When Edward glanced back to make sure his friends were unharmed, he had to do a double take. "Where's Edmond?" The expressions on the faces of his companions told Edward they did not know the answer. Edward shifted his gaze rapidly until he saw the boy running between the fighting prisoners.
Edmond carried several weapons in his arms and more draped over his small frame. As Edmond's gaze moved to the sky a stray bullet hit near his feet, causing him to stop short. Edmond toppled over, fully exposed for the guards to see.
"Edmond!" yelled Edward. He took a quick glance from behind his cover before running out to save the boy. Edward bobbed and weaved through the mess of prisoners and bullets raining from above. Edward's heart beat like waves before a storm as the surrounding sights and smells invigorated him.
The stench of body odour and disease from the prisoners was lessened with the fresh outside air and mixed with the familiar smells of gunpowder and blood. All that was missing was the salty ocean air Edward so missed, instead being replaced with the fresh grass and newly tilled earth of the countryside.
Edward reached the young man in a flash and, after taking Edmond over his shoulder, grabbed the weapons and brought the boy back to safety. Edward dropped the weapons and plopped Edmond down below the stone barrier.
"What were you thinking, Edmond? You could have gotten yourself killed!"
Edmond's eyes filled with tears. "I saw the sun, Edward, that's why I fell. It's so beautiful."
Edward peered past the column he was hidden behind and saw a sliver of the sun through the opening of the bailey.
"You are right, Edmond, the sun is beautiful. But you have yet to see the sun as it sets and rises upon the sea. Now that… that is a sight to behold. You must be careful, or you won't live to see it. Understand?" Edmond nodded, wiping his tears away.
Edward grabbed a musket and a sword from the pile of weapons and signalled to his comrades to take their pick. While his friends equipped themselves for battle, Edward searched among the prisoners. "Simon!" Edward yelled. After a moment, Simon's eyes found Edward, and he ran over.
"Whut is it, you git? Can't ye see we're a tad busy here?"
"I am well aware," Edward answered. "We need to reach the top level of this bailey and split into two groups. There is a lever at the front of the castle to release the drawbridge. I want you to lead half the people on this side, and I will lead the others to the opposite side."
"You lead the way, and I'll make sure these rats follow." Simon started to rise, but Edward stopped him.
He handed the keys for the prison cells to Simon. "Take these and free the prisoners in the front bailey. We'll need their help."
"The bastards'll make good shields," Simon asserted with a heartless laugh.
Edward ignored the comment and peered at his crewmen, who nodded to his silent question of their readiness. Edward rushed for the stairs to his right with his friends following behind. Four prisoners were at the foot of the stairs, stopping the guards from descending, but their own ascent also prevented by those same guards.
"We're at a stalemate here, and the more time we waste, the sooner reinforcements will arrive. Does anyone have any ideas?" Edward asked.
"I 'ave one," Sam answered. "I need a bag of powder." Sam handed Charles to Henry and took a bag of powder from the young Edmond. "I learned this on the last ship I was on," Sam explained as he cocked a pistol and set it in the bag full of gunpowder along with musket balls. "The crew turned on the captain, and 'e was holed up in his cabin, so 'e made a few of these to clear out the chief bastards outside his door. When you 'ear the boom, run up the stairs." Sam took the bag and hurled it up the length of the stairs.
Once the bag landed, the shock caused the cocked gun to release, striking the flint and exploding the powder in the bag. The explosion didn't hurt anyone, but the pieces of the gun and musket balls flying from the bag certainly did.
Edward's crew and four prisoners ran up the stairs and shot down those hurt by Sam's makeshift grenade. After, the prisoners attacked the guards now exposed along the curtain wall walkways. The only guards left were those on the opposite side of the bailey, and the reinforcements advancing across the walkway between the southeast bailey Edward was on and the northeast one where the drawbridge lever was.
Edward and his crew moved to the curtain wall of the bailey. When Edward rose from cover he could see through the opening in the bailey to the lower level where the majority of the prisoners were still fighting. The keep, where the warden was, was between the south baileys, rising high above the rest of the castle.
