The gallant captain of the _Redoutable_ stayed at his post. He set his teeth and refused to admit that his ship had received her _coup de grace_. In spite of his awful losses the gallant fellow still tried to make a show of fight. 'I ordered the rest of the crew to place themselves promptly in the batteries and fire at the _Temeraire_ the guns that her fire had not dismounted. This order was carried out.' At the same time the _Redoutable_ met the _Temeraire_, as she swung alongside, with a hail of bullets from the tops that almost cleared the upper deck of Captain Harvey's ship, while the topmen also flung down hand grenades and fire-balls. The _Redoutable's_ topmen, indeed, flung the fire-balls about with criminal recklessness.[104] They endangered their own ship. Some of the fire-balls falling short rebounded back on board the _Redoutable_ and set the French ship herself on fire. One fell blazing on board the _Temeraire_ and caused a fire below that nearly led to a catastrophe which threatened to involve _Temeraire_, _Redoutable_, and _Victory_ alike in one common destruction. The pluck and presence of mind of the _Temeraire's_ master-at-arms, Mr. John Toohig, saved the after-magazine, and with it the ship. The fire-ball, as it was, caused a serious explosion and loss of life on the main deck. At the same time the _Temeraire_ was set ablaze elsewhere, on the upper deck, by a fire that had been caused on board the _Redoutable_ by one of her own fire-balls falling short, and had spread across to the _Temeraire_, and also to the _Victory_ on the other side, but the flames in all three ships were fortunately got under before they had time to take serious hold. The _Temeraire's_ captain very soon had something else to think of besides the _Redoutable_. Hardly had the _Redoutable_ been lashed fast alongside than another enemy came on the scene, and one that was apparently approaching with the fixed intention of attacking the _Temeraire_ at close quarters. The French _Neptune_ was at the same time remaining near by, barely a ship's length off, firing her hardest into the _Temeraire_. The newcomer was the French _Fougueux_, the ship that had fired the first shot in the battle. She had already had a rough time of it elsewhere, but she was still full of fight, and with nearly 700 men on board, was likely to prove a dangerous foe to a ship situated as was the _Temeraire_ at that moment. The _Fougueux_ had been _matelot d'arriere_, or 'second astern' to the Spanish flagship _Santa Ana_, just as the _Redoutable_ had been the _Bucentaure's_ second. In that capacity she had experienced some hard knocks at Collingwood's hands, and then, after a brisk exchange of fire with the British _Belleisle_, as that ship followed Collingwood into the fight, she had had a sharp set-to with the _Mars_. Through all this the _Fougueux_ had not come unscathed, but she was still a very formidable opponent for the _Temeraire_ to tackle.