"It is better to choose the lesser among two evils." - James Norrington
Chapter 28 - The Pirate's Side
"We're here! We're finally here!" Carrie shouted at the top of her lungs as she made her way down from the crow's nest as quickly as she could. Elizabeth and Norrington walked towards Carrie and looked beyond the sea at the small form of an island that was growing larger as they moved further ahead. Elizabeth couldn't help but feel homesick and worried for her father as she neared her homeland. Norrington was just as agitated about being back as the young blond haired woman was. Carrie turned her head to Jack and saw him still holding the helm.
"Raise the sails! We're going to bring her in to our little hiding place. Then we'll head to the land and get back at that other pirate ship." He shouted. Everyone working on the main deck raised their fists in the air with vigor and energy.
"AYE AYE CAPTAIN!" He saw his first mate, Carrie, Elizabeth and Norrington headed up the stairs and passed the helm to Cotton then met up with the group halfway down the stairs.
"Gibbs, I leave you, Cotton, and two others in charge of the Pearl while I take the rest with me ashore. I don't know what that woman has planned for us and I don't know how long this fight is going to take so I want you to be careful and give us a signal if something comes up. Tell the crew to prepare all of the rowboats we have once we've reached the cave and to prepare themselves for battle." Jack said. Gibbs nodded in silence and walked away to do as Jack ordered while the rest of the group remained. Jack looked at each of them and frowned slightly. "I suppose you're all going to ask me to take you with me to town even though you're all wanted for collaborating with a pirate."
"Please Jack." Elizabeth begged. "I'm worried about my father. I want to see him and let him know that I'm all right."
"Do you think I'm going to stand here and do nothing while you go into danger to save Vanessa?" Carrie asked rhetorically. "I might not be a good fighter, but I have enough skills to defend myself from anyone who comes at me. You yourself made sure that I would be capable of that. Let me go with you!"
"I'll make sure that both Miss Swann and Miss Lockheart will not be harmed while we're in town." Norrington added. "Although it pains me to work together with you Sparrow, I still have enough sense in me to know whose side I should be in at the moment." Jack looked at each one of them slowly and consideringly before heaving a heavy sigh of resignment.
"Fine. You can all come along." Elizabeth and Carrie looked at each other and smiled in relief. Jack on the other hand pointed a warning finger at Norrington. "Mark my words Norrington. Betray us and I'll personally kill you myself." He said. Norrington gave Jack a sardonic smile.
"As you wish." Jack stared at the former Commodore for a long moment before nodding to himself and walking towards the bow, looking ahead at the island as they made their way to the small hidden cave located right next Port Royal. Carrie took the sword she had hung on her belt and unsheathed it to see the sharp blade glint against the sunlight. She saw herself in the reflection, and imagined a smiling Marine staring at her. With a soft click, she sheathed it back and gripped it tightly in her hands. While Elizabeth was fixing her own weapon attached to her belt, she saw what Carrie did and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.
"Don't worry, I'm sure everything will turn out all right in the end."
"I hope so." Carrie muttered with less enthusiasm as Elizabeth had expected. Norrington felt uncomfortable being in the middle of their intense moment and excused himself silently, walking ahead to stand beside Jack Sparrow. Jack turned his head to face the other man in consideration then reverted his attention ahead of him. Neither of them said a word at first, until Norrington opened his mouth.
"Just so you know Sparrow, I'm only doing this for the safety of the two ladies on this ship. It has nothing whatsoever to do with helping you or the other pirate in your problem."
"Doesn't matter how many times you deny it. Helping Lizzie and Carrie means helping me and Marine. You should stop trying to deny the fact that you also care about me and Marine and that you want to help us out in our little predicament. It's okay. I'll be very flattered by it and I might even consider giving you a permanent spot in my crew of able-bodied seamen. We could use a pansy like you for entertainment after all." Jack said with a teasing grin. Norrington gritted his teeth and clenched his hands into fists, fighting hard not to attack Jack. But before he could say or do anything, Jack went on. "Take care of Elizabeth and Carrie. Make sure that they are not to be harmed no matter what happens." He said. Norrington narrowed his eyes at Jack.
"Why are you saying this all of a sudden? I do not care whether I have to listen to you as the captain of this ship or not, I don't need you to tell me what I must do as a gentleman and as a part of the Royal Navy." Jack gave the former Commodore a smile that irritated him before walking away.
