GAME TURN SEVEN

Mail and packets arrived including 50 pounds sterling for Commander West
from several prizes taken over a year ago.Commander West was amazed at his good fortune when a knock at his cabin door interupted his thoughts. He called out, “Come in,” The Sailing Master Burke said, “Sir perhaps its not my place to say this but I have it on good authority that Lieutenant Rhetnug will be participating in a duel at first
light tomorow.” He paused, “Sir this isn’t the first time.”
Ian leaned back heavily against his 'desk', the fifty pounds forgotten for the moment. He kept silent for almost a full minute, fearing to show any portion of the wrath he felt at this information. Swallowing hard, he looked at the master with a steely eye. "Very well, Mr. Burke...have you heard where this is to take place?

“No sir I have my hunches but nothing definite." Cmdr West continued “I cannot allow an officer of mine to endanger himself needlessly in such a manner."
There was the small matter of the Admiral's dinner. It was a matter of mere hours away, and Ian doubted rather much that he could track down Lt. Rhetnug beforehand; like as not he was off tending to his own preparations, as Ian had--now rather foolishly, it seemed told Mr. Rhetnug that he could have two hours at liberty with which to dress himself for dinner. "Find this out, if you do not know, Mr. Burke...damnation, the man is determined to have himself killed," he sighed, suddenly feeling his anger replaced by a rush of fatigue. Ian suddenly remembered the master was still before him, and reined in the sentence he was going to say, and instead said, "Very good, Mr. Burke...you may tend to your other duties now, sir." As Burke was leaving, Ian called out once again, "Mr. Burke!....I do not look unkindly upon this...you have done well to tell me." The Master replied “Aye Aye sir, thank you sir, I'll do my best sir"

Once the master had left, Ian sat down. Oddly, his stomach picked that moment to remind him of how hungry he was, and how he was--or had been, up until a few moments ago--very excited about this dinner. He sighed...it appeared that it would be up to him to stop this foolishness in the morning. He still needed the admiral's good opinion of this lieutenant, for despite the wagging tongues he knew the men of the Willow would obey him instantly, not only because of their discipline, but also because he knew the young man to be held in high regard amongst them....and to publicly rebuke the man would cast a pall upon not only the lieutenant, but also on himself and his ship. And he would not have that. "Lord above, Ian," he whispered to himself, secure in the solitude of his small cabin, "what have you gotten yourself into?"
Raising his voice, he called for the midshipman of the watch. "Any news from
Captain Livingstone yet regarding this weekend's transportation?" Mr Greg reported, "No sir but a lot of signals between the Watcher and the Port Master's office

This is the day I have been waiting for with much impatience. It is the final day of a long and irksome spell of shore duty. Today I am due to report aboard the sloop HMS Willow to take up my position as First Lieutenant. First Lieutenant is a slightly hollow title as there is no second or third Lieutenant. Indeed, to tell the truth, I am the junior commissioned officer on the vessel. The small boat which I chartered to carry me out to Willow pulls alongside the ship. I have no problem in boarding Willow as it is certainly
not a large ship, and the waters of the bay are as calm as a millpond. This is somethig of a relief to me as I am not the most dexterous of men, and have been in the Royal Navy long enough to be aware that the manner of a new officer's boarding is a matter of great interest to any seaman who chances to witness it. Any member of the crew who witnessed a clumsy or undignified arrival on deck by an officer would be filled with scorn.
Moreover, the details of the unfortunate officer's discomfiture would be made known (with suitable exaggeration) to every man on the vessel.I reported to the officer of the watch (a midshipman) who, after greeting me, detailed a seaman to take me down to the Captain's cabin. He also arranged for my sea-chest to be taken to what would be my cabin.
I followed the seaman down to the Captain;s quarters, knocked on the door, and in response to his shout of "Enter", I opened the door.
The door opens to what passes for the Captain's Cabin here on the Willow.
Sitting at a small plank table, obviously meant to pass for his desk, sits Commander Ian West, Captain of HMS Willow. He sits stiffly in his chair, hampered by the full dress uniform he is wearing, uniform jacket slung over the chair he is sitting upon. The man is young, almost impossibly young, with dark hair and eyes with the certain superiority of bearing that is understandable in a ship's Commanding Officer. "Ah, Lieutenant," he smiles. "I have been expecting you." Rising, the man extends his hand. "Papers,
sir?" Taking the proffered documents, the commander sits once more, indicating one
of the empty chairs. "Please take a seat," he mumbled, perusing the documents. "Well, these are in order, though I expected no less. You must be aware that we dine with the admiral this night. So your first orders are to make ready for the dinner." He grinned widely. "I shall apprise you of your further duties once that has been taken care of, but they involve picking up certain maps and charts from Lt. Harris....we sail on Monday." A playfully happy glint was in his eye as he said this.

