Ahoy, back again, swash-swash, buckle-buckle.

Don't own anything

On with the random show

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All of the pirates, including Jack, just sat there looking at one another. They knew that their fates were sealed. What could they do?

Just then, a man from the East India Trading Company walked into the room. "Ye've all got 'til dawn. So, ya best start prayin'."

Next day:

As the sun started to come up, all of the captives started to agonize over the events to come. The three older pirates looked at Jack with sorrowful looks. He was a boy after all. Jack could feel their looks. He started to accept what he was trying to deny since he got to that prison. That made him start to tremble.

Morning arrived to quickly to them. A man in a black frock came into the jail with a book under his arm and two guards trailing behind him. "Last rights?" He asked. The pirates looked at one another and nodded. The man went through their last rights and proceeded to unlock the cell door. They marched the pirates down a hall and to bench near an open door. The pirates could hear the faint sound of a crowd outside. One of the guards started up a fire in a stove across from them.

After what seemed like an eternity, the pirate seated on the bench nearest the door was escorted out by another guard. The first guard poked at the fire in the stove. The crowd outside cheered after a few minutes went by. The second guard escorted out the next pirate. A few minutes went by and the crowd cheered again. The same happened for the third pirate and Jack was left sitting on the bench alone. The man with the black frock came in the doorway.

"Get him ready." He said.

Jack's heart started to pound. He felt tears forming in his eyes. The man in the black frock left and came back with the other guard. They came towards Jack. He started to panic. The guard that was in charge of the stove came towards them with some sort of long iron that was in the fire. One guard grabbed Jack and lay him down on the bench. He held Jack's head.

"If you move, we can always string you up too, lad."

Jack felt almost a sense of relief at the fact he wasn't going to be killed and only branded. The first guard came closer to Jack and aimed the instrument at his forehead. The end of it was bright orange and he could feel the heat of it from inches away. Jack braced himself and clenched his teeth. His eyes got wider as he watched the thing get closer. Then Jack could feel the searing hot metal burning his skin. He couldn't help but squirm as the branding iron scorched him. He began to smell burning flesh and he let out a scream. The pain was unbearable. What only took a few seconds felt like an hour. Jack could hear the iron peel off of his forehead as it was pulled back.

"There. All finished. That 'P' will be with you the rest of your God-given life. Hopefully, it will convince you to repent your ways and leave piracy. Now, leave, my son."

Jack was bewildered. They let him go and he wasn't sure why. 'Seeing this brand won't make other pirates repent.' Thought Jack. 'I'm just going to bloody cover it up.'

His head throbbed. His uncle was dead. He had no ship and no way of getting home. Jack left the Trading Company's Jail in search of a ship to join. What misfortune Jack had befell. His money was confiscated and he was hungry. Jack headed down into town hoping to change his luck around somehow. He passed by a cart with fabrics for sale and luckily the merchant was busy selling to someone else. He snatched a red scarf off of the cart and kept walking. He tied it around the wound on his forehead and flinched. Just then, he spotted a member of his uncle's crew. The pirate went into a pub and Jack followed. Jack made sure that it wasn't the same one from earlier.

"Isaac?" Jack said to the man.

He turned around and looked surprised. "Jack? How'd you escape?"

"I didn't. They branded me." Jack said pointing to his bandana.

"You're lucky. Ya know that, Jack?" Said Isaac.

Isaac let Jack join his crew and they set sail that day. Isaac was the first mate on Captain Long's crew. He gathered up what was left of the original crew and took Capt. Long's ship. They looted and pillaged towns for a few years until disaster struck again.

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I know what most of you are thinking. "But..but.. Jack's brand is on his arm!!! How could you make such a drastic mistake????"

Well, I'll tell you. Most pirates that got branded were branded on their forehead. This seemed the obvious thing to do because they wanted everyone to know you were a pirate. It would seem silly to put it on a place that you could cover up easily. But, in some rare cases, if you were lucky, you could get a brand on your arm or wherever.

Enjoy the brief history lesson?

I'm getting to the part where Jack gets the brand on his arm, so tune in next chapter. ***************

To nothing2510: Thanks for the review. The part where I put that Jack's dad was Edward Long, I put below that that Jack wanted to make a name for himself. By that, I meant it literally. Sorry about the confusion, I do that (