Chapter 3: Hoist the Colours
Singapore was a quiet yet murky place. Beckett's men were sniffing around like wild dogs searching for meat and there was a lot of fog. Not many people were out and about probably because the EITC were around. On the banks of the town were pirate ships that belonged to various pirates around the world. The water that led to the sewers was foggy and no boats were on it except for one lone rowboat that was being rowed by a woman who was singing a ghostly song that involved the Brethren Court.
"Some have died and some are alive,
Others sail on the sea,
With the keys to the cage,
And the devil to pay,
We lay to Fiddler's Green…"
…
In another area of the town, another woman was singing the same song in a soprano voice. No one was aware of her appearance because she was hidden in local clothing and hat. She walked alone amongst the locals but no one paid any heed to her. She sang in a low tone so no one would hear her.
"The bell has been raised from its watery grave,
Hear its sepulchral tone,
A call to all,
Pay heed to the squall,
And turn your sails towards home…"
…
Suddenly both women met each other at a large sewage area singing the same song in a beautiful duet that sounded lovely yet ghastly. Anyone who knew its meaning would understand how dangerous it was.
"Yo ho,
Haul together,
Hoist the colours high,
Heave ho…"
Before either of them could sing the next part, a coarse, rough voice interrupted them.
"Thieves and beggars,
Never shall we die…"
The two women saw a few Asian men coming out of the sewer, closing in on them slowly. Melinda, the soprano singer, looked at the men nervously, touching her sword just in case. Elizabeth, the woman in the boat, just stared at them suspiciously.
"A dangerous song to be singing," said the leader of the gang in an accented English voice, "for anyone ignorant of its meaning. Particularly two women." He began to smile fiendishly. "Particularly two women alone."
"What makes you think they're alone?" asked that familiar grave tone that was Hector Barbossa's. He came down the stairs and looked at the men menacingly.
"You protect them?" asked the man.
Elizabeth unsheathed a knife and held it to his throat threateningly as the other men cocked their guns just in case they needed to protect their leader.
Dangerous and lethal, Elizabeth hissed in his ear, "And what makes you think we need protecting?"
Hector tutted at them for their mistake. "Your master's expecting us," he said, "and an unexpected death'd cast a slight pall on our meeting."
Elizabeth released the man and placed her knife in its sheath but everyone started when they heard Beckett's men approaching the area. The women went into the sewer tunnel first, then the gang, and finally Hector after checking to see if the coast was clear.
…
"Have you heard anything from Will?" asked Elizabeth quietly when the three pirates were at a safe distance from the men.
"I trust young Turner to acquire the charts," replied Hector, wrapping an arm around Melinda's waist, "and you to remember your place in the presence of Captain Sao Feng."
"Is he that terrifying, dear?" asked Melinda softly.
"Much like meself," answered Hector, smiling, "absence my merciful nature and sense of fair play."
The three followed the gang of men to a bath house door and he said something in Chinese that they didn't understand but it opened the door. Before they could go in, all three pirates had to leave their weapons behind for safety measures. Hector only had his sword, small pistols, and gun but the Chinese men didn't trust the girls.
"Do you think because they are women," said the man, "we would not suspect them of treachery?"
Hector smiled in a friendly way as he looked at the man. "Well when you put it that way…"
"Remove please," snapped the man to the women.
Melinda sighed and pulled out her various weapons. She had two swords, a bomb, a set of pistols, and a dagger while Elizabeth had the whole caboodle. She had pistols, two different guns, a bomb, and her dagger. The women exchanged a look at Hector, who smiled and nodded approvingly. Both of them went to step in but the man stopped them again.
"Remove," he said in a different tone of voice, "please."
Elizabeth and Melinda looked down to their breeches and looked up at him in disgust but he merely smirked.
…
The bath house was rather humid and smoky but it felt chilly around the women's bare legs and bottom. Elizabeth and Melinda pulled the hems of their shirts down to hide the fact that they didn't wear anything underneath. The Sumo-wrestler sized man led the trio to a Chinese man who wore a regal outfit. The trio of pirates bowed to show their respect to the man.
"Captain Barbossa," said the man in an accented voice, "welcome to Singapore." To the woman next to him, he said, "More steam."
Hector smiled nicely and said, "Have I introduced you to me wife Melinda and friend Elizabeth?"
The man, whom the women suspected was Sao Feng, smiled a small smile and nodded to them before continuing his conversation to Hector.
"I understand," he said, pacing a bit, "you have a request to make of me."
"More like a proposal to put to ye," corrected Hector. "I've a venture underway and I find myself in need of a ship and a crew."
Sao Feng scratched his bald head with long nails and made a curious expression. "It's an odd coincidence."
"Because you happen to have a ship and a crew you don't need?" asked Elizabeth, looking straight at him.
"No," replied Sao Feng, "because earlier this day, not far from him, a thief broke into my most revered uncle's temple and tried to make off with these." He held the charts in his hands and the three exchanged a look.
