest of the Rosferian fleet. The 74 gun Defence seemed to be confused by this, as she was backing her topsails as well and refusing to get ahead of the Victory (perhaps mistaking Admiral Mann's maneuver for what the rest of the Welkinite fleet should be doing as well). Victory was repeatedly hailing the Defence to go and pass her, but as of yet, Captain Wells was not obeying this order.
It wasn't until the Agamemnon, Captain, and Blenheim were drawing close to her did Defence finally fill her sails and pass the Victory. As the Agamemnon gilded easily by the fighting centered around the Alcide, Ladorak decided to press on, as the Cumberland was engaging the Alcide very closely, and the Victory and Culloden were hovering around her as well, delivering their punishing broadsides into the heavily outgunned Rosferian ship. As there was no room for them to get involved, Ladorak decided to keep following the Blenheim, moving into her wake and tailing her toward the rest of the Rosferian fleet, along with the Captain and Defence. The 80 gun Gibraltar was following close behind Ladorak's own ship, being a fast former Ferlusanian ship, and looking to get involved in the action as well.
It was now around 1:50 or 1:55... it was hard to tell from the half-hour glass. Ladorak nodded, and noted that up ahead, the Defence and Captain were beginning to open a distant fire upon the rear Rosferian ships ahead of Alcide, one of which was backing her sails in what was assuredly an attempt to assist her beleaguered comrade. Soon, the Blenheim would be able to open fire as well, and so would the Agamemnon.
"Right! OK... let's do this!" Ladorak shouted. "Beat to Quarters! Ready the larboard batteries!" The drummers began to beat out the tune for action stations.
Caden, who had been eagerly watching from the larboard gunwale of the ship throughout the Afternoon Watch, sprang to life at the beating of the drums. "There we go! Our turn now!" he said, pushing himself off from the gunwale and making for the upper gun deck. He had been enjoying his hour or so of leisure time, and had been watching, transfixed by the battle unfolding before him. He shuddered every time the Victory's broadsides roared out, and had been watching as the fire from the Alcide had been slackening more and more as the Afternoon Watch progressed. But now it was their turn! Once Blenheim managed to get up with the third or fourth Rosferian ship from the rear, they could open fire on that ship as well. Captain Bazely had precedence, as Ladorak had opted NOT to pass his ship during the General Chase.
Racing down the stairs and doing his best not to smash into anyone on the way, Caden's heart raced as he took up his position at his battery roughly amidships. Ocean was down there too, taking up his position as sponger on the right side of the gun. The lieutenants began shouting for silence, and the gun deck tried to quiet down as best they could. As only the larboard guns would be firing, there was no need to divide the gun crews up to either side of the gun deck. The full might of them could be brought to focus on the larboard guns only.
As they were all loaded and ready to go, all that remained was to run them out, whenever the lieutenants gave the command. Any minute now really. As they were quieting down and readying themselves, a great cheer went out from above. "The Alcide's struck! The Alcide's struck!" came the shouts.
Caden ran to the gun port, poking his head out and holding onto his hat, as he was looking right into the wind. "By seasons, she has!" he exclaimed, grinning and noting that the Alcide had given up. That was one prize they could claim! Cumberland had taken her, but instead of detaching a prize crew, the Cumberland pushed on, keeping the pressure on and making right for the next Rosferian ship in the line, which by now had slowed to a crawl, and was within easy distance of Captain Rowley and his 74.
"We got her, then!" Caden said, pulling his head back in. "We got the Alcide!" Cheers broke out all around him, the enthusiasm and joy spreading throughout the gun crews as they knew that soon it would be their turn. Victory was sending boats over now to take possession of the prize as Cumberland was pushing on to engage the next Rosferian ship. Victory had lost her main topsail yard, her fore yard, and her spritsail yard in the battle, as well as had much of her rigging cut up, but her crew was working rapidly to repair the latter, and the loss of her main topsail and fore course weren't terrible blows. She wouldn't be using her spritsail at all unless she became completely dismasted. From what Caden could see, the Alcide had not lost any of her masts, but she had been battered in her hull, and he was sure she'd suffered many casualties.
