As the events of the next few hours transpired, Captain Rob McGregor's luck went from bad to worse. He had never known a day like it in all his life. It had started that morning with such promise and success, but then progressively turned itself into the second worst day of his life. A day of hell.
It was as if their raid on Puerto Bello de la Cruz had been an attack on the devil himself, and now Beelzebub was exacting his revenge. Slowly and painfully.
At 8.00 p.m. Captain Rob had watched as the third ship in his fleet, the Eagle, had been capsized by a train of large waves and then sunk before his eyes, with all hands and another quarter of the treasure.
Almost immediately afterwards, Captain Rob had heard the devil himself laughing in the stormy winds, and then the topsail of the rear mast had ripped from top to bottom leaving them wallowing hopelessly in the fiercest storm that anyone in the world had ever witnessed.
Hailstones, lightning, and even snow started to rain down on them from above, driven by unimaginably strong winds that would have ripped any remaining sails off, had the Sea Dancer still got any on its masts.
And just when Rob was convinced that the weather could not deteriorate any further, the storm got worse.
Gusting winds, faster and more powerful that anything he had ever experienced before, began to rake across the ocean, and the lightning and thunder intensified until the dark night around them was almost as bright as day.
Waves the size of mountains began to run in front of them, leaving gaping holes in their wake that the Sea Dancer fell and crashed down into, before being mercifully picked up and spat back out onto the next wave behind it.
No longer did the Sea Dancer dance across the ocean. Instead, inside the hull of the great ship, men were bailing water with any utensil they could find, fighting with every ounce of energy they had to scoop out seawater and rain, and trying to keep their vessel afloat and stop it from joining the others from their fleet in Davey Jones' Locker.
Hour after hour the men fought against what began to seem the inevitable and soon they tired, ...and with the tiredness and fatigue came talk of a curse.
"It's all Captain Rob's fault. It were his idea to attack Captain Kidd and to steal his treasure. And now Captain Kidd has asked the devil himself to find and destroy us. We're doomed!"
As the winds intensified, the temperature dropped and snow began to lie on the ships planking, an event which was unheard of by any pirate in the Caribbean in living memory. At the sight of the snow, some men began to succumb to fear and started to talk of throwing their treasure overboard to get rid of the curse.
"Captain McGregor broke the Pirate Code and has angered the gods! We're all going to die! Quick, throw the treasure over the side. It's cursed!"
A gang of men crossed the ship and hurried down the ladders with the intention of going below and ridding the ship of the gold and silver they had stolen from Kidd, but Captain McGregor intercepted them.
Captain McGregor followed shortly after them. A short fight commenced, in which Captain McGregor re-established calm by killing the main protagonist with a thrust of his cutlass to the man's chest. As the man lay dying McGregor recognised him as Seaman Sharpe, the sailor they had rescued from the Albatross earlier that morning.
Captain McGregor knew that the situation on board was deteriorating and that now the whiff of fear and the supernatural had entered the minds of those on board, something drastic had to be done to restore the rule of order before all was lost, and chaos reigned.
He grabbed the second man who had stood with Sharpe as they had gone for the treasure, and recognising him as another from the crew of the Albatross, he dragged him topside onto the snowy deck. The others followed.
Soon, in spite of the terrible weather, the word had spread and all the seamen were mustered on deck. "There's going to be a walking!" they shouted amongst themselves, spreading the word.
Addressing the crew with a speech in such conditions was difficult: the roar of the wind was too loud, and the tossing of the ship in the storm meant that what would follow had to be a short affair, not a show that lasted long. It had to be short, sweet and effective, putting into their hearts a greater fear of their Captain than of the gods above whom they had never met.
Captain Rob was a tall and powerful man. Few men were stronger than him, especially not the Master Gunner of the Albatross, who at five foot four was a good six inches shorter that Captain Rob. Captain Rob him held him easily in his arms as he dragged him up into the center of the men who then circled around him, in fear and anticipation.
Some had already watched the Captain run Sharpe through below decks, and they had smelt blood.
Momentarily at least, the focus was no longer the storm. All eyes were on Captain Rob.
"Men of the Sea Dancer, ye listen close now. Ye all know me to be a fair man, and a good Captain. You bastards elected me to lead you, and lead you I will! Today I will make you rich beyond your wildest dreams! That I promise you!...But, ye all know that I will stand no disobedience in my crew. None whatsoever. Do as I say, or answer to my rules: obey and prosper, or mutiny and die! Are there any other mutinous bastards aboard my ship who do not agree to my rules?" Captain Rob shouted at the top of his voice, his eyes searching the pirates around him, looking for any further signs of dissent or disobedience.
As he turned around, looking at those circled around him, all eyes avoided direct contact. Except one.
James Silver stood on the edge of the circle, looking on, thinking.
He was as scared as any man on board, shivering in the cold, tired, and hungry, yet his mind was crystal clear. An opportunity was presenting itself here where, if he was brave and clever, he could stand against the Captain, seek the crew's support, and if he won it, overthrow the Captain and take his place.
