Teaser II: The Purser And The Lieutenant, 1761
A conversation between Sebastian Quinn, the purser, and a very drunk Lt. Barnett.
“If I'd found more amusing company, I wouldn't be sitting here, trying to hold a conversation with you. It's been an ugly day, don't you agree?”
Barnett frowned and hunched over the tankard. He had spilled ale on the table; now the heavy wool of his coat sleeve soaked up the fluid. He didn't seem to notice, though.
“What would you know about it,” Barnett muttered. “Not like you'd care.”
Quinn shook his head.
“I'm simply more selective than you are. Pirates? Don't bother me much. Our beloved King? He'll manage without me. The French? I couldn't care less. Two lads hanging from a yardarm by their necks, on the other hand – that's a thing I might find worthy of my concern.”
(c) 2007 – Emma Collingwood
Teaser I: The Captain And His Lieutenant, 1761
Artwork by Mlle. Amandine de Villeneuve.
It’s time to introduce the characters! Let’s start with Messrs. Denningham and Barnett – the captain and his lieutenant. They first met in 1741 during the attack on Cartagena; one a midshipman, the other a powder-monkey.
Twenty years later, they both serve aboard HMS Selkie, a 6th rate frigate – the last place on earth they want to be.
“(…) Five years of murderous heat, March fever, homesickness and battles with the French and the Spanish, yet the man standing on the jetty and supervising the loading of the rum barrels on HMS Selkie was still considered to be the paradigm of a Royal Navy officer. Not a month passed without Denningham sending a petition to the Admiralty back in London to reconsider the decision and allow him and his first lieutenant to end their deployment. He was unshakeable in his belief that, eventually, his petitions would be successful.
Considering the parsimony of the Admiralty, Barnett suspected those petitions were used to light the fire in their library during the winter months, but he kept that opinion to himself. (…)”
(c) 2007 – Emma Collingwood, artwork (c) 2007 – Amandine de Villeneuve
