Hope CE Primary School

Pirate Hunter and the curse of the deadly jewel

Chapter 1: Mysterious happenings

It was all mist. Mist, mist, mist. A perfect day for robbing villages and coastal towns. The mist was as thick as dust. Mist was not a nice thing to be around in. Unpleasant, scary feelings that creep up your back-bones like a spider climbs up their web. A ship came out of the gloom. The dull brown bow emerged out of the fog. Mist parted so that grey sails came into sight. The fore mast was covered in dust and dirt making it look like it was so old. Then the main mast sailed into view, and on the top of it was… the Jolly Roger! The sails had grime and dirt on them as well. On the poop deck stood old man, his face looked withered with age. His hat, a dark brown lined with black cotton stolen from the heart of Jamaica filled with cob-webs and dirt. With a hook instead of a hand and a sword in his belt. This man was captain of the most feared ship in all the Caribbean, the ‘The Rapier’. A crew member of the ship walked out of the hold. ‘Cap’n’ he said in a gruff voice ‘where will ye be headin.’
‘Weel be headin’ for….’

The mist had cleared in port George. It was still very cold though; some people had died in the night as it was so cold. The soldiers were patrolling the fort as there was a war. Peasants begged at the fort door begging for food as their crop wouldn’t grow. The officers begged him not to go but Captain Flow would have none of it. He was on a mission to capture pirates, to kill pirates, to hunt them down. ‘But evening is the worst time for hunting pirates. Their dark ships can’t be seen in the evening.’ Lieutenant James Barker said frantically.
‘Listen to me please, I am captain. Pirates will never attack a navy ship like ours.’ Captain Flow said in a rasping voice, ‘The pirate’s crew have on or two trained men like a boatswain. Mainly their crew is just a jostle of normal townspeople who don’t like the navy, want treasure, and have a little bit of experience about sailing. Where as our crew are trained men who know a lot about sailing and can fire cannons at high speed and long range!’
‘But…’Peter began to say.
‘Don’t argue with the captain are it will be the cat’o’nine tails for ye! I mean you!

Chapter 2: PIRATES!!!

The cabin of the H.M.S. Royal was quiet except for the rushing of the waves and the hustle and bustle of port George. ‘Right then!’ began Captain Flow ‘We need to set a course. I think the pirates will be in Jamaica as gold has been found there and north Caroline because rich merchants come over that way. Any one think any different?’ The captain looked around ‘No? Good now lets get on doing something!’

Captain Flow stopped talking so suddenly it seemed scary. But the reality was, it was real and scary at the same time. Slowly, Captain Flow started to raise a hand so that he was pointing out of the rear cabin window. The crew then slowly looked towards the window and there it was, a dull brown hull with grey sails started to come out from the dark night sky. The word ‘Rapier’ was printed in brass across the bow of the ship. A few cannons fired from the ship. ‘Right change of plan, kill the pirates. Come on. Do something - its PIRATES!’ Captain Flow yelled in loud voice that captains have. The shout seemed to go up all around the fort. The torches on the fort lit up the word ‘pirates’ had been passed to every soldier on the fort in a matter of minutes. The red coats started firing the cannons. Several explosions busted giant craters in the fort’s walls. Then something caught Peter’s eye, it was two black and silver cannonballs flying into Commodore Harold’s expensive windows, pained with gold and bright silver on the outside of them. ‘Oh no! that’s done it!’ Said the chef, Bail. Sparks were flying every where, unfortunately for the British guards, the sparks had set of a trail of gunpowder that led from the pirate’s ship to the British fort’s gunpowder supply. Peter saw the line of sparks leading up to the gunpowder.
5…4…3…2…Peter put his hands over his ears, 1…silence. Then with a mighty roar of explosion and metal flying every where. Several Navy guards flew up in the air and landing with a splash in the murky grey water. Fire spread everywhere and would set on fire almost immediately. Three metal hooks flew in to the air and knocked out three navy guards in the exact middle. Suddenly Peter felt the whole world was upside down with no gravity. ‘Get up! Get up! Boat-swains should be on duty now be patrolling the guns for pirate hunting in the Caribbean’. So the crew had to work harder to keep the title up. The noise was coming from a large where the fort and ship were supposed to be.
The ship, Royal, had turned side wards so the cannons were firing at the pirates’ ship. But the cannons weren’t hitting anything; all Peter heard while on duty was the sloshing of the cannon balls hitting the water. But cannon balls were hitting the fort one after the other like locusts. The smoke cleared, the pirate ship was gone. Then a faint voice, like a ghost was heard, the crew listened intently
‘The pirate jewel will be touched in 3 days on pirate island no-one will stop us! Mwah ha ha ha!’
‘I didn’t catch a word of that’ said Captain Flow ‘To North Carolina it is then!’ These were two very bad things that had happened. Captain Flow had an annoyed expression on his face. Commodore Harold was trotting down the lane to the port looking very happy. Captain Flow didn’t look very happy, his face looked miserable and grey as rain clouds framed against grey skies. He was right to look like that too. As Commador Harold began too say ‘This is a pirate hunter ship! He yelled. ‘A few minutes ago pirates were attacking port George, destroying the fort, killing soldiers and setting fire to the town! Two cannon balls went through my very expensive windows and I’ve had to pay for them! Flow, if this happens again you are fired!