A loud knock, followed by, "Enter" from Commander West, Mr Greg entered, "sir Sergeant Morgan and three other Marines are unaccounted for and 4 muskets and 8 pistols are missing from the arms locker.<<<<

"What?" Ian spluttered. "What do you mean four marines missing? There's no pressgang slated for this eve, is there?" he asked, suddenly deflated by the possibility. But if men of his ship had been detailed, he would have known; he should have given the order, were this the case. ~Desertion.~ The thought shot through his mind like a cold wind. But marines were more disciplined than sailors, why would they desert?

From Crab
To All ships
Being boarded fireship enroute....

A sudden commotion on deck, the near thunder over their heads, broke off Ian's thoughts on the matter. "I'll deal with the marines later," he said, dashing topside and mounting the quarterdeck with decidedly less dignity than he would have otherwise preferred. "Mr. Greg--my compliments to Lt. Callaghan, and I'll thank you to have him come on deck immediately," he barked, gripping the taffrail with white knuckles as he stared at the sky, lit aflame by the signal rocket and rent by the blazing craft headed toward the harbor. ~Fireship.~ But from where? Was the Maria closer than they
thought? "Signals! Send to the flag, "Permission to intercept"!" The Willow, after all, would be able to intercept much more quickly than any of the other craft that curently sat at anchor...
As the lieutenant came on deck, Cmdr. West gestured to the boat. "It seems we
shall have our entertainment earlier than I expected, Mr. Callaghan. All hands to quarters." Mr. Callaghan. Now be so kind as to weigh anchor and beat about to engage that damned fireship! I'll have the guns loaded and run out; we'll either dismast her, or blow her up before she's close enough to do any harm. Signal to flag--Acknowledged, am moving to
engage. And see to those bow guns...perhaps we can send a shot or two through that longboat alongside the Crab," Ian mused reflectively, allowing himself the luxury of an unhurried thought in the moments while the Willow weighed anchor.
"Aye, Aye, Sir," responded James Callaghan with alacrity. He hesitated, "Sir, if it is your intention to attempt to sink the fireship before it gets too close, would it not be wise to load a number of guns with chainshot in addition to some with ball? That way," he continued hurriedly, "we might dismast the fireship to slow her down, before attempting to hole her below the waterline."As he finished, the enormity of what he had done struck him like a blow! He had virtually told his superior what he should do without his advice being solicited. He waited for the snub he would surely receive for his temerity

Ian turned as if struck by thunder, eyes narrowed. "And how, sir, would that be possible in His Majesty's Navy? I am aware of no ships on the Navy List that count chain in their armory. I am furthermore not accustomed to having my orders discussed in committee, Mr. Callaghan.

Mr Wallace reported, "Flagship responding, engage at your discretion"

{OOC}

Ships are anchored from harbormouth closest to the fireship in this order Crab underway but being boarded from a longboat, Willow, Jana, 4 merchant vessels, Watcher, Buffonia, 4 merchant vessels, powder hulk. Harbor defenses appear to have been caught napping as no activity can be seen from the shore batteries.

{BIC}

Lieutenant James Callaghan moved with the alacrity of a scalded cat on hearing his commanding officer's scathing rebuke.

"Mr. Burke, weigh anchor!"

"Mr Wallace, make to the flagship 'Acknowledge. Am moving to engage.' As quickly as you can, please Mr Wallace."

