There Exist Unproven Truths

Journey to find the Origin of the Black Pearl

Author's Note: Thanks to everyone who reviewed and double thank you to the people who answered my questions, last chapter. I'm terrible with names! _;

Act One, Scene Two

'I should be getting home,' the desolate youth counseled, finishing the last of his beer. He had been there well into the night and by that hour; Elizabeth was almost certainly concerned about his well-being. But he couldn't ignore the fact that just thinking about going home made him even more depressed and Will ordered another round, hoping to drown out his melancholy.

How could he tell her that he wanted to leave? Leave this place and find his destiny, out on the vast blue ocean. He had never had this yearning before the ordeal with Jack and experience as a pirate but afterwards, he could not shake it off. The exhilaration, the wonder and thrill! Oh, how he wanted to feel alive like that again! 'But Elizabeth…' the more rational side of his heart piped guilt weighing deeply on his conscience.

Before, he had fought for her, doing all he could and risking his life just to be with her. Now, suddenly he found himself wanting to escape her charge and run back to the sea. He loved her. Her always had, that hadn't changed but the more they were together, and he became further accustomed to her way of life and how she expected them to live, the more he wondered if they would be contented in the future.

As much as he loved her, Will didn't know if he could endure without soon fulfilling his desires and though she was a girl who loved the sea and exploration more than any other lady of England, he knew that she could never fully renounce the way of life she grew up under and devote her existence to becoming a pirate, despite the fact that she fancied them. 'I wonder if this is the sort of life my father would have wanted of me…?' he considered, taking a sip of his subsequent beer.

"A round of drinks for my crew!" a shrewd voice suddenly blasted, throwing Will out of his contemplation. Startled, he lifted his head, only to be shocked and struck dumb, as he watched the very man he had been nostalgically thinking about all these long, wretched weeks! Bounding to his feet, Will quickly scrambled over to the table of boisterous men, eyeing one in particular and after checking to make sure no officials were in the bar, made a beeline towards the man and called, "Jack! Jack Sparrow!"

"Hmm?" the tawny man hummed, jerking his head towards the caller, both hands up in the air, one holding a mug of alcohol. Blinking a few times at the newcomer, Jack step forward to examine his face, stepped back to get a full picture and then stepped up again to exclaim, "Why shiver me timbers! I didn't have to come get you after all." Getting that out, he took an immense swig of his beer and droned, "So discovered the vast rewards of rum have you now? Smart boy, no man is complete, until he has a bottle of liquor by his side…" he stated, followed by a hiccup.

"Jack!" Will snapped and ignoring the drunken state of his perception, dragged him towards a corner of the tavern before whispering, "What are you doing here so openly? If any of the guardsmen appeared, you'd be hung. Again!"

"Hmm…sometimes sacrifices must be made to acquire the finer things in life," Jack reasoned, downing the rest of his drink. With a tipsy salute to one of the scantily clad barmaids, he draped his arm around the other's shoulder and added, "Plus I came here to see you. What have you and your ladylove been up to? Wedding should be on its way I suppose?" Realizing he must've hit a bitter cord, as a gloomy expression crossed Will's face, the pirate muttered, "That bad huh?"

"No, no we're fine," the younger man, defended, a bit too hastily to be believable and mumbled, "I just…just don't know…I don't know what I want anymore." With a huge sigh, he pulled away from Jack's hold and sank into a nearby table, bringing his hands to his head. "I should be happy…I mean I am! I love Elizabeth and being with her makes me happy but…" he trailed off, unsure how to say what he felt.

"But you crave more then a effortless life, tied down to one town, one fate." Jack finished for him, taking a seat opposite to his friend. A thoughtful look crossing his face, the pirate gazed across the room to the table full of his shipmates and added, "Those men of the sea…who have devoted their lives to the ocean and rely wholly on the freedom which comes from her care. Us eternal wanderers…it seems you have been drawn to her mystique as we all have."

Will just moaned at this, covering his face and collapsing onto the table. Knocking his forehead against its wooden surface a few times, he sighed before meeting his friend's stare and asking, "What should I do? Leave for a journey like half my heart wishes or stay with Elizabeth, which the other half requests? I fear that I cannot live without either…"

Before he could answer, leaving Jack with his mouth wide open, about to retort, a short and stubby solider suddenly stormed into the bar, hat bent and twisted in an odd angle screamed, "Someone has set the pier and town on fire! Hurry, we need water and as many hands as we can find to help!"

Leaping to his feet, Will was about to dash out to aid the military with containing the blaze, when he felt Jack jump up from behind him and yelp, "My boat!"

-To be continued…?

-Meroko