Sorry for the delay, was held up cos my ant-virus software decide to expire on me and I had nasty little invaders to be rid off. The nature of this chapter is in much the same nature as the last, except of course it's a lot darker. In short; history is still ugly but I hold deep respect and no offence to any part whatsoever.
This has a very Last Of The Mohicans, in fact I wrote it while listening to the soundtrack piece called 'Promontory' anybody that has seen the film would know that score is awe-inspiring!
A pillar of dust spewed up from the rock, caused by a speeding bullet fired from a rifle held in a novice's hand: Elizabeth frowned at the unrelenting feats of practise shots, her latest only being a minute improvement from her last.
"Could be better" She grumbled self-consciously
"Could be worse" Ruby-Rose advised with a voice muffled by her hand as he face leaned against her fist. She had been coaxing the aristocrat for most of the morning to learn the ways of a gun, but no matter how much patience the pirate had it was like teaching a child that did not wish to learn.
"I cannot believe you have yet to condone the actions of those savages, I push us head first into a conflict. Jack can be wild but you Captain Rose are insane"
"Kindly turn to the matter at hand if you please: I will not have an ignoramus in my company, it's 'native' or nothing. What do I need to condone for; their fighting for their lives, for their very survival…As a pirate I can relate to that" Ruby-Rose replied forlornly.
"I bet, just another feather in your illustrious cap; trying to outwit your husband it would seem" Lizzie sneered, The Crimson Queen shook her head before carefully climbing down the mound of rock; she was finding Liz's whining almost too exhausting to bear.
Upon taking the rifle, Ruby-Rose fingered the trigger and an iris of emerald fixed upon the target, expectantly triumphant as the rock was blasted right off it's perch.
"No, no more adventures not after this – not ever again; the birth of my child is the day I officially resign as 'scourge of the British Navy'" She said simply while focusing on the bark of an elm tree. Underestimating her range she singed her left temple from a powder burn.
"Retire, you; Poseidon's only flower? Now that I'd never believe"
"You trust your senses; you can see with your own eyes can you not? I am a slave turned pirate-turned Captain-turned-Pirate-Queen…motherhood is the next phase of my life, I'm hoping it will be the best" Ruby-Rose's words were meant to be gentle and philosophical but the burn made it impatient and crude.
Shoving the Winchester into Lizzie's hand, she wiped away the soot from her eyebrow and watched her student take another crack at weaponry. A loud whistle followed by a plume of dust shot up not too far from where the pirate had fired herself. Ruby-Rose smiled with relief and patted her friend on the arm, perhaps now they were finally getting somewhere.
"What about Jack, could he actually do the unheard of thing and retire himself?" Liz persisted although she remembered her manners this time.
"Well as you already know my dear, Jack's just Jack; he's a good leader loyal friend so on and so fourth but he has and will continue to do whatever he likes. I just hope the poor little blighter does not end up like Will Turn--"
And so, there it was in black and white, clear as crystal: Ruby-Rose Sparrow unwittingly revealed the last of her fears, one that had been there from the very beginning – Did Jack love her enough to give up that which became his lifeline, after his fall from grace as a reluctant employee of The EITC, after Barbossa's betrayal: The mighty unyielding ocean that had no laws but Poseidon's, a place he felt no rejection, no fear and least of all his freedom.
"Does he really have it in him to give it up for me?" The moment that thought entered her head time stood still, suddenly it occurred to her that she had no idea if Jack would.
Though the remark was an indirect and unintentional act of malice, Elizabeth was alarmed by the statement but she quickly pitied the woman instead of being repulsed by her. The world was changing around them and it was not necessarily for the better, the aristocrat thought about the adage of 'no honour amongst thieves' and wondered if it could be re-written somehow.
Ruby-Rose bowed her head in shame and sulked awhile before gazing up at Liz with as much honesty a stare alone could portray, then softly she spoke.
"Bill Turner and I had a vague acquaintance many years ago; Jack placed me in his charge not too long after we left St Laurie's gulf. He entertained me, made sure I was fed; a good man he was but he loved piracy too much"
"And you think your son or daughter will copy the fate of my fiancé do you?" Liz sighed before crossing her arms
"It was not meant as a derogatory comment; he was a good pirate but the sadness of leaving a family behind was always held in his eyes"
"Jack tell you all this?"