"Just wanted to make sure that you will follow my orders mate. Now go on and do your share of the work. You are still part prisoner and part of my crew whether you like it or not." Norrington had no time to reply or get back at what Jack said as he watched him leave. In the end he gave a soft and weary sigh and shook his head from side to side. Sometimes he wondered how he ever came to, as much as he hated to admit it, admire the pirate.
The ship arrived at its stop within minutes with the wind still blowing them towards their destination. Jack ordered for the anchor to be released and walked towards the rowboats as the other pirates began preparing them for the trip ashore. He stood before the group with his hands to his back and his chest out like a marine soldier would have done in preparation for battle.
"Men! I want you all to be on your best behavior while we're ashore. We're not here to lounge about and enjoy ourselves. We're here to get back one of our crewmembers, Marine for those of you who don't know, from her evil clone. And besides, we wouldn't want poor little Norry to get upset with us for making a terrible disturbance in his lovely town would we? After all, he still hopes to get back his position as a Commodore and let us not forget the large, poofy white wig that his head surely misses with a passion." This got him a few chuckles and snickers from the crew. Norrington narrowed his eyes at Jack warningly, which was returned by the pirate with an innocent smile. A few seconds later Jack coughed and got back the attention of his men. This time he spoke in a grave and serious voice.
"Enough fun and games. This is a very serious matter we're heading into. If we make one small mistake, Marine's life will be in peril. I want everyone to keep a sharp eye for anything suspicious and to always be on guard no matter what happens. And don't ever forget that little reminder I mentioned when we were still on the Pearl. Is that clear?"
"Aye aye captain!" The crew cheered raucously. Jack smiled, satisfied with his crew's reaction, and clapped his hands before rubbing them together eagerly.
"Well then, everyone coming with me should get into one of the rowboats and follow my lead." He turned his gaze to Elizabeth, Carrie and Norrington while the rest of his men went back to work. "You're all going to go into the same boat as I am. Then once we reach shore we'll temporarily part ways. You three head to Lizzie's house and hide there while we look for any sign of Marine. I'll call for you when we find her." He said. "Any questions? Good." Jack hopped into the rowboat and motioned for them to come in impatiently. The three people looked at each other for a moment before following Jack's actions and sitting down together in the boat. Gibbs and the other three pirates helped bring the boat down gently but as quickly as they could. Once it landed on the surface of the water, Jack gave Norrington the oars and ordered him to row. They were the first to head towards the island with the rest of the crew following not far behind.
Jack took out his looking glass and peered through the small hole in the direction of the town. He was more specifically looking for any sign of Marine's clone or the other pirates he recalled from the uninhabited island he had been on. But after going through every ship that had docked on port, he could find no sign of any of them. He brought down the instrument then turned his gaze to the others with him.
"Well? Did you see any sign of Marine or her clone?" Carrie asked.
"Can't find any clues as to their whereabouts. Worst case is they've already taken Marine's soul from her and left Port Royal. There's also the possibility that we arrived ahead of them; if we're really lucky. I think we should..." Jack paused in mid-sentence as something in his mind nagged at him. Carrie, Elizabeth and Norrington looked at him strangely and expectantly.
"Jack? Is there something wrong? What is it?" Elizabeth asked. Jack ignored her question as he brought up the looking glass once more and peered towards the dock intently. Jack did this for 10 minutes without saying or doing anything at all which irked the other woman a bit.
"Jack!"
"There's something odd about the town..." Jack muttered as he handed the looking glass to Elizabeth. "I can't put my finger on it, but it's giving me a bad feeling." The young woman took it and looked into the glass as well. But after a moment she handed it back to Jack with a confused look on her face.
"I can't find anything wrong about it. In fact, it's quite peaceful and calm." Carrie suddenly took the looking glass from Jack and took a look at the town as well. After a while, she looked at Jack strangely.
"Yeah Jack. There's nothing wrong about it. It's just like any other port, town, island or village anyone would land on." Jack shook his head stubbornly.
"There's just something not right about it...it's there at the edge of my mind but I can't seem to grasp it. It's...it's...too quiet. Too peaceful. Too normal. Too, I don't know. Too...too..."
