My apologies for the delay. It being Christmas and all, I had family things to attend. But here you have it, chapter five. Hurrah.
Disclaimer: I still own nothing but Barrin and his crew. Especially Lumpy. He's my man.
Chapter 5.
On the Pearl
"Jack! We got one o' them navy type ships comin' up fast!" roared Gibbs.
"Damn! Jack, it's the Dauntless!" Will called to his captain, eyes narrowed in anger. "Norrington, no doubt, that low life-"
"No time for personal anger, Will, lad. Make yerself useful. Prepare the cannons! Brace yerselves, we can't outrun 'em with our ship full of holes like she is!" Jack drew his sword, then sheathed it again. Swords were no good at such a distance.
The Dauntless came up fast, alongside the Black Pearl. Norrington was perfectly calm, standing with his hands folded behind his back. "On my call," he ordered.
Jack glanced around at his loyal crew. The irrepressible captain grinned. "Let's show 'em, mates. FIRE!" The cannons exploded with a defeaning boom, like, Jack couldn't help but think, the cork in a bottle of rum. He grinned to himself, then pulled his mind from his reverie.
"Ready the cannons. And now!" The Dauntless retaliated. Soon the battle was full on. After a moment, the crew of the Pearl had set planks, and they hurried over to their enemy's ship. Partly to fight, and party to escape drowning, as their own ship was sinking faster. Jack remained on board, however, his hat in his hand. A captain always went down with his ship.
On the Seastorm
"Well, missie, wot think you of the cap'n?" Lumpy asked Elizabeth as he pushed her into her cell. She refused to speak to the hideous pirate. Clearly, the man was quite insulted, and he aimed a kick, about to shut the door.
Elizabeth lunged. She dragged him into the cell, and swung her fist straight into his nose before bashing his head into the wall. He sagged to the ground, unconcious. Wrinking her nose, Elizabeth thought. There were several pathways now. One, she could stay here... that was not very appealing. Two, she could try and sneak away. Or three... she could steal Lumpy's clothes and blend in. Number three was the best option.
Once she was finished, she decided she had never had a more unpleasant experience in her life. The clothes stank, Lumpy stank, now she stank. Furthermore, she had had to touch Lumpy to exchange the clothes. She was feeling rather dirty at the moment, clad in a muddy shirt, torn breeches, and her hair pinned up under a filthy bandana. Still, she stood and left her cell, locking it behind her with the keys from Lumpy's belt. "I hope he appreciates that dress," she muttered to herself, before hurrying up the stairs.
On the Dauntless
Swords clashed, guns fired, people yelled and screamed. The battle was nearly over, and still Jack stood on his beloved Pearl, watching, seeing his crew as they were being defeated by the hated Norrington.
Oddly enough, it was Norrington, the hated, who saved him from a watery grave. He had sent two men over to take the captain, and he had come without complaint, possibly because of the two guns pressed to his temples.
"Well, the crew of the Pearl, the infamous Pearl, tied up on my deck." Norrington smiled; he never grinned, only smirked aggravatingly. "And Mr. Turner! Once again you are meddling with these pirates?"
"He is a pirate!" called one crew member, and the others cheered their agreement.
"Shut up, you bloody lot!" Norrington roared. "Then he shall hang in the gallows like the rest of you. Not until we have Ms. Swann, of course. Take the prisoners and lock them up," Norrington then ordered, and he grinned to himself. What a clever man he was, he thought, and he turned to watch the Pearl. He watched it until it was lost in the distance, almost lost under the sea.
On the Seastorm
Elizabeth managed to make it to the side of the ship. No one took notice of her, and she took no notice of anyone else. Trying to convince herself that she would get away unnoticed, she jumped as the captain's voice roared out. "All hands on deck! Yer captain wishes to address ye!" The pirates scarmbled to attention, all except Elizabeth, who scrambled to the back of the group.
"Once the Pearl has caught up with us, I want no mercy upon the soul of that disgrace, Jack Sparrow," the captain began. Elizabeth zoned him out completely, slipping back and back further, until she was by the railing. Silent, swift, she slipped over the side into the rowboat, and began to lower herself.
She was a good distance from the ship until she was noticed. Rowing faster, her arms aching, she could hear the scout calling and yelling. Perhaps they wouldn't recognize her. Perhaps they would ignore her. Perhaps everything would go wrong and she would be caught and tortured. Yes, she decided, feeling morbid. That's what would happen.
Ooh, a little bit of a cliffie. And I don't know if it made sense about there being a boat handy, but oh well. R and R.