"Anne, are you able to kill those guards on the other side of the bailey?"
"Consider it done." Anne turned to William, they nodded to each other, and William ran to the south end of the bailey, knowing what to do without words.
Anne and William went into a sprint across opposite ends of the bailey's walls. When they reached the end, where the guards stationed themselves along the west wall, they both pulled out twin pistols.
Anne turned to face the line of guards. The guard's eyes widened. Anne let loose her pistols. The guards rose, but a moment too late. One bullet hit a guard in the back, the other bullet pierced the leg of the second.
William used his momentum to drop and slide into the walkway. William shot his pistols. Two guards fell. One guard was left with a musket in hand, ready to shoot Anne. William jumped up. The guard aimed. William plucked a musket from a dead guard's hands. The guard pulled down on the trigger. William shot the guard in the back. The guard's arms flew out. The bullet hit the stone on the wall two inches left of Anne's ear.
William dropped the musket and ran to Anne's side. She rose and thanked William as Edward and crew joined them in front of the walkway to the keep.
With the guards removed, the prisoners were able to move more freely, and, having heard the plan from Simon, the captives moved up the stairs to the top of the bailey. Edward waved a group of them across to the entrance of the keep. Reinforcements along the roof of the keep were being kept at bay with well-timed, albeit ill-aimed, musket shots.
In front of Edward were large double wooden doors with reinforced iron latticework and large iron hoops for handles. Edward pulled on one, but it wouldn't open. "The door must be barred. How will we enter?" he asked the group of twenty behind him.
"Watch out!" Anne yelled as she pulled Edward away from the doors.
A stone larger than Edward's head, beard included, fell to the ground with a loud crack. Ten feet above the double doors was an opening for siege defence, covered by a square wooden board on hinges.
Edward stroked his long beard. "That will work. We need someone to open the door from the inside." Edward turned to the prisoners. "Were there any ladders in the armoury?" The group shook their heads. "What are we to do then?" Edward questioned, mainly to himself.
"We make our own ladder," Anne declared. "Firstly, keep muskets on the opening and fire if it moves in the slightest." A few of the men complied. "Five of you move in front of the door and get down on all fours." Anne's words were met with confused expressions and tilted heads. "Now!" she commanded. The order was immediately carried out with minor backtalk. "Four more, climb on top and balance yourselves in the same position."
As the human ladder was being made, the guard throwing rocks poked his head out to attempt another throw, but was forced back by a few musket shots. Anne helped more prisoners onto the pyramid until just one man was on the top. After some time, the shaky masterpiece of filth was completed.
"Beauty," Sam said with his usual snark. "Now what, Princess?"
"Boys, you can stop firing." Anne climbed the pyramid.
Once at the top, Anne knelt down and kept a keen eye on the opening. When the guard pushed open the board to throw another rock out, Anne leapt into the air and gripped the wooden board. With a deftness all her own, Anne used her momentum to jump into the opening and kick the guard back into the keep, closing the wooden barrier behind her.
&nb
sp; The men who formed the pyramid fell from the force of Anne's jump. "Ready yourselves, men! When she busts through that door we are storming that keep," Edward proclaimed.
Various muffled noises could be heard from behind the stone and woodwork of the keep. Screams of fighting, falling, and dying, and shots from guns and muskets filtered through the stone to the ears of the prisoners. The noises started from the spot Anne entered the keep and made its way down to the double doors.
As the noises grew louder, the prisoners grew tense with anticipation. Grips were made firmer, sights steadier, and wills steeled.
The door shuddered with a sudden whack, causing some to jump, then the sound of wood and iron scraping was heard. With another swift crack, the double doors burst open and a guard fell backwards through them, unconscious.
Anne ran across the threshold, bullets following in her wake. She gripped her left bicep with her right hand, and blood dripped in a thin stream from her forehead down her cheek.
Edward ran to Anne and held her against his diminished frame. "Charge!" he yelled.