"How you doing, Selvis?" Caden asked as he passed the weasel. "You ready for this? Eager?"
Ocean had patted Carrow on the back, grinning at the news that they'd taken an enemy vessel. "Wow... off to a good start... even if this battle is a little disorganized! That's what you get with a General Chase though. Everyone just kind of does their own thing and engages when they can. You all ready?" the ermine asked, stretching a little and doing a few squats to get himself into his battle mode.
Up aloft, Alleline was ready to repair damaged rigging and sails as necessary. He was preparing as well, and would have to be on his toes in order to splice new lines and get them threaded and reattached throughout the ship as everywhere they steeled themselves for what was to come.
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Post by Carrow on Aug 1, 2012 17:41:33 GMT -5
"I'll try and make contact with both of them, sure. Of course, I realise Carmelita will be easier to reach than my porcupine friend - whom you seem rather interested in, and with good reason. It would be nice for me to catch up with him - that is of course assuming he's survived his first two years at sea, which, given the poor state of the Ferlusanian Navy at this present time, isn't as certain as I would like to believe," he noted, frowning slightly, continuing to eat for a moment before speaking again. "If I do ever get in touch with him, though, I'll be sure to tell him you're curious about him. I don't know what serving with Ferlusan is like, at least not at first paw - he does, so I'll ask about that if I can."
Selvis was glad that those two things were out in the open - the thing about his 'jillfriend' in particular. He'd been ready to take it one step further with her before she'd received that crushing blow to her ambitions, but at least the pain of making a difficult choice hadn't been inflicted upon Selvis, as Carmelita had decided to move away first. It was probably for the best. There was a chance they could go back to being friends, even if he was unsure that he'd ever actually see her again. It wouldn't hurt to try, at least. As the old saying went: nothing ventured, nothing gained. The mustelid hadn't run into a single long-tailed weasel jill his age since then, which was unfortunate but didn't seem to bother him too much.
Carrow nodded at Ocean's advice, smiling a little. "Yes, I plan to - in relative terms at least. Even if I know I'm not going to anywhere near as physically active during the upcoming battle as, say, yourself or Caden, I'll try to ensure that I'm kept busy during the Forenoon Watch, as I would ideally like to have a small chance to get a little more back into things before we actually engage the enemy. I know that's out of my paws, but it would be nice. And yes, it is indeed. I haven't felt this good in quite a while," he admitted to the ermine. He'd come through a rough time recently and was struggling to fully shake it off, even though he was hoping that the worst was over. "Regardless of Hotham's efforts, or lack thereof as the case may be," he quipped, "I'm sure we'll give it our all. I've noticed that we always do!," the field mouse exclaimed, smiling broadly as he continued with his breakfast.
They finished up around 8:30am, and Carrow departed for his job with an eager smile on his face. "Hopefully we'll be seeing each other for dinner later, mates! Take care for now," he told them before leaving to meet the on-duty Quartermaster with whom he would be working for the next few hours - and possibly even more if they engaged the foe. Selvis, meanwhile was still working in Caden's subdivision, which included the rest of his friends, so he'd be working in good com[any for the next while. Both were soon hard at work, with the mouse, fully satisfied after one of the heartiest breakfasts he'd eaten in weeks, under the guidance of Quartermaster Judson. He'd found the oatmeal particularly filling, and the combination of all the different foods he had consumed had filled him with energy.
As it turned out, Carrow's hopes had not been in vain, and on the stroke of midday they were piped down to the lower gun decks for dinner. Selvis took the orders and retrieved everything at a slightly more leisurely pace this time, as he had more time to spare. Within ten minutes, however, he and his companions were all getting stuck in to their food. Both the weasel and his mouse friend had worked up impressive appetites, and there was no question of either of them clearing their plates. Selvis was particularly glad that he got to have his second meal of the day at the usual time, because once they were on the upper gun deck and at their stations, he'd need all the energy he could muster to see him through the next few hours. It was shaping up to be a scorcher of a day.
