⛵ ⛵ ⛵ ⛵. . . "Tour of the Gulf of Aden". . . (cont.)
[Last time...]
“Silence you fool!” The Jinn screamed as he slapped the commander across the face with a leather glove, “You will do as I say or you will not live to see the battle!”
“Yes, my Lord.” The Commander replied quietly as he turned and left the chamber.
. . . . . . . . . . . .
[On the Silverton…]
Fair winds kept the Silverton on her deadly course as she rounded the horn of Somalia and swept west, keeping close to the northern coast of Africa and far from the eyes of the City of Aden across the Gulf of Aden…
Warrant Officer- Purser Ickied and Junior Petty Officer- Gunner's Mate Errislravenhill stood on the main deck, next to the mast. They had been drilling the crew all morning and now as the hot afternoon sun baked the deck, they took a break. Ickied bit off a piece of a plain as Errislravenhill sipped her coffee.
“Sairrr, whit dae ye think is th' Captain's plan ay attack?" Errislravenhill asked.
“Ahh dunnae kinn. Ahh’m nae high enaw oan th' peckin' order tae be privvy tae 'att…" Ickied answered as he took another bite.
“Bludy heel! Yoo're third in commain! If yoo're nae privvy than who is?!" She exclaimed in surprise.
“Only Commander Galligan.”
“What's th' point ay 'att?!"
“Navy tradition. If mony ay th' crew kent th' plan ay attack, they might jist jump ower board at th' nearest coast raither than fulfill their part." Ickied explained as he spit out a stale piece plain.
“Hmmm… Sae when will he tells us?"
“Th' night afair th' attack. Th’ Keptin is veery secretiff aboot his plans. An' min' yoo, it's possible 'att nae aw crewman ur pure loyal..."
Errislravenhill contemplated the thought. A dozen crewman went through her mind, but finally she dismissed the search to preserve her peace of mind. Suddenly Tuna’s deep voice rang-out from above…
“Yo! Town ay Bosaso due sooth!”
“Bosaso?!” Galligan called out.
“Aye Sairrr, twintie miles due sooth!”
“Ickied!” Galligan yelled down to the main deck, “Come oan up!”
“Aye Sairrr!” Ickied yelled back as he turned to Errislravenhill, “I'll gab tae ye later mucker!"
Up on the bridge, Ickied joined Galligan and Cockpit Mate- Midshipman's Mate Fisky…
“Men, we're only tois an' a half days oot ay th' City ay Aden. We're gonnae hug th' coast ay Somaliar aw th' way west. Ur th' guns aw cleaned an' weel stocked?" Galligan asked.
“Aye Sairrr, aw’ thirty-six ay ‘em.” Ickied answered quickly.
“Aye Sairrr, we’ve got powder under wraps an' plenty ay balls stacked." Fisky said.
“Braw job mates. Nae scran fur th' men efter tommorraw’s lunch, bevvy only…" Galligan ordered.
“Nae scran efter tommorraw's lunch? Wa’s ‘att Sairrr?” Ickied asked out of curiosity.
“Men barnie better oan a boss stomach...ain, it less mess tae clean up afterwards!"
Ickied contemplated the thought…this wasn’t going to go down well with his men, “Sairrr, if Ahh may say, th' men have bin tae battle afair...?"
“Aye, they hav, but nae one ay thes size. We might be in battle fur tois days mucker..."
Ickied raised his eyebrows and swallowed hard as he nodded.
⛵ ⛵ ⛵ ⛵
🗝 Sassenach Vocabulary fur 'lain lovers':
afair (before), Ahh (I), aiblins (perhaps), 'att (that), aw (all), ay (of),
bark (news), barnie (fight), baur (bare), bevvy (drink), boss (empty), brine (ocean),
caller (fresh), cannie (careful), ceilidh (party), cheil (man), clootie (cloth),
dae (do), dunnae (do not), dug (dog),
enaw (enough),
gang (go), gart (made), gezz (gives), glaikit (stupid), gob (mouth)
heem (him), haur (here),
kent (knew), kinn (know),
mah (my), mair (more), min' (mind), mingin (filthy), mirk (dark), moggie (cat),
nae (no),
onie (any), oot (out),
poke (bag), pure (really),
quine (lady),
radge (mad, dangerous),
Sassenach (Highland English), scran (food), shair (shore), spick (speak), strang (strong), stoaner (hard, tough), swatch (look)
thes (this), tois (two), toon (town),
ur (are, or),
wa' (why), wabbit (tired), waesucks (horror, pity, or sorrow), wee jimmy (young boy), whieest (quiet), wooldnae (wouldn't),
yak (eye)
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
"Confused? Ascared? Seasick? Need a private chat with the Captain?" - joshua.slane@aol.com
References
Pictures from: Scottsdale Mint- Antigua-Barbadu 'Rum Runner' 1 oz Round, www.freeimages.com, www.pexels.com, pixabay.com, steemit.com an’ www.google.com/maps. Data loosely interpretted froms: www.wikipedia.org an' sometimes finely crafted reit from th' author's extensiff personal experience an' such.