"Land Ho!"
- THIS STORY IS AN ADVENTURE / FANTASY -
NOTE: To read the complete story, SEARCH TITLE: Port Royal: "A Yo Ho Ho, in a Doggy Dog World!"
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Tis' a Pirate's tale, upon once in a doggy time.
In a galaxy far far away, there is a doggy world called 'DogWorld'.
In DogWorld, 'em canine evolved to become wiser than the Sapien man.
Dogs reign, no sapien exists in this canine terra firma.
Apart from other animals like horses, and Dragons, there are no Lions, Tigers, and Bears in DogWorld.
Dogs are the only canines in this canine sphere.
They are called "dogpeople"!
DogWorld exists in an alternate Universe with Earth.
When the dogs passed away on planet Earth, they evolved, transmigrating to DogWorld, to reign as 'dogpeople'.
But the dogs in DogWorld were oblivious of Earth.
All these canines know, feel, and believe, is this terrene-like-Earth!
DogWorld is pretty well fashioned like Earth, for dogs bore the names their masters gave them on Earth.
Sometimes, the dogs see themselves as men, for there's no one else they see as men but dogs!
When the dogs that ever lived on Earth passed away, and their Earth pet lords lay them to rest to sway, they never went to 'Dog Heaven' as many thought, but yet they suffered metempsychosis, to be dogpeople than naught, carrying their observations, and experience on Earth with them they brought.
So DogWorld had governments, and armaments, fishermen or fisherdogs, banks and market squares, religion and tradition, money, and more!
And where there's gold to sneak, and treasures to seek;
In DogWorld, there must be.....
PIRATES!
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Now, somewhere on the high seas of the doggy dog Seas called the 'dogseas', Buccaneer Capitaine, Benny Blanco, a French Bullhuahua, sails as a captain of a Pirate ship called - the 'Kernel'.
"Rig those sails you pirate dogs!" Captain Benny bellows at his crewdogs. "Get this ship to shore before dusk!"
The Captain stands upon the poop deck, wearing a deep blue tricorne, holding firm the Kernel's helm.
"Land Ho!"
Lima, the Kernel's Third Mate, an Irish Red and White Setter, yawps from on top of the Kernel's crow's nest.
The crewdogs set the mainsails to run downwind, for the ship's point of sail is of the true wind's direction to the beach blowing inland.
"Heave dogs! I want those sails at angles of 180°," Big Joe, the Kernel's skipper, a Basset Fauve de Bretagne, commands the crew to hoist sail in proper propulsion to the winds.
Now, amongst the Kernel's crew is:
Capitaine Blanco, a French Bullhuahua, the ship's Captain.
Big Joe, a Basset Fauve the Bretagne, the ship's skipper (or quartermaster).
Azkat, an Akita Shepherd, the ship's First Mate.
Lima, an Irish Red and White setter, the Third Mate.
Mungro, a German Shepherd Rottweiler Mix, the ship's Boatswain (or 'Bosun').
Alaska, a Labrador Retriever, the Master-at-arms.
Avexen, a Chinook, the sea Navigator.
Doc, a Cardigan Welsh Corgi, the ship's surgeon.
Jack, a Hamiltonstovare, a deckhand.
Jocky, a Kooikerhondje, a deckhand.
Jakes, a Tibetan Spaniel, a deckhand.
Pooky, an old dog, a Chow Shepherd, the ship's cook.
And Chip, a Chipin, the cabin boy, and servant of Benny Blanco.
Hidden amidst the hull of the Kernel, is a hidden treasure hornswoggled from the ship: 'HMNS 1', pioneered by Captain Doggsvy, a Labrastaff, one captain of the sailing Naval fleet for His Majesty: Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, the King of DogWorld.
Doggsvy and his crew of Navydogs were rounded and tied up to the HMNS' boom.
And before noon, fifty chests of invaluable Pearls, called "small moons", belonging to the King and his goons, were hornswoggled by Blanco for his boom!
