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The only sounds Stede can hear are the waves against the ship and the oars dipping into the water.
It's early, yet. On the Royal James, just out of sight around the curve of the island, there's still talking and planning going on, or so he imagines.
Here, though, in the shadow of the Revenge, it's quiet enough to make Stede believe in ghost ships.
He shudders.
He lets himself have just that moment, then shakes it off. Ed is on the Revenge, according to Olivia (according to Buttons) and Stede at least owes him an apology.
And maybe when everything is said and done, if Ed will hear him out . . .
Well, that's if.
And that's a worry for when he gets on the ship.
Stede adjusts the leather gloves he started wearing when he began doing more of the work on the ship. He checks his knives - the long one at his waist, the smaller one at the small of his back, the one braced against his forearm, and one in each boot.
He hopes he won't have to use them, he's still not very good, but juggling powder, shot, gun, and trying to board seemed a losing proposition.
Stede very carefully grabs the small handle that leads to one of the secret passages. It opens easily, and he pushes the dinghy away from the ship so it won't knock against the hull and alert anyone.
He pulls the door closed after him, and checks his knives again. His heart is beating hard enough that he's afraid everyone on the ship can hear it.
It takes a moment for him to calm himself, and once he does, he starts hearing the small noises that tell him the Revenge is, indeed, inhabited.
Someone is snoring in one of the rooms that shares a wall with the passage. Two people - Jim and Lucius, maybe? - are whispering together. Frenchie is playing his lute softly.
There are footsteps above him. Limping footsteps, but not quite Ed's gait. So, whoever is on night watch is injured.
This passage leads to the galley, not the captain's cabin, so Stede knows he'll have to cross the deck. He doesn't want to hurt anyone, but he will.
He begins to creep through the dark, keeping an ear out for where everyone might be.
The galley is warm with the fire banked. Someone is sleeping in the kitchen, Stede can hear them shift in their bedroll. He walks as slowly and quietly as he can towards the door.
The colored glass has been knocked out of the window. Stede takes a cautious look out of the hole it left. Izzy is on watch. Good. Of all the crew, Izzy was the one Stede thought he could bring himself to hurt the easiest.
He has to time it right. Stede hasn't been allowed to keep his illusions this time around, he knows he can't take Izzy in a duel, or even in a fair fight.
Izzy is facing away, on the far side of the deck, so Stede carefully slips out of the door, and ducks into the shadows, grateful that the clothing he was able to raid was all in darker palettes. It did nothing for his complexion, but was much less obvious now.
Stede watches as Izzy turns and limps his way back. His eyes are scanning the horizon to both sides of the ship, one hand rests on the handle of his sword, the other worries at the ring tied into his cravat.
He's coming close, closer, closer yet. Stede holds his breath, waits for him to pass, then steps out behind him.
It's quick, Stede has his knife at Izzy's throat before Izzy realizes he's not alone, but Izzy has fought for his life before.
He crashes his head back into Stede's nose, and Stede drops the knife, staggers back. Izzy turns, and laughs.
"Should have known that death was too ridiculous even for you." He sneers, "but I can fix that just fine."
Stede grabs the knife at his back while Izzy is taunting him. "Might want to ask your captain about that." He advises, with a calm he doesn't feel. "Ed might have other plans."
"Ed doesn't know what's good for him." Izzy spits. "He never has. That's why he has me."
Stede feints to his right, and tries to sweep Izzy's legs out from under him. It doesn't quite work the way he expects it to, but he does manage to kick the outside of Izzy's foot, causing the pirate to yowl.
All at once, Stede can hear the ship coming to life around him. He doesn't take his eyes off his opponent, who has managed to keep his feet, barely.
"He's not the one in charge, Bonnet. He never has been. Never will be."
Stede sees the captain's cabin door opening, and works to keep Izzy's attention on him. This seems important.
"What do you mean, Israel?"
"I needed a patsy, at first, if the mutiny against Hornigold didn't work. And people flock to him. Give him a nickname like Blackbeard and his ship couldn't lose."
Stede slashes with his knife again, and Izzy moves out of the way, "So I called him captain, and I let him plan the raids- he's good at that. And I'd offer to do the boring parts. The day to day that he didn't like."
Izzy laughs, "He's so easy to manipulate. Until you, I just had to dangle the next shiny thing in front of him." He lunges for Stede, who barely evades him.
"Why not mutiny, if you wanted to be in charge?"
"No one wants to follow me. I don't have his charisma." Another dark chuckle, another lunge, "and besides, he's the bigger target."
Stede catches Ed's eye across the deck. He's devastated, and Stede's expression must show something because Izzy turns then.
"Fuck."
"I thought we were friends, at least, Iz." Ed tells him as Stede comes back up behind him, knife to his back.
"Pirates don't have friends. Calico Jack should have taught you that lesson." Izzy spits on the deck. "You're only good for the recognition, and after you met this twat and let the English Navy take you, you aren't even good for that."
Stede looks up at Ed, who nods his head towards Ivan before retreating into his cabin.
"Right. Ivan, take custody of Mr. Hands, please. Fang, will you take over the watch? Try not to let any other dinghies sneak up on the ship."
He metaphorically girds his loins, and carefully follows Ed into the captain's cabin.