Checkmate
Tum tum tuhtuhtum... Tum tum tuhtuhtum...
The size of the crowd come to witness the execution amused the doomed convict. There was a nice view of the large group from the gallows. It actually seemed to please him that there was such a large gathering of people. All these people come just to see him dance the jig of death.
Perhaps it flattered his perverse pride.
Tum tum tuhtuhtum...
Ah yes, the time had come for him to make his inevitable pass from this life to the next. He'd said before that passing on was a sure thing. Why did he later consider trying to escape such a fate? It came with the territory. He was a pirate after all, the most motivated creature on Earth when it came to self-preservation. Alas, even with the very real mythical events that had happened, such a venture was ill-fated. A fountain of youth? Preposterous. He'd been fooling himself.
Tum tum tuhtuhtum...
When the man began reading his long list of charges, the damned being stood proudly, his head high, his shoulders back, his gaze haughty, mouth pulled up in a wry and disdainful leer. Regrettable that he hadn't been able to best Jack Sparrow's bounty. Frustrating that the other captain's price was only one guinea above his own.
Tum tum tuhtuhtum...
May God have mercy on your soul. The unlucky prisoner seemed to chuckle lightly at the phrase. He could only pray that the Almighty would be merciful to him, however unlikely. There were more than a few circles of Hell that could be reserved for such sinners as he. The execution shoved him roughly forward. The noose dangled over his head, the trapdoor beneath his feet. He closed his eyes, still leering.
Tum tum tuhtuhtum...
The drums kept sounding. Their pulse throbbed in his ears. He felt the executioner lower the hairy rope over his head, tightening it with a merciless jerk. "Any last words, scum?" the man drawled teasingly in his ear. The pirate's eyes snapped open, head turning to lock eyes with the executioner. His leer broadened into a grin and he laughed in the face death.
Tuhtuhtuhtuhtuh...
The slow march of the drums sped into a vicious roll. The executioner moved to the lever. In the few seconds he had before the trapdoor fell, the fated detainee allowed himself to look over the crowd of innocents with his arrogant gaze. Men, women, children. Some with hatred on their faces, some with disgust, some with pity, and some with indifference.
Now…what was the likes of him doing here?
There, in the middle of the crowd, was his once-friend once-enemy. He couldn't read the usually expressive dark gaze of his former captain, brow furrowed inscrutably. The other pirate blinked once. The one on the gallows smiled his stained, unpleasant smile and bowed his head slightly with the barest hint, the tiniest sliver of respect. A pirate with a noose around his neck must pay homage to the pirate that had eluded it.
The execution had mentioned last words.
His mouth indeed formed such words but no sound came out as his gaze looked to the heavens. The drums stopped and the door beneath his feet fell open.
The pirate in the crowd would be the only one who received the silent message.
Never Shall We Die
۞
AN: I know I said I was going on a bit of a hiatus but I just couldn't resist. Took about fifteen minutes to write. Search me where this came from. After Soldier Boy, I've been struck with a taste for angst-like oneshots lately. And everybody knows I likes writing oneshots. I know, cruel of me to do away with my favorite character but I suppose this could be a what-if-they-never-found-the-Fountain-of-Youth drabble. Anyways, reviews are nice.