AN (1/14): I'm so sorry it's taken me so long to get this up here...I've been having a very hard time writing. School is awful...and I couldn't think of anything I wanted to say...and I've been learning too much about how other people write things, and I get caught up in syntax and crap...
Oh...the dialogue, when Jack is being kicked off the Pearl between Jack and Barbossa? That's from the Pirates of the Caribbean game boy game...
And...good luck tomorrow, Johnny!
Oh...one last thing. If anyone can tell me where I have a reference to cereal in this chapter, I'll put you into one of my stories...
Chapter 25: Marooned
"Ye aren't interested in knowin' me more fittin' punishment?" Barbossa asked softly, clucking his tongue against his teeth after several minutes of hateful silence. "I'm surprised in ye, Jack Sparrow. You really shouldn't take this so hard."
"How d' ye sugges' I take it, then?" Jack asked sarcastically when he'd finally found his voice again. Did Barbossa have to taunt him like this? It was just making his resolve to get revenge stronger.
"Well, more like a captain. Or even a pirate. Your soft ways are too lenient for a pirate, Jack." Barbossa smiled and stood, grabbing an apple from a worn barrel in the corner across from Jack and sitting back down. He tossed the green piece of fruit back and forth between his weather-worn hands, apparently amused by the whole situation. Jack got the distinct feeling that Barbossa would like to see him in bars for the rest of Jack's life. The irony of the situation wasn't lost on either man. Jack was imprisoned on the one thing that brought him true freedom. Poor Jack.
"Thanks," Jack replied with a heavily sarcastic smile that quickly mutated into a bitter frown. This was just horrible. How was he supposed to react? He had no weapons, for Barbossa had taken everything from his effects but his broken compass. While he could throw it at Barbossa, Jack doubted it would do anything to stop what was happening or make the compass suddenly work. Though...it could be fun...no. Barbossa would just smirk, if he reacted like a normal man.
Barbossa shook his head slightly, frowning at Jack for quite a long time as the apple hopped between his hands. This wasn't going exactly how he'd pictured it. Of course, Jack was an odd fellow, so why had he expected the usual tears and vows of revenge? Shaking his head again, Barbossa slowly got up from his seat. "Got what ye deserved, Jack," was all he said before leaving the room.
A few hours later, near sundown, Barbossa reappeared in the room with Nipperkin, Kaman, Scratch, Dog Ear, and Jacoby. "Tis time for yer reckoning," Barbossa said with faint derision as Dog Ear and Scratch unlocked the brig. Jacoby and Kaman stepped inside the little cell and forced Jack to his feet, certainly not using any gentleness as they coldly contemplated their former captain. They roughly pulled him out of the cell and up the cells. It unnerved the four accomplices because Jack said nothing in complaint or anger as they reached the decks of the Pearl. But they weren't about to say anything to Barbossa, for the look on his face was one of complete triumph.
The sun was slowly setting to the West, leaving brilliant shades of red, orange, violet, and pink as it slowly made its way to warm other parts of the earth. Maybe it didn't want to witness the unfolding scene, for it seemed to be going faster than it had the night before. Before the mutiny, before the evil head of revenge reared itself in front of Jack. He watched mutedly as the sky progressively darkened, wishing he could just wake up from this horrible nightmare. But he couldn't wake up. This was really happening.
Kaman shoved him next to the railing near a plank of wood that'd been specially set up for this purpose as the Pearl bobbed peacefully up and down in the waters near a small island, completely unaware of the turmoil up on her decks. Not many men had the privilege of saying they'd been forced to 'walk the plank'. It involved three or four forced steps and a threat of death to make a man actually want to jump into the oft-times shark-infested reefs. Who knew what sort of danger lurked in the briny depths near an island? Besides...what awaited a man banished to an island wasn't all that pretty. Starvation or suicide. That was the only way off islands as remote as this one.
Jack mutely gazed at each of his crew after Kaman left him next to the railing. Barbossa would inevitably want to gloat more. The disgust, hatred, and betrayal in his eyes was strangely muted, even when he saw Bootstrap standing next to Skip in the back of the crowd. Of course Bootstrap wasn't saying anything. He wouldn't stick up for Jack. No one cared what happened to him. No one in the whole world. He was losing his reason for living, and no one cared.
"Well, Jack! I'm afraid your career as a pirate has been a rather short one." Barbossa smiled after shaking his head lightly, as though he thought it was a bad thing. Seven years as captain of the Pearl really wasn't all that short of a career. Of course, when compared to Barbossa's life on sea...it was a mere pittance. Jack was reasonably sure that Barbossa'd been a pirate at least twice as long as Jack had been. "I am captain of the Black Pearl. No one challenges my authority."
The crew nodded in the affirmative, sending little shivers of pure spite racing down Jack's back. He almost felt like throwing up. How could men change loyalties so fast? Sure...he'd been rather distant for the past few months...but he was still a good captain, right? The look in Kaman and Nipper's eyes was enough to squash that thought in his mind. Best to react with his characteristic good humor, right? "You're evil and cruel, Barbossa!" That hadn't come out the way he planned. He sounded like he actually cared...hmmm...maybe he did actually care. He cared a lot. This was his life, and Barbossa was stripping it from him like some sadistic jerk stealing candy from a helpless child.
Barbossa smiled slightly, curling his lips up over his teeth in a most unpleasant display of their rather decrepit state. Tooth decay was a common companion to pirates. That's why Jack had so many gold caps on his teeth. That, and he often chipped his teeth in battle. "How kind of you!" The words were mocking Jack's pain. Everyone on the crew could tell that he really didn't like the insult but was amused by it nonetheless. The sarcasm was not lost on even Ragetti, the dunderhead who was staring blankly between Barbossa and Jack with his real eye resembling the wooden one he had in. "But sadly...there's no time for a pleasant chat!" Barbossa's eyes hardened as the sarcasm left his voice completely and he pulled out a pistol, cocking it and aiming it at Jack's head. "Get walking!"
So forcefully said...oh, what Jack wouldn't give if he could just spit in Barbossa's face and talk to his crew...unfortunately, he now had a gun pointed at him. "But..." he knew it was a futile gesture to say anything, however, for Kaman suddenly stepped up and slapped him across the face, turning him to face the little plank of wood that would bring about his doom. How could he live without the gentle rocking of the sea while he walked about his beloved ship? It just didn't seem possible. Jack had done many things that didn't seem possible...but this would definitely be the most taxing thing of all. He couldn't help but hope he'd eventually wake up and realize this was all a dream...Barbossa wasn't like this. Unless...well, the man had probably been acting around him for years now.
Barbossa's eyebrow quirked slightly, as though asking what the problem was. It wasn't all that hard to walk down a plank of wood and jump off and swim with bound hands to an island that would surely be his tomb. Not that hard at all. What was the man's problem? Didn't he realize he was unnecessary? A bad captain, that made bad decisions? He didn't deserve all of Cortez's gold. Or even a small portion of it.. "Walk the plank!" he said with a sneer. The eyebrow went back down to complete his scowl as he added, "Just like a real pirate!"
Like a real pirate? What in the world did Barbossa mean by that? Real pirates didn't have to walk the plank, when their crew mutinied. No...real pirates were blissfully killed so they didn't have to live with the whole 'I'm never going to see my ship again' thing he'd be dealing with in a matter of moments. Shaking his head lightly, Jack slowly walked towards the end of the plank.
"Wait...Cap'n Barbossa," Bootstrap said suddenly, stepping forward towards where Jack was preparing to jump into the water. Would he actually stand up for Jack? Had he suddenly realized that life with Barbossa as captain would be anything but easy? Jack couldn't hardly breathe as he turned slightly to better watch his one time best friend approach Barbossa.
"What?" Barbossa asked almost tiredly, turning his gaze from Jack to the tall man. He didn't lower his pistol, however, and his finger seemed eager to squeeze the trigger.
"Isn't it usually a custom t' give the man a gun wiv one shot, before marooning him on an island? So tha' 'e has a way out." It was a custom to do that very thing. You gave the man a pistol with one shot to end it before he had to starve to death. It was a gruesome way to go out...starving to death. Jack's heart plummeted, however, as he realized how serious Bootstrap was being. He was telling Jack to end his life, in effect. So...he had no friends. Ironic how today was March 15th. If Bootstrap didn't care about him, there was no point in doing anything but using the pistol to kill himself. Barbossa'd won. How humiliating.
"Ye know, Bootstrap, yer right," Barbossa remarked almost thoughtfully. He grinned maliciously and un-cocked the very pistol he was holding. "However...I think Jack needs some encouragement, t' leave 'is precious li'le ship behind." His tone was far more condescending than even the most heartless man would use against his token wife.
Jack smiled very faintly, though it twisted itself into a look of pure hatred as Barbossa tossed the gun over the railing. How he wished he could shoot the man with that pistol... Shaking his head, Jack took a deep breath and jumped off the plank. He would shoot the man with that pistol, if it was the last thing he did. He would not sleep until he had his revenge. Somehow he'd get off the island. He was Captain Jack Sparrow, after all.
Of course, thinking one thing about a person right before jumping into the water is a lot easier than actually doing anything to that one person. By the time Jack'd retrieved the pistol and had surfaced again for air, the Pearl was on its way to that island that no one was even sure where existed. He couldn't have shot Barbossa, even if he'd been the best shot in the world, for the gunpowder was now wet. Peachy...he couldn't shoot himself until that dried out. Cursing, Jack put the pistol in one of his hands and struggled to swim towards the small spit of land. It was rather difficult work, swimming with bound hands. He felt he deserved the struggle, so he didn't bother trying to untie the loose knots with his teeth.
