The End of the Flying Dutchman, Part I

You’ve heard of the Flying Dutchman, the ghost-ship that travels the seas, there’s countless legends about it, a great deal of variety. Some say it’s just cursed to wander, a result of some ancient sin, a crew long dead yet still out there, never to touch dry land again. Others call it apparition, that appears when weather is tough, an omen for those who see it that sailing is gonna be rough. There are those who say its captain cursed the wind when it helped him not, and for that it blows against him, never to reach the bay he sought. Some claim it has ghosts for sailors, and if you come upon the thing, they’ll give you letters for people who are long dead and moldering. Many say that the damned crew it and sail the seas brining torment, seeking souls they can prey upon, then straight down to hell they area sent. Sadly, these wraiths twice-doomed by dead are the closest tale to the truth, oh yes I say, the ship was real, a true terror all sailors knew. It’s no mistake that I say was, that part most people do not tell, since few enough know what happened how the Dutchman and its crew fell. It was back in 2004, down south by Cape of Good Hope, the crew of rotting revenants was on the lookout for fresh boats. They sensed a vast buffet of souls, their captain cried out, “After her!” They did not realize this ship was an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer. It was bound for the Middle East to help destroy terrorist scum, the Dutchman came on their radar, truly confusing everyone. “It wasn’t there,”the ensign said, “Maybe it’s a stealth vessel, sir?” The captain said,“I’ll take a look,” and then went outside to observe. He stared through his binoculars, say a sailing bark mottled and grey, it’s sails were full, there was no wind, how were they even under way? It was a bizarre sight to him, a museum ship on these waves? He was puzzling over this when from the ship a bright burst blazed. He heard the scream of a weapon, saw a splash a hundred yards off, were these fools firing cannons? It seemed so bizarre, he just scoffed. But the cannons kept firing, the balls coming closer each time, then one bounced off their metal stern and back to the bridge he did climb. “I think those guys might be pirates?” he said to a much-confused crew, “Whatever the case, they hit us; gentlemen, you know what to do.” An ensign handling weapons worked with radar to get a lock, pressed buttons and two missiles leapt off of the ship with a slight rock... CONCLUDES IN PART II.