Caribbean Crusades

Chapter 3

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G'day everyone. I'm back with another fabulous chapter of Caribbean Crusades! Everyone cheer and dance around happily…*silence*…no? Alrighty then. Thanks to those who reviewed, I always love reading comments about my stories. Now, without further ado, onto Chapter 3 of Caribbean Crusades…

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I awoke to a clicking sound. Surprisingly, I'd actually fallen asleep, and dreamed of things other than skeletons. I opened my eyes and saw Jack trying to pick the lock with the piece of bone. "Please…" he muttered.

"So this is what the famous Captain Jack Sparrow has resorted to?" I said. "Trying to pick a lock with a bone?"

Jack wasn't given a chance to answer as there was a thunk as the main door opened and footsteps came down the stairs.

Jack left the bone in the lock and quickly lay down, pretending that he was asleep. Like no one would guess what he'd been up to.

I looked out at the stairs to see who was coming. It was only Will.

"Good morning, Sam." He greeted. I nodded my own greetings.

Will turned and looked at Jack. "You, Sparrow" he said.

Jack propped himself up on his elbows "Aye?"

"You are familiar with the ship, the Black Pearl."

"I've 'eard of it"

"Where does it make berth?"

"Where does it make berth?" Jack gave Will an incredulous look. " Have you not heard the stories? Captain Barbossa and his crew of miscreants sailed from the dreaded Isla de Muerta. It's an island that cannot be found except by those who already know where it is." Jack said, all with his typical hand waving.

"The ship's real enough. Therefore its anchorage must be a real place. Where is it?"

Jack looked down and studied his nails. "Why ask me?"

"Because you're a pirate." Will stated.

"And you want to turn pirate yourself, is that it?"

"Never! They took Miss Swann."

I started laughing. "This is as close as he'll come to saying that he likes her." I told Jack.

Jack grinned. "Oh, so it is that you've found a girl. I see. Well, if you're intending to brave all, hasten to her rescue and so win fair lady's heart you'll have to do it alone, mate. I see no profit in it for me."

"Oh, Jack, stop being so stubborn. Will, just get us out." I said, just wanting out of the dingy jail cell. I was itching for an adventure and knowing Will, he'd want to go rescue Elizabeth.

"What's your full name, boy?" Jack asked.

"Will Turner." Will said hesitantly.

"That will be short for William, I imagine. Good, strong name. No doubt, named for your father, aye?"

"Yes."

Hmm. Where was Jack going with this?

"Aha. Well, Mr. Turner, I've changed me mind. If you spring me from this cell, I swear on pain of death, I shall take you to the Black Pearl and your bonny lass. Do we have an accord?" Jack said, sticking his hand through a hole in the bars for Will to shake.

"Agreed." They shook hands.

"Agreed. Now, get us out" Jack said, waving his hands up an upwards motion.

Will twisted open the door with a bench and pulled the door off. It dropped onto the stone floor with a loud clunk.

"Hurry, someone will have heard that."

"Not without my effects" Jack said, grabbing our things off the little bench. He handed my sword to me and we took off down to the beach.

We stopped under the bridge where we could see all the ships in the harbour.

"Right, so which one should we use?" Jack muttered to himself. "Ah, that looks like an ideal one." He said, looking at the Dauntless.

"We're going to steal a ship. That ship?" Will said, glancing at the Dauntless.

"Commandeer." I corrected. Will looked at me strangely. Hey, I know pirate terms. So shoot me.

"Aye, commandeer, a nautical term." Jack said. "One question about your business boy, or there's no use going. This girl, how far are you willing to go to save her?"

"I'd die for her." Will stated gravely.

"Oh good, no worries then."

They started down towards the beach to where the dinghies were left lying upside down in the sun to dry.

Will turned to me. "Sam, I want you to go home. This is no expedition for a lady. You'd be safer at home."

"No way. There is absolutely no way that I'm going home. I'm not skipping out on the adventure of my life! And in case you hadn't noticed, I'm not a lady!"

"Just go, Sam. I don't want to have to worry about you all the time as well as try and find Elizabeth."

"I'm not going home. And I can take care of myself. You should know. You're the one who taught me."

Jack came up and placed a hand on each of our shoulders. "Could we get this over with soon, we'll be havin' company in a minute." He nodded towards a bunch of redcoats trotting down the beach.

I gave Will my never fail puppy-dog eyes.

"Oh, alright. Just stay out of trouble."

Jack clapped his hands together. "Splendid. Now if you would please." He held up one side of the boat and gestured for us to get under.

We crammed in under the boat. I was pushed up against Jack and I had Will's foot uncomfortably close to my head.

The redcoats trotted by and we waited for the footsteps to fade away before we moved.

We untangled ourselves and scuttled down the beach and into the water, creating our very own air bubble with the upside down dinghy.

"This is either madness or brilliance" Will remarked from behind me.

"It's remarkable how often those two traits coincide." Jack replied.

"Especially with you, eh, Jack?" I piped up.

"Oy, none o' that, luv."

