Saving Souls – Despair, Visions and The Last Hope – (1)

A/N: Well Ashley is back! If you're new to my stories then I suggest you read 'You Forget One Very Important Thing Mate' and then 'Two Sparrows And A Blood Debt', otherwise you won't know what's going on.

Once again Ashley Sparrow found herself in the damp glow of Tia Dalma's cabin. Misery had overwhelmed her. So much so that she had not said a single word to anyone since the pearl – and Jack with it – went down.

Tia too, seemed down. In fact everyone did. Dalma handed round some rum, ' For The Cold, And The Sorrow'

Ashley's despair grew bigger within every passing second. She didn't know what to do. But she was sure of one thing. She wanted Elizabeth dead. D.E.A.D!

"It's a shame," Tia said to Will. "I know you were thinking with the Pearl you could have killed the devil and set free your fathers soul,"

"It doesn't matter now. The Pearl is gone. Along with its captain," Will replied.

"Aye, and already the world seems darker. He fooled us all right till the end, but I guess that honest streak finally run out," Gibbs said, he held up his rum. "To Jack Sparrow!"

"There never was another like Captain Jack!" Ragetti agreed.

"He was a gentleman of fortune he was!" Pintel added.

"He was a good man," Elizabeth said.

Ashley's eyes darted the room as everyone toasted to Jack. All except Elizabeth. That made Ashley twice as angry. But still she did not talk.

Will glanced at her. "If there was anything that could be done to bring him back…Ashley,"

"Will you do it?" Tia Dalma asked. "What would any of you be willing to do?"

Ashley looked at Tia. Who was staring strait at her.

"Would you sail to the ends of the earth and beyond, to fetch back Jack and with him the precious Pearl?" Tia continued.

"Aye," Gibbs said.

Everyone nodded and agreed. Tia then turned to Ashley, who had not said a word.

"Will you?"

Ashley nodded.

"Alright, but if you going to brave the weird and haunted shores at worlds end. Then, you will need a captain who knows those waters," Tia said.

There were footsteps, and someone walked down the stairs of Tia's hut.

"What's become of my ship?"

Before them stood a man. Pirate of course. With Jack the monkey on his shoulder.

"Your ship? It was Jacks ship! My FATHERS ship!" Ashley said angrily. Standing up and walking over to him.

"This be Jacks girl?" The man asked Tia.

She nodded.

"Ashley Sparrow. This is Barbossa. I need not tell you more as you know the tales," Tia explained.

Ashley looked up. So this was the 'Captain' Barbossa that Jack had told her about not long after they met.

"But your dead," Ashley stated.

"Aye that I was. But I was brought back from the afterlife. Back to find me ship," Barbossa replied.

"To find Jack," Tia Dalma corrected him.

Barbossa glared at her and nodded, taking an apple from his pocket and biting into it like he hadn't eaten in a week.

Though it occurred to Ashley that he might not have. After all. He could have only been brought back that very day.

"Captain or no Captain. The Pearl be Jacks ship. As Jack is gone, it's MY ship, and when we find Jack it will be his again. So ye won't be gettin' your hands on it!" Ashley said loudly.

"No-" Barbossa began, but Tia interrupted him.

"There is no time for fighting young Sparrow. You will find a ship, a ship by the name of 'The Last Hope'. It will bare you well, as it has for others who have dared sail the waters at worlds end,"

Ashley nodded as the crew piled out of the hut and into the longboat; just as Gibbs and Pintel started to row the boat away Tia threw something to Ashley.

It was a beautiful silver chain.

"For the ring. The one that Jack gave you," Tia said.

"Thank you," Ashley replied.

She took the ring off of her finger and threaded the chain through it, and then she fasted the chain round her neck.

It was more than just a necklace to Ashley. It was a memory. A reminder of Jack. Of how he was taken from her, and how Elizabeth played a huge part in his death.

As they made their way out to the open sea and to where 'The Last Hope' was said to be waiting for them, Ashley noticed awkwardness between Will and Elizabeth. Well, Elizabeth had been awkward since it happened. And she didn't dare look Ashley in the eyes. Because she knew Ashley saw.

Gibbs, Pintel, Raghetti and the rest of the crew were still solemn and not saying much.

Barbossa. He just sat in the longboat opposite Ashley and looked at her. She saw him.

"What?"

"Ye look strikingly like yer father tis all," Barbossa replied.

"And?"

"Tis a shame,"

Ashley glared at him angrily, so wanting to just pull out her pistol and shoot him with it. But without him, there would be no finding Jack.

"I know yer still livid over the fact that Jack beat you, but there be no need to take it out on me," Ashley snapped, she was using A LOT more of her pirate-like talk now. To show Barbossa that she wasn't just a woman. She was a pirate too. Captain Jack Sparrow's daughter at that.

Barbossa glared at her but said nothing; she noticed that there was no light in his eyes. Only darkness – and hate. Ashley had a very good feeling that the hate was all for Jack. But as Jack wasn't there, Barbossa probably planned to make Ashley's life a living hell, she was a Sparrow..

----

Jack saw only darkness. He felt nothing and neither could he hear anything. He was waiting. For something. Anything. To happen.

He remember when he had Ashley had first met/

'"You seem oddly familiar have I threatened you before?" Jack asked, testing out the same line he had once used on William.