"The navigational charts," continued the man. "The route to the Farthest Gate. Wouldn't it be amazing if this venture of yours took you to the world beyond this one?"
"It would strain credulity at that," remarked Hector, shrugging slightly.
Instead of replying, Sao Feng nodded to the men to the bath closest to him and they lifted out the thief. And it was Will Turner! He sputtered and took a deep breath, staring at everyone nervously.
"This is the thief," said Sao Feng. "Is his face familiar to you?"
The three pirates shook their heads but their eyes betrayed their emotion. Sao Feng took out a knife and held it.
"Then I guess he has no further for it," he remarked, about to stab Will.
"No, no!" screamed Elizabeth before he could stab the other man.
Everyone looked to her and their eyes widened in response. Sao Feng pulled the knife away and walked over to the trio.
"You come into my city and you betray my hospitality," remarked Sao Feng angrily.
"Sao Feng, I assure I had no idea…" began Hector but he got cut off.
"That he would get caught!" demanded Sao Feng, looking into the faces of the husband and wife.
"You intend to attempt the voyage to Davy Jones' Locker," continued Sao Feng, "but I cannot help but wonder…Why?"
Hector frowned gravely and tossed a silver coin to him. Sao Feng blew on it and then placed it to his ear to hear the chime coming off of it.
"The song has been sung," said Hector seriously. "The time is upon us. It is time to convene with the Brethren Court."
Sao Feng clenched the coin in his fist and said to the woman next to him, "More steam. More steam!"
Hector glanced around awkwardly as Sao Feng made his way towards him.
"There is a price on all our heads," said Sao Feng. "It is true. It seems the only way a pirate can turn a profit anymore… is by betraying other pirates." He looked at Will, who just stonily stared back at him.
"It be time to put our differences aside," said Hector finally. "The First Brethren Court gave us rule of the seas but now that rule is being challenged by Lord Cutler Beckett."
"Against the East India Trading Company," remarked Sao Feng, "what use is the Brethren Court? What can any of us do?"
"You can fight!" shouted Elizabeth suddenly, moving to go face but got apprehended by someone. "Get off of me! You are Sao Feng, the Pirate Lord of Singapore! You command in an age of piracy where bold captains sail free waters! Where waves aren't measured in feet, but as increments of fear and those who pass the test become legend! Would you have that era come to an end on your watch? The most notorious pirates from around the world are uniting to fight against our enemy and yet you sit here cowering in your bath water!"
Sensing she took it a bit too far, Elizabeth stepped back a few paces and Sao Feng began circling her like lion circling fresh kill. Hector and Melinda kept straight faces but their hearts contracted nervously.
"Elizabeth Swann," said Sao Feng, "there's more to you than meets the eye, isn't there? And the eye does not go wanting."
Elizabeth looked at him in disgust as he walked back over to Hector and Melinda.
"But I cannot help but notice," he said to them, "you have failed to answer my question. What is it you seek in Davy Jones' Locker?"
"Jack Sparrow," replied Will, finally speaking up.
Both Chinese handmaidens next to Sao Feng giggled at the mention of the charming captain before falling silent. Sao Feng looked like he would explode at the mention of Jack Sparrow.
"He's one of the pirate lords," concluded Will.
Hector rolled his eyes in irritation before closing them while Sao Feng began raging about Jack.
"The only reason," he said angrily, "that I would want Jack Sparrow back from the land of the dead…is so I can send him back myself!" In his anger, he kicked a water bucket over, causing many to flinch.
Hector touched Melinda's arm gently before walking over to Sao Feng to speak. "Jack Sparrow holds one of the nine pieces of eight. He failed to pass it along to a successor before he died so we must bring him back."
Sao Feng looked over Hector's shoulder and noticed a man cowering as his tattoo began melting off.
"So you admit," he said angrily, "you have deceived me. Weapons!"
In a flash, everyone in the bathtubs pulled out swords and knives of a various size and roared at the three pirates who huddled together. Hector wrapped an arm around his wife to give her a gentle squeeze before removing his arm for the weapons about to come out from under the floor.
"Sao Feng," he said loudly, "I assure you, our intentions are strictly honorable!"
Three pairs of swords popped out from under the floorboards and the pirates caught them with great ease. Hector chuckled a bit and smiled at Sao Feng, who grabbed a random man and held a knife to his throat.
"Drop your weapons," he threatened, "or I'll kill the man!"
"Kill him," said Hector. "He's not our man."
"If he's not with you," said Will, "and he's not with us, who's he with?"
At the end of that sentence, the doors fell down and the East India Trading Company came in. Melinda's heart stopped when she saw them. Now wasn't the time to hide; now it was the time to fight! For everything they believed in and loved! Melinda held her swords at the ready, preparing herself to strike.
A/N: Cliffhanger! Next is the fighting chapter! R&R, my lovelies! Hope you enjoyed! Peace!