Pirates of the Caribbean: The Voyage for the Blue Star
By JessieHeart
*
Chapter Two: Sparrow's Ghost
*
"On deck! We sail for Tortuga immediately!" William shouted to the crew. Men rushed around the deck preparing for launch. Will hastily set the ship towards Tortuga, and in record time, they were off. William stared ahead, his angry face set like stone.
"Dad, do you really expect to find Mum in Tortuga?" Bill asked doubtfully. "Her captors would not just-"
"We have to start somewhere!" Will shouted harshly. He had been like this on one occasion before, when Barbossa had captured Elizabeth in Port Royal. His anger now easily surpassed how he had felt then.
Bill held out his medallion. "Mum always told me that this is where I could find her if I was lost."
William's brow furrowed with doubt. "And what do you suggest we do with that?"
Bill inspected his trinket professionally. "I think it might be a map… Maybe to wherever the kidnappers took her?"
William sighed. "Your mother gave that medallion to you the day you were born. She met those men years before that. There's no way Elizabeth could have known when or where they'd take her..." His voice trailed off, as if he was giving too much away.
Bill's eyes narrowed curiously. "Dad… Why _did_ those men kidnap her? Are they… are they going to kill her?"
William looked away, and didn't speak for a moment. "… Yes."
There was a long pause between them. Will spoke again. "I never told you this… Your mother didn't want you to worry… But the same people who need Elizabeth dead, also want to kill you."
Bill's jaw dropped slightly. "But- But why?"
William looked back at his, his eyes sorrowful. "Because you are her son. You're a Turner, yes, but also the heir of a Swann."
"But why do those two men want us dead?"
"It's not just those two, but seven others as well. Your mother told me the story…" Will took a deep breath and let go of the steering. He then sat on the ship's edge, and Bill could tell he was about to tell a long story. Bill listened sharply. "It starts with your great-grandmother, Elizabeth's father's mother. You follow?"
Bill nodded. William carried on.
"Her name was Alice. Now, as the story has it, she was a beautiful woman and caught the eyes of many men. They all longed for her to be their bride, but she married a man named Gregory Swann. As you can imagine, this caused a lot of discord among her beaux. Unfortunately, the line of suitors consisted of all sorts; peasants, governors… and pirates. One in particular, named Captain Nathaniel Emerson."
Bill moved in closer, he loved these kinds of stories. His father continued.
"Gregory was a wealthy commodore under the king's command, and he went on many voyages. Naturally, Alice went with him and in no time had a son. We know that he would grow up to become Elizabeth's father."
William paused for breath. Bill licked his lips excitedly.
"Now, Alice was not a simple woman. She knew that Emerson would hunt her down, and possibly kill her son and husband. So the next time her ship made buff, she requested to stay at a port where she had a gypsy friend, and that Gregory take their son away on a voyage."
"She stayed at Port Rose." Bill said, catching on.
"Aye. Nathaniel had indeed been following Alice, and found her there. He demanded that she go with him, but she refused. He pointed a pistol at her chest and claimed that if he couldn't have her, no one would. He shot her through the heart. Her blood splattered upon Emerson and eight men of his crew." William paused to let the words sink in. "Now, Alice's death did not go over well with her gypsy friend. The woman put a powerful curse that doomed all nine of those men and their descendants. And the curse would remain until all of the Swann bloodline were dead."
The last word seemed to linger in the silence. Bill's mind was whirling, piecing together all the information he had gathered.
William arose and returned to the steering. "We'll start in Tortuga." He restated to Bill without looking at him. "Emerson's men won't kill Elizabeth… Until they have you."
*
Tortuga turned out to be as productive as Bill expected. No one in the town was sober, and could not begin to tell the whereabouts of Emerson's crew.
"If you don't know where Emerson is, can you tell me if you've ever heard of the Blue Star?" Bill asked a drunken pirate, showing him the medallion.
The pirate laughed in Bill's face and asked if he'd buy him a drink. Bill put the trinket in his pocket and went away.
Bill walked with his shoulders slumped, in a depressed manner. His head was hung so low that he didn't notice a tall, stiff-legged man until they ran straight into each other.
"Sorry 'bout that." Bill muttered.
"No problem." The man answered gruffly, and stalked on his way.
Bill returned to his father's ship. The crew was below deck eating and swapping stories, but Bill was not in the mood to join them, not with Elizabeth still missing. Instead he went into William's stateroom.