"Contrary to what you think you know about my husband he is a patient and worthy confidante – Barbossa told me, I worked out the rest when I first spied Young Will in Panama; quite the father's son your William" Ruby-Rose explained cheerily, she stopped and smiled a dreamy, dazed smile.
"What is it?""
"Now dear old Bootstrap – God rest his soul – had absolutely no time for heirs and graces, which you m' dear have in irritating abundance. But…in spite of that, I think he would have liked you" Ruby-Rose nodded and observed a shy but smug grin creeping on the aristocrat's face. Saying no more after that, they continued with their target practise.
For three days the two young women played gracious albeit anxious guests to their indigenous hosts, Ruby-Rose stole a moment to herself and bathed in a pool cocooned by a rock face on one side and the forest on the other. Looking down at herself she indulged in self-criticism as her body was just one big swell; belly-button turned out, feet swollen a sore, her spine feeling like it would snap in two. Liz was right there was a difference between the Sparrow couple; Jack was daring and she was just plain daft. Looking around at the beauty of the idyllic spot she felt appalled that she was part of the race that would soon conquer all that she saw. She had no sovereign or country to speak; she was a colonist but a British Colonist all the same. Much like Jack his mother was British his father a Jordanian but he was born on a ship sailing from it, so he too had so sovereign or country to speak of . The romantic in the Crimson Queen liked to believe that they need no country, no wretched anthem to sing to as long as they had each other; loyalty was their sovereign, mutual love was their country.
Scooping up the clear water she let it slip through her fingers, on smelling it there was no salt, on looking at it there was no swirl of white. A stray tear rolled down her cheek as she missed so many things all in that moment; the sea, her captaincy, her home, her ship, her crew, her friends, her father…her Jack. The thought of her husband lingered a while longer than the others but throwing water on her face she forced it to fade away. Standing up she waded through the water and gathered her new attire of a Native American woman.
"Captain Sparrow?" Elizabeth called out from behind the bushes; her voice was taut and sombre.
"Aye Miss Swann, so what do I owe the pleasure?" Ruby-Rose sniffled while wriggling into the roan-coloured trousers and cape.
A hesitant pause followed the light-hearted question and immediately the pirate stopped what she was doing.
"The tribe are congregating…O-Olivia I think they're making ready for battle" She murmured dismally, Ruby-Rose leapt into authoritarian action as adrenalin rushed through her veins, pleading one last time for her unborn child to forgive her she grabbed her belongings and snatched Lizzie's hand into her own before they raced back to camp as fast her full-term pregnancy would allow.
Traipsing cautiously towards the main hub of people, Chief Elu spotted them and requested for his people to make way. Splitting into two groups the tribe parted and a hush fell upon them, the only noise that was heard was the shuffling of weapons and the nervous braying of the horses. Ruby-Rose's mouth was dry as a desert and it took several gulps before she could utter a word.
"The time has come for you to honour your allegiance and sworn obligation" He said gravely as he handed her a rifle, from the scratches on the base she realised it was the one she borrowed from Agnes.
"Just as long as you remember yours" Ruby-Rose answered gruffly and wrapped sweaty fingers around the barrel and took back what belonged to her.
Elizabeth tried to hold hers with the same feigned disinterest but she couldn't help gazing upon it like she had never seen one before, or at least one that she would use to kill before. Looking up at her friend she realised nobody could make a bluff quite like a Sparrow.
"Lakota say that you prowl like a Hunting Wolf….and you fly like Swooping Eagle, both are gifts and should be treated as such"
The two captives looked at each other with a bizarre combination of bewilderment and pride.
"Prowling Wolf? I swear Ruby-Rose anymore alternative names and you'll forget which one you were born with" Liz scoffed teasingly
"From Swann to a Swooping Eagle, anyone would think you were a born anthropologist!" The pirate Captain counteracted and for a brief moment they indulged in the humour of their new names.