"Mr. Greg, have the guns loaded and run out. And get a crew to each bow gun".

He looked at Ian West. "Sir, " he said, "I apologise for my remarks. I did not intend any disrespect, and I fully acknowledge my mistake. As you know, Sir, I have been shore-based for the last two years, and I had been given to understand that the King's Navy had adopted the use of chain-shot." I now understand that assumption to be incorrect and I thank you for bringing my knowledge up to date."

Comander West watched the Lieutenant bark orders with a certain grudging satisfaction. ~At least he's not a hothead like Rhetnug,~ he allowed to himself. That officer was well-loved by the men of the Willow, and was capable at that, but seemed oddly determined to have himself shot in one duel or another. And that sort of foolishness could very well cast a superior officer in a poor light, and Ian was well glad that he had been relieved of him.

"Indeed, sir," Ian said quietly, allowing himself to be mollified. "As you have so prudently seen," he continued, "I do fully intend to hole her--that or blow her up." There was no point in not admitting that the lieutenant had guessed his mind quite correctly; the positive comment on the heels of the reprimand might serve to bolster his confidence. "Set a course to intercept the fireship that brings us within range of the Crab--if we be too late to prevent her from being taken, we at least may keep her in the harbor." The muscles in his jaw clenched as he thought of the possibility of having to fire into a King's ship, and he prayed he would not have to do so....

The fireship pulled rapidly ahead of the Willow approaching Jana, only two or thee men could be seen one her blazing decks. Of the Squadron the Crab's swivel guns sharp bangs could be heard but her small crew was clearly outnumbered by the two longboats alongside.
The Buffonia was running out her upper deck guns, both Watcher and Jana appeared to have been caught napping. Suddenly one of the shore batteries let out a salvo that put four water spouts alongside the Willow thorougly drenching her Captain and signals midshipman.
The Sailing Master called out, "Anchor is free sir, bow chasers bearing on target! She appears to bearing down on Watcher sir!"

The sharp bang of the forward 9 pdr was followed by cheering from her gun crew as the shot had hit one of the longboats alongside the Crab plowing through a group of men and caving in the side. As the longboat broke in half and sank several survivors screamed in fear of sharks.

"Aye Sir, " replied the Master, as men raced aloft to set more sail to catch the faint breeze. The Willow slowly came about to pursue the fireship. The Master carefully gauging when to yaw so as to bring a broadside into play. Midshipman Greg had rushed to the bow chasers which were the only guns that would bare and had the range. A double bang followed by two hits dead astern and the fireship suddenly heeled sharply to starboard and was starting to settle at the stern but still creeping closer towards four merchanmen
anchored closely together. The foremast lookout called out "hit at the waterline and a hit on her rudder sir"

James Callaghan felt a rush of adrenalin coursing through his veins. After two boring years of shore duty he was back where he belonged. This was what he had joined the King's Navy for!

Not wishing to take Midshipman Greg away from the bow- chasers in case they should once again be able to bear on the fireship, he leaped to the gundeck to supervise the firing of a broadside in anticipation of the imminent yaw. He too was vastly impressed with the performance of the young Midshipman.

'One well-aimed broadside' he thought to himself, 'should do the trick'!
"Excellent work, Mr. Greg! Fire as long as those nines will bear on her stern!" Ian pounded his fist on the rail in glee, allowing himself a small measure of satisfaction in the midshipman's work. "Good show indeed, young sir," he muttered to himself. That was the way to lay a gun, he thought. Perhaps they could, if they holed her again, slow her down, or even stop her dead in the water before she reached those merchantmen

Ian had seethed with an impotent fury, each clank of the capstan seeming an eternity. That was when it had happened. A screaming, whistling whine he knew only too well... approaching shot!! The whine transformed itself in an instant into a thundrous crash of water near alongside the Willow. He clutched at the rail to keep from falling as the ship rolled. Drenched, he snatched his cocked hat from his dripping head, and poured a goodly amount of water from its soaked brim.
"Well, Mr. Callaghan...those buffoons ashore have just ruined my best dress
uniform. I shall have to take this up with the Admiral," he said, doing his best to put forward an image of unflappable imperturbability. He only hoped he was succeeding. At the master's call, a momentarily relief hit the commander as he felt the Willow drift free, beginning to gain a small measure of way. "Very good...you may fire as your guns bear." He stared balefully at the drifting fireship. "And get us into position for a broadside, damn your eyes," he growled to himself, knowing he had already given that order once...

