Era of a Red Sky

by Ryan Gilbert

  Above the platform, a wooden arch reached even higher into the air. Beneath that arch hung three nooses, each ominously swaying in the breeze. Once he laid eyes on the loop of rope, Riggs felt the fear overtake him. He had never felt that scared in his entire life. In that second, the entire gravity of his situation hit him square in the chest.

  If his plan failed, this was suicide.

  Behind the pirate captain, the Hamonds watched as he frantically looked around the courtyard. Riggs looked like he was searching for something, but what he was searching for, they had no idea. Even as they were led straight to the bottom steps of the gallows, the Captain still peered around the courtyard, ignoring the jeering directed at him.

  He was focused.

  Or at least, he was trying.

  His hands fidgeted with the shackles at his wrists, almost like he was nervous.

  Each step felt like a boulder had been tied to their feet. The three prisoners plodded up the stairs, forced forward by the soldiers. As they reached the platform, they could see the full scope of what lay in front of them.

  Close to two dozen soldiers lined the walls of the fort, keeping watch over the proceedings. Nearly the entire fort was filled with people waiting to witness the hanging. Women fanned themselves as the men slowly ceased their jeering, bringing a hush over the area.

  Riggs, Matthew, and Catherine were pushed forward, soldiers leading them directly to where the individual nooses hung. The former commodore could see Admiral Carter standing at the far side of the courtyard, surrounded by his loyal officers. Soldiers were posted at every entryway, making sure that no one tried to interrupt the proceedings. The Hamonds had no idea how any escape plan would even work with that amount of Navy muskets waiting for them.

  As a noose was placed around each of their necks, Matthew saw a man holding several parchments walk across the front of the platform. Standing at the very edge, he unrolled the first parchment and started to speak.

  “Catherine Hamond, you have been found guilty of aiding a man convicted of piracy and treason against the Crown. As a result of your crimes, you have been condemned to hang by the neck until dead.”

  Matthew looked over at his wife, watching the tears streaming down her face. The situation was looking even more hopeless with each passing moment.

  The man unrolled the next parchment, proclaiming, “Matthew Hamond, you have been found guilty of aiding a man convicted of piracy, betraying the English Navy, conspiring against the Crown, several counts of murder, and treason against the Crown. As a result of your crimes, you have been condemned to hang by the neck until dead.”

  Hamond tried to sigh, but the rope around his neck barely let him do even that. The only one remaining was Riggs.

  “Robert Briggs, you have been found guilty of multiple counts of piracy, multiple counts of murder, multiple counts of theft, the destruction of several Navy ships, conspiring against the Crown, and treason. As a result of your crimes, you have been condemned to hang by the neck until dead.”

  As the man rolled up the parchment, a line of drums started playing, signaling the countdown to the execution. Hamond looked over at Riggs, expecting to see a hopeless pirate, resigned to his fate. Instead, what he saw was baffling.

  He saw a grin.

  The drums started to beat faster.

  The executioner reached for the lever, ready to drop the three through the trapdoors at their feet.

  Hamond closed his eyes.

  BANG

  CHAPTER SIX

  Hamond’s eyes opened wide as the shot rang out. There was a large thud as the executioner fell to the ground, a lead ball having buried itself in his chest.

  BANG BANG BANG

  Several more shots felled a couple soldiers, two of which careened down from the uppermost levels of the fort. Carter and his officers watched in confusion and disbelief as no one could tell what was happening.

  “Find them!” the Admiral yelled to the few soldiers standing in front of him.

  As Matthew watched, the soldiers took a couple steps forward, and then whipped their muskets around to aim at their commanding officer. As quickly as they could react, several of Carter’s men threw themselves in front of him, knocking him to the ground.

  B-B-BANG

  The shots rang out as one, killing several of the officers.

  Beside the Hamonds, Riggs felt his shackles unlock, and he tossed them to the ground. Ever since they had entered the courtyard, he had been trying to pick the locks with the tiny necklace of a cross that Julia had given him. With everyone watching, he had to keep it discreet, and it had worked.

