A/N: ***dodges objects thrown at head*** I know, I know! This story hasn't been updated in FOREVER, right? Well, sorry. Really, I am. But you see school's a hassle and I'm writing two more fics on top of this one as well… so I kinda guess this took the backseat. Hehe, sorry. Anyway, I've actually had this chapter done for a long time (I have the story about 95% written) but it was the process of Betaing and then changing it over to the correct format that took a lot of time I didn't want to spend. But I did get it up. I'll try to get the chapters out faster but I can't make any promises. So please review (for those of you stuck around and put up with my tardiness)!
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Chapter Eight- John Silver

                        Jim scowled as he entered the Cutthroat's Curve.  The bar was now filled with cutthroats, thieves and the lesser pirates. It was disgusting, it was pathetic, it was illegal…it was absolutely perfect.
            McGee was tending the bar again.  Jim wondered if McGee even bothered to hire help. Probably not, Jim thought, he's cheap.
            McGee raised his head and noticed Jim.  For a moment he looked like he was going to say something to Jim before he decided against it.  Jim understood why.  In these dives the bartender did not make friends with anyone, and because Jim was dressed in casual attire and not a Spacer uniform, it was obvious he didn't want any attention drawn to himself.  Not yet anyway.
            Jim walked to the side of the bar and sat in one of the stools.  He glanced down at himself and smirked.  His outfit wasn't something the Spacer James Hawkins would've worn, but troublemaker Jim Hawkins would.  The pants were a dark green with pockets galore. The bottom of the pants were tucked into big, black, muddy boots that looked as though they had seen better days.  He wore a black shirt tucked into his pants, and over it he wore a brown leather jacket that had one pocket on each side as well as miniature belt buckles working as buttons. He didn't look anything like a Spacer or ship captain.  He looked like…
            Like a troublemaker, Jim thought.  Like what he had been all those years ago. Before his adventure on the R.L.S. Legacy, before he had met John Silver.
Jim's thoughts were cut off abruptly as a scruffy-looking man swaggered into the chair beside him.  Jim's eyes drifted to the silver lightning symbol that had been sewn into the pocket of the man's jacket.  Jim almost grinned with triumph, but he managed to conceal it.
            The man pounded a fist on the table, caught McGee's attention, and demanded, "Gimme a scotch, McGee, and a Gin and Tonic. The boss is working my ass like nothing before. I need a damn drink or I'll go insane."
            "Right away." McGee said, and poured the man his drink.
            "So I'm not the only one with a hard-ass boss." Jim drawled, making sure his refined voice was covered by a sarcastic edge that would have amused Alyson.
            Don't think about her, Jim commanded himself.
            The man eyed Jim suspiciously. "Yeah, but the pay is good. I be willin' to do the work, but sometimes a man need a break, ya know?"
            Jim nodded and watched with delight as the man guzzled down the scotch and then the G and T. This is going to be easier then I thought, Jim thought.  All I have to do is play my part and this man will intoxicate himself.
            "Well, at least you get paid good. I get shit and I work my ass off." As he said this, Jim signaled to McGee to have the man's glass refilled.
            "I think all bosses have something shoved up their ass." The man said, guzzling down the rest of the scotch. Jim watched as his eyes got glassy and dazed. Jim motioned for another drink.
            So Jim humored the man until he was drunk. He agreed with whatever the man said and ordered  for more drinks. The man guzzled them all down without so much as blinking. Soon, his voice was slurred and his head drooped.
            As the man passed out on the bar table, no one else but Jim took notice.  Jim was pleased that no one in the pub seemed to care about anyone else. It would make it easier to question the man.
            Jim stood from his stool, grabbed the drunken man by the shoulders, and heaved him backwards. The man fell hard against Jim, but he managed to keep them both upright. As he moved towards the back door of the bar, McGee shot Jim a glare.
            "Who be payin' for this!?" He demanded hotly, motioning to the dozens of glasses that littered the bar where Jim and the man had sat.