"Empty." Norrington answered as they neared the dock of Port Royal. "The dock should be brimming with people and activity at this time of the day. But there's barely anyone in sight now." Jack pointed at Norrington with a large smile.
"That's it! It's too empty! Just the word I was thinking of." When Elizabeth and Carrie looked back at the dock, they realized that what Jack and Norrington said were true. There was only a number of people lounging about the docks. There was no one bringing in fish into the market. No men carrying crates or luggages to and from their ships. Not even a Royal Navy could be seen standing at the top of Fort Charles nearby.
"But why is the dock empty at this time of the day?" Elizabeth asked. "Did something bad happen to the town while we were away?" She wondered worriedly. "What about father? What's happened to him?"
"Calm down Elizabeth. We can't jump into conclusions without knowing the reason." Jack said. "But the lack of a Royal Navy does disturb me..." He turned his head to Norrington who was still rowing the boat towards shore. "You're the Commodore. What reason would there be for everyone to disappear or to be out of sight?"
"There are many possibilities for everyone to be missing." Norrington grunted. "But the one that's hovering in my mind presently would be a hanging."
"I wonder who's the poor, unlucky lad that's being hanged." Jack muttered to himself. "Well whoever it is, it's not our problem and should therefore be put away from our minds. The issue we're concerned with now is finding Marine and her clone."
"How are we going to find two people in this large town?" Elizabeth asked.
"I'm going to go ask around together with my men. Someone in this town's bound to have seen them at least once. You three on the other hand are going to go to Governor Swann's mansion and wait for us. I won't hear any contradictions from any of you; especially you." Jack said as he gave a knowing look in Carrie's direction. "Bringing you all along is risky enough. We don't need the Royal Navy to catch sight of you and bring us more trouble." Carrie frowned at Jack but after a second sighed and nodded concededly. Jack gave her a small smile as he patted her shoulder.
"Cheer up lass. I'll find her."
Jack was the very first one to step on the docks of Port Royal, followed by Elizabeth and the others in the same boat he was in. While waiting for the rest of Jack's crew to arrive, they looked around the docks curiously and warily.
"It feels like we've landed in a ghost town." Carrie said as she looked around. She and Elizabeth looked at each other worriedly then held hands as a means of comforting the other. Norrington hovered his hand to the hilt of his sword which was strapped to his belt while his eyes slowly measured the area. Jack was the only person who didn't seem worried or intimidated by the strangeness of the town. He turned around and watched as his men tied their boats to the dock and stood behind him with swords already in hand. It took a few more minutes before the whole crew was out of the rowboats, waiting for Jack's further commands.
"Everyone split up and ask around for any sign of Marine or her clone. Then report to me as soon as you find some valuable information. I should also stress that you use extra caution while doing this. The Royal Navy's really mad at us now and coming back here after our previous visit isn't going to bode well for them."
"How right you are Mr. Sparrow." A voice said out of nowhere. Everyone immediately looked around for the source of the voice while raising their swords in preparation for an attack. They were surprised to find that a large number of men had surrounded them and had their rifles pointed at them. Jack raised his hand in the air as a signal to everyone in his crew to hold any attack and watched a man pass through between two of the armed guards with his hands to his back. Jack's lips twitched into a frown when he recognized the man as the man who had replaced Norrington as Commodore. "Good morning Mr. Sparrow. We've been expecting you." He said. The pirate raised a finger at the man and had only one thing to say.
"That's Captain Jack Sparrow, mate."
Carrie sat on the ground with her arms wrapped around her legs which were tucked against her chest. She was sitting at one of the corners of the cell they had all been placed in an hour ago. She pressed her head to her knee and closed her eyes as she listened to the others speak to each other. Her thoughts were filled with worry for Marine as she wondered what had happened to her best friend and she couldn't think about anything else aside from it. It was only when she felt someone shake her lightly that she snapped out of her reverie and looked up at the others.
"What is it?" The first person she saw, the one who had touched her, was Elizabeth. She looked at Carrie worriedly as she sat down beside her.
"Are you all right? You've been keeping to yourself ever since we arrived here. You haven't said anything to anyone or moved from that spot. I was starting to get worried." She said. Carrie gave her a small smile and nodded in reply.
