Original subtitles

Madagascar.

For centuries, the bloodiest cockpit of all the seas...

where the infamous brotherhood of the damned

awaited to plunder the treasure-laden galleons from India and Cathay...

then returned, drunk with slaughter,

to their pirate stronghold of Last Hope.

Most ruthless of all was Captain William Kidd.

He encountered the great London galleon The Twelve Apostles...

commanded by Admiral Lord Blayne...

and, approaching unsuspected, in the guise of a peaceful merchantman...

by a sudden, treacherous salvo, he reduced her to a burning hulk.

When night fell, The Twelve Apostles was only

a blazing funeral pyre

on the placid surface of a Madagascar lagoon.

Stab me, there's a pretty sight.

It'll be prettier still when the fire reaches the magazine, Captain.

Pity, though.

Lots of stout seamen among them.

They'd been with us a long time.

We can, none of us, live forever, Mr. Boyle,

and dead men don't talk.

Man your oars. We've got this job to do before high tide.

There.

And dig faster. The tide catches us here, it'll save the king's hangman some rope.

There you are.

Deep enough to bury a man in.

Give us a hand mate.

- All ready, Captain. - Down she goes.

What are you waiting for?

Well, Captain, that chest has been in your cabin a longish time...

and we all thought as how it wouldn't do no harm

to open up that chest and make sure that what was in it then is in it now.

I suppose you remember what was in it?

Aye. I remember an emerald necklace that came off that Portuguese ship, El Vengar.

And all those pearls that we took from the big ship, the Virgin Queen.

I remember a diamond medallion...

we got from that Moorish galleon off Madagascar.

And could we ever forget that silver casket

with the arms of Lord Blayne that you claimed for yourself

after the taking of The Twelve Apostles, sir?

Your neck'll be stretched

as long as your memory one of these days.

Satisfied, gallows meat?

Put them back.

Lower away!

What's the matter?

Well, wait a minute, Captain. There's something else you forgot.

What do you want now? We've got but half an hour before the tide traps us.

That just may be, sir,

but we're all equal in this, I take it?

Equal shares, yes.

Well, that key, then, what you put back in your belt...

that goes down with the chest.

Lets we starts all clear and no favorites.

And if some of us don't get back,

it'll be that much easier open for them as does.

Question me honor again, would you, I'll rip you from belly to chime.

Are we such callous rascals...

that we'd leave a dead comrade...

without commending his soul to his new master?

Here lieth one who, through treachery and avarice...

would have placed in jeopardy the lives of honest men.

And here may he lie forever...

in the sands of Madagascar.

Rest in peace.

It's time to be out, me lads, time to be away.

If a gentleman's a gentleman, he's a gentleman.

That's all there is to it, sir

I'm one of nature's gentlemen, but I need polish, my good man.

If I'm to improve myself--

A gentleman employs the terminology, "my good man,"

only when addressing lower servants...

or his inferior, sir.

You see? That's why I need you.

With my upbringing...

A gentleman never sucks his teeth, sir.

Many a man's social career has been ruined by less, sir.

You seem to know your business.

I want the best mind and I can pay for it.

Hundred quid a year.

An infallible mark of the person of quality

is his reluctance to pay his domestics high wages.

- You don't say so. - Merely an idiosyncrasy of good breeding, sir.

Sixty quid a year, then?

You realize I've never been on board a ship before, sir.

Oh, don't let that frighten you.

To the contrary.

In fact, since I was a nipper,

I've had rather an adventurous inclination toward life on the bounding main.

It should be quite educational, sir.

You'll learn a lot, no doubt.

- Is it a bargain, then? - Very well, sir.

My hand on it?

Oh.

Then...

it is your proposal, milord Bellemont,

that Captain Kidd...

sail to meet our ambassador, Lord Fallsworth,

and give him safe convoy through the perturbed waters of Madagascar.

May it please Your Majesty, yes.

That needs a bold and adventurous man.

Yes.

Bring in this Captain Kidd while we take the measure of him.

Captain William Kidd.

Your Royal Majesty...

me noble lords.

Bellemont, is this your roaring killer

of Spanish buccaneers?

Me, milord...

I am only a peaceful shipmaster who must do trade with other ships

without inquiring too closely about their business.

And it was so I fell into the hands of The Twelve Apostles--

a king's ship turned pirate.

In Madagascar waters?

I have never been in Madagascar waters, Your Grace.

It was off the southern tip of Africa,

where I had gone to trade in elephants' teeth.

Who commanded her?

One of your admirals, Your Majesty.

Name of Lord Blayne.

He did turn pirate, then.

Sufficiently, milords...

to put fear in honest traders like meself.

And if you are successful in this voyage, Captain...

what reward do you expect?

May it please Your Majesty, having forfeited me honor,

in that I was forced to strike me colors to a pirate,

I want no reward but to regain it

in the service of Your Majesty.

Unless it be, well, oh...

Is it true that Lord Blayne's

lands are estreated and his title forfeit?

Yes.

All-- Well, all I ask is

that if I lay this renegade nobleman by the heels...

is that you honor me humble self

with his castle and his lands.

Is that all you want, Captain Kidd?

Not a farthing more, Your Majesty.