            "Put it on my tab." Jim rasped, struggling to get himself and the unconscious  man to the door. Any minute now he was going to collapse.
            "Ye don't have any tab!" McGee shouted in anger, but Jim ignored him and kicked the door open. Then he pushed himself and the man out.
            The drunken man fell face first onto the cold, hard ground of the dark alley of the bar. Jim made no move to protect the man from the ground; instead he fingered his gun that was tucked in his belt, hidden by his jacket.
            The man groaned and moved his head around. "Whatzzz goingsss on?" He slurred. "Whezzza' I?"
            Before the man could move again, Jim hauled him against the wall of the bar and put the gun to his chin. The man's buzzed eyes widened and he understood he was in big trouble.
            "Where's your boss John Silver?" Jim demanded harshly, allowing his drawl to disappear. "Tell me or your dead."
            "How you know he be my boss?" The man demanded, jerking his head upward as         Jim pressed the gun harder into his chin.
            "You wear a silver lightning badge on your shoulder." Jim answered. "That's Silver's calling card. Now take me to him or I'll blow your brains out."
            "Bite me.  I ain't tellin' you nothin'," The man growled, the alcohol in his blood making him braver then he normally would have been. Jim pressed the gun tighter to his chin and undid the safety. The man's eyes widened even more when he heard it, and he was sober enough to figure out that Jim meant business.
            "All right then. I guess I'll just do the galaxy a favor and rid it of you." With a gleam in his eyes, Jim squeezed the trigger…
            "No! No!" The man shouted and Jim released the pressure, but didn't remove the gun from the man's chin. "I'll take ya to Silver. Just let me go and I'll show. I don't want to die! Please."
            Because the man looked ready to pee his pants, Jim did. The drunken lackey of Silver fell to his knees and gripped his neck in horror. Jim motioned to him with the gun to get up and start walking.
            The man did so, but he turned to Jim and narrowed his eyes. "Why you want to see Silver so bad? You ain't look like a Spacer, and Silver don't fight with other pirates, so who you be?"
            "I'm Captain James Pleiades Hawkins. And if Silver isn't where you say he is, your life is going to be a living hell. I promise you." Jim said, his voice harsh and vicious.
            The man's eyes widened even more, if that was possible, and he groaned, "Captain Hawkins!? Oh, I'm a dead man.  That boss is gonna have me head!  Damnit!  Why the hell did I go to the pub!?"
            Jim smirked, enjoying this and said, "Get moving.  I can assure you, you'd rather have Silver kill you than me.  I'm not in a good mood and I'm looking to take it out on something.  So get moving or I'll have a new punching bag."
            The man continued to mutter to himself as he led Jim down the winding streets of Zione. Jim started to wonder if the man had any idea where he was going when a poorly put-together wooden shack came into his view. Jim growled and clutched his gun tighter. He hadn't seen Silver into over ten years, and he didn't know how far Silver would be willing to go to keep himself safe.
            "He's up there," The man said unhappily, "We have business with some customers here so Silver is hidden' up there. Can I go?"
            "Beat it," Jim growled and the man scurried away. Jim gave the retreating form a look of disgust before he turned to march up the stairs to the shack.
            As Jim ascended, he found himself thinking of what Silver had been doing over the years. He wasn't a big the-galaxies-most-wanted pirate, but he was said to have started a chain of smuggling companies.  He wondered if Silver had changed much, hardened like he had. He also wondered if Silver knew about Alyson.
            Time to find out, Jim thought grimly, and pushed open the door to the shack.  He stepped in and looked for Silver.  The shack was a one-room house with only a table for furniture, so it was easy to spot the old pirate.
            Silver's back was turned to him and an old lamp lit the table where he sat.  Papers were scattered across the ugly brown table and he seemed to be reading them.  He raised his head slightly when he heard Jim enter.
            "That you, Tommy?  Where in the hell did you go?" At that Silver stood and turned, the gears in his robotic leg clicking.  When he saw Jim standing there aiming a gun at him, his eyes widened, and then humor slid into them and he looked amused.            "Finally come to do it, eh Jim-bow?"

