the morning after the night before . . .

*the glorious sun smiles brightly on all, ashore an' aboard. kitties stretch an' wash themselves
or whatever part of whomever they can reach*

*the banquet tables are besieged by kitties who has slept LONG past breakfast for the furst time in their lives. if only their beans were here to enjoy it!* *sigh*

*the comfort stations are besieged in the rush of after-brekkie nature calls*

*ears perk as ghastly moans are heard from within the ship . . . be it a ghost? . . . an ofur-fed reveler onna way t'the head? . . . the prisoner, bemoanin' his fate?*

*a dory wif a chastened an' penitent nitro an' ed pulls slowly towards the cat*

fagin bounces brightly from the interior to the foredeck, closely followed by cato no-tail, cabin boykit o' th' cat o' nine tails. given their sprightly actions an' happy manner, neither appears to be the origin o' the moans.

by means o' some long-distance tail signals an' ear twitches, arrangements are made to meet forthwith wif skull-crusher left-eye louie, dana, an' princess isis the woofie at the first clump of trees west o' the rocks to PLAYPLAYPLAY!!!! since wig-waggin' out inna open is seen by all, a good many dories, skiffs, an' all manner o' ship's boats converge on the appointed spot, an' th' junior set be seen no more til late in th' day. PLAYPLAYPLAY!!!

*again, the sorrowful moans split the air*

*time passes*

*the door o' the cap'n's quarters creaks slowly open. cap'n nels (somewhat more
pallid than usual--even his black cap, spot, an' tail seem a bit washed out),
cap'n jack, an' dante creep forth into the sunlight, blinking furiously*

meYARRRRR, cap'n! th' sun be ofur th' yardarm, an' that were th' signal t' scour the island fur th' treasure!!!

ow! xing--shut yer piehole, ye silly git! d'ye haf no respect fur the dead? moderate thy strident tones, wench. i can hear the grains o'sand on the beach grindin' togefur like boulders--ah, i forswears that tuna juice furefurr, my oath on't!--jack, lad. be ye livin', er be ye dead?

*ghastly moan* (ah! the mystery be solved)
livin', i thinks. but i also thinks i wish it were not so . . . arrr, that be a fearsome brew ye fed us, nels.

an' dante, me bucko--how fare ye?

*gulps* *runs for the head*

ah, well. we'll be off for th' treasure after a few strips o' bacon an' some nice, greasy pork chops fer our vittles . . . hoy! jack! where be ye goin'?? *nels laughs* th' head be THAT way! *points wif his tail* xing--be sure the lads get the next conveyance t' the island. i be off inna ship's boat. t'will be a sad day when demon tuna juice keep me from me rondyvoo wif treasure. an' by the bye, where be fatcat? he be the keeper o' the map!

ummmm, cap'n?
aye, xing?
i saw fatcat an' nitro slink aboard a while ago. fatcat had no map about him that i could see. an' i could see plenty, for he were mother-nekkid. so were nitro, for the matter o'that.

arrrrrrh. FATCAT!!!!!
aye, cap'n?
what in th' name o' king neptune hisself be ye doin' nekkid?? where be yer hat an' maille shirt? bigod--if yer shivs weren't fastened on t'ye, they'd be gone, too, i swear it.
ahhhhhh, there were this cask, y'see. an' some pretty native ladycats, an' me an' nitro . . .
arrrr, yess . . . ye needn't go into any partikulars now. ye be pirates, after all, tho' ye has no hoo-hahs. but where be th' map? tell me true, now, er i'll put ye in wif th' prisoner after keel-haulin' ye!
errrr, i hasn't seen it lately, yer worship.
*extremely patiently, wif a scary smile:* an' when would be the last time that t'weren't "lately", fatcat?
it were, ummmm, perhaps at two bells o'the second dog watch, kind cap'n, sir.
WHAAAAAAT? an' how be we findin' o'the treasure, then?
me an' nitro, we seen clear sign o' where it be, yer lordshipness! we kin show ye!!
let's get t'the island then, an' if ye show it t'me plain, mayhap ye'll save most o'yer lives.

*off to the island, wif nitro an' fatcat rowin' as if their tails were afire (which may yet happen, if they please not the cap'n, who be crankier than usual owin' t'the tuna juice)*

here, cap'n nels!

it be at the bend in th' path. ye'll see, right enough!

BEGAWD!
we'd best be a-followin' this trail!

sound the alarum!! all cats t'me, by th' horn o' triton!!

*thundering feet are heard*

cap'n jack, dante me lad--ye be here in the nick o'time--we be on the road to riches an' glory!! let's press on . . . an' devil take th' hindmost!!!

be careful where ye dig, mind ye--be sure the spot be not too close t'the comfort stations!

. . . an' what d'ye think happened next? . . .

wait an' see!