July 1801. Not long back from Copenhagen, Courtenay is given command of the Hercules, another 74 gun ship of the line and sent on blockade duty off the French coast, where he falls foul of his old enemy Spencer-White, who accuses him of fighting under French colours. An old friend comes to the rescue to prove otherwise. The Peace of Amiens is signed, but rather than be thrown on the beach, Courtenay is sent on a mission to the Barbary Coast of North...