A/N: Here it is boys! The Battle! I just want to say a big thank you to everyone who has read and reviewed the story so far! I've received some genuinely lovely feedback that has warmed my heart so thank you for that! I really hope you guys will continue to read and I hope you enjoy this little chapter! Thank you again for your support!

Teague sat in his ornately decorated chair in the Brethren Court chamber; around him the most distinguished pirates sat boredly, twiddling their thumbs, as they waited for Esmeralda to join them to discuss strategy for the upcoming battle with Salazar. For, what felt like, the last hour or so, they had sat in an awkward silence- the Jack-related bitterness still held between both parties, both believing that their opinion on the matter was correct and neither willing to discuss it and risk the fight that would, inevitably, ensue. Now was the time where they needed to pull together, something none of them were very used to, for the greater good of the pirating world.

Salazar was a threat, not just to them individually, but to piracy as a whole; he appeared to take no prisoners in his attacks and many notable pirate captains had fallen to his sword. At least, with the addition of Jack and the Black Pearl in their ranks, none of them would now have to take position as a bait ship and all of them could partake in the glory of vanquishing one of their biggest threats.

The heavy silence in the room was interrupted with the click of a door opening. All heads turned in it's direction expecting to see Dona Esmeralda and- finally- begin their meeting. However, familiar looks of welcome and relief were quickly replaced with confusion as in stepped Jack. On his face was a look of grim determination behind which was a flicker of fear- undetectable to those who didn't know him well but very visible to Teague.

What's he doing? Teague wondered.

Jack took a deep breath but was interrupted by Barbossa,

"Lad, ye may have joined our fleet but this meeting be for pirate lords only- I'm sure yer girlfriend can fill you in once we're done here." He waved his hand in Jack's general direction in a mocking display of dismissal. Several titters of amusement could be heard around the table. Jack's eyes flashed dangerously in anger and then narrowed as he walked over to a globe in the corner of the room. Traditionally the globe was used to identify the pirate lords with each slicing their sword through the ocean they presided over.

Jack drew his sword quick as a flash and stabbed it through the Caribbean sea; "I claim position as Pirate Lord of the Caribbean." He said clearly, a snarl present on his face as he locked eyes with Barbossa.

Teague's eye's bulged in surprise and, seemingly as one, the rest of the Pirate lords shot out of their chairs and turned to Jack, to each other and to Teague; all of them shouting their disapproval for the turn of events. And that's when Teague saw it- glinting on a string over Jack's bandanna- the piece of eight.

Teague stood and looked at Jack with absolute disbelief in his eyes. The brethren court stood silently, eagerly awaiting the dressing down Teague would, hopefully, give to his only son for pulling this stunt. They glanced at Teague with a mixture of hope and evil glee in anticipation, but instead Teague looked around the room at each of the pirate lords before settling his eyes back on Jack. Pride welled in him as he took in the new position of his son- this time not inherited, not disputable because of a bitter family rivalry- this time wholly belonging to him, earned- just like his title as Captain. Jack really was shaping up to be quite the Pirate before he'd even really begun the career and Teague couldn't wait to see him in command in a battle.

"Have a seat Captain Sparrow." Teague said coolly as the other pirate lords faces seemed to turn red. Jack smirked and walked past them to his seat, he could feel their furious gazes on him as their eyes seemed to pierce the back of his head.

"Captain Teague- surely this isn't legal!" Villenuava snapped,

"According to the Code a pirate Lord can pass down their piece of eight onto anyone of their choosing- including those currently under a legal sentence-,"

"IF!" Mistress Ching shouted, "They have a mentor to guide them until they prove themself worthy of the title."

Teague turned his gaze to Jack, assuming he'd taken care of that too, "Well,"

Jack sighed and looked to the door where Esmeralda now stood smiling mischievously, "Satisfied?"

Around the table the mouths of the Pirate Lords opened and closed like goldfish as they struggled to find any kind of rebuttal for this outcome. Esmeralda strolled passed the furious pirate Lords and pulled a chair next to Jack's so that they could begin the meeting of the Brethren Court.

Teague flashed a quick smirk at Jack before turning to the rest of the table; "We are here to discuss tactics for the upcoming Battle against Salazar."

"Aye." Barbossa took over from Teague, "The roles we discussed are this; Mistress Ching will take a flagship position with the rest of us coming in her wings. In order to allow Salazar to take a detour from his scheduled route we will need a few ships to lure the Silent Mary towards the awaiting fleet- that is where the pearl comes in-,"

Jack rolled his eyes, "With all due respect Captain Barbossa- I don't see why MY ship should be used as bait."

"Well, Captain Sparrow, as the most recent member of the Brethren court- new to our discussions, our tactics and our way of doing things I would think it make-,"

"Barbossa," Jack growled- interrupting him "I've known most of this lot since the day I was born, I've grown up around the lot of them, I've sat in on these meetings since I've been old enough to understand them and I've studied the code since I could read- if you think I haven't got a clue how these things work and how these people think ye must have forgotten the man your talking to- by my calculations it's you that makes up the newest member of this ensemble." Jack spat.

Teague once again allowed his eyes to bulge as Barbossa turned an alarming and angry red and turned to him; "Are ye going to let the boy talk to me like that?!"

Jack stood up in between Barbossa and Teague, "You don't need to bitch to my dad about me, Barbossa- I'm more than capable of fighting my own battles, thanks."

Barbossa instantly reached for his sword, "Do not test me B-," Suddenly he was interrupted by a loud bang which seemed to have whistled past Barbossa's head and into the wall behind him.

"Do not draw your sword on another member of the Brethren Court in Shipwreck Cove, Captain Barbossa, or I will have you on trial as a codebreaker next." Teague hissed.

Both men slowly took a seat at the table as the tension began to dissipate.

"What is your suggestion then, Captain Sparrow?" Mistress Ching asked, spitting out Jack's name.

"Well, I am so glad you asked!"

It was safe to say that in the meeting Jack's plan had been shot down faster than a dying parrot and once again he'd been dished out the wonderful opportunity of 'Bait.'- safe to say he wasn't all that excited- He'd spent the rest of the week planning ways in which he could protect the pearl from the onslaught she could receive from the, thus undefeated, Salazar. However, when the pirate Lords arrived on the scene ready to put their plan in place it seemed Salazar had already begun his own battle with other pirate ships. The air was already thick with the smell of gun powder and towers of smoke billowed from ships around the Silent Mary as she mercilessly dealt out death with every shot from her well manned cannons. From the pearl Jack could see men and even some children thrown from the crow's nest, crushed by debris, pulled under the waves by the currant created by their own sinking ships and scarred physically with the brutality of the attack and mentally from exactly the same reason. He saw men fall from their ships and cling to any debris to keep themselves afloat as they gasped for breath while clutching injuries and begging for their lives. The air was filled with the sound of screams as Salazar's crew shot at them like fish in a barrel-never showing mercy or humanity or even remorse. They shot at the men until there was enough blood in the water to attract sharks who managed to finish the job for them and, sickeningly, while watching men mauled by giant beasts, crying out for mercy, drowning in the waters they'd sailed in all their lives- Salazar smiled. In the breeze a Jolly Roger fell into the sea, burning at the sides from the many explosions around it.

This man was a monster- Jack thought angrily. How can a man look at so many people suffering and not show mercy or even remorse? And suddenly Jack wasn't just angry at Salazar because as he looked down the rows of the Pirate Lords ships- supposedly the strongest pirates in the world- he could feel them inwardly retreating, he could hear their thoughts as loud as if they were sat next to him speaking to him- "We need a new plan." But while they whittered on and argued amongst themselves this man- this beast- wrought inhumane levels of violence to any pirate vessel in his way. This man was no better than the rogue pirates the brethren court had sworn to stamp out but which Jack had inevitably had to deal with. While they waited more ships sank, more men lost their lives, wives lost their husbands, sons lost their fathers all because this man didn't see these people as people- he saw them as a problem, he saw their murder as a profit, he saw the deaths and torture of these faceless men as a way to build his own legacy and Jack was certain of this- certain because it was the way Beckett had thought.

He looked down to his right arm where a bandage still covered his now healed brand, suddenly Jack's anger turned on himself- he'd viewed the brand as embarrassing, what they do to Cattle in a market! But not just cattle he realised; slaves, pirates and anyone outside of what they called 'proper society' he almost scoffed at the thought; 'proper', a society that allows this kind of murder and called it 'pest control', a society which made entertainment out of capital punishment, a society which saw people different to them and labelled them as something akin to livestock or an infestation which needed to be stamped out or controlled. 'Proper society' sold people for monetary gain or tortured and killed them if they threatened what was viewed as 'order'. And until recently he had been embarrassed to wear his brand because it showed him as someone outcasted from that society. He felt around his wrist until he could feel the knot of the bandage and deftly untied it with his fingers- let them see him for what he really was- a pirate, someone who was outside of the law and, frankly, if the law allowed these 'proper men' to behave in the way that Salazar did, in the way that Beckett did, Jack was quite happy to be an outlaw. This wasn't a brand anymore it was a badge of honour, a claim, a warning to those men- he would not stand for their way of life any longer- people didn't have to keep dying, living in captivity, dealing with hell and he would be a part of the end of it.

Without really thinking Jack whipped out his compass and watched the needle turn round in circles confused by his rage until it stopped dead pointing at the place, they'd come to battle Salazar,

"The devil's triangle…" He muttered to himself, smirking as his eyes narrowed Watch out Butcher, I'm coming for you.

To his side Jack could see the other pirate Lords waving at him in mass panic as he gave orders to sail towards Salazar. He decided, as he had all these years previously, that simply ignoring them would probably do the trick and he continued to brief his crew on the plan that formed in his mind. Many of them young men and ready for their taste of battle were incredibly excited at the proposal Jack put forward, a few prayed for their lives. However, before the pearl had picked up the wind Jack felt a hand grab his shoulder and turn him around;

"What are you doing!?" Teague shrieked,

Jack rolled his eyes and walked past him up to the quarter deck, "Defeating Salazar what are you doing?" He answered nonchalantly.