  The instant that he removed the noose from his neck, a soldier ran up the steps to the platform, trying to stop him. Riggs ducked underneath the bayonet, grabbing the musket and bashing it into the man’s face. As the soldier tried to regain his senses, the Captain tossed the noose around his neck and kicked him in the back, knocking him off the back of the platform.

  Once he rushed over to the Hamonds, Riggs was bombarded with questions from Julia’s very confused father.

  “Were you planning this all along? How in the hell did you even manage to…”

  Quickly, Riggs shushed the former commodore.

  “I ain’t got time to explain. We just need to get out o’ here.”

  The entire fort was in a state of confusion. Soldiers were fighting with soldiers, trying to find out which ones were imposters. Shots whizzed through the air as the civilians tried to escape from the carnage. Few were able to get to the exits as the battle spilled into the entryways. Citizens were running scared, not knowing what soldiers to trust.

  On the platform, Riggs was just finishing releasing the Hamonds from their shackles. Matthew was free from the noose, hastily freeing his wife as the Captain unlocked the irons on her wrists.

  “Just follow me,” Riggs ordered, rushing over to the top of the stairs.

  As he started to head down the stairs, three soldiers started to climb them, blocking the way. The first instantly raised his musket, ready to fire at the escaping prisoners.

  BANG

  Riggs flinched as the soldier fell off the side of the stairs, blood spurting out of a hole in his head. Turning to see who had shot the soldier, Riggs saw a woman with black hair in the crowd holding a smoking pistol. The woman removed a large hat that had obscured her face, revealing the beautiful face of Julia Hamond.

  The two other soldiers that had run up the stairs stopped directly in front of Riggs. Both men were extremely familiar, especially when Riggs saw the eye patch over the one man’s eye.

  “Hurry up, Captain. We haven’t got much time,” said Coral Jack, handing his friend a sword.

  At Jack’s side, Eli took his own sword and tossed it to the former commodore. They were going to get out of there. A couple minutes ago, it had not seemed possible, but they were going to do it.

  As the scene in the courtyard fell into disarray, Riggs started to notice even more of his crew disguised as soldiers. They were all putting up a good fight, holding their own against the skill of the Navy. The attack had surprised them even more than Riggs had hoped.

  A soldier rushed at the pirate captain, trying to keep him and the Hamonds from escaping, but Riggs made short work of him. The man swung his sword at the pirate, but Riggs blocked it, bashing him in the face with the hilt and then running him through.

  Pointing to one of the entryways, Riggs said, “We’ll escape through there. Once we get into the town, there’s no way they’ll catch us.”

  The Captain waved his arm toward the escape route, hoping his crew would see it. Before long, Riggs’ friends had joined him by his side, hurrying through the frantic crowd of onlookers.

  They were all so close to freedom, they could feel it.

  All of a sudden, a squadron of soldiers stepped out from either side of the entryway, blocking the entire exit. Riggs, Julia, the Hamonds, and the crew skidded to a halt as the Navy soldiers leveled their weapons at the stampede of peop
le.

  “Halt,” the men ordered, to which only the civilians obeyed.

  The pirates rushed the other way, pushing through people. They knew that the Navy would not kill the people they were trying to protect. If they did not have a clear shot, there was no way they would attack.

  As the fleeing pirates looked around at the other entryways, they could see even more soldiers flooding into the fort. Their situation was starting to look dire.

  “Over there,” shouted Eli.

  There was one final entryway that did not have soldiers pouring through it. Instead, it was guarded by a stone-faced Admiral Carter.

  As the soldiers pushed through the crowd, one grabbed Riggs and Julia by their arms, nearly pulling them off balance. The girl gave the man a hard slap to the face and then punched him right in the nose with her freed hand.

  “Go get ‘em, Eli,” Riggs shouted as another soldier tried to grab him.

  With the Captain preoccupied, someone else had to lead the fugitives out of the fort. It was a perfect improvisation. With the carpenter leading the pack, Riggs was certain Eli could beat his father in a swordfight. If the Red Sky was waiting for them, there was no way they could not escape.

