The Boarding of the Andromache occurred in 1715, when the pirate Captain Flint of the Walrus pursued the Andromache in the hopes of acquiring her 12 pound cannons. Flint hoped to use the cannons against the Urca de Lima.
History[]
Prelude[]
Flint told Eleanor Guthrie that he required 12 pounder cannon in order to attack the Urca de Lima. Eleanor promises him the cannons of the Andromache, the largest of her father’s supply ships, captained by Dyfed Bryson. When he arrives in Nassau, she tries to get him to give her the guns with help from Richard Guthrie, her father. Richard and Bryson talk privately, and Bryson seemingly agrees. Eleanor sends O’Malley to wait at the docks for the delivery of the guns. However Mr. Scott arrives and knocks him out. The Andromache departs Nassau with her cannons, and Flint gives chase.
After a lengthy chase, the Walrus begins to catch up to Bryson. He has Billy explain to the crew their battle plan. Given that they are outgunned, Flint has decided to sail straight at the Andromache when she turns her broadsides on the Walrus. Beauclerc will then shoot the helmsman, causing him to lose his grip on the wheel, which will in turn cause the current to bring the Andromache alongside the Walrus.
The Boarding[]
As the Walrus approaches the Andromache, Bryson attacks port, as Flint predicted. Bryson fires a broadside at the Walrus, injuring or killing many pirates. Bryson launches another broadside, and Flint orders Beauclerc to fire. Beauclerc fires a shot from the crow’s nest of the foremast, but he misses. The helmsman, Mr. Burnett, briefly loses his grip on the wheel after the shot lands near him. Bryson orders him to keep them in the wind. The next shot however hits Burnett, killing him. Bryson orders Mr. Harris to take the helm, and he is quickly shot by Beauclerc as well. The Andromache loses the wind and is brought alongside the Andromache.
The crew of the Walrus waits in the well deck while men on the deck of the Andromache fire muskets at the pirates. Dufresne waits in the well deck and sees Crisp get shot in the head. Gates instructs the crew to choose their targets and use their pistols at point blank range and not to waste a shot. Billy then orders to throw the crew to throw their nets across and then get down. He waits for the gunfire to die down before giving the Walrus men the signal to charge. The pirates climb aboard the Andromache and are met with fierce resistance. Dufresne tries to fire his pistol at a sailor but misses. The same sailor tries to fire his pistol at Dufresne but it misfires. Dufresne tries to draw his sword but is tackled. The sailor tries to kill him with a knife but is knocked to the ground. Dufresne takes advantage of his opponent’s momentarily dazed state to bite his throat out, killing him. Dufresne then loses consciousness.
When he is woken by Billy, the Walrus crew is in the process of removing the last pieces of resistance from the Andromache crew. The crew breaks open a hatch on the roof of the quarterdeck bunker. As Billy attempts to drop a grenade in the hatch, a sailor aims a pistol out and fires at Billy. Billy dodges the shot and drops the grenade in. The doors are then broken down with axes and Flint and Billy investigate. They are shocked to find only three men inside. Gates tells them that all the dead and injured have been checked, none of them are Bryson, but the vanguard is on their way to the cargo hold. De Groot then informs them that the rudder isn’t responding, the mechanism having likely been cut below decks. Flint orders them to call back the vanguard.
As this happens, the hatch to the cargo hold is broken and three members of the vanguard descend into it. They approach what looks like a bunker, and are shot to death. It is revealed that Bryson, Hayes and their surviving men have retreated to a bunker overlooking the gun deck.
Bryson and Hayes descend into the hold, where it is revealed that they have enslaved Mr. Scott, who is chained up with dozens of other slaves. Bryson has a slave woman shot and then threatens a child until a Slave volunteers for the task at hand.
The Slave is sent above bearing a message for Flint. He emerges from the hatch and immediately several pirates train their pistols on him. He speaks in West African Pidgin English while Joshua translates. He tells Flint that Bryson is secure in the hold with twenty men. While Bryson has time on his side, Flint and his men do not. Before leaving, Bryson messaged Captain Hume of the Scarborough, telling him where the Andromache was heading and where he would find Flint. At this moment, the Scarborough’s sails are spotted. While the pirates are distracted, the Slave lights a grenade and attempts to charge at Flint but is shot down by Billy Bones with a pistol. The grenade then detonates, splattering Flint with viscera and blood and leaving him furious.
Stalemate[]
As night falls, the Walrus remains tied to the Andromache, still hoping to get her cannons. With the Scarborough waiting nearby, Flint orders that no one have any lights out in the open, to prevent their being spotted.
