The pirate gripped the rail of the ship to keep himself upright. His former
crew came close as if to pick him up, but he just stared at them. A group
of men gathered around Jack, waiting to see what the man would do, waiting
to see if he would die. "It's time to go free." Was all he could say. He
knew his time was drawing nearer and nearer, that death was overshadowing
him intently. He looked up at the helm of his ship, his pride and his joy,
the Black Pearl. The crew had already boarded back onto the Dauntless,
ready to see what their honored captain would do.
"I would love to die on my ship, but I would rather die as the man I once was." When he had been wounded, he had had a chance to reflect on his life. "I don't regret the life I lived, I never will, but I once wore a fine red coat, and I once was respected by one and all." The words were becoming increasingly harder for him to say. "And I want to go down to Davey Jones' locker wearing that fine red coat I once had. I don't want to die as Jack Sparrow, scourge of the ocean. I want to die as John Norrington, the good brother who taught his kin everything that I knew." At this statement, everyone turned to look at the Commodore, who appeared very uncomfortable.
"I pass the Pearl on to Ana Maria, and my loot is to my crew. But I give my soul, my body to the ocean." Everyone could see why Jack always commanded so much presence. He had an amazing way with words, and now, even as he was about to die, he still could spin a beautiful speech. He looked out to the ocean, and everyone's eyes followed. "Out there is freedom. The most beautiful thing in the world is the ocean." He was fading away and fast. His knees buckled, and instantly, there were half a dozen people to ease him to the deck. His dark brown eyes locked with a pair of green eyes, eyes the color of the sea before a storm.
"I'm sorry luv." Was all the man could say. His eyes were starting to glaze as he entered into his final stage.
"For what?"
"For not being a better brother." He said quietly. "I was the worst role model in the world. Look at me now, I'm a pirate." The crowd around him tittered slightly. It was just like him to be cracking jokes before he died.
"You were the best brother I had."
"The only brother you had." Those words were punctuated by a harsh gasp from him as he felt the cold starting to travel up from his toes. "You made me wonder what I missed out on, I forgot what honor was. I forgot what it was like to not worry about a mutiny every day. And I missed it. I want to die a respectable death, if nothing else." Both crews were shocked at this blatant admission by the captain. One crew who never knew a side of the famed man outside of his leadership, his love of the ocean, and the other crew who had done nothing but track down the man.
"Jack." A light voice, a female voice cut through the crowd. Ana Maria stepped through the throng to where the man lay, his deathbed being the deck of the ship, where he could die with the sea spray on his face, just as he wished. "Jack, you can't die, you can't leave the Pearl to me, she's your ship."
"Apparently, as much as I'd like to believe otherwise, I can die. And you're the best there is out there. She's all yours luv. I promised you a ship." He smiled weakly, and moaned gently in pain. "Show's over folks, hope you enjoyed it. The main character's died, the third acts over. It's time to go home." The crowd still looked on though, sympathy in all of their eyes. If nothing else, they all had to respect the man for all he'd done.
He finally let out one long, last gasp as he died. Ana Maria looked up from where she had been kneeling at his side, and stared the last surviving Norrington in the eye. "You can bury him in full navy regalia, but he was still our captain." Everyone knew what the bold woman was trying to say. "He's still going to go down as a pirate, at least part of the way." With that, she removed a medal that she was wearing around her neck, a gold doubloon and fastened it around her beloved captain's neck.
Norrington removed the coat he was wearing from his shoulders, and put it on the dead man before him. His brother looked so much like the man he remembered him to be, wearing that coat. He could remember so many days on the beach, remember how the rest of the town would break from their activities to listen to the tales, remember how adept his brother was at everything, from the sword to sailing. And the more he remembered, the harder the death hit him. He felt Gillette approach, and put a comforting hand on his shoulder.
He shrugged it off violently. This was the man that had killed his brother. This was his most trusted friend, this was the man that he valued the most. This was a man that he now hated, but a man that was invaluable. Their eyes locked, and Gillette broke the stare. "I'm sorry." The young lieutenant said quietly, but his commander just glared at him, his anger evident in his eyes. The drummers had gotten their drums that they had brought for this reason alone.
The steady rhythm that they played was soothing to everyone on the ship. A priest came out to say the last rights over the body, and Norrington found it to be harder and harder to keep his composure. He thought of all the things the other man had told him. He thought of all the time that he thought he had been dead. Thinking the man had been dead was bad enough, but now, knowing that for a fact that he was dead nearly killed him. Knowing that he died at his hands, at his fault, drove him to the brink of madness, to the brink of death.
One of the pirates retreated back to his ship, as Norrington ran to his cabin for a moment. Both returned at the same time, the Commodore with the hat that his brother had given him, and the pirate with the flag from the top of the Pearl. Norrington removed the old, worn sword at his hip, the one that he had worn for so long, and replaced the sword that Jack now wore with the sword that the man had given him, along with the hat.
The pirate wrapped the body in the flag, the skull and crossbones covering the dead man's chest. The priest gave a final sign of the cross over the body, as the drummers resumed their playing a steady beat, the same one they had played as the men were being called to the gallows. Norrington looked at Ana Maria and she nodded. The two of them lifted the body up, and as the drummers sped up to a roll, the two of them threw the body overboard, a death befitting both the man that was the Pirate and the Captain.
Both crews retreated back to their posts, but Ana Maria and the Commodore stood at the rail, watching as the last ripples faded away. "He was a good man." She said quietly. She placed a comforting hand on his arm. "He must have been one hell of a brother." Norrington nodded.
"He was always so alive." Tears threatened him again, and when he looked into her eyes, he found them to be glistening as well.
"I guess all good things must come to an end."
"All good men as well." With that, Ana Maria walked back to the ship that was now hers, and James Norrington walked down to his quarters, each lost in somber thoughts about the man that had passed.
"I would love to die on my ship, but I would rather die as the man I once was." When he had been wounded, he had had a chance to reflect on his life. "I don't regret the life I lived, I never will, but I once wore a fine red coat, and I once was respected by one and all." The words were becoming increasingly harder for him to say. "And I want to go down to Davey Jones' locker wearing that fine red coat I once had. I don't want to die as Jack Sparrow, scourge of the ocean. I want to die as John Norrington, the good brother who taught his kin everything that I knew." At this statement, everyone turned to look at the Commodore, who appeared very uncomfortable.
"I pass the Pearl on to Ana Maria, and my loot is to my crew. But I give my soul, my body to the ocean." Everyone could see why Jack always commanded so much presence. He had an amazing way with words, and now, even as he was about to die, he still could spin a beautiful speech. He looked out to the ocean, and everyone's eyes followed. "Out there is freedom. The most beautiful thing in the world is the ocean." He was fading away and fast. His knees buckled, and instantly, there were half a dozen people to ease him to the deck. His dark brown eyes locked with a pair of green eyes, eyes the color of the sea before a storm.
"I'm sorry luv." Was all the man could say. His eyes were starting to glaze as he entered into his final stage.
"For what?"
"For not being a better brother." He said quietly. "I was the worst role model in the world. Look at me now, I'm a pirate." The crowd around him tittered slightly. It was just like him to be cracking jokes before he died.
"You were the best brother I had."
"The only brother you had." Those words were punctuated by a harsh gasp from him as he felt the cold starting to travel up from his toes. "You made me wonder what I missed out on, I forgot what honor was. I forgot what it was like to not worry about a mutiny every day. And I missed it. I want to die a respectable death, if nothing else." Both crews were shocked at this blatant admission by the captain. One crew who never knew a side of the famed man outside of his leadership, his love of the ocean, and the other crew who had done nothing but track down the man.
"Jack." A light voice, a female voice cut through the crowd. Ana Maria stepped through the throng to where the man lay, his deathbed being the deck of the ship, where he could die with the sea spray on his face, just as he wished. "Jack, you can't die, you can't leave the Pearl to me, she's your ship."
"Apparently, as much as I'd like to believe otherwise, I can die. And you're the best there is out there. She's all yours luv. I promised you a ship." He smiled weakly, and moaned gently in pain. "Show's over folks, hope you enjoyed it. The main character's died, the third acts over. It's time to go home." The crowd still looked on though, sympathy in all of their eyes. If nothing else, they all had to respect the man for all he'd done.
He finally let out one long, last gasp as he died. Ana Maria looked up from where she had been kneeling at his side, and stared the last surviving Norrington in the eye. "You can bury him in full navy regalia, but he was still our captain." Everyone knew what the bold woman was trying to say. "He's still going to go down as a pirate, at least part of the way." With that, she removed a medal that she was wearing around her neck, a gold doubloon and fastened it around her beloved captain's neck.
Norrington removed the coat he was wearing from his shoulders, and put it on the dead man before him. His brother looked so much like the man he remembered him to be, wearing that coat. He could remember so many days on the beach, remember how the rest of the town would break from their activities to listen to the tales, remember how adept his brother was at everything, from the sword to sailing. And the more he remembered, the harder the death hit him. He felt Gillette approach, and put a comforting hand on his shoulder.
He shrugged it off violently. This was the man that had killed his brother. This was his most trusted friend, this was the man that he valued the most. This was a man that he now hated, but a man that was invaluable. Their eyes locked, and Gillette broke the stare. "I'm sorry." The young lieutenant said quietly, but his commander just glared at him, his anger evident in his eyes. The drummers had gotten their drums that they had brought for this reason alone.
The steady rhythm that they played was soothing to everyone on the ship. A priest came out to say the last rights over the body, and Norrington found it to be harder and harder to keep his composure. He thought of all the things the other man had told him. He thought of all the time that he thought he had been dead. Thinking the man had been dead was bad enough, but now, knowing that for a fact that he was dead nearly killed him. Knowing that he died at his hands, at his fault, drove him to the brink of madness, to the brink of death.
One of the pirates retreated back to his ship, as Norrington ran to his cabin for a moment. Both returned at the same time, the Commodore with the hat that his brother had given him, and the pirate with the flag from the top of the Pearl. Norrington removed the old, worn sword at his hip, the one that he had worn for so long, and replaced the sword that Jack now wore with the sword that the man had given him, along with the hat.
The pirate wrapped the body in the flag, the skull and crossbones covering the dead man's chest. The priest gave a final sign of the cross over the body, as the drummers resumed their playing a steady beat, the same one they had played as the men were being called to the gallows. Norrington looked at Ana Maria and she nodded. The two of them lifted the body up, and as the drummers sped up to a roll, the two of them threw the body overboard, a death befitting both the man that was the Pirate and the Captain.
Both crews retreated back to their posts, but Ana Maria and the Commodore stood at the rail, watching as the last ripples faded away. "He was a good man." She said quietly. She placed a comforting hand on his arm. "He must have been one hell of a brother." Norrington nodded.
"He was always so alive." Tears threatened him again, and when he looked into her eyes, he found them to be glistening as well.
"I guess all good things must come to an end."
"All good men as well." With that, Ana Maria walked back to the ship that was now hers, and James Norrington walked down to his quarters, each lost in somber thoughts about the man that had passed.