"Don't worry about me. I'm fine. Just...tired." She looked beyond Elizabeth and watched Jack as he stretched out his arms through the steel bars as far as he could. Norrington kept on sighing and shaking his head in disbelief as he sat among the rest inside the cell. The rest of the crew had been divided into a number of groups and were placed in separate cells. They were currently sitting on the ground, playing simple games and the like as if they weren't being held prisoners. "Jack...what are we going to do?" She asked. "We still have no idea what's happened to Marine and now we're all going to be executed." Jack stopped stretching as he turned his attention to the young woman with a grin on his face.
"Relax love, you're with Captain Jack Sparrow. I'll get us out of here soon."
"Just like the way you escaped the gallows last time you were here?" Norrington asked sarcastically. "That was some fine strategy you thought of by the way."
"Why thank you. I couldn't have done it without your help Norry." Elizabeth interrupted the two of them before they could start their argument.
"That's enough out of the two of you! If you're not going to say anything productive then just sit still and keep quiet." Norrington said nothing as he glared at Jack angrily. The pirate stuck his tongue out at the former Commodore in return. Elizabeth gave a heavy sigh then decided to ignore them and let them be. At least they were being silent.
"Why is this happening now?" Carrie asked to no one in particular. "Why now when we're in a really big rush? It's not fair!"
"I think it's the fact that we were in a 'big rush' that we got caught." Jack replied as he pulled back his arm and leaned against the bars. "This has that clone's name written all over it. It's most likely that she's given word to the Navy that we would be on our way here. That's why they were waiting for us at the docks when we arrived." He pressed a hand to his forehead and shut his eyes tight. "I should have been more careful. I was too eager to save Marine that I never bothered to think of what that other woman had planned for us."
"It's not your fault Jack. We'll figure something out. I'm sure of it."
"Do you mind 'figuring something out' soon? The Royal Navy isn't going to wait for us that long." Norrington muttered, earning a glare from the three other people in the cell with him. At that moment, they all heard the sound of footsteps coming down from above. Jack immediately moved away from the bars and turned around to find three people making their way towards him. Elizabeth widened her eyes as she rushed to the bars and gripped them tightly.
"Father!"
"Elizabeth! I'm so glad that you're all right." Governor Swann said in a soft whisper as he went up to their cell and held his daughter's hand. "I was so worried that something had happened to you. Where is William?" He asked.
"He's in another ship together with our other friends. We were attacked while we were docked on a town so we got separated. But he will be all right." She assured. "What are you doing here father? And why are they standing behind you?" At her question, all eyes turned to the two Royal Navy soldiers who were standing behind Governor Swann a bit stiffly. Norrington raised an eyebrow at the two of them.
"Murtogg? Mullroy? What is the meaning of this? What are you two doing here?"
"Uh...well sir, me and Mullroy here...we're going to help you escape." Murtogg said. "We don't believe that you would willingly become part of his crew. We think that you were just forced to assist them in their piracy...isn't that right sir?" One side of Jack's lips curled in amusement as he watched the two guards look at Norrington with hope. He moved towards Norrington and wrapped an arm around him.
"Me and ol' Norry here are the best of buds! There's no one in the world whom I could think of being a better crewmate than him." Norrington glared at Jack as he jerked his hand away from him. Murtogg and Mullroy on the other hand looked devastated at hearing what Jack said.
"Is this true sir? Have you truly become one of them?" Mullroy asked. Norrington slapped Jack's hand when he was about to put it around him again before looking at the two Royal Navy guards.
"I'd rather stick myself through a spear than become a pirate. But you must learn that sometimes, it is better to choose the lesser among two evils."
"Shouldn't it be the greater among two evils since, you are choosing to side with the Captain Jack Sparrow." The pirate spoke up. "And certainly, no evil is greater than myself!" Governor Swann saw that they were going to fight and bicker with each other again so he took out a ring of keys and inserted one into the keyhole to catch their attentions. With a twist and a turn, the cell was unlocked and the door was opened. Jack was the first one to go out and the first thing he did was stretch his limbs. After that he made his way to where the guards kept all of their weapons and began taking his swords and pistols out. Carrie followed as she stood in front of Jack and held his shoulders, shaking them slightly.
"We have to find Marine and her clone now before it's too late!"