Chief Elu gave them a curious look before tending to his chosen party of warriors, with a traditional farewell over and done with Ruby-Rose was aided unto a horse but Elizabeth. The informality of having her hair in a loose plait suited the aristocrat as did the native garb she wore. Handing the reigns over to the pirate she wondered why it took so long for Ruby-Rose to retrieve them.
"What is it Olivia, what's wrong; is it the baby?"
"Ever since I arrived in Falmouth I've been trying to keep track of the time now I only want to forget"
Lizzie's eyes squinted in confusion; Ruby-Rose leaned her body back and tried to detach herself from the sentimentality of what she was trying to say.
"I've just remembered…today is my wedding anniversary" She said quietly, Liz nodded then patted the pirate's leg before mounting on her own horse, both of them relieved that the journey was a steady trot more than a hasty gallop.
Captain Jacoby Elias Sparrow was not a happy man, he doubted there was anything he hated more besides a mutiny than cross-country trekking: Horse-riding was one of the few skills that the pirate was hopeless at and he did not mind owning up to the fact, nor embracing the rare occasion where he would set aside the ego for practicality. Instead of riding confidently and bravely wit his crew on horseback, there were forced to hire a wagon with Joshamee doing the driving.
"Hands up who thinks we took a wrong turning?" Jack grumbled, to which Ana-Maria, Jerome, Gregory and Jonah raised their hands. The Cornishman furrowed his brows in annoyance as his long-term friend and Captain sheepishly raised his own.
"You're more than welcome to take the reigns Jack" He said begrudgingly, watching his Captain ponder the question but he already knew what the answer would be.
"Ah but you grasp those leather thingamajigs much more expertly than I could possibly manage" Jack answered languidly
"So where do you suppose we are Captain?" Ana-Maria huffed, everyone including Gibbs turned to him expectantly
"Well if the midday sun is behind us we're heading west when we should be heading south"
"I'll repeat my offer if you take it Captain if not would you kindly be still – I see nothing but a straight path unless there's one hidden away in all that wilderness on yonder" Gibbs retorted, getting more irritable by the second.
"Precisely why I suggested we turn at the last crossroads"
"Jack Sparrow you did no such thing!" Greg intervened with growing impatience.
"I did too…I merely forgot to think aloud that's all" Jack shrugged while dismissing the innkeeper with a wave of the hand the leaned his arm against his raised knee.
A tense silence borne out of tedium, worry and fear washed over the wagon, Jack peeped into the map in a conspiring manner before rolling it up and shoving it into his banyan coat. They had left the shores of Brigantine over an hour ago and were seemingly headed towards Camden instead of where they should have been going. But for reasoning he could not dissuade Jack kept his mouth shut, he still had yet to confront the reasons why and there was so many: Impending fatherhood, his father's secrecy, Cameron Forrester and not least his retirement from piracy. As they travelled over a hill they could see a small hamlet at the bottom.
"Cloaks at the ready everyone .and no peeking or else!" Jack ordered as he pulled a brown cloak over his body, taking off his cap he studied his medallion before kissing it. Tugging the hood over his head he looked back and waited for his crew to finish donning their disguises then tapped Gibbs to get the wagon moving.
Waiting for the assault was like waiting for a death knell, Ruby-Rose sat against a tree trunk ready to embrace the darker side of piracy; a murdered of the innocent. The concept made her feel sick, she plundered, pillaged, took many an advantage with a glad heart but she had never killed anyone. Maimed and ridiculed only when she had to but to steal another's life was unimaginable. She looked to Lizzie who was a shadow of her former self; sweat trickled across her cheeks and she looked deathly pale.
"Liz I want you to listen carefully, no matter how afraid you become you must not shoot at point blank range: Shoulders, arms, leg nothing direct are we agreed?"
"Olivia I cannot fight the instinct to protect myself, they will shoot back, they won't care that we're women; they will shoot back" She stammered
"Oh you cannot fight your natural right to survive, do you think I can? My child is about to be born any day now and I have never been so afraid for my life" The Pirate Queen wheezed with a faltering voice.
