Hong Kong Young Writers Anthologies Fiction Group 2 -1 2019 | Page 23

The Ming Treasure Fleet Chinese International School, Wells, Amelia - 8 “WOOSH! CRASH!” Waves smacked against the Ming Treasure fleet as they voyaged across the coast of the Caribbean. I woke with a start. There was obviously a mighty storm going on. “Close all the doors, exits and trapdoors!” the captain barked. “Roll up the sails!” “Captain Bossypants” I murmured. I was still groggy from sleep as I pulled off my covers. I took my PJs off and blindly reached into the drawer. As I put on my dirty sailor clothes and climbed out of the bottom of the ship, I was splattered with rain. “Another day stuck on the the same boring old tattered boat” I thought, as I pulled myself up the creaky old stairway. I stared at the ocean. Waves were crashing and bumping against our ship. Suddenly, I heard the captain scream at me” WHAT ARE YOU DOING RYDER ?! THE WAVES WILL BE HERE ALL DAY, HURRY UP AND PATCH THE HULL WITH TAR!” “But---” I began. “Not buts except your’s in the hull working! Now get to work!” he screeched. I stomped down to the hull and began to patch up the leaks with tar. By the time I got back up to the deck, the storm had passed and I was totally covered in sticky, hot black tar. “Ryder! Go patch the sails. They have rips that won’t sew themselves!” “But--- “ I began again, feeling like the captain didn’t care about me. But before I argued back, I thought about losing my job on the ship and dealing with my brothers and sisters stealing my toy ships. “Fine“ I moaned. I climbed up the chilling metal poles that lead to the tattered old sail with the Yin and Yang on it. “Careful up there! If those sails break you’re paying for them!” the captain ordered. “Yes Captain” I mumbled. I gazed at the horizon, I saw another ship. It looked like a ship from the fleet but this one had black sails and a mossy green body. I looked at the ship again just as a cannon flew towards us from the ship. BAM! The whole ship shook as the cannon hit us. I felt unsure on the mast so I went down to main deck. As the ship drew nearer and nearer, I saw pirates swing across to our ship. As the pirates swung across and shot our newly patched hull, it caused our ship to sink. Before I had time to run to the getaway boats, I noticed half the crew were repatching the hull with the tar. More and more enemy pirates swung over to our ship and started stealing the precious treasures which were meant to be delivered to Malaysia. Suddenly, their captain swung across and landed with a THUD. He was evil and wore a mossy green trench coat, black tunic and dirty leather boots. I screamed and screamed but my desperate screams for help were drowned out by a booming voice “OH!! QUIT BEING A BABY, YOU REALLY NEED TO LEARN HOW FIGHT.’ I gulped. I had never ever fought a pirate before, so I ducked under some water barrels.