Prelude to Year 3
Part 2
Since the assassination of Captain Laszlo, things haven't been the same aboard the Limbo. The new captain, Piotr Manche, has been taking extra care not to have the same fate as his predecessor. Manny was awarded the position of Second Mate for his part in repelling the assassins.
By this time, several gleaming new boilers and pipes had been fitted to the newly spruced-up hull and smokestack of the Limbo, thanks to the ever-working master mechanic Glottis. The Limbo was now faster than she had ever been, even when she was new.
Manny sat alone in the galley at the end of the day. He sighed. Not since two days ago had anything exciting happened to him. Two days before, Salvadore had sent him a message by carrier pigeon. The message had Sal's usual brand of morbidness, bringing with it warnings of mobsters in boats patrolling the Limbo's area, man-eating sharks and Hector LeMans' activities in El Marrow. Manny had learned to take these warnings only as worst -case scenarios. "After all", he thought, "the man's a revo- lution commander."
The Limbo had docked in a quaint port town called Puerto Riefa for repairs and refilling of supplies. Glottis was not happy. "Why do they need to stop for repairs when I'm the only repairman they'll EVER need? !" he rambled. Manny tried to calm him down. "Ah, forget that and let's go for a stroll in the town", he said. Glottis agreed and the two set off.
Puerto Riefa wasn't as small as it had seemed from the Limbo's deck. The inner part of the town was quite spacious and bustling with activity. Hawkers were advertising their goods like mad. One of them tried to pull Manny to his stall, but after seeing Glottis, the coward ran off. "Yeesh", groaned Manny, dusting his coat.
Suddenly manny noticed some shady-looking characters with bulging coats slipping into an alleyway. One of them grabbed a large fish from a nearby stall but although the hawker saw it being done, he didn't say anything. Manny though, being the hero he is, immediately gave chase. As soon as he ran into the alley, he changed his mind. Dark, ominous walls surrounded him on all sides, whilst the felons he was chasing formed a circle around him. He reached for his scythe, but before he could take it out, he was knocked on the head and passed out.
When Manny regained consciousness, he found himself in a dark, empty room. He stood up and went to the door. locked. He felt his coat. Thankfully, his scythe was still there. He assembled it and put the blade in the crack between the door and the wall. Slicing off the lock, he opened the door and crept out. He was in a long corridor. At one end was a door. He tiptoed to the door and eaves- dropped. He heard two voices. "So these are the tickets. Only one shipment? " "No, the second ond is arriving tomorrow." "Have we paid for it? " "No, we'll have to go down to the docks and pick it up. Otherwise it'll go straight to Nuevo Marrow." Manny opened the door and burst in. Sure enough, there was a suitcase full of Number Nine tickets lying on a table. Two burly gangsters got up. One took out a club, whilst the other had his sprouter in his hand. But Manny was ready with his scythe. He knocked both the felons' weapons to the floor and then whacked the gangsters' heads. When they were out cold, manny took the suitcase and headed out the door at the opposite side of the room. This door led straight into the street. When manny emerged, he found Glottis looking for him. "Where ya been? I've been combing the town for you but whenever I asked someone, they just kept quiet and looked the other way", said Glottis. "Ah, I just found some adventure, that's all", said manny. "let's head back to the ship."
Once back on the Limbo, manny took the case to the captain's cabin to show the captain. As soon as he entered the cabin, the case burst open and a ticket flew to Captain manche. he had a Double-N ticket all the time! The captain beamed. "yes! I knew I had it! I just wasn't looking in the right place!" he exclaimed. Then he turned to manny. "The whole ship is yours! You can have it!! " And he walked out the door. Manny just stood there. The shock of becoming the captain of the ship hit him and he jumped for joy. That night, as the Limbo sailed out of Puerto Riefa, the whole crew celebrated Manny's installation as captain. Manny looked out onto the open sea. "My future is as uncertain as the sea", he mumbled.
What will happen to Manny as the captain of the Limbo? Will the two gangsters in Puerto Riefa ever regain consciousness? Will Glottis stop drinking up the Premium Walker wine in the galley?