Blanco and his dogs have been a mean-green bunch of swashbucklers!
Dog tails to dog tails did Blanco tie-up Doggsvy and his dogs.
And since the 'Bliztering Bones', Benny vowed to hornswoggle all Treasure belonging to the King.
Even up to the dogseas doth, and swaggering swords, Blanco has been a pirate since his 'birthing' or "fazoom" into DogWorld.
Dogs 'fazoom' into DogWorld by the complex process of metempsychosis, and by this, making an appearing in the skies, then to anywhere they appear.
A fazoom is a "birthing" of a transmigrating canine from Earth to DogWorld.
The point of appearing of the canine determines the occupation or life of that canine transmigrating through the fazoom portal.
Every dog fazooms into DogWorld as a pup.
So finding a lost pup on the streets, in your bathtub, in your kitchen, swimming far at sea, or on rooftops, or anywhere else, were no surprising sights in DogWorld!
And it is a rule in Dogworld if a dog finds a pup, the dog becomes the caregiver of the fazoomed pup, this way life goes on at ease in their World.
Buccaneer Captain Benny first fazoomed right into the sea as a Bullhuahua pup, three dogyears a' top.
The open sea is not quite a pleasant location to drop during your fazoom into this World.
But like a born seafarer, Benny Blanco swam at sea for three days before he was found by a pirate ship: the "Bliztering Bones".
Benny Blanco was born a SEADOG.
For he 'fazoomed' directly into the sea.
This is the term given to any dog that fazooms into the seas at its appearance or a dog that fazooms into a ship at sea at its appearance - a "Sea•dog".
Benny Blanco served on that pirate ship: the Bliztering Bones, pioneered by that old dog: Seafaring captain, "Ozdog Sparrow", a Nova Scotia Duck Tolling, Captain of the Blitztering Bones!
And upon this pirate decks of swashbucklers did Benny grow, and from Ozdog that rugged old salt of the dogseas did Benny Blanco learn to be a swashbuckler so.
And after the Bliztering Bones was blown into smithereens and bits of bones, only Blanco escaped capture by His Majesty's ship: 'HMNS 5', pioneered by another rugged Navydog captain: Captain Hush Puppy Combs.
Ozdog Sparrow and some of his crewdogs were sent down to Davy Jones' Locker, the last place where all pirates go.
But Benny Blanco made it to sea, and then once again he swam the seas, and many miles did he swim, across the open seas, to be this Buccaneer of the doggy dogseas!
"Land Ho!"
Lima, the Kernel's Third Mate, yells again from the top of the Kernel's crow's nest.
The wind is boisterous upon its mainsail, so the Kernel sails smooth downwind to coast.
Capitaine Benny wants to hide his stolen booty far away on some secret island.
And once they have the Navydogs off their boots, he promises to sound off his hoot, and summon his crewdogs back, to come to get their loot, and share it equally, then every dog can head-off to Fiji...or Beirut!
Every Pirate sailing with the Kernel has a different tale to tell about its tail.
In DogWorld, the pirates told tales about each's tail, like men accounting for each's 'head'!
"Tell the tale of your tail mate!" 'em comrades would say.
And tis' would be a special account about how every dog's tale goes, and how every dog came to become a pirate!
Captain Benny found his tail in the tale of the Kernel when he stole the ship from a dock at Port Royal.
Port Royal, a commercial seaport, was where every seafarer dwelt.
It is a city by the port and has been a den of thieves, pirates, broads, and bars of rum and drums.
The Navy in search of pirate Lords and sea lords, sea rogues, and seadogs keep coming to Port Royal's docks.
And when the Navy comes, the pirates scurry like scum, 'em seadogs dashing away into the sea, leaving no crumb.
Then one night when the Navy struck, and the pirates ran out of luck, the rogue dogs in Port Royal on that night were surrounded and held up at the dock, but Benny, like a buck, snuck, and stole himself a ship.