The heavier 32 pounder carronades were starting to run out as Midshipman Greg left the bow chasers and under the First Lieutenant’s orders ran down the gundeck urging the gun crews to greater speed with language more appropriate to boatswain's mate than a young gentleman. The fireship was rapidly pulling awy and out of range as the nine smashers cut loose seven missed two hit but well above the waterline.
Smoke stung Ian's eyes as he stood and watched, the only thing he could do right now. It was drifting across the water, from the fireship and the larger broadsides of the frigates. For some inexplicable reason, the ragged cheering of the men at the forward nines annoyed him beyond description. "Cease that infernal racket!" he bellowed at the top of his lungs. "This is no damned goose hunt! Tend to your weapons!"Impossibly, when the smoke cleared, the ship was still moving. "They missed," he grumbled to himself. It was somehow impossible that every gun of those big broadsides should miss. On his ship, he would not have tolerated such sloppy gunnery. But his 32-pounders, while quite a load of shot for a sloop, were of pitifully short range, and the fireship was pulling away from them. "Mr. Burke!" he called for the master. "I'll have sufficient sail put on to catch that inferno...Mr. Greg--if we are ever again within range, I mean to rake her stern!"

Lieutenant Callaghan stood in anticipation as the Willow closed the distance. As the Master ordered the wheel put over, Callaghan waited till ever gun was in position and gave the signal to fire. The broadside roared out and smashed the brigatine's stern with half a dozen hits. Suddenly the Watcher fired again hammering the brigatine's bow but with several guns overshooting and putting shots near the Willow. As the fireship began to slow, finally settling and sinking, Ian felt a sudden wave of tired relief flood his body. If he'd allowed that fireship to get farther into the bay, a court-martial would have surely awaited him. Oh, his family's connections would have ensured he'd not have been cashiered on half-pay for the rest of his life, but he would have been willing to bet his
inheritance that he'd have been on shore duty for the rest of his days, with no hope of further promotion. Realizing he was still gripping the rail as if his life depended on it, Ian stepped away, clasping his hands behind his back.
Spying Lt. Callaghan grinning madly through his powder-streaked face, Ian relaxed slightly. "Mr. Callaghan! Secure the ship from quarters and report to me at your earliest convenience. I would appreciate it if you would bring Mr. Greg with you when you do." With that, Cmdr. West turned about and went below. One hour to get ready, he thought. He would have to wear his second-best dress uniform to dinner this night. At least his best dress coat was still dry, having been left in his cabin in his haste to get topside...
Later, in the Willow’s small cabin, Ian sat, hair slightly disheveled. Lt. Callaghan and Mr. Midshipman Greg stood before him. "Gentlemen," he grinned, most decidedly un-captainlike. "I was very impressed by what I saw just now. I shall be certain to mention this in my report. Very smartly done, gentlemen. Mr. Greg, you are dismissed."
As the door closed behind Greg, Ian turned to Lt. Callaghan. "Well, sir...impressive performance for one just back from shore duty. I shall be greatly pleased if you continue in this fashion." What happened next was a bit unexpected. Pulling off his wet shirt, he continued. "What do you think of young Mr. Greg? I'd rate him acting lieutenant for his actions today, only the Willow doesn't warrant it. Still....I'll be watching him."

In reply to Commander West's comment concerning the merits of Midshipman Greg's outstanding performance, James said "Sir, I agree with you entirely. For one so young he showed great cool-headedness under stress. I believe he should have a great future."

"Also, Sir", he continued "I must commend the performance of the gun-crews. They all carried out their duties in an exemplary manner."

