Chapter III-
"Captain Jack Sparrow"
Captain Jack Sparrow was a very different man. He was clever, smart and charming; but appeared to be rather insane to those who didn't know him. See, Jack was a bit ... unique. He was very scruffy and sloppy. He wore a dirty brown coat and light grey breeches. Of course, the breeches were so filthy that you never would have even guessed that that was their true color. He wore a loose cotton shirt that was open at the chest to keep cool, knee-high brown boots (what they've stepped in, I'm sure you don't want to know) and a vest that looked like it once was a deep blue or purple (now it looked like a grey-black).
But wait! There's more! He left the vest unbuttoned but wrapped three belts atop it. Three! One was a long white sash with red pinstripes. He wrapped this around his waist and it was so long that one end of it hung down to just past his knee, the other end was three and half inches longer than that. Why did he have this belt? Well, he tucked his pistol in it for safekeeping. The second belt was a tan leather belt about two inches thick. He wore this on top of the sash tied around his waist. He tied his compass, which looked like a square block with a round lid lined with gold, to this belt. The third belt was the same width as the second, only it was dark brown. This one was strapped over his left shoulder, around his chest and under his left arm. This was what his sword was attached to.
He had a red bandana tied across his forehead, from which three strands of beads- one the length of his forehead, one reaching down to his right earlobe and the final one reaching down almost to his left shoulder- and even a long slender bone hung as decorations and trinkets of fond memories. His dark brown, seemingly black, hair was tangled and messy with a thick braid on the back of his head, a tail on the right and knots and dread locks in countless places.
He carried his pistol, cutlass and compass with him to every place he went, never forgot his favorite brown leather three-cornered hat, had a well-grown goatee and mustache, with two small braids dangling from his beard that had beads at the end and rings on his grimy fingers.
When he smiled, you could count many yellow teeth, two of gold and one of silver, as they were so bad that they needed to be pulled or capped. Just by looking at him you'd suspect trouble, for there was mischief in his appearance- from the way he dressed to the manner in which he spoke. But in his eyes there shone a thirst, for adventure and an endless horizon. For, I believe I forgot to mention that Captain Jack Sparrow was different from most normal men in one distinct way: he was a pirate.
Now, it just so happens that on this luminous and happy day, Jack was sailing for the Port Royal harbor. From atop his mainmast, he could see that the harbor was close. The wind whipped his hair and coat around a bit. It felt good and smelt like the sea- of course Jack was used to the scent now, and didn't notice this minor detail. He took a hold of a rope on his mast
and jumped down with a splash into his leaky boat, the Jolly Mon. Sadly, yes, it was just a vessel no bigger than a longboat and his mainmast was really his only mast. Jack didn't have a ship, which was part of the reason Jack was coming to Port Royal in the first place.
He quickly scanned the small "deck" with his eyes and grabbed the bucket floating amongst the other jetsam. He filled the bucket up with water and with a small heave slopped it back into the Sea where it belonged. He paused, gave a sigh and cast his eyes out to nowhere. This was going to take forever.
He watched the high precipice of the island on his right side slip by as he sailed about it's edge. A natural arch slid into view, with four nooses hanging from it. Jack stood up abruptly and
tossed his pail down with a wave of his hands. The first three nooses held the old bones of former pirates as a way to scare other pirates off, the third held a sign with the words blazoned into the wood:
PIRATES, YE BE WARNED!
Reaching up he removed his leather three-cornered hat, placed it on his heart and bowed his head in respect. Those gents had died well.
Port Royal may have been small, but it was a busy town. Merchant marines and
tradesmen swapped things for the good of the people (and themselves). From bananas and cocoa to goats and cloth, just about everything was traded from ship to ship. People went about their ways, buying, selling, trading in the town. For fishermen almost every day was field day. Children ran back and forth playing silly games of tag and "throw-a-rock-at-a-soldier-and-then-run-as-fast-as-you-can-before-you-get-caught." They sometimes played games that involved avoiding their parents and young lads would pretend to be the commodore or even the local blacksmith fighting pirates, for they'd come to believe he was the world's best swordsman after watching him practice sword combat almost everyday.
Jack came sailing into the buzzing harbor not too long later. He was standing on his spar again in an impressive stance as he neared the dock. People stopped their activities and pointed at the man with awe. His boat was nearly sunk! Jack didn't care. In fact, the boat's sail had all but disappeared below the water's surface right when he stepped onto the dock and began to casually stroll towards the town with a walk that suggested that he was either drunk or had been out to sea for far too long.
