pt 4 Noir Pirate and his love By: Clifton Seeney

It was my luck that she spoke to me first in French, she
said that she was captured in Spain and wanted to be free. I was dumbfounded why did
she pick me to speak to? The Guard did not understand what she was saying, lucky for
me or my tongue would have been cut out. I replied in French, so as the guard could not
overhear our conversation.. I told her how lovely she looked and I too was captured in a
attack by the Moor’s in the open seas. Before she went into her cabin she said that she
would talk to me more when she saw me here, this is the only place they let her come too.
It was one hardship after another for us on this godforsaken ship the Captaine was with
out mercy and he worked us from sun up to sun set giving us potato soup every meal.
Some of the garcons were talking about jumping overbroad than continuing going
through this hell on the high seas . It was all I could until I stepped up and took my place
as a leader. I kept reminded them that the Hound was on their trail and the many changes
in direction was proof. I also was aware that this ship had it shadows, also we saw them
once or twice and the Hound would have to deal with them first one at a time . My
question was what made this ship so important that they gave it protection as slow as it
was.
Another day of early morning work and toil, we were not even awake when the Moor
Boatswain’s mate woke us with whips and chains. Wash and scrub the bulkheads and the
deck, we never kept any ship all the years I been at sea as clean as this one. Then one
night as I was given permission to go to the poop deck I saw a tall dark mysterious figure
stand looking at the moon, this had to be a very important person for them to keep the ship so ship shape and the many course changes. The Moor ‘s that were with him called him Sultan Ben Yuri Ali Bay and never raised their head up. I
was surprised by his elegances and beauty. He was just standing there smoking a long
pipe looking at the waves. After they saw me they hurried him off to his stateroom, you
dog one of the guards said and they whipped me. I protested and said that I had to use the
poop deck nevertheless they beat me till I passed out. When I awoke I was full of sweat
and blood and my garcons were standing over me, fanning me. “You ok mon ami”, I
heard from one of them it was Kliff Sent who said that . “You were pretty banged up
there mon ami, what did you find out for all your troubles?” I told them that there is a
very important Sultan abroad this ship and the course changing is because something is
closing in on them. That’s when I passed out once more. When I woke the garcons were
gone, it was daylight and I could hear shoots and chaos above me. What was going on I
wondering as I made my way to the cabin door. I heard in French “Look there sails, look
over there more sails”. The Moor’s flanking ships were closing in on their prey at that
moment, could it be the hound?
All at once, over the horizon we saw the most unusual sight, rockets were fired high in
the sky. Could the Moor’s have encountered the British fleet who patrol these waters or
could it be a ray of hope fired by Captaine Richards on the Hound? Only time would tell.
At that same moment the Moor’s rushed us off the deck and locked us in the cargo hole.
The smell was still there after we worked like dogs to clean it. That told me that the
Sultan was transferred onto this ship a few days after they attacked us and kept us in this
god awful place what seemed like forever, That gave me the time and days we had been
sailing west then southwest then due north we had to be close to the American state of
Gorgonians, they call Georgia. All we could do is try to catch our breath and breathe. We
knew something big was happening top side by all the yelling and shouting going on . Yet
we could not hear this ships guns fire. The battle must be over the horizon, and if it was
the Hound, she would be facing two Moorish battle ships. We felt the ship turn. then turn
once more she was heading different now, away from the battle not towards . What could
be the meaning of this? If she joined the other Moroccans ships she could add her guns to
the flanking ships! As night fell on us we could not hear any gun fire and we were
allowed to get fresh air as the garcons lay on the deck out of breath. I searched the sky for
direction ,we were headed south now not north that meant we would be going back to
where we came from. Why was the Captaine going back?
That night I had to wait till all the garcons used the Poop deck, I was hoping that she was
on the wayward side of the ship like she said she would be. As I made my way up to the
main deck I noticed how all but one of the garcons clothing were all rags. The only thing
that we had to clean ourselves was the clothing on our back, any jewelry that we had or
good clothing was taken off of us and the Moor’s wore our good clothing and jewelry. A
man of the sea, all that he owns is on him till someone takes it off of him. I was glade that
I put my good clothing on the El Captaine’s ship in a foot locker with my bag of Austrian
gold . If I had not done that one of these Moor’s would be a wealthy man ha, ha. I knew
that the garcon who had his clothing in good repair must be the mole that the Moor’s put
with us. In time we were going to take care of this pigeon.
She was were she said she would be . I said very quietly “Madame Lissa?” “Oui” she
replied. “Glade that you waited for me.” I said . “I don’t have much time Monsieur the
Sultan will check on us shortly,” she said. I asked what is he and why is he on this
voyage? She told me that he is the Moroccans Vice Roy sent to America to broker a deal
on slaves with rich American planters and plantations owners!     

Join us in July. Does she care for me, or is it just a
dream?
Part 5