                        "Do what?" Jim demanded, though he knew perfectly well what Silver was talking about. He decided to let Silver believe what he wanted to believe before he demanded the favor.
            Silver looked the same as he had before. He still wore the baggy stripped pants and white shirt. His robotic leg was barely hidden by his pants and his robotic arm was in hand-form. His gold cyber eye scanned Jim and his head was covered by a bandana.
            "Arrest me.  I've been readin' all about yer captures of pirates.  Gotta tell ya I never expected yeh to be so good.  So over the years I been wonderin' when you'd come around and arrest me," Silver explained casually.
            Jim gave him a twisted smirk. "Don't flatter yourself, Silver. You may be a criminal, but you're not what the Academy worries about. No, I'm here to finally ask for the debt you owe me."
            "Debt?" Silver said with amusement in his voice. "I am in yer debt James Hawkins?"
            "Yes, you are. If I hadn't let you go that day on the R.L.S. Legacy, you'd still be in jail looking at another fifty years there. So you've always been in my debt. It's time to repay it." Jim said, trying to keep his voice calm and cool.
            "And what if I tell ye I don't feel like I owe yeh anything? What if I say I'm not held to any debt?" Silver asked.
            "Then I'll arrest you and have you spending the rest of your life rotting in a jail cell." Jim said.
            Silver looked disappointed for a moment, and then he slumped back into his chair. "You've changed a lot haven't ye, Jim-bow?  I remember yeh as a good-natured kid who didn't use people."
            Jim refused to allow those words to sting.  "I haven't changed as much as you think, but yeah, I'm not a kid anymore. I won't be fooled and I get what I want. And what I want is your debt to be repaid."
            Silver shrugged.  "All right then.  Anythin's better then jail.  What do ye want me to do for ya? And keep in mind; I'm not a really bad pirate. I don't go around killin' people, not even for you, Jim-bow."
            "Don't be stupid, Silver, if I wanted someone dead I'd kill them myself. I usually handle things on my own. What I want you to do is help me track down Randolph Nathaniel. I'm aware you two are friends." Jim said, placing the gun back into his pants.
            Silver eyed Jim wearily.  "The boy was like a son to me.  Taught him everythin' he knows, but why do ye want him so bad. Ye've been fuedin' for years. Never tracked me down before to find him. Why now?"
            "It's personal this time." Jim growled, not able to keep the rage and hatred from his voice. "That bastard killed my wife." Even saying made him want to kill something and to weep with despair, but he kept both urges locked down.
            Silver's eyes filled with shock. "Not that professor?"
            "Read about her have you?" Jim said viciously. "Should've been reading the papers lately, Silver, it's all over the news. She's been killed by Nathaniel for something that wasn't her fault. So I'm going to kill him."
            "That's horrible." Silver said, sounding angry.  "We pirates may be criminals, but we have rules.  The most is important is that women and children are not hurt.  They're innocents.  I can't believe Nathaniel would go above those laws."
            It made Jim feel a little better to know that if Alyson had been here with him, she would've said something about how sexist that was.  But it only helped him a little bit, and he had yet to get Silver to agree.
            "I'm goin' to help yeh, Jim-bow.  But not because I owe yeh, but because Nathaniel hasn't upheld the pirate laws.  I take those laws very seriously, yeh see, and I taught Nathaniel to do the same. The fact that Nathaniel hasn't done so means that I haven't taught him proper," Silver explained.
            Jim growled in frustration. "I don't give a damn. Just help me track down Nathaniel and I'll never bother you again."
            Silver shook his head, "Never one for patience, were ye? Well, ye've gotta wait a few hours before we can get tracking. See, I may know Nathaniel better than most pirates, but I have no idea where he's going. We'll have to check the grapevine and find out what's going on with him."
            "You pirates have a gossip group?" Jim said sarcastically.
            Silver shrugged, "We're humans aren't we? All humans have to gossip. It is in our nature to do so. Now, lemme make a few calls and find out who has the information on Nathaniel. Then we start tracking him."

                        Within two hours, Silver had tracked down a crew member of Nathaniel's ship who was currently off duty. Silver's sources told him that this crew member was likely to know of Nathaniel's movements.
            Jim was surprised at how fast Silver worked. He was also surprised at how many people Silver knew. How many sources he had. Since Silver wasn't really a big, bad pirate he had figured that Silver had had little or no connections to the pirate world. But Silver had once again proved Jim wrong.
            Now Jim and Silver stood in the darkened alleyway where Nathaniel's crew member had agreed to meet them…for a fee or course. Silver, to Jim's surprise, had agreed to front the bill the crew member demanded.
            He must actually hold these pirate laws seriously, Jim thought with a twisted smirk.  It was funny that pirates, who worked outside the law, had a set of laws that they didn't dare to break.  He wondered why.
            "Two minutes." Silver mumbled beside him.  "He'll be here in two minutes."
Jim glanced at his watch around his wrist and answered, "Why two more minutes? It's the exact time he said he'd meet us."
            Silver laughed lightly. "Ye've been a Spacer to long, Jim-bow. Ya always come to a meeting like this late. Shows who's in power. If yeh come late, they leave and if ye come early or on time ye'll have to wait for 'em."
            Jim shook his head. "Thank God I went to the Academy and learned the proper etiquette for meetings."  Jim crossed his arms and scowled.
            "Now," Silver said. "Don't look like that.  When yeh want information from pirates, ya have to act like them.  If he knew ya were with me, would he come to me with information on Nathaniel?"
            "Then what did you tell him?" Jim asked.
            "That Nathaniel hired me to smuggle him some weapons and he cheated me out of my money. That's the usual line I use when I want to get the information no one is willing to give out." Silver smirked. "It works."
            Jim glanced at his watch impatiently. "He'd better be here.  I want to get Nathaniel now." He bared his teeth in a snarl, not able to control that burst of anger that surged through him at the very thought Nathaniel.
            Silver nodded, choosing to ignore Jim's snarl, and answered, "He will be. Proper, ah…pirate etiquette...only allows a pirate to be two minutes late. After that, the price for the information goes down."
            As if on cue, a man appeared at the entrance of the alley. He wore a thick leather coat that fell to his ankles. The collar of the coat was high and covered his ears. Heavy boots thudded against the ground as the man moved towards Silver and Jim. In the dim light of the lamps, Jim made out a white shirt and brown breeches. The man, as he neared, stuffed his hands into his pockets, his face grim.
            "You Silver?" He asked in a rough voice. When Silver nodded in answer, the man said, "Do ye have all the money we agreed upon?"
Silver reached down and picked up the suitcase that leaned against his leg.  He threw it to man, who caught it. The man opened the suitcase, looked at the money inside, and then shut it.
            "What do you want to know?" The man asked in monotone.
            Silver put his hand on Jim's shoulder as the Spacer opened his mouth to demand Nathaniel's whereabouts. Then Silver said in equal monotone, "Nathaniel. 'E did some dirty business with me and I want revenge. Can't find 'im, but the grapevine says yeh might know where he is."
            "Yeah, I know where 'e is. That's the reason I'm not goin'. The last thing I want is James Hawkins ridin' my ass for revenge." The man said, allowing a little annoyance to seep into his voice.
            "Oh?" Was all Silver said.
            "Didn't ya hear, Silver? Nathaniel's gone and killed Hawkins's wife, that professor. So far Hawkins hasn't done a thing about it, but no doubt he will. Every one of Nathaniel's crewmembers is as good as dead. Glad I'm not one of them." The man said allowing a smirk to cross his lips.