"What? Hold up there, you!" a shout came from behind. Jack spun around on his heel and looked the caller in the eye. It was the harbor master. The old man could have been mistaken for a reverend with his black and white clothing, closely kept ledger and little round spectacles. But, to help differentiate, he had a three-cornered hat and a large green overcoat, so that helped a bit. He snarled at Jack as he looked him over. "It's a shilling to tie up your boat to the docks!"
Jack cast his gaze to his boat- or what he could see of it. The crow's nest and banner were now the only parts of the leaky piece of junk that could be seen above the water's crystalline surface. He turned back to the harbor master.
"And I'll need to know your name," the old man added and snapped open his ledger, holding his plume at the ready.
Jack eyed the man for a moment, completely motionless. Then he jumped to life. "What d'ye say to three shillings and we forget the name?" he suggested as he set his bribe on the
master's ledger.
The harbor master peered at Jack carefully over his spectacles. Then, without another shadow of doubt to be seen in his eyes, he shut his ledger with a snap. "Welcome to Port Royal, Mr. Smith."
Jack grinned and ambled down the dock with his merry, drunkish step. But not without taking the harbor master's purse as he passed by, jingling the bag to make sure it was full.
At Fort Charles, the ceremony was just beginning. People lined up and watched the soldiers and marines line up in two orderly sections- a narrow walkway separating them. They raised their guns and fired a traditional salute into the air as "Rule Britannia" rang in the background on piccolos with a drumbeat accompanying them.
Elizabeth was among the audience and she wasn't feeling well at all. The dress she was wearing was certainly very beautiful, but due to the material it was made of, neither the fluttering of her fan nor the shade of Fort Charles were enough to block the sun's raging heat. She felt like her corset was crushing her rib cage and she could scarcely draw breath. She tried fruitlessly to gulp down some air as James Norrington began to walk down the path created by the soldiers toward the governor.
He marched slowly and Elizabeth found herself cursing him in her head to go faster. She tried to adjust her corset unnoticeably. She wanted to go home and take the blasted thing off. Hours were seeming to go by and five minutes seemed were to go by with each step the captain took. Step ... step... step ... step ....
After what felt like an eternity of baking and suffocating under the sun, Norrington finally
reached the governor and accepted the sword presented to him. He held it at the ready and
swung it about in expert play, testing to see what he thought of it. Could he go any slower? Take the sword and be done with it- let everyone go home!
Jack could hear the chorus of song ringing from the fort. He had managed to creep down
the docks completely unnoticed as the town was deserted for some kind of event that was taking place on that day. He thanked Lady Luck for assisting him and snuck closer to the dock of his desire.
He peered around once more to confirm that absolutely everyone was gone. So far, so good. See, Jack had come to Port Royal for one teensy weensy teeny tiny itty bitty wee little not-even-worth-talking-about soul purpose: to get a bigger boat. (And one that floated, I'm sure.) He had observed and seriously considered the HMS Dauntless. It was very powerful with its fifty guns and lots of extra cargo space for even more fire power. It could easily blow any known pirate ship out of the water. But that wasn't what he needed.
His eyes had afterwards fallen upon the Interceptor, and that's where he was headed to now. The HMS Interceptor was exactly what Jack was looking for. It was smaller and sleek so it could travel swiftly through even shallow water without a problem. She was so fast in fact, that she was the fastest ship the Royal Navy had to offer. But she wasn't just fast. Along with her brilliant structure she had several rail guns and even a mortar in her middle, so she could put up
a fair fight as well. That's what Jack wanted.
He proceeded coolly down the dock, but was brought to an abrupt halt before he could reach the gangplank by two soldiers who ran and blocked his way as he passed them sitting at the spot where they were lounging out of the suns rays. One soldier was a bit stockier than the other, with dark hair pulled neatly back and dressed in his bright red military uniform. The other was smaller, thinner and had redder hair. The first was named Mr. Mullroy and the second was Mr. Murtogg. I'm sure they had real first names, but as I never learned them, we'll have to refer to them in that manner.
"This dock is off limits to civilians," Mr. Murtogg informed in a sort of commanding tone.
"I'm terribly sorry, I didn't know. If I see one, I shall inform you immediately," Jack replied
quickly and attempted to walk past them. They continued to block him. He decided to have
another go at it.
