Part 2: Ore Really

Having successfully navigated the bay to the south of the Frobisher straights the High Admiral of Cathay once again stood proudly on the rear castle with the ensign waving dramatically behind him. Beyond the bowsprit was the familiar lumpy form of Hall's island where the ore had been found and the fleet's duty would be discharged.
Frobisher had always been stronger than average. Through no effort of his own he had survived voyages to all of the world's most hostile places. Guinea had taken 60 men and left Frobisher and fifteen others to profit and now the arctic stood to give him similar numbers. Though no man had died yet on one of these adventures one could still hope. Perhaps the natives would stir up or a storm would blow in he thought, trying to maintain a positive demeanor. Up from the deck came the cabin boy looking timid as he generally did in the captain's presence. Cabin boy was of slight figure and wore clothes which, next to his captain, made him look nothing more than a beggar though he was of noble birth and to be trained by the great Frobisher for his own command.
"Sir," he said quietly from just out of arm's reach, "begging your pardon captain, where are we?"
"Meta Incognita," he replied, "the most manly of the unexplored continents. Where did you think we were going cabin boy?"
"Sorry, Captain. It's just last I remember we were just past Greenland." the boy said timidly whilst scrambling onto the top deck.
"That was days ago, you fool. God's wounds! Where have you been?"
"Sorry, Captain."
"and why did you not remove your cap to speak with me?" Frobisher bellowed clearly having just remembered to expect the obeisance.
"Of course, Captain." cried the boy tearing the cap from his head and bowing messily. From the deck came the cheery voice of Hawser.
"Cap'n, gosh but the past few days have flown. I can hardly remember doing any work but sure enough the thing you wanted us to build is done."
"Ah, brilliant!" The captain declared. "Let's have a look, shall we." With that he bounded down from the top deck followed by cabin boy. The trio the made their way along the length of the deck past the masts and the men still scraping away to the dark forecastle. Within they found John Hawser's brother, Bob beaming with pride. The two of them tended to have that kind of look on behind their beards. It seemed to be a familial trait. Next to Bob in the dim light which filtered in through the door at the forward end of the room was a strange mass of warped wood and contorting metal. It seemed to defy description, at the very least Frobisher seemed unable to describe it.
"What the, what, how! Ho... Hawser! What in god's name is that?" the captain finally managed to get out. "Well Captain," Hawser said cautiously, "I can't really say. Like I said I can't really remember how it all happened but we used the plans you gave us and I looked it over as soon as we'd done with it and it looks just like the one in the drawing."
"Let me see these plans!" Frobisher demanded in a building rage. Hawser silently gestured to the plans which were on the floor nearby, carefully weighted down with sample pieces of the ore which they had been sent to the new world to collect. "Well, Hawser. I do not know what this is but it is most certainly not a pinnace. The only actual mistake I can see is that you left off the weights here in the middle." he gestured towards the center of the incomprehensible tangle where a small basket had been suspended from a series of tiny curved spring hinges.
"Well Cap'n I couldn't figure how much weight to put in. It seemed important so I thought maybe you should be the one to do the honours, as it were."
"What have we got, weight wise?" The captain replied casting about the space for something appropriate. "Hand me some of that ore." He ordered, holding out his hand.
"Awright, Cap'n." Hawser said cheerily holding out the paddle once more.
"Not an oar, the ore."
"Oar not!" Hawser replied with a small laugh.
"Hawser," Frobisher said warningly, "Hand me the ore from the floor or else I shall break that oar across the back of your skull."
"Aoye, Cap'n" the sailor replied still having a bit of a laugh behind his thick beard. Frobisher received the ore into a black muckinger from his belt and made a small bundle of it. after giving it an experimental heft he placed it, as gingerly as could be expected of him, onto the balance plate.

The bowl, as one might expect began to descend slowly across the springs making tiny and increasingly more profound notes as it did so. with each spring the contraption seemed to draw the room's walls closer as though the entirety of the world were collapsing in onto the twisted and suddenly sinister looking device. With a flash the final spring made it's resonant "plunk" and with a great heave everything returned to normal.
On the deck came shouts form the crew.
"That was rubbish. Hawser, find the real plans and get to work. I need that Pinnace yesterday. We should reach land any moment now." with those parting words Frobisher strode from the forecastle cabin and onto the deck where the crew was standing about talking to one another. He grabbed the nearest man by the shoulder. "Birch," he demanded, "What is going on here. Why is no one scraping?"
"Captain, Sir! We suppose at this rate it might just melt off." the seaman cried out clearly trying to hold his composure.
"What," Frobisher bellowed. As he did so he widened his gaze. At this point a number of things occurred to him at largely the same moment. First was that the sea had been changed for sand which was intensely inconvenient. he also noticed that they seemed to be in amongst a number of primitive shelters and assorted scrubby plants. the last impression to make itself manifest was that they were no longer intensely cold but instead really very warm. Letting go of the sailor he turned to Cabin boy who was close at hand. "Cabin Boy," he said as a grin slowly crept over his face. "get me my sword and my conquering suit."

Going to the rail he estimated the distance. With the ship resting more or less evenly on the sand it was easily a twenty foot drop. So with a quick breath he leapt from he side. Cabin boy above tossed down a sword wrapped in the golden yellow jerkin. The captain shrugged on the jerkin and girded the sword. The time had come for answers. He strode purposefully across the sand toward the largest of the shelters. Arriving at the hide wall he reached for the opening flap, grasped the material and violently ripped it open stepping into it's space. "I want to see the leader of this operation!" He shouted in his best queen's English. in the next moment, as his eyes adjusted he saw. a man in a blue uniform and cap with brass liveries standing over a bound man in skins.
"Excuse me," the liveried man started in an accent unlike anything Frobisher had ever heard, "who the hell are you?"
"I am Captain Martin Frobisher, High Admiral of Cathay and all of the Waters to the North and East. Official commander of these lands as appointed by her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth."
"An English-y man, eh? I suppose you think you run things here then? Well I just captured me Geronomo, king of the injuns in the name of the United States Gov'nment. So where's that put us?"
"This is the king of these people?" Frobisher replied.
"Yeah, What do you say to that?" With no further ado the imposing captain laid a fist across the man's jaw and laid him out on the floor. He then turned to the chieftain. Pulled off the ropes binding him and recited the speech he had been forced to practice. "You are hereby a subject of the English Crown and Her Most Glorious Majesty, Queen Elizabeth, by God's grade first queen of the britains to bear that name; Queen of England, Ireland, France, Wales, the Virginias and wherever the hell we are now. Congratulations." With that he strode from the tepee and leapt to the rope ladder which was being dangled from the ship's side. "Don't get out, we're not staying!" He declared to all about before striding back to the forecastle. "Hawser, we are not in Meta Incognita. Give me something heavier."
"All I've got is me family's priceless golden salamander." The sailor replied.
"If you're very good you may have it back when we are done." Frobisher said flatly before snatching the small statuette from Hawser's hand and placing it on the balance plate. "Here goes."

So, That's part two. Again this is draft quality, that is my defense for any mistakes made. Thank you to all who made suggestions. For tomorrow I will require a book which has never been written and a year between 0 AD and 1900 AD.