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A Detour from Destiny
August 4, 1914. HMCS Rainbow, Waters off Washington State.
Louis Blanchet stepped out from the aft superstructure of the Rainbow, patting his stomach as he came to the deck railing. Supper had been rather late that evening, after 10 pm to be more specific. This was mostly due to the fact that the officers had been working them to the bone all day. He could not help but crack a smile at the recollection of his brother’s face staring out at him from the galley as he collected his meal of smoked kippers and potatoes. Never in his wildest dreams did he ever think he would be aboard a warship at sea, he would have been content standing alongside her in port. Mother had been strangely approving of the pair joining the Naval Reserves, although he was almost sure their Uncle had not been the most truthful about the purpose or seriousness of the unit itself. The enthusiastic younger brother was followed by his older counterpart through the year of training in the dockyard, aboard this very ship many a time and port side in Esquimalt. Rifle drills, proper parade etiquette and even operating the big guns of Rainbow, it had been quite the interesting time! When the Navy had officially set up the Reserves, the boys were both issued their proper uniforms which, at least for Louis, had only served to cement the allure of the service.
While they had missed Rainbow’s journey to force out the Indians from Vancouver harbor, the pair were snatched up shortly before Rainbow had weighed anchor the previous day. George had been drafted into assisting the personnel in the galley, even with his grumbling, Louis had thought it was the best place for him. He was never very fond of the entire idea of joining the reserve, quite evidently, he only did it to be with his brother. Himself on the other hand, he would not be caught dead peeling potatoes! Almost as soon as he had come aboard, Petty Officer Carr had requisitioned him into service with the rear 6 inch gun as a gun layer. As it was explained by the mountain of a man, Louis's job was to make sure his gun was accurately aimed up or down at the target. The best part though? He was also the one to fire the gun when the orders came down! Over the afternoon, the entire ship was firing practice shells at canvas targets they had been throwing overboard. The Commander had personally congratulated the gun crew of his turret when they had scored a 100% hit rate against one of their targets, 6 hits out of 6 shots fired. That being said though, there had been times through the day where he had incorrectly inputted the elevation data or fumbled with the wrong dial, followed shortly after by a stern talking to from PO Carr.
It has been said that Petty Officer Carr prided himself on the competency of his turrets crew. To quote a former Rainbow crew member, "Carr pushed his turret to hit first, hit hard and keep on hitting!"
The sound of hurried footsteps clattered across the deck above him, bringing the young boy back from his sweet reminiscing. Louis quickly tucked himself into the space below the aft superstructure, huddling close around the thick armored walls of the conning tower. As he did, the ship aggressively heeled into a turn, sending the boy headfirst into the armor plating. 3 inches of plate won over the 15 year old’s noggin, sending a jolt of pain through him as he tried to collect himself. That had been the third course change within the hour. Above his throbbing head was the rear bridge, he had become rather familiar with the stern-faced officer watching their gunnery exercises through the day from it’s deck house. From his location, he could just about make out an ongoing conversation above.
“Sir, message from the Commander. We are belaying the planned course correction to patrol off San Francisco for the moment. Alongside the earlier declaration of war with Germany, NSHQ has just informed us that a train carrying high explosive shells from Halifax should be arriving on August 6 at Esquimalt. The Commander wishes to restock before returning to the sea lanes.”
“Is that all?”
“Yes sir.”
“Thank you, dismissed.”
Louis could just about hear the half running steps of the message running over the state of his aching head. They were at war with Germany now? Had he heard that right or was his brain scrambled? He had heard many rumors throughout the ship that it was only a matter of time, but it was seemingly official now. The young lad took a minute to collect himself before checking around the decks to see if the coast was clear. He could barely contain himself as his thoughts raced to that of his heroic gunnery putting a German warship on the bottom, that would definitely put a smile on his Mothers face! George had to be told as soon as he could get away from his duties, this was big!
On the opposite end of the old cruiser, Commander Hose stood on a bridge wing facing into the headwind. Likely reminiscent of a gaunt faced English Pointer with the scent of Lyddite on his brain, the old salt allowed his mind to wonder into optimism for a short time. This was fleeting as just like the ship he stood on, his mental course was quickly changed once again.
The Blanchet brothers posing for a photo in their newly issued uniforms, sometime in 1914. George is sitting in the front while Louis is standing in the back.