            "Is-is the professor…dead?" Jim asked, ignoring Silver's warning glance. For a moment hope sputtered into Jim's heart. Maybe Alyson was alive.  After all, Nathaniel hadn't said he'd killed her, maybe this pirate had only been listening to the gossip. He'd just said she'd had a grim fate. Maybe there was a chance he hadn't killed her. Maybe…
"Why do ye want to know?" The man asked, and when Jim just stared, he answered. "If Nathaniel went through with what he planned, and he always does, then yeah, she's dead. He planned to kill her as soon as she got on the ship from what I remember."
If only the man knew how much that news saddened Jim. He could almost feel his heart and hope shatter into a million pieces. Up until now some part of his mind had hoped and prayed Alyson was somehow alive. But now…now how could he deny the truth?  All the evidence pointed to Alyson's death. He couldn't hope anymore. Jim lowered his head and fought back the tears that clogged his throat. Alyson, he thought sadly. I'm so very sorry,          Alyson. I wish I could've saved you.
            I'll make Nathaniel pay, Jim swore to himself and to Alyson. I'll make him pay for what he did to you.
            Silver ignored Jim's sudden silence and said to the man. "Do you know where Nathaniel is going? I want to get my business with him settled as quickly as I can."
            The man nodded, forgetting Jim. "He's goin' to his hideout. Laying low because that Spacer will be on his tail real soon. I wouldn't want to be easy to find with Hawkins on my ass."
            "So he's goin' to his invisible planet?" Silver said. "That's pretty hard to find. Doesn't it move every week or so?"
            "Sure does." The man agreed with a grin.  "But I promised you all the information you needed, so I've got the coordinates right here." From within his trench coat, the man removed a map and threw it to Silver. "That's all you need to know."
            "Thanks." Silver said. "I'll remember you next time you need some smuggling done. I'll give you a discount. Until then…"
            "Until then, Silver. Don't let the Spacers get ya." The man turned, his coat flapping. His boots clicked against the floor as he left the alley.
            Silver grinned and read over the map. Once he was done he turned to Jim and said. "We've got him, Jim-bow. Told you I could get the information." He blinked when he saw Jim's lowered head. "What wrong, Jim?"
            "She's really dead." Jim whispered helplessly.  "Up until now I've always hoped…hoped that somehow she was alive, even though I knew she had to be dead. I just…I just hate the thought of her dying alone." Jim gave a choked sob and fought to keep back his tears.
            Silver watched as Jim fought his emotions and his heart went out to the man. A long time ago, Silver would've tried to soothe Jim, offer words to ease his heart. But he could no longer do that. The person he would've tried to soothe was Jim the Boy; he did not know how to soothe Jim the Man. All he could do was watch. Jim had changed too much.  He had hardened, had become a different person from that young boy who had been suspicious of everyone. He was the man who had grown into his frame and build, and who was suffering greatly. What could he could he say to the boy who had become a man?
            But Silver felt compelled to say something, to let Jim know he knew he was suffering, so in a soft voice he said, "I'm really sorry, Jim."
            Jim raised his head then. His eyes were harsh and bleak. In a rough voice he said, "I'll make Nathaniel pay. I'll make him bleed. He'll wish that he had never met me, and had never heard Alyson's name. I swear it."
            Silver was surprised to find himself intimated by the man standing before him. This wasn't Jim Hawkins, the orphan, the troublemaker; this was James Hawkins, the Spacer, the husband. This was the man every pirate feared, and Silver finally understood why. He had always thought of Jim as that young boy on the Legacy, but now he was seeing who Jim was today. A very powerful, very angry man.
            Good choice, Alyson Christopher, Silver thought before placing a hand on Jim's shoulder. He gave Jim a few minutes to conquer his emotions. In those few minutes he turned his thoughts to Alyson Christopher-Hawkins, the woman that had been Jim's wife. He wondered what she had had to endure because of Nathaniel's almost insane anger when he was angered.
            He had taught Nathaniel the pirate ways when his father had been hauled off to jail. It angered him to know that Nathaniel had disregarded the pirate laws and harmed a woman. He had always held the laws of pirates in high-esteem, and he had thought Nathaniel had too.  It was time for Nathaniel to learn a lesson.
