If Will didn't know better, he could have sworn that Jack was avoiding him.
It was really rather blatantly obvious. The ship was one of the smallest Norrington had commanded-that was why Jack had chosen to steal it, after all-and it wasn't as though the pirate could just waltz off the ship and onto land. It had to be more than mere coincidence that every time Will sought Jack out, Jack had just left, was entirely too busy, or had otherwise disappeared in some way or another. And for those brief moments Will managed to be in Jack's presence, the pirate was always giving the younger man the strangest looks that left the boy feeling distinctly uncomfortable without there being an explanation for it that the younger man could see.
Will found it quite maddening. Miss Elizabeth's life was on the line and Will did not break Jack out of prison and destroy his reputation in Port Royal only to be kept in the dark.
Feeling very mistreated and full of righteous anger, Will burst out of the sleeping quarters and onto the deck. 'He shall not avoid me this time! I don't care if I have to search every inch of this ship!'
Jack was not standing at the wheel as expected; rather, he and most of the rest of the crew were gathered at the side of the deck staring out to sea. Face hardening with determination, Will stalked over to the captain. "Jack," he snapped. "I must speak with you. Now."
Will's voice cut through the collective silence of the rest of the crew like a cleaver. Jack didn't pay the blacksmith any mind at all, although a few of the other crewmembers looked at him as though he had committed blasphemy and Anna Maria shushed him harshly. Will was about to retort when a glance from the corner of his eye revealed the reason for the silence.
There was another ship, even smaller than the one Jack now commanded, off the port bough. By all appearances, the ship was whole and normal, save the minor detail of no visible crew. The night was exceptionally still, dark, and silent except for the gentle lapping of the sea against the ship's sides. Will was not a superstitious person, but the sight of the seemingly abandoned ship left him with chills, though he could not quite fathom why.
"It's a ghost ship, Captain," Gibbs was saying. Unlike Will, the old sailor seemed to believe in every superstition ever concocted. "We should raise anchor and set sail straight away, get away from the cursed thing."
Will could not read the emotion on Jack's face. The pirate captain was silent for several long moments, gazing out at the little ship intensely. "No," he said finally, his voice so soft that it seemed as if he were speaking mostly to his own self. "No. We shall board her."
Gibbs was rambling on about bad luck, but Jack was paying him no mind and neither did Will. Will Turner felt drawn to that ship. He was reminded of the story of Odysseus and the sirens who lured wayward sailors to crash into cliffs with the power of their song. There was nothing but silence tonight, but still the blacksmith felt the same irresistible pull that the doomed sailors must have felt. He could only hope he would not meet the same tragic end. Jack was absently making some excuse about raiding the ship for supplies, but Will knew that both he and the captain were going to board the strange vessel with or without the crew's consent.
Jack put Anna Maria in charge of organizing a boarding party. Will could hardly believe his good fortune. Given the captain's avoidance of him these many weeks, Will could only assume Jack would not have allowed the younger man on the mission. Anna Maria would have no such hesitation.
'Lucky for me I'm not superstitious like Gibbs,' Will thought, as he watched the abandoned ship bob silently in the pale starlight. 'Or I would think this stroke of fortune was entirely too convenient.'
Jack was so wrapped up in his own thoughts that he did not even notice Will was on the dingy until they were already halfway to their destination. Will could see that the pirate was plainly not pleased to see the blacksmith there, but he kept his peace. For his part, Will simply glared at Jack with willful defiance. Jack opened his mouth as if to speak, but the dingy bumped up against the ghost ship and the captain had more important things to worry about.
Will was one of the last to climb up the rope ladder to board. He had nearly reached the deck when Gibbs' voice wafted down to his ears.
"Saints be praised, Cap'n," Gibbs was saying, sounding as frightened as Will had ever heard him. "I told you this ship was cursed."
When Will finally reached the deck, he was nearly inclined to agree.