Afterward, they both joined Caden in keeping an eye on the battle. Had it been any other day, Carrow would probably have slept for a while, but he knew he'd come out of a bad sleep worse than if he didn't sleep at all (some creatures could sleep through a thunderstorm; he could be woken with a sigh most of the time), so he simply passed the time by observing the proceedings with his companions, even if he came and went every so often to keep active - standing still for too long didn't sit well with him, not when he knew he'd need to do a lot of that later on. It was rather exciting watching the events unfold. Another creature who had come up to watch the proceedings was a clearly fascinated Evi Panettos, who would soon be sharing the role of pawspiker with Selvis. The hedgehog was even more timid than Carrow, but he was enjoying keeping abreast of things, and was anticipating the Beat to Quarters quite a lot at this stage.
When it finally did sound out, the hedgehog, mouse and weasel were just as quick to respond to its call as Caden was. Selvis wasn't long in following his companion down the stairs to the upper gun deck, and Evi wasn't far behind. For a creature who was rounder than most of his companions, the hedgehog was no slouch, and soon, the pair of pawspikers had taken up their positions. They watched, entranced, as the Rosferian vessel struck, before the spell was broken and they both joined in with the raucous cheers that rang out from down below as the Alcide gave up. Things were starting to heat up down here already, literally as well as figuratively, but that didn't bother Selvis in the slightest, and his eagerness to get going showed in his expression when Caden addressed him. "Yes, of course! I've been waiting for this all day, and now I'm just excited to get into things. I'm looking forward to serving under you like this again, sir!," he exclaimed. "How about you?," the longtail asked curiously.
Carrow, meanwhile, was on his way over to the Ship's Wheel, where he expected to remain for the next few hours. He was impressed that the Welkinite fleet had already taken a Rosferian vessel, and seemed quite pleased with the pat on the back he received from Ocean as well. "Yes, well, I'm just glad we're going to get in on the action soon! Disorganised or not, I'm looking forward to it. I've been ready since I woke up this morning, mate - it's just been a question of when we'd engage since then. Good luck down there!," he told the ermine cheerfully, waving to him before he jogged the rest of the way over to Quartermaster Judson, throwing him a smart and enthusiastic salute. "Good afternoon, sir!," he said cheerfully, taking up his position and waiting for things to start in earnest.
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Post by Ladorak on Aug 2, 2012 10:20:57 GMT -5
The distant firing was continuing. Defence, Captain, and Blenheim were all pressing on, ignoring the Rosferian ship that was second from the rear. Cumberland could take her on easily enough, especially since Victory had all but given up the chase and kept her topsails backed, probably so she could remain within visual sight of the Welkannia, eight miles behind her.
Ladorak had to admit that Captain Samuel Reeve certainly had been seeing a lot of action in the previous two battles. The HMS Captain was almost always judiciously placed, though that was more luck than anything else.
As Carrow approached the wheel, Ladorak gave him a nod and returned the salute the rodent had thrown to both the quartermaster and himself. "Good afternoon, Mr. Apodemus." Ladorak replied. "We're going to be staying right on the stern of the Blenheim, and if I feel like passing her, we'll pass her. For now though, she'll be on our leader, so just stay on her stern. We'll be keeping the Gibraltar with us as well." he noted, looking behind them at the Welkinite 80 gunner. "Sandwiching a 64 gunner in between a 98 and 80 will definitely help us out in the case of firepower." he commented. Keeping Captains Bazeley and Pakenham close would be wise, as the Rosferians had nothing as small as a 64 gunner in their fleet, and Ladorak would need fire support when they drew even with the Rosferian rear.
"Prepare to fire on that ship as we go by her!" Ladorak ordered, indicating the second Rosferian ship from the rear. She was a 74 gunner, the Guerrier, commanded by Louis-Antoine Infernet, who would later go on to some fame in another major battle ten years from now. Infernet had been backing his sails in an attempt to reach the Alcide, but upon seeing his comrade strike, Infernet was once again trying to catch up with the rest of the Rosferian fleet.
Ahead of them, the Blenheim let forth her thunderous broadsides, smoke and flame belching out as she fired from a distance at the Guerrier. It was impossible to close with her from here however, as the Rosferians currently had the weather gage, and Captain Bazeley had his eyes set on some stragglers that had drifted to leeward in the rear of the Rosferian formation.
