- Lawrence.

Good day. My name is Lawrence Martin. For those of you who do not know me, I was formerly apprenticed to a baker by the name of George Somber, but have since taken to fishing on the docks and selling my catch to pay for my food. I am a friend of both Miss Elizabeth Swann and Mr. William Turner, despite the fact that I struck the latter in anger during our adventure last year. Will has been kind enough to allow me to sleep in the loft above his blacksmith's shop, and he taught me how to sword-fight, though I'm afraid that I am very poor at it.

Then soldiers had burst into the shop, and I had been arrested. I had been dragged to a cell, where Will and Elizabeth joined me a few hours later. They were both dressed in wedding attire. I was going to be their ring-bearer, but had not yet dressed for the wedding when I was arrested.

"Why are they arresting us?" I asked. "I thought Governor Swann granted us clemency?"

"Lord Beckett outranks the governor." Will said bitterly. "And he decided that we needed to be arrested."

"Well, this is just peachy." I said sarcastically.

"How does this have anything to do with peaches?" Elizabeth asked.

"No, no. Peachy is a term I learned from Laverne." I explained. "It means "great", and is generally used sarcastically." I chuckled. "Laverne is probably safer than we are at the moment, even if she is on a pirate ship."

All three of us sat in gloomy silence for a time. I thought about how Laverne would feel when I didn't show up for our rendezvous in one month's time. 'She'll probably think that I abandoned her.' I thought sadly. 'Either that, or she'll know I'm dead and go mad with grief."

With these unhappy thoughts in my head, I fell asleep against the dirty wall of the cell.


The next day, I awakened to the sound of the cell door screeching open.

"Lord Beckett wishes to speak to Mr. Turner and Mr. Martin." The guard said.

We were led into a very fancy room with an unfinished map covering most of one wall. Lord Beckett was talking with another man, but dismissed him when the guard announced us.

"Those won't be necessary." Beckett said, motioning for the guards to remove our shackles. He poured three glasses of some liquer that was too fancy for me to even know the name of, and offered one to each of us. Remembering my drunkard Uncle Ian, whose memory had kept me from even tasting rum back on Jack's Island, I refused the high-class drink. "The East India Trading Company has need of your services." Beckett told us. "We wish for you to be our agents in a business transaction with our mutual friend, Captain Sparrow."

"More aquantence than friend." Will said stiffly.

"He's my friend." I piped up. "I know when denial does me no good. How do you know him?"

"We've had dealings in the past." Beckett said cryptically. He lifted a P-shaped branding iron from the fire. "And we've each left our mark on the other."

"What mark did he leave on you?" Will asked doubtfully.

Beckett didn't answer. Instead, he put the branding iron back in the fire and turned around. "By your efforts, Jack Sparrow was set free. I would like you two to go to him and recover a certain property in his possession."

"Recover." Will repeated.

"At the point of a sword?" I asked, not wanting to hurt my piratical friend.

"Bargain." Beckett said, as if it had been obvious. He moved to a box that bore the seal of the East India Trading Company on its lid and opened it, pulling out a leather-wrapped package. "Letters of mark. You will offer what amounts to a full pardon. Jack will be free. A privateer in the employ of England."

I had to keep myself from snorting rudely. Jack was a pirate! His ship gave him the freedom to go wherever he pleased, whenever he pleased. Being tied down to the employ of just one country would be imprisonment, not freedom.

"Somehow I don't think that Jack will consider employment the same as being free." Will said, voicing my thoughts in more polite terms.

Beckett chuckled. "Freedom." He muttered. He led us out onto a balcony, where we could see Port Royal's new clock tower being built. "Jack Sparrow is a dying breed." He said. "The world is shrinking, the blank edges of the map filled in. Jack must find his place in the new world or perish." He turned to Will. "Not unlike you Mr. Turner. You, your friend and your fiancee all face the hangman's noose."

"So you get Jack and the Black Pearl?" Will said.

"The Black Pearl?" Beckett sounded puzzled.

"I don't think he wants the Pearl, Will." I said.

"A ship? Hardly." Beckett chuckled. "The item in question is considerably smaller, and far more valuable."

"Wait, are you talking about that compass he always carries around?" I asked, and both Will and Beckett turned to stare at me.

"How do you know that?" Beckett asked.

"It's the only thing he has that seems to have any value, besides the Pearl, so I knew that must be what you're talking about." I said, nervous at being the center of attention.

"And you were right, Mr. Martin." Beckett said. "Bring back that compass, or there's no deal."

Will looked pained, but I nodded willingly. Laverne was on the Black Pearl,and finding Jack gave me a reason to keep our rendezvous.