Hey guys, I'm really sorry that I haven't updated lately, I am hoping that I will be able to update more frequently since this chapter is done. This one was a doozey, it took me forever to write I wasn't sure how to do the last part and you'll see why. Please let me know how I did on the final part. I love to hear your opinions. Enjoy!
Chapter 10: An Accord
"You forget what it's like to be with a real woman?" Annamaria leaned into Jack and enveloped him in an overly passionate kiss. Jack stood in astonishment for a quick second before he shoved her away in disgust.
"As much as I've loved you and your philandering ways, I have moved on to far more honest escapades. Honestly." Said Jack, trying to slip his way past her.
Annamaria laughed, "Catherine's got you wrapped around her finger. Tell me Jack, when she expects more from you, will you be able to give it?"
She stepped closer to Jack who now stood with a troubled look on his face.
"How far are you willing to go for her Jack? Would you give up your freedom? The Pearl? The Sea?"
Jack took a step closer to her, his face completely calm.
" I would face the Kraken to spend eternity in Davy Jones' locker if it meant she could live another day."
For a moment there was silence except for the pirate brawl beneath them.
"You really do love her." Said Annamaria shocked. If there was any doubt in her mind before, it was instantly abandoned by the look of pure passion in Jack's eyes.
The music suddenly stopped, and Jack looked over the railing of the balcony to see Norrington and a young boy back to back, swords raised surrounded by a circle of drunken angry pirates.
"Come on men! Who wants some? Form an orderly line, I'll have you all one by one. Come on; who's first?" Norrington slurred lifting up the half filled rum bottle to his lips for another drink.
From behind him the young boy grabbed the bottle from his hands and hit Norrington over the head with it. Effectively knocking him out.
"I just wanted the pleasure of doing that myself!" shouted a slightly feminine voice from the young boy.
"Bloody eunuch" muttered Jack as he turned away from the pirates throwing Norrington out.
Gibbs followed closely behind muttering about how many souls they still had to gather. Jack was only half listening, his thoughts were swarming with what Annamaria had said. He loved Catherine that much was certain; she had captivated him the first time he saw her fighting in front of the Faithful Bride. There was something about the way her hair smelled, the way she looked at him like no other woman had, the way her body seemed to fit perfectly against his.
Suddenly finding himself before his ship, Jack looked to see his crew lying about, relaxing and not boarding the supplies onto his ship.
"Oi! This rum isn't going to load itself! Scurry on! I don't want to be here all night!" shouted Jack as he inspected the many crates lining the docks.
"Captain Sparrow!" cam a slightly feminine voice.
"Come to join me crew lad? Welcome aboard." Jack turned to board the Pearl.
"I've here to find the man I love."
Jack stopped midstep, "I'm deeply flattered son, but my first and only love is the sea." Jack shuddered slightly at what the young lad was suggesting. He turned in time to see Norrington vomit into the harbor.
"Meaning William Turner, Captain Sparrow."
"Elizabeth!" said Jack while handing a bottle of rum in his hand to Gibbs , "hide the rum."
Gibbs stood for a moment debating what he should do before he turned and quickly ran up the boarding plank.
"You know," said Jack, "These clothes do not flatter you at all. It should be a dress or nothing. I happen to have no dress in my cabin."
"Jack," Elizabeth interjected, " I know Will came to find you where is he?" she said suddenly showing how worried she was.
"Darling," said Jack sobering, "I am truly unhappy to have to tell you this but," he hesitated, for a moment, "through an entirely unforeseeable series of circumstances that have nothing what so ever to do with me, poor William has been press-ganged into Davy Jones' crew."
"Davy Jones?" asked Elizabeth incredulously.
Norrington vomited into the harbor, "Oh please," he spat, "The captain of the Flying Dutchman?"
Jack looked at Norrington with disgust, "You look awful. What are you doing here?"
Norrington glared at Jack with an equal look of disgust, "You hired me. I can't help it if your standards are lax."
"You smell funny" retorted Jack for lack of a better insult.
"Jack!" said Elizabeth drawing his attention away from Norrington, "All I want to do is to find Will."
