The Quarter-Master

The Heroes are back aboard the Banshee, heading at full sail towards Aragosta, driven both by a goal ahead -- the need to get the universal physick to Queen Bonny -- as well as a pursuer behind, since they know that Captain Felix Cabral's Black Spot frigate Tiburon knows they are in the area and is in hot pursuit.

Worse still, they have run straight into a great storm, the kind of squall that would normally be wise to sail around but -- given their circumstances -- they must cut straight through.

The Storm

The pace of the wind is so bad that it is constantly blowing free bits of sail and rope in the rigging, any piece of which could endanger the whole ship -- and so both Axel and Jenny are aloft, tied as best they can to the mast as they move from place to place, seeking to keep the ship running despite the gale.

Down below, the twins are doing their own work: Alondra is tying down barrels while Orlando is helping direct men aloft. Then the worst happens -- a stroke of lightning on the main-mast, sending a huge portion of the ship's rigging tumbling into the sea.

A Sea Anchor

The fallen mast acts as an enormous sea anchor, threatening to drag the ship broadside to the waves and then pull her under. This is an existential, pressing threat, and the crew will need to cut it loose before it dooms the ship. Worse still, Axel and Jenny are on the fallen mast, as are five other sailors, including Jerome Dechaine and the rescued slave Nyembe.

Jenny dons her curious breathing mask as Alondra and the quartermaster, Anne Crieux, jump down to the wreckage to help evacuate men. Orlando is aboard, helping get crew on ship, while Axel is quickly climbing out of the water to head up to the rigging, fearful that the fallen mast might pull the other two masts down.

In a series of tense moments, the Heroes and Anne Crieux are able to rescue the sailors before they drown, getting out of the water with just enough time to cut loose the main-mast before the ship is swallowed.

Now without a main-mast, the Banshee can no longer afford to ride out the heart of the storm -- no, she must tack for the gentler outlying parts of the storm system, which in turn leaves her vulnerable.

The Black Spot

Wounded, Banshee is easy prey for Tiburon. The Black Spot pirate hunter comes up on the pirate ship, guns booming, and the Heroes have to brace for impact. Axel and Alondra prepare to receive boarders as Jenny runs for the cannons, directing her gun crew to return fire on the Castillian frigate. Orlando is moving among the men, telling them that the pirate hunters to mean to hang them all -- now it is time to fight or die.

The Castillian frigate outmatches the Banshee, especially in her wounded state. With the mainmast gone, the main links between between the two ships are fore and aft. A squad of Castillian marines holds the fo'c'sle, while Captain Cabral leads the bulk of the pirate hunters across the aft into the midships, where he and Captain Malcolm begin to duel.

The Heroes spring into action. Orlando is in the orlop, staunching the flow of wounded Banshees coming below, while Alondra is holding the gangway below decks to keep the Castillians off her brother. Axel is up in the rigging, clearing out a firing position for the Banshees, while Jenny is at a swivel gun in the aft, trying to keep more Tiburons from coming aboard. Still, there is no mistake: the situation is dire for the Banshee, and the ship will not be able to beat off the Castillians.

The Quartermaster's Plan

Anne Crieux gathers the Heroes aft with a plan. The Banshees will lose this fight, she says, unless they can get free. She is going to take a party of men to cut the links between the two ships, but she needs the Heroes to go forward and clear out the marines there, ready for her signal -- as soon as she temporarily cut the links, they need to drop anchor so that the current and wind yanks the Banshee away from the Tiburon and hopefully they can escape.

As the plan is put in motion, the Heroes move forward. Axel and Jenny move across the tops, Jenny arming her with a dozen or more pistols as they go while Axel sets up a protected firing position. Meanwhile, Alondra and Orlando fight their way across the main deck, back-to-back, trying to give Captain Malcolm some support on the way to the fo'c'sle.

Jenny drops down from the rigging, spinning with rope tied to her ankles, felling more than a half-dozen of the marines, while Axel directs fire from Banshees down on the crowd. He leaps down with his knives, joining Alondra and Orlando as they reach the fore and finish off the remaining marines. Now, all four Heroes are ready for Anne Crieux's signal -- and as soon as they receive it, they drop anchor, quickly pulling away from the Tiburon.

Aftermath

As the Banshees clear off the remaining boarders, they take a bloody stock. Many of their fellow pirates are dead or wounded, and worse still -- they have lost Anne Crieux, the quartermaster, who was pulled overboard when the two ships separate. The crew needs a leader even as Captain Malcolm orders the Banshee to limp to a nearby atoll so they can perform swift repairs before heading on to Aragosta.

Vote on the Atoll

Captain Malcolm comes to the Heroes. Long Ned plans to declare for Quartermaster, and Malcolm wants one of the Heroes to stop him. Officially, the Captain can't interfere in a vote for the crew representative, but he fears Long Ned's greed if he became in charge.

Jenny is very reluctantly pressed into service, with all of her fellows arguing hard that she ought to be quartermaster, and after her agreement the Heroes set to work convincing the crew. Jenny and Axel do so in a pedestrian fashion, demonstrating hard work and good cheer, but Orlando and Alondra have other plans.

Orlando brews up an alchemical drug that loosens inhibitions and makes one speak the truth, and Alondra flirts with Long Ned until he drinks it -- and then, at the meeting fire, Long Ned goes on a long screed about how the Captain is stealing their money and how he won't stand for it, slandering the names of the dead Anne Crieux as well as others. He finally have to be told to sit down by Vittoria Viani, his mate, and then with just a few simple words Jenny Blackstocking is elected Quartermaster of the Banshee.

Persons of Note

• Captain Felix Cabral -- Captain of the Tiburon, he pursued the Banshee through a terrible storm. He recognized Orlando during the battle.
• Anne Crieux -- Quartermaster of the Banshee, she was lost at sea cutting the pirate ship loose from the Tiburon.
• Long Ned -- Boatswain of the Banshee, he ran for Quartermaster against Jenny and lost after being drugged by Orlando and Alondra.
• Captain John Malcolm -- The captain of the Banshee, he recruited the Heroes to oppose Long Ned for quartermaster after Anne Crieux's death.