"Easy love, there's no need to be in a rush." He said as he strapped his weapons to his belt. Afterwards he looked at the keys in Governor Swann's hand in consideration then turned his head to the rest of his crew who were still behind bars. "I want all of you to stay here while we go out and look for Marine. They won't do anything to you so you need not fret; well, not until they kill me first that is. Don't worry mates. I'll be back before you know it."
"Back behind bars together with the rest of us." One of the men muttered. Jack heard this and gave the man who had spoken a warning look. Then he looked at the rest of the crew.
"Anyone else who wants to receive their punishments once we make it back to the Pearl?" The one who had spoken widened his eyes and groaned while the rest of the men quickly shook their heads in reply to Jack's question. Once Jack was satisfied, he turned his gaze to Governor Swann and pressed his palms together. "You wouldn't mind if we sought refuge in your mansion do you Governor? Do it for your kind and lovely daughter and for the man who was responsible in making her happy together with the wh- William." Governor Swann looked from Norrington, to Carrie then to his daughter before heaving a small but heavy sigh and nodding his head at Jack hesitantly.
"Very well. Hurry and follow me. There's not much time left before they find out that you've been freed."
Governor Swann rushed about the living room, closing windows and drawing all of the curtains shut. The whole room grew dim, and everyone could barely see anything but dark shadows. As soon as they entered the mansion, Elizabeth's father ordered all of the maids to stay away from the sitting room and to go on with their work as if there was nothing wrong. Only the butler, who had come in bearing a tray with cups of tea for everyone, saw the refugees in hiding. He immediately left the room, filling it up with a slightly awkward silence. Carrie felt embarrassed to speak up about their problem and simply drank her tea in silence. Jack and Norrington didn't drink but looked at the windows as if waiting for someone to barge in and attack them by surprise. Elizabeth and Governor Swann took sips from their cups then looked at each other before facing the rest once more.
"Well then Jack...now that you have us all hiding in my family's mansion, what do you intend to do next?" Elizabeth asked. Jack's attention was brought back and he looked at Elizabeth with a grin.
"Why, Norry and I will go about the streets in search of Marine while you and Carrie stay here and wait for us." Carrie placed her tea on the table with a loud clink then sharply stood up from the couch she was sitting on to glare at Jack.
"And why are Elizabeth and I not coming? We'll have better chances of finding Vanessa if we all search the town." She argued. Elizabeth looked at Jack and nodded in agreement to what Carrie said.
"I must agree with the pirate ladies." Governor Swann spoke up. "It's too dangerous for two women such as yourselves to go about town when the Royal Navy is searching for you." Carrie turned around to face Governor Swann.
"And what do you mean by that? Two women such as ourselves? Do you think Elizabeth and I are the type of petite and timid women who would do nothing but eat, sleep and gossip like the rest of the women during this century? If Vanessa was here, you wouldn't say anything to keep her from going into danger to help out. In fact, you would even ask for her help! Don't give me that look Jack, admit it! You think Elizabeth and I couldn't take care of ourselves so you think that we should stay inside a house and hide like little mice being chased after by a cat. Well I'm not going to stand for it. I'm going out there to save my best friend whether you like it or not." The three men looked at each other then sighed softly all together. Jack held up his hands to Governor Swann and Norrington before they could object more then turned his gaze to Elizabeth and Carrie.
"Do you two promise that you will not cause us more problems? That even if you do fall into some trouble you wouldn't ask us for help, unless we already found Marine by that time and are fully capable of saving your lives of course. And do you promise that you will run and hide somewhere safe when things become too dangerous for the two of you no matter how much you want to stay and help?" Both Elizabeth and Carrie nodded their heads with very determined expressions on their faces.
"Yes!" Jack gave another sigh and raised his hands to the air.
"Then I guess you're all free to come and join us in our search. As long as you keep your promises, I have nothing against your coming."
"What's in your head Sparrow? You can't let the women throw themselves into danger!" Norrington argued. Jack narrowed his eyes at Norrington then used his thumb to point to the two women.
"It's better to let them accompany us so we would know where they are rather than force them to stay here, knowing that they would go off on their own without us knowing anything about it. If you have something against letting them come then discuss it with them, not me." He said. Norrington glanced at the two women, who were giving him dagger glares, and sighed in resignment.
"Fine. They can come with us." Jack grinned then rubbed his hands together.
"Now that that's settled, we move on to our next agenda. Where do we start looking for Marine first."