Hmm! The fellow treats of a title so lightly,

he must be bursting with noble blood.

Though I confess he keeps it well hid.

Aye, sir. You can no more judge of a man by his appearance...

than you can judge the extent of a nobleman's brains

by the expensiveness of his wig.

Am I to suppose

that the captain of the king's guard

would deign to fence...

with me?

Come, Captain...

is your courage less than your wit?

Nay, sir.

I know nothing of the fence.

You must come at me...

quickly, as though you'll kill me.

Very well, then.

I ask pardon, sire.

I've a hot head when roused. I only meant to demonstrate.

And to good purpose, Captain.

Your Majesty is satisfied

with the Captain of our choosing?

I can think of none better.

I thank you, sire.

And now, Captain...

the main mission of your crew,

it will be to meet a great ship--

the Queda merchant,

which is sailing from India with vast treasures--

and to give her safe conduct in my name...

past the perturbed waters of Madagascar.

But, Your Majesty, will her commander accept

me letter of mark as sufficient authority to--

You shall have a letter to our ambassador, Lord Fallsworth,

who is returning in her...

that he is to accept your protection.

And to submit to all matters

pertaining to the safety of the ship...

and her treasure, sire.

Oh, yes.

And now, sire...

me crew...

Your crew?

Captain Kidd wishes to recruit a crew from the pirates...

now under capital sentence

in Newgate and the Marshalsea.

A crew of condemned pirates?

Aye, sir.

There's none would be so loyal...

nor fight so desperate

as cutthroats under sentence of death...

if they knew that, at the end of the voyage...

a Royal Pardon would be in their pockets.

But I shall hold you accountable for their good conduct.

Between their conduct and mine, Your Majesty...

there will be little to choose.

And now, good-bye.

And God speed you.

I am but his unworthy sparrow.

Pew!

I'd rather eat the bilge scum from an African slaver.

Adam, don't let that temper get you the lash again.

If I must hang, I'll hang,

but I'll go to the gallows with clean guts, at least.

Hey, you!

What kind of stinking maggots meat is this?

Warders! Warders!

There's that dainty crum Mercy,

complaining about the taste of the king's bounty again.

- Watch it! - Bounty?! Bounty, me eye!

The king's allowance is thruppence a day for food,

not muck from the sewers of Whitechapel!

Making trouble again, eh, Mercy?

I'm asking only what a man's legally entitled to.

Here, smell this.

Delicious.

Hear, Your Governor!

What sort of a kingdom is this...

where a man's condemned before he's heard,

and starved before they hang him?

Who's that quarrelsome fella?

Adam Mercy. He was taken in a pirate ship

by His Majesty's frigate Wasp.

He's always escaping, so that's why we keep him in chains.

He's got a lacing of tiger's blood in him.

This ain't exactly a flower garden, is it?

Oh, forgive me, Governor, these are two of me officers.

Uh, Mr. Boyle, Governor Landers.

Mr. Lorenzo, Governor Landers.

Spanish blood.

- A pretty lot of sinners. - Capit�n...

do you think there is anyone down there who knows us?

I hope not.

Governor, would you be good enough to tell them what we're here for?

Give heed, you, you vermin.

Here's news to your advantage.

Is the hangman dead, then?

Out with it, then, Jack Nasty-face!

Is it that your mother's turning into an honest woman?

Silence, you mutinous dogs!

If another man speaks,

I'll trice him up by the thumbs and flay him raw!

Governor...

is that the way to win the love of these unfortunate gentlemen?

Now, then, me bullies...

would you rather do the gallows dance

and hang in chains

'til the crows pick your eyes from your rotting skulls...

or would you feel the roll of a stout ship

beneath your feet again?

I've a vessel, the Adventure galley...

and the king's commission to sail her.

And for those who show a loyal and a stout heart...

there's a Royal Pardon in the offing.

Which of you knows the waters of Madagascar?

I do!

Would you have him unlocked, Governor?

Warder, unlock him.

Look you, then.

I want men with iron in their blood

and steel in their sinews.

And the first up here is the first enlisted.

Governor, if your warders are ready,

would you be good enough to have them lower the ropes?

Lower away!

Here they come. Make ready, lads.

Put your hands on that, I'll make you a free man.

The other one now.

Next!

Next one! Come on.

Name!

- Peter Sharfstone. - Peter Sharfstone, eh?

Regardless of the fact that I'm your Captain,

you will always address a gentleman as "sir," scum.

- Aye, sir. - Make your mark.

On board!

- Name! - Adam Mercy, sir.

Oh, so it's you.

"Mercy"? That's a comical handle for a blade of fortune. Mercy.

It's also something the world needs more of.

Fire and death, a philosopher! You speak cultured.

Were you, by any chance, stable boy to a noble house?

Perhaps.

I was also master gunner

to a buccaneer you may have heard of...

Captain Avery.

Avery's master gunner...

We've needed a master gunner, Mr. Boyle,

and from what I've heard, uh,

Avery was a shrewd hand at picking them.

The berth's yours for as long as you can handle it.

I can handle it.

Swivel gun or long tom, I'll forfeit a guinea for every miss.

You'll forfeit your neck if you miss while you're on my ship.

Make your mark.

And you can write!

We'll give you a nice bath.