He sailed the Kernel alone, off the coast of Port Royal, and into the doggy dogseas, and the rest became this pirate's tale for his tail!
But that was a year and a half dogyears ago when Benny stole himself a ship.
Two pups fazoomed into the Kernel shortly after he stole this ship:
Big Joe, a Basset Fauve de Bretagne pup.
And Chip, a Chipin pup.
Big Joe and Chip were born SEADOGS, for they fazoomed unto a ship at sea, at their appearance through the fazoom portal.
These two pups then served to become dogs on The Kernel's decks, and next, nevertheless, they grew from specks to become seafaring swashbucklers!
Benny then had himself his first two-dog-crew.
Then many months later, Azkat, the Kernel's First Mate, met with Benny about a dogyear ago.
And because Azkat had lost his ship the 'Kraken' at sea in a cannon battle with an HMNS ship, and Benny needed a crew to sail his ship, he made Azkat join the Kernel with his crewdogs - Lima, Mungro, Alaska, Avexen, and Pooky the crew's chef.
A shared vexation for HMNS vessels brought Azkat and Benny together as friends.
But as a pirate, there would be no permanent friend nor permanent foe!
Doc the ship's doctor, met Benny when the captain had a saber cut, and from then on, Doc, a Cardigan Welsh Corgi, joined the Kernel as its surgeon.
Jack, Jockey, and Jakes were three stowaways caught hiding away in the Kernel after it docked at 'Bambuktu', a coastal market, to stuck up for supplies.
The three stowaways didn't know they entered the wrong ship - A Pirates' ship!
The stowaways when found, were then forced by Azkat's dogs to serve as deckhands on the decks of the Kernel!
So did all the dogs on the Kernel become pirates upon their tales, and they all sailed the Kernel upon its decks!
Now, the deckhands pull on the shrouds and ratlines with their teeth, Jack, Jockey, and Jakes.
And so they tilt the top mainsail by its gaff, and the boom sways in direction to the true wind to breach its mainsail.
The Kernel sails on a Fore-and-aft rig, and the fore-and-aft sail, now usually triangular, is set aft of a mast, parallel to the ship's keel.
This takes the wind on either of the sides of the sail, and coming in on shallow water, the ship can be too fast and bash upon the rocks, but if controlled properly in propulsion to the true wind blowing inland, the ship will sail boisterously across the hedge of rocks at the island's foreshore.
A high mountain now stood clear afar on the horizons.
The Sun is setting behind the ship's stern, at the opposite horizon, with the ship's bowsprit pointing directly at the mountain in view.
The ship is heading Eastward to the island.
The coast of the island is laden with pointed rocks, so docking the Kernel at these rough shores could be a daunting task.
But Captain Benny had been a seasoned seafarer, swimming and sailing the dogseas in its fair and bad weather.
Two big sharp boulders stand before the Kernel at about a hundred meters to shore.
Captain Benny swerves the helm leftwards and sets it into a spin.
The helm rotates at speed and turns the rudder left.
The captain swerves the helm again, back to right, and he holds its handles steady.
The ship swerves to an angle of about 60° on its keel, tacking the ship to the left, and the sailors on the main deck are thrown from starboard to port!
Jack, Jockey, and Jakes still pull on the shrouds with their teeth, and the foresail pushes forward, lifting the bow high up the waterline.
At the peak of the bow is the Kernel's Figurehead: a 'Jack Chi'.
It is the figurehead image of its former captain, Captain Billy "the Bone Crusher".
Billy the Bone Crusher, or "Billy Bones" as his mates called him, is one of the five Pirate Lords of the dogseas, but he was jailed by the Royal Navy in Port Royal.
And Benny stole his ship!
Words got to Billy in prison at Port Royal, that a Bullhuahua, a seafarer, now sails the Kernel.
But Benny is equal to a captain, to dock this ship safe to shore, stolen or sure!
The sails are now on a broad reach, and the keel at an angle of 60° left leaning towards the northeast, the ship is on a starboard tack, so the ship heels windward by its starboard and thrusts through the sharp boulders.