"I think you must have mistaken me for someone else. For if you had threatened me before you wouldn't be here now!" Ashley said lunging at him.

"Oh feisty one ain't ye? You should know better than to threaten Captain Jack Sparrow! "Jack said disarming her.

"Wha'?" She asked.

"Good now that your going to listen me, I just wanted to talk, me and my friend here just wanted to ask if ye wanted to be a member of MY crew aboard the Black Pearl. Miss?"

Will came out of the shadows and stood behind Jack.

"Ashley Sparton" Ashley said holding out her hand.

Jack shook her hand and then said "Really? For a second I coulda' sworn ye said your last name was Sparrow?"'

Jack then remembered walking through the island of Metheros with Ashley. That was one of his worst experiences on an island. But he enjoyed it anyway. Only because Ashley was with him.

'"Jack?"

"Aye?"

"Where's your hat?"

"Wha' its on me head! Is the heat getting' to ye woman?" Jack asked putting his hands to his head.

However, he didn't find his hat. It wasn't there. Which was strange as it was almost always on his head.

"Wha' did you do wiv me hat luv?" Jack asked..

"Nothin'! I ain't gone anywhere near your cursed hat, let's just go back and find it"'

Jack laughed to himself, or at least he thought he did, because he could still not hear anything, or see anything. This scared him. It sacred him more than he'd care to admit. He was vulnerable. Absolutely anything and everything could happen.

----

Sure enough, there was a ship out on the open ocean. As the crew got closer, they could all see 'The Last Hope' written in gold letters on the stern.

When they boarded, Ashley looked around. It seemed people were claiming there sleeping quarters.

She ran to the door of the captain's cabin. Barbossa approached.

"What do ye think yer doing?"

"This is my cabin,"

A grin came upon Barbossa's ghastly face.

"Is it now?"

Will and Gibbs could sense an argument brewing.

"Barbossa, as Ashley said before. She is the rightful captain seeing as her father is – was – our captain before," Will exclaimed.

"Aye, an' therefore it is only right that she gets the captains cabin, an' Ashley bein' the only woman on the ship without proper protection.." Gibbs stated.

Barbossa looked over at Elizabeth. "But she be a woman,"

"Aye, true. But she as Mr.Turner here to watch over her, Sparrow had Jack, but he's not here. And the captain's cabin is the only one with a lock. I think it be fair," Gibbs explained.

Barbossa grunted and nodded. It was Jack he had his qualms with. Not Ashley. But that didn't mean he liked her of course.

Ashley waited until Barbossa had vanished and then looked at Will and Gibbs. She nodded in thanks and opened the door to her cabin. Walking inside, the other two followed and Will shut the door behind him.

"We need to keep a careful eye on Barbossa," Ashley stated.

"I don't trust him," Will said.

"You have good reason not to from what Ive heard, he has committed mutiny after all. And on my father of all people,"

"Barbossa may call himself the captain Miss. Ashley. But I think I can talk for the whole crew when I say that the real captain is you. Being Jack's daughter and all. Barbossa is only our ticket to finding Jack. When we do, you can bet yer finest pistol that ol' Barbossa'll be gone fer good!" Gibbs smiled.

Ashley smiled and nodded.

"But this conversation stays between us three. No one else must know. Not even Elizabeth," Ashley said, looking at Will.

He nodded.

"Speaking of Elizabeth. I must go and…talk with her," Will said, and he walked out of the cabin.

Gibbs looked at Ashley curiously.

"Gibbs?"

"Aye?"

"If I were to tell you how The Kraken really got Jack…What would you do?"

----

"Blasted Beast!" Jack yelled angrily.

"Calm down Sparrow. Theres not long to go," A voice echoed and Jack heard it.

"Eh?"

He could hear himself talking, so at least one his senses had returned to him.

----

Hours later Bootstrap Bill found himself being locked up in one of the cells of the Flying Dutchman. According to Jones, he could not be trusted. At least not for now anyway.

Bill sat on the cold hard floor, wallowing in his misery.

"Why?" A woman's voice came into his head.

"Why Jack? Why would you leave me here?"

She was crying.

Bootstraps eyes moved over to a pool of seawater that had gotten in through a small crack in the ship. Instead of a reflection of the ceiling like he expected to be there, there was a ship. The image moved closer, and Bill then saw a young woman, head in hands, crying. It was the owner of the voice. But why was she calling for Jack?

Bill moved closer so he could get a better look at the girl, he knew what he was seeing. She had a large resemblance to Jack, and she wore a ring round her neck. One of Jacks.

Bill remembered the short time that Will had been aboard The Flying Dutchman.

'Did I tell you?

Tell me what?

Jack. He has a daughter. Names Ashley. We found her in Tortuga about a year ago…'

Will had talked of the girl a lot. It seemed she was something. Something like Jack.

There was a loud shout from above deck, and the image of Ashley in the water vanished. Bill sighed. Something had to be done.

----

Ashley wiped her eyes. She had finally got it over with. She had finally cried over Jack, liked she wanted to ever since he went.

Looking around the captain's cabin. She noted it wasn't that bad. Nothing like the pearl. But it would have to do. Ashley opened a draw in the desk, and saw a large leather-bound book. The pages were blank, there was a pot of ink and a quill next to it.

"I think I shall start a Captains log," Ashley said to herself "So that Jack can see when we find him,"

If We Find Him….