Ladorak had the same idea as Captain Bazeley. The Cumberland and Captain Rowley could have the Guerrier. They needed to get up to the main Rosferian body and birng it to combat... for this way, there would be little chance of Admiral Hotham being able to cancel the action once that had occurred.
The word to fire was passed along to the gun decks below them, right as the mighty broadside of the Blenheim went off. Her firing could easily be heard from in here, and the ship shook a little as Caden received the signal from the lieutenants.
"Right! Get ready to fire!" he called out, another broadside booming out, though this one was from the 74 gun Guerrier firing back at the Blenheim. The distance was too great to inflict much damage on each other, though some of the Guerrier's shots DID in fact strike the Blenheim's hull, and that ponderous three decker took 2 killed and 2 wounded from the Rosferian vessel's return fire.
"I'm looking just as forward to serving with you on this one. We've got this." Caden told Selvis, giving him a smile and nodding.
"RUN OUT YOUR GUN!" the lieutenants called out, and the guns were unhooked and all auxiliaries began straining on the ropes to roll the larboard battery forward. The creaking of thirty-two guns at once filled Caden's ears, and the albino watched as they rolled toward the gun ports.
Ocean for his part was putting his back into the heaving, listening to his gun captain until he called out "Avast!" and then kept the gun right up against the hull. This would be a more distant broadside, as they were probably a half a mile from the Rosferian ship.
"POINT YOUR GUN!"
"OK... uh, center the first two guns!" Caden ordered, noting they had both come out pointing too far to the left. That wouldn't do. That meant Selvis and Evi would have to force the back of the gun carriager around to the left, in order to get the gun centered out the port. "After that, let's elevate the guns just a little!" Caden continued. "I'd say... five degrees!" As they were firing to windward, the gun deck on the larboard side was already pointing upward a tad, so not much elevation was needed, though the distance was great enough that Caden didn't want to take any chances.
So after Selvis and Evi centered the gun, they'd have to lever up the breech so the gun captain could take some quoin out. Caden stood by to watch the process, knowing that the odds of them taking (and inflicting) casualties from this range were pretty long, but still, may as well send a broadside the Guerrier's way before passing her. Already the Cumberland was closing fast from astern, and the Rosferian ship would soon have its paws full with Captain Rowley.
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Post by Carrow on Aug 6, 2012 11:02:49 GMT -5
Selvis's ears twitched in anticipation as they were told to prepare to fire on the Rosferians. This was what he had been looking forward to all day, even more so than actually taking up his position at the gun. His paws trembled slightly in anticipation, but he tried to get them under control as he awaited orders. The next words he heard were from Caden, and the pine marten Midshipjack certainly seemed confident about what was to come. The longtail couldn't blame him - in relative terms, at least, things had been going fine for them last time out before Hotham had gotten involved.
His fellow mustelid was telling him that they had this, and Selvis nodded eagerly in response. He shared his companion's optimism and enthusiasm, but the former had been tempered somewhat by what had occurred in their last battle. It was hard to shake off such feelings, even if he was trying his hardest to move on. "Let's see what the day brings, sir," he gently responded to the marten, before giving his hedgehog partner a gentle pat on the back. "Hear that, mate? Midshipjack Fugate says we've got this - if you're nervous, that should make you feel better, right?," he suggested in an encouraging tone.
Meanwhile, Carrow was listening intently as the stoat Captain told him that they would consider passing the Blenheim if they needed to do so. He smiled as the ermine outlined his plan, hoping that they would become more involved in the fighting as time went on, as having something like that occur would make it more difficult for Admiral Hotham to call a halt to things, like he had done last time. Carrow's excitement about what was to come was such that he could scarcely remember why exactly he had been anxious about becoming engaged in battles. He was doing his best to try and move on past that, because now he believed that it had held him back in the past.