This comment peaked Jack's interest and he slowly walked closer to Elizabeth. "Are you certain? Is that what you really want most?" a sly grin slowly spreading across his face.
"'Course" said Elizabeth confused with the reaction from Jack.
"Because I would think, you'd want to find a way to save Will the most." Said Jack gesturing his hands to emphasize his point.
"And you have a way of doing that?" asked Elizabeth in disbelief.
"Well there is a chest-"
"Oh please," sighed Norrington.
Jack glared in his direction before continuing, "A chest of unknown size and origin."
Pintel and Ragetti who at that moment were loading a barrel of rum interrupted Jack's story.
"What contains the still beating heart o' Davy Jones." Said Pintel.
Ragetti held out his hand as Pintel was talking and imitated a beating heart. "Unh-unh…unh-unh…unh-unh…"
Jack rolled his eyes, "Whoever possesses that chest, possesses the leverage to command Jones to do whatever it is he or she wants, including…saving brave William from his terrible fate."
"You don't actually believe him, do you?" scoffed Norrington.
Elizabeth however ignored him as her excitement grew at the glimmer of hope, "how do we find it?"
Jack pulled out his compass from his belt, "With this. My compass," he paused trying to find the right words, "is unique."
"'Unique' here having the meaning of broken." Called out Norrington.
"True enough," answered Jack, "This compass does not point North."
Norrington vomited yet again into the harbor.
"Where does it point?" asked Elizabeth barely able to contain her excitement.
"It points to what you want most in the world," answered Jack with a slow smile.
"Oh Jack! Are you telling the truth?" asked Elizabeth well versed in Jack's ability to create a fantastic tale.
"Every word love. And what you want most in the world is to find the chest of Davy Jones, is it not?"
"To save Will?" questioned Elizabeth.
"By finding the chest of Davy Jones," emphasized Jack.
He handed the compass to Elizabeth and drew his hands away quickly, not wanting to interfere at all with the compass. Elizabeth watched the needle swivel back and forth before finally settling in one place. Jack slowly looked at the compass and smiled.
"Mister Gibbs!" he yelled, looking towards a strangely busy deck, Gibbs was nowhere to be seen. "Mister Gibbs!" Jack called again; something was not right.
A very flustered Gibbs ran down the loading plank, "Cap'n, she's gone. She's not on the ship!" he sputtered out, trying to catch his breath.
All the color drained form Jack's face yet his expression remained calm.
"Gibbs," said Jack in frightening monotone, stay with the ship." He grabbed Elizabeth's hand and dragged her down the dock.
"Jack where are we going?" Elizabeth asked recovering from the initial shock of Jack dragging her away.
"Looking for someone."
"Why are you taking me?" she asked confused.
"So you don't run off with my compass."
A shocked Elizabeth quickly followed Jack towards Tortuga. She had never seen him this way before. He had not even been this serious when he had shot Barbossa.
Elizabeth came to a sudden stop when Jack turned into an unfamiliar street. She had been so distracted by Jack's actions she had not noticed exactly which section of Tortuga they had gone to. It was a less hectic section. Yet the people lining the streets seemed much more menacing. Elizabeth instinctively took a step closer to Jack as a man suspiciously bumped into her.
Jack was opening ever shop door they walked by and Elizabeth was just about to question what exactly he was looking for when after the tenth doo, Jack reached in and roughly pulled a man outside.
"Where is she Tucker," growled Jack shoving the man against the wall and pulling out his pistol, "I'm going to count to three" he growled cocking it.
Tucker, not completely intimidated by Jack's threat growled back, "The last I saw her she left to find you. That's all I know" his hands above his head.
"You were the last one to see here now I want to know where she is and what happened to her. You're out of time." Growled Jack.
"No!" came a small voice from behind a stack of barrels, "He didn't do it! The fish person! The fish person did it!"
Jack turned towards the sniffling noise and saw a young boy, no older than eight hiding behind the rum.
"What is this about fish people lad?"
The boy took a moment to say anything, but when he started talking, it came out in one quick stream of words.
