A/N Thought this fic had sunk, huh? Well think again. I have rescued it from Davey Jones Locker! ahem anyway please read and review!

Chapter Twenty Nine

Meanwhile a figure had stepped up on to the deck of the Death. He stood watching the fight, a cruel, sneering smile splashed across his rotting face. A monkey perched on his shoulder, fidgeting noisily.

Gibbs had stopped fighting, he looked up and saw the figure towering above him. Most of Jack's crew stopped what they were doing. Annamaria's eyes widened but she did not make a sound.

Below, hiding in her cabin Jo wondered why the fighting had stopped. And Ella, standing by the toppled main mast grinned. This was it.

Barbossa's crew took this moment of surprise to gain the advantage. Annamaria screamed as Gibbs fell to the deck. Cotton ran forward to avenge his death, slicing through Gibb's killer with one swift movement. Many of the crew were dead, but there was something underhanded about this death. It was like killing a man whilst his back was turned. It was sneaky, cowardly, and the thought of it sprung Jack's crew back into action. Rosie picked up a dead man's gun and shot any one who got close.

The rest fought well, but there were too many, and they were being overpowered. Trapped in a corner.

Eventually Cotton saw winning would be impossible. He threw his sword down. Not to save his own life, but that of the crew. Each one followed suit, last to do so was Annamaria. She stared round angrily looking for Jack. They had lost, and it was because he wasn't here to fight for them.

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Jack opened a door to one of the cabin's peeped in, took a quick look round and withdrew, before moving on. The ship was almost empty, just a few men lurking round, easily removed. Jack waved his sword through the air, as he opened the next door. The sight made his eyes widen with delight. Piles of gold, valuable stones, gems, expensive clothes, everything glittered. He stepped into the cabin, and collapsed on to his knees. His hands fondled the silken material, the gold and the stones. He examined them, calculating the value in his head. It was then he remembered Alex. He forced himself up, grabbed a handful of gold, pocketed it, and moved on.

"I'll be back." He whispered to the empty room.

The next provided a bigger prize. Alex was sat on the floor. Jack's eyes roved the boy. He hadn't seen him for a long time, since he had ran from Port

Royal. He was thinner, and less eager to talk. His face was set resolutely into a grim expression. Jack stood in the doorway. He didn't say anything. Neither did Alex. The silence swallowed up time, and Jack leaned against the wall, not quite sure how long it had been since he had left the Pearl.

Alex stared up at him, clearly remembering their last meeting. "Where's Rosie?" He choked at last.

Jack didn't answer for a moment or two. "She's back on the Pearl." He said, at last.

Alex nodded to show he understood.

The awkward silence took over again. Jack's hand strayed to his pocket where he had concealed the gold from the other cabin. He desperately wanted to go back. Then in the silence, a realisation hit him, no longer could he hear the shouts of battle, the chinking of metal on metal, sword on sword. The fighting had stopped.

As Jack looked up, Alex took the opportunity to rush past him and scarper from the room. Jack watched him go, but didn't try to catch him. Instead he made his way back up to the top. As he resurfaced on the deck, he was shocked to see his crew throwing down their weapons. He surveyed their unhappy, miserable faces. Annamaria's shone with anger, but her cheeks were tear stained. She had shed tears for Gibbs. Not that Jack knew it at the time. Just as he approached the side of the ship, Barbossa turned to face him. Jack hid his surprise, if in fact he was surprised at seeing Barbossa again. The pirate grinned. "Jack." He said in his sneering voice.

Jack didn't reply, instead he looked across the short stretch of water at his ruined ship, and trapped crew. The Black Pearl was in trouble. Her main mast had broke in two, and the floor was shattered. There were several holes in the side, scar wounds, battle wounds. And yet she still stood proudly, defiantly. His heart ached to see her in such a condition. And then there was the crew. Rosie's distraught face, Cotton clutching a wound on his shoulder, Annamaria leaning against the wheel in need of support. Their weapons lay rejected on the floor. They had surrendered. He should have been there. He should have been fighting with them.

It was only about a yard of sea separating him from his ship, a yard of water and Barbossa. Most of his crew still lingered on the pearl rounding up the prisoners. As he watched, one of the men emerged from below dragging Jo along. She kicked and screamed, but he was too strong for her. He threw her down, and she joined the others; trapped.

Jack watched.

Barbossa smiled at him. "You see Jack, you ne'er could beat me."