Once he reached the island, he felt no better. If anything, he felt worse. It was a small spit of land, to be sure, and he doubted it'd take more than half an hour to walk around the entire thing. Sighing, he turned to look back out at sea. There he saw his ship peacefully bobbing away from him...shrinking into the distance towards fabled treasures of Cortez himself. Part of him hoped that there would be a curse, for it would serve those bloody men right. Jack still couldn't believe that Bootstrap had said nothing. He'd even suggested in a round-about way that Jack just commit suicide. Great friend, he was. Jack would never trust anyone again. Of course...Jack would never get off this bloody island.
Cursing, he took a step forward and fell to the ground, lightly breathing in the salty sand. He couldn't even kill himself yet...had to wait for that pistol Barbossa'd thrown in the water to dry. That could take days...days of him just laying here, unable to wallow in anything but self-pity and hatred. His world had collapsed on him, and his heart was aching. It would never be repaired again.
He lay there for several hours until the waters started tickling his feet and filling his boots as the tides came in. He wouldn't have even gotten up if the gun wasn't going to get wet. That would never do...he couldn't shoot himself properly with a gun with wet gunpowder. A strong side of Jack wanted to get up and swim towards the Pearl for revenge...but an overwhelming side of Jack knew he had to give up. There was no way he'd ever be able to stop Barbossa. The man had outwitted him, convinced his crew that he was unfit for anything...he was ruined. Even if he could get off this blasted island, there was no way he could regain the trust of a crew...
A bitter taste in his mouth, Jack slowly stood up and walked further inland, laying the gun and his compass next to a tree as he leaned against it and looked up. He could always hang himself...well, not really. They were all palm trees and had no branches. Perfect. He had to actually wait for that gunpowder to dry. How...depressing.
Sighing, Jack's hand found a pink shell in the grass near his body. His hands had always seemed to have a mind of their own, after all, and it soon started stroking the smooth finish of the decimated remains of a shell fish of some sort as he stared out at the ocean. The Pearl was long gone. His hope for the future was long gone. Even Captain Jack Sparrow couldn't make it out of this one...
There were exactly thirty-two trees on this island. More than he would've expected...but he'd counted them five times already. The listless man of yesterday had suddenly turned into a man with unlimited energy. As he saw it...the faster he made himself hungry enough to die, the sooner he'd be off this wretched island. Of course...he had no idea where he'd go, after he died. Maybe he wouldn't go anywhere...but he'd been raised as a good Christian, and had always been taught that he'd go to Heaven if he was good and Hell if he was bad. Obviously he really hadn't been all that good...but at least in Hell, he'd have company of other miserable souls betrayed by their best friends and told to die on some small godforsaken spit of land.
Frowning, Jack sat down next to the first tree he'd counted a few hours ago, near the east side of the island in about the middle. His throat was starting to get quite dry...but he hadn't noticed any water anywhere. The trees must only live off rain water...or managed to grow accustomed to the salty sea, because there surely wasn't any water bubbling up with life on the island. Maybe below the island...but he couldn't go there. His throat was already starting to get dry. Maybe the gunpowder was dry, now...
Wait a moment. That tree sounded funny. Jack blinked a few times and pulled his back straight, quickly knocking against the tree again. A slightly hollow noise reached his ears a few moments later. How could a tree be hollow? There was all sorts of stuff inside palm trees...wood, xylem, and phloem. They weren't empty. But this one sounded like it was. Curious.
He slowly stood up and knocked the tree again. Another hollow sound reached his ears. Someone had been on this island before...but why would they hollow out this specific tree? Perhaps it was those rumrunners he'd heard so much about. They used obscure islands like this one as caches. Maybe Lady Luck was shining down on him still...Jack doubted it, but it was always worth a try.
He took a few wobbly steps forward from the most hollow sounding part of the palm tree. There was another hollow sound...but it was coming from beneath his feet. Nearly shouting with glee, Jack dropped to his knees and traced over the ground. In a few moments, he found a square that obviously didn't belong there, as well as a slight handle. This was a cache...Fortune was smiling up at him. Grinning back down at the square as though it was Fortune, Jack lifted up the handle and actually shouted with glee when he noticed what was inside. Rum! And...it was fairly recent. Perhaps he could get off this island after all... Visions of revenge filled his head as he grabbed one of the brown bottles and popped the cork off. Well...if no one came, he could shoot himself after the food ran out. No worries. For now, he'd just enjoy the Caribbean sun on his forced vacation from his life. Death was always an option.
Wanda: Of course you have the time to finish! -snuggles- I've missed getting your reviews...honest, I have. You were with me at the beginning, an' then you just disappeared...no matter, though. Thanks for leaving a review!
Eccentric Banshee: Well, Sara, if you could stand Barbossa, you'd be glad he mutinied and left Jack on that island to go crazy...not that he wasn't crazy to begin with, of course. But he will be much crazier after this whole thing.
That is the question...if I'll continue or not. Since I had such a hard time writing this chapter...I'm going to vote in the favor of me not continuing for a while. He's going to be working through some major emotional stuff...and I'd really rather not deal with it. So, I'm taking a break from his past to work on the other two stories I've been neglecting...
I lurved Finding Neverland! Of course...I wasn't crying, because I'm not the type of girl that cries in a movie...but I almost cried. I'm seeing it again on Monday, with me mum. Can't wait. And I can't wait for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Looks more like the books than the old one does...Dahl had some serious issues.
Thanks for the support! -huggles and tosses cookie-
Alteng: Yes, Jack seriously gets himself into a lot of messes. Of course, I couldn't very well make his story end happy, ya know. That'd be changing the movie...and changing the movie is almost like changing the Bible. And I didn't really picture it happening the way I wrote it, either...but it slipped out of my fingers this way. Of course, I can't be accurate on everything I say, because Disney isn't going to use my fanfiction as a basis for his rather illustrious history, unfortunately...
Thanks for the review and constant support! Though, I think you should update your tale about Ragetti an' Pintel...those two are always a blast to hear about. -nods-
Aliana Archer: Barbossa is a weasel. And so evil that the devil himself spat him back out. Evil Barbossa. -stabs- He doesn't deserve the Pearl. And I did have a Merry Christmas...I hope you did too. Thanks for your review and support!
Jack: I don't think roses come in either black or green...I could do some research, I suppose...and yes, you did figure out the whole Barbossa and Rosalyn thing. I leave hints in my chappies, amazingly, to things that will happen in the future. I'm sorry it took me so long to update and that I haven't said anything to you at all...but I've been going through horrible writer's block and rather bad moods for the past few weeks...Thanks for the review, though.
darkmistylagoon: The prologue will all tie in, I swear. And we'll learn who gave Jack the small strip of paper with the bearings on it that caused him so much grief. The creepy man who ate the man who didn't like spiders will soon be kinda unmasked.
All good things must come to an end, Misty. And I did have to write it this way, or I'd be changing the story. And that's evil, changing the story... And...I really wish there was something I could do to make you feel better about your current situation, poppet...but I'm out of ideas. Thanks for reviewing, though.
CrazyPirateGirl: I couldn't end it with the last chapter. Nope...that would've been too horrendously long... And you can slap Barbossa now. I give you permission. He's a bona fide creep, he is. Thanks for the review and the encouragement!
sunkist3208: If only I could sell the stories, Whitney. I'd have to have a legal battle with Disney...so, I'm not ever going to try and get it published. But, you do have the original story of mine. So, if I'm ever a famous writer, you can say...ha! I knew her when she first started out. And I've got the handwritten copy of the first two chapters to prove it! Of course, I have two of the first chapter, oddly enough...dunno why I did that. Oh, wait, yes I do. For a while there, I was actually going to explain the relationship between Rosalyn and Richard in the prologue...but I obviously didn't.
Mutiny does suck. And the prologue will tie in. I have left some hints...and it won't be quite as shocking as you think it will be...
padme17: Thanks! I'm glad you enjoyed it!
orcachick2005: Well, that's because the first time you tried to leave a review, fanfiction was down. Evil fanfiction..
Barbossa did hate Jack's mother...but he was a man, and a lonely one at that...and I'm fairly sure, at first, it was sorta a rape thing...then, when he got what he wanted...he used her. I think that Barbossa convinced Rosalyn that she'd never see Calico Jack if he didn't drop word to visit her...
And as for that "contemptibly" thing...well, since Dreamweaver said it was spelled correctly, I assumed it was. Or maybe Dreamweaver said it was spelled incorrectly and I decided to make up a word anyway. I like making up words.
Earwax is disgusting. Which is why I chose to use that phrase..and earwax on toast sounds disgusting. -makes disgusted face to emphasize point-
They couldn't throw him overboard straightaway...it had to be at night. There's a line in the script (or maybe it was from the gameboy game) that said it was near sunset. Since the initial mutiny took place sometime in the morning after breakfast, I had to have time pass. Plus, they had to get near an island to drop him off... Thanks for the compliments. I like getting an over inflated ego.
And...since you were the first to leave your review, you get a loverly unicorn statue thingy that leans over the lip of a desk. Tis pretty and shiny.