"I was walking home, from playin' with me boys, an' I saw a pretty lady. She was very sad, she was sitting on the ground cryin' an' a man with a fish head came an' tried to take 'er away but she didn't wan' to go so he beat her up 'till he had to drag her away."
Throughout the kids story Jack's face became paler and paler but more and more an emotionless mask save for the pure rage in his eyes.
"Where was this?" he asked calmly, "can you show us?"
The boy shook his head, frightened no doubt by the thought of there being more fish people.
"The fish people are gone," assured Jack, "I promise they won't get you. Can you please show me where this is lad?"
Elizabeth was surprised with the gentleness in Jack's voice, for the first time she saw him as a man and not just a drunken pirate.
The boy slowly started to walk down the street but began to pick up his pace to the point where Jack, Elizabeth, and Tucker had to run to keep up with him. The boy came to a stop in front of an old tavern,
Elizabeth looked around; there was nothing out of the ordinary. The tavern itself had been out of business for a while so there was no one on the street. That's when she noticed it; the blood. Tucker noticed it too for at that moment, he turned to Jack.
"Jack," he cautioned, but Jack had already seen it.
A large pool of blood covered the ground, Jack could only picture Catherine's beautiful body mangled into a broken pile being dragged away by one of Jones' crewmen. He could feel the rage building up inside him, a deep hatred that consumed his body. Catherine was being hurt for a deal he had made. She could already be dead and it would be his fault. Jack's entire body was shaking, he hated Jones more than words could describe.
"YYYYYYAAAAGGGGHHHH!" screamed Jack in anger, he punched the Tavern windows, breaking all the glass that was left, he then moved onto the wall and succeeded in making a large hole.
Elizabeth was about to reach out to him but Tucker beat her to it grabbing hold of Jack and pulling him away from the tavern. Though he was substantially taller than Jack, it was not easy to pull him away.
"Jack! This isn't helping Catherine!" yelled Tucker struggling to keep Jack focused. He too was angry at Jones for taking Catherine and knew exactly what could happen to her if Jack wasn't able to find her in time.
"What are we going to do?" he asked Jack in a calmer voice.
Jack was silent for a moment, composing his face into a face void of any emotion, "Nothing changes, we find the chest, then I'm going to kill Davy Jones for touching Catherine."
"I'm coming with you." Announced Tucker.
At this Jack laughed, "Tucker, you haven't been on a ship in years, do you even remember you had sea legs?"
Tucker did not share Jack's humor, "You're not the only one that cares about her Sparrow, I want to make sure she comes back too."
Jack didn't argue any more knowing that the longer they stood on the street the further away Catherine would be. He simply motioned toward Tucker and Elizabeth to follow him. He'd get Catherine back or die trying.
Catherine didn't want to open her eyes. The foul stench and dampness reminded her of where she was; The Dutchman. Images of the recent events flooded before her, Jones, his minions, pain, Annamaria. Catherine's stomach blanched at the thought of Jack, stupid Annamaria. Jack probably found her shortly after he was released from Beckett.
She wrenched her eyes open; strong iron bars were the first to meet her eyes. The brig was dark, and she could hardly make anything else out but the bars. Catherine tried to sit up and survey her surroundings; a sharp and intense pain engulfed her and she fell to the ground gasping for breath trying to force away the black spots that clotted her vision. She had to stay awake. She couldn't fight Jones if she was unconscious on the floor of his brig.
Catherine closed her eyes for a moment focusing on anything other than the pain. She focused on the cold water surrounding her and the familiar feel of her pearl ring. She rubbed it with her thumb and she was brought back to only the night before when she had stood wrapped in his arms overlooking the sunset.
A soft shuffling sound in the corner of her cell jerked Catherin from her reverie, she turned her head toward the sound but said nothing, hoping it was just a rat. It came again, this time louder, almost as if there was someone outside her cell.
"Catherine?" the voice called out cautiously, "Catherine? Don't tell me he got to you." A man mumbled.
"Bootstrap?" Catherine wheezed out, "Bootstrap Bill Turner? What are you doing here? Why aren't you with the Pearl?"