Chapter 3: On to North Carolina

Captain Flow whimpered like some kind of frightened child. ‘So get on with your job mister Flow, sir!’ Commador Harold finally finished.
Captain Flow looked as white as a sheep. ‘Steer the ship so the fort is on the starboard side.’ He quavered ‘Set the main sail going. Lieutenant, go and tell the hells-man to get the mizzen mast sail open.’
Peter did what he usually did, patrolling the gunners. It wasn’t boring, just uninteresting that all. Hours passed and Peter was now working the sails. A hard painful job that felt like knives were stabbing your arms. Peter was red in the face and hot with sweat but the ship wasn’t going any faster. The first mate was going round with a whip in his cold hands whipping anyone who wasn’t working hard. Straining to pull the rope one more time.
‘Well looks like you’re pulling well Peter, Said the first mate in an oily voice ‘But Cap’n Flow has requested you to pull faster, so do it! He shouted and whipped Peter on the back. It felt like torture and all things hurtful had swarmed all around him, just to start biting him and make him feel pain.
‘And that’s for not pulling hard enough!’ the first mate finished off in a rowdy voice.
The Captain walked down from the poop deck with heavy steps, the crew all stopped working and lined up on the deck, ready for duty reports. ‘Mr Rogers, the first mate says you were fine, get on with your duties. Mr Mcmackrel, poor! Five lashes for you mister!’ The man quivered as he was dragged in to the hold for his punishment. ‘Mr Barker, excellent as always, go into the cabin I need to speak to you about something. Mister Bail, you are the ship’s chef could you cook us some fine fish soup tonight please.’
‘Aye aye captain!’ Bail in a happy, hearty voice.

Captain Flow then took a deep breath and bellowed ‘On to north Carolina!!!’ and cheer went up all over the ship and Peter didn’t notice the wind and light rain that tapped on the deck. The ship creaked as it turned north, towards America. The ship was moving quite fast away from Port George, near the town of Nassau. It seemed like years, to get to North Carolina but after 7 long hard working days the person in the crows nest shouted ‘ Land ho!’

The crew rushed to the front of the ship to see the green and grey of North Carolina. Some people did a little jig while some played the music to the dance. Some people got drunk with to much whiskey and fell off the top of the main mast and landed on the sheep with a ‘crash!’ and ‘baaaa!!’

But it all ended when the 1st mate came out with a threatening whip and said ‘Back to your stations please!’ After that it was just a straight forward sail to the main port of North Carolina. There were a few men standing on the dock, one sweeping, one scrubbing and a man with a big black old book. They anchored the boat and rowed ashore, the waves smacking the boat. When they arrived at the jetty, the man with the book spun around and muttered ‘ One Brigantine and one rowing boat…… that will be 5 pounds and 2 shillings please.’
‘What!!!’ roared Captain Flow ‘We are the British navy and have come here to get rid of nasty scoundrels called Pirates. You expect us to pay to do it!’
‘No sir’ said the man with the book meekly and ran off into the town like a black rat scurries into sewers.
‘That finished him off’ said Bail with a grin