"Bill, I have a small lead." Will said without looking up from his map. He was sitting at a desk, tracing a route with a compass. "The infamous Mr. Gibb's had information, as usual. As it turns out, the Nathaniel Emerson and his men have been dead for quite some time. It's their descendants who now carry the curse. The crew was last seen around the Virgin Islands."
Bill nodded, but he did not seem very hopeful. The day had been filled with far too many events and new information for him to handle. He excused himself and headed for bed.
Once in his room, he changed into a nightshirt and reached into his pocket to put the medallion on. Strangely, his pocket was empty.
Bill realized with horror that the man he bumped into must have stolen it from him. He cursed out loud.
"FOOL!" he called himself. "IDIOT! How could you have let that happen?!"
He threw himself down on the bed, and with a mind muddled with self-loathing and regret, he drifted into sleep.
*
Early morning came, and the crew was once again preparing to sail. William was hell-bent on retrieving Elizabeth as soon as possible.
Bill helped the crew, but his heart was not into the work. His medallion was still missing, but he did not tell his father. He was afraid to admit he'd lost his mother's gift.
When it seemed all hope had dwindled, fate smiled on Bill. The very same stiff-legged man passed by on the dock.
"That's him!" Bill shouted, and gave chase. He had to dodge between sailors, but he did not lose sight of the thief.
The man boarded a large but fast-looking ship. Other men were running about, and soon Bill was lost in the crowd. He almost ran into a curly-haired girl carrying a barrel.
"You'll wanna be more careful there, mate!" she said cheerily, red curls bouncing. As she rushed off, Bill sneered to himself.
"Sure, I'll do that," he muttered, "I'll be care- OOF!"
Someone carrying an oar passed by, smacking him n the back of the head. Bill stumbled behind a stack of crates, where he fell and lay unconscious.
*
The next thing Bill was aware of, a firm hand had grabbed his arm and was hoisting him up.
Bill blinked as the world came into focus. He was in the middle of a ring of pirates. Most of them were laughing. He realized the ship had set sail.
"A stowaway!" someone shouted.
"Unintentionally, I assure you," muttered Bill.
"Do you know what we do to stowaways?" another pirate asked, drawing a sword.
Bill brought out his gun. "I don't know. What DO you do to stowaways?"
Guns clicked all around the circle. At least twenty pistols were pointed at him.
"What's all this then?" shouted a stern voice. The circle parted. Bill's breath was caught in his throat.
The famous Captain Jack Sparrow was looking down upon him, eyes narrowed.
"Captain Sparrow…" Bill whispered.
"I have no room for stowaways on my ship," the captain said curtly. Bill brought himself to his full height.
"I am NOT a stowaway! I have no business with the Black Pearl!"
The entire crew laughed cruelly. Bill spotted the red-haired girl. She was looking at him with sympathetic blue eyes. Sparrow walked over to Bill, as if to get a better look at him. Bill realized that the man before him could not have been much older than himself, but Captain Jack Sparrow was as old as his father…
One of Sparrow's eyebrows were raised. "If you were wantin' to board the Black Pearl, you've got the wrong ship, mate. This be Sparrow's Ghost."
Bill was greatly confused, but his need for his medallion was greater than his need for information.
"My only intention for boarding this ship was to retrieve something stolen from me."
More laughs. Sparrow rolled his eyes and a grin appeared. "We ARE pirates, mate. Plunderin' is what we do."
"One of your men stole my medallion!"
"And I'm not inclined to give it back!" Shot the captain. There was a moment of silence. "What be your name, mate?"
"William Turner."
The grin slid off Sparrow's face. He looked Bill hard in the eyes.
"William Turner? The son of Elizabeth Turner?"
"Aye."
"You lie." Sparrow accused. Bill looked back coldly.
"Never."
Sparrow grabbed Bill's arm and pulled him towards the captain's quarters. "Back to work, you scoundrels!" He shouted back to the crew. "I want a word with the stowaway!"
Once inside, Sparrow inspected Bill's face for a long time.
"On pain of death…" he said slowly, " Do you swear to me you are Elizabeth Turner's only son?"
"I swear it." Bill answered seriously.
Sparrow did a very strange thing. He straightened and a brilliant smile lit his face. He pushed Bill's shoulder playfully and said,
"Cheer up, mate! I'm Eli Sparrow. Your brother!"