He needed to stop being so cautious, he realised that now. "So we're just going to stay where we are for now, then? All right, sir. And yes, I agree," he said with a small chuckle, "that'll be 242 guns between our three ships, so that will definitely give us an extra edge!" The field mouse was keeping a sharp eye on what was going on around him, and he wondered how long it would be before Ladorak ordered the Agamemnon's gun crew to fire on a Rosferian vessel. Thankfully, as it turned out, it wasn't much longer before the mustelid gave the order. The mouse cast his eyes over the distant shape of the Guerrier as it was pointed out to him by Ladorak, and he finally heard the order to fire. That would be passed along to his friends down below.
He didn't have anything much to do for the moment, but that was because they only needed to continue what they were already doing. The rodent felt his eyes drawn to the Blenheim as she fired off a thunderous broadside. That vessel was right in front of them, so the mouse didn't have the best view, but the sound of the guns firing resonated around him. He kept an eye on proceedings, wondering how his friends were getting on down below, knowing that they would soon be called into action.
Down below, Evi nodded as confidently as he could manage; confidence wasn't really the hedgehog's strong suit, especially not in the heat of battle, but he was going to do his best for his longtail friend."I'm sure it'll help," he responded, needing to raise his voice slightly for Selvis to hear him. The order to run out the runs was then given, and Selvis kept an eye on Ocean as he worked to help roll the gun forward to the port. The weasel smiled when he noticed that their gun had come out a little to the left - even with the combined strength of the auxiliaries, it was difficult to control such weapons.
He and the hedgehog were just waiting on Caden's word, even though they had guessed what they would need to do, and when the marten Midsshipjack gave the order, the pawspikers retrieved their 'crowbars' from above their heads and inserting them into their respective slots. The weasel nodded at his hedgehog companion, and Evi led the first count of the afternoon. "One... two... THREE!," he exclaimed, and worked with his friend to centre the gun. He noticed how strong Evi had become since starting work with him in this role, and they contributed the same amount of work in the task. Soon, the gun was centred.
Next, the pair used their pawspikes to elevate the gun's breech slightly. It wasn't Selvis's job to know what five degrees looked like, but he had a good idea. They didn't need to raise the breech all that much, though, and soon, that task had been completed also. He gave Evi another pat on the back, and received a beaming smile from the spiky-furred creature in response. That was a good sign; he was clearly settling into things already. The hedgehog was now removing his shirt and wrapping it around his head, bandanna-style, and Selvis did the same - he was better equipped to deal with the heat, but didn't want to leave anything to chance, well aware of what had happened to Carrow last week.
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Post by Ladorak on Aug 7, 2012 14:07:56 GMT -5
Ocean strained on the ropes, keeping the gun tight up against the hull. He had not yet removed his shirt, so he'd have to be quick with his paws to block out the noise of their broadside going off. Heat wouldn't be an issue at this point, as it was still early and they were getting a nice draft from the open gun ports (which were facing north, the direction of the wind).
The gun captain pulled the quoin out a little, estimating how best to position it to get a five degree elevation. "Uh huh... and lower please!" he called out to the pawspikers when he'd pulled enough of the quoin out. The gun now rested at an upward angle, five degrees exactly from level.
"PRIME!" The next order came through, and the gun captains thrust their priming wires into the vents and tore open the cartridges, getting them ready for ignition. The quills were inserted, the powder was poured into the flashpans, and the frizzens were snapped closed. This was it! Any moment now...
Caden braced himself, using his paws to cover his ears. He flattened them against his head, finding it to be a much better course of action than simply holding his paws over them. Ocean had to of course wait, but he knew he'd have some time before the guns went off.
When the Agamemnon pulled even with the Guerrier, the order was given. "FIRE!" Ocean released the side tackle and plugged his ears, jumping back and out of the way as the guns exploded and rocked backward simultaneously, the ship shuddering as her broadside was unleashed. Smoke immediately filled the gun deck, having been blown in by the wind (the disadvantage of fighting to leeward). Coughing a little, Ocean opened his eyes (he'd closed them during the firing) and noted that Selvis had already choked the wheels of the gun carriage so that the train tackle could be reattached.
Caden had kept his eyes open, but couldn't help from blinking a few times as the guns went off. Wiping his brow, the marten had of course felt the increase in heat throughout the gun deck the moment the guns had discharged. The effect of their shot upon the enemy was hard to say, as the distance was rather great, and it was too far too see particulars in regards to the rigging, and no spars fell either, so Caden could really only hope for the best. He knew they had hit home, he just wasn't sure the extent of the damage done to Guerrier. Long range firing was always less effective than short range.
