Chapter 5:
The message spread quickly among the crew. Another ship was approaching them. So far its identity was unknown, but if Jack had to take a wild guess he'd say it was those bloody rumrunners again. The lass had been right. They were hard to get rid of. If you squinted your eyes together and watched really closely you could make out the other ship as a black dot that smudged the azure blue horizon behind them. Though the Pearl had the reputation of being the fastest ship in the Caribbean, they were able to gain on them.
"Either they sail on a strong breeze or the ship is simply lighter than the Pearl", Jack thought and put down the telescope.
"No wonder. After all our cargo deck is almost bursting with gold", he smirked to himself.
Sooner or later there would be a confrontation. The tension on board of the Black Pearl was almost tangible. Talk had died down to a few hushed whispers here and there amongst the crew, which was busy with scurrying around on deck and numerous loudly barked orders from Jack and his first mate Gibbs.
Yet they still came closer. 3 miles, 2 miles, 1 mile. It definitely was those rumrunners. Valentina recognized the flag their ship sailed under. The wind carried over their loud voices, commands screamed in Italian. She gulped nervously, realizing for the first time that within a few minutes there would be a fight and people on both sides would be killed. Maybe somebody she knew or maybe even her. Her hands were shaking. She took in a deep breath, trying to calm herself. If the rest of the crew found out how frightened she was, Valentina would quickly lose their hard earned respect and always be referred to as the 'frightened landlubber pirate wanna be'. She couldn't let that happen, so she got herself together. As she started focusing on her task she slowly became calmer.
"Load the cannons," she heard Jack cry. She looked at him and briefly wondered how he could be so utterly calm, almost cheerful, in the face of battle. A grim smile was playing at his mouth and he licked his lips in anticipation. Maybe this was what happened when you sailed the seas for a few years. You got as cold blooded as a snake in winter. Valentina shook her head, burying all those thoughts in a dark corner of her mind. There was no time for them. After all she had just received some orders which she'd better followed in case she wanted to get out of this alive.
The cannons fired with a roar. The force of the mighty shot let the heavy weapon roll a few inches back and smoke emerged from its opening like from the gaping mouth of a dragon. She could hear the splintering sound of wood and several high pitched screams shortly after the cannon ball crashed into the other ship. Then the Pearl was shaken by what she first thought to be an earthquake. The whole ship rocked back and forth and seemed to groan in pain. Only when the pirate besides her screamed, "We've been hit," she realized what had happened. Her fear was clouding her mind, her hand was resting on the hilt of her sword, which she had been handed a few minutes ago with the comment 'you will need this'. As if she could fight against cannonballs with her blade!
Suddenly Jack didn't seem so calm any more, he was pacing back and forth furiously behind the stir, which was momentarily occupied by Gibbs. Then he stopped and drew his sword, his eyes sparkled dangerously in his rage, "Prepare to board," his loud scream resounded on deck.
Obviously the other captain had had the same idea only seconds ago as the crew of the Pearl was suddenly faced with a hand full of attackers. They emerged from the smoke clouds of the cannon fire threateningly. Then all hell broke loose. Valentina whipped out her sword and put on a grim face. Adrenaline was pumping through her body like a drug. Time suddenly became a paradox. Fast movements slowed down to slow motion as if you were running under water. Her senses were flooded by a thousand different sensation at once, which she only registered as pictures that briefly flashed before her eyes. Out of nowhere a man stormed at her with a battle cry on his lips. Their blades crashed together and she was pushed a few inches back thanks to the heavy impact of his blow.
"Remember what you learned on the streets," she told herself, trying to calm herself while cold sweat ran down her body as she desperately fought for her life. Valentina was able to block every attack, but she simply was no match for her opponent when it came to strength. He was a huge man, towering a few inches over her and his arms were muscular and strong, a fact which also slowed his attacks down considerably. When he just raised his arms to strike the final fatal blow, she trusted her sword quickly into his side. His eyes grew huge while his white shirt tinted red by the blood that spilled from his wound like a river. She drew back her blade with shaking hands and her opponent screamed in pain. Then he slumped forward unconscious. Valentina was standing over him, breathing heavily, her heart racing inside her chest.
