AN (1/26)- Wow! I got like 8 reviews on my last chapter. I should update more often... In other news, I hate Bill Murray. I like his acting, but I really think that Johnny should have gotten the Golden Globe....Grrr. But congrats to Return of the King-4 Golden Globes.
AN (1/28)- Yeah! FIVE Oscar nominations for Pirates of the Caribbean! Yeah!
I'm hurriedly working on this chapter while standing up in technology, because there's a bunch of sophomores occupying the already too few chairs. It's hard to type like this, especially on my PDA's small screen. I have a speech to give in a few hours. Stupid academic decathlon, that's the reason its taking so long to update. Curses.
Now I'm sitting on the floor on my bright pink coat, trying to stay modest, for I'm in an annoying statically charged skirt, that keeps riding up. And my left foot is falling asleep. There's an hour of technology left-in which I can do nothing, for the computers are occupied as well. Today isn't going so swell.
I fell down the stairs after giving my speech. Ouch.
AN (1/30)- I'm sorry its taken me so long to update. I planned to take an hour nap yesterday and work on this after a meeting and finishing my homework, but my nap turned into six hours. Stupid tests, they sucked my intelligence away yesterday.
AN (1/31)- Sorry its short, it was too sad to be long.
Chapter 9- Libellule
Jack braced himself as the cannon he was next to went off, catapulting the heavy iron ball toward the Libellule, like the projectile dislodged by David against the giant Goliath. Smoke stung his lungs from the massive amounts of cannon fire in the small gun deck of the Black Pearl. Shouts of approval echoed eerily, bouncing off the dark wood of the Pearl, as the newly dislodged small black sphere hit the opposing ship. Explosions of wood splinters were faintly visible through the small holes the cannon balls were thrown from.
Jack felt a hearty thump on his back, but he hurriedly refilled his cannon. This was a desperate battle for survival, for the enormous barque outmanned and outgunned the Pearl considerably. His hands had lost most of the usual superfluous movement, concentrating on pouring the dangerous gunpowder in. Jack's head was pounding due to the wine and adrenaline fighting in his body.
Jack soon fired again, wiping his grey hands on his now grey shirt. He had been promoted rather quickly as the other crew members gradually succumbed to fatigue or death. Life on a pirate ship was often this harsh, but it made it possible for workers to progress quickly. The battle had been dragging on for several hours.
Jack wiped his face miserably, the gunpowder on his hands stinging the small cuts and raw skin from various splinters flying toward him. The other crewmembers wearily continued their struggle, pausing more and more frequently as the battle wore on like the incessant noise of cicadas.
Jack continued loading his cannon, cursing steadily as he looked up from time to time and noticed how close the Libellule was coming. The sound of cannon gradually began decreasing in the gun deck. Jack looked wildly around as he noticed he was holding the final cannonball. A long stream of obscenities escaped his tongue in every language he knew. Jack shook himself and concentrated on the important task. The rest of the crew looked incredibly grim as he loaded it carefully into his cannon. He wiped the sweat from his face as he carefully took aim at the Libellule.
The silence behind Jack was deafening as Jack watched the final cannonball hit the Libellule. Gasps filled the air as splinters of the French ship sprayed around the angry cannonball. Jack suddenly realized he'd been holding his breath. He released it and stood, surveying the rest of the crew currently in the gun deck.
Anne Bonney had a look of defiance in her green eyes as she unsheathed the sword to her side. She was nearly as filthy as Jack was; her usually bright blue pants and slightly lacy shirt were grayed and torn. Mary Reade was next to her, trying to clean an especially bloody cut that was seeping through her tan shirt. Her brown eyes looked at Jack, daring him to say something sympathetic. Jack shrugged instead.
"We should probably go an' see what's goin' on, eh?" Jack jumped a bit, startled to hear Snide Shaine speak. Jack couldn't remember ever hearing the tall blonde pirate speak. Snide Shaine was leaning against the dark wood inside the Black Pearl, his sullied shirt even dirtier than usual. He grinned, showing off yellowed teeth, when he saw the younger Jack looking at him quizzically.
Jack shook himself out of his shock and said, "Aye, we'd best go see wha' is goin' on. We wouldn' wan' t' miss any o' the fun." Jack's sentiments summed up the rest of the sweaty crew and they began walking toward the main deck, mustering any courage remaining.
Jack blinked as his eyes attempted to adjust to the fading light outside of the gun deck. Anne, Mary, Snide Shaine, and the rest of the crew who'd been trapped in the sweaty gun deck paused as well, holding their various swords out. Jack noted that Bootstrap was standing next to the planks joining the ships together. His bloody cutlass glinted red in the setting sun as Jack noted the numerous bodies lying on the deck of the Pearl. Calico Jack was a few steps behind Bootstrap, laughing maniacally as the talented Bootstrap killed another French pirate. Jack hurried over to assist the sweaty Bootstrap as the other weary reinforcements charged into battle.
Bootstrap quickly plunged his sword into a terribly unlucky French pirate as Jack sauntered over to assist him. He grinned wearily, struggling to inhale enough air for his weary muscles. "It took y' long enough, boy. I was afraid tha' there wouldn' be anyone lef' fer y' to kill."
Jack grinned uneasily in reply, slightly uneasy that Bootstrap could kill a human being with no regret at all. The French pirate who had just been skewered was twitching and coughing up several ounces of dark blood. Jack unconsciously cringed. He tried masking it with a laugh. "Sorry, William. I was busy blowin' holes in tha' ship. We only jus' ran out of cannonballs." He feigned his usual indifference.
Bootstrap noted the odd mood Jack was in and decided to turn his attention back to the ensuing battle. The stream of pirates coming from the Libellule was finally slowing. Bootstrap bellowed a sound of challenge to a large French pirate crossing the warped lifeline between the two ships and hurried over, engaging in yet another bloody fight.
Jack shuddered as he witnessed Bootstrap kill another human being. Jack couldn't justify killing another human. He tried to stay inconspicuous as more French pirates came aboard, but it was inevitable that someone would single him out.
A man wearing a green bandana approached Jack, grinning evilly. Jack instantly noticed some similarities between this man and Pâquerette, including the icy blue eyes and red hair. He unconsciously twitched, dreading to kill the man, who was most likely Pâquerette's brother. The man grinned, mistaking the twitch for fear, and tried to strike Jack. Jack's hands went through a flurry of movement by themselves, startling Jack when the sound of metal clashing reached his ears. He dove into his sanctuary, unwilling to deal with this fight mentally.
The redhead leered at Jack, mistaking Jack to be an easy target. A swift move on the French pirate's part brought cold hard steel close to Jack's personage. Jack fought back with his reflexes, seemingly always on the defensive. The French pirate continually attacked the reluctant Jack as Jack kept looking toward Calico Jack, hoping that an accord soon would be reached. Calico Jack was busily parrying blows from the French first mate while the tiring Bootstrap wrangled with the Captain Jouer.
Jack was amazed when he felt the curious sensation of blood dripping down his arm. The opposing man had managed to slice his arm quite well. Blind fury raged in Jack's eyes as he began fighting the redhead earnestly. His primal instincts took over, and Jack's mind was pushed away even further.
Jack felt an odd mix of disgust and bloodlust as he pushed his cutlass into the redhead's chest. The man stared at Jack, eyes full of terror. The man stepped back, clutching wildly at the embedded cutlass, straining to remove it. Jack looked into his eyes shocked at what he'd done. The man slowly fell, struggling to inhale oxygen, for Jack's sword had punctured a lung. Jack's conscience was plastered with guilt as the man made large popping noises, trying to breathe. Jack's instincts left him when the man slumped over completely, twitching as the last of his life force abandoned him.
Jack walked next to the dead redhead and gingerly pulled his sword out, trying not to disturb the corpse. Blood gushed out of the wound; spilling all over Jack's worn brown boots. Jack marveled at how easy it had been to kill the man, fearing the time he would die himself. Life was very unpredictable for a pirate.
Jack stood next to the body for several minutes, struggling to find his equilibrium inside his mind. He mindlessly watched as others of his crew were killing or being killed. Bootstrap was immensely tired but Jack could tell he had a trick or two up his sleeve for the infamous Captain Jouer. Neither looked ready to give up. Jack saw the faintest hint of regret in Captain Jouer's blue eyes when the captain chanced to look over at were his son should be. Bootstrap used this to his advantage and was soon holding his sword inches away from the slightly distraught father.
Captain Jouer yelled in French and the fighting on the Pearl soon ceased. Jack swaggered his way over to Calico Jack when he saw the man motion him over.
"Good job, boy. Go an' get his daughter. I be sure 'e is willin' t' negotiate jus' about anythin' t' save 'is remainin' kin." Calico Jack's brown eyes were shining with victory. Jack nodded, anxious to leave the gruesome deck of the Pearl.
Jack walked gingerly around the bloodied bodies strewn about the deck as if they were toys. The amount of bloodshed startled him, but Jack supposed that this occurred whenever two pirate ships attacked each other. Neither would give up without a fight.
Jack stumbled down the stairs to the brig, struggling to keep control of the odd sensation of tears burning his eyes. His sanctuary was of no help, for he imagined his mother would disapprove of what he'd done. It really was a silly stance, and Jack knew his mother had probably killed numerous times, but his conscience had finally caught up with him.
Jack soon reached the cell holding the vulnerable Pâquerette. She was slumped on the floor, still intoxicated by the wine. Jack got the keys which where lying carelessly right next to the cell on the floor. He was about to insert them into the lock when he realized the cell door wasn't even closed. Pâquerette could have left at any time. Jack was grateful that she'd been too inebriated to notice this.
Jack walked in and crouched over the woman, holding his bloodied cutlass next to her peaceful face. He tapped her with his free hand, trying to wake her sleeping form. Her blue eyes gently fluttered awake, which was surprising, for she'd slept through a very loud battle. Her eyes widened in alarm when she saw Jack's bloody cutlass at her throat and his sullied and bloodied condition.
"Se lève," (Get up) Jack barely managed to say, his voice cracking from the pent up emotions inside. " Votre père est ici et nous avons besoin de vous utiliser dans nos négociations." (Your father is here and we need to use you in our negotiations.)
The startled redhead slowly acquiesced to the startling request, trying to gauge Jack's mood. Jack kept his sword trained at her back, remaining impervious to all of her questions. He marched Pâquerette up the stairs, ignoring her gasp when they reached the main deck. He didn't notice her cry of agony when she saw the lifeless form of her brother and the precarious position her father was in.
Jack soon maneuvered Pâquerette behind Calico Jack, holding his sword into her back to keep her from doing something stupid. Jack then watched the ensuing negotiations like a statue. He saw everything and nothing at the same time, translating for Calico Jack like a machine.
Jack felt no excitement or relief when the distraught Captain Jouer disclosed that the bulk of his treasure was aboard the Libellule. His voice didn't raise in exaltation when Calico Jack proclaimed the hostilities over and that the treasure was an equal share. He wasn't disappointed when Pâquerette left his side to join her grieving father. Jack was impervious to everything as he mentally struggled with his demons. He looked normal on the outside, making jokes with the crew when they started emptying the boot from the Libellule and bringing it back to the Pearl. He only seemed a bit more distant to most of the crew. Bootstrap noticed the teen's fake enthusiasm, but was far too fatigued to give more than passing acknowledgement to the situation.
Jack woodenly watched the Libellule float away. His conscience was still plastered with guilt, grief, and disgust at taking another's life. He stood watching the continuous motions of the sea for several hours, the blood from his cut meshing with the blood from the redhead on the deck of the Pearl. His leaned on his cutlass, trying to absorb what he'd done. Jack was incredibly numbed to the constant stinging of that cut and didn't even notice when he became light headed from the blood loss. The cut was much deeper than anyone realized.
It was a relief when his cutlass fell over as he lost consciousness. The world blacked out to his relief as the blood loss finally caught up with him. Jack's last conscious thought was of the look the redhead gave him when he was stabbed by Jack's weapon. His conscience had shown him that again and again as the night crept on. The blackness was a balm, allowing no thoughts to enter his tortured mind.
aaserene- Ooh! A new reviewer! I'm glad you like my story so much! Have a cookie.
Courtney- Thanks! You get 4 cookies for reading it all in one sitting and for all the reviews.
Sky- Wow! Thanks! I feel so appreciated! And I don't mind being on your website, that's cool.
ChaosLightning- Obviously he didn't-the wine and excitement of being attacked made it nigh impossible to remember. Thanks for all your loyal reviews. Makes me happy to see what tidbits of information you want to offer me after I update. Have a cookie. :)
WaNdA- Thank you thank you! I'm glad you liked it enough to review. Have a cookie.
meggumscat- Thanks again, mate. I'm glad I can help you through t is tuff time. Don't worry, for you'll be in here soon. Maybe. If I stop being so lazy.
Dragonboyutah- Thanks, bro. I'll give you a cookie for that. And some pudding. You should review more often.