            "You ready, Jim?" Silver finally asked, hoping that the young Spacer had managed to get a firm hold on his raging emotions.
Jim raised his head once more. His eyes were clear, and very angry. "Yeah," He answered. "I'm very ready. Let's go get Nathaniel."
            Silver and Jim turned to leave. As they left, Silver found himself glancing at Jim once more. He'd make one hell of a pirate, Silver thought, but he makes a better Spacer. It made him smile to think that maybe he'd had a hand in turning Jim into the man he was today. It was a fine thought to think that he, John Silver the not-so great pirate, had had a hand in making James Hawkins the formidable Spacer.
            "Ye're going to get him." Silver said with a smirk coming across his lips.
Jim nodded. "You bet I am." He moved quickly ahead of Silver, thinking only of his mission and his hatred for the pirate who had murdered his wife.
            Watch out Nathaniel, Silver thought as he watched Jim walk away.  He's going to get you.

                        Alyson collapsed to the floor, sobbing with helplessness.  Her hands were bleeding from where she had pounded them against the door. She weakly raised her head and stared at the door where her blood-streaks marked her activity.
            Her eyes were then brought down to her hand, where her engagement ring and wedding band rested. She pressed them to her lips, thinking of Jim, wishing he was here, wishing she could escape.
            She had given up hope on being rescued by Jim days ago. She was a professor and had a logical mind. She realized the improbability of Jim finding out about her kidnapping before it was too late. And even if he did find about her capture before she was killed, he wouldn't be able to reach her in time.
            "I'll have to save myself." She told herself.  She already had a plan forming in her head. She'd have to wait until they had arrived at Nathaniel's hideout. Then she'd somehow free herself and then run and find somewhere to hide. Then she would find someway to get back onto the Destroyer and send a SOS.
            It was a work in progress.
            First I'll need a weapon, Alyson thought, and limped over to the empty wardrobe.  She threw open the doors, and looked inside for anything she could use as a weapon.  Nothing.  With a groan of annoyance, Alyson slumped against the inside of the dresser.
"Now what?" she wondered and then her eyes flew to the doors.  "Wait a minute."  She pushed herself off the wardrobe and grabbed the door.  With a cry, she ripped the door off its hinges.
            Praying no one had heard her, she threw the door to the ground.  The door shattered into a million pieces. Her hope lifting, Alyson bent down and began to search through the scraps of wood.
            Her hands fell upon a sharp stake that had formed in the crash. With triumph burning in her veins, she grabbed the stake and stuffed it into the shorts under her robes. The pirates were too careless, too cocky to check her for weapons…or so she hoped. When she had made sure the stake was securely tucked into her shorts, she hid the broken wood pieces under the wardrobe.
            "I'll get out of this." Alyson promised herself, sitting down on the bed. "I'm going to see Jim again.  I won't let Nathaniel and his stupid revenge stop me from being happy.  I'll make him sorry he ever heard my name."
            Alyson's finger reached over to touch her wedding band. It gave her strength, it reassured her. She forced herself to think of Jim and how much she wanted to see him again, not of how hopeless her situation is.
            She lay down on her bed and closed her eyes. They should be arriving at Nathaniel's hideout soon enough, and she would need her strength to escape. She had to be rested and well.
            As she drifted off to sleep, she dreamed of Jim. He gathered her in his arms and planted hot kisses on her face. Alyson sighed contently in both dream and reality. In the darkness of sleep she was content.
            Because she was with Jim.

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                        Yes, we're done. Nice chapter, ain't it? I was very please how this came out. We're getting done with Part Two! Yay! Anywho, please please please REVIEW! I would like to know what you think (even if it is to flame me for my late updates) and a special thanks to ElvenRanger, you are a god, man, god! ***bows*** I am not worthy!

                                    "God, grant me patience and I want it NOW!"

                                                            -Lizzy Rebel