"From what I've witnessed, quite a good deal, my love."
"But.... well.... the men.... they.... ARGH!!!!!" Maeve exclaimed in frustration.
"Looks like you haven't got an excuse not to do it," Sean said, his eyes smiling.
"Oh, alright." Maeve turned to the crowd of men that were staring at her, waiting for her response. "Well, men, it looks like I'm your new Captain." Cheers sprung up from every man who heard her announcement, and all of them came rushing forward to thank and congratulate her. Maeve was overwhelmed by it all. Sean just stood back and watched in amusement as Maeve tried to pry herself away from the crowd.
When Maeve finally got a free moment, she headed down below to see what she had to work with on this ship. Sean saw her just as she was heading below and caught up to her, stopping her before she could go any further. "Sean, what's wrong?" Maeve asked, wondering why he had stopped her.
"You don't know what you're about to see," he said.
Maeve wore a confused expression. "What do you mean?"
Sean sighed as he prepared to explain. He cast a long look at the door Maeve had been about to open before he began. "Behind that door is a large room that serves no purpose other than to house the oarsmen."
"Oarsmen?" Maeve asked in astonishment. "I didn't know this ship had oarsmen!"
"Aye, how do you think we've been traveling so fast? Maeve, the Captain didn't treat the men at oars well at all, so you'll probably be shocked by what you're about to see."
"Sean, I've fought in battles and witnessed death and suffering all my life. I'm prepared to handle it."
"At least let me go in there with you?"
"Of course."
Sean moved ahead of Maeve and opened the door, showing her in before shutting it again behind her. Maeve gasped as she looked around. Dozens of men, young and old, sat on rickety benches, each clinging to an oar as if it were their only lifeline. Their hands were blistered and bleeding. Their bodies were drawn tight and sunken, showing clearly the effects of there being a lack of enough food. Bruises adorned their bodies and dried blood added to the general grime that covered their clothes.
"Sean, what has happened to these men?" Maeve asked quietly.
"The Captain, that's what happened to them," he replied bitterly. "He never fed them enough and overworked them to the point that many would pass out from exhaustion. There was no such thing as 'fair treatment' to the Captain. Whatever he said was law, and everyone had to follow it or else."
"That ends NOW," Maeve said with determination. "Listen up, men!!! Your Captain is dead---"
"Shhhhh!!!! Speak like that on this ship and you can lose your head!" a person from the crowd called out.
"No! The Captain IS dead, men, she speaks the truth!" Sean backed her up. "He was killed while fighting with her - Maeve. He fell overboard and never came back up. Men, you've got a new captain now. The men on deck voted, and your new leader is none other than Maeve herself, the woman who sparked this mutiny."
The men all looked at Maeve with disbelief. A woman was going to captain their ship?
Maeve answered their silent question. "Aye, I'm captaining this ship now. And a lot of things are going to change - starting with this: All of you men are to put down those oars and rest. Eat, sleep, lounge around, I don't care WHAT you do as long as you do something to relax and allow your bodies to heal." The men stared at her, once again in disbelief, not moving for fear that some of the Captain's men would come in and beat them again. Maeve made her voice more stern as she said, "I said go! Get out of this room and get some food!"
At her commanding tone, every man sprang up and filed past her into the galley to get some grub. Maeve stood and just looked at the empty benches before she turned to Sean. "They actually listened to me," she said with a smile.
"Of course they did, you're the Captain."
"But I didn't think they'd accept me so fast!"
"Well, Maeve my darling, you've still got your sword out."
Maeve looked down at the bloody weapon in her hands. "Oops."
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A Fact Of Life - Part 9