Ch. 6

Will and Jack moved silently through the caves, alert to any sound. "It's too quiet," Will whispered. "Surely we didn't beat them here?"

Jack shook his head. "Impossible. They had a two-day head start. It's far more likely that we're walking into a trap," he replied cheerfully.

"That makes me feel better," Will muttered.

As they reached the main part of the cave, they were startled by a voice. "Leave it to you two to take the long way around," Blackbird said, leaning casually against the wall.

"Blackbird!" Will hissed. "What are you doing here?"

"I just have a feeling that I'm more needed here than on the ship," she replied.

Will shrugged. "I guess you might as well help since you're here," he said. "Where's that room you were talking about?"

Blackbird grinned. "I knew you'd come to your senses. It's-"

"Mr. Turner, glad to see you could make it," a cold voice interrupted. "And Captain Sparrow, I see you managed to make time in your busy schedule to pay us a visit. So kind of you." They turned to face the speaker. Jack blinked in surprise. He had first thought the man was Barbossa himself, but soon realized that he was much younger. As Blackbird turned around, their opponent's cruel expression faltered for a moment. "Raven?" he asked in shock.

"Nathan," Blackbird replied emotionlessly. "I'd hoped you might be dead by now."

"Missed you too, luv," he muttered before regaining his composure. "Mr. Turner, I regret to inform you that I cannot return your wife to you. The crew and I have grown quite fond of her, and we've decided that we'd rather keep her for ourselves. Not that she'd want to go back with you anyway…"

Will drew his sword angrily. "Over my dead body," he said fiercely.

The young Captain Barbossa smiled coldly. "That can be arranged," he said, snapping his fingers. His entire crew emerged from the shadows, swords drawn, and surrounded the three.

"Like I said, trap," Jack muttered under his breath.

"Will, go find Elizabeth," Blackbird whispered. "Jack and I will take care of the other guys."

Will hesitated, then slowly edged his way toward the chest of gold, which gave him a straight shot at the narrow passage. Only Jack noticed as his hand flicked backward before he took off running.

The pirates could only stare after him in surprise as he disappeared into the tunnel. "What are ye waitin' for?" Barbossa shouted. "After 'im!" Several men ran after Will while the rest stayed to watch Blackbird and Jack.

"Think you can take them?" Blackbird muttered.

"And leave you to fight Barbossa?" Jack asked incredulously. "He'll kill you!"

Blackbird smiled grimly and drew her sword. "No, I don't think he will." As she turned to face her opponent, Jack glimpsed something metallic tucked into her belt. He groaned to himself, trying to hide his annoyance. She didn't…

"It's been a while, Nathan," she said, slowly approaching the young Barbossa.

"Ten years, luv," he replied, keeping one wary eye on Jack. "Miss me?"

Blackbird gritted her teeth. "You have no idea…" she muttered, lunging at him suddenly with her sword.

Barbossa blocked the blow easily and grinned savagely. "So be it."

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Elizabeth was sleeping uneasily when a cold hand slipped over her mouth. She started to scream, but was silenced by a familiar voice. "Elizabeth," Will whispered gently.

"Will!" she said in surprise, kissing him passionately. "I knew you'd come for me!"

He surprised her by pulling away from the kiss. "Come on, we have to hurry," he said, helping her up. "Is the baby alright?"

Elizabeth shook her head. "I don't know," she replied. "Where's Marie?"

"Back on the ship," Will said. He motioned for her to follow him. "Let's get out of here."

As they reached the main cave, Will took in everything in one sweeping glance. Jack was keeping off most of the men while Blackbird took on Barbossa alone. She seemed to be doing well, but he could tell she was tiring. "Elizabeth, do you know the way out?" he asked quietly as they stopped in the shadows against the wall. She nodded. "I want you to get out of here as fast as you can. There should be two rowboats at the edge of the water."

"What about you?" she asked in concern.

Will started to say something, but changed his mind. "I'll be fine," he said plainly. "Now go!"

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Blackbird blocked another powerful blow and retaliated. "Very good, Raven," Nathan sneered. "Too bad you didn't fight like this ten years ago. Maybe I'd've kept ye." He unleashed a series of blows so fast that it took every ounce of Blackbird's concentration to keep up.

"I'd rather have died," she replied angrily. He took advantage of her distraction and feinted a blow to her left, only to reverse and manage to scratch her right arm. Furious, Blackbird lashed out with her left foot, knocking him to the ground. Barbossa desperately flung a handful of dirt and rocks at her in an attempt to gain time. As Blackbird involuntarily shielded her eyes, he pulled out his pistol and fired.

Blackbird stared down at the hole in her chest, seemingly in shock. Nathan smiled triumphantly. "You know, I'd rather hoped you'd be harder to kill than that," he taunted.

Slowly, Blackbird stepped forward into a shaft of moonlight, revealing a skeletal form. "Well, I'd terribly hate to disappoint you, mate," she said grimly.

Nathan looked from Blackbird to Jack to Will. Grinning, he slowly stood up. "Y'know, I was just gonna kill the three of ye, but I think an eternity of cursed existence suits my purpose much better." Still grinning, he and his crew slowly disappeared into the darkness surrounding them.

A/N: Plot twist! I shall expound upon it in the next chapter!

A/N: Okay, I'm not understanding how some people get 100+ comments on their stories! Thanks to my few faithful readers/reviewers, but tell people! The only reason I post my stories here is to get feedback beforeI submit them to sites. The offer is still up for the 10th reviewer (yes, I'm that desperate), so review!