The prisoners with Edward ran into the thick of battle, catching the guards unawares. The mass of greasy-haired and dirt-caked people yelled as they travelled up and down the spiral staircase in the first part of the keep.
"Are you well?" Edward asked of Anne, still gripping her tightly.
"Yes, I am fine Edward," Anne replied, pushing him away. She released her right hand and examined the wound, which was still seeping blood.
William too examined both sides of the wound before ripping off a strip of his tattered shirt and wrapping it tightly over Anne's forearm. "The bullet cleared through the other side, so you will not require surgery."
"Good. Now, Edward, we must quickly retrieve your belongings from the warden and free more prisoners to our cause."
"Agreed, but are you sure you're well? Will you be able to continue?"
"I will manage. Let us secure your freedom."
Edward, his musket in hand, advanced into the spiral tower heading up the right side of the staircase. The sounds of battle could be heard from below, and silence above. Upon moving to the next level, Edward was met with seven prisoners and, thanks to Anne's efforts, three unconscious guards.
This level had several arrow slits and weapon stores for a siege, as well as the wooden opening Anne used to enter and a large pile of rocks. Another staircase led to the roof, with arrow slits along the wall. To Edward's right, the west door leading to the warden's office stood undisturbed.
"Beyond is the warden's dining chambers and holding chamber for new prisoners. A stone enclosure on the left is the warden's office."
"Yes, I remember well when I was first brought here. That was the last time I saw the sun and the sea." Edward approached the door and touched the ring-shaped handle.
"Wait!" Anne yelled. "What are you doing? Guards are no doubt beyond the door, waiting for someone to open it."
"Yes, of course I considered that, Anne," Edward said, puffing up his chest.
Anne smirked, her brow raised.
"Alright, I didn't," Edward admitted, his head held down in shame. "But this is the only way through."
"Yes, well, we should force the guards to fire at nothing, then retaliate when they are reloading." Anne turned to the group of prisoners standing around. "Clear out of the way unless you want to be shot." The men complied with Anne's request without a word. Anne, William, Sam, Charles and Edmond all moved to the sides.
Anne nodded to Edward, and he waited for the company to assert their readiness. Edward swiftly opened the door and pulled until his back was against the wall. A barrage of bullets flashed past, lasting for all of two seconds.
After a silent moment, the prisoners retaliated and shot the guards in the room. Many were behind cover of one piece of furniture or another, but three foolish enough to be in the open were the first to fall. As Edward was about to take his shot he saw a man sticking a linstock into a large cannon.
The iron cannonball burst from the cannon, clipping a prisoner on the chin, snapping his neck, before crashing into the wall of the tower and sending stone chunks flying.
Blood splattered on Edward's face before he kicked the door closed, and bullets rained on it for a full minute. Edward looked at the dead man's body, blood draining from his neck and pooling on the stone. Edward didn't want to think on how that easily could have been him. "Did anyone get a good look at the room? We need to disable the cannon before the guards reload."
Above the sound of the guns being fired, the prisoners shouted descriptions of what they saw. "Near abouts twenty men, less three." "Table 'n chairs." "Tapestries." "A chandelier," Anne yelled last.
"What's a chandelier?" Edward asked.
"A chandelier is a large decorative candle holder hanging from the ceiling."
"How large is it, where is it situated, and what is holding it up?"
Anne closed her eyes to picture the scene. "The size is five to ten feet at its widest, located in the centre of the room above a long table with marines on either side, and held on an iron chain with a metal clasp."
"Do you think a musket shot could break the clasp?"
"I suppose so."
Edward turned to William and handed him his loaded musket. "Can I count on you? I know taking the time to aim is a big risk, but you're the best shooter we have aside from Anne."
"Hey! I resent that," Sam ranted, his and William's rivalry apparently still intact after a year of separation.
William, always sparing in his use of words, simply nodded, providing as firm an answer as any man could give. Edward did not doubt William's ability to complete the task in the slightest.
"Once the chandelier drops I want you to run in and shoot every last one of those guards. Understood?" Edward's question was met with loud grunts, which he took for agreement. Edward held the handle and, with a swift tug, pulled the door open.