"Apparently there's some sort of a high toned and fancy to do up at the fort, eh? How
could it be that two upstanding gentlemen such as yourselves did not merit an invitation?"
"Someone has to make sure this dock stays off limits to civilians," Mr. Mullroy answered.
"This must be a very important boat."
"Ship," Mullroy corrected.
"Ship. Right. Boats fit on ships, innit that it?"
"Captain Norrington's made it his flagship. He'll use it to hunt down the last dregs of piracy on the Spanish Lake," Mr. Murtogg informed.
"Commodore," Mullroy corrected.
"Right. Commodore Norrington."
"It's a fine goal to be sure but it seems to me that a… ," he shuffled to the side and pointed to the Dauntless as the guards shuffled in the same direction to block him from slipping past, "a ship like that makes this one here a bit superfluous, really." He gestured toward the Interceptor.
Mr. Murtogg chuckled at this. "Ah, the Dauntless is the power in these waters, true enough, but there's no ship that can match the Interceptor for speed."
Jack put the index finger of his right hand to his chin and looked heavenward, pretending
to think hard for a second. He then jumped back to reality as if he had struck an idea. "I've heard of one. Supposed to very fast, nigh uncatchable. The Black Pearl?" he asked, acting as if to see whether they'd heard the name before.
"Heh! Well, there's no real ship that can match the Interceptor!" the second guard guffawed, as the first one nodded his head in silent agreement with Jack.
Mr. Murtogg froze with a questioning look at this remark. "The Black Pearl is a real ship," he argued.
Mullroy hiccuped another chuckle. "No, no it's not."
"Yes it is, I've seen it."
Mr. Mullroy turned to his friend now, determined to correct his superstitious blunder.
Meanwhile, Jack watched the conversation unfold quietly. "You've seen it?"
"Yes."
"You haven't seen it."
"Yes I have."
"You've seen a ship with black sails, that's crewed by the damned and captained by a man
so evil that Hell itself spat him back out?"
"No."
"Ha! No-" Mr. Mullroy felt as though he had quite proven himself and turned back to
Jack.
"But I've seen a ship with black sails."
This time Mr. Mullroy turned back to his friend completely frustrated and even spitting
with his p's as he responded. "Oh! And no ship that's not crewed by the damned and captained
by a man so evil that Hell itself spat him back out could possibly have black sails therefore
couldn't possibly be any other ship than the Black Pearl. Is that what you're saying?"
Mr. Murtogg nodded. "No," he chimed cheerfully with a smile.
Mr. Mullroy turned back to Jack, "Like I said … there's no real ship as can match the
Interceptor." He froze when he realized Jack wasn't there. He looked frantically around.
"Hey! You! Get away from there!" Mr. Murtogg shouted as he spotted the pirate.
Jack, who was now standing at the Interceptor's wheel, put an exaggerated look of surprise on his face as they both charged and aimed their guns at him.
"You don't have permission to be aboard there, mate!" Mr. Mullroy informed a bit loudly, pointing his gun at Jack.
"I'm sorry, it's just it's such a pretty boat ... ship," he rapidly rationalized calmly and quickly corrected himself.
"What's your name?!" Mr. Murtogg demanded, holding up his bayonet to a threatening position.
"Smith … or Smitty, if you like."
"What's your purpose in Port Royal, Mr. Smith?" Mr. Mullroy demanded.
"Yeah, and no lies!" Murtogg added.
"Well, then," Jack calmly sighed. "I confess. It is my intention to commandeer one of these ships, pick up a crew in Tortuga, raid, pillage, plunder and otherwise pilfer my weasely black guts out."
"I said no lies!"
"I think he's telling the truth," the Mr. Mullroy informed.
"He's not telling the truth."
"He may be."
"If was telling the truth, he wouldn't have told us!"
"Unless, of course, he knew you wouldn't believe the truth even if he told it to you," Jack cut in with a sly look.
They both threw befuddled gazes at him.
Now was the hard part. Elizabeth had to wait for her father to be ready to go home. That would take a long time as he was governor and usually left when everyone else was gone. The piccolos were replaced with a beautiful quartet that was now playing a slow ensemble piece in which the violins held the melody.
She fluttered her fan and touched her side. It felt like it was ripping in two and yet caving in at once. She didn't know whether to behave, scream or break into tears. Matters became worse as she found that it appeared as if she'd be there for many more hours.