The two women tensed up as they heard Gaul accents chattering in the distance, Liz shrank down into the undergrowth leaving Ruby-Rose to nestle her head against her weapon. It was a turn of the tide, a twist of fate which she did not wish to embrace. Laying her body behind the mounded root of a tree she peered down the gun barrel and waited. Hearing rustling all around her as the Indians made ready for combat.
A shrill cry rang out and with it multiple cracks of rifles being fired. A French Captain on a dappled horse bellowed orders to his men, the soldiers surrounded the wagons.
'Like shooting fish in a barrel…the poor bastards' Ruby-Rose thought the first of much repentance but still she pulled the trigger and still a soldier lay injured on the ground. Retreated back behind the tree she reloaded her powder and shells, peering out at the plume of gunfire that came from Lizzie's corner. Ruby-Rose sighed with bitter relief then continued to shoot. Closing her eyes every time she pulled the trigger she claimed five casualties. The natives had progressed to hand-to-hand combat as they dispatched the invaders of their country.
There were seventeen men in the blue-coated regiment and they were being picked off one by one. Suddenly the aristocrat could take it anymore, spying on the men that were leaping into the cart to get away she ran blindly out of her hiding place.
"Allez, allez maintenant!" She screamed
"LIZZIE DON'T!" Ruby-Rose yelled the warring party were distracted presenting the French with the gift of seeing another day.
Ruby-Rose seethed in pain while hobbling manically down the slope, wanting to get to her friend before the wrath of Lakota was unleashed.
The warriors crowded around the pair, stunned and unsure of what to do next. Lakota came bounding out of the thicket not very impressed by what he saw.
"You lie, no honour have you; no honour have any of you!" he roared
"The obligation was sworn by myself alone, this woman does not know the path of a warrior but I do: If you must punish someone, punish me" The Pirate said with reclaimed defiance.
Lakota's jaw clenched as he stood aside to allow his Chief to settle the matter but as respectful as he was, fury burned in his eyes.
"Chief Elu I beg forgiveness and mercy for this woman, my honour was compromised but it was unintentional please…" Ruby-Rose trailed off as Liz tugged her sleeve.
The wise elder looked upon the Pirate then at her reluctant apprentice then handed her a peculiar object. Ruby-Rose exhaled deeply upon remembering she had seen a dremcatcher once before – this was a good sign.
"Your friend is foolish but you Prowling Wolf have wisdom in you spirit which could be older than I am….Stay until the child is born" The old man said softly
"I cannot, a vow that I made to myself must be fulfilled, are we free? She panted, her nervous system smashing into a thousand pieces.
A ghost of a smile that held intrigue, much to Ruby-Rose amazement, a little pride crept on the leader's face.
"Brave warrior of the great sea; I hold your oath fulfilled – Go and may you find peace in your journey"
Elizabeth looked on with such confusion that she thought she would faint, all it took was a speech and that was it, a danger averted?
Two strapping adolescent boys led a set of horses towards the young maidens; a bundle of provisions was loaded against the saddle. Motega, the Chief's eldest son handed the brace of pistols and a sheath to his father. Dangling the brace in his hand he gave it back to it's rightful owner. Ruby-Rose looked down at herself and giggled. Elu could see the joke and smiled too.
"Lizzie, spare us your waist if you please?"
"Beg, Pardon?"
"Just…turned around" Ruby-Rose was embarrassed and Liz was more than hesitant by the strange request, her hips were jolted forward. Looking down she watched in astonishment as Ruby-Rose was fastening her weaponry around her hip.
"It's a loan, just a loan so don't get carried away hmm?" Ruby-Rose warned in jest then struggled to mount the horse Lakota quickly intervened and gently pushed her on top of the saddle. He made a respectful nod and the pirate reciprocated.
"I may return one day and ask for further assistance" The Crimson Queen thought aloud.
"Then it would be a good day" Chief Elu concluded, the young captain skilfully sedated the frisky steed.
"I thank you Chief along Elizabeth, time to leave" The Crimson Queen found it miraculous they were both still alive; of all he adventures this one would not be eagerly mulled over. Now that they had the chance to flee, neither woman took their horse to a steady pace; they galloped faster than the wind.
