Oh, how you all must hate me! I'm so dreadfully sorry. I'm such a slow writer. That's why I usually try to have a story finished on my computer before I start posting. To be honest, I don't really know why I didn't do that this time, except that I was so anxious to get this going.
I've started writing much more original fiction lately, which I have hopes of publishing in the not-so-distant future. So I won't be writing as much here. However, I do promise that I will make an effort to finish this story for you. It just might take a long time.
Well, be that as it may, here's chapter 3, along with my humblest apologies.
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Will glanced helplessly around him, watching the pirates fight each other and knowing that Barbossa's crew couldn't lose. Inside, he was kicking himself for not trusting Jack… but it was a bit late to be worried about that now. He had other things to worry about, like the pirates that were charging towards him. He raised his sword to defend himself, his thoughts of getting to Elizabeth replaced by thoughts of survival.
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Jack was surrounded, but the knowing smirk never left his face as he fought his former crew. All he had to do was hold them off. He smiled to himself as he thought of what revenge he had in store for his mutinous first mate.
"C'mon, mate, you can do better than that," he said with a laugh as Pintel charged him and missed, striking Bo'sun in the head with his sword and temporarily distracting the both of them. It was enough: AnaMaria ran up behind them and knocked both unconscious. He tossed her a distracted salute of thanks and kept fighting. Barbossa was trying to catch up to him, and it was all he could do to keep from fighting the false captain yet. That, he knew, would have to wait until a more opportune moment.
He risked a glance around to see how things were doing. Most of the crew had caught on to Jack's technique and were trying only to knock their opponents unconscious. Will, however, was struggling. Every time he struck what would normally be a killing blow, his opponent would laugh it off and keep fighting. The blacksmith was obviously running out of options.
Heaving a long-suffering sigh, Jack maneuvered his fight closer to Will's. When he was within shouting distance, he called, "Oy, Will! Knock 'em out, mate!" He wasn't certain that Will had heard until he saw the boy's opponent collapse. Will tossed him a nod of thanks and moved on to the next man. Jack grinned and returned his attention to the pirate in front of him. Perhaps they could make this work after all.
But these pirates wouldn't stay knocked out forever. And when they came to, they would be rather upset with him. Could he fight them off quickly enough that they stayed out for the whole fight? He didn't know, and he didn't want to find out the hard way that he couldn't. What to do, then?
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Elizabeth was having similar thoughts. She saw right away what Jack was doing, and she knew that it was their best hope. Her fingers itched for a weapon, but the gold and jewels that littered the cave floor were useless to her. The pirates were ignoring her, anyway; she was worthless if her blood did not lift the curse, and she wasn't a threat since she had no weapon.
Then her eyes lit on a chest full of beaded necklaces, and she got an idea. The pirates who were currently unconscious wouldn't stay that way for long, and the fight would end only when Jack's crew was too tired to continue. But if she could tie their hands before they came to, they would be helpless to do anything but watch as their comrades were defeated. Once all the pirates were unconscious, she and Will could escape on either the Black Pearl or whatever ship he'd come to her on, and leave Jack to deal with the rest. Even if Will couldn't sail the ship by himself, she could surely help him until they got to a nearby port for help.
She reached into the chest and pulled out a handful of the necklaces, pulling on them to test their strength. They seemed sturdy enough for her purposes. With a wicked grin, she crept over to the nearest of the unconscious pirates and quickly bound his hands. She tested her knots to ensure that they would hold, and moved on to the next man. Soon, she realized that it would be wise to bind their feet, as well, so she went back and did that. She took care to move quickly and quietly, hoping to avoid the attention of any of Barbossa's remaining crew.
That was all good and well until the first of the pirates woke back up. Elizabeth realized belatedly that it might have been wise of her to gag the pirates, too, or give them another solid knock on the head.
"Oy! What gives? Who tied me all up?"
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Hmm. That didn't go where I though it would go, but I think I like this better. This story is looking like it's going to be a lot shorter than the movie (maybe that's why they didn't do it that way) unless I do more with Will in Port Royal (which has nothing to do with Jack's revenge, honestly). It's up to you all to decide what you want me to do. Do I finish it when Jack sails off on the Pearl? Or do I put dear William through some hell in Port Royal?