The new commodore approached her with a small smile and bow. "May I have a moment?"
She forced a small smile through the painful expression she was trying to hide. Her ribs were aching, she couldn't breathe, it was too hot and if she could somehow manage to force down some air, a stabbing pain shot through her chest. She nodded her approval and followed him.
The Commodore had her go up to the parapet of the fort. From there you could see the ocean until it disappeared over the horizon, with boats sailing to and from the harbor. The setting was breathtaking, but not as breathtaking as it was for Elizabeth to get up the stairs- and there were only five! She leaned heavily on the side of the arch that held the (huge) bell of the fort and tried to catch her breath. Her head started to feel light.
The commodore smiled at her a bit nervously with his hands locked behind his back. "You look lovely, Elizabeth," he complimented courteously.
Elizabeth smiled, nodded her thank you and continued to flutter the fan she held in her hand- it was all she could manage. He turned to look out to sea and she mouthed a big "ow!" while he wasn't looking.
"I apologize if I seem forward but I… must speak my mind. This promotion throws into sharp relief that which I have not yet achieved-" Norrington stammered, "– a marriage to a fine woman."
Elizabeth heard this, but wasn't able to react as she normally would- the air she was trying to take in had become stuck in her chest.
The commodore turned and pierced her with a sincere stare. "You have become a fine woman, Elizabeth."
Elizabeth tried to swallow down the air stuck in her chest. A stabbing pain welled up as she struggled to swallow it- it wasn't working. The world about her began to spin- she needed help.
"I ... I can't breathe."
"Yes, I'm a bit nervous myself-" but Elizabeth hadn't heard a word that he had uttered. She had fallen over the parapet of Fort Charles in a faint and was now tumbling towards the water below.
Meanwhile, Jack was still desperately attempting to take the Interceptor.
"…and then they made me their chief," he was telling a story to the guards.
Splash. Something cascaded into the water at the foot of the cliff some thirty feet away to the starboard side of the ship.
Commodore Norrington hadn't noticed Elizabeth's fall. He looked about him, confused at how quickly she had disappeared. "Elizabeth?" Where had she gone off to? He turned to look behind him and a large spot of white caught the corner of his eye. He speedily looked to see what it was and discovered it to be a large rippling disturbance in the water below. Immediately he recognized what happened.
"Elizabeth!"
He had to save her! She could never swim with a dress as heavy as that holding her down. He set his foot firmly on the parapet and began to strip off his blue jacket, preparing to jump. But, before he could rescue the woman he cared for, a soldier grabbed him from behind to knock some common sense into the rashly thinking commodore. "The rocks, sir! It's a miracle she missed them!"
The commodore stared hopelessly at the water. He was right. But they needed to save Elizabeth. Norrington quickly put his jacket on and raced for the docks, he could save her from there, but only if he got there in time.
"Will you be saving her then?" Jack asked the first guard, aspiring that it would mean he could have a chance to get away with the ship while everyone was distracted with that poor young woman.
Mr. Mullroy looked back at him. "I can't swim," he stammered quickly. Jack peered hopefully at the other, who just shook his head. Apparently, he couldn't swim either!
"Pearl of the King's Navy you are!" Jack muttered angrily as he took off his hat and coat. He had no choice and that made him irate- delays, delays! Nothing but delays! He quickly removed his compass, pistol and cutlass and handed them over to the guards. "Do not lose these." And with those last remarks he took a graceful swan dive from the boat deep into the water.
Elizabeth was sinking slowly in the dark gloom, surrounded in the billowing waves of brass and silver created by her dress, her hair flowing like golden seaweed, and the medallion around her neck floating just above her in the soft current. The medallion erupted with a force of energy that raced out to sea with the speed of lightning. The force could be seen from the surface and looked like a thin circular band of energy that speedily expanded. The sailors saw it.
"What was that?"
Jack kicked furiously and swam to the sea floor. His breath was beginning to run out of patience- his lungs felt as though they were about to explode, but in the water he could just make out the blurry figure of that girl. He had to get to her! His chest had the feeling of a balloon filled with too much water- stretching beyond its limit, but from somewhere inside a new determination suddenly burned and he kicked harder than ever.
