Pirates of the Caribbean
Legend of the Dragon's Claw
By Amos Whirly
Chapter Ten: The Forbidden Harbor
The Pearl rocked lazily in the water as Jack guided her into the small cove on the eastern side of the dark island. Another red moon hung in the sky, dimming the light of the twinkling stars.
"Yes," Yue said quietly as he stood next to Jack. "Yes. That is it. The Forbidden Harbor. That is the Island of the Dragon's Claw."
"Jack," Anamaria suddenly spoke.
Jack turned his eyes to her. She stood on a ledge, a telescope against her right eye.
"What is it?" Jack asked.
"A ship," she replied softly. "One like I've only seen once before."
"At Port Royal?" Will guessed.
"Aye," Anamaria lowered the telescope. "It's the same ship, to be sure."
"Manned?" Jack asked.
"Aye," Anamaria answered. "Full too. If they've sent a party ashore, there aren't very many."
"We should stop here," Yue said. "We are still far enough out that they should not notice us. Especially not in the dark."
"We can see them," Jack pointed out caustically. "Doesn't that entail that they could see us?"
"If they used telescopes," Yue smiled, "which they do not."
"All right," Jack jerked his head at Anamaria, who jumped from the ledge and hurried to the helm. "Will, Yue, and I are going ashore. The rest of you, stay on board and don't come any closer unless something goes awry."
"And what would that mean, Captain?" Anamaria rolled her eyes.
"If they come after you," Jack smirked and jumped off the deck.
Will lowered himself into the small boat and steadied it as Jack and Yue climbed in after him.
"Do you have the sheath, Will?" Yue asked him.
"Yes," Will patted his belt where the sheath was attached. "Are you certain they'll trade Tori for it?"
"Yes," Yue said.
The crew let the lines go, and the boat splashed in the water. Jack grabbed the oars and started rowing quickly.
"But what about you?" he asked between strokes. "Are you willing to let Wang have the sheath and the dagger? That is what started this whole thing, after all."
"Captain Sparrow," Yue turned to him, the
wind catching in his thick black hair, "I sense an inordinate amount of
hostility from you. Is there something
I have done to you that would cause you to dislike me so intensely?"
"Your pal Wang—the son—attacked a
ship I was on and killed the man I considered a father," Jack said darkly. "All
because of that bloody dagger which Jenkins wouldn't even have had if you had
just let what's-his-face take it."
"Captain Sparrow," Yue sighed heavily, "you are a pirate, are you not?"
"Yes."
"Then, you cannot understand."
"Why?" Jack snapped.
"Because, to understand why I could not give the dagger to Shonyu, you would have to understand honor," Yue deadpanned. "And honor is something a pirate can never have."
They rode in silence until the boat ran up on the beach.
The island was dark and covered in dense forests. It seemed totally uninhabited.
The three men dragged their boat high onto the shore and left it among some driftwood. Then, they scurried into the concealing darkness of the shadows.
From the forest, Will peered at the foreign ship in the harbor. Its sails were black and red, obvious even in the dark, but they were designed strangely. The sail on the back of the ship was pleated and acted more like a rudder than a sail. Even from the island, Will could see shimmering gold on the sails.
"Come," Yue suddenly hissed, tapping both Will and Jack on the elbows. "Quickly. This way."
Yue started jogging through the underbrush. Will and Jack were hard pressed to keep up with him.
At last, he stopped.
Before them, a large stone gateway sprouted from the ground. It was painted red and carved in all sorts of strange symbols.
"These symbols look like the same ones that are on the dagger and the sheath," Will pointed out.
"Of course, they are," Yue chuckled. "They are Chinese. Our language."
"You mean—those—scribbles—are words?" Jack sounded dubious.
"Yes," Yue laughed quietly. "Come quickly."
Yue darted through the gateway and stopped at the door beyond it.
"It is open," he whispered, gesturing to the large open lock on the ground. "They must be inside."
Jack, Will, and Yue sneaked through the door and crept down the stone stairway they found beyond it. The stairs seemed to go on forever, downward and downward. Finally, they reached another opening. Yue signaled them to stop, and they peered together through the door.
"Oh my," Jack murmured.
The massive stone room before them was filled from floor to ceiling with gold, silver, and precious jewels. Piles and stacks of it sat in every corner. The room itself seemed to shine golden without the help of the numerous candles around its perimeter.
"There," Will pointed.
"Not good," Jack grimaced as he began to count.
Nearly twenty men, all wearing black, bustled around the room.
Are they gathering the treasure? Will wondered, watching silently. No. What are they doing?
The pirates were banging on all the walls, tearing down tiles, and pushing columns out of the way. They were searching for something.
"What are they doing?" Jack nudged Yue.
"Wang's greed is insatiable," Yue answered. "He is not satisfied with the treasure that is seen. He desires the unseen treasure in the belly of the island."
"Which one is Wang/" Jack asked.
"The one at the center," Yue nodded. "With the red sash and the red headband. That is Shonyu Wang."
The man Yue indicated was only slightly taller than the other men in the room—probably five and a half feet at most. He wore black pants, black sandals, and a black tunic with a red baldric decorated with gold and silver. A red headband crossed his tall brow, and his long black hair, streaked with gray, fell straight to his shoulders. His black eyes were alert, and a jagged scar reached from his jaw to his ear.
Jack fisted his hand around the hilt of his sword—
The ship lurched against the waves. Jack clung to the gnarled boards with his slender fingers, desperately trying to block out the screams of the men around him.
Peering around the large barrel, behind which he cowered, he could see the man wearing black pacing around Captain Jenkins.
The captain had been bound and forced to his knees, and the man with the red headband circled him like a jackal. He carried a long sword, which he twirled as he walked.
Jenkins's old face was set solemnly. Jack could read death in his eyes.
The man in black stopped suddenly, and before Jack realized that the man had moved, he swung his sword.
Jenkins's head fell to the deck.
With a laugh, the swordsman turned to his men and said something unintelligible. His black eyes were filled with victory, and the long, gruesome scar on his face seemed to glow in the moonlight.
"Jack," Will grabbed his friend's arm.
Jack gave a start and looked at him.
"What?" he asked.
"Tori's not here," Will said. "She must still be on the ship. We need to head back."
"You take Yue and go," Jack said, his eyes not leaving Captain Wang.
A shout suddenly interrupted them, and all the men in the cave hurried to a spot on the back wall. After pushing and pulling for a moment, the men knocked down the column in their way, revealing a large stone door with a strange lock.
"The door," Yue whispered. "That is the door to the greatest treasure of all."
Jack was about to speak when he felt something cold and sharp at the back of his neck.
He did not even need to look. He could see the expression of terror on Will's face.
The sword jabbed slightly into his back, and he stood. Yue and Will stood with him, and they turned to face three more men in black, each carrying swords.
One of them said something loudly and shoved Jack, Yue, and Will into the room. Instantly, the room was a buzz of activity, and in a fraction of a second the three men were totally surrounded.
"Brilliant move, this," Jack muttered as the men grabbed his pistol and his sword. "If you mates have any ideas, now's the time."