You'll draw a uniform befitting a master gunner.

- On board! - Next man!

- Name! - Bartholomew Blivens, sir.

Bartholomew Blivens.

Make your mark.

Down below!

- Captain aboard? - He's over there, sir.

Next man!

That's all, sir. Our complement's full.

Povy!

- I thought you-- - Yes, you thought I was dead.

I can hardly believe my eyes.

You mean you don't want to believe them.

Now, come, come, Mr. Povy. Is that kind or is that fair?

As fair as what you did that day you abandoned me on a Bahama reef.

If you please, Mr. Povy, it is not the time to talk about that.

Oh, it's the time, all right...

unless you want people to know...

in which case your present voyage is over before it's begun.

No, no, no, no, Povy.

Mr. Boyle, would you take over, please.

Mr. Lorenzo, take the deck watch.

Come to my cabin.

My heart bleeds when I think of one of your delicate constitution

having to fend for yourself on a coral reef, Mr. Povy.

Come off it, Captain.

I know why you marooned me.

'Twas so there'd be only three of you to share, instead of four.

It's true.

A hostile wind did blow us away from your reef.

Between friends, we might have sailed back.

Did exactly what you would have done, Mr. Povy,

so, no more of your sentimental nonsense, please.

Now that we are four again, what then?

We're not four.

We're two.

Boyle and Lorenzo-- dull clods.

Twenty thousand pounds apiece in their hands

would only be spent in sinful ways.

And you propose to remove them from the path of temptation.

How?

A knife in the dark?

I'm not a violent man, Mr. Povy. I detest violence.

People have such an awkward habit of getting in my way.

I am an ambitious man, Mr. Povy.

An ambitious man, if he be bold enough,

can carve himself a kingdom.

I'm going to be a lord, my friend.

And that, for a commoner like myself, takes a deal of money.

And that's why there could be two less to share...

before we raise old England again.

- You cold-gutted shark. - Oh...

A flatterer.

Oh, I'm glad you're back again, Mr. Povy.

You've no idea how gratifying it is

to have a congenial soul to confide in.

Thank you.

Oh. There's something I want to tell you.

I have left, with a trusted friend, a sealed letter containing

an exact and complete account of certain previous happenings...

only to be opened in case-- just in case, of course--

you should happen to return to England without me.

Of course, my dear fellow.

Very sensible of you.

Now I know you'll have a happy voyage.

I shall, too.

I'll look up me quarters.

We are two of the luckiest men alive.

Just think...

we're sailing for Madagascar waters.

We'll pick up the search where we left off.

Every officer on board has a servant.

I'll request the Captain to assign you to me,

then we'd be together.

Yes, I've spent a good many years of my life

at sea, milady,

but I doubt if any woman minds a dash of salt...

even in a peer of the Realm like myself.

Now, if me lady will join me in a minuet?

"My lady," sir, not "me lady."

Blast me, Shadwell!

Does one gentleman creep up on another

without a cough or a spit or something to warn him?

I'm not a gentleman, sir, I'm a gentleman's gentleman.

Pity about the hair.

And so you've tried everything?

Bear's grease?

Prenatal influence, perhaps.

Dinner is served, sir.

Thank you, Shadwell.

Pardon, sir.

I'll show you to your place.

Captain, what's all this mummery?

You can forget your bilge water manners for the time, Mr. Boyle.

You are now officers on a king's ship.

So a man must starve while his manners fatten.

I know, I know.

And, in a King's ship, it is customary for the officers

to rise when the Captain enters.

That's better.

Gentlemen...

be seated.

Well, well, well, what have we here?

A gentleman, you are sure of this.

Of course, but don't press me.

Come, Mr. Mercy...

tell us something about yourself.

You already know whatever's of consequence, sir.

While under Avery I was taken by a king's ship and brought to London.

There I was tried for a pirate and condemned.

You were innocent, of course.

No, sir, I was guilty.

You speak above your station.

How came you to go on the account?

Call it, uh, love of adventure,

crossed in love, a scandal, perhaps a mixing of all three.

And you've seen something of the world?

Enough, sir, to dislike what I've seen

and to know there's small hope for a better.

Perhaps you'll prefer the next world, Mr. Mercy.

You were close enough to it

when you were in the condemned hold at Newgate.

But I'm keeping you from your dinner.

And now, gentlemen...

a toast to the king...

and, since proposing it is the privilege

of the youngest present...

the honor falls to Mr. Mercy.

Mr. Mercy, we are waiting.

No, sir.

Since I've little love for the king,

I'll neither propose his health nor drink it.

Nevertheless, you are on a king's ship.

King's ship or the devil's, it's all the same to me, sir.

I owe him nothing.

You owe him your neck, Mr. Mercy.

If it were not for his bounty,

you'd be dancing daintily on air at Wapping.

I owe my reprieve to you, Captain,

so to you I'll drink, and gladly,

but not to William.

You stand up and drink to His Majesty's health

as a king's officer should...

or, by fire and flame,

I'll have you shipped back to Newgate

on the first vessel we speak!

Gentlemen, the king.

- The king. - God bless him.

That's curious.

Do you suppose His Majesty put him on board

to spy us out?

Well, we found him chained to a pillar at Newgate.