James Silver scanned the crew around him, quickly appraising the situation. It was a chance. The men were superstitious and scared: if he promised them certainty of salvation they may step over to him. He knew he could count on at least ten of the men to favour him, but that was not enough to be sure of success.
But what if he was elected? Would he be able to navigate them through the storm with no sails? Silver knew that the Captain was a better sailor than he himself was, and he also knew that his own personal chances of survival would be better if Captain McGregor was to continue his leadership.
No, for sure, this was a chance, but others would come. At another time, in another place.
James Silver blinked, and wiped some melting snow away from his face. He looked up and saw that all eyes and the Captain were staring directly at him. James Silver looked back, wondering if the Captain had read his mind and discerned his intentions.
"Mr Silver," he shouted. "Hurry up man! Lest we all freeze to death! Bring me some iron! Mr Mate, a yard of ripped sail, if ye will! And Mr Nail, set a plank of yer wood over the side. And make it fast!"
Realizing that the Captain did not show any signs of having read his thoughts, James Silver hurried below decks with another pirate and returned with two large cannon balls. They pushed their way into the center of the circle, and dropped the two balls into the square of old canvas sail that the Mate had cut and lain on the deck. Quickly they wrapped the canvas around the balls and tied it up with some line, fastening the other end of two yards of line to the left leg of the prisoner from the Albatross. Meanwhile Mr Nail, the ship's carpenter, had brought a long length of birch planking up from below decks and was now sliding it out from the center rail to form a gangway over the port side of the ship.
The Gunner from the Albatross was screaming now, and striving to wrestle himself free of the grip of the Captain, but to no avail. Captain Rob's grip clamped him firmly in place.
"Men," he shouted aloud." This is no time for a long speech, or a jury. This man stood with Mr Sharpe and sought to throw your treasure over board to appease the gods. Make no mistake, aboard this ship, you obey no one else but me. If it is God's will, it is I who will deliver you saf
ely back to port, and no other. I find this man guilty of mutiny and I pass sentence. Watch and witness the execution of my judgement!"
With that, the Captain hoisted the man to his feet and dragged him to the edge of the boat, Silver and Mr Nail carrying the sail and the cannon balls behind him.
Captain McGregor jumped up onto the section of the plank that hung over the inside of the ship and the men gasped, some reaching forward to grab him, scared that in the tumultuous seas he might fall forwards along the plank and overboard, but the Captain brushed them away.
In a single movement he reached down and grabbed the condemned sailor, hoisting him up by his arms and putting him on the plank in front of him nearest the gunwales and the edge of the ship. The man was screaming, tears streaming down his face.
Captain McGregor pulled out his cutlass from his belt and prodded the man in his abdomen, cutting the flesh beneath his coat, and drawing some blood. The man stumbled backwards along the plank, away from the cutlass, Silver and Mr Nail following on the deck and carrying the canvas sail and the cannon balls closer to the edge of the gunwales.
The ship lurched in the storm and the man staggered backwards towards the Captain, falling off the plank and back onto the deck. The pirates nearest him stepped backwards, leaving him to sprawl on the snow covered wooden planking. Again Captain McGregor reached down and once more hoisted him up in his arms and set him down on the plank, closer this time to the edge of the ship.
"Walk or be sliced open by my blade!" Captain McGregor shouted, reaching forward to prod the man one more time.
The man looked up at Captain Rob, the terror in his eyes obvious even in the dark night. Captain Rob realised that the man was incapable of thought, of choosing between a death by cutlass or drowning, so he prodded him again with his cutlass, this time slicing open his coat, through his tunic and vests and exposing the flesh beneath.
The gunner stepped backwards from the Captain, his arms flaying wildly as he sought to maintain balance on the slippery plank of wood. He stood now directly on the edge of the gunwale, with one foot on the inside of the boat, and the other on the outside, only a three inch piece of wood separating him from the air and the waves beneath.
Captain McGregor looked down at James Silver and nodded. Mr Nail and Silver then reached out and placed the canvas containing the cannon balls on the edge of the plank beyond the gunner's feet.
Inside the canvas, one of the cannon balls began to roll towards the edge of the plank on which it now sat.
The gunner saw the movement and panicked, bending down away from the ship to try and catch the ball before it rolled off the edge of the plank. In that moment, the ship rolled back into a trough on the port side of the ship, and the sailor stumbled forward, losing his balance and falling down onto the plank, desperately scrambling for a grip. One leg slipped over the edge, and his body fell over the side, just as his arms managed to wrap themselves around the edge of the plank.
For a second he hung half suspended in mid air, one leg dangling in the air, the other still lying on the plank. Then the first of the cannon balls in the canvas bag rolled over the edge, pulling the canvas and the other cannon ball behind it.
The weighted bag fell down towards the waves beneath, the line stretching out behind it as it went, until when fully extended it whipped tight and forcibly yanked the gunner clear of the plank, his fingers grasping at thin air as he fell.