Half a dozen men lay dead beneath the moonlight, their bodies sliced to ribbons and leaving the deck awash with blood. Bile rose in Will's throat. He had never seen a dead body before, much less a viciously slaughtered one. He squeezed his eyes shut, but the image replayed itself on his eyelids-the dead men, mouths wide and gaping, shredded and bloody, their insides spilled on the damp wood. Will suddenly became aware of the stench, and the nausea overtook him. Stumbling, slipping in the blood, he barely made it to the side in time.
"Cap'n!" Gibbs was insisting. "Jack! The devil has been here. We should leave."
His stomach now empty, Will managed to gain enough control of wobbly legs to stand and look at the pirate captain. Jack's face was still blank as he surveyed the carnage, but after several moments, he nodded. "Yes," he said quietly, though he sounded less than certain. "There is nothing for us here."
The majority of the boarding party wasted no time in scurrying back down to the boarding boat. It was all Will could do to remain standing upright, even while supporting himself on the railing. Even so, the pull of this dreadful place would not lessen its hold on him. Will knew he should be running for the dingy, trying to leave the carnage behind him, steady legs or no. But even though his logical mind wanted to flee as quickly as possible, some irrational piece of him insisted that it was not yet time to go.
"You shouldn't have come, lad," Jack said, his voice sympathetic. He was the only one besides Will who had stayed behind.
It was the first time in weeks that Jack had really looked at him. Will felt suddenly ashamed for losing his composure, and unexpectedly touched that the pirate captain-whose face was still wearing a strange expression Will could not fathom-had chosen to personally stay behind. Will opened his mouth to try and salvage some of his dignity, when a shrill creaking sound cut through the night. Jack was instantly alert and Will felt his hands tremble on the railing. Their eyes locked. They were not alone.
Gibbs' shouts drifted up to them from the boarding boat below, but both Jack and Will ignored him. Something was moving, up the stairs from below deck, coming slowly toward them. And again, though the clearly sensible thing to do would be to flee to the dingy below, neither man moved for the ladder. Their eyes remained locked for a long moment where they both understood that, for whatever strange reason, neither of them would leave until they discovered who else was on this eerie ship. The shuffling came closer, and Jack had his sword in his hand instantly. Will followed suit, even though the blacksmith almost fell upon letting the railing go.
The doors to the quarters below deck opened and something emerged, shuffling slowly up the stairs, moving like no man Will had ever seen. Will gasped. The thing that emerged into the moonlight was like a creature from the blacksmith's worst nightmares-a walking skeleton covered in bits of decaying flesh and tattered clothing, covered in the blood of the sailors it had most definitely slain. Will's breath hitched in his throat and his pulse soared with panic. How could such a thing exist? Had they somehow managed to sail into hell itself? Why on earth had he volunteered to come here and why hadn't he left when he first caught sight of the bodies of the dead littering the deck?
Will looked at Jack, feeling helpless himself and hoping against all reason that the pirate would know what to do. He would never in his worst fears have predicted that Jack would drop his sword from nerveless fingers, his arm falling to his side. Jack's voice was strangled with too many emotions for Will's terrified mind to decipher. Captain Sparrow's face was the very picture of horror, though his eyes flashed with recognition.
"Bill?" Jack whispered.
And suddenly the creature found its speed to come stalking purposefully toward them and death seemed inevitable.
::Author's notes::
Sorry it took so long. I know, you guys who have been with me from the beginning are probably so sick of hearing that. *ducks*
althea & lila: Hey, thanks for the kind words! I hope your fingernails have grown back. ^_~
emeraldwolf: Ack! Work and school! I've graduated but I remember how crappy that was. No free time ever! Anyway, thanks for your continued support.
Cherrii: Thanks! As anyone who has been reading this from my first posting months ago can tell you, I always take forever to update. So sorry about that.
Wyall Jared: Send some of that rum this way! Thanks for the compliment on that line-especially since I wasn't sure about it when I first wrote it.