It wouldn't be to hard for the king to plant him there.

Yes, but why would he speak

so openly against the King?

Your wits are even duller than usual, Mr. Lorenzo.

Have you never heard of the serpent

that takes the color of its background,

the better to strike?

Shadwell...

Yes, sir?

You have a knowledge of high-born people

and those of the court, Shadwell.

Have you ever seen Mr. Mercy before?

Not before this voyage, sir.

He's as high of spirit as a gentleman of quality.

I like him.

Uh, would you find out who he is

and where he comes from?

- As you wish, sir. - Thank you, Shadwell.

Uh... Oh.

Foggy night, sir.

Good evening, Shadwell.

Excuse me, sir, but you seafaring men

always seem to be looking at something

that I never can see.

We are looking for something just over the horizon.

You know, sir, I recognized you for a gentleman

the moment I saw you, sir.

What are you, a valet, doing at sea?

The Captain employed me to make him

socially acceptable, sir.

I'm afraid we're too far out for me to swim back.

But if I can be of service to you, sir...

Did the Captain send you here?

- Yes, sir. - Why?

He wants to know who or what you are, sir.

Who do they think I am?

Possibly a spy, placed on board by His Majesty.

They seemed uneasy, sir.

Hmm.

This, uh...

This Captain Kidd...

how long have you known him? Have you sailed with him before?

Oh, no, sir.

All I know is he's a...

well, among other things...

a merchant captain.

A spy, that's strange.

Why should they be afraid to be spied on?

- Good night, Shadwell. - Good night, sir.

Who is he? Where's he from?

He's a nobody, sir.

He was employed by persons of quality,

where he learned his speech and his manners.

Oh.

Mm.

It's a matter of judgment.

If you fire on the up-roll,

the shot will go over his yardarms.

But if you wait for the down-roll and the enemy's coming up...

Now watch.

Get ready!

Fire!

- Hooray! - Hooray!

Hey!

Pretty shot, Mr. Mercy.

Can you do as well

with a 74 throwing grape and canister at you?

I've done it, sir.

Reload and secure,

and pick up your practice on the larboard quarter swivel gun.

Mr. Mercy?

You've sailed with Avery,

- you must know these waters. - Fairly, sir.

If we needed to careen and take on stores,

where would you recommend?

Poverty Bay, sir. It lies just--

We'd draw too much water. You remember, Captain.

Remember?

Remember what?

I only know the Spanish main.

These are Madagascar waters.

- Uh, Poverby Bay? - Aye, sir.

Thank you, Mr. Mercy. Come along, Mr. Boyle.

You blundering ass!

Your presence is becoming increasingly irksome to me.

Get you below.

Now let's get down to the business of this voyage.

Hand me that chart, Mr. Boyle.

Capit�n...

I have been thinking every day and every night.

What about that dinero that we buried in the cave?

What good is it there? Let's get it and get it back where we can spend it.

- It stays where it is for a while. - Why?

We've got a fatter prize sailing right into our pockets.

Now...

here's our present position...

here's Madagascar...

here's Calicut.

In June the great galleon the Queda merchant

sails from Calicut to England.

We should meet her about here.

She's stuffed from keel to gunnels with treasure to the value

- of half a million pounds. - Half--?

And we are to give her safe passage

through the pirate seas.

By, uh, safe passage, you mean we're to take her, Captain?

Now, now, now, don't be greedy, Mr. Povy.

I'll grant that most of what's in her may find its way

into our pockets, but let's be fair.

The king, poor gentleman, will expect something.

But however we do it...

it must be done legal-like and honest.

Stick to ways you're familiar with.

Why, you pox-raddled villain,

I can be as honest as any man if I have the incentive.

Oh, yes, milord Blayne.

Lord Blayne's name is not to be mentioned among us, Mr. Povy.

He's dead, so's his crew, and so's ours,

and there's none outside this cabin that knows what became of them.

And if you all enjoy living...

you will remember that.

Well...

here's to our meeting with the Queda merchant.

- Queda merchant. - Queda merchant.

- God bless her. - God bless her.

Dios la bendiga.

Wind fresh from west-nor'west, sir.

Course: nor'east by east. Night: dark but clear.

Very well, Mr. Mercy.

- Nor'east by east. - Nor'east by east, sir.

- Mizzen down! - Mizzen down!

It's Mr. Boyle!

Lend a hand, men!

Man down!

What happened?

He's dead.

If I find the man that's responsible for this,

I'll hang him!

Fetch the yard and re-set it.

What do you suppose happened?

Someone's been tampering with these lines.

We are gathered together to bid farewell

to a gallant seaman and a stout comrade.

Here was a man, shipmates...

whose heart the flinty mountains could not match...

who always took better than he gave...

whose benevolence was such,

the orphan's might and the rich man's gold alike

found refuge in his pocket.

A jealous providence has removed him from us...

and I esteem it a privilege to commit his body to the deep.

We shall all mourn him.

Aye, we shall mourn him,

but take comfort, me friends...

we shall never see his like again.

Rest in peace.

Pop him over.

Pity, Mr. Mercy, a great pity, but the ship's work must go on.

Move your gear into poor Mr. Boyle's cabin.

You will take his place as master.

As master!

Aye, sir.

