Short Stories in English for Beginners

incredible
!’ she said.
Frank laughed. ‘It’s nothing,’ he said. ‘We see it daily.’
Frank brought Carl and Susan back to the helm. The ship was already
moving. The wind was slightly cold. But there were no clouds. All they
could see was the blue water of the Caribbean and the beach. It was
beautiful. Then Carl remembered – they were going into battle against the
English. They had to do something to stop it!
Eric el Kraken watched the sea. He was still at the helm. Carl and Susan
watched Eric. Suddenly, they heard Frank’s voice behind them. ‘So, how
are you going to do it?’
‘Do what?’ replied Carl.
‘Steal the watch! You have to do it before the battle starts.’
‘Wait a second,’ said Carl. ‘That’s the part I don’t understand! Why does
Eric want Susan and me here on the ship? We don’t know how to fight!’
‘I told you. He thinks you can beat the English somehow.’
Carl looked up. He saw Eric. He was looking at them. His eyes showed
nothing. He was just watching them.
‘Well, he is wrong,’ said Carl. ‘We can’t help. I don’t know what he
thinks we can do.’
‘Actually,’ Frank said, ‘I don’t know what Eric is thinking either.’
‘Why do you say that?’ asked Susan.
‘Look at the sea.’

---

Carl and Susan looked. They counted ten pirate ships.
‘See? We have ten ships,’ Frank pointed out.
Susan didn’t understand what Frank meant. ‘Yes, we have ten ships. So?’
Frank just looked at her.
‘Oh, I see,’ she said. ‘We have ten ships but the English have more,
right?’
‘Yes.’
‘How many more?’
‘They have thirty.
‘Thirty?’ shouted Carl. ‘And we have ten? You’re all crazy!’
‘That’s why I want to stop this. You have to steal the watch. We can’t win
this battle. But el Kraken won’t 
give up
. Not to the English. Not to anyone.’
‘OK. So what can we do?’ asked Carl.
‘We steal the watch.’ Susan jumped in. She looked at Carl. ‘Like I said, I
have an idea.
Susan explained the plan. ‘You’re a watchmaker, right?’
‘Yes,’ answered Carl.
‘Tell Eric that you can win the battle. But you need his watch to do it.’
‘And how do I do that?’
‘Tell him you know how it works. Say you can stop the English ships
with its powers.’
‘And then?’
‘Run!’
‘That’s a really bad plan,’ said Carl.
‘But it’s the only one we have,’ replied Susan.
Carl agreed. They had no choice.
Carl walked over to Eric. Time was running out. The captain was telling
his men what to do.
Eric saw Carl. ‘What do you want? You know a way to win?’
‘Umm, yes … Yes, I do. Come here. I’ll tell you.’

---

The stout pirate and Carl walked away from the others. Frank and Susan