The crew from the Guerrier weren't able to return fire right away, as they had a slower rate of doing so and had already fired on the Blenheim. Caden knew that booming coming from behind them was the Gibraltar, whose bow guns were already going off.
"SERVE YOUR VENT!" The gun captains proceeded to stopper their vents with their thumbs, ensuring no sparks would fly out onto the deck when the guns were sponged down.
"SPONGE!" Ocean retrieved said tool from his assistant, dipping it in the bucket of water and getting it soaked before he shoved it down the mouth of the gun, turning it around and around and rotating the rod as best he could in order to make sure all sparks were extinguished. He ran it back and forth a few times just to make sure, then drew the sponge out and pawed it back over the assistant sponger.
"LOAD WITH CARTRIDGE!" the lieutenants ordered, and the new powder carrier stepped forward, opening up the salt box for the loader who promptly shoved the cartridge down the barrel and placed the wad in front. Ocean then took the ramrod and proceeded to pound both cartridge and wad down as far as they could go. The gun captain checked to be sure by inserting his copper wire to see if it had powder on it before wiping it clean.
"Home!" the gun captain called out, nodding.
"SHOT AND WAD YOUR GUN!" The loader rolled the eighteen pound shot down the barrel, and once again shoved a wad on top of it. Ocean proceeded to ram those down as well, being careful not to touch the now hot, black iron directly in front of him.
Pawing the ramrod back to his assistant, Ocean decided now was a good time to remove his shirt, and proceeded to do so, tying it about his head to flatten his ears and muffle the noise. The speed of the ship was such now that they were starting to pull ahead of the Guerrier, which only recently had been able to bring its top yards around to catch the wind (since they'd had the topsails backed until then).
Agamemnon was faster than Guerrier anyway, being a lighter and smaller ship, and was able to plow ahead through the sea toward the rear of the Rosferian fleet.
As it turned out, the after guns had time to fire off another round before they pushed on ahead, and that's just what Ladorak ordered them to do.
"RUN OUT YOUR GUN! AFT GUNS ONLY! AMIDSHIPS ON BACK!" Caden nodded at the orders, knowing they were right in the middle of the ship and would still count as part of the aft battery. The train tackle was unhooked, and the aft guns were rolled out toward the ports, creaking all the way as the auxiliaries moved them forward. By now the Gibraltar was becoming more generally engaged with the Guerrier, but would have to halt her fire soon as the Cumberland was coming up, and would pass in between her and her opponent.
"POINT YOUR GUN!" Caden looked at his battery to see which guns needed aiming. Well Selvis's and Ocean's definitely did, as it had come out pointing way too far to the right. They would need to point it almost all the way to the left for this shot.
"OK... numbers seven and eight, let's get those guns pointed to the left! Same with number ten! Number nine, you're good, but maybe just a little for good measure." the albino ordered. "We'll keep the elevation as it is." he added. That would be Selvis and Evi's cue once more, except this time they were moving the gun in the opposite direction, as Ocean's "team" had been outmuscled by the "team" on the left of the gun.
Up above, Ladorak knew they'd probably only have time for one more broadside before moving on. The Cumberland could take on the Guerrier at close range after all (and it looked like Captain Rowley had every intention of doing so from the way he maneuvered his ship). From the looks of things... the stoat squinted here to get a better look at the fight ahead of them.
All right... it seemed the Captain and Defence were firing on the third Rosferian ship from the rear... Heureux was her name. Ahead of her was another 74, the Mercure. One of those two would become their opponent as they came up.
The stoat couldn't help but chuckle now as he smiled in the quartermasters' direction. "Well done, Mr. Apodemus. I admit I have to be good at math, but I'm not THAT quick. You had the number of guns between our three ships down quicker than I could blink. That's very good." he praised the mouse.
"If only I could will this ship to go faster... we're leaving the rest of our fleet behind, from what I can tell. They must not have much wind back there. We've got a fresh breeze from the north, but they seem to be wallowing miles and miles behind us." Eight miles for the Welkannia, by his estimate.