Louis Blanchet stepped out from the aft superstructure of the Rainbow, patting his stomach as he came to the deck railing. Supper had been rather late that evening, after 10 pm to be more specific. This was mostly due to the fact that the officers had been working them to the bone all day. He could not help but crack a smile at the recollection of his brother’s face staring out at him from the galley as he collected his meal of smoked kippers and potatoes. Never in his wildest dreams did he ever think he would be aboard a warship at sea, he would have been content standing alongside her in port. Mother had been strangely approving of the pair joining the Naval Reserves, although he was almost sure their Uncle had not been the most truthful about the purpose or seriousness of the unit itself. The enthusiastic younger brother was followed by his older counterpart through the year of training in the dockyard, aboard this very ship many a time and port side in Esquimalt. Rifle drills, proper parade etiquette and even operating the big guns of Rainbow, it had been quite the interesting time! When the Navy had officially set up the Reserves, the boys were both issued their proper uniforms which, at least for Louis, had only served to cement the allure of the service.
While they had missed Rainbow’s journey to force out the Indians from Vancouver harbor, the pair were snatched up shortly before Rainbow had weighed anchor the previous day. George had been drafted into assisting the personnel in the galley, even with his grumbling, Louis had thought it was the best place for him. He was never very fond of the entire idea of joining the reserve, quite evidently, he only did it to be with his brother. Himself on the other hand, he would not be caught dead peeling potatoes! Almost as soon as he had come aboard, Petty Officer Carr had requisitioned him into service with the rear 6 inch gun as a gun layer. As it was explained by the mountain of a man, Louis's job was to make sure his gun was accurately aimed up or down at the target. The best part though? He was also the one to fire the gun when the orders came down! Over the afternoon, the entire ship was firing practice shells at canvas targets they had been throwing overboard. The Commander had personally congratulated the gun crew of his turret when they had scored a 100% hit rate against one of their targets, 6 hits out of 6 shots fired. That being said though, there had been times through the day where he had incorrectly inputted the elevation data or fumbled with the wrong dial, followed shortly after by a stern talking to from PO Carr.
It has been said that Petty Officer Carr prided himself on the competency of his turrets crew. To quote a former Rainbow crew member, "Carr pushed his turret to hit first, hit hard and keep on hitting!"
The sound of hurried footsteps clattered across the deck above him, bringing the young boy back from his sweet reminiscing. Louis quickly tucked himself into the space below the aft superstructure, huddling close around the thick armored walls of the conning tower. As he did, the ship aggressively heeled into a turn, sending the boy headfirst into the armor plating. 3 inches of plate won over the 15 year old’s noggin, sending a jolt of pain through him as he tried to collect himself. That had been the third course change within the hour. Above his throbbing head was the rear bridge, he had become rather familiar with the stern-faced officer watching their gunnery exercises through the day from it’s deck house. From his location, he could just about make out an ongoing conversation above.
“Sir, message from the Commander. We are belaying the planned course correction to patrol off San Francisco for the moment. Alongside the earlier declaration of war with Germany, NSHQ has just informed us that a train carrying high explosive shells from Halifax should be arriving on August 6 at Esquimalt. The Commander wishes to restock before returning to the sea lanes.”
“Is that all?”
“Yes sir.”
“Thank you, dismissed.”
Louis could just about hear the half running steps of the message running over the state of his aching head. They were at war with Germany now? Had he heard that right or was his brain scrambled? He had heard many rumors throughout the ship that it was only a matter of time, but it was seemingly official now. The young lad took a minute to collect himself before checking around the decks to see if the coast was clear. He could barely contain himself as his thoughts raced to that of his heroic gunnery putting a German warship on the bottom, that would definitely put a smile on his Mothers face! George had to be told as soon as he could get away from his duties, this was big!
On the opposite end of the old cruiser, Commander Hose stood on a bridge wing facing into the headwind. Likely reminiscent of a gaunt faced English Pointer with the scent of Lyddite on his brain, the old salt allowed his mind to wonder into optimism for a short time. This was fleeting as just like the ship he stood on, his mental course was quickly changed once again.
The Blanchet brothers posing for a photo in their newly issued uniforms, sometime in 1914. George is sitting in the front while Louis is standing in the back.
- RelativeGalaxy7
- Word Count: 960