Reaching the girl, he grabbed her around the waist and kicked with all his strength against the sea floor. He shot toward the surface like an arrow and, with his head, broke through the water's skin to a cold breeze. He gasped and took in some air and then felt himself being dragged down underneath the water again. The girl- she was pulling him down. But … but that was impossible- a woman would feel like a feather in the water. What was wrong?
He felt her waist with his hands. It was… fuzzy? Velvet! Her dress was velvet. It had soaked up the water, becoming a dead weight and began dragging her down. That was the problem! He fumbled about her waist and then found where it was laced. He grabbed it and ripped the bodice wide open. The gown fell and floated slowly down to the sea's floor as Jack pulled her out of the dress and was able to easily carry her to the surface.
Norrington's men got closer to the dock. The sky was beginning to dim and the temperature was dropping. In the distance a mass of grey clouds could be seen approaching Port Royal.
As Jack climbed on the deck he felt the weight of her body fall upon his shoulder. The soldiers came running down the dock to assist Jack. Mr. Mullroy set down his rifle and took Elizabeth from Jack. "I got her."
He laid her on the deck and picked off the hair that had fallen across her face. Her chest wasn't moving. He bent down and put his ear to her mouth. "Not breathing!" he vented in an almost taunting tone.
"Move!" Jack commanded and he knelt next to Elizabeth, Mullroy's bayonet in hand. Mr. Mullroy back away as Jack took the bayonet and slit Elizabeth's corset down the middle. He tore the corset off and handed it to Mr. Murtogg as Elizabeth's chest gave a tremendous heave and she coughed up all the water she inhaled in her unconsciousness.
"Never would have thought of that!" Mr. Mullroy stammered, watching awestruck.
Jack looked back at him, still breathing hard and dripping wet from the swim. "Clearly you've never been to Singapore."
Elizabeth looked at her saviors a bit confused. She shifted her weight a bit and the medallion fell from her chest.
And it caught Jack's eye. To Elizabeth's surprise Jack's expression became one of shock and surprise. He took the medallion in his hand and looked it over carefully. "Where did you get that?"
Where did she get it? Why was he asking that? She couldn't tell him or else Will's secret would be revealed. But even if she kept her lips sealed, Jack sat there, motionless, waiting for his answer. Didn't he get it, she didn't want to answer? Why wouldn't he go away?
She was spared when a sword came dangerously close to Jack's face. "On your feet."
Commodore Norrington kept his sword pointed directly at Jack's neck as he got to his feet and the sailors added their bayonets to the threat as they gathered behind Norrington. Governor Swann joined in the crowd and was absolutely shocked at finding his daughter lying on the dock with her dress and corset absent. "Elizabeth! Are you alright?!"
"Yes, I'm fine," she stammered as she was helped to her feet and her father placed his coat about her shoulders.
She quickly grabbed the medallion and shoved it underneath her bodice as her father drew her into a hug, a bit disturbed at the idea of Jack knowing what it was. The governor eyed Mr. Murtogg who still held the corset up in a stunned position. Realizing the governor was watching, he quickly hid the corset behind his back and pointed accusingly at Jack.
The governor didn't need a second to think about what had happened. "Shoot him!" he commanded in an angered tone.
The soldiers held their guns up and prepared to fire.
"Father!" Elizabeth stopped them a bit louder than she meant. She paused in embarrassment and then continued in a softer voice. "Commodore, do you really intend to kill my rescuer?"
She eyed her father, waiting for his answer. He looked at the commodore and nodded his approval and Norrington signaled for his men to let their guns down. They did so slowly and quite a bit reluctantly.
Jack felt relief take hold and he turned and nodded a quick thank you to Elizabeth with his hands up in a praying position.
The commodore stuck out his hand stiffly quite suddenly. Jack looked at it hesitantly and Elizabeth eyed him suspiciously, but he only pierced Jack with a cold stare. "I believe thanks are in order," he rationalized.
Jack peeked at both sides of the outstretched hand dubiously and then hesitantly took it for a hand shake. But that wasn't what he received at all.
Norrington yanked Jack's arm forward and pulled his shirt sleeve up just past his wrist to reveal a pale "p" tattooed into his skin.
"Had a brush with the East India Trading company, did we, pirate?" Norrington jeered without any expression upon his face. Jack tried with a grimace to pull his hand away but Norrington held it firmly.
Now, as you can probably imagine, the governor was downright appalled. "Hang him!" he commanded in a high and almost sing-song tone, pulling Elizabeth's coat closer over her shoulders.