His scream lasted but a second, and was swallowed by the wind. One moment he was there, and the next he was gone, sinking fast beneath the waves. Another life claimed by the curse of Kidd's treasure.
The Captain jumped back down onto the deck and shouted once more at his men.
"Let that be the last of such rough discipline amongst my men. The matter is now closed. The hour is now late, the storm is far from over, and we have a long night ahead of us. Abide with me my men, and I shall deliver ye to safe shores. This much I promise you. Fear not of sinister things and talk no longer of curses and bad luck. This storm is of nature's making and has nowt to do with any curse from the treasure of Captain Kidd. Together we will ride this storm out, and together we will survive. I am your Captain and this much I promise you!"
As Captain Rob said the last of his words, he raised his cutlass aloft, pointing it at the heavens.
Whether by coincidence or divine intention, at that same moment in time, a bright fork of lightning jumped upwards from the top of the mast and reached up to the sky and clouds above.
The men gasped, and James Silver stared aloft.
What trickery was this?
Captain Rob McGregor saw the lightning and acted immediately.
"See men, it is an omen. We will be delivered! By God's will, I will lead us to safety!"
As he spoke, forks of lightning started to dance along the yardarms, sparking from their tips and the tops of the masts and bursting skyward in a display of light and power that left the men below struck dumb with wonder.
Below on the deck, Captain Rob McGregor showed no sign of fear. He knew not what this display of nature meant, but he was certain of one thing: it was a natural phenomena of the storm and had no devilish or supernatural connection. He knew immediately that he could turn this to their favour.
"See men, observe how the lightning jumps from our ship and to the sky! No lightning shall strike us, for we are protected from the lightning of the storm. It is an omen. Do not fear, for we shall be saved! This is the sign!"
The mood on the ship quickly changed. The snow and rain had ceased and a sense of relief and excitement spread throughout the men. Captain Rob and James Silver sensed it themselves, the hairs on their arms and faces quite literally rising and tingling in the air.
Around them on the deck, some of the men began to laugh, as the hair on their heads began to rise and spread out, pointing skyward like the bristles on a porcupine.
Suddenly the strong winds around them dropped and ceased altogether. The sails stopped flapping and the roar of the wind disappeared. The men stood around on the deck, gaping at each other, speechless.
A moment later the ship started to settle in the water and the seas calmed, the waves around them abating and becoming as small as anyone would normally expect to see in an ocean on a fair day.
Suddenly a bright light from above lit the deck, and one of the men shouted, pointing skyward. "The moon! I can see the moon! The sky is clear! The storm has vanished! The Captain has saved us!"
All eyes were turned skyward, including the Captain's and those of James Silver. A cheer went up from the men, and even James Silver joined in.
Captain McGregor raised his arm, waving his cutlass in salute to the moon.
Above them there was clear sky, the stars above sparkling around a full moon in the night sky, with moonshine illuminating them so brightly that it almost felt like day!
Some of the men on deck began to dance a jig, but it was short-lived as they slipped on the melting snow and others landed on top of them, laughing.
In a second, the fear had gone.
Captain Rob walked away from the center of the men where he still stood, ascended to the quarterdeck and walked over to the stern.
The pirates on the deck were still singing, laughing and clapping hands, their relief at their deliverance from the storm taking over their senses and making them behave more like babes than men.
One of the men shouted "Three cheers for Cap'n Rob!", and all the men followed with three loud, raucous cheers.
The men believed that Captain Rob had delivered them from the storm. That, thanks to him, God had saved them all: but Captain Rob was sure of one thing -a miracle had just happened. A miracle that was not of his making or had anything to do with him.
A sense of elation began to rise within him, a warmth that spread slowly throughout his body, until even the corners of his lips began to curl upwards into a smile.
He lifted the hat off his head, threw back his head and laughed, looking upwards at the mo
on.
Now that his eyes were accustomed to the light, it was then that he saw that truly, God had performed a miracle to save their lives.
As God had parted the Red Sea for Moses, so now had God parted the storm for them, providing safe seas on which to sail.
For as Captain Rob McGregor looked at the sky above, he realised that the whole sky was not clear. Only a portion of it. It was as if a round hole had been punched in the storm, and they were looking up through a massive porthole at the sky above.
Looking around, Rob saw that around the edges of this porthole, a circular wall of dark cloud fell vertically from the sky above to the sea below.
Captain Rob and the Sea Dancer were sitting in the middle of a vast tunnel of clear air that rose from the sea to the heavens above, the storm being held back by an invisible force that God had put in place to protect the Sea Dancer and give it clear passage.
Captain Rob was not a religious man, and he had not prayed since the death of his wife, when he had held her in his arms as she had expired from the plague, passing from this life to the next. Since that day, Rob had turned his back on God, filled with anger, and confusion.
But now, in this moment of divine intervention, in the face of a miracle larger and more impressive even than the one that God sent to Moses himself, Captain Rob McGregor bowed his head, closed his eyes, and said three words.
"Thank you, Lord."