The Treasure Galleon: Better Late Than Never At All

[fredmiracle]

Chapter 2: Dancing on the Knife's Edge

Hermione was left to spar with a formidable, and hardly bloodied, enemy alone.



Faced with the unmitigated failure of his battle plan, Maistral now improvised a series of maneuvers that are justly remembered as among his most inspired. Lying directly upwind from the Spaniard, he used the maneuverability of his vessel to good effect, repeatedly darting in to rake the Buca de Plata when it tried to tack, and then withdrawing before it could turn to expose its own broadside.









The Spanish captain knew he fought at a disadvantage, and was sorely tempted to turn and run for Cadiz. But he also knew that this persistent foe would not stop nipping at his flanks unless he forced a decisive confrontation. With the demoralizing defeat of Unite still fresh in the French crew's minds, the wily Spaniard judged this the best time to make his stand.









Time and again the galleon attempted to tack and unleash a crippling blow from her forward guns--and time and again the silver-laden vessel failed to keep up with the maneuvers and close-hauled sailing of her opponent, and was forced to fall helplessly away without taking a shot.













Slowly but surely these blows began to tell on the larger ship, and at length Maistral deemed it time to close the range once more, and attempt to overwhelm the Spanish crew...