*
By JessieHeart
*
Chapter Two: Sparrow's Ghost
*
"On deck! We sail for Tortuga immediately!" William shouted to the crew. Men rushed around the deck preparing for launch. Will hastily set the ship towards Tortuga, and in record time, they were off. William stared ahead, his angry face set like stone.
"Dad, do you really expect to find Mum in Tortuga?" Bill asked doubtfully. "Her captors would not just-"
"We have to start somewhere!" Will shouted harshly. He had been like this on one occasion before, when Barbossa had captured Elizabeth in Port Royal. His anger now easily surpassed how he had felt then.
Bill held out his medallion. "Mum always told me that this is where I could find her if I was lost."
William's brow furrowed with doubt. "And what do you suggest we do with that?"
Bill inspected his trinket professionally. "I think it might be a map… Maybe to wherever the kidnappers took her?"
William sighed. "Your mother gave that medallion to you the day you were born. She met those men years before that. There's no way Elizabeth could have known when or where they'd take her..." His voice trailed off, as if he was giving too much away.
Bill's eyes narrowed curiously. "Dad… Why _did_ those men kidnap her? Are they… are they going to kill her?"
William looked away, and didn't speak for a moment. "… Yes."
There was a long pause between them. Will spoke again. "I never told you this… Your mother didn't want you to worry… But the same people who need Elizabeth dead, also want to kill you."
Bill's jaw dropped slightly. "But- But why?"
William looked back at his, his eyes sorrowful. "Because you are her son. You're a Turner, yes, but also the heir of a Swann."
"But why do those two men want us dead?"
"It's not just those two, but seven others as well. Your mother told me the story…" Will took a deep breath and let go of the steering. He then sat on the ship's edge, and Bill could tell he was about to tell a long story. Bill listened sharply. "It starts with your great-grandmother, Elizabeth's father's mother. You follow?"
Bill nodded. William carried on.
"Her name was Alice. Now, as the story has it, she was a beautiful woman and caught the eyes of many men. They all longed for her to be their bride, but she married a man named Gregory Swann. As you can imagine, this caused a lot of discord among her beaux. Unfortunately, the line of suitors consisted of all sorts; peasants, governors… and pirates. One in particular, named Captain Nathaniel Emerson."
Bill moved in closer, he loved these kinds of stories. His father continued.
"Gregory was a wealthy commodore under the king's command, and he went on many voyages. Naturally, Alice went with him and in no time had a son. We know that he would grow up to become Elizabeth's father."
William paused for breath. Bill licked his lips excitedly.
"Now, Alice was not a simple woman. She knew that Emerson would hunt her down, and possibly kill her son and husband. So the next time her ship made buff, she requested to stay at a port where she had a gypsy friend, and that Gregory take their son away on a voyage."
"She stayed at Port Rose." Bill said, catching on.
"Aye. Nathaniel had indeed been following Alice, and found her there. He demanded that she go with him, but she refused. He pointed a pistol at her chest and claimed that if he couldn't have her, no one would. He shot her through the heart. Her blood splattered upon Emerson and eight men of his crew." William paused to let the words sink in. "Now, Alice's death did not go over well with her gypsy friend. The woman put a powerful curse that doomed all nine of those men and their descendants. And the curse would remain until all of the Swann bloodline were dead."
The last word seemed to linger in the silence. Bill's mind was whirling, piecing together all the information he had gathered.
William arose and returned to the steering. "We'll start in Tortuga." He restated to Bill without looking at him. "Emerson's men won't kill Elizabeth… Until they have you."
*
Tortuga turned out to be as productive as Bill expected. No one in the town was sober, and could not begin to tell the whereabouts of Emerson's crew.
"If you don't know where Emerson is, can you tell me if you've ever heard of the Blue Star?" Bill asked a drunken pirate, showing him the medallion.
The pirate laughed in Bill's face and asked if he'd buy him a drink. Bill put the trinket in his pocket and went away.
Bill walked with his shoulders slumped, in a depressed manner. His head was hung so low that he didn't notice a tall, stiff-legged man until they ran straight into each other.
"Sorry 'bout that." Bill muttered.
"No problem." The man answered gruffly, and stalked on his way.
Bill returned to his father's ship. The crew was below deck eating and swapping stories, but Bill was not in the mood to join them, not with Elizabeth still missing. Instead he went into William's stateroom.
