Disclaimer: I do not own POTC. Enjoy the chapter anyway!
The sun shone bright and clear over the beautiful Island of Port Royal.
Jill Sparrow and her father Captain Jack Sparrow strolled down the docks with not a care in the world as the cool sea breeze blew at their brown beaded dreadlocks, making the summer heat much more bearable. They were incognito at Jill's insistence even though her father still grumbled about the straw hat making his head itch. But it was necessary to blend in, they both saw the skeletons of those poor men as they were coming into the harbor with the sign 'Pirates Ye Be Warned' tied to a noose. Port Royal was a hanging ground for anyone even remotely suspected to be a pirate or even a known associate of a pirate, no trial just straight to the gallows. Well unless you were with child, then you had the luxury of dying in a ghastly prison by so-called 'Dutiful Christians'. Mary Read, a legend in the pirating community, died imprisoned here while still with child under the terrible conditions she was kept in. Charles Vane, a coward and unworthy of his pirating name, and Calico Jack, a great pirate and great friend, were also hung here. Her father even told her that almost a century past forty-one caught pirates were hung at Port Royal's Gallows Point in less than a month thanks to the traitor Henry Morgan. Knowing that, it was hard to believe that once upon a time Port Royal was a haven for pirates, a pirate utopia and they the only defense for the city of Port Royal. Her grandfather Teague used to tell her stories of how his great-grandfather Alexander Sparrow used to walk the streets there with not a care in the world in his full pirate garb complete of course with his hat and crew. Most of the residents at Port Royal he said were either pirates, prostitutes, or cutthroats. He said there was one drinking house for every ten people who lived there which sounded like heaven on earth for her father Jack. And the city was so rich from plundering that coins were the preferred payment than bartering goods like all the rest of the Caribbean Islands.
But then everything changed with the slave trade.
Suddenly selling people took on a high priority than just stealing coin and the upperclass folk who participated in this monstrosity had the audacity to look down on piracy. To them they were uncivilized commoners with loose morals and a bunch of merciless thieves. As if they didn't steal people from their homeland away from their kin, chain them up like animals, and then proceed to beat and rape them the entire journey back to their port. Then whoever survived (Many of them died from the horrific conditions they were kept in) were sold like cattle, their humanity stripped away from them simply because of the color of their skin. They were called cargo and were the reason why many pirates, including her father, were branded simply because they refused to take part in this barbarism. But unfortunately some pirates did take part in it for all the money that was to be gained and that split the pirating world in half. To strip someone of their humanity because of their color, why more than half the Pirate Lords in the Brethren Court were of color and were infuriated at the insult to them! And it's not like the slavers could tell the difference between the different ethnicities, in the eyes of those who controlled the slaving industry anyone who wasn't white was not safe. People of color were being stolen right out of their homes in India and Spain and being sold to strangers, exotic beauties were always loads of gold for the slavers. They just pretended they were light skinned Africans or children who were mixed (White and African) who were taught the language they spoke in on the way over as ridiculous as that sounded. But it didn't matter how obvious of a lie it was for rich white noblemen were always willing to pay tons of gold, enough to make the most debt ridden man weep with utter joy, for just one of these beauties to call their own.
Things took a turn for the worst when the Pirate Lord of the Indian Ocean and the Pirate Lord of the Black Sea's daughters were both stolen. Stolen! The sad part was the slavers did not even recognize who the girls were, just saw that they were beautiful colored women worth a goldmine and managed to steal them away when all the men suppose to be guarding them were preoccupied with whores and rum.
In their rage, eighteen slave ships were freed in less than a month and the crews slaughtered.
The song was sung not long after that (Things grew very violet and chaotic in the pirating community) and the Brethren Court was gathered yet once again, including her thrice great-grandfather Alexander Sparrow. The act of selling slaves was discussed and several nasty fights were started in the decision making process. But she was proud to say her thrice great grandfather Alexander Sparrow stood firmly against the slave trade and made an amazing speech about the difference between piracy and slavery, how no one was truly safe if they were able to take their own daughters in broad daylight, and how selling people for profit, any type of people, would lead to their downfall in the end.
The Brethren Court came to a unanimous agreement after that and the slave trade was banned. Any regular pirate caught participating in that act, with at least nine credible eyewitnesses of course, were to be executed. Pirate Lords were to keep the peace within their own vicinity and, if one was suspected in participating in the slave trade, then they were to be brought to trial by the Court.
The Code was their law. It was always to be obeyed and no one was above it.
"Two shillings for just stepping into port!" Her father spat out in disgust, shaking Jill from her thoughts as he gave the shillings he stole from the greedy ledger man to a lame beggar man who thanked him profusely. "And they call us pirates!"