  Eli roughly pushed people aside, grabbing a sword from a fallen soldier. Holding it close to his body as he made his own path, he felt his fingers tingle as he saw his father’s face once again. Men and women hurried out of the pirates’ way, trying their best to stay alive.

  As a clear path opened up from him to his father, Eli raised his sword above his head, rushing at the Admiral. The entire crew followed behind him, eager to escape with their lives.

  The Admiral’s calmness was unsettling.

  Uncanny.

  Ominous.

  As soon as Eli was about a dozen yards away from his father, Carter pulled a pistol from his coat and took aim.

  BANG

  Riggs’ and Julia’s hearts skipped a beat. The entire crew skidded to a halt. At the head of the pack, Eli took several steps forward, starting to stumble with each step. As Riggs, Julia, and the crew watched, the sword fell from Eli’s hand, clattering on the ground.

  “Eli?” Riggs asked, frightened by what he was seeing.

  He just hoped it was not what he thought it was.

  Slowly turning around, Eli’s friends could see exactly what had happened. The front of the carpenter’s shirt was stained with oozing blood as his arms fell to his sides.

  “How could… he…” Eli stammered before he fell to the ground.

  As a squadron of soldiers spread across the entryway behind Carter, Riggs hurried to his friend’s side, followed by Julia and her parents. He seized his crewmate’s hand while Julia propped up his head.

  “Come on, mate. Stay with us,” begged Riggs as he tried to stop the bleeding.

  Eli’s grip on his captain’s hand was extremely weak, and it was getting weaker with each passing moment. Riggs looked to Julia and her parents to see if there was any way that they knew would help. Julia just solemnly shook her head.

  “There’s got to be somethin’ we can do,” he pleaded.

  “Riggs…”

  The carpenter’s fading voice drew his Captain back to him. Overcome with emotion, Riggs squeezed his friend’s hand tight, listening to whatever Eli would say.

  “What is it, mate?” he asked.

  “T-tell Maggie… I… I love her.”

  In a great deal of pain, Eli turned himself over on his side, looking over at his father… his murderer… one last time. Resting his hand on the fallen sword, he tried to curl his fingers around it, but he had no remaining strength.

  “Rot… in… Hell…” Eli rasped at his father.

  With that, Eli let out one last, long breath and fell limp. His body crumpled on the ground, like someone had just knocked him unconscious.

  Only this was not just a loss of consciousness.

  It was a loss of life.

  Eli Carter was dead.

  When Riggs looked up from the body of his dead friend, he saw Admiral Carter motion towards the pirates, sending his soldiers to seize them. He did not even seem to acknowledge that he had just shot and killed his own son.

  “Clap them in irons, men… and this time, make sure to watch them very closely,” the Admiral ordered.

  “Carter, you heartless bastard!” growled Hamond, pulling back against the soldiers that held him, “He was your own flesh and blood.”

  “He forfeited that when he decided to sail under a pirate flag.”

  Soldiers tore Riggs away from Eli’s body, keeping the Captain from doing anything further. As the shackles were once again locked over his wrists, he could feel a tear run down his cheek. Reaching his hand to his face, Riggs felt the little droplet of water, running in between his fingers. Suddenly, the grief that he felt was replaced with an undeniable rage.

  He would kill Admiral Carter one way or another.

  The Captain lurched forward, his hands outstretched as he reached for the Navy officer’s throat. Instantly, he was met with the butt end of a musket to his face. He fell to his knees, his lip bloodied.

  With his usual calm demeanor, Admiral Carter strode forward. Without any regard for his dead son’s body, he stepped over it and stood over his recaptured and newly captured prisoners. He certainly looked satisfied with himself.

  “Well, Captain Riggs, did you really think you could outsmart me? You and your pathetic crew are nothing compared to the might and ingenuity of the Navy. Did you really think you could escape? I knew that you would try in some way to rescue my disgraced commodore. All I needed to do was wait.”