Why, Shadwell.

Don't tell me, after all this time at sea, you--

My inward revolt is not from the movement of the vessel, sir,

it's occasioned by the company I endure.

The manners, I say nothing of, sir.

But I'm a Dorsetshire man...

and when I find a common shipmaster

has the presumption to copy himself

the coat of arms of one of our best Dorsetshire families...

can you wonder if I'm physically upset?

Well, whose crest was he copying?

Credited or not, sir, the Blayne crest.

- Are you certain? - Perfectly, sir.

The crest is on a writ in his desk.

Pardon me, sir, I must join the captain.

He's inspecting a cask of pickled eels...

with Mr. Lorenzo.

Well, Mr. Mercy.

Do your new duties include robbing my desk?

Shoot me, Captain, and your head goes with it.

I'm here by the king's orders.

So he did plant you on board.

Do you think he'd let a man sail with a crew of Newgate cutthroats

and not keep tabs on him? And with good reason.

If anything ever reeked of power, I'd say this does, and murder, Captain.

Boyle's death was no accident.

By the way, uh...

what ship was sunk here, The Twelve Apostles?

Why The Twelve Apostles, Mr. Mercy?

There's Blayne's ring, his name's on it, and he commanded The Twelve Apostles.

That'll make interesting telling in London when we get back, Captain.

If you get back.

When I get back, for if I don't...

On the other hand...

"On the other hand," what?

Since a man doesn't exactly grow rich in the king's pay...

Oh!

A crooked rogue.

So you have your price.

How much?

An equal share in what's buried here.

Share that with you? I'll be hanged if I do.

You'll be hanged if you don't.

Of all the slummocky blackguards!

And if you do share, Mr. King's Informer,

what guarantee is there that you won't

still turn evidence for the Crown?

If I go in with you, I'm equally guilty.

And if we're caught, we hang together, but...

I can keep you from being caught.

What more could you ask?

You know, Mr. Mercy...

I've wondered sometimes if ever I'd meet

a more unscrupulous blackguard than myself.

And I have.

Well, let's be sensible about this.

Who knows?

We might be useful to each other one day.

In one way or another.

You've forgotten something...

the ring.

So I have.

Listen, and carefully,

because I want you to tell it in London if anything happens to me.

Kidd caught me in his cabin, robbing his desk.

I lied to him, told him I was a king's informer.

- Good. - Yes, but he didn't believe me,

not one word. He just pretended to.

Oh, why didn't you shoot him?

Then he will give us no more trouble.

That's a pleasure I'm reserving for later.

If he proves the liar I think him...

king's man or no,

he betrayed an uncommon interest in The Twelve Apostles.

I didn't like it, Mr. Lorenzo, and I mean to find out why.

Why, you could have charged him with robbery

and turned him off at a yardarm, all legal and shipshape.

You would've been rid of him once and for all.

Let's not be impetuous, Mr. Povy. He can't leave us...

unless he swims.

It'll be rather amusing to find out what he does.

You rest easy, leave Mr. Mercy to me.

Sail ho!

Sail ho!

Have the boatswain pipe to quarters.

Pipe to quarters!

It's the Queda merchant, sure enough.

Can you make her out, Captain Rawson?

Mmm.

She hasn't the cut of a buccaneer, Your Excellency.

Much too tidy for that-- more like a king's ship.

Yet she has the lines of a merchantman.

Have the longboat ready and manned.

Longboat stand by!

Stand by to put a shot across her bows, Mr. Mercy.

Aye, sir. Number four gun crew, stand by for action!

She's flying the English colors.

Perhaps she's our escort ship.

It was about here we were to meet, wasn't it?

Well, we make dead certain, just the same.

Mr. Hilliard, see that all hands are at their station.

Very good, sir.

Ready?

Fire!

Well placed, Mr. Mercy.

- Hard to starboard! - Hard to starboard!

Starboard she is, sir.

You will come across with us in the longboat, Mr. Mercy.

And convey my compliments to all officers,

who will dress as befitting a king's ship.

Aye, sir.

Captain William Kidd of His Majesty's,

uh, privateer Adventure.

At your service, sir.

Mr. Povy, uh, me surgeon,

Mr. Mercy, me master,

Mr. Lorenzo, me navigator.

Welcome aboard, gentlemen.

I'm Captain Rawson.

I'm Lord Fallsworth...

His Majesty's ambassador to the court of the Grand Mughal.

Your obedient servant, sir.

I've been sent to give you convoy,

and we'd better make haste with our business.

These are unhealthy waters for ships to be hove to,

as I discovered a day or so ago.

You mean you sighted some of the pirate brotherhood?

More than that, sir.

We beat off two of them.

Avery and Culliford, out of Last Hope,

some thirty leagues south of here.

Oh, stop there, I near forgot.

Could you spare us some powder and ball?

We used more than was safe during the action.

Why, all that you need, sir, and welcome.

Mr. Lorenzo here could attend to that, then?

Oh, Mr. Hilliard, take Mr. Lorenzo below and see to that he gets what he wants.

- Aye aye, sir. - Captain.

I sent for the master gunner. He'll take care of all your needs.

Uh-huh.

Mr. Lorenzo?

Take this powder and put it in the longboat.

Aye aye, sir.