Jill and her father Jack walked beside each other, dressed as simple merchant folk. They both had straw hats to protect them from the heat of the sun and Jill was carrying a heavy basket with an assortment of clams, mussels, and oysters that were listed as a pence each. Their pistols and swords were by their sides, there was no need to hide them because practically everyone used those weapons these days to defend themselves against all types of attackers, even the merchant folk. Her father was carrying a bag that held the rest of their pirating items, including the compass that was bartered to her father by Tia Dalma, the goddess Calypso herself bound in human form, and his infamous Captain's hat which she had to argue with him for hours on end on why he couldn't wear it as they were staking out the ship. Oh and of course his bottle of rum he carried from Tortuga (He originally had three but drank two coming here) which he insisted on taking with him to Port Royal.
Jill wondered how her father managed to evade the noose for as long as he did since everywhere he went he insisted on acting and showing off that he was so plainly obviously a pirate.
"Well we came on a perfect day, sun is shining bright and clear, not a storm cloud in sight." Jill murmured softly to her father, maintaining a façade as she politely accepted a pence from a girl in exchange for an oyster. "And with everyone preoccupied with the party for the new Commodore, it will be all too easy checking out the ship."
And it was true. While there were plenty of common folk like them around there were practically no soldiers to be seen. Jill could count how many soldiers she had seen with her left hand and right hand and still have fingers left over. By the time they had strolled down to where the Interceptor was being held, her basket was practically empty and her pockets full of coin. It was good to know that should Jill ever wish to quit pirating, which was extremely unlikely, the merchant business was always open for her.
"There it is." Her father murmured to her as they stood a few yards from the gleaming new ship. "The Interceptor. The fastest ship in the Navy or so they keep bragging about."
The ship in question was guarded only by two bumbling British soldiers (Unbelievable!) who Jill quickly put to sleep with her powers, wiping their memories of her and her father from them too. She found that Port Royal was far too cocky with the limited security they had for the ship, not just the ship but the harbor as well, and it will serve them right when they would steal it tomorrow morning in broad daylight.
She hoped the spirits of Mary Read, Calico Jack, and every good pirate that were killed here watched with pride and victory as Jill and her father raised their pirate banners as they sailed out of Port Royal.
Yo ho! All hands, all together! Hoist the colors high! Heave ho, thieves and beggars, never shall we die!
"Well it's larger and more luxurious than the last ship we took from them, made from much better materials clearly." Jill said to her father as he closely inspected the ship, brushing back a beaded dreadlock and wiping some sweat off her forehead from the heat. "And they have more cannons too."
Still even with all that, it was nothing compared to the Pearl. Nothing could beat her father's beloved ship but perhaps the Interceptor could be a close second, alright perhaps not that close but still a second.
"We should take it now while we have the wind on our side!" Her father said to her and she could hear the excitement in his voice, his hands slightly shaking from dying to steal the ship. "They'll never even know what hit them. We'll be out of here before they've even made it to the dock!"
She shook her head and signed. Why was her father so impulsive? She knew they were pirates but couldn't they just have one day of rest? Everybody else did!
"I would like to relax." She reminded him yet once again as she leaned against the railing, enjoying the sea breeze that blew through her face. "We don't need the wind on our side father, I know you haven't forgotten so quickly of my powers. Let's enjoy our stay at Port Royal for at least one night. Have a nice hot bath with scented oils, grab a few things we desperately need including new swords, get a good meal in our stomachs most preferably lamb. Then we can steal the ship."
Jill knew she had her father hooked with the lamb, it was his favorite meat and he only had it while he was at port.
"Oh that sounds good." Her father eagerly agreed, as he licked his lips most likely thinking of the lamb. "Alright, my love, tomorrow morning it is. After grabbing our essentials, I'll see if I can find us a place that serves a juicy lamb, creamy mashed potatoes, and the best chocolate pudding this pirate murdering Island has to offer!"
Jill's eyes brightened at the thought of chocolate pudding, her favorite desert. They were about to head back to town when a loud splash and the sight of an unconscious noblewoman sinking deep into the bottom of the Caribbean sea interrupted all their plans.
Author's Note: Alright I know I took a lot of liberties with the slave trade but it's my story and I can do as I please. Also because I'm drawing from experience, well my family's experience at least. It's impossible to count the number of times I've heard my Aunt being called black (She's really Spanish) or my cousin being confused for black (He's really Spanish and Indian). I decided to incorporate that into the story and the fact that since the masters were having children with the slaves, they would come with a lighter skin tone much like Indian and Spanish people. Oh and most of the stuff I said about Port Royal was true, it really was a haven for pirates centuries ago. I encourage you to read the history on Wikipedia, it is so fascinating! Oh and reviews please! Pretty please, however else would I know of your opinions on the story so far?