No blast of bullets came as before, and in that second of hesitation William took his chance. He rolled forward and landed on one knee with his musket aimed high. He took one short but deep breath as his eyes locked onto the metal clasp holding the chandelier, and his arms followed immediately afterwards.
William shot his musket. The guards returned fire. The clasp of the chandelier broke, and the ostentatious candle holder fell. The seven guards around the table looked up a second too late. The crystal and gold smashed the table, sending shards of crystal and pieces of wood everywhere. The ends of the table shot up in the air, hitting a guard on the chin. The table collapsed to the ground with a thud.
Edward jumped into the room, using the confusion to his advantage, and let loose a pistol shot, hitting a guard in the stomach. The guard manning the cannon left his station and slashed at Edward with a sword. Edward jumped out of the way and kicked the man in the groin. The man doubled over and fell to the floor. Edward drew his sword and thrust it into the guard's back. The man let out a painful gasp of air before a death rattle.
When Edward turned around, the room was cleared. Bodies of guards littered the floor, their weapons strewn about, but three of the prisoners had also died.
Edward saw the large table split in twain, with one half upended from the broken chandelier. Opposite where Edward had entered, a door led to the west side of the castle. The warden's room was on the left wall, the wooden door closed.
Edward gave the door a kick. The door shook from the force, but didn't open. With the exertion from fighting, Edward was already out of breath and sweating.
"Sam!" Edward leaned on a chair. "Get the door, would you?"
Sam settled Charles in a chair. "Ye may be me captain, but I ain't yer servant."
"Open the door, Sam."
Sam, pistol in hand, reared back his leg and thrust it at the door. The door busted off its hinges and fell into the room. Sam entered the room, pistol forward, but he couldn't see anyone.
"I think the warden jumped ship." Sam laughed.
Edward entered the ro
om. Boxes, shelves, and barrels full of prisoner belongings filled the walls. Papers, weapons, clothing, and other miscellaneous oddities plagued the small room, demanding space. A table in the centre of the room was full of peculiar items as well, with a lit candle and stacks of papers with quill and ink to the side.
"I didn't see the warden running," Edward said as he glanced about. "He's mad, but not a coward."
"Right you are, my boy," a voice rang from behind him.
Before Edward could react his golden sword was pulled in front of him and racing towards his neck. Edward's instincts kicked in and he grabbed the arm holding the sword, stopping the advance. Edward's other arm was bent behind his back, and the person attacking him forced Edward into the corner of the room.
The warden of the castle prison, Warden Balastiere, was the one now holding Edward's life in the balance. "I caught ye, caught ye good I did," the warden taunted in a manic, crazed voice.
3. The Great Escape
The warden rested his head on Edward's shoulder.
Sam, Anne, and Henry instantly tensed with the sudden turn of events and pulled their weapons on the pair. Those in the dining chambers approached to catch a glimpse of the scene unfolding. Edward stood stock still, the warden at his back, his hands held up to stop his friends from shooting.
"Get off him!" Henry yelled.
The warden laughed and shook his head wildly like the madmen he imprisoned. "No, no, no, that won't do. Cannot do that. No. I'm the warden, see? I issue orders here." The warden's breath was hot on Edward's ear. "I tricked you. All these years, playing the fool in front of you prisoners, for this payoff. You would not believe the delight I'm feeling…"
The thunder from Anne's pistol rebounded in the small room. The bullet sped through the warden's forehead. He collapsed in a heap off of Edward's back.
The crew and prisoners first glanced at the source of the sound, then to the warden as he fell, and then back to Anne and the smoking pistol. Everyone stared at Anne with shocked expressions, most notably Edward.
"What?" Anne said with a shrug. "He kept prattling on and on. We do not have time for such nonsense. And besides, the hostage trick is old." Anne turned and left the room. "We have what we need, let's move on."
Blackbeard's Revenge (Voyages Of Queen Anne's Revenge Book 2) Page 3