At that point Alex ran to his father's side. He stood confidently, compared to how Jack had first viewed him.

"Alex!" Rosie screamed, stepping forward. Ragetti grabbed her violently and pulled her back, she screamed.

"I knew we couldn't trust you." Jack said, looking down at the fifteen year old boy. "I told Rosie time an' time again, what a traitor you were."

Alex looked down, closing his ears to Jack's shameful words and his mother's screams.

"How did you come back?" Jack demanded.

The smile on Barbossa's face grew. "You always said I had a knack for making a deal, Jack." He said, in his simpering voice.

Alex looked across, searching the Pearl's woebegotten crew for Rosie.

"Meaning?" Jack asked.

Barbossa shook his head with a smirk. Rosie had clambered up, she stared across at her son. Her pleading face asked one question; why?

Jack drew his sword.

Barbossa shook his head. "I wouldn't do that if I was you Jack."

"Why not?" He demanded.

"Look across at your crew. . .you wouldn't want no harm to come to 'em." He said, in a clucking tone.

"You're dead."

Barbossa laughed. "Welcome to the Death, Jack. I think you'll find it a much nicer ship then the Black Pearl." He said, his eyes widening with mirth. He emphasised his words. "Bring 'em across." He barked to his crew.

Rosie, Annamaria, Cotton and the others were dragged on to the Death. Rosie wasn't the only one who didn't struggle. Her son's abandonment had killed her spirit. She just didn't care.

Barbossa turned to him. "Put 'em in the hold." He ordered. Then he turned to Ragetti, Pintel and Bo'sun. "Sink it."

Jack stepped forward gingerly. They were going to sink the Pearl.

"You made a deal wit' who?" Jack demanded to distract his attention.

"It's really Alex you should thank." He said, putting his hand on the boy's shoulder. "And Ella."

"Even professionals make mistakes." She said with a laugh. "Yours? Leaving me alive."

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The news of Gibb's demise reached Jack's ears, Jack turned round shocked. Young Ella stood behind him, a mischievous smile on her grubby face and the anger flashed across his face. It seemed he was ready to lunge at Barbossa, but both of his arms were held firmly by two of the crew. His men (and women) had been taken below and locked away in the brig, leaving Jack to face Barbossa alone.

Alex and Ella had sneaked off together, and were muttering under the crow's nest.

There was a massive explosion as the cannon ball struck, and The Pearl, the once majestic ship of the graceful Captain Jack Sparrow, blew up before his very eyes.

Words cannot describe the agony he felt then. It was the worse pain he had felt in his entire life, worse then the bullets that had just missed his heart, worse then the 'p' branded sharply into his arm, worse then the maze of scars that weaved their way up his arm, worse then all of them put together.

The Pearl had been his mentor, he had learnt so much aboard that beautiful vessel. She had took him under her wing, and taught him. Besides it was the first ship he had commandeered with the aid of Bill Turner.

The shards of timber floated softly on the violent ocean. Just a few splinters of wood, that was all that was left. All that was left of a life time of memories.

Alex stared up in disbelief, he knew how much Jack had loved that ship of his. He adored it with every fibre of his being. Ella wasn't smiling any more, the game had ended, they weren't playing on a board with counters and dice. They were playing with people, real people. She stared across at Barbossa as he watched the last of the Pearl sink beneath the waves.

"The end o' an era, eh, Jack?"

The crew were taken below decks and locked away. Jo whimpered from a dislocated shoulder. Men bled freely from their wounds. And Rosie cried bitter tears for Gibbs, for the Pearl, and mostly for Jack.

"What's going to happen to us?" Jo demanded.

Annamaria grabbed her. "You an' your Ella, you got us into this."

Jo broke free, and screamed from pain.

Annamaria threw her against the bars. "You're not worth it." She cried.

Rosie held onto the bars with her hands, watching as one of the men scrubbed the floor. He wasn't doing much, just brushing his mop absently against the floor. It certainly wasn't cleaning. She wondered what was happening to Jack on the top deck, what Barbossa was saying. She could almost feel his pain as he witnessed the sinking of the Black Pearl.

Jo snarled. "I'm worth a lot more then you!"

"No point in the storm." Cotton's parrot told them.

"Cotton's right," Rosie said. "Stop fighting. Just be thankful you're still alive. Jack might not be."

A/N I can't believe I sank the Pearl! I'm so sorry Jack…