Attack on the High Seas! by Brian James Page A

pointing at Gary’s sniffling nose. Inna was always the best at thinking up ways to get out of trouble.
    Gary was next. He took a peek at the sea slugs and gulped. Even if he couldn’t smell it, he could see that it looked yucky. “Aye, no more for me!” he said. “I’d probably just spill it on the way to the table,” he added to be nice. And it worked, too, because Gary is the clumsiest pirate kid any of us have ever met. So Aaron and Vicky had no reason to think he was fibbing.

    We all sat at the table. All the other pirates took one whiff and moved a little bit away. Then they started to leave one by one until we were the only ones left in the mess hall.
    I watched the sea slugs squirming around on my spoon. I had to close my eyes before taking a bite. I was surprised to find out it didn’t taste as bad as it smelled. Believe it or not, it tasted a hundred million times WORSE!
    â€œYum,” I said, trying not to gag.
    Inna brought her spoon up and lifted her scarf. She made a face like she was taking medicine, and then she took a bite. Her eyes opened so wide as she swallowed that I thought they were going to pop right out of her head.
    â€œMmm,” she squeaked.
    â€œAye? You like it?” Vicky asked.
    I nodded.
    Inna nodded, too. “But it could use a little cinnamon,” she said. Then she raced over to the cupboard and brought back the cinnamon. She scooped ten spoonfuls into her bowl.
    When I looked over at Gary, I couldn’t believe my eyes.
    He’d already finished everything in his bowl.
    Then I looked at the floor by his chair and saw a puddle of sea slug cereal. Gary glanced over at me and gave me the shhhhh! sign.
    â€œYo ho ho! This sure is some good slop,” Aaron said, shoveling his mouth full of the gruesome grub.
    â€œAye!” Vicky said, slurping up another spoonful. Most of the time, Vicky and Aaron argued about everything. But they agreed when it came to their family recipe.
    Just then, Rotten Tooth stormed into the mess hall. Rotten Tooth was not only the ugliest pirate on the Sea Rat , he was also the meanest . He had green hair and green teeth and mostly yelled a lot. Plus he was our teacher, and he didn’t like us one bit. But I’d never been happier to see him!
    â€œArrr! What are ye lazy sprogs doing in here?” he growled. “Ye be late for Pirate School!”
    â€œAvast, we were just finishing,” I said.
    â€œYe better be! Any pirate not on deck in the shake of a whale’s tail will be on kitchen duty,” Rotten Tooth warned. He looked around and saw the slop spilled all over the place. Then he sniffed and made a face like we do when we smell his breath. “Arrr! And by the stink of it, kitchen duty is about the worst place on the ship today.”
    I sprang up from my seat and tossed my bowl onto the pile of other dirty dishes. I wasn’t going to miss my only chance to get out of eating the rest of my breakfast.

Chapter 2
    All Hands on Deck
    â€œArrr! I wonder what Rotten Tooth is going to make us do today?” I whispered to Inna and Gary. I had to whisper it real quiet, too, because Rotten Tooth could hear everything !
    â€œArrr! I hope it won’t be anything soggy!” Gary said.
    Then he sniffed, sniffed, and sneezed again. He sneezed so hard, he blew his glasses right off his nose.
    â€œI don’t care what it is as long as it’s real pirate stuff,” I said. I want to be the captain of my own ship when I grow up, so I need to know everything about pirating. But most of the time Rotten Tooth didn’t teach us any real pirate things. He thought we should all be deckhands. Lucky for us, he wasn’t the boss of the ship. Captain Stinky Beard was, and he thought we were shipshape pirate kids.
    â€œARRR! Fall in, ye scurvy pups!” Rotten Tooth said with a snarl.
    Inna, Gary, and I rushed over and stood in a straight line. Then we gave Rotten Tooth a salute.