Once Upon A Time, We Were Equals
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Prologue: And So It Begins
Jack woke to the feel of flat, cold bars pressing into his skull, his neck bent at an odd angle to accommodate for the lack of space in the brig. His feet were likewise propped against the other side of the cell. He lay still, ignoring the pain of being in such an uncomfortable position. Opening his eyes cautiously, his body tensed when he noticed the leather boots standing just outside of the cell. "I know those boots," Jack whispered.
"I'm sure ya do," Barbossa cackled. He looked down on the crumpled Jack Sparrow, a sneer adorning his already misshapen features.
"Why - am I here?" Jack asked limply, feebly bringing up a hand to gesture.
"Jaaaack, Jaaaack," Barbossa drawled, "I thought you were a clever boy."
"I have been known to be many things … stupid not being one of them," Jack stated as he stood shakily. His left hand clutched the bars of his cell in a white knuckled grip to keep himself from falling while his right clutched his pounding head. "Did you have to hit me that hard? I've been given a second heart beat up here."
"You'd best be lending it to your whelp friend, then, aye? Or, perhaps, I shoulda just killed ya?"
Jack took a moment to answer, his head bobbing as he considered, "Ahm, no. And anyway, that wouldn't have suited your purposes." Here Jack smiled ingratiatingly, a sloppy, servantile grin that dribbled off into a sneer. "I could hazard a guess, and say that you wanted to sic me crew on me, lock me in bilge and rats, tie me up by me ankles and lash me 'til I die at your feet in utter agony." He prolonged the last word, exhaling in Barbossa's face. Barbossa, to his credit, didn't flinch.
"That's a good suggestion, but I had something else in mind. They say the third time's the charm." Barbossa grinned, and Jack could see bits of apple stuck in his gums. The island, he groaned mentally.
Barbossa reached over, stuck a pistol under Jack's sash and pulled the trigger, muzzle up. Jack's head whip lashed as the iron ball he'd been saving (once again) for Barbossa entered under his chin and out through the crown of his skull.
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Author's Note: You silly buggers, the story don't end here! Does WIP mean nothing to you? 66 hits for the first page, 17 for the second. No, that's wrong. Silly people. The story don't end here.