10 years earlier…
"Pirates!" A guard screamed, waving his torch in the air. Soon, everyone was yelling, trying to warn the citizens of Port Royal. The church bell began to ring, yet another signal to Port Royal's inhabitants to go inside and lock their doors. The commercial streets of the typically overcrowded town were empty, and all of the fruit and leather dealers abandoned their carts. The only sign of life was found in a few stray cats and dogs cowering in the alleys, sensing what was about to come.
Governor Swann rushed up to the wall to see what all the commotion was about, and he saw it. A large ship approached quickly – it was the fastest ship the Port Royal militia had ever seen. Its sails were as black as the night surrounding them, as was the rest of the ship.
"Quick, go find Elizabeth and Will and hide them in the governor's mansion. They should not be running about now. I know these men – they are dangerous." Governor Swann ordered a guard. The guard nodded and ran back into town to rescue the children.
Will and Elizabeth were playing on the beach. Elizabeth loved to make sandcastles and decorate them with shells, but Will preferred to play Pirate Attack. This caused many arguments between the two, as Elizabeth was often upset that Will was knocking down her castles. On the day of the attack, Elizabeth and will were in the middle of a particularly heated argument; so intense that they did not see the many small row boats approaching them.
The guard arrived in the nick of time. "Elizabeth! Will!" He called. "Run!" They both turned around and saw the pirates getting out of their boats, and began to run up the beach. The guard ran to meet them and take them to safety.
Elizabeth tripped over her skirt and couldn't get up. Will tried to pick her up, but only tore her skirt. At last, the guard reached Will and Elizabeth. Will helped him pick up Elizabeth, but as they turned to run, a pirate grabbed Will from behind.
"Will!" Elizabeth screamed. "Go save Will! Please!"
"Will, huh? That your name, lad?" said the pirate in a scraggly voice. Will didn't move. He was horrified. "Well, come on, Will. You're coming with us for a while." The pirate began to drag Will down the beach, making grooves in the sand where his heels had tried to dig in.
"Why aren't you helping him? Help him!" Elizabeth sobbed.
"I can't, ma'am. You're more important than he is. Let him go. Your father will be happy to see that you're okay."
Elizabeth buried her face in his shoulder and sobbed. She sobbed when she saw her father, and she cried herself to sleep.
Later, loud cannon blasts woke Elizabeth up. She raced outside and saw the pirate ship sailing away, firing its cannons in victory; and that was where she stayed until dawn, watching Will leave her.