The Kernel crashes through a high wave and splatters a swoosh of water, the keel settles onto the shores of the beach, and the ship rests upon the calm waves of the shores.
The land now lay about fifty meters away, and the ship drifts inland.
Askat then climbs to the poop deck and speaks to the captain at the helm.
"The water's too shallow captain," he says. "It would be unwise to sail too close to shore. We can off the goods at bay, and carry them to shore."
Benny Blanco pays him no mind.
For his concentration is upon the fore waters before the shore.
"Do ye hear me, captain?" Azkat says.
Benny swerves the helm a little to the left, and then he beckons on Big Joe to come down from the Crow's nest, to take the helm.
Big Joe, the skipper, in a jiff, skids down the mainmast, and steps at the poop deck, he takes the helm from the captain and holds it firm.
The waters stand clear ahead in the near light of Twilight, and the Kernel enters the intertidal zone of this strange Island.
"Come with me pirate," Benny says to Azkat.
"Aye, Aye, captain," Azkat says.
The dogs walk down the quarter-deck, into the captain's cabin.
In the cabin, captain Benny flings his tricorne onto the tabletop.
The cabin is furnished in a pretty 18th-century captain's cabin style.
On the table are a large laid-out navigational map, a magnifying glass, a feather, and a small scroll tied up, lay by the corner of the table.
Chip, Captain Benny's valet, and cabin lad lie by his corner watching.
Chip, fazoomed as a pup, upon the decks of the Kernel about a dogyear ago.
"Captain, let's release anchor now before the ship gets stuck on shallow waters," Azkat says.
"Right, drop anchor!" Benny says.
Chip runs out of the cabin to sound the 'drop anchor' call by the captain.
"Drop anchor!" Chip is heard from the outside, giving the captain's command to the crewdogs.
"Drop anchor!"
"Drop anchor!"
The crewdogs bellow at each other.
The anchor chains are released, and a "dog-bone shaped" anchor is set off from the decks.
The anchor rode reels through the hawsepipe and drops to the depths of the shores.
The ship's anchor digs deep into the seabed, and the Kernel comes to a ceasing halt at the bay of this island.
Chip runs back into the cabin.
"Ship anchored captain," he says.
"Aye," Benny answers. "Excuse us now Chip, I want to have some privacy with Azkat."
Chip runs out of the cabin once again, he closes the door at his passing.
"Sit down Azkat," Benny says and waves Akzat to a seat.
Azkat takes a seat, and Benny too, they sit at adjacent angles on the sides of the table.
Benny opens the scroll on the table, and it reveals a map.
"This is the map of this Island we have come," Benny says to Azkat, and he points to the graphical images on the map.
"In this map is a hidden cavern somewhere uphill where I want us to hide our loot."
Azkat peers into the map by the cabin lamp's illumination.
From the dimness of the room, a sinister smirk trails across the snout of Azkat.
"I see, I see," Azkat says.
Benny stands briskly and walks the cabin, trotting like a horse.
"I want out!" Benny says as he paces the cabin. "I want out Azkat, I want to leave behind this life of craziness and insanity of the high seas!"
"Hmmm..." Azkat hums.
"Yes, Azkat! I have planned this attack on the HMNS 1 for dogmonths! Now we got the booty, fifty chests of small moons worth over one million Dogzyz, and now, we have made it to this Island," Benny says, he stares through the cabin window, at the silhouette of the mountain that trails the foregrounds.
It is night, and the moonlight shines bright high in the night skies, o'er the low evening tides and calm waves of the sea.
"When ye say 'ye want out', do ye mean ye don't want to be a pirate no more?" Azkat asks Benny standing by the cabin window.
Benny walks to a cupboard by the cabin, he takes out a pipe, lights it, and puffs a cloud of smoke.
"I was born a pirate Azkat," Benny says, as he puffs his smoke. "I swam the dogseas and was found by that old seadog Ozdog Sparrow. I have been a seafarer all me life, but Ozdog taught me that to quit while ye are ahead, is not the same as quitting, but winning!"
