Things Fall Apart
04 stargazing and charles vane
Disclaimer: .... You know the drill. I don't own Charles Vane, Jack Rackham, Anne Bonny, Mary Read, Bartholomew Roberts, Woodes Rogers or, Ben Hornigold. They are all real people, dead, of course, but real, and so they own themselves. Except for Rogers and Hornigold, I hope some kinda terrible torturing demon owns them. Bastards.
Did I mention I hate pirate hunters and privateers?
Author's Note: Sorry its been awhile since my last update, Thanksgiving out of townness and all that is to blame. But, now I'm back, and here's an update. Yay! Can you guys believe its finally just day after tomorrow!? I'm spazzin' out big time. The last chapter was a lot of dialogue, now this one is setting him plot. This is my means of keeping things even. Don't worry, there'll be dialogue here too. Can't live without it. Anyway, as far as the historical figures go, I'm keeping everything more or less accurate, with the exception of the year. Because PotC was set roughly in 1720, and this is two years afterward, some of these characters would have already been executed. But that's all I've changed. I don't mention the year at all here, but I'm just sayin', incase I have a history buff who also knows the movie setting. So basically, the events are the same, but the timelines a bit different. That's it.
morph: Aye, wicked, tricksy, filthy navy ... people!
dha-gal: OMG. You didn't kill Will this time! Hahaha.
talondragonfriend: Jack never listens. – shakes head – Poor Jack.
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The following couple of weeks had been uneventful, to say the least. As stated before, life at sea was not constant adventure, there were sometimes long periods of time without land or contact with another ship, a lot of times extreme boredom took over.
No sooner had the crew returned to the Pearl, did Jack set his sails in the direction of Port Royal. It was risky, and all of them knew it, but in the case of Elizabeth, risk didn't matter. The plan was to hide the ship in an out of sight cove, or cavern, while Jack and Elizabeth went ashore and made their visit.
No one suspected that Commodore Norrington would, not only be expecting, but be prepared for their arrival. And, they certainly didn't expect him to have extra help.
That help came in the form of Woodes Rogers, the governor of the Bahamas. He was, considered by all, a 'hero' and the nemesis of pirates. His intention was to take over the outlaw haven of New Providence and claim it as his capital, and also hand out pardons to any freebooter who would renounce his wicked ways.
The thing about royal pardons, though, was most pirates laughed at them. They were almost like going into a confessional. Once your sins are erased your are free to go and commit more, until such time as you feel the need to be forgiven again. Pirates accepted these royal pardons so that, when they were no longer hunted men, they could sell their plunder legally, and make a profit. Then they'd go pirating again, and the cycle continued.
Until the King of England got tired of being made a fool.
The pardons were no longer good enough, they were means to lure the pirates into areas where the authority could hold them, and hang them. Sure, there were a few who genuinely meant to abandon the sweet trade, and they were spared, but for the most part the brigands met their fate at the end of a rope.
One of these 'reformed pirates' was Ben Hornigold. In his time he had been a brilliant Captain, Blackbeard himself had even served under him, before acquiring the Queen Anne's Revenge, and going out on his own. Whether the reason was money, boredom, or simply an honest change of heart, this man really was an ex-pirate.
So the stage was set, with the help of Rogers, Hornigold, and other figures, Norrington would put a stop once and for all to piracy, in his settlement, and, if all went as planned, the entire Caribbean.
No, wait, scratch that – the whole world.
But, aboard the Black Pearl, none of this mattered. Jack and Elizabeth lay, as had become their custom, in the crow's nest, looking up at the stars. It had started as a means of teaching Elizabeth about navigation, but had turned into something they did as 'quality time'. Hand outstretched, Lizzy was pointing to a cluster of stars.
"—And what do you think that one resembles?"
Jack looked thoughtful for a moment, turning his head to the side as to get a better look. Finally, he shrugged.
"The Pearl attacking a defenseless merchant vessel filled with silver, gold, and rum."
Elizabeth sighed, but inwardly she was smiling.
"You say that about all of them, Jack."
He huffed in disagreement.
"Do not." He searched for a way to prove her wrong, "See?" He pointed, "That one there looks like old roger and that one, "He moved his hand again, "—that one looks like a bottle of rum."
It seemed, after a second, that he had noticed another 'constellation', when a devilish grin appeared on his face.
"See that one, luv? I'd tell you what that one is, but I'm just not sure it's for a lady's ears-" She shot him a look that said she most certainly was not a 'lady', "All right, alright, but instead of tellin' you, it might be better if I showed-"
She cut him off by gasping and clutching her chest in mock horror. The action had suprised him so that he jumped, which only added to the humor of the moment.
"Mr. Sparrow!" She squawked in the same way she'd done on the island two years before, "Are you trying to seduce me?"
Jack threw his hands up, his tone was that of someone who'd been insulted.
"I have to try now!?"
