FanFiction presents...
A Princess and the Hedgehog production...
Black Bart's Ghost
Our story begins in the bowels of a grizzly looking prison ship, slowly gliding along the waters of the ocean. The salty waters splashed on the sides of the wooden belly as gulls flew overhead.
Deep within the bowels of the ship, a trio of men was hidden in the shadows; shackles were tightly bound to their wrists and ankles. Their clothes were torn every which way, making it look like they just got out of the most epic tavern brawl anyone had ever seen.
The disheveled captain looked back and forth at his two crew members and sighed in defeat. "Well lads, this is it, the end of the road."
"Heh, it may be captain but we sure had a great run." One of his shipmates said in a posh sounding accent, resting his shackled hand on the captain's shoulder. "That we did." The captain replied.
"And hey just think, where we're going, we'll have all the grog and porridge we could eat." His other crewman said in excitement. The captain looked to his men and smiled softly.
"That we will, but let's say we don't greet Davy Jones just yet." He said, the shipmates looked at their captain, wondering what ideas were cooking in that head of his.
Glancing down, the captain saw a shard of a broken rum bottle sitting on the ship's wooden floor. Reaching for it, his wrist cuffs clinking with his movement, the captain clutched the glass in his greasy hands.
"Let it said here, we don't move on until we reclaim our loot. Our spirts shall rest in waiting, together." He said, the two crewmates looked at each other and got looks of determination.
"We're with you till the end captain." The posh sounding pirate said. "Yeah, what he said!" The other replied.
"Then let's make an oath on it…" The captain said before slicing the palm of his hand with the bottle shard. He clenched his teeth as the bottle cut his skin and a small stream of blood seeped out.
Doing the same to his two shipmates, the pirates joined hands, an act of brotherhood achieved. "So be it." The captain said. Suddenly the three pirates lunged to the side as their vessel cape to a sudden stop.
The pirates raised their hands to their eyes as a doorway opened up, letting the sunlight in. "It's time." A deep voice said. The pirates nodded, stood up, and stepped out into the light.
"There he is! It's Black Bart Robert's!" A civilian in a large crowd yelled! Almost instantly the pirates were greeted with a massive crowd, along with a mixture of cheers and booing.
Some saw these men as heroes, others as cutthroat villains. But no matter what people thought, the same fate awaited this trio of men.
Sitting at the very end of the crowd, was a hangman's noose with three freshly hung ropes waiting for them.
Black Bart looked down at the ground, and smirked. "What are we waiting for?" He asked. Right afterwards, the trio were slowly led down a gangplank by a small group of military policemen, all the while some rowdy members of the crowd were shouting insults and throwing small rocks and vegetables at the pirates.
"Say boys, what do you say for old time sake we entertain our public with a song?" The captain asked, glancing back at his crew. The two shot their heads up in excitement.
"I can do that!" The goofy sounding pirate said, clapping his hands and rattling his chains. As the crowd continued to jeer at them, the pirates began to sing.
Shiver my timbers, shiver my soul
Yo ho heave ho
There are men whose hearts
Are black as coal
Yo ho heave ho
A ragged looking homeless woman stuck her head through the crowd to get a good look at the pirates. Her eyes widened at the men that stood before her.
And they sailed their ship cross the ocean blue
A bloodthirsty captain and a cutthroat crew
One of the military policemen glanced back at the pirates and felt a chill run up his spine, imaging what crimes the pirates had committed.
It's as dark a tale as was ever told
Of the lust for treasure
And a love of gold
Black Bart didn't show any signs of fear; the brash captain held his brow high and wouldn't let the crowd's banter get to him!
Shiver my timbers, shiver my sides
Yo ho heave ho
There are hungers as strong
As the wind and tides
Yo ho heave ho
Sitting on a rusty looking boat was a grizzled fisherman, who at the moment was busy trying to untangle his fishing net. He glanced over at the commotion and watched as the pirated marched.
And those buccaneers
Drowned their sins in rum
The devil himself
Would have to call them scum
A man who was running an antique stand left his post to get a look at the action, propping himself up on some onlooker's shoulders!
Every man on board
Would have killed his mate
For a bag of guineas or a piece of eight
Black Bart and his crew turned their heads and leaned towards the shop keep, joining in his verse and in the process scaring him!
A piece of eight! (x2)
A-five six seven eight!
At the shopkeeper's stand, some tiki heads that were on display began to sing, but it's not like anybody noticed!
Woona Waka (x2)
Something not right
Many wicked icky things
Gonna happen tonight
Woona Waka (x2)
Sailor men beware!
Nearby, a harpooner was kicking back and sharpening his harpoon to the beat of the song. The blade of his weapon glistened in the hot sun.
When there's money in the ground
There's murder in the air
Murder in the air
"One more time now!" Black Bart called out as he and his crew approached the gallows, a large man wearing a black hood waiting for them.
Shiver my timbers, shiver my bones
Yo ho heave ho
There are secrets that sleep
With old Davy Jones
Yo ho heave ho
The hangman and military policemen watched as the pirates ascended the gallows' stairs. They finally reached the top, the hangman wasted no time in getting the nooses around their necks.
When the mainsail's set
And the anchors weighed
There's no turning back
From any quest that's laid
One of the military policemen turned to his friend as the nooses were being tightened. He leaned towards him and whispered in his ear.
And when greed and villainy
Sailed the sea
You can bet your boots
There'll be treachery
Black Bart looked down at the crowd; a small smirk appeared on his face, defiant even in the face of death.
Shiver my timbers, shiver my sails
Dead men tell no tales!
The floor beneath Black Bart and his crew broke away, the three of them fell at once, and the ropes around their necks tightened instantly.
(Please R&R)