4th of July, 2010

The Pirate Ship Black Raven spent the 4^th of July holiday in an epic, life-or-death duel with a local restaurant and the pirates residing there and over 80 guests were aboard to see the historic fight.

After a full day spent celebrating the 4^th of July with two earlier tours, the evening cruise that set sail at 7:30 was the grand finale. Scheduled for a majestic view of the city’s fireworks, the trip first began with a thrilling adventure sailing north on the Matanzas to a secluded and unsuspecting riverside restaurant: Aunt Kate’s. All the guests aboard for the grand finale cruise were entertained on the journey by none other than Oly Mackerel, Jonas Krew and the pirate magician William Mayhem. Hearing lore and singing songs, the cruise was gearing up to receive a treasure chest full of sumptuous food from the restaurant. Until the food arrived however, Jumpin’ JoJo and Daisy Drake kept everyone refreshed from the setting sun’s heat with sweet libations in every variety.

With the restaurant getting bigger on the horizon, guests anticipated the delivery of food to the ship at the Aunt Kate’s dock. A deal had been struck that food was to be handed over for the guests’ pleasure and for the briefest of moments, it seemed that deal was solid and true. But on the wooded and calm approach to the dock at Aunt Kate’s, the five crew got wind of a foul plot. The dock and its treasure chest full of food were being guarded by shadows, by pirates! The smooth waters and red flames of sunset gave way to a warning shot by Master Krew in the hopes of scaring away the invading pirates from the treasure chest which contained the promised feast.

The warning shot having no effect on the pirates at the docks, Master Krew fired off another round only to have the echoes of a pistol find the ears of those aboard. The renegade pirates had the audacity to fire back! The Black Raven sailed closer only to see that the pirates who had been returning their shots were women! Two ladies with fiery red hair and swords at their hips stood guarding the chest.

Master Mackerel disembarked to take care of the threat. Forced back and half-beaten, he found a lucky break when the young lass named McCarthy ran afoul of the ramp’s edge, knocking her unconscious. With one of the two ladies down, he didn’t expect any more trouble but found it when the second lass, Magpie Maggie, ran her blade into his gut. With their champion dispatched, Jonas Krew and William Mayhem disembarked as well. Krew fell victim to Magpie’s feminine charm and soon found himself sprawled out aside Oly Mackerel. Desperate, the ship’s wizard Master Mayhem tried to cast Magpie under a spell, but found himself staring down the barrel of her pistol instead. The shot rang out and the musket ball was thwarted by the very magic the wizard had produced. In the confusion, Jonas Krew took Magpie hostage only to see that McCarthy had regained her footing to do the same to their Oly Mackerel. At a standstill, they decided it would be less troublesome to share the looted food and sail away together.

With the new lasses aboard, the guests were treated to the plundered food they’d gathered from Aunt Kate’s. Shrimp cocktails, fresh and exotic fruits, sandwiches and more were unloaded from the chest for the pleasure of all. Sailing home, the passengers were serenaded by the young ladies before the ship found a calm stretch of river to watch the city fireworks light off. And such dazzling colors and spectacles did you ever see!

With the day coming to an end, the passengers were set safely home at the city docks and were treated to the smiles and blessings of the crew they’d watched all evening. From all at Black Raven Adventures, we hope you and yours had a wonderful and safe holiday weekend!