The Walrus crew comes up with the plan to send an African member of the crew, Lars, belowdecks with a smoke grenade. When he gets close, he is to throw a smoke bomb through the murder hole in the bunker. While Bryson and his men are choking on the smoke, the Walrus men are to breach the bunker. Lars is lowered into the hold by Joshua and Joji. He gets close to the bunker, but is spotted and killed by Hayes.
Down below, Mr. Scott is asked by two slaves, Eme and Babatunde, to place a piece of cloth in the hole in wall above them, in the hopes of signalling the pirates. They tell him that they have heard of Nassau, and that they can be freed and earn a wage there. Scott refuses, he says that maybe a few of the slaves, the strong, will earn a living. The rest of them are just cargo. Eme angrily asks him if he would decide all their fates. Scott explains that there are weapons on this ship that are very dangerous to someone he loves, so he will do everything in his power to keep those weapons from getting to Nassau. The slaves stand up and move with Eme so she can place the piece of cloth in the opening.
Gates’ next plan is to have four men dangle on ropes on the outer hull of the bunker. They are to use axes, augers and charges to create a hole large enough to get charges through. The disruption is to cause enough of a distraction to allow the rest of the crew to breach the doors.
Flint orders four men, Logan among them, to dangle. Logan opposes the plan, calling it suicidal. He challenges Flint's authority, asking Billy to back him up. Gates says that Logan's points are valid, but then punches Logan. He says that in battle, the captain's orders are the law, as per the articles to which they agreed. At that moment, a pirate notices the signal the slaves had posted.
Flint and Gates go to the captain's cabin, where they review the manifest. Flint finds the listing for 38 slaves, including 9 men priced above 100 pounds, meaning that they are all strong men, and willing to fight for their freedom. The pirates then drop a tool to break the slaves' shackles into the hold.
Breakthrough[]
In the hold, Scott and Eme are arguing over whether to help the pirates when tool is dropped down. A crew member goes down below to check what the cause of the noise is. Scott tells him that Eme is causing trouble. As the overseer menacingly grabs Eme's face, Scott uses his chains to choke the man and break his neck. Up above, the pirates begin hacking at the deck in rhythm. Scott realizes it's to cover up the sound of their chains breaking. Scott begins breaking the shackles of all the slaves.
As the pirates' continue hacking, Bryson realizes something is amiss and orders Hayes to secure the hold. When he goes below, the slaves ambush him and go up to the bunker, where Bryson and his remaining men try to fight back. Scott throws the metal tool at Bryson and begins to fight him. As they grapple, Bryson pins Scott against the door of the bunker. A pirate then points his pistol through the murder hole and shoots Bryson in the eye.
Scott then opens the door to the bunker. The pirates, led by Joshua, rush in and begin taking care of the remains of Bryson's crew. Joji remains by the door, cutting down any of the sailors who try to flee. Bryson tries to crawl to a powder trap he had rigged earlier, hoping to take the pirates down with him. However, Eme retrieves the metal tool and stabs Bryson in the back of the neck, killing him.
The pirates begin transferring the cannons to the Walrus. The slaves also move aboard the pirates' ship. However, two pirates sweeping the hold find the barrels of gunpowder and don't see the flintlocks and fuses rigged near them. They grab the barrels, triggering an explosion. Knowing the Scarborough must have seen the explosion, the pirates flee.
As they try to sail away, their speed is reduced by the Andromache's spritsail brace, which became tangled with their bow because of the explosion. Billy and Flint go to the bow to cut the debris loose. While there, Flint asks Billy about the letter he found in Bryson's cabin written by Miranda Barlow. Billy replies that he thinks Flint knows what was in the letter.
The Scarborough then fires a barrage from their cannons and several shots hit the Walrus. Flint informs everyone that Billy fell overboard. Flint and Gates rush to the stern, but they are unable to find any sign of Billy. Knowing they can't turn back or the Scarborough will tear them to pieces, the pirates sail away.
Aftermath[]
After the battle, a funeral is held for the fallen members of the Walrus crew. Due to the absence of a body, Billy's cutlass is thrown overboard instead. The crew's suspicion of Flint's role in Billy's demise leads to a conspiracy to mutiny against him, led by Gates.
Meanwhile, Eleanor negotiates a deal with Dufresne, who is elected quartermaster in Billy's stead, to free the slaves. In exchange for credits and subsidies, the men are freed and are placed on the crew of the Black Hind, while she pays for the freedom of the women, who are then employed in her tavern.
In truth, Billy did not die, but was captured by the crew of the Scarborough and imprisoned at their garrison on Harbour Island.