The sun made an appearance. Rays pierced a thin passing of clouds. It must be an hour or so from midmorning.
The light helped, but the overall darkness was thick, and blanketed the sky.
Reed stood beside Sebastian, his spyglass searching the darkness for signs of impact. “Direct hit, Captain! I believe it struck between gun-ports.”
Damaging the lower half of the hull allowed water into the ship. It brought them closer to sinking the enemy. Hitting the upper half, and there was a better chance for lives lost, bad injuries, and for ruining weapons. The obvious bottom line was that hitting the target was always better than missing it, as the old joke went.
“I see fire,” Sebastian said.
“Aye, Captain,” Reed said. “Inside the hull.”
A knocked over lantern? “Steady, Lieutenant.”
“Steady,