Jack Sparrow huffed at the heavily-detailed map and wondered where on Earth to begin, nothing was simple on land and he hated the fact. But his impatience for the colonies had to change for the sake of his family. '
What a marvellous word; family…this is my family, my name is Jack and I'd like to introduce my family' He thought with childish glee, lowering down the map he was about to stare up into the sky and daydream for a while but he spied something he wished he did not want to see. Officer Gillette former lieutenant to a certain zealous commodore was sitting rigidly upon his horse, quietly slipping off his perch the pirate's head snapped to attention and several clops of hooves echoed into earshot and then into view. Clinging on to the wheel of the wagon to steel himself he caught sight of Norrington looking as foppish and disciplined as ever. Sneaking over to the water trowel where his friends were washing up he frantically tapped his first mate on the shoulder.
"Blast ye, Jack Sparrow can you not give a man a moment of peace!" Spluttering as he choked on the water.
"I would if I could but alas I cannot for there is no peace in a moment like this" Jack replied anxiously
"A moment like what?" Ana-Maria sidled up to her friends, watching as Jack turned away from where he was staring and merely pointed. On following the finger his friends gasped into unison.
"Grab the others, keep your heads and get back on the wagon; do it quietly" Jack urged, his friends gathered up their belongings in agitated silence.
Alerted by a strange clattering of iron Jack peeked behind the wagon and did a double-take as he eyes, lungs, heart, stomach leapt out of their places. Slouching in a rusty prisoner wagon with face marked in dirt and sweat sat The Oracle's Quartermaster.
"Thomas" Jack uttered the words softer than a dove's feather and weaker than a breeze on a summer's day. His artful senses made him automatically reach for Ana-Maria's mouth; he did not have to look at her to know she was just as shocked as he was.
"Cover yourself and take some water over to them, your friend Christy looks like she's about to drop" He said tactlessly after lifting his hand and pressing his index finger hard against his lips. Grabbing Gibbs by the waistcoat he dragged him to the very edge of their hiding place.
"Look out for the commodore; you do not blink for a-n-y-t-h-i-n-g savvy?"
Jack watched as his friend let his wide eyes do the talking, making him one of the last to make the unsightly discovery
Thomas Laurie wriggled a little in his spot as it had been a while where he had any feeling in his derriere, the regiment hardly rested since they left Georgetown and was beginning to wonder if he would remember how to walk again. His new love was nestled against his chest while young Ben Crawley was dozing with his back against The Scot's. Reluctantly drifting out of his exhaustion he spied two cloaked figures coming towards the wagon, gazing over at the distracted soldiers.
"Have you folk have nothing better to entertain yourselves with?" He groaned at the strangers.
"Only if the company's good…" Said a familiar voice
"…and of course if the rum is still flowing" Jack smirked under the shadow of his hood buy Thom inhaled deeply at the sight of him, relieved beyond words when his spied his old Jamaican shipmate.
"Jack Sparrow, I'll be damned if you two are not the most handsome sight these pair of eyes have seen" Thom panted
"Ana, Captain Jack; I'm more sorry than I can say – she ordered us to leave her and now everything's gone. We fought for the ship tooth and nail but she's in Poseidon's care now" Christy explained morosely, those that were coherent enough to listen to the story hung their heads.
"Christy, you did your best and that is what any of us strive for, anything beyond that is asking too much" Ana soothed softly, glancing at the King's Officers she quickly stretched her arm through the bars and clutched her friend's hand.
"I'm afraid the vessel in still very much in the possession of us mere mortals" Jack delegated
"What do you mean?" Thom asked sternly
"From the bravery of an exceedingly old pirate who should have retired many moons ago, The Oracle is now in the capable hands of it's former Captain" Jack slurred
"Caleb you mean? That's it my life is forfeited, I have served both father and daughter and if anything happens to Ruby-Rose I—well at least old Albert is safe" Thom sighed, to which Christy leaned in and stroking his thinning hair, Ana-Maria grinned approvingly…Jack just rolled his eyes.