It was really rather blatantly obvious. The ship was one of the smallest Norrington had commanded-that was why Jack had chosen to steal it, after all-and it wasn't as though the pirate could just waltz off the ship and onto land. It had to be more than mere coincidence that every time Will sought Jack out, Jack had just left, was entirely too busy, or had otherwise disappeared in some way or another. And for those brief moments Will managed to be in Jack's presence, the pirate was always giving the younger man the strangest looks that left the boy feeling distinctly uncomfortable without there being an explanation for it that the younger man could see.
Will found it quite maddening. Miss Elizabeth's life was on the line and Will did not break Jack out of prison and destroy his reputation in Port Royal only to be kept in the dark.
Feeling very mistreated and full of righteous anger, Will burst out of the sleeping quarters and onto the deck. 'He shall not avoid me this time! I don't care if I have to search every inch of this ship!'
Jack was not standing at the wheel as expected; rather, he and most of the rest of the crew were gathered at the side of the deck staring out to sea. Face hardening with determination, Will stalked over to the captain. "Jack," he snapped. "I must speak with you. Now."
Will's voice cut through the collective silence of the rest of the crew like a cleaver. Jack didn't pay the blacksmith any mind at all, although a few of the other crewmembers looked at him as though he had committed blasphemy and Anna Maria shushed him harshly. Will was about to retort when a glance from the corner of his eye revealed the reason for the silence.
There was another ship, even smaller than the one Jack now commanded, off the port bough. By all appearances, the ship was whole and normal, save the minor detail of no visible crew. The night was exceptionally still, dark, and silent except for the gentle lapping of the sea against the ship's sides. Will was not a superstitious person, but the sight of the seemingly abandoned ship left him with chills, though he could not quite fathom why.
"It's a ghost ship, Captain," Gibbs was saying. Unlike Will, the old sailor seemed to believe in every superstition ever concocted. "We should raise anchor and set sail straight away, get away from the cursed thing."
Will could not read the emotion on Jack's face. The pirate captain was silent for several long moments, gazing out at the little ship intensely. "No," he said finally, his voice so soft that it seemed as if he were speaking mostly to his own self. "No. We shall board her."
Gibbs was rambling on about bad luck, but Jack was paying him no mind and neither did Will. Will Turner felt drawn to that ship. He was reminded of the story of Odysseus and the sirens who lured wayward sailors to crash into cliffs with the power of their song. There was nothing but silence tonight, but still the blacksmith felt the same irresistible pull that the doomed sailors must have felt. He could only hope he would not meet the same tragic end. Jack was absently making some excuse about raiding the ship for supplies, but Will knew that both he and the captain were going to board the strange vessel with or without the crew's consent.
Jack put Anna Maria in charge of organizing a boarding party. Will could hardly believe his good fortune. Given the captain's avoidance of him these many weeks, Will could only assume Jack would not have allowed the younger man on the mission. Anna Maria would have no such hesitation.
'Lucky for me I'm not superstitious like Gibbs,' Will thought, as he watched the abandoned ship bob silently in the pale starlight. 'Or I would think this stroke of fortune was entirely too convenient.'
Jack was so wrapped up in his own thoughts that he did not even notice Will was on the dingy until they were already halfway to their destination. Will could see that the pirate was plainly not pleased to see the blacksmith there, but he kept his peace. For his part, Will simply glared at Jack with willful defiance. Jack opened his mouth as if to speak, but the dingy bumped up against the ghost ship and the captain had more important things to worry about.
Will was one of the last to climb up the rope ladder to board. He had nearly reached the deck when Gibbs' voice wafted down to his ears.
"Saints be praised, Cap'n," Gibbs was saying, sounding as frightened as Will had ever heard him. "I told you this ship was cursed."
When Will finally reached the deck, he was nearly inclined to agree.
