The fighting ships, on the other hand, were out for blood. Multiple brawls broke out all over the bay as various fleets, headed for the center, drew near enough to each other to take some potshots. Paul and Richard were the first to exchange friendly cannonballs, with the Jarvis sending the Hrothgar back home as fast as she had sailed out, but with only one mast left to sail with. The other Jarvis, in Zach's fleet, also got into a scuffle with Jake's Forge and Victor. Jake had some cross-eyed gunners or something; shot after shot splashed harmlessly into the sea, and it wasn't until his sixth shot that he finally got on target... only to see that shot also miss, due to the Jarvis' ability. The Forge did get one shot home, but it wasn't enough to stop the Jarvis from sinking HMS Victor with two salvoes.
A really nasty running battle broke out between Cadet-Captain Mike and Almirante Antonio. The San Salvador was the first Spanish ship to go glubbing into the depths tonight, a victim of the Seattle. "Nothing personal," Mike reassured him. "It's just good business."
"I don't want to fight you," Antonio protested. "I just want to get to the center island."
"That's fine," replied Mike. "I'll let you. And once you get there and load up, then I'll sink you and take half your gold." True to his word, Mike's fighting ships backed off from the attack and joined the Carolina for a rush at the center. Mike was the second admiral to get there (Paul's Minuteman was first), and each of his ships loaded a pair of coins of varying values.
Back in Zach and Jake's corner, the action was heating up. HMS Forge rammed the Jarvis and splintered her mainmast, then shot her foremast away with her S-range cannons. The now-derelict Jarvis was a short distance from Jake's home port, so he ran a hawser to her from the Forge and took her in tow. Zach's Saratoga swerved aside from her course to the center island and tried to rescue his other ship, but got tangled up with the Lady's Scorn before he got there. Each ship shot away two masts on the other; then the Forge showed up and left them both derelict. And the Aberdeen Baron, aside from a failed attempt to keep the Sara away from the Jarvis, sailed around in circles and didn't do much of anything.
In the center, La Santa Isabel had arrived unmolested and filled her capacious holds with gold. Mike kept his promise to the letter: he let Antonio load up, then attacked. It took two turns of fighting, including a ram from the Spanish that did no harm, and a boarding action that cost the Isabel her Oarsman, but when the cannon smoke had drifted away, the Santa Isabel was a helpless derelict, and Mike was gleefully preparing to count his half of the treasure he was about to steal. At the same time, the Ghost Walker was taking out El Cervantes, eventually sinking her. Chris put up a tough fight, though, ramming and boarding to steal one of the speedy windcatcher's treasures before Mike's cannons took their final toll.
Mike's plans for the Santa Isabel got the deep six, however, when the Seref showed up at the center island. There was still plenty of gold to be had, and Aimee wasted no time in grabbing some. But as she left, Mike suggested that she take a shot at the Isabel and get some free treasure. Her face lit up; then she lit up her cannons, which quickly found the range. The Fire Blossom's half of Anthony's gold added up to more than her Bloody Jewel brought in all game long.
She had barely counted her loot when she saw the Seattle running out her guns toward the Seref. "Why?" she demanded. "I haven't attacked you all game!"
"I wanted to steal Anthony's treasure," Mike explained, "but you stole it first. So I'll steal your treasure instead." He had to repeat this twice before she understood, at which point she folded her arms and pouted. She need not have worried, however. The Seattle landed three hits out of four shots, but couldn't finish the galley off. The Seref ran out her oars and rowed for her life.
Meanwhile, Paul's Minuteman had safely returned from the central island with the one doubloon she'd been able to load. His other ships had run around in circles, waiting for something to happen. They got their wish when Richard's Hrothgar finished her repairs and came out, looking for trouble. But neither admiral had much interest in attacking the other. Mike had to forcefully point out that, if they didn't start shooting, the game would end before they got close enough to anyone else. That got them moving in the right direction.
This historian didn't take careful notes on the battle that followed, but it went something like this: the Saratoga landed two good hits on the Hrothgar, which shot back with the two cannons on its remaining mast and missed. Old Sara dismasted the Hrothgar, but couldn't finish the job, so the longship did what the Seref had just done: she ran out her oars and rowed for home. She was avenged by L'Espadon, which did enough harm to the Saratoga to take her out of the battle, but then the Jarvis joined the action, and the two ships took turns damaging each other. This battle ended in a draw, as both sides withdrew to lick their wounds and repair damage.
Richard used this distraction to run the Rattlesnake out to an island that still had two coins on it, and built Thompson's Island there to guard those treasures. One of them turned out to be a hogshead of Rum, which was quite valuable, since the Rattlesnake had no crew to imbibe it before they got it home. Good thing, too; Richard is still under age.
The last act in the drama was back in Jake's corner of the map. His Forge took Zach's Saratoga in tow; it was the second time in the battle that he'd made off with one of Zach's ships. The Aberdeen Baron was preparing to do likewise with the Lady's Scorn, but that's when Mike intervened. He put strong pressure on Jake to sink her instead of tow her, and he may have left himself open to a charge of undue command influence as a result. But Jake finally yielded to the pressure and blew the Lady's Scorn apart. He thought. No one but Mike knew what the word "Eternal" meant, and Aimee's frustration at losing her best ship was wiped away in an instant when the mastless ship bobbed up out of the sea, right at her home island.
There were a few pieces of eight still unclaimed, but the hour was late and the battle ended there. Mike won on gold; Aimee and Richard were tied for second place; the dynamic duo of Antonio and Chris were third, Zach was fourth, Paul came in fifth, and Jake claimed no gold at all. This didn't seem to bother him, mostly because he won our last battle.
Antonio and Chris probably would have won if their ships had gotten home with all the gold and silver they'd loaded. Historians are still wondering why they didn't even try to shoot at Mike's warships early in the battle, especially since Mike had promised to sink them once they were loaded, and Mike is known for keeping promises like that. As it was, their fleet was wiped out. Zach was down to one small, swift gold ship as well. If the game had gone on for another turn, Aimee would have lost her Seref, and Mike's lead would have been even greater. But if we'd played for a few more turns, Jake's stolen fleet would have gotten repairs and wrought havoc on the high seas. Battle honors go to HMS Forge, for derelicting three ships and towing two of them home; and to the Seattle, for sinking one ship, derelicting two others, and bringing home two fine treasure coins.