"Keep your guns on him, men. Gillette, fetch some irons," Norrington called over his shoulder.
His first mate, Mr. Gillette, ran off to get some manacles for Jack as Norrington (for identification purposes, I assume) lifted up Jack sleeve even further to reveal a blue tattoo of a small bird flying over a sunset-lit sea. "Well, well … Jack Sparrow, isn't it?"
"Captain Jack Sparrow," Jack corrected as he stubbornly jerked his hand away from the commodore, "if you please, sir."
The Commodore looked around himself, in mock surprise. "Well, I don't see your ship … Captain."
"I'm in the market as it were," Jack replied with a snap and loathsome smile.
"He said he'd come to commandeer one," Mr. Murtogg informed.
"Told ya he was telling the truth!" Mr. Mullroy ridiculed as a two year old proving his point would do. He picked up Jack's things and held them out for the commodore to take. "These are his, sir."
Norrington took the pistol first. He looked at it, tossed it from his right hand to his left, opened it looked inside, then closed it and put it back in Jack's hat. "No additional shots nor powder," he took Jack's compass, flipped it open and held it out, "it doesn't bear true..." he set the compass back on Jack's hat and half way drew Jack's sword. He examined the blade and then sneered, "... and I half expected it to be made of wood." He slammed the sword back into its sheath and taunted to Jack's face. "Taking stock: you've got a pistol with only one shot, a compass that doesn't point north ... and no ship. You are, without doubt, the worst pirate I've ever heard of."
Jack held his index fingers up in a position that read, wait! "But you have heard of me," he pointed out and he smiled, quite satisfied as he rocked a bit on his heels.
The commodore, being a bit prideful and knowing Jack had won the match of words, snatched Jack fiercely by the arm and lead him firmly down the dock. He turned Jack over to Mr. Gillette, who had returned and took Jack aside to put him in chains. Commodore surveyed it with a dull and ire look on his face, clearly weary of the pirate.
Elizabeth suddenly stepped away from her father and stood between Norrington and Jack. "Commodore, I really must protest."
Gillette gave Jack's arm a hard jerk in the background and Norrington called a quick, "Carefully Lieutenant!" then paused, waiting for Elizabeth to continue.
"Pirate or not this man saved my life."
"One good deed is not enough to redeem a man of a lifetime of wickedness."
"Though it seems enough to condemn him," Jack put into the conversation, uninvited.
"Indeed," snarled Norrington with a cold glare, somewhat chafed.
Gillette finished putting Jack's manacles on and returned to the commodore's side. Elizabeth remained standing in front of the commodore, piercing him with a provoked glare, expecting to get what she wanted (as that's how life had gone for her ever since she could remember). She wasn't going to stand for the murder of a good person.
"Finally," Jack sighed and he casually walked toward Elizabeth and threw his chain over her neck.
Elizabeth gasped and went rigid with shock as the group jumped simultaneously and the soldiers cocked and raised their guns.
"No, don't shoot!" the governor pleaded, for fear his daughter would be wounded and possibly killed. The commodore remained silent with his brow creased in concern and anxiety.
"I knew you'd warm up to me," Jack sneered over Elizabeth's shoulder. "Commodore Norrington, my effects, please ... and my hat."
Norrington just stood there, thinking the situation through. He didn't want to lose Jack- he was a pirate and needed to be put to justice- but he most unquestionably didn't want to lose the girl. There had to be some way to get the pirate without losing his beloved Elizabeth.
"Commodore!" Jack urged impatiently with a tug at the chain and Elizabeth gasped a bit at the small choke.
The commodore lowered his eyes a little, obviously daunted, then he turned and nodded to Mr. Mullroy. There was no other way. Mr. Mullroy handed Jack's effects (and hat) to Mr. Gillette, who handed it to Commodore Norrington. Norrington passed the things to Elizabeth and Jack snatched the pistol from the top, cocked it and pointed at Elizabeth's temple. "Elizabeth- it is Elizabeth, isn't it?"
"It's Miss Swann," she snarled back through gritted teeth.
He spun around to face him but with chain still pulling on the back of her neck and pistol still pressed to her temple. "Miss Swann, if you'd be so kind."
She did nothing. At first she was angry, angry at the fact that this villain turned on her when she was trying to help him all along. But now, she began to hate him. She didn't want to help him. "Come, come, dear, we don't have all day." She glared at him and began to redress Jack. He smiled open-mouthed, a bit amused at the prospect of the young lady dressing him so grudgingly.
