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+---- Thread: *Chapter 18: Capture the Ship (/showthread.php?tid=51458)
*Chapter 18: Capture the Ship - lock180 - 05-20-2024
Catch Up on Previous Chapters:
Start From the Beginning: Chapter 1
Most Recent Chapter: Chapter 17
The Book of Zen
Chapter 18: Capture The Ship
Rebel and One Eyed Larry rush to join the increasingly expanding crowd with Zenzeroni right behind them.
“Who is it? What happened?” One Eyed Larry says frantically to the closest crew member.
“It was the skeleton captain sir. He just jumped straight off the ship!”
“Oh fuck”. One Eyed Larry rushes below deck to a chest that is wide open. “FUCK!”
One Eyed Larry runs back to the main deck and pushes the person controlling the wheel out of the way. “FULL SPEED AHEAD!” He announces to the rest of his crew.
“Rebel we need to get as far away from this spot as possible. Alert the other ships to do the same.”
“What’s going on?” Rebel asks.
“He stole the pearl back which means the skeletons can be brought back once more.” Rebel rushes down to the radio to make the announcement to the rest of the fleet. An intense few minutes go by as the fleet steams forward going as fast as the ships can go without crumbling. Zenzeroni looks back in the direction of where they had been and sees the ghost ship still listing aimlessly but on the once empty deck was once more a skeleton crew waiting for their next victims to come within range.
“Why was he on the ship in the first place One Eyed Larry?” Zenzeroni asks.
“He said he could help us navigate the rest of the Pacific. I should have known it was a trap. Dead men tell no tales after all.”
“I thought that was just a movie thing.”
“All myths and legends have some truth to them. Some more than others...” One Eyed Larry trails off watching the sails move in the wind.
“So what now?” Zenzeroni asks.
“We’ve got three weeks until the west coast. Make yourself comfortable kid. It’s going to be a long ride.” One Eyed Larry says not moving his eyes from the sails.
While One Eyed Larry was certainly an incredibly serious captain and didn’t let his crew stray from the task at hand often, he also knew that to operate a strong six ship fleet and maintain good morale it was important to let the crew let loose from time to time. This was why during this three week long leg of the journey it was time for the games to begin.
Representatives from each of the six ships formed a circle on the main deck of The Flying Lasagna. Zenzeroni and Violet represented The Spaghetti Monster, Matty Ice and Sammy Spice from The Frostbite, twins Chester and Lester of The Cheeseroll, Tommy “the tank” Pancake and Gary Sausagefingers of The Breakfast Eater, Florence and Marche of The Pinot Noir, and of course the leaders of the fleet and captain and first mate of The Flying Lasagna, One Eyed Larry and Rebel Midnight.
“We have some time between now and our final destination and with calm seas for the time being Rebel and I thought it would be a good time to bring out an old classic amongst us pirates to vent some frustration in a more friendly environment,” One Eyed Larry says with a side smile.
“So it is with great pleasure that I bring to you veterans of my crew and noobies alike, the great game of Capture the Ship!” Excited murmurs echo throughout the ship and One Eyed Larry revels in watching his crew's eyes light up with anticipation and giddiness.
“So what are the rules then?” Tommy “The Tank” asks nonchalantly trying not to show his excitement as he attempts to maintain his dominant and imposing status amongst the crew.
“The rules are simple. There are six ships at your disposal each ship with its own banner” One Eyed Larry gestures up to his sails that are flying the symbol of The Flying Lasagna. Looking across to the other ships they all carry a similar symbol that varies slightly. “I know each ship is equipped with its own banner. You are to hide that banner somewhere VISIBLE but can be anywhere on the ship as long as it is accessible and easy to get to understood?” One Eyed Larry asks. Some teams barely hear him as they have already begun planning and whispering to each other.
“Yes Sir!” Zenzeroni says. One Eyed Larry smiles back at him.
“Next set of rules. Crew numbers vary depending on the ship as we have a wide variety of ship sizes. This will not matter because each ship is allowed FIVE crewmembers to participate. No more no less. Before we start I will have everyone meet in the middle so that the gameplayers will be able to see who’s who.” Grumbles of disappointment from Matty and Sammy of The Frostbite can be heard as they were hoping to use their large crew size to their advantage.
“Why can’t everyone play?” Matty moans.
“I’m not going to even entertain that question. Next to the gameplay itself. Ziplines are not only allowed but encouraged!” This announcement causes a huge round of applause and roar from the crew as they think about the options at their disposal.
“That being said it is one at a time. The rules will be heavily enforced from a neutral party Drumstick from The Spaghetti Monster, Verona from the Pinot Noir, and Frenchy from The Breakfast Eater”. This leads to even more moaning and complaining from Matty and Sammy.
“How is that fair?! The refs are totally going to fuck us bro!”
One Eyed Larry continues to ignore the complaints from Matty “A big part of this game is HONESTY. If ANYONE is found cheating at ANY point during the game, you can join me on my ship where you will spend some nice quality time doing WHATEVER I ask you to do.” One Eyed Larry walks around the inside of the circle making sure everyone sees he means business. He stops at Matty and Sammy for an extra long second who try their best to avoid his direct eye contact.
“I mention not breaking rules because this next one is possibly the most important. Ziplines are allowed and the gangways to ALL ships will be down. It would be easy for a member of a defending ship to simply wait at these chokeholds and tag anyone as they come aboard which is why there is NO PUPPY GUARDING. No puppy guarding the gangway, no puppy guarding the zipline, and no puppy guarding the banner. You must stand at least 15 feet away from these locations until the person has either safely crossed the threshold or grabbed the banner. Is THIS understood?”. Nods of agreement dot the crowd so One Eyed LArry continues on, “If you are tagged while in enemy territory you must go back to your ship and wait 5 seconds before trying again. SHOULD YOUR SHIPS BANNER BE TAKEN AND SUCCESSFULLY BROUGHT TO AN ENEMY SHIP, YOU ARE NOW FIGHTING FOR THAT SHIP AS A MEMBER OF THEIR CREW. Last ship standings win. Any questions?” One Eyed Larry looks around but no one says a thing.
“If that’s the case, you have 15 minutes to prep your crew. Meet back on The Flying Lasagna and LETS GET COOKIN!”