Bootstrap sighed and moved closer to the bars, "I tried to stop it," he mumbled, "Jack had a different idea of treasure. Barbossa wanted gold. Jack wanted something else. Barbossa led a mutiny against Jack talking the coordinates of the golden treasure."
"A mutiny? Why?" Catherine gasped still trying to gain control over the pain.
"You! Jack was searching to find you! Jack promised him all of the loot from our next conquest but Barbossa wanted the loot then. I tried to stop them. I stood up for him. I knew Jackie boy for a long time. I know how he feels about ya. Everything went wrong after that."
A noise above deck stopped him for a moment.
"Know this, Jones wants to destroy Jack in every way possible. He won't kill you yet, he wants Jackie boy for that but-"
The hatch to the brig slammed open and a body was thrown down the steps. Catherine gasped as she realized who it was. Will's shirt was torn clear off his back and blood still flowed from the open wounds on his back. Will pushed himself onto his hands and knees to see Catherine's strained breathing and pain filled eyes. Growling he stood up to try and attack Jones' and his crewmen but he was quickly shoved into a second cell. He began to angrily smash his fists into the iron bars that now claimed him prisoner too.
Jones grabbed Catherine's shirt and jerked her to a standing position. Will watched in amazement as Catherine did not once flinch or cry out in pain. She looked straight ahead in a look of pure determination and strength.
"Your little Sparra' seems to have taken flight Miss Porter," said Jones walking in circles around Catherine's perfectly straight body, "I think you can tell me where he's going."
Catherine only stared straight ahead, her rigid figure did not sway an inch, and neither did her resolve, "I am not going to tell you anything." She said icily and looked Jones square in the eye.
Jones chuckled, "you will tell me Miss Porter, before the night is over."
Catherine smiled, "You will get nothing form me." She said calmly.
Jones snarled his tentacles writhing in anger and motioned towards two of his crewmen. Catherine refused to wince as she was forced onto her knees. The pain in her ribs was so intense she wanted so badly to cry out but she couldn't give Jones the satisfaction. The two crewmen hold her roughly pulled her shirt up exposing her bare back.
Catherine didn't hear the whip coming towards her but she felt the unmistakable sting of its bite. She clenched her jaw not wanting to emit a single sound as she felt another sting flared its way across her back. Each strike of the whip felt as if someone was slicing her back with a red hot knife.
She could barely hear Will over the blood throbbing in her ears as he shouted for Jones to stop. For a moment she was transported to Becketts ship. Each time Beckett hit her with the whip Jack would beg for him to put Catherine's torture on his shoulders.
Catherine was slowly beginning to lose sense of reality. She could feel the blood running down her back, heat radiating from her body from the sting of the whip. She could see Jack smiling at her, his arms wrapped around her body as they stared at a sunset, her cheek laying against his bare chest. Image after image of Jack snapped into her field of view, changing with each hit of the whip. A single tear escaped her but as the final stroke of the whip fell, Catherine did not emit a single noise.
She could hear Jones walking around to face her, she stared stoically ahead, not a trace of pain was seen on her face.
Catherine's body shook either form pain or rage she couldn't tell. Jones leaned towards her, tentacles writhing; an angry sneer snaked its way across his face.
"All you have to tell me Miss Porter, is where your beloved Sparrow has flown. I might even spare your life-uh."
Catherine glared at him, her eyes fuming with pure rage and hatred towards the being standing in front of her. She spit on his face finding sick pleasure in seeing her blood coat his face; yet another act of defiance.
"Jack Sparrow is the only thing I have left in the goddamn world," she seethed, "do you honestly believe I would ever give him to you bastards?" she chuckled eerily.
Jones infuriated clenched her throat in his claw slowly making it tighter and tighter. Catherine grabbed both sides trying to pry them apart, her face grimacing with the effort of it. Jones was surprised at the strength that still remained in her broken body.
"Go to hell." She sputtered, her eye sight starting to darken.
"Where do you think I came from?" laughed Jones as he threw her into her cell. Satisfied to see her remain motionless he slammed the door shut to his crew's cackles and Will's angry shouts.
"Summon the Kraken!" he growled.
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