Her eyes roamed over the deck. People were fighting everywhere. Here and there she recognized a familiar face. She saw Ana Maria, who was currently engaged in a fierce fight with a dark clothed attacker. The pirate lass was fighting like a banshee hacking, slashing and slicing with her blade, which sung its deadly song as it moved through the air with a metallic hum. The unfortunate man could not withhold her rage for too long and was finally stricken down by one of Ana Maria's angry blows. The two women briefly made eye contact, nodded grimly at each other and then returned to the fight.
Within a few minutes the number of their attackers diminished considerably. The crew of the Pearl was well trained and experienced. They had survived many storms and had each looked death in the eye more than once, so nobody and nothing was able to frighten them anymore. They slowly gained the upper hand and finally the fighting stopped. Cheers could be heard. They had been victorious.
Jack made his way over deck, stepping over bodies that lay slain on the wooden planks unflinchingly. Passing by he clapped some men on the shoulders or wordlessly nodded at them with a dark expression on his face. Today they had lost many good men. Hands that were needed on the ship, friends whose absence would be mourned. A huge gash was visible on his arm, but he didn't seem to care. Blood trickled down his hand that held the heft of his sword in a death grip. His eyes bore into Valentina's and suddenly softened. If she didn't knew any better she'd say he looked relieved to see her.
But then suddenly Valentina heard footsteps approach behind her. She turned around still out of breath from the fight, her eyes huge and full of fear. She let out a high pitched scream as she was seized by the rough hands of three men - apparently they had hid in the smoke clouds, that still engulfed both ships and had waited for the opportune moment. She fought against them with all her might, kicking and screaming murder, but to no avail. They dragged her away. All attempts to block their way came too late. Before the young woman knew what happened to her she found herself on deck of the other ship surrounded by the hostile crew, which ogled her from head to toe with dangerous glares.
"Jack, they are setting sails! They've planned this all along. I think they just came fer the lass," Gibbs heavy steps stomped up to Jack, who was standing at the railing his forehead in a pensive frown.
"Well, at least they didn't lay their filthy hands on me rum stash," he mumbled in a sulky tone, more to himself than anybody else. His thoughts returned to the problem at hand.
"Mr. Gibbs, ya have the helm in me absence. Don't let them get away, they have te pay fer blowing holes in me ship, but try te keep a low profile, will ya?" Jack informed him briefly, grapping a robe and climbing up on the railing.
"What ya mean in yer absence?!! Yer not going over there! The lass's not worth t' trouble," Gibbs exclaimed agitatedly.
Jack only grinned in response. He winked at his friend and off he went, swinging over to the other ship.
"Those bloody women! They do nothing but bring ya trouble and bad luck!" Gibbs swore under his breath.
~
Jack let go off the robe and landed on deck of the other ship. He came to his feet and made a point out of brushing off his clothes and adjusting his ever present hat meticulously. Like a pack of foxhounds the men were closing in on him, their swords drawn and ready to strike. Jack decided to look baffled, but stay calm.
"Now, gents, is that a way to welcome a visitor on board of yer ship? Especially as we've already known each other fer such long time," he motioned at them with his hand, cringing his nose in exaggerated displeasure.
"Well, if that isn't our *friend* the infamous Captain Jack Sparrow. So, we meet again," a man stepped out of the crowd, to be precisely the man he had talked to a few days back at Tortuga.
Jack didn't like the way he said the word friend, it sounded like the other man wanted to do everything but treat him in a friendly way. Such nasty things as torture and murder sprang to his mind at the way he pronounced it.
"Pipin?....No, wait Finfin......No, I've got it!.......I've got it!....Wait!" Jack held out his hand dramatically like a fortune-teller questioning his crystal ball, trying hard to remember the name of his vis-à- vis, "It's Scisci, right?"
"My name is Giorgio," he carefully pronounced every syllable of it, already sounding a bit annoyed. "You should remember the name, you promised to give it to your first born if only we rescued you from this island we found you on. After you drained a quarter of our stash, that is," Giorgio raised his eyebrow sarcastically.