"Not good that the flagship is being left so far back, but that's what can happen in a General Chase. We wouldn't be anywhere near the Rosferians otherwise if we were simply formed in a line of battle and matching our speed with the flagship's. Good thing too... we'd be eight miles back or so!" he exclaimed.
"It's such a shame we were near the back of the fleet though when we stood after them. Had to work our way through the rest of our ships to the front, and we would've easily been ahead of the Blenheim by now if not for that." the stoat commented. "How are things going so far for you then?" he asked, making light conversation, though he would occasionally pause to deliver an order, or study things around him to make sure all was as it should be.
"FIRE ON THE ALCIDE!" The cry came from aloft, from Alleline in fact. The lizard, who had been looking behind them, had caught sight of it. Ladorak raced over to the larboard gunwale to get a better look, and leaned out, his sharp gaze picking up the puff of orange high up in the Alcide's foretop.
"Why yes... yes there is!" Ladorak responded, nodding. There were flames on that ship! Somehow, her foretop had been set alight. There were combustibles and hand grenades placed up there, mostly to throw down by the marines on the decks of enemy ships, but one of them had caught fire, and that fire was now spreading to the rest of the fighting top, in addition to the rigging and sails.
Fire was the most dangerous thing a wooden ship could encounter, as there was so much that could burn aboard her. "Let's hope they get it out..." the stoat murmured, walking back over to the wheel, paws clasped behind his back. The Welkinites would probably be assisting in the fire fighting, as the Alcide WAS their prize now. Still... if they couldn't get it under control, and the whole ship went up... then her magazines would be threatened, and they'd need to keep well away from her when THOSE blew.
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Post by Carrow on Aug 10, 2012 8:36:42 GMT -5
Selvis and Evi lowered the gun slightly when instructed to by the gun captain, before they removed the pawspikes, Evi placing his back into the holders above his head. Selvis, of course, held on to his. Any moment now, the order would be given to fire, but both the hedgehog and the longtail were ready. They were both primed for firing, and after the next order came through, so were the guns. Evi stepped back and covered his ears, soon followed by his weasel companion. The mustelid knew he wouldn't have a second to lose once the guns fired. He'd been working on his sprinting technique recently in gun training, and after a few months at sea he felt like he had improved further. Now would be the ideal time to test such a thing out.
With bated breath, they waited until the Agamemnon had pulled level with the Guerrier; then, the next order was given: "FIRE!" With ears plugged, and a safe distance away from any possibility of having his paws crushed by the backward motion of the gun carriage, Evi watched, open-mouthed, as the guns discharged. He still wasn't used to the spectacle, but luckily he wasn't the one dashing back to meet the carriage as it was shot back amidships. Selvis shot off once the guns fired, having perfected his timing at this stage. He sped back, watching as the gun shot towards him, and threw the 'crowbar' beneath the wheels when he got the opportunity. The sound of the weapon being brought to a halt made him smile, and when the smoke cleared, he could see that his efforts had indeed been successful.
The train tackle was attached, and the weasel retrieved his spike. As he waited to come back into play, he caught Evi's eye and gave him a thumbs up. Due to the noise around them, speaking would have been futile anyway, but Evi's confidence was boosted by the sight of Selvis appreciating his help. They worked well together, and both creatures had the same feeling: that they made a great team. The hedgehog had been unsure of himself after Polly had been discharged and he had been asked to step up and take her place, and even the battle they'd had in March had seemed too early for him, but now that four more months had passed, he finally felt comfortable in his role. They listened out for the next commands: the vents were served, the mouths of the guns were sponged down, and finally, the cartridge and wad were rammed home by Ocean.
The weasel rubbed his paws eagerly as he heard the next command, watching as the guns were run out. He enjoyed doing this sort of work quite a lot; sure, it was so routine that he probably could have done it in his sleep at this stage, but he still got a thrill out of it, and especially so when in the midst of combat. He watched as his gun was run out again, waiting for the team of auxiliaries to haul it to the gun ports. He was glad that they would have the opportunity to fire off another round before moving on - while he couldn't know what damage, if any, their last discharge had inflicted on the Guerrier, he was pleased by the news that they'd be able fire more than just once, even if it was difficult to yield results with combat of this kind.
