A/N: Thanks to everyone who reviewed! 333

Disclaimer: checking mail No, no, no, NO, no…darn. Still no paperwork saying I own PotC. Mail must be slow…


Chapter 2- Pirate Invasion

The pirate ship was now right there. The crew of the Dauntless busied themselves by running frantically about the ship trying to figure things out on their own. A few attempted to wake up the Commodore. Everyone was shouting. Suddenly a cannon blast came from the pirate ship, which rocked the Dauntless and sent Jennessa in somersaults across the deck.

Whoa. Now she was scared. And where was Elizabeth?

Elizabeth, who was struck with a rather severe case of insomnia, (and an annoying case of I'll-snoop-around-around-a-bit) was in the ship's brig. You know, the jail. No one was in there. Elizabeth was just slowly pacing about when she heard a shrill shriek that sounded like a little girl (the Commodore) and some mention of a pirate ship. She looked out the porthole and saw it: the dark thingy pirate ship! Slow realization came to Elizabeth as she realized she had seen that ship before.

"I know that ship," she said. "It's the-"

Suddenly a blast from the pirate ship rocked the Dauntless, sending Elizabeth into an open jail cell on the other side of the deck. As the Dauntless rocked back into place, the cell door closed.

Elizabeth tried to open it. It was locked.

"Bloody pirates!"


As Jennessa tried to shake off the effect of her previous gymnastics routine across the deck, she heard shouts and other scary pirate sounds. The pirates were coming on board the ship!

"Grr!" said one, a bit shorter than all the rest. "We'll be taken this ship fer ourselves!"

"Arrr!" said another, brandishing a very sharp looking cutlass covered with what looks like rust…or dried blood. Eek! "I be takin' no prisoners!"

Gulp! Scary, ain't it?

Jennessa tried to calm down. Okay, think rationally. It's not as hopeless as it seems. There are many pirates attacking the ship. The Commodore is knocked out. Elizabeth is doing God knows what. The other officers seem to have forgotten me. I'm on a ship, and the only way off is to jump into that dark, deep water that I have been staring at for most of this trip.

Okay. I'm wrong. It is hopeless.

Suddenly she felt a large, hairy, dirty hand grab her and a sharp knife pointed at her throat.

"And what do we 'ave 'ere?"

Jennessa gasped, trying to think of something to say.

"Um…nothing. Nothing at all. You see a mirage."

The pirate blinked and looked confused.

"What?"

"I am a figment of your imagination. You've had too much to drink. Go continue fighting and raiding the ship."

"Errr…alright. I guess I have had too much ter drink."

Jennessa breathed a sigh of relief. She wondered if all pirates were that stupid.

Another blast hit the ship, lighting up the darkness. More pirates were coming onboard. All around Jennessa was chaos and fighting.

Jennessa tried to find a way below. Maybe if she could get her father's sword…

Thud! Jennessa ran straight into another large, scary looking pirate.

"AHHHHHHH!" she screamed

"ARRRRRRR!" he screamed back.

"AHHHHHH!"

"ARRRRRR!"

"AHHHHH!"

"ARRRRR!"

"AHHHH!"

"ARRRR!"

"AHHH!"

"ARRR!"

"AHH!"

"ARR!"

"AH!"

"AR!"

"AH…oh, forget it! I'm loosing my voice here!"

He grinned menacingly, showing his crooked and yellow teeth. He laughed and Jennessa caught a whiff of his breath.

"Whew! Why do you bother to carry around a sword? You could kill people with your breath alone!" Jennessa said as she struggled to gain some fresh air back into her body.

"Arr! And you be needin' to learn some manners!" He took hold of Jennessa. She struggled but couldn't get out of his grasp. Panicked, she did what she saw her Auntie Mary do to the "con artists in the towne shoppe"…kick 'em way down there.

"Owww!"

The pirate dropped Jennessa and kneeled down in agony. Then Jennessa made a run for it.


One of the pirates hobbled on board, scratching his beard and looking about. He drank the last few drops of his gin and tossed it over the side of the ship.

"Ay, a fine night to be taking a ship such as the Dauntless!"

Among the chaos of shouts and sounds of clicking swords and firing guns, he was able to hear the brief conversation of two officers.

"Sir! What do we do about the passengers?"

"We must locate Miss Swann and her friend and get them below! We cannot have a chance of them becoming causalities of this…"

Boom! A blast interrupted the last bits of conversation. But the pirate had heard enough.

"Miss Swann? As in Elizabeth Swann? I have to tell the captain! I 'ave to tell him…"

Whack!

"Arr! Sorry about that, Gibbs!" said another pirate, who had mistaken the other for an officer and had hit him with a large plank. But Gibbs was out cold (just like the Commodore! Who else can I knock out? hehe This is fun!)


Jennessa was running, trying to find a way below decks, when she saw two other scraggily looking pirates running towards her.

"Oh no, not more pirates!"

There was no way of escape…except up.

She struggled to remember all the things her father had taught her about ships as she attempted to climb the ropes to the crow's nest. Jennessa's shoe fell back to the deck as she slipped on the rigging. The pirates were climbing up behind her and seemed to get closer and closer with each second!

Jennessa reached the beam at the top of the sail. She breathed in a nervous gulp of air and closed her eyes. She had done this before. You could do it again.

Jennessa stepped carefully onto the beam, gaining her balance. Visions of days spent long ago with her father onboard giant ships come back to her memory. Days spent playing on beams such as this.

Only now it was life or death.

"Come back here lass," said one of the pirates, who looked very intimidating. "I won't be hurting ya. Just come back 'ere like a nice lass."

Jennessa looked at him wide-eyed and shook your head. She moved further across the beam.

The second pirate joined Jennessa on the beam. He didn't say a word, but the parrot on his shoulder squawked, "Walk the plank! Walk the plank!" The pirate nodded in agreement and to Jennessa's horror stomped on the beam, shaking it under her feet.

Jennessa's chest clenched up as she lost her balance and began to fall. Everything seemed to go in slow motion. The smiles on the pirates' faces, the crossing of swords and the firing of pistols going on the deck below, the movement of the ship in the murky waters. Jennessa saw her hands fly into the air, and for a last attempt reached for the rope hanging on the sail.

Life was set to motion again and Jennessa hung on for dear life to that rope, but the pirate with the parrot lunged out at her with his sword and…bloody hell…cut the rope! Jennessa reached out for anything that was there…which happened to be the sail. She slid down the sail while proceeding to tear it to shreds and fell back onto the deck. Jennessa looked about, trying to find some way to escape. Then she saw it! The door to the captain's quarters was open! If she could just run fast enough, maybe she could reach it and hold out the fort!

Jennessa tried to make it to the open door. Just a bit further…

"Oh no ya don't, lass!" shouted a voice. Jennessa felt herself taken hold of by two strong hands. She struggled to get loose, but it was useless.

"Let me go! I demand you let me go at once! I'll have the entire British navy sent after you, so help me!"

"Oh, you be having the entire British navy after me, you say? Well, not after you be meeting with the captain, lass."

"Sailor! I believe you mentioned my name?" shouted a voice.

"Arr! Captain! That I did! Look!"

Jennessa was forced to turn around towards the side of the ship, where she could see another pirate coming on board the Dauntless. Apparently he was the captain, but Jennessa couldn't quite see him in the dark.

"Ah! Did you find more rum?" said the captain.

"No. Something better, captain."

"Better than rum? Let me see!"

The captain came into the light. Jennessa could see him better now. He wore a tri-corner hat and had a crazy head of black dreadlocks protruding beneath it, filled with items such as bones and beads. She caught a glimpse of a red bandana. On his chin were two hanging braids. His face was tanned and dirty and his eyes were marked with dark charcoal, which brought them out…amazingly beautiful brown eyes. He grinned at Jennessa, teeth gleaming like gold…wait, they were gold! Well, at least some of them. He was unlike any pirate Jennessa had ever seen. And if she didn't feel like she was going to pee her pants from fright, she'd think this guy was kinda…no, really…well, hot!

"Aye! I have to agree mate. That is a bit better than rum!"

He stepped a bit closer to Jennessa.

" 'ello love," he said. "And who might you be?"

"Jen…Jennessa Dowson," she squeaked. He laughed.

"A bit frightened, are you, Jennessa?"

"No," she managed to get out. "And it's Miss Dowson to you!"

"What do we do with 'er, captain?" said the pirate who held Jennessa.

The captain stepped closer again and put his face right up to hers. He smelled very much like rum. Jennessa tensed as he took his cutlass and brushed it up against her hair and pointed it at her throat.

"I know exactly what we can do with her."


Ooooo, what is going to happen? Read and find out! And please review!!!