”They’s gone now!” came the lookout’s cry.  ”They’s gone now?” yelled up the Pirate King. ”My God, man, you went to Eaton! Speak the Queen’s English!”  ”Your pardon, Sir”, shouted down the lookout. ”Brevity being the soul of wit, I thought the signal more important than the noise. The females – strange indeed, Sir – who formerly lay about the rocks in the estuary seem to have departed.”  ”See your brevity is occasionally nuanced with conjunctions and gerunds”, said his commander.  ”Aye aye, Sir!” yelled the lookout. ”And a pleasant day to you, too, Sir!”

Fast Ships, Black Sails är en novellantologi med piratberättelser av 20 olika fantasy- och sf-författare. Skojigt. Stycket ovan är taget ur ”Avast, Abaft!” av Howard Waldrop.