"Hmmm..." Azkat hums inaudibly.
"With this loot, we will split it thirteen ways for the thirteen dogcrew we have onboard the Kernel, that would give each dog seventy-six thousand Dogz..."
"Wait, wait, wait," Azkat interrupts. "Ye...ye want to tell me ye will split this loot thirteen ways? For what?"
"Pirates' code Azkat! Pirates' code!" Benny says as he puffs.
"What pirates' code ye say?" Azkat retorts for he has never heard about no pirates' code.
"Old dog Ozdog Sparrow taught me the pirates' code from that great Pirate Book - the 'Pirata Codex'!" Benny says in a yawp. "The Pirata Codex was written by the Seven dog Pirate Sealords of DogWorld, and signed by their blood, to be the Guidelines for pirates oaths!"
He walks back to the window, looking at the mountains.
"The Pirata Codex says that every man on deck gets his equal share of a loot or booty."
"Horse shit!" Azkay retorts, standing to his feet.
"No it's not, no it's not horse shit Azkat, it is the code!" Benny says, now with more seriousness seeing Azkat's reaction about pirates code.
"There's no way we share the loot equally, I too have been a captain of a ship, and we share bounty according to rankings!" Azkat says almost in a yell. "The captain on my ship takes twenty-five percent of the loot, the skipper ten percent, the first mate, second and the third mates share fifteen percent of the bounty, if there is only one mate on the ship, he takes the fifteen percent, if there be only two, they split the fifteen percent. The rest of the men share the rest fifty percent, that's how we share loot on the Kraken!"
"Ha ha ha," Benny laughs. "Well, this is not the Kraken, this is the Kernel! And on me ship, we follow the pirates' code, is that clear First Mate?"
Askat keeps mum, and sits back down, wearing a sad countenance.
"Is that clear?" Benny repeats.
Askat keeps mum for a while, staring away blandly.
"Aye...aye..me captain," Azkat then says, reluctantly, but firmly.
"Right! Now, this is me plan," Benny says.
He points into the small scroll map on the table.
"We will hide the loot up here in the mountain," Benny points into the map, at a drawing of what looks like a hill, with a dragon sitting on top of the hill.
"What's with the dragon?" Azkat asks as he sees the drawing of a dragon on the map.
"Good question," Benny says. "It is said that a dragon comes to rest on this hill during the monsoon seasons. So we need to hide the loot now somewhere in a cavern in the hills, and come back after the monsoons in three dogmonths after the dragon is gone."
"And we split the loot thirteen ways?" Azkat asks.
"Pirates' code, sailor, that's the pirates' code," Benny says. "We must share the loot thirteen ways when we come back after the monsoons when the dragon is gone!"
"Alright, whatever ye say, me captain, whatever ye say," Azkat agrees, though reluctantly.
"Right. Now let's row to shore, and see what we got on this piece of land." Benny says.
He walks over to the table, drops the smoke pipe on the tabletop, and he picks up his tricorne, and wears it.
He trots out of the cabin, Azkat follows him.
Getting to the main deck the captain hollas at his dogs.
"Ahoy, me seadogs! Ahoy, me seadogs! Avast Ye! Avast Ye!" Benny yawps.
All the crewdogs stop what they are doing, and listen to the captain as he retorts:
"Avast Ye!"
"We are rowing to shore," Benny says. "Lima, Big Joe, you are coming with me and Azkat, we go to scout the shores."
"Let down the yawl!" Captain Benny bellows.
"Let down the yawl!"
"Let down the yawl!"
The crewdogs bellow at each other over again.
Benny, Azkat, Lima, and Big Joe get into the yawl, a small side boat affixed to the ship's starboard, and the crewdogs let them down onto the waters.
The yawl is lowered upon the water surface with a yawl rig.