She let out a girlish giggle, and shrugged, loving the indignant look on his face.
To take care of that problem, Jack rolled over, in one swift movement, so that she was pinned beneath him, his face was hovering inches from hers. The way his hair fell acted as a curtain that closed out all the world, until all she saw was him.
"How's that for tryin'?" He whispered, "Am I doin' a good job?"
She didn't attempt to free herself, only nodded, and he moved into kiss her.
"Cap'n!"
Gibbs' voice bellowing from the deck below broke the magic of the moment, before Jack's lips met Elizabeth's. He froze, the annoyed look returning to his face as he sat up.
"This bloody well better be good." He muttered, and Elizabeth sighed too.
The top of his head appeared from his hiding place, so that he was visible to his first mate, and he yelled back.
"What!?"
The seemingly tiny figure of the man speaking to him, spoke again.
"There's a boat approachin', sir! Comin' round the port quarter!"
Okay, okay, so that was something that the Captain of a ship should care enough to check out. Reluctantly Jack rose his feet and began climbing down the ladder, onto the main deck. As soon as his feet hit the wood he called for his spyglass, and, looking to his left, attempted to identity the boat.
It wasn't a ship, wasn't even a sloop. It was no bigger than a fishing boat. The passengers, who he was unable to make out in the dark, were few: no more than ten. One of the men aboard the tiny vessel was waving something, upon closer investigation, Jack made out a small white flag.
Even if it was a small boat, that was no threat, and no great prize, it was decided to stop and find out who the passengers were anyway. Perhaps they had something of value with them. It seemed strange that a boat of that size would be in the open sea, approaching a pirate ship, instead of praying for their life and going the other way.
"Let go the anchor!" Jack bellowed.
"Aye, aye, Captain!" The crew replied.
Elizabeth, who had by this time also climbed down, appeared next to Jack.
"What's going on?"
He shrugged, "Not quite sure, yet, luv." Nodding in the direction of the boat, and the white flag, Elizabeth seemed to understand, and didn't ask anymore questions.
It was only realized, by the time the 'crew' of the boat had been hauled aboard, just who they were in the company of.
"Good Lord," Jack's eyes widened, "Charles Vane?"
A brother pirate, Captain, and friend. Jack had shared drinks with this man on more than one occasion. The man, who was looking rather worn and tired, nodded weakly.
"Jack Sparrow." He said simply. As if he was relived that the ship he'd run across was a friendly one.
Jack held out his hand, which Vane shook firmly. It would have been a hug. But most pirates weren't a hugging bunch of people.
"What in hell happened to you?" Jack said, looking him over, "Where's your ship?"
That seemed to be a sore spot, and the look present on the other man's face was one that Jack knew all too well, before the question as answered, Sparrow was almost certain he knew.
"Mutiny." One word confirmed Jack's suspicions.
"Terribly sorry, mate." Jack's voice was full of real sympathy, "`onest, I am." After considering what had just been said for a moment, he asked, "Who?"
Vane's face was even more pained, as if he didn't want to say.
"Friend of yours, actually." He muttered, "Could even call `im a twin."
Though the rest of the crew looked on confused, a light went on in Jack's head.
"Rackham!?"
"Aye."
Calico Jack Rackham was the quartermaster aboard Charles Vane's ship. He was also a friend of Jack Sparrow. They shared the same swagger, and the same semi flamboyant nature, as well as a wit, sarcastic nature, and luck, that followed the both of them.
So upon finding out that his friend had committed the one act he despised, Jack was more than a bit shocked. Though he did note that instead of marooning the old Captain, Rackham had been kind enough to provide him with a dingy, crew, and supplies. Good man, good pirate, Jack assured himself.
After a moment, Charles spoke again, the dark expression on his face making it clear he regretted what he was about to say.
"—There's more." He said, hesitantly, "Wouldn't have bothered ta bring it up, cept that you've been out to sea so long and might not know .."
Jack cocked his head to the side, peering at the other man, confused.
"Might not know what?"
It was said in a dreadful sort of way. As if it was clear that the answer was going to be a terrible, earth shattering one, but the question still had to be asked. One can't live in oblivion, as tempting as that is.
"Maybe we should speak somewhere else."
Jack nodded wordlessly and began to walk back to his quarters, waiting for Vane to follow. Elizabeth began to follow as well, simply out of habit, but Jack caught her eye and shook his head. She stopped, trying to tell herself that it wasn't personal, and she shouldn't feel hurt.
Once the two men were safely inside, the door was closed, leaving Elizabeth outside. The stood there uncomfortably for a moment, as if embarrassed the turn and go back to the crew. You haven't been rejected, stop acting like a child, she scolded herself.
Filling two tankards full of rum, Jack handed one to his guest and awaited an update from the outside world. What he was about to hear was something that threatened to crush his spirit, faith, and eventually, freedom.