  Riggs was far too angry for a witty retort.

  “I’m goin’ to kill you, ye bastard,” he snarled.

  Leaning down so he was at Riggs’ eye level, Carter said, “Oh I highly doubt that.”

  Turning to his men, the Admiral said, “Resume the executions.”

  The crew could do little to stop what was happening. Carter had baited them all into a trap. Riggs had been so certain that they could escape. The Admiral was just plain unbelievable, both in his cunning and his ferocity. The soldiers pushed and prodded the pirates into a small clump over by the stairway to the gallows. Every single pirate looked up at the nooses with fear, their hope gradually withering away.

  A small crowd of onlookers gathered in the center of the courtyard, cautious as to what was happening. Moments ago, the pirates had been running rampant, and the power shift was so sudden that they almost did not know what to make of it.

  “You may take a breath now, ladies and gentlemen. The crisis has been averted,” announced Admiral Carter.

  Turning back to the pirates, he said to the onlookers, “All of these men and women will pay for their crimes against the Crown and against you.”

  *snap* *thunk*

  Everyone turned their heads just in time to see one of the nooses snap, dropping the hanging soldier to the ground. Without even a change of emotion on his face, the Admiral said to two of his officers, “Check on him. See if he is still breathing.”

  There were only two nooses remaining.

  As he stood in front of the pirates, Carter said, “By the end of the day, not a single one of you will escape the wrath of the hangman’s noose. Now comes the part where I decide which of you will be the first.”

  Walking down the line of criminals, Carter stood directly in front of each of them, gauging their reactions. Julia was still in shock, her eyes focused on where Eli’s corpse lay. Riggs was shaking in anger, kept at bay by the muskets aimed at him. Coral Jack took a tiny step backward as the Admiral moved closer to him. Catherine was holding tightly to her husband, as much as her shackles would allow. Matthew was the only one who seemed to be calm.

  Before the Admiral could move down the line any further, Hamond said, “I have something to say.”

  “If you have something to say, then speak it,” ordered Carter.

  Hamond shook his head, motioning for his superior to step closer.
To his surprise, Carter did.

  Using all of his remaining strength and speed, Hamond bashed his forehead against Carter’s face. He could hear a crack as the Navy officer stumbled backward, holding his broken nose. Hastily wrenching himself and his wife over to where Riggs and Julia stood, Hamond knew he did not have much time.

  In a hurried voice, he said, “If you can escape, whatever you do, don’t come back for us.”

  “What?” asked a frightened Julia, her eyes already starting to shimmer.

  Holding his daughter’s face in his hands for what could possibly be the last time, Matthew said, “You’ve become so much more than I could have ever hoped for you. I love you so much, Julia.”

  Behind them, Carter was frantically waving at his soldiers, shrieking at them to grab the prisoners. Watching the blood trickle down the disfigured face of the Admiral, the pirates could see him seething in anger.

  “No,” said Julia in disbelief, “No, both of you are coming with us. We’re going to get out of here.”

  Before the soldiers could grab her, Catherine gave her daughter one last hug, holding her close and tight.

  “We love you so much, Julia,” she wept, tears streaking down the dust and grime on her face.

  “I love you both too,” the girl said as an almost instinctive reaction. However, this time, there would not be a next time.

  Several soldiers seized the Hamonds, yanking them away from their daughter. Julia screamed in panic, reaching out to her parents to try to grab their hands, but Riggs and several of his crewmembers held her back.

  As the soldiers dragged them toward the steps, Matthew shouted to Riggs, “Take care of my daughter.”

  The pirate captain could only nod his head as he bit down on his bloody lip, watching the heartbreaking scene unfold. It did not even feel real. As he held Julia tightly in his arms, he could hear her frantic cries echoing in his ears. He could feel her tears dripping onto his chest and arms as her father and mother were led to the hangman’s noose.

  With Carter leading the way, the soldiers dragged Matthew and Catherine to the positions of the damned. Within seconds, the nooses were wrapped tight around the Hamonds’ necks as they looked back at their daughter for the last time.