Gentlemen, my daughter, the Lady Anne Dunstan.

Captain Kidd,

Mr. Povy, Mr. Mercy.

- Haven't we met before? - I think not, my lady.

You remind me of someone I've seen.

I think it impossible that we could have ever met.

Perhaps.

How do we proceed now, Captain?

Well, I'm instructed to give you protection past Madagascar.

And you'll be safe as long as we sail in company.

But Avery will be a wolf at your heels,

and if we are separated in darkness or storm...

And, uh, what would you advise then, sir?

Well...

I suppose we could take Lord Fallsworth and Lady Anne

aboard the Adventure 'til Madagascar's astern,

and then, if we are separated and this vessel should be taken...

What about the treasure on board?

One silver chest alone...

a present to His Majesty from the Grand Mughal,

contains precious gems valued at more than a million pound.

May I suggest, Your Excellency...

Now, why not transfer the treasure chest

with yourself and Lady Anne on board the Adventure

until we are out of danger?

She's a king's ship.

That is a great responsibility.

And, although my instructions are

that you are to trust me in all matters,

I don't know if I could go so far as to--

What else can we do?

Three of them against us, or, well, even two, sir...

- we'd be helpless. - It's the wisest course.

I defer to Your Excellency.

And now could we inspect the chests?

We could have them slung into our boats

along with the gear of Lord Fallsworth and Lady Anne.

Why, certainly. Come. This way, Captain.

No trouble at all.

Hoist away.

Mr. Povy.

I've sent for the manifest, Captain.

You may check it against the contents of this chest

and give me your receipt, if you will.

Gladly, gladly.

Oh, uh, there you are, Mr. Lorenzo.

Have you, uh, completed your business?

Almost, sir.

Your people have been most kind, Capit�n Rawson.

There is only one detail left.

It will not take a minute.

Finish it up, then. We must be gone within the hour.

Yes, Capit�n.

- Oh. - The manifest, sir.

Would you attend to that Mr. Povy?

- Aye, sir. - Thank you very much, Captain.

Come, Mr. Lorenzo.

You've seen a lovely lady before this.

A tribute to your beauty, ma'am.

Uh, did you finish your business below?

Yes, Capit�n.

Then we'd better be under way.

Uh, Mr. Mercy, you will see Lord Fallsworth and the Lady Anne into the boat.

Aye, sir.

Make way for the longboat!

You will look after their luggage, Mr. Lorenzo.

I apologize, milady, for our poor accommodations,

but me valet Shadwell will see that you're made comfortable.

It's a pleasure to have your ladyship aboard.

If you'll follow me, please.

Why hasn't it happened?

She's blown up!

Someone must have touched off the magazine.

Send down some boats at once, sir!

You can't ask me to risk men near that.

I'll go myself.

- Let it go. - Captain!

Father!

Excuse me, milady.

Your father... may I say how sorry I am.

The captain has requested that you take your meals in the main cabin.

Oh, no, Shadwell, I can't bear to face those men.

I can't.

I quite understand, milady...

but the captain's orders are orders.

Shadwell, you must help me. There's no one else I can trust.

But what can I do, milady?

I'm only a servant.

Oh, where can I turn? I--

I'm so confused and frightened. I...

...keep thinking of my father and the others lost back there.

And on this ship, wherever I go, those horrible, staring men...

Like Lorenzo, who's always standing behind me, beside me.

Last night there was a tapping on the door, and...

when I opened it, there he was, that--

that evil, smiling face of his.

Why, he might better belong with those pirates

you fought a few days ago.

Pirates, milady?

We fought no pirates.

Why, my father said Captain Kidd told...

Shadwell, what manner of ship is this?

My father was killed deliberately, I'm sure of it.

That's why I can't bear to face your captain.

I'd accuse him, and...

There is a man on board, milady...

a gentleman, whom I know you can trust.

- Mr. Mercy? - Yes, milady.

Shadwell, I know I've met or seen him before,

no matter how he denies it.

His name isn't Mercy...

but who is he?

All I really know is, milady,

he's no friend of the captain's.

Perhaps if I ask him, he'll... Shall I?

- Oh, yes, will you please? - Yes, milady.

I am asking you again, very nice,

my dear capit�n.

Your fancy manners do not impress me, Mr. Lorenzo.

When do we divide the gold?

In London, not before.

Uh-huh.

Then look, Capit�n,

I will make a bargain with you.

A bargain?

Everybody wants to bargain with me-- you and Mercy...

Fire and thunder, what do you think I am,

a stinking sausage merchant?

What kind of a bargain?

The girl.

All my life I have dreamed of a beautiful woman like that.

Give me half of my dinero now...

and you can split the rest between you...

...if you will let me have her.

Fire on him.

He's smit with love again.

I want her...

and I am going to take her.

Whether I like it or not?

Uh-huh.

With all this treasure on board...

the crew is like a barrel of hot gunpowder.

All that is needed is a word in the right ears.

Do you mean mutiny?

You're a witness.

He's inciting the crew to mutiny.

Oh, no, no, no, Capit�n.

I was only joking.

You have a very nasty way of joking, Mr. Lorenzo.

As for the girl, I have my own plans for her,

and they do not include you.

Get out.

