Disclaimer: The characters and concepts in this story are the property of Walt Disney. This is an amateur writing effort meant for entertainment purposes only.

Author's Notes: This chapter is named after a fantasy novel which I've never read. However, it seemed to suit as a ship's name, so I used it. I apologize to Sara Douglass, the original author of the book for using it. But, if it's any consolation, it's kind of free publicity.

Chapter Three: The Wayfarer's Redemption

In the dim lamplight of his cabin, Jack unfolded the map over the surface of his desk, tossing off anything that obstructed his view. The frail piece of parchment had been folded now for more than ten years without another thought. He had assumed that both time and chance would eventually reunite the shattered pieces once more, and when he met the scallywag who held the missing fragment, he would get him good and drunk before stealing it and sailing off into the night.

And though there had been many a drunken night spent by the illustrious Captain Jack, none of them ever contained the appearance of the missing map piece. Whoever his father handed it over too was probably as far from the Caribbean as they had ever been, but hell or high water, he was going to get himself out of the mess he now found himself in – with his head still attached to his shoulders.

Scanning over the map piece for the first time in a long time, Jack found himself lost amidst several small passages of writing he didn't recognize as English. Not that it would have helped him much anyways. He couldn't read to save his life, and at that moment the statement was very much a literal one.

Still, he knew that there was some kind of mark on the map, a clue of sorts that his father had left for him so that when the day came that he would finally pursue such a grand fortune. On the bottom right-hand corner of his piece were two symbols: one he recognized, the other he didn't.

His father's symbol was the first. It was a small black shape made up of a fish tail and woman's body. "The mark of the mermaid, that one," someone once told him about his estranged parent, referring of course to his father's ship the Crystal Mermaid. "Bloody ghost ship – could take on an entire fleet before they even knew they were being attacked.

But the second, and surely the location of the missing half, was more obscure than the first. It was a black line of some kind, attached to a small square drawn messily beside the mermaid. A signature followed, but without the ability to read, he was lost. Have to find someone to translate…he thought, but went back to examining the sigil.

"Snake…" he said, trying to jog his memory of fellow pirate captains. "Serpent…no, no, