Disclaimer: I guess Coaticue belongs to the Aztec people or her big bad self; I'm not sure which is "politically correct". Jack, Gibbs and the Black Pearl belong to the Mouse. (But who owns the Mouse? I wonder...) Everything else is mine, unless it isn't, whereas it would belong to someone else, who would most likely be me. Got it?
Hem Hem... See, it wasn't sooooo long a wait! See! I told you! sticks out tongue at unbelievers Any ways, where was I? Oh yes, the flashback thinge. That's it. Well, let's get down to it before I lose my train of thought...
The Protector Of The Relics
THE FLASHBACK
(Captain Jack Sparrow stands at the helm of the Black Pearl, freshly moored in a natural harbor of the dreaded Isla de Muerta. His dreaded Isla de Muerta. Wasn't nobody else gonna have it. It's his. His bloody island shaped like a bloody skull. As he stares off into the vastness of the his newest tenure, Gibbs calls to him from the other end of the ship.)
Gibbs: (calling to Jack from the small prepared boat.) The boat's ready Cap'tin!
Jack: (climbs in at the front of the boat.) Thank ya, Mister Gibbs. (They lower the boat to the strangely calm waters and rows to "shore", through the Graveyard of Ships. As they row, the crew has to keep turning to avoid the masts that stick out of the water at odd and unnatural angles, the old and rotted wood warping in ways no self respecting mast would twist into. The boat comes to a stop with at soft "nunk" inside the Treasure cave. Jack climbs out of the boat and strides up the natural stone steps, deeper into the room. Gold shines out from everywhere, Treasure calling softly to the men. The rowers follow him, elbowing each other in the ribs and whispering excitedly. The gold gleams in their eyes, but they're not moving till they get the get go from their Captain. Jack turns and looks back at his crew, fidgeting like children told to keep their hands in their pockets at a candy shop. He smiles and runs a finger over his beard. They really had done a swell job. The Pearl was looking better than it had in years, and they seemed to be very loyal, unlike a certain previous crew that will not be mentioned here.)(To the crew.) Ya can take a handful. (definitely.) But just a handful. I don't want ya weighin' down muh' ship. (As the crew starts to scamper off, he stops a man called Twelve Finger. He was given that name, not because he really had six fingers on each hand, but because he was so grabby that you'd thing he must have an extra one or two on in there for all the everything he always took.)(to Twelve Finger.) You, you take half a handful.
Twelve Finger: (makes as pouty a face as his profession will allow.) Yes Captain. (Jack releases him and he runs off to join his mates.)
Jack: (watches the crew for a minute before walking up to the great stone Aztec chest, the prize and curse of his island. Taking no heed of the noises behind him, he reaches his hand out towards the chest that has caused so much trouble, then stops. It intrigues him, but he doesn't want to touch it, for fear of the curse inside. Still, he wishes to open it. Something inside him pushes him forward.)(yelling over his shoulder to the pirates milling about behind him, all trying to get the item of the most value.) Go back ta the ship, yer done. Take the boat, there's plenty more for me outside. (He waits until the last of the footsteps die away before then running his hand over the pleasingly cool and smooth cover of the chest, then he pulls it sharply back.)(exclaims.) Damn! (Something had just pricked him painfully. He examines his bleeding finger before it in his mouth and gives the chest a look usually reserved for monkeys bearing his name. A tiny spike retracts from the lid, leaving a drop of his blood in the center. The spike must have had a jagged edge because it had ripped a hole of sorts in his finger.)(under his breath.) ...bloody lumpa Aztec rubbish...(The drop of blood shimmers for a second then is drawn into the cover with a quiet "shhump" sound. The entire thing shudders like it has a bad cold, then is still.)(takes his finger out of his mouth and stares at the chest.) That can't be good. (The chest shudders again, and then begins to shake violently. His blood reappears, oozing out of tiny holes in the cover and reforming into a sphere in the middle. It then rises up into the air, hovering about three feet above the chest. Jack backs away, his finger still dripping.) That really can't be good. (The blood expands, shimmering strangely. It bloats into a giant blob, and then begins to take shape, twisting and turning with the sound of mud being squished underfoot. Jack backs further away. Whatever's happening, he doesn't want to be to close when it does. He considers leaving the room, but his legs don't seem to want to function. The blood has more of a form now, like a giant rectangle with two skinny growths on the sides. There's chilling sloping sound, and details appear. The growths are arms, part the top half of the rectangle starts to look like a head, and a human skull on a chain materializes as a necklace. A sound like water being sucked up a straw thunders throughout the cave and everything snaps into place. A giant monster with two shining snakes facing each other for a head and a rather blocky body adorned by that horrible yet familiar necklace floats in front of him. It's skirt of snakes hisses. Somehow, he knows its name and whispers it, half to himself.)
Coaticue: (turns towards Jack and bellows something in a language he doesn't understand. It realizes that he's not comprehending and starts to glow once more, to take a form in which it could be understood.)
Jack: (squints at the glowing being before him. It suddenly shoots a beam of light at his head, knocking him off his feet and blinding him. When he stands up, rubbing the spots out of his eyes and swearing, the blocky monster is gone. Instead in front of him floats a beautiful young woman. He rubs his eyes again. He recognizes her. It's his... his mother. Well, not her exactly, but what he always imagined her to look like; long, flowing black hair, shining blue eyes, a smallish frame, and a sweet yet stern face. His father used to describe her to him. He never really knew her, as she died when he was young. He rubs his eyes once more.) ...Andrea? Mother? (She smiles strangely at him, then speaks.)
Coaticue: (hovering lightly above the chest.) No. I am Coaticue. (Her voice almost rumbles, filling the entire room.)(She looks directly in his eyes and he finds himself afraid.) You have summoned me by blood, human. Now you will serve my people.
Jack: (finds his voice.) The Aztecs? They're gone. (His unattended finger drips silently on the floor.)
Coaticue: (narrows her eyes at him and indicated to the stone chest below her.) Their legacy lives on. You will preserve it. What is your name? Speak truth. The Mother Goddess knows your heart.
Jack: (Mother Goddess? Maybe that's why she looks like his old mum. He considers giving a false name, but he figures that she's not lying about not lying and that it's not a good idea to piss her off. After all, he can scarcely forget what she did to his old mates. And what's this junk about preserving legacy? Whatever it is, it sounds like she's trying to get some free labor out of him. Not a very appealing thought.)...Muh name's Jack Sparrow. (Chooses his words carefully.)... What exactly do ...you mean by... preserving... stuff?
Coaticue: Sparrow? (She closes her eyes, puts her palms together, and holds up her hands. She opens her eyes and hands, and a sparrow escapes from her fingertips. Jack watches her watch it fly silently around room. She eyes it almost hungrily.) The Blood, once afflicted, yet fights for the People. Returns to the Land, claims to for It's own. The Protector of the Relics is now bound to the Fate, life everlasting, frozen in youth forevermore. A Protector, to guard the last Rite of the People, save it from plundering hands. An Heir will be born, and presented before the Master. The Protector continues on, though the Seed will not again produce Fruit. The Heir is bound to the Fate, frozen in youth. The time will Come, the Relics will Return to the People, and those bound will be released. (She stares down heavily at Jack.)
Jack: (is running over what he just heard in his mind, trying to sort it out. Damn metaphors! "The Blood," he figures, is his own, what the chest took from him. "People"... must be the Aztecs, talking 'bout herself there. "Land", that's either this island, or the Aztec land. It's the island she's talkin' 'bout, his bloody island. He certainly did come back. He gets the "once afflicted" part, but the only person he was fighting for was himself, not no "People". "Plundering hands," means no one can steal it. He's not completely sure about the "frozen in youth" bit, has got to do something with immortality. But this whole "Heir, Seed, Fate and Fruit" thing sounds a bit fishy. Something to do with a kid? What about his "Seed" after that? Cause if it's going to cut down on the pleasure of female company... didn't sound like he's getting anything outta the deal either. Screw this!)(He clears his throat and recalls his old line Barbossa stole from him.) Well, Madame, as interesting as your proposal sounds, I'm disinclined to– acquiesce– to your request. Good day.
Coaticue: (snatches the twittering sparrow out of the air and crushes it in her hand.) YOU WILL NOT DENY! (Jack thinks to himself, bloody hell, I've angered the gods.)(She points a finger at him.) YOU WILL OBEY, AND IN PART, YOUR AFFLICTION WILL BE YOURS ONCE AGAIN!
Jack: (Another burst of white light issues from her fingertip, striking Jack in the chest with the force of an anchor that's been dropped from the crow's nest. He feels his body shatter, fall for a moment of agony, then somehow mend, all in the blink of an eye. He hits the stony floor with a thud and lies there for second, his head pounding. Distantly he hears Coaticue call, "Rise, Protector of the Relics!" and he pulls himself up on unsteady feet, knees trembling. He looks up at Monster-God wearing his mother's face.)
Coaticue: (voice thundering.) Remember my word! You are bound by blood; protect these Relics of my People! (There is a flash of blood-red light, and she is gone.)
Jack: (looks around wearily. He can't believe what just happened. He walks up to the chest and lightly pushes down on the center with the palm of his hand. Some how, it starts to sink into the stone floor. He tries to grab it, but inside him something tells him he shouldn't, so he backs off. The chest disappears into the floor, leaving his handprint in the cold stone. He knows he only has to place his hand in the imprint to call the chest forth once again. Other than that, it will remain hidden. He turns and walks slowly out of the great room. He finds an old boat, probably left over from Norrington's men. He rows out over the water, the setting sun drifting lazily below the horizon. Before he knows it, he's back on the Black Pearl, waving away Gibbs's questions as he drags himself to his room. He crawls in his bed and falls asleep, head too full of questions to think straight.)(Jack wakes up in a few hours, completely refreshed. He must have really been drinking, because he had had some sun-baked dreams. His head was swimming with Aztecs Gods, Protectors of the Relics, and his mother. Strange stuff! As he looks around the room, stretching and yawning, he gets the shock of his life. His hand, which he had been leaning on, was illuminated in a patch of moonlight. And it was... skeletal! He quickly withdraws his hand from the light and examines it closely, but it turns back to normal as soon as it gets out of the moonlight. That was no dream! That Coaticue bitch cursed him, just like she cursed his old mates. Heart racing, he pinches his arm as hard as he can.) DAMN! (It hurt! Wait... it hurt? Wasn't he not suppost to be able to feel? Excitedly, he gets up and rushes over to his desk, pulls out a hidden bottle of rum, and downs a mouthful. Great! He's never been so trilled that something didn't turn to ash in his mouth. One final test. He closes his eyes and thinks about all the wonderful ladies of Tortuga and all the wonderful things they do. After a moment it becomes clear that all the pipes are working, and at a hundred percent plus, too. He takes another swing from his bottle and catches a glimpse of himself reflected as he lower it. He looks, different somehow. There's something not quite the same in that rum reflected image. He gets up, and after rummaging through his belongings for a while, produces a small mirror. He hastily wipes it off and studies his reflection. He looks younger. He looks good. Really good. He drops the mirror and inspects himself for old scars, finding none. He draws a deep breath, then stops, noticing something. There's something wrong with his breathing. It's... unusual somehow. He releases it and takes another breath, holding it. After about five minutes, no problem, he lets go. Not that he needed to, but because his suspicions were confirmed. He didn't need to breathe. He smiles. Suddenly the world seemed like it wasn't big enough. He was going to have fun with this.)
END OF FLASHBACK
WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!! I think I had fun with that last part. Jack sure did. gets attacked I wanted to put a bit more in about the "pipes working," but I've got self-control. I hope that answered some questions. If you are still confused, just ask! Big giant thank-yous to everyone who helped out and reviewed, you know who you are. Go ahead, feel warm and fuzzy inside!! It's fun! I meant to get this out sooner, but the final touch ups took longer than I thought. Please review on your way out, I want to know what you think. This wasn't my favorite kind of chapter to write, as it was all explainy and stuff. Not my best work, I know. The next one will probably be like this too, but I'll get back to what I do best by chapter eight. Ya see, I like the funny ones better. Oh well!
More when I write it,
Cela
E/N: I am so sorry about my sister. Really. I didn't know she was so... naughty. She'll be taken care of immediately, I promise! drags Cela off, ignoring her protests after depositing sister in Ada's office Not that I mind, mind you. Lol. Go Jack! waves little flag I love him... and he's gorgeous. looks over and sees other family members staring glares What? they either look away or roll their eyes mutters about stupid family ANYway... enough about me! Hope you enjoyed it! I restrained from any other E/N's I hope you noticed lol.
Mela, Vana