Who is it?

Adam Mercy.

- Mr. Mercy, I'm-- - Shh!

Thank you for coming, Mr. Mercy.

- I'm at my-- - My name's Adam Blayne.

Son of Lord Blayne?

I knew it, I knew it!

Well what are you doing on this ship?

My father was killed and accused of piracy.

Oh, few people believed Lord Blayne was--

The king did!

That's why I went to sea and turned pirate three years ago.

That's why I'm on this ship.

I knew that someday I'd come upon the truth.

And you have...

It was Captain Kidd who killed your father, wasn't it?

Adam, I'm no fool.

He did the same thing to my father.

The fat butcher!

It's taken me three years to track him down...

three years of degradation.

Now I've got him where I want him, and he knows it.

You mean he knows who you are?

He knows something.

That's why you didn't admit to me who you were,

- why you avoided me. - If Kidd knows we shared this,

he'd kill you with as little compunction as he means to kill me...

if I let him.

Oh, what can I do to help? Th-- There must be something.

Forget everything you've seen on this ship.

Play up to him. Be friendly. That way you'll be safe.

Now, when you get back to London,

no matter what has happened to me...

Go to the Lords of the Admiralty and the king.

You'll be doing me a great service as well as yourself.

I will, Adam, I promise.

You're going to have trouble with Lorenzo.

He's been bleating as a lamb that's exciting the tiger.

His blood's getting too rich for him.

He'd be the better for a bleeding.

Things are getting a bit complicated, milord.

The king may accept the elimination of the Queda merchant as an accident,

maybe even the sudden demise of Lord Fallsworth...

but what about the lady?

You said you had plans for her.

- Do they include... - Mr. Povy,

the little dear's as safe with me as if she was me daughter.

My passion's power and gold.

Since she suspects nothing,

I'll deliver her to His Majesty

along with his share of the Queda Merchant's goods,

I'll weep appropriately over the untimely demise of her pa,

receive the grateful thanks of me sovereign,

- and a peerage is mine. - Milord.

Laugh if you will, but that's what I'll have...

and neither man nor devil shall stop me.

- Shadwell? - Se�orita. Milady.

Do not be alarmed.

Now that she knows who I am and what kind of a ship she's on.

I think we can count on her to keep her head.

You stay here 'til I come off watch.

Help!

Shadwell!

Use your head, Mr. Povy.

Luck's with us tonight.

Which of either of them would you like to see survive?

Mr. Mercy, you did well to protect her.

Are you all right, sir?

Yes, I'm all right. Look after Lady Anne.

Adam, what's the matter?

My medallion, it's gone.

Has the Blayne crest on it.

Blayne!

- Perhaps I can find it for you, sir. - No.

It must've come off just before Lorenzo went through the port.

Shadwell, take Lady Anne to her cabin.

Oh, please Adam, I can't go in there.

You must, Anne. This is serious. It involves you.

Remember, no matter what tricks he tries,

you've never seen me before and you don't know who I am.

- Shadwell, I think-- - Well, don't worry about me, sir.

He never could get anything out of me, and he never will.

It's the only way you'll be safe.

Shadwell will watch out for you.

Well, what about you, Adam? What will he do?

The same thing he's done to the others,

- if he gets a chance. - Oh, Adam.

Don't worry, Anne. I at least know what to expect.

Go now.

Shadwell, if anything does happen, remember, you're to stand by Lady Anne

- and see that she gets safely to London. - I'll stake my life on it, sir.

I know you will.

Be careful, Adam.

Please be careful.

Come, milady.

He's no king's man.

Who is he, then?

Tomorrow we put into the lagoon for water,

and while the crew's getting it on board,

you and me and Mr. Mercy is going to the cave.

You're gonna take him in there?

I've a peculiar humor to watch my clever young friend's face

when we dig up that chest.

Sweet dreams.

Dig fast, Mr. Mercy, you haven't got forever.

Who might this be?

Perhaps a man that asked too many questions.

Gently now, Mr. Mercy.

You've come on something.

So it was The Twelve Apostles, eh, Captain?

Yes, it was, Mr. Mercy.

Open it up.

Blayne's.

Blayne's.

He was a brave seaman, but foolish.

Did you happen to know him, Mr. Mercy?

I'd heard of him.

I thought perhaps you had.

This...

...is yours...

...isn't it?

I, uh...

traded a ring for it.

One of Avery's men.

Yes.

When I encountered Lord Blayne at sea,

I did my simple duty as a loyal subject.

A pity he turned pirate and traitor to his king.

Liar!

He's meat for the sharks now, Mr. Povy.

The tide closes this place in half an hour.

We've nothing more to fear.

Oh, yes, you have, Captain-- Lady Anne.

It's a long voyage home, Mr. Povy,

and anything might happen.

Naturally, her ladyship is still very distressed, sir.

In the midst of life, we are in death, Shadwell...

- and though me heart bleeds-- - "My" heart, sir.

My heart bleeds...

Confound you, Shadwell,

you've drove the thought right out of me head,

and it was an uncommon pretty one.

I'm sure of that, sir.

Go to her at once.

Tell her she can't mourn forever,

and I shall expect her to take her meals in the main cabin

with the rest of us.

Very well, sir.

Poor lad.

