Setting Sail on a Black Sea Ch. 01

***

The Fortune was making good time under Hastings' capable hand, the wind still gusting well, and sending them along at a fair clip. The surly, one-eyed fellow had surprisingly volunteered for the night shift, and he held the ship's wheel in a sturdy grip, as they followed the Santa Maria de la Rosa on the last leg of their journey to Port Royal.

Before he had retired for the night, Bill had pointed out the odd cloud to Matthew when he had returned to his ship. Matthew now stood against the balustrade surrounding the quarterdeck, with a goblet of wine in his hand, looking up at the cloud over the stern of his ship. The fluffy white cloud was reflecting the moonlight, and seemed to be drifting along in the same direction as the wind, which was not in any way unusual. What was odd, was that Matthew could have sworn it looked exactly the same as the other cloud, that both he and Bill had spotted the day before.

Matthew shrugged, putting it down to one of the mysteries of the sea, and then gazed off into the distance as his mind wandered. A happy smile formed on his face, as he recalled the day with his lusty young guest, and he felt a pang of regret at letting her go.

A sudden searing pain lanced through his chest, and he looked down in horror at the cutlass point that now poked out several inches through his waistcoat. The blade was yanked out just as suddenly, and Matthew staggered against the railing, before turning to see Robert Hastings grinning at him evilly.

"We all could have had some fun with that little strumpet, but no... good Captain Taylor would never allow anything like that," the man snarled with contempt, his one good eye watching Matthew warily as he gloated.

"You treacherous dog," Matthew gasped, as laboured for breath, his lungs feeling like they were on fire. "The rest of the crew will never stand for this mutiny," he added with a wet cough.

"What mutiny?" Hastings smirked, as he plucked the goblet out of Matthew's hand. "You fell overboard, after drowning your sorrows like a lovesick fool."

Hastings grinned maliciously, and tipped the wine over the quarterdeck, before dropping the goblet on the floor with a clatter. Matthew stared at the malevolent man in shock, as he realised Hastings was likely to get away with murder, and his death would never be avenged.

"Farewell, Captain Taylor... Sir," Hastings sneered contemptuously as he shoved Matthew, tipping him over the railings.

Hastings cackled as his hated Captain disappeared overboard, with nary a splash signifying his passing. He'd spent years waiting for the perfect time to have his revenge, ever since the Captain had ordered him flogged for assaulting that Spanish girl. Now, he only had to convince the rest of the crew to put him in charge, and he'd be able to slake his desires to his heart's content. He turned back to the ship's wheel, and began to hum a jaunty sea shanty as the Fortune sailed away.

***

"Have you got him?" the young woman said excitedly, as she bounced up and down eagerly.

"Of course, Kate, but are you certain about this course of action?" the disembodied, unemotional voice replied.

"Have some faith, Rom," she replied as she peered at the holographic viewscreen set into the spotless white console. "I know what I'm doing, he's absolutely perfect!"

A holographic representation of Matthew, showing him shrouded in a soft blue glow, floated above the console. He was unconscious, and currently held in stasis, hovering inches away from impact with the choppy Caribbean sea below.

"We still have a little more time before the temporal rift becomes unstable, and we have to return to the 28th Century. Wouldn't it be preferable to find someone more... suitable?" Rom asked her tentatively.

"He's brave and heroic, and was very caring and protective towards that young woman. No, Rom, my mind's made up. We need someone exactly like Captain Matthew Taylor, if we're going to stand any chance of survival," she said decisively.

"There's nothing I can say to persuade you against this course of action?" Rom asked her with a sigh.

"Nope," she replied with a grin. "Be a good boy, and bring Captain Taylor up to the ship, so that Khrelan can patch him up," she said enthusiastically.

"As you command, Kate," Rom replied obediently.

With no further need of subterfuge, the holo-emitter image of a cloud that had been shrouding the spacecraft disappeared in an instant. With the careful application of retro thrusters, the sleek elegant ship drifted lower, while the tractor beam pulled the critically injured man up towards the vessel. A panel slid open in the underbelly of the ship, and Matthew disappeared from view, into the gleaming interior of the vessel.

***

A pod of dolphins cavorted through the sea, leaping out of the water playfully. The moonlight reflected brightly off the large metallic object as it raced through the sky, and one of the bottlenose dolphins stopped to look up at it with interest. There was a sudden strobing flash, and the silvery spacecraft was gone, leaving the only 18th Century witness to the temporal interloper, staring up at the empty night's sky. The dolphin chattered excitedly, and when it heard the sonic responses from its podmates urging it to join an exciting hunt for mackerel, it dived back under the water, the silver object forgotten.