She took his hat and placed it roughly on his dirty head.
"Now if you'd be very kind."
She took the strap to his sword and reached her arms around him to buckle it on properly. To do this it required a "hug" and Jack grinned happily at the begrudging look on the commodore's face at this. She finished putting his belt on and yanked it harshly to pull it tight. "Easy on the goods, darling."
"You're despicable," she growled as she finished.
"Sticks and stones, love. I saved your life, you saved mine, we're square," Jack replied. He spun her back around and pinned her close to him by pressing his forearm to her neck. He began to slowly back down the dock with gun under her jaw. This gave her an awful fright. She did what he wanted, now why wasn't he letting her go? "Gentlemen, milady, you will always remember this as the day that you almost caught Captain Jack Sparrow!"
And with that he shoved Elizabeth back into the arms of the commodore. He turned and grabbed a rope that held a cannon hoisted up in the air. He hit a lever that held the end opposite of the cannon's rope down and was carried up into the air as the heavy cannon dropped down and left a yawning hole on the dock below.
"Now, will you shoot him?!" Governor Swann shouted a bit perturbed.
"Open fire!" the commodore bellowed his command, clutching Elizabeth close to him.
Jack bonked his head on a beam to which the rope's pulley hung from like a giant crane. He quickly grabbed another rope which pulled a latch at the base of the beam allowing it to pivot in a circle freely. There was a sudden explosion of sound from the soldiers firing at Jack as he spun in circles in the air. He kicked his feet out like a buffoon and yelled.
"On his heels!" Norrington commanded. Why weren't they hitting him?
Jack took control of his madly spinning rope and landed on another beam that was lower but similar to the first one. This beam had a long rope tied from its end to a wooded arch about 20 meters away and 5 meters lower. He folded the chain to his manacles over and then threw the folded chain over the rope and grabbed it with his left hand so that his right hand hung loosely, his left gripped the chain and he was able to hang from the rope. He kicked off the beam and swung down the rope like a zip-line, then, when he got low in enough, he dropped and bolted down the deck.
"Open fire!" Norrington commanded again.
Jack ran across a bridge with bullets pelting and ricocheting in every direction. Two commoner friends who were walking on the bridge even had to duck and take cover as Jack ran past them and took off to hide in the village.
"Gillette, Mr. Sparrow has a dawn appointment with the gallows…," Norrington said to his awaiting lieutenant as soldiers marched in after Jack, "I would hate for him to miss it."
Gillette nodded. A squad of soldiers took off into the streets and alleys of Port Royal as Jack Sparrow disappeared into a fine mist that had settled about the vicinity.
Elizabeth walked up, in quite a bad mood, with her father scurrying to keep up with her. The Commodore turned to them.
"Elizabeth, are you-"
"Yes! I'm alright! I'm fine!" she snapped back in a tone so perturbed and angry that the commodore found himself blinking back at her quite stupidly. "Go capture him!"
Norrington timidly nodded and went off after the pirate whilst she sighed and watched after him in frustration. Her father, (although slightly disappointed in her behavior), draped his coat on her shoulders, understanding her frustration after such a fright as what she had just been through. "Here, dear … you should wear this."
"Thank you," said quietly, pulling the coat closer about her shoulders. She looked out at the streets of Port Royal once more for a moment, thinking quietly to herself. Finally, she turned back to her father, "And let that be the last of your fashion advice, please."
There was difficulty in finding Jack. It may have been a trick of the fog but he had presumably just disappeared. Regardless, Gillette's men went to where they believed they saw him go: a corner where the blacksmith's shop and local pub was located. He wasn't there. Looking around, they saw the pub atop a short staircase. Perhaps he thought he could blend with the crowd? They decided that they could go there and needn't look in the forge, for it was always locked. "Search upstairs. Look lively, men."
They searched the area and found nothing. So, they continued on towards another part of town. A sword that was clutched in a statue's hand withdrew on its own and Jack stepped out from his hiding spot with grin on his face. They were so ignorant.
They crossed the street again and Jack felt his blood run cold. All he needed was for one of them to look to the side and he'd be gone- they were way too close. He looked at the area about him and noticed the door to his left. The sign above the door read the word Brown and had a hammer and anvil. He tried the door. It was open! He sighed with relief as he stepped into the small establishment and shut the door behind him, unnoticed.