Chapter 4: Good Night Captain Flow

Night fell like a hawk on a pigeon. The blackness felt scary to Peter in his hammock and he knew it happened every evening. Morning came and Peter woke up suddenly at the cockerels crow. The sun was trying to come up behind the hill. There was no wind and not a grey cloud in the sky. Peter climbed out of his hammock and landed on the deck with a THUMP! All the crew was woken up by this. He had his fair share of porridge cooked by Bail who was a very good cook indeed and Peter slurped it up quicker than any of the crew and knew it would give him digestion later in the day.
Captain Flow shouted ‘Way anchor!’ Peter and other crew members groaned loudly as they hauled up the heavy chain attached to the anchor.
Captain Flow gave all kinds of orders to turn the ship around so they were facing into the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. The bad thing was there was no wind. ‘Get out the oars!’ said Captain Flow. The whole crew moaned again. ‘Just do it or there will be the cat ‘o’ nine tails waiting for yer’ boomed Flow again. The crew then scuttled into the hold to get oars while some still carried on sailing. Peter was not glad he was rowing as it is a tiring job filled with pain and misery. The H.M.S. Royal sailed for two days and found or saw nothing except a boot. But on the morning of the third day the crew hoisted the merchant flag so it would attract pirates. Just at that moment a mustard coloured top-sail slowly rose from the horizon. ‘There is a ship on the horizon!’ The look out shouted. ‘Look like a merchant ship! Bellowed captain Flow ‘That ship might be pirates.’ The ship was moving quite fast for a merchant ship but maybe they were carrying light cargo. The ship turned to face the H.M.S. Royal and travelled even faster, this looked suspicious. The fore mast then appeared, greasy and slimy. ‘Turn broad-side!’ Boomed Captain Flow. The ship lurched left, Peter felt his digestion coming back. The ship came closer and closer. The fifty men on deck looked even more suspicious. This blew Captain Flow’s fuse, because he knew there were only twenty men on a merchant ship. As soon as they got broad-side the other ship he yelled: ‘Run out the guns, arm yourselves, get ready to fight, come on they are PIRATES!!! Suddenly 50 more men came out of the pirate ship’s hold. But Pirate hunters being pirate hunters 100 men came out of the H.M.S. Royal’s hold. The first gunfire was from the pirate ship ‘Rapier’

‘A pox on yer for boarding me ship’ growled the Captain as 50 men boarded his ship carrying a sword and a pistol each. Smoke filled the air. Staggering along the deck of his ship Peter pulled the string of the cannon next to him, a large hole appeared in the bow of the Rapier. A thumping noise was heard from the hold and out burst Captain Flow, pistol cocked, pointing at the captain of the pirates. But the captain of the pirates turned his head still sword Lieutenant James Barker single handed. ‘Times is up Captain Flow!’ he bellowed. And with his other hand cocked his pistol and fired it quicker than Captain Flow could. Flow was dead. The pirate captain laughed a menacing laugh all his crew joined him and killed James Barker. All the crew the navy ship jumped onto their ship. ‘Tomorrow at midnight on Pirate island the pirate jewel will be touched by me the purest pirate of all and then pirates will dominate the world! Mwah, ha, ha, ha!’ shouted the pirate captain. The ship turned port and headed into the horizon. ‘Lets follow them!’ said the 1st mate.
‘No!’ shouted Peter ‘we must discuss what happened and who is captain.’
‘S’pose yer right’ said the 1st mate.
The crew started to discuss what ranks they were in, and after five minutes they found out Peter was captain.
’Welcome to your new captain’ said the 1st mate.
I’ve heard that jewel in a story said Peter we must destroy it with a sword. I know that anyway.’ Said Peter. ‘Anyone know where pirate island is’
‘I do’ said a Chinese looking person ‘follow the north star and then turn east after two hours.’
‘You are going to be my navigator as the other one is dead.’ Said Peter in a stately voice.
‘Thank you captain’
‘Go straight on to the North star!’ shouted Peter
The crew scuttled into their duty station positions.
Evening was coming on, it’s velvety darkness was already creeping in.
Two dreary and long hours passed
‘Turn east!’ shouted Peter
The Ship smoothly turned starboard and almost immediately they sighted land
‘Land ho!’ shouted the man in the crows nest. They were approaching pirate island faster than they expected to. 10 minutes later they reached the shores of Pirate island.
‘Drat we be grounded.’ Said a crew member. The crew ignored him. Peter looked hard for a building of some sort. He looked harder and there it was, hidden behind two palm trees was a small hut Peter walked towards it, the crew followed him cautiously. Peter moved the green curtain and what a sight he saw! All the pirate treasure in the world! There were crowns and diamonds and thousands of solid gold coins. But what caught his eye was a large ruby red gem on a table of pure silver. Peter drew his sword an smashed it in half. Suddenly there was a voice saying ‘You will repay all of this’ in a snake-like manor. A bright light filled the room and all the treasure disappeared except for the pieces of the ruby red jewel.