Half a dozen men lay dead beneath the moonlight, their bodies sliced to ribbons and leaving the deck awash with blood. Bile rose in Will's throat. He had never seen a dead body before, much less a viciously slaughtered one. He squeezed his eyes shut, but the image replayed itself on his eyelids-the dead men, mouths wide and gaping, shredded and bloody, their insides spilled on the damp wood. Will suddenly became aware of the stench, and the nausea overtook him. Stumbling, slipping in the blood, he barely made it to the side in time.
"Cap'n!" Gibbs was insisting. "Jack! The devil has been here. We should leave."
His stomach now empty, Will managed to gain enough control of wobbly legs to stand and look at the pirate captain. Jack's face was still blank as he surveyed the carnage, but after several moments, he nodded. "Yes," he said quietly, though he sounded less than certain. "There is nothing for us here."
The majority of the boarding party wasted no time in scurrying back down to the boarding boat. It was all Will could do to remain standing upright, even while supporting himself on the railing. Even so, the pull of this dreadful place would not lessen its hold on him. Will knew he should be running for the dingy, trying to leave the carnage behind him, steady legs or no. But even though his logical mind wanted to flee as quickly as possible, some irrational piece of him insisted that it was not yet time to go.
"You shouldn't have come, lad," Jack said, his voice sympathetic. He was the only one besides Will who had stayed behind.
It was the first time in weeks that Jack had really looked at him. Will felt suddenly ashamed for losing his composure, and unexpectedly touched that the pirate captain-whose face was still wearing a strange expression Will could not fathom-had chosen to personally stay behind. Will opened his mouth to try and salvage some of his dignity, when a shrill creaking sound cut through the night. Jack was instantly alert and Will felt his hands tremble on the railing. Their eyes locked. They were not alone.
Gibbs' shouts drifted up to them from the boarding boat below, but both Jack and Will ignored him. Something was moving, up the stairs from below deck, coming slowly toward them. And again, though the clearly sensible thing to do would be to flee to the dingy below, neither man moved for the ladder. Their eyes remained locked for a long moment where they both understood that, for whatever strange reason, neither of them would leave until they discovered who else was on this eerie ship. The shuffling came closer, and Jack had his sword in his hand instantly. Will followed suit, even though the blacksmith almost fell upon letting the railing go.
The doors to the quarters below deck opened and something emerged, shuffling slowly up the stairs, moving like no man Will had ever seen. Will gasped. The thing that emerged into the moonlight was like a creature from the blacksmith's worst nightmares-a walking skeleton covered in bits of decaying flesh and tattered clothing, covered in the blood of the sailors it had most definitely slain. Will's breath hitched in his throat and his pulse soared with panic. How could such a thing exist? Had they somehow managed to sail into hell itself? Why on earth had he volunteered to come here and why hadn't he left when he first caught sight of the bodies of the dead littering the deck?
Will looked at Jack, feeling helpless himself and hoping against all reason that the pirate would know what to do. He would never in his worst fears have predicted that Jack would drop his sword from nerveless fingers, his arm falling to his side. Jack's voice was strangled with too many emotions for Will's terrified mind to decipher. Captain Sparrow's face was the very picture of horror, though his eyes flashed with recognition.
"Bill?" Jack whispered.
And suddenly the creature found its speed to come stalking purposefully toward them and death seemed inevitable.
::Author's notes::
Sorry it took so long. I know, you guys who have been with me from the beginning are probably so sick of hearing that. *ducks*
althea & lila: Hey, thanks for the kind words! I hope your fingernails have grown back. ^_~
emeraldwolf: Ack! Work and school! I've graduated but I remember how crappy that was. No free time ever! Anyway, thanks for your continued support.
Cherrii: Thanks! As anyone who has been reading this from my first posting months ago can tell you, I always take forever to update. So sorry about that.
Wyall Jared: Send some of that rum this way! Thanks for the compliment on that line-especially since I wasn't sure about it when I first wrote it.