Part 5/10:
Once signed on, Pete was taken to a cold cellar with other men awaiting their fateful voyage. Conditions were far from glamorous, characterized by a sense of claustrophobia and a constant haze from cheap grog, which dulled the pangs of hunger and anxiety. He became acutely aware of the dangers of this venture as the grisly realities of life at sea loomed closer.
As the day of departure came, Pete and other sailors marched through Amsterdam to the VOC headquarters, where their fate would be sealed. Pete, amidst the chaos and desperation, secured his spot aboard the ship, caught in the blurring lines between anticipation and dread. The moment the ship loomed before them was eclipsed by the unimagined harshness that awaited.