"Fort Frederick is where you are headed Mr Laurie?" Jack asked urgently
"Yes but how did you--" Thom stammered
"…An educated guess from a wise old man who coincidently happens to be my father" Jack replied with a glint in his eye.
"I don't know Jack, I've heard about this fort; it's heavily-guarded – nothing like that run-down heap in Colon" The Quartermaster shrugged his shoulders
"My old man is a stubborn sod; there is only difficulty to something when he sees if for himself"
"Funny how history like to repeat itself" Ana-Maria quipped; Jack threw her a mocking sulk then ushered her quietly to the safer side of the cart.
"He'll be there you'll see, best of luck to you" The pirate concluded, grateful murmurings of hope renewed echoed after him, one after the other as each crew member paid their respects
"And to you Captain Jack"
With their heads bowed to the ground that did not see a young mercenary without a wig and without the uniform walking towards them. Jack looked up slightly as he recognised the brown jacket. The man excused himself from their path but Jack unintentionally stared up at his face for his curiosity would not let him. A moment of confusion then shocking realisation as William Turner stood there gawping at him. He was immediately surrounded by the rest of Jack's posse and hauled feet first into the nearest alleyway.
"Anymore reunions like this and people might think we were twins; one cannot be without the other you know?"
"What in God's name are you doing Jack? You'll get caught or do you want to be known as the Kidnapper of a Royal official's daughter"
"What are you talking about?" Jack gravely enquired
"They crossed paths on the road to York, your pirate princess apprehended a highwayman before taking advantage herself. Norrington unmasked her deception only for Ruby-Rose to hold her to ransom"
"That my dear sword smith is the biggest load of bull m' ears have ever heard!" Ana-Maria growled as she pinned the accuser against the shack.
"One; You're fiancée is a grown woman and from what I remember no pirate with any brain would want to kidnap her. Two; I am appalled by insensitive disloyalty, three; Olivia has bigger things on her mind that you rile His Majesty's navy!" The Jamaican scowled with a rage she could barely contain, Jack watched her feeling his own anger fade away and he didn't think he could have said it better himself.
"What exactly are you doing here William?" He asked impatiently, Will stood up from the wall and looked at Jack shame-faced.
"It was a call to arms Jack; I had little choice, Governor Swann sent me to assist in refining weaponry against the natives" Will stammered unsurprised and guilt-ridden by the grimace that appeared on the pirate's face.
"That's it, that is it I've had enough of it!" Jack protested demonstrating his frustration by slamming his fist against the building.
"What's wrong now Jack?" Ana asked dismally.
"This is wrong, this whole pox of a voyage is wrong; you go back to the regiment and you will help my friends in any way you can!" He ordered to William.
This is it; this is me done; finished, retired, kaput gone bye-bye" He blathered almost nonsensically.
"What are you saying Jack, we've got not time for your theatrics!" The Oracle's first mate scolded.
"Ah but you got time for truth haven't you and my truth is after we catch up with whatshisface, get my wife back with a healthy boy or girl it tow. This hazardous way of living is OVER!"
After several miles and double that in rest stops Liz finally coaxed The Crimson Queen into spending the night in a barn, sleeping amongst the haystacks the aristocrat was disturbed by a rustling sound. Grumbling with annoyance she turned to see Ruby-Rose scanning through the pile of the letters that Agnes had given her.
"It makes no sense at all!" She mumbled
"What makes no sense Olivia?" Lizzie yawned, her hair tawny and riddled with strings of straw.
"The last of these letters; at the beginning they have a Newark address and now I'm seeing a place called…Cape May, it's vexes me so much!" The Crimson Queen said with gritted teeth.
"Date…?"
"March 9th 1712, a month before my parents drowned at sea – there's even a record of my birth somewhere in these" Olivia guffawed with amusement, Liz was about to shuffle over next to her friend when the pirate creased up in pain. A colour of deep burgundy began to stain her trousers.
"I don't care what it thinks I'm not the virgin Madonna" Ruby-Rose seethed
"Ruby-Rose what a thing to say--"
"Well I'm afraid and have a right to say what I wish…..my water has broken" The pirate exclaimed with wide, fearful eyes