Big Joe, and Lima, wear the row-saddles attached to the oars by the boat sides, and they begin to move back and forth at a fast pace along the sides of the boat to row the boat.
Dogs wear a lot of saddles in DogWorld to do a lot of things, this is because they don't have hands like regular people.
But most of their implements are made specially to fit their paws, like kitchen cutlery, writing pens, swords, spears, guns, and every other handheld object.
In DogWorld, dogs stand on their hind feet like men, but not for long, when they walk, they walk on all four paws.
The dogs row the yawl to the beach and not with a sail, because the waters are calm, and they are already at the shore.
Benny and Azkat look on as Big Joe, and Lima row the boat to shore.
They approach the island, and the beach is about a few meters away.
Captain Benny brings out his monocular, a spyglass, and he peers through it, looking to the mountains as they approach the beach.
"I shall call this island 'The Dragons Keep'," Benny says.
"Aye, aye," the rowing dogs echo in unison, they keep rowing the boat, moving back and forth the boat sides.
Azkat keeps mum as Benny declares the name of the newfound Island.
"Yes! 'The Dragons Keep' we shall call it!" Benny says again, expecting to hear a response from Azkat.
Azkat reluctantly mumbles a few words.
"Anything ye say, captain, anything ye say," he says.
Soon the boat hits the sandy beaches, and the dogs step out of the boat and get on land.
No sailor has been to The Dragon's Keep, the Island lay bare with forests greeting its guests at the shores.
"Lima, ye sniff out the dragon's nest," Benny says to the Setter.
Lima, the Irish Red and White Setter, goes to work with its sniffing nose.
Lima sniffs the ground as he moves into the forest, the rest dogs follow him.
Benny brings out his blunderbuss, and sets its firing pin ready to fire, Azkat does the same too, they both are holding their blunderbuss pistols as they enter the Island's jungle.
Lima breaks out into a run, and the rest of the dogs pursue him as he races uphill, sniffing as he goes.
Lima sniffs, and races up the hill, it is following the trail of the dragon's nest, it is sniffing its way to the nest.
The dogs follow the setter as it follows a trail of dragon scent uphill.
At the hilltop of The Dragon's Keep is a dragon's nest.
Dragons were common to see in DogWorld, but most dragons in this World keep to themselves, and they live high up in mountains.
But this dragon does not return to her nest until the monsoons.
The dragon returns to the Island during the monsoons to lay its eggs, and throughout the monsoon season, it watches over the nest to keep its eggs safe.
No living creature dares go up to the dragon's nest when the dragon watches over her nest.
So captain Benny believes it is the best place to hide their loot, till when they return to divide their spoils.
Soon the dogs are at the top of the hill, at the dragon's nest, a huge crater of about ten meters in diameter, and about five meters in depth.
"Sink me shivers!" Lima exclaims as he looks and sees the crater right in front of him.
The dogs run-up to Lima and they look in awe, as they stand at the cliff of the crater.
"Hurry! There's a cave by the corner of the crater, let's check it out," Benny says.
The dogs run down the slope into the crater, Big Joe tumbles down in excitement, into the crater bowl.
At the bottom of the crater, Lima sniffs once again, he follows a trail, and soon he is at the entrance of a cavity, like a hollow by the side of the crater.
"Shiver me chambers!" Benny exclaims as they stand before the cavity entrance.
The dogs look in awe at the cavity, it is dark, and it could be a cavern where the dragon tucks in its tiny toots when the mountain is cold in the night wind, or during rain.
But it is a perfect spot for a treasure hideout!
And Benny was glad he has made it up to this point.
"Go get the men, let them cart in the loot, and let them bring also, a lot of rum, for tonight we hide our treasure, and tonight we make merry!" Benny says.
"Aye, Aye, captain," Big Joe and Lima respond.
The two dogs race off, up the crater, to go back to the ship and bring in the rest of the crewdogs...
NOTE: To read the complete story, SEARCH TITLE: **(Port Royal: "A Yo Ho Ho, in a Doggy Dog World!")*