"We could start at the docks and find out which ship they were using." Carrie suggested. "From there we can get information from the crew on where they are."
"I doubt that they would tell the crew where they were going." Jack replied. "It's more likely that when we get there we'd be given nothing about their whereabouts and we'd only be bringing attention to ourselves by letting them know that we've arrived in Port Royal."
"Then do we each go into different directions to look for her?" Elizabeth asked. Jack shook his head at this.
"Marine is being held together with her clone. There's no telling who else the clone brought along with her. If one of us found them, we'd be in a very big disadvantage." He explained. "No. We have to catch them by surprise by being a step ahead of them."
"Now that I think about it..." Norrington began. Everyone turned their heads in the former Commodore's direction as he went on. "We would probably find the pirate and her clone quicker if we went to the very thing they're after. If my assumption is correct, they would probably still be here looking for it. After all, taking it from Fort Charles won't be easy with only her and a few number of her men with her against thousands of Royal Navy guards. And the place they're targeting is highly secured; not an easy place to infiltrate."
"You know where the Cursed Coin is?" Carrie asked incredulously. Norrington smirked at them as he crossed his arms smugly.
"Why of course. It's most likely in the very place where they keep all of a prisoner's most valuable belongings. In the Commodore's office." Jack couldn't help but grin and jab Norrington's side lightly with his elbow.
"Ahhh so now out comes the true intentions of all the Commodores assigned here. So that's why you're keen on getting your position back. You just want to grab all of a prisoner's valuable and expensive belongings to use them for your own selfish reasons!" Norrington glared at Jack.
"I do not take things that don't belong to me pirate! That's the type of thing that you would do."
"That's enough out of you two!" Elizabeth said, stepping between Jack and Norrington to interrupt their squabble. "If you're going to go on bickering against each other then do it some other time in some other place. We have to hurry and get ahead of Marine and her clone before it's too late." Jack nodded as he stepped back from Norrington.
"Right right, of course. My apologies love. But you need not worry for I have a plan that will surely bring back Marine into safe hands."
"I highly doubt it." Norrington muttered under his breath. Jack glared at Norrington, who glared back at him. Elizabeth covered her face with one hand and gave a long and frustrated sigh.
An hour later, a large squad of Royal Navy guards made their way to the Governor's Mansion. Each one held a rifle in hand as they surrounded the house to make sure no one would escape. The new Commodore stepped up to the door first and rapped it lightly with his knuckles. A few minutes later the butler opened it and moved aside to let him enter. Governor Swann was sitting on one of the chairs in the sitting room, sipping a cup of tea he held in his hand.
"Good morning Governor. I apologize for this sudden intrusion but I must request your permission to search the house." Governor Swann looked surprised as he placed his cup on the table and stood up from the chair.
"Goodness gracious! What is the matter Commodore?"
"The pirates we have captured a few hours ago have escaped prison. We believe that because one of the prisoners was your daughter Miss Elizabeth Swann, it is possible that they could be hiding here in your mansion."
"Oh my. Well if you must then I will allow it. But please tell your guards to avoid breaking anything in the house. There are a lot of previous, valuable items that has been given to me by many of my friends." Governor Swann said.
"Of course sir...may I inquire as to who visited you?" The Commodore asked as he gestured to the other teacups that were scattered about the table. Governor Swann gave it a quick glance before looking back at the other man.
"A few of my friends who have arrived here from England have decided to visit me. They just left a few minutes ago so I haven't asked my butler to clean up." Governor Swann explained. The Commodore nodded as he gave a signal to one of his men. Within minutes the whole house was filled with Royal Navy guards who were searching every nook and cranny for any sign of the pirates. One of those guards walked up to the new Commodore and greeted him with a salute before speaking.
"Sir after searching the whole house we have found no sign of the pirates." The Commodore nodded to him.
"Very well. Tell the others to continue looking for them in town. They cannot run away that far. We shall find them sooner or later." He turned his attention to Governor Swann then. "Once again I apologize for the sudden intrusion. May you have a good day Governor." With a curt nod, the Commodore turned around and began walking towards the door. The rest of the Royal Navy guards followed after, making a very noisy departure. Governor Swann stood where he was and waited for things to settle down and fall silent again before collapsing onto the chair he had sat on earlier and heaving a sigh of relief.