"Which brings us right to the reason for our little.....let's call it dispute," he paced back and forth in front of Jack, while he talked, "You *promised* us that if you got the Pearl back you would give us half of your loot. Half!" Giorgio stopped and slammed his fist into the palm of his hand.
"That's right! Half!" the crew echoed and some of them the stepped closer threateningly.
"You know we've got something of yours and I suppose you want to have it back," Giorgio took out the dagger that hung from his belt and looked non- challentely at the clean blade that sparkled in the sunlight in a silvery glow.
Jack perfectly got his drift. Wasn't hard at all. It was the always the same old routine: the villain takes the heroes love interest hostage and then prances around with a sharp and pointy dagger to let the other people know how dangerous he his. That's how it worked most of the times, but he wasn't the kind of guy who liked doing things the regular way.
"Did I leave something on the ship when you dropped me off last time?" Jack asked sheepishly, scratching his head pensively.
Giorgio laughed out loud, but it didn't sound humorous at all, "You Englishmen are always so cold blooded when it comes to love! I was referring to your woman."
"Oh, her! It's not about *her*. That ol' strumpet," he waved his hand dismissively.
"Listen, mate, ya know how woman get after a while. It's always", he imitated woman's voice, " 'Jack don't ya do this' or 'Jack, ya'll be the death of me."
"No, actually I came over to talk about something important. Can't have ya attack me beloved Pearl again, ya know? Went through 'ell an' back to get her. How about we settle this in a civilized way? "
"How stupid do you think I am? I won't strike a deal with you ever again. What guarantees do you leave me with? Nothing but your word! That won't be good enough this time around, " he crossed his arms over his chest and his eyes sparkled dangerously as if he was plotting out something extremely unpleasant.
"Unless...," Giorgio rubbed his impeccably shaved chin pensively, his gaze drifting off towards the ocean. This plan surely had potential, but until Jack would be ready to agree to it, he would need some convincing.
"Lock him in the brig !" he called over his shoulder already walking with huge strides towards his quarters where he would carve out the details of his ploy.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: I'm extremely giddy for reviews, so please let me know what you think. Bye, take care!
The message spread quickly among the crew. Another ship was approaching them. So far its identity was unknown, but if Jack had to take a wild guess he'd say it was those bloody rumrunners again. The lass had been right. They were hard to get rid of. If you squinted your eyes together and watched really closely you could make out the other ship as a black dot that smudged the azure blue horizon behind them. Though the Pearl had the reputation of being the fastest ship in the Caribbean, they were able to gain on them.
"Either they sail on a strong breeze or the ship is simply lighter than the Pearl", Jack thought and put down the telescope.
"No wonder. After all our cargo deck is almost bursting with gold", he smirked to himself.
Sooner or later there would be a confrontation. The tension on board of the Black Pearl was almost tangible. Talk had died down to a few hushed whispers here and there amongst the crew, which was busy with scurrying around on deck and numerous loudly barked orders from Jack and his first mate Gibbs.
Yet they still came closer. 3 miles, 2 miles, 1 mile. It definitely was those rumrunners. Valentina recognized the flag their ship sailed under. The wind carried over their loud voices, commands screamed in Italian. She gulped nervously, realizing for the first time that within a few minutes there would be a fight and people on both sides would be killed. Maybe somebody she knew or maybe even her. Her hands were shaking. She took in a deep breath, trying to calm herself. If the rest of the crew found out how frightened she was, Valentina would quickly lose their hard earned respect and always be referred to as the 'frightened landlubber pirate wanna be'. She couldn't let that happen, so she got herself together. As she started focusing on her task she slowly became calmer.
"Load the cannons," she heard Jack cry. She looked at him and briefly wondered how he could be so utterly calm, almost cheerful, in the face of battle. A grim smile was playing at his mouth and he licked his lips in anticipation. Maybe this was what happened when you sailed the seas for a few years. You got as cold blooded as a snake in winter. Valentina shook her head, burying all those thoughts in a dark corner of her mind. There was no time for them. After all she had just received some orders which she'd better followed in case she wanted to get out of this alive.
The cannons fired with a roar. The force of the mighty shot let the heavy weapon roll a few inches back and smoke emerged from its opening like from the gaping mouth of a dragon. She could hear the splintering sound of wood and several high pitched screams shortly after the cannon ball crashed into the other ship. Then the Pearl was shaken by what she first thought to be an earthquake. The whole ship rocked back and forth and seemed to groan in pain. Only when the pirate besides her screamed, "We've been hit," she realized what had happened. Her fear was clouding her mind, her hand was resting on the hilt of her sword, which she had been handed a few minutes ago with the comment 'you will need this'. As if she could fight against cannonballs with her blade!
Suddenly Jack didn't seem so calm any more, he was pacing back and forth furiously behind the stir, which was momentarily occupied by Gibbs. Then he stopped and drew his sword, his eyes sparkled dangerously in his rage, "Prepare to board," his loud scream resounded on deck.
Obviously the other captain had had the same idea only seconds ago as the crew of the Pearl was suddenly faced with a hand full of attackers. They emerged from the smoke clouds of the cannon fire threateningly. Then all hell broke loose. Valentina whipped out her sword and put on a grim face. Adrenaline was pumping through her body like a drug. Time suddenly became a paradox. Fast movements slowed down to slow motion as if you were running under water. Her senses were flooded by a thousand different sensation at once, which she only registered as pictures that briefly flashed before her eyes. Out of nowhere a man stormed at her with a battle cry on his lips. Their blades crashed together and she was pushed a few inches back thanks to the heavy impact of his blow.
"Remember what you learned on the streets," she told herself, trying to calm herself while cold sweat ran down her body as she desperately fought for her life. Valentina was able to block every attack, but she simply was no match for her opponent when it came to strength. He was a huge man, towering a few inches over her and his arms were muscular and strong, a fact which also slowed his attacks down considerably. When he just raised his arms to strike the final fatal blow, she trusted her sword quickly into his side. His eyes grew huge while his white shirt tinted red by the blood that spilled from his wound like a river. She drew back her blade with shaking hands and her opponent screamed in pain. Then he slumped forward unconscious. Valentina was standing over him, breathing heavily, her heart racing inside her chest.
Her eyes roamed over the deck. People were fighting everywhere. Here and there she recognized a familiar face. She saw Ana Maria, who was currently engaged in a fierce fight with a dark clothed attacker. The pirate lass was fighting like a banshee hacking, slashing and slicing with her blade, which sung its deadly song as it moved through the air with a metallic hum. The unfortunate man could not withhold her rage for too long and was finally stricken down by one of Ana Maria's angry blows. The two women briefly made eye contact, nodded grimly at each other and then returned to the fight.
Within a few minutes the number of their attackers diminished considerably. The crew of the Pearl was well trained and experienced. They had survived many storms and had each looked death in the eye more than once, so nobody and nothing was able to frighten them anymore. They slowly gained the upper hand and finally the fighting stopped. Cheers could be heard. They had been victorious.
Jack made his way over deck, stepping over bodies that lay slain on the wooden planks unflinchingly. Passing by he clapped some men on the shoulders or wordlessly nodded at them with a dark expression on his face. Today they had lost many good men. Hands that were needed on the ship, friends whose absence would be mourned. A huge gash was visible on his arm, but he didn't seem to care. Blood trickled down his hand that held the heft of his sword in a death grip. His eyes bore into Valentina's and suddenly softened. If she didn't knew any better she'd say he looked relieved to see her.
But then suddenly Valentina heard footsteps approach behind her. She turned around still out of breath from the fight, her eyes huge and full of fear. She let out a high pitched scream as she was seized by the rough hands of three men - apparently they had hid in the smoke clouds, that still engulfed both ships and had waited for the opportune moment. She fought against them with all her might, kicking and screaming murder, but to no avail. They dragged her away. All attempts to block their way came too late. Before the young woman knew what happened to her she found herself on deck of the other ship surrounded by the hostile crew, which ogled her from head to toe with dangerous glares.
"Jack, they are setting sails! They've planned this all along. I think they just came fer the lass," Gibbs heavy steps stomped up to Jack, who was standing at the railing his forehead in a pensive frown.
"Well, at least they didn't lay their filthy hands on me rum stash," he mumbled in a sulky tone, more to himself than anybody else. His thoughts returned to the problem at hand.
"Mr. Gibbs, ya have the helm in me absence. Don't let them get away, they have te pay fer blowing holes in me ship, but try te keep a low profile, will ya?" Jack informed him briefly, grapping a robe and climbing up on the railing.
"What ya mean in yer absence?!! Yer not going over there! The lass's not worth t' trouble," Gibbs exclaimed agitatedly.
Jack only grinned in response. He winked at his friend and off he went, swinging over to the other ship.
"Those bloody women! They do nothing but bring ya trouble and bad luck!" Gibbs swore under his breath.
~
Jack let go off the robe and landed on deck of the other ship. He came to his feet and made a point out of brushing off his clothes and adjusting his ever present hat meticulously. Like a pack of foxhounds the men were closing in on him, their swords drawn and ready to strike. Jack decided to look baffled, but stay calm.
"Now, gents, is that a way to welcome a visitor on board of yer ship? Especially as we've already known each other fer such long time," he motioned at them with his hand, cringing his nose in exaggerated displeasure.
"Well, if that isn't our *friend* the infamous Captain Jack Sparrow. So, we meet again," a man stepped out of the crowd, to be precisely the man he had talked to a few days back at Tortuga.
Jack didn't like the way he said the word friend, it sounded like the other man wanted to do everything but treat him in a friendly way. Such nasty things as torture and murder sprang to his mind at the way he pronounced it.
"Pipin?....No, wait Finfin......No, I've got it!.......I've got it!....Wait!" Jack held out his hand dramatically like a fortune-teller questioning his crystal ball, trying hard to remember the name of his vis-à- vis, "It's Scisci, right?"
"My name is Giorgio," he carefully pronounced every syllable of it, already sounding a bit annoyed. "You should remember the name, you promised to give it to your first born if only we rescued you from this island we found you on. After you drained a quarter of our stash, that is," Giorgio raised his eyebrow sarcastically.
"Which brings us right to the reason for our little.....let's call it dispute," he paced back and forth in front of Jack, while he talked, "You *promised* us that if you got the Pearl back you would give us half of your loot. Half!" Giorgio stopped and slammed his fist into the palm of his hand.
"That's right! Half!" the crew echoed and some of them the stepped closer threateningly.
"You know we've got something of yours and I suppose you want to have it back," Giorgio took out the dagger that hung from his belt and looked non- challentely at the clean blade that sparkled in the sunlight in a silvery glow.
Jack perfectly got his drift. Wasn't hard at all. It was the always the same old routine: the villain takes the heroes love interest hostage and then prances around with a sharp and pointy dagger to let the other people know how dangerous he his. That's how it worked most of the times, but he wasn't the kind of guy who liked doing things the regular way.
"Did I leave something on the ship when you dropped me off last time?" Jack asked sheepishly, scratching his head pensively.
Giorgio laughed out loud, but it didn't sound humorous at all, "You Englishmen are always so cold blooded when it comes to love! I was referring to your woman."
"Oh, her! It's not about *her*. That ol' strumpet," he waved his hand dismissively.
"Listen, mate, ya know how woman get after a while. It's always", he imitated woman's voice, " 'Jack don't ya do this' or 'Jack, ya'll be the death of me."
"No, actually I came over to talk about something important. Can't have ya attack me beloved Pearl again, ya know? Went through 'ell an' back to get her. How about we settle this in a civilized way? "
"How stupid do you think I am? I won't strike a deal with you ever again. What guarantees do you leave me with? Nothing but your word! That won't be good enough this time around, " he crossed his arms over his chest and his eyes sparkled dangerously as if he was plotting out something extremely unpleasant.
"Unless...," Giorgio rubbed his impeccably shaved chin pensively, his gaze drifting off towards the ocean. This plan surely had potential, but until Jack would be ready to agree to it, he would need some convincing.
"Lock him in the brig !" he called over his shoulder already walking with huge strides towards his quarters where he would carve out the details of his ploy.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: I'm extremely giddy for reviews, so please let me know what you think. Bye, take care!