"Bill, I have a small lead." Will said without looking up from his map. He was sitting at a desk, tracing a route with a compass. "The infamous Mr. Gibb's had information, as usual. As it turns out, the Nathaniel Emerson and his men have been dead for quite some time. It's their descendants who now carry the curse. The crew was last seen around the Virgin Islands."
Bill nodded, but he did not seem very hopeful. The day had been filled with far too many events and new information for him to handle. He excused himself and headed for bed.
Once in his room, he changed into a nightshirt and reached into his pocket to put the medallion on. Strangely, his pocket was empty.
Bill realized with horror that the man he bumped into must have stolen it from him. He cursed out loud.
"FOOL!" he called himself. "IDIOT! How could you have let that happen?!"
He threw himself down on the bed, and with a mind muddled with self-loathing and regret, he drifted into sleep.
*
Early morning came, and the crew was once again preparing to sail. William was hell-bent on retrieving Elizabeth as soon as possible.
Bill helped the crew, but his heart was not into the work. His medallion was still missing, but he did not tell his father. He was afraid to admit he'd lost his mother's gift.
When it seemed all hope had dwindled, fate smiled on Bill. The very same stiff-legged man passed by on the dock.
"That's him!" Bill shouted, and gave chase. He had to dodge between sailors, but he did not lose sight of the thief.
The man boarded a large but fast-looking ship. Other men were running about, and soon Bill was lost in the crowd. He almost ran into a curly-haired girl carrying a barrel.
"You'll wanna be more careful there, mate!" she said cheerily, red curls bouncing. As she rushed off, Bill sneered to himself.
"Sure, I'll do that," he muttered, "I'll be care- OOF!"
Someone carrying an oar passed by, smacking him n the back of the head. Bill stumbled behind a stack of crates, where he fell and lay unconscious.
*
The next thing Bill was aware of, a firm hand had grabbed his arm and was hoisting him up.
Bill blinked as the world came into focus. He was in the middle of a ring of pirates. Most of them were laughing. He realized the ship had set sail.
"A stowaway!" someone shouted.
"Unintentionally, I assure you," muttered Bill.
"Do you know what we do to stowaways?" another pirate asked, drawing a sword.
Bill brought out his gun. "I don't know. What DO you do to stowaways?"
Guns clicked all around the circle. At least twenty pistols were pointed at him.
"What's all this then?" shouted a stern voice. The circle parted. Bill's breath was caught in his throat.
The famous Captain Jack Sparrow was looking down upon him, eyes narrowed.
"Captain Sparrow…" Bill whispered.
"I have no room for stowaways on my ship," the captain said curtly. Bill brought himself to his full height.
"I am NOT a stowaway! I have no business with the Black Pearl!"
The entire crew laughed cruelly. Bill spotted the red-haired girl. She was looking at him with sympathetic blue eyes. Sparrow walked over to Bill, as if to get a better look at him. Bill realized that the man before him could not have been much older than himself, but Captain Jack Sparrow was as old as his father…
One of Sparrow's eyebrows were raised. "If you were wantin' to board the Black Pearl, you've got the wrong ship, mate. This be Sparrow's Ghost."
Bill was greatly confused, but his need for his medallion was greater than his need for information.
"My only intention for boarding this ship was to retrieve something stolen from me."
More laughs. Sparrow rolled his eyes and a grin appeared. "We ARE pirates, mate. Plunderin' is what we do."
"One of your men stole my medallion!"
"And I'm not inclined to give it back!" Shot the captain. There was a moment of silence. "What be your name, mate?"
"William Turner."
The grin slid off Sparrow's face. He looked Bill hard in the eyes.
"William Turner? The son of Elizabeth Turner?"
"Aye."
"You lie." Sparrow accused. Bill looked back coldly.
"Never."
Sparrow grabbed Bill's arm and pulled him towards the captain's quarters. "Back to work, you scoundrels!" He shouted back to the crew. "I want a word with the stowaway!"
Once inside, Sparrow inspected Bill's face for a long time.
"On pain of death…" he said slowly, " Do you swear to me you are Elizabeth Turner's only son?"
"I swear it." Bill answered seriously.
Sparrow did a very strange thing. He straightened and a brilliant smile lit his face. He pushed Bill's shoulder playfully and said,
"Cheer up, mate! I'm Eli Sparrow. Your brother!"
*