We turned just in time to see him go over the edge.

Searched for an hour... never came up.

Well...

here's to him...

Wherever he is. You feeling ill?

Yes, I'll...

I'll go to my cabin, with your permission.

If you wish. It's been quite a trying voyage,

what with one little thing or another, but bear up...

you'll soon be home again.

I warned Adam not to go.

No one could have stopped him.

It was cold-bloodied-plan deliberate.

The same will happen to her ladyship unless we can...

Adam!

Adam, how did you...?

If he finds you on board, sir...

- I've come back for Lady Anne. - Oh, thank you, sir.

I've been hanging on the rudder chain since dark,

waiting for the turn of the watch.

The jolly boat's moored astern.

I worked it alongside. It's secured right under this port.

Bart, get in it and...

drift aft under the main cabin, one hour.

Get me some dry clothes. Shadwell, where's the captain?

In his own cabin with Mr. Povy, sir...

examining the silver chest they brought back on board, sir.

My father's chest.

Shadwell, Kidd doesn't suspect you.

Tell Lady Anne to get some things together,

and when the coast is clear, you come back for me.

Yes, sir.

- Boatswain! - Aye, sir.

Rouse out both watches at daybreak.

We're weighing on the morning tide.

Aye, sir.

Adam!

Kidd doesn't suspect Shadwell.

He's staying on board, and he'll be evidence for us in London.

Bart's in the small boat moored astern. We'll row ashore.

- Then where Adam? - Two days' journey overland

is the pirate town of Last Hope.

It's the most lawless place on earth, but I have friends there.

But somehow they'll find us a ship for England.

England.

- Now. - Come on.

Get down in the bow.

Good-bye, milady.

Good-bye, milord. Godspeed.

I'll see you in England.

Ahoy there! Who's in that boat now?

Come on.

Come on!

Fire!

Thank you...

melord scum.

Fire!

Man the longboat!

Bart.

Bart!

Hold on to me.

Take her away!

Eh, he's dead as a mackerel.

He's gone, too.

Ah, I guess that's the end of them, eh, Captain?

And good riddance.

Back to the ship, boys.

If you're thinking what I think you're thinking, my friend, forget it.

There's a little matter of a letter I left in London.

Spoilsport.

Captain William Kidd!

Greetings, Captain.

What news have you brought me from the Indian seas?

By your leave, Your Majesty, both good and ill, but mostly very good indeed.

I returned by way of the American colonies, sire.

So I understood.

With the main points of your voyage, I'm familiar.

I wonder if you can enlighten me...

about the affair of the Queen's godchild, Lady Anne Dunstan,

and your shipmaster, Mr. Mercy.

Oh, that poor, impetuous fellow, sire,

inveigled that bud of innocence, he did,

into running away with him.

And catching him red-handed in defense of me very life,

I was forced to dispatch them both.

Rest in peace.

Tell me, Captain, about the treasure...

and the Queda merchant.

Unfortunate, sire,

most unfortunate.

We'd shipped but that chest

when up she blew...

and all souls went heavenward.

Rest in peace to them.

Ditto.

I see.

And about The Twelve Apostles and Lord Blayne...

did you encounter any trace?

Nay, sire.

I can only hope that the weight of his sins

sank both him and his ship.

I see.

Then how do you explain this?

Whose might that be, Your Majesty?

My officers found it on your ship at Plymouth

after you'd left for London.

It bears the Blayne crest,

with which I believe you are not unfamiliar.

I've always felt that Mr. Povy, me surgeon--

a very wily fellow indeed--

was hiding something from me.

Hiding it in a secret lazarette in your cabin, Captain?

I hope Mr. Povy has a proper explanation, sire.

Mr. Povy was killed three days ago defending it.

With his dying oath, he swore it was not his!

Perhaps Shadwell, me valet, slipped it aboard.

Might it not have come from a Madagascar cave, Captain?

Something's dreadful queer about all this,

- Your Majesty. - Enough of your lies!

Look!

Nightmare!

A pity you overlooked Last Hope, Captain.

We stood on the headland with my friend Avery,

and watched you sail by.

May it please Your Majesty, I accuse this man of piracy and murder.

Was ever a gentleman so misfortunate?

Lock him up in Newgate.

He's to be held for the next session of the court of oyer and terminer,

there to be tried for his life.

Hands off me, you scum!

All I done was to the credit...

and for the honor and glory of England!

So here's me bequest

to them what hunts what I have hid...

and to their sons' sons...

down through the endless corridors of time.

Greed...

that spawns murder.

Hatred...

that corrodes the soul.

Ambition...

the foulest strumpet of all.

Hey, Jack! Jack Ketch!

Sell me a bit of that rope for sixpence, will you?

Save your money, me lads.

You can have it all for nothing

if you'd only step up here and wear it.

Hurry it up, Jack.

Can't wait forever.

Captain Kidd is dead, milord Blayne.

His account is closed.

Now, in what manner can I atone

for the injustice I wept upon your father?

Offer your advice, Sea Lord. What you suggest?

We've a fine frigate of fifty guns...

commissioned for American waters, sire...

that we thought of naming The Lady Anne.

It shall be a wedding gift to you from the Crown...

for your loyalty and service to King and Country.