Both creatures shook their heads, chuckling as they noted that the gun had once again come out crooked, only this time they needed to push it to the left as hard as they could, as Ocean's side had found themselves outmuscled by the other auxiliaries. They heard the next command and immediately took hold of their spikes, Evi retrieving his before inseting it into its slot, watching as Selvis did the same. The weasel led the count this time, and then the pair worked to bring the gun over to the left, and they did this with a fair amount of exertion from them both. They put a lot into their actions; each had sussed out the other's strength at this point, but this task required extra effort. Soon, the gun had been hauled into the proper position.
--
One deck above them, Ladorak wasn't the only one hoping for a better look at the fight that lay ahead of them. Carrow wanted to have a look as well, and it was at times like this that he wished he were a good six or so inches taller than he actually was. (The rodent was still, by some distance, the shortest creature on the ship. Only Willard had contested him for that dubious distinction, but now that the least weasel had been discharged and imprisoned, the rodent was in a league of his own, in a way.) He had to squint also to figure out what was ahead of them. He could see two Rosferian vessels ahead, and one of them was being fired on by what he believed to be both the Captain and the... Defence, was it? Yes... looked like it. His attention shifted back to Ladorak soon after this, however.
The field mouse smiled as Ladorak praised his maths abilities. "Heh, well, thank you, sir," he said, blushing just a little, but mostly keeping his bashful nature in check. "Maths was never my strongest subject, whether I was actually in school or being homeschooled, but I did pick up a few things along the way, nonetheless," he responded, chuckling himself. "I'm sure you're not exactly any sort of slouch when it comes to things like that, though, sir. There are certain creatures aboard the ship who need to have more of a head for maths than you or I, of course; the gun captain, below us, needs to know how much quoin to take out to elevate a certain gun before the order's given to fire. Heh, but yes, we do what we can," he told the stoat Captain gently, smiling at him.
He listened as the mustelid went on to lament the fact that the Agamemnon wasn't going faster. "Yes, just like you I feel that we need to press on and engage another vessel as when the order's given to fire on the Guerrier again, we won't get another opportunity to inflict damage upon her, and our next target - which, I assume, will be either the Mercure or the H... the Heureux," he tried, knowing his Rosferian pronunciation wasn't the best. "Well, they're quite a distance away from us yet." He nodded as Ladorak outlined one of the risks of a General Chase, but there were upsides to all this, too. "Yes, it's every ship for themselves once a General Chase is called for, but if we were in a line of battle, we'd be way back, as you said, and a good distance away from being able to fire on any enemy vessel yet! Swings and roundabouts, I s'pose," he said with a shrug/
"How are things going for me, sir?," he repeated with a smile. "Oh, quite well, all things considered. It'll probably take me a little while to get back to my best, seeing as I spent much of the last week on bed rest with a fever - you should know how that feels, after all, with your malaria - but I'm glad to be back working after so long away. I know six days may not seem like a long time to you, but when one's missing out on any sort of action for that length of time, it becomes borderline interminable," he commented, shuddering slightly, not wanting to go into how his agonising fever had made that worse again. Speaking of burning up... "FIRE ON THE ALCIDE!." Alleline called down from the fighting top, and again, Carrow wasn't long in following Ladorak's lead. He needed to see this for himself.
The rodent's breath caught in his throat as he sighted the orange glow from the Rosferian vessel's foretop. If ever there was a moment that brought home to him the fact that there were actual creatures on that ship, then this was it. The compassionate mouse already looked visibly agitated by this discovery, and Ladorak's murmured response prompted a shaky nod from Carrow. "Yes... that'd be a horrible way to go for them," he said nervously. "She's our prize now, right? Do you think we could do something to help her if he got the chance?," he asked, a slight trace of hopefulness audible in his voice. Whether these creatures were 'friend' or 'enemy' mattered not to the mouse - they would suffer a horrible fate if he just stood by and did nothing. He kept his eyes on Ladorak, waiting for the stoat to respond.
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