A/N And thus the 3rd installment BEGINS! Who's excited?! True to form, this story begins in Singapore. It will be At World's End with my own Maria-filled twist, of course. Hope you enjoy! I'll get to posting more soon! :) Also if you haven't yet – check out my multi-crossover Counting Stars. Jack and Will as well as Norrington make frequent appearances. And cause all sorts of drama. Particularly Jack. But of course. Anywho. ENJOY! Stay tuned for further chapters! XOXO JTD p.s. READ AND REVIEW AND FAVE AND FOLLOW!
The air was steamy. The city was a fog of new and strange smells. Worse than the harbor in Port Royal.
Quietly, Maria followed Will up the stone path. Her eyes were fascinated by all the differences between Port Royal and here. The Caribbean was certainly a different place than the Orient. She scanned the marketplace, the street vendors, the bridges, the waters, the buildings, everything. Their journey here could jump start the rest of their mission. To free Jack from the depths of Davy Jones' Locker.
The mere thought of it sent a shiver down her spine. The memory of Davy Jones still made her quiver. He was a creature she would rather forget. Not only his appearance but the eerie familiarity he possessed and the locket he kept, all made Maria question her entire existence.
"Maria, come on. Keep moving," she heard Will whisper.
She shook her head back to the present. She had no time to ponder such things. She had Will had charts to find. She was still quite uneasy about this whole situation in Singapore.
"Will, are you sure we should be doing this? Isn't there another way?"
"You heard what Barbossa said. We need those charts to find wherever the sea took Jack."
Barbossa.
The haunting memories aboard the pirate ghost ship were still fresh in her mind. She was shocked to unconsciousness when she saw Barbossa again at Tia Dalma's bungalow. Having already seen the man die, seeing him in the flesh – alive. She was just thankful that Will was there to catch her fall.
When she came to, Tia Dalma and Barbossa revealed their plan for retrieving Jack. He talked of the Brethren Court and how Jack didn't leave a successor. He talked of infamous charts that a pirate lord of the Orient kept hidden away in Singapore. He then instructed each of them – Will, Maria, Tia Dalma, Elizabeth, Gibbs, Marty, Cotton, the yellow-eyed pirated and his one-eyed friend – how they would play a part in the retrieval of these charts.
As she climbed the steep hill in search of the charts, Maria asked herself why she was doing this. Then she looked ahead at Will. His face had such determination and eagerness. She knew why he agreed to free Jack. She knew that the only ship in the seven seas able to beat the Dutchman was the Pearl. She knew he needed the Pearl to free his father. And she was more than willing to aid him in his mission. Out of love for the only family she had left.
"Are you sure you know where you're going?"
Will laughed.
"As sure as I can be with only the memory of Barbossa's directions."
"What if no one's there when we arrive?"
Will stopped and turned around to face her.
"Tia Dalma told us that this specific temple is always under heavy guard. If it's not, you know what to do. Remember, we have to get caught."
Anxiously, Maria nodded, knowing that them getting caught was all a part of Barbossa's plan to get a ship and a crew from Sao Feng – the pirate lord of the Orient. She continued following Will up the path to the temple where the charts were supposedly hidden.
Clouds had begun to cover the city making for darker surroundings. Maria had a foreboding feeling about finally reaching the temple.
The temple was in fact as easy to find as Barbossa had directed. It was a stone building with a dark doorway. They entered slowly searching for guards. The two men stationed at the temple were asleep. 'Taking a late siesta,' Maria thought to herself. She looked to Will.
"You know what you have to do," he whispered before entering the temple and eagerly searching every nook and cranny until he found the charts.
Maria takes a deep breath and begins to sing the song of the Brethren Court.
"The king and his men
stole the queen from her bed.
And bound her in her bones.
The seas be ours and by the powers
Where we will – we'll roam"
Somewhere in the close distance Maria heard scrambling from outside the temple. With another deep breath she continued with the song.
"Yo ho. Haul together. Hoist the colors high.
Heave ho. Thieves and beggars.
Never shall we die.
The bell has been raised
from its watery grave
Do you hear its sepulchral tone?"
"Keep singing! Keep singing!" Will whispered, making her more nervous.
"A call to all, pay heed the squall
and turn your sails toward home.
Yo ho. Haul together. Hoist the colors high.
Heave hoo - "
"Thieves and beggars. Never shall we die."
Maria was cut off by one of Seo Feng's guards.
"A dangerous song to be singing."
Maria did not waver.
"No hablo ingles. Yo canto ingles."
She replied doing just as she was told – pretend to not understand English.
'You'll learn more that way,' Barbossa had said.
"And what may I ask are you doing here?" he asked and motioned for two others behind him to check inside.
Maria's heart beat rapidly for Will, hoping against all hope that he wouldn't be harmed. His cry of anguish said her hopes had been ignored.
Maria didn't think twice. She lifted up her knee and slammed her foot hard into the guard's shin, causing him to double over.
She ran inside praying that the guards hadn't done any serious damage. Calling for Will and keeping up the premise of her lack of English skills, Maria reached the main chamber of the temple.
"Guillermo," she shouted using the Spanish form of Will. "Guillermo, mi amor! Los guardias!"
She was going to milk this Spanish damsel for all it was worth.
She was somewhat relieved to see Will grimacing from having his arms tied to a long wooden pole. He didn't look too banged. up.
Just as she breathed a sigh of relief the guard she had kicked sidled up behind her and twisted her arm behind her back. She moaned in pain.
"A lady should think twice before hurting a man."
She tried her best to wriggle out of his grasp. But it was no use.
The guard mumbled something to the two men who had Will in an Asian language she did not understand. Will and Maria were forced out of the temple. Along with the charts.
Maria locked eyes with Will, knowing what Barbossa and Tia Dalma had predicted was rapidly coming true.
"Where are you taking us?" Will asked, hoping it was the rendezvous Barbossa had planned.
"To Sao Feng," the lone guard replied pushing the two forward.
Maria gave Will one last pleading look before they were marched toward Sao Feng's lodgings within the depths of the city.
'Bienvenido a Singapore,' Maria thought to herself as she continued walking toward the unknown.