Vibrations rippled across the waters. Barrels tailed behind the ship, but the tension did not quell. James curled his fingers white, glancing at Anne whose hair was a stark contrast to the mist that touched the deck. Swallowing, he croaked, his choice unwavered. “We stay within the mist. Don’ panic me dear. Calm minds are barren of chaos.”
As much as James seemed dead keen on using the mist as a mask and keeping a clear head, it proved a challenged when it felt as though they were blindfolded, left to wander aimlessly on a field of abandoned mines, one step away from triggering blood and carnage. A second horn blared in the distance and a sense of ambiguity clung. Just how many ships were there? How much damage did Kenway provoke? The mist was turning and James mentally cringed at the groan of helm, deafening in this eerie stillness. It was gnawing at them all. At once his mind was on the overflow of barrels creeping toward them and the diligence of his men—
Something crackled.
Soon smoke reached them and through them mist, they could see the a vessel left to collapse into smothering flames. The pirate’s nose crinkled; scorched bodies of men littered the deck and the foul smell of singed hair pierced the air.
“Look away, Anne. if you plan ta dwell on ‘ese images fer th’ rest of th’ nigh’.”
Anne refused to turn away from the water, her gaze anxiously scanning, nervous that there might be something going unnoticed. She repeated James’ words in her mind, trying to quell the anxiousness within her.
The sound of another horn caused Anne’s eyes to widen and her gaze to snap upward, now focusing on finding another ship instead of any remaining fire barrels. The crew remained completely silent, the tension on the deck of the ship thick. Soon, the smell of smoke reached her.
James’ warning came a fraction too late. Anne noticed the burning corpses only a moment before he had spoke. Her stomach sank and her breath quickened. It wasn’t the sight of the bodies that shook her up, but the thought that any of those men could have been someone they knew. “Do ya recognize any of ‘em? The ship?” Anne whispered.
“Fallen comrades caught in a crossfire.” James’ grip grew livid, trembling around the pegs, curling tighter before releasing. “Edward’s actions ahve cause e'nough damage.”
Releasing a soundless sigh, he geared the ship between crags, moving from the last barrel when there a explosion that jarred the wits of all. Fire licked the barrels that had collected against the wrecked ship and mushroom cloud swelled in the air. The blast rippled, setting off a chain of explosion across the waters, gaining for them. James wasted no time and sped, fleeing the mist, inches from sinkage and exposed to the patrolling navy.