"You're going to get yourself killed!" Teague warned,

Jack whipped around to face him; "Isn't that what they wanted anyway?" He spat pointing to the other Pirate Lords. "Besides, I'm sick of waiting-,"

"Sometimes Jackie, we have to wait for the opportu-,"

"THE OPPORTUNE MOMENT IS NOW! We've got him right there, we know where he is and he's probably down on powder after taking out those ships- we either fight him now or we lose more people over weeks, months, maybe even years until we get another moment like this!" Jack's eyes were lit with fire and rage, Teague sighed,

"Do you have a plan?"

"Of course I have a plan who do you-,"

"What is it?"

"What?"

"Tell me the plan!"

"Why?"

"For God's sake Jackie, why do you think? I want to help!"

Jack just looked at Teague in disbelief, he'd been expecting him to drag him back to his ship by the ear and tow the pearl into shipwreck cove in the most embarrassing display of paternal discipline he'd ever experienced. This was unfamiliar territory

"Aren't parents meant to be there to support their kid when they do something impressive?" Teague joked.

Jack couldn't help but smile, "Help those men ready that rope, it needs to be strong and ready." He ordered softly.

Jack wished he could have captured the startled faces of the other pirate lords as he sailed away from their ranks without discussing any options, on what they must have believed was a suicide mission. Shouts of "Sparrow! Come back!" and "What are you doing!" Filled the air as the nervy pirate lords watched him go into battle with the pearl. Their surprise only deepened when Captain Chevelle spotted Teague working on the ship and practically shrieked; "He's kidnapped TEAGUE!"

Jack could barely contain himself, but he had to keep focused on his plan.

As they neared Salazar's ship an eerie quiet filled the air, bodies littered the ocean and Jack made a silent oath to the men who'd lost their lives that he wouldn't let their deaths go unavenged.

"Dad!" He shouted down to Teague, "Take the wheel."

Teague hurried to the quarter deck, "Why? where are you going?"

Jack hurried over to the rigging, "Well, they do say in these situations the only way is up!" He joked before hurrying up the rigging until he reached the crow's nest. As he got his breath back, he cupped his hands to his mouth and shouted in the worst accented Spanish he could muster;

"OY! CAP-I-TAN!"

On the deck of 'The Silent Mary' he saw a figure- presumably Salazar- stop dead in his tracks and look around him trying to find the owner of the voice, Jack continued as Salazar turned and caught sight of him; "LOVELY DAY FOR A SAIL! INNIT!?"

Salazar's stance seemed to harden in annoyance as he eyed this cocky boy, taunting him from the crow's nest.

"NOW YE DID A MIGHTY FINE JOB WITH MY FRIENDS BUT! I TELL YOU THIS NOW- THE BLACK PEARL AINT SO EASY TO FINISH! SO, HERE'S THE DEAL- YE SURRENDER TO ME NOW AND I'LL LET YOU LIVE!"

Jack felt a chill as he imagined Salazar picturing him submissive at his feet as he ran a blade along his neck, still though he persisted.

"THAT'S RIGHT! YOU HEARD ME! I WILL LET YOU LIVE!" Salazar seemed to burn in anger at this assumption. "NO? WELL, FIRST TO THE FINISH IT IS! AND DON'T SAY I DIDN'T WARN YOU!" Jack laughed as he leapt down from the crow's nest, lodging his foot in a rope which led him gently down to the deck and allowed his own Jolly roger to fly from the top of his mast.

"Well, you certainly got his attention." Teague said once Jack had landed. Jack smirked and dashed up to the quarter deck ready to take the helm from Teague. He leant over the side of the Pearl and saw that, as he'd expected, Salazar had changed course and was following them. Jack lazily walked to the wheel and waited for her to catch them up a little- for his plan to work the Silent Mary had to be close.

As soon as she was close enough for Jack's comfort, he gave chase. Shouting for full canvas and demanding the crew find anyway they could to increase the Pearl's already impressive speed. The men followed his orders diligently and the pearl was sailing faster than even Jack could remember- he was right- what a pirate ship she made!

Suddenly off the portside Jack could see a collection of rocks, very close to the opening of the 'Devil's Triangle' he knew that this was as close as he could take it before his own ship suffered the catastrophic damage he'd been hoping to avoid;

"Throw it now!" He shouted down at the row of men who held tightly onto the rope. As the rope left the ship it caught onto a collection of rocks which Jack thanked his lucky stars for. Immediately he snapped into action, turning the wheel harshly to port to allow momentum to build up and then letting her finish the job he'd started. Jack braced himself against the violent lurch of the ship as she churned up water around the rocks and groaned in protest of the harsh way she was being forced to turn.

Jack risked a glance to the Silent Mary and watched as Salazar shouted to attempt the movement Jack had securely pulled off all the while moving deeper into the Triangle which, Jack knew would tear apart his ship. He walked along the side of his ship as Salazar's was pulled into its destruction and practically glowed as Salazar's eyes caught his and his jaw dropped in horror at the realisation of what was about to happen to him and his ship- his pride and joy. All that death, all that destruction- finally was about to end. Jack smirked as he watched the undefeatable Captain Salazar shatter as his powder magazine caught fire and the ship detonated.