On leaving the Captain's cabin, James went directly to his own quarters where he ruefully pulled of his own clothing which had suffered considerably during the recent action.

After a quick wash, he donned clean clothes and went on deck to make a more detailed assessment of the current condition of the ship, as he knew his Captain would soon require a full report. Having seen what obviously needed to be done, he instructed Mr Greg to set the hands to work to start repairs.

He also ordered Mr. Wallace to keep a sharp look out for any signals. "Keep a good man in the masthead" he said. "and send for me immediately if you have anything to report."

Lieutenant Callaghan stood on the deck, looking round once more. When Commander West comes up to make his departure to the Admiral's Dinner Party, James was anxious
that he should see a clean and tidy ship with as little sign of her recent skirmish as possible.

Commander West climbed easily up the small companion, straightening his neckcloth. Looking down at his uniform for perhaps the twentieth time, he assured himself that the second-best dress uniform was not clashing overmuch with the best dress uniform coat. One would have to be looking for it to notice, he decided, rueing the fact that he was forced to wear his second-best cocked hat, the other having been drenched with seawater.
Squaring the hat on his head, he noted Lt. Callaghan on the quarterdeck. Striding over to him, he glanced about the ship, already in a state of marked tidiness. "Very good, Mr. Callaghan," he murmured. "Your efficiency will only do you well. I am pleased."A brief scowl darkened his brow as he noted a seaman heaving carelessly on a
line as a small knot of sailors worked on lowering out one of the ship's boats for them. "You there! Handsomely with that tackle! You're not hoisting a side of beef!"
Returning his attention to his officer, he smiled pleasantly. "Now then,
what do you have for me?"
Lieutenant Callaghan reported the ship secure and no major defficiencies. Hopefully Lieutenant Rhetnug, whom he had never met, and was to be transferred in any event. As for the Marines that was strange to say the least.

Ian nodded his satisfaction upon hearing the lieutenant's report, suddenly remembering the matter of the deserted marines and missing stores. Making a mental note, he decided to put Lt. Callaghan on this matter, but not now. Their evening had already been interrupted enough.As they waited for the boat to be lowered into the water, Ian relaxed a bit
and allowed himself some casual conversation with his lieutenant. "I imagine
Sir Harold will be pleased with the events of this eve, apart from the astounding lack of awareness which allowed the fireship to get as close as it did," he mused. "I wonder how this will affect deployment? Well...we're sure to find out. Which reminds me, be sure to see to collecting those maps from Lt. Harris at the earliest opportunity."
Just then the boat was in the water and crewed, waiting for the officers and, amidst the shrilling of pipes, the two debarked the Willow and set off...

The following morning there was quite a commotion on deck as a battered 74 trailed the supply convoy which was covered by a frigate that had also seen some action. Lieutenant Rhetnug returned and reported to Commander West. His left arm was in a sling. The four Marines who were missing had also returned . He said they were acting under his orders and not to be blamed. He further gave Commander West a note signed by General Sir Rupert.

Sir;

I would take it as a personal favor if you take no further action in this matter. It is my understanding this officer will soon be transfered off your ship very soon in any event.

With my compliments,

Sir Rupert

Ships are anchored from harbor mouth inward in roughly an L shaped formation
Crab underway but being boarded from two longboats, Willow just getting underway, Jana, 4 merchant vessels, Watcher, Buffonia, 4 merchant vessels, powder hulk.
Crab and Willow have opened fire, Watcher and Buffonia are clearing for action.

(FYI Buffonia is not anchored on springs, while she was practicing this earlier the gear was secured later in the day in anticipation of scheduled social events)
Wind
Light Breeze
VVVV

Crab />
*
* Fired Bow Chaser earlier Shore Battery
Willow ///> fired broadside ######
* ######
* /
Jana /
^ V Fire Ship
/
/
/
*
*
MS
MS
MS
MS
*
*
This the base of the L at right angle to those ships
****Watcher///>****Buffonia///>*****MS/MS/MS/MS***Powder hulk

Fireship is approx 600-800 yards from the frigates and approx 400 yards from the sloops, closing steadily with apparent target of Watcher or Buffonia