We reached the Dauntless and used the rope from the lobster trap that Will had so gracefully stepped in, to help us up the first bit of the Dauntless' back side. Wanting to prove myself to both Will and Jack, I climbed quickly and nimbly, my lighter weight and flexibility coming in handy. I passed both on the way up and sliding quietly over the rain and landing soundlessly on the deck. I stuck my head back over the side and grinned at the two. They reached the deck and we all drew our swords and calmly walked down the stairs.

"Everyone stay calm, we are taking over the ship." Jack said.

The crew looked a little shocked at Jack's statement.

Will came up beside Jack. "Aye, avast!"

The crew laughed.

"This ship cannot be crewed by two men." I stepped forward and cleared my throat. "Sorry…two men and a woman. You'll never make it out of the bay." Gillette said pompously

"Son, I'm Captain Jack Sparrow, savvy?" Jack said, as if it was so impossible for anyone to believe.

We offloaded the Gillette and his cronies into a little dinghy and set them on their way, as we made like we were actually planning to sail off on this big ship.

I could see the Gillette screaming and waving his arms around trying to get Norrington's attention. I laughed, it looked rather funny.

Will turned around to see what I was laughing at. By then the Interceptor was peeling away from the dock. "Here they come." He said.

Jack disappeared into the hold and came back up just as the Interceptor had reached us, by then, the three of us were waiting at the front of the ship, ready to swing over to the Interceptor on Jack's word.

"Search every cabin, every hold, down to the bilges!" I heard Norrington yell.

"Right, go." Jack said and the three of us swung onto the Interceptor. Jack made his way up to the helm and manned the wheel, while Will cut the ropes Norrington's men had used, with his hatchet.

I turned just in time to see a man try and swing back onto the Interceptor, but he was too late and landed in the water with a great splash. Hmm, I wonder if he can swim. I should think it was rather disgraceful for the Royal Navy to have so many soldiers who couldn't swim. Especially for a place called Port Royale. I mean, the answer's in the question. (If you tell me what movie I got that off, I'll give you a cookie.)

I could hear Jack yelling back over to Norrington. "Thank you, Commodore, for getting us ready to make way. We'd have had a hard time of it by ourselves."

I could practically see steam coming out of Norrington's ears. Serves him right, I thought.

We concentrated on the ship and sailed in silence until we were far enough away from Port Royale.

Jack was manning the wheel, making sure we weren't off course, and me, being the monkey I am, was up on the mast, checking the sail ropes, keeping an eye out for flags on the horizon, and paying attention to the conversation going on below me. One up for the multi-tasking female!

I watched Will, who was sharpening his sword. "When I was a lad living in England, my mother raised me by herself. After she died, I came out here, looking for my father." he said.

"Is that so" Jack replied, looking very uninterested while he was checking the ropes.

"My father, Will Turner. And in jail it was only after you learned my name that you agreed to help. Since that's what I wanted, I didn't press the matter. I'm not a simpleton, Jack. You knew my father." Will pressed on.

"I knew 'im. Probably one the few who knew him as William Turner, everyone else just called him Bootstrap or Bootstrap Bill." Jack said

"Bootstrap?" Will said, confused.

"Good man, good pirate. I swear you look just like him." Jack said, enjoying this all too much.

"It's not true. He was a merchant sailor. A good, respectable man who obeyed the law." Will insisted, not believing Jack's words.

"He was a bloody pirate, a scallywag."

"My father was not a pirate." Will said, pulling out his sword.

Here we go again.

"Put it away, son. It's not worth you getting beat again." Jack warned.

"You didn't beat me; you ignored the rules of engagement. In a fair fight, I'd killed you." Will countered.

I swung down from the mast, deciding that I should intervene, should the little confrontation get too hairy. I don't think it'd be too good having the two fighting on the ship, with no one to steer it.

"That's no incentive for me to fight fair, is it?" Jack said, swinging the wheel around.

The yard swung over and Will dropped his sword and grabbed onto the beam just in time before he went swinging out over the water. I ducked as it swung by me, just in time.

"Hey!" I protested.

"Sorry, luv." Jack said, then he turned back to Will. "Now as long as you're just hanging there, pay attention. The only rules that really matter are these: what a man can do and what a man can't do. For instance – you can accept that your father was a pirate and a good man or you can't. But pirate is in your blood, boy, so you'll have to square with that someday. And me, for example, I can let you drown but me and Sam here can't bring this ship into Tortuga all by our onesies, savvy?" Jack explained. He swung the wheel back the other way and yard swung back over the deck. I ducked again as it swooped over my head. Will let go as he got over the deck, and fell onto his back. Jack offered Will his sword back. "So, can you sail under the command of a pirate, or can you not?"

Will took his sword back. "Tortuga?"

Jack grinned. "Tortuga."

Yay, Tortuga. I'd heard a lot about that place. I can look forward to getting hit on by old, ugly sailors who haven't had a lay in years.

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Well, that's the end of another chapter, look out for the next chapter, 'That was for the smell', in the next couple of days.

~Rhi