CHAPTER 5: IC - At Sea > Panama to Australia

[Job]

9:15 p.m. (ship time) – Sunday, 24th September, 1933

As the sun dropped below the horizon on September twenty-fourth, the now-calm waters of the Pacific reflected a riot of colors from the sky: brilliant golds, pinks, reds, through turquiose greens and deep blues.

A few hours later, The SS Gabrielle was happily cruising along at a steady eleven knots when, suddenly, the engines went silent and a moment later, the ship's horn blasted loudly three times: the signal for All Hands On Deck!

Expedition team members began emerging from their cabins and the messes to find out what was happening. The ship's crew could be seen hurriedly filing from their areas onto the main deck.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Job. (the tortured one)

[Mr. Handy]

"Thank you, sir!" says Katie, grinning broadly and shaking Professor Moore's hand. "I look forward to proving my worth."

When she hears the call, Katie hurries up on deck to see what's going on.

[Anatomist]

Øyvind that was attending to one of the dogs securured the cages and ran up to main deck as fast he could, grabbing his flashlight.

[Anatomist]

George Barrow rose his head from the biology book he had between his hands when the horn blasted realizing that he did not feel the engines any longer. 'What in Gods name is it now...'

[royya]

Father Rucker hopes it is not connected to what Peter told him. He goes to the deck.

[taokan]

Camille blinked and blinked again, frowning, fingers closing around a cracked fob watch with a jerk. This... was probably not a good sign. Though it was possible, she decided as she made her way up to the deck, that there was some other explanation for this that went beyond "we're all going to die," or "I hope you lot know how to swim." There weren't that many that immediately came to mind, but Camille had never backed away from the occasional bit of healthy self-delusion if the occasion called for it, and it was an entertaining way to keep herself occupied on the way, rather than the wild speculation that she would otherwise have been engaged in.

Maybe it was a test. Or maybe drinking was involved -a lot of drinking- and everything would be fine. They'd laugh about it later. Right. Of course they wouldn't --Starkweather laughing? honestly-- but she really had been enjoying the notion of not being in mortal peril for the duration of the boat ride --the boat ride, mind, she wasn't that deluded, constant mortal peril being one of the chief descriptors for Antarctica-- and if she was going to die an ignominious death in the middle of the ocean without even having got to Antarctica... Well. Drunkenness was something she could handle, could see and smell and understand. Preferable indeed to some of the things she knew could happen to a crew out in the middle of the ocean.

[Job]

As the explorers arrive out on deck that night, they find that the Gabrielle's external spotlights are all trained on the ship's bow. There, brilliantly lit in the glare of the lamps, a lone figure appears in a swirl of water and strides toward the bridge.

The man is elaborately costumed in a fanciful frogged coat and lots of ribbons and gold and silver leaf, his long green wig pulled back in an ancient-looking tarred braid.

The strange man turns to one of the sailors, "Ho, Shellback! Permission to come aboard, in His Majesty's name?"


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Job. (the tortured one)

[Mr. Handy]

Katie looks in wonder at the stranger dressed like someone from another century. "The British are coming, the British are coming," she quips to Camille.

[Túrin Turambar]

James stands silently and wonders for a moment if this might be some odd historical re-enactment. Maybe some late goodbye ceremony?

[Anatomist]

Øyvind looks at George that by coincidence stands besides him saying in norwegian 'Hva i all helvete skjer' George looks at him not understanding a word he said, but surely understanding Øyvind's "im not understanding anything" face.

[Job]

The sailor grins and shouts, "Why, 'tis Davy Jones himself! Welcome aboard, Sir!"


The strange-looking man sniffs disdainfully, then replies, "Thank you. Where may I find your captain?"

The sailor points up towards the bridge, "Yonder, Sir. He awaits your pleasure."

Davy Jones strides forcefully towards the bridge. He is clutching a battered leather folio to his chest; as he walks he looks neither left nor right, his eyes set on the bridge the whole time. At one stage during his journey, Øyvind Raknes and George Barrow find themselves standing in the way, looking confused, and Jones hardly pauses but bellows in a stentorian voice, “You there! Make way for the King’s Messenger!”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Job. (the tortured one)

[taokan]

Lines furrowed across Camille's brow as she watched the man --she flat-out refused to call him by that stupid name, even inside the privacy of her own head-- make his way across the deck. "Huh." she said slowly, lips quirked in an expression that couldn't seem to decide if it was a smile. "You know, this seems rather unfair. I haven't come within fifty paces of a decent scotch in weeks, and yet here I stand, watching... Whatever this is. Tell me, do stowaway thespians come before or after the magical elephants that no one else can see?"

[Mr. Handy]

"He didn't stow away exactly," says Katie, staring at the bizarre apparition, "but I see him too and I haven't had a drop either. I haven't seen any magical elephants yet, so I guess they come after this. This has got to be some kind of trick. Look, the sailor's obviously in on it."

[Anatomist]

“You there! Make way for the King’s Messenger!”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Job. (the tortured one)

Øyvind and George looks at each other and stands aside 'Du er rar' says Øyvind while George chuckles a bit taking a bow for the man

[Job]

Davy Jones strides past the crew members along the main deck and up the stairway to the bridge--and is trailed by a parade of onlookers who follow in his wake. There on the bridge, he is met by Captain Vredenburgh and the Officer of the Watch, Second Officer Ballard.


The captain does not look at all surprised, saying, "Greetings, Davy Jones."

"My congratulations to you, Captain. Some few years since I saw you."

Vredenburgh nods, "Yes, it was aboard the SS Selandia."

Davy Jones takes a document from the portfolio, "I have a summons to you from His Majesty, Neptunus Rex."

"I will be glad to receive it."

With an exaggerated flourish, Jones pulls a scroll from the folio, unrolls it, and reads it aloud to all assembled: "Ahem. SS Gabrielle, on entering the domain of His Majesty, Neptunus Rex, take notice. It having come to our attention that various landlubbers are present in your vessel, all undoubtedly guilty of heinous offenses against our laws, I therefore command that you prepare to receive our Royal Party, that our Court may sit in judgment. The following lubbers will present themselves at noon tomorrow:"

"Pierce Albemarle,
George Barrow,
Camille Claud Bardier,
Morehouse Bryce,
Timothy Cartier,
Ralph DeWitt,
Richard Greene,
Fráncisco Andreás Guerini,
Alan Huston,
Martin Louis LeBlanc,
Vittorio Luizzi,
Douglas Orgelfinger,
James R. Poole,
Øyvind Raknes,
Father P. J. Rucker,
Ernest Roosevelt,
Gunnar Sorensen,
Nils Sorensen,
Samuel Winslow,
Wade Watkins, and
Katie Wright ..."

"...A terrible fate awaits any who might seek to evade His Majesty’s judgment!" Davy Jones hands the summonses to Captain Vredenburgh...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Job. (the tortured one)

[taokan]

"Magician, maybe?" Camille replied to Katie without looking away from the farce ongoing at the other end of the deck, obvious confusion tucked into the corners of her mouth. She drew a hand down the length of her face with a sigh. Whatever was going on, Katie was right, that sailer was in on it, and now the captain and first officer, too? "I don't see any mirrors, but-" But there was no way he could have made it on board any other way than stowing away, unless Starkweather knew about it, and what possible use could he have for a magician? He'd barely accepted having a preacher on board, after all, so why...? But no. There was no other explanation. "And now we're being served litigation by a man in a wig who thinks he's Davey Jones. Right," She groaned into her palm. "Comme s'il n'y avait pas assez de-putain-américaine- Where's Starkweather? Starkweather!" She turned a glare towards the stairs belowdecks. "Come collecting your man!"

[royya]

Father Rucker watch with a smile at the show of the man.

[Job]

Captain Vredenburgh carefully examines the stack of parchment, then hands it to First Officer Turlow who somberly delivers one document to each member of the crew identified by Davy Jones.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Job. (the tortured one)

[Túrin Turambar]

OOC,"How do we stand on the deck when we are given these parchments? Is there any senior officer close by James,whom he could ask a quiet question without being noted by Davy Jones?"

[Job]

Response to Túrin Turambar,[quote="Túrin Turambar"]How do we stand on the deck when we are given these parchments? Is there any senior officer close by James,whom he could ask a quiet question without being noted by Davy Jones?[/quote] Davy Jones began his proclamation while on the balcony of the bridge deck, just outside the door of the bridge itself, so that he can be heard by all officers and crewmembers who followed him up the stairway to the Bridge Deck level. First officer Turlow is delivering the summonses to crew members who are spread out across the balcony area, so you could have James move to the back, and when Turlow moves to the back to James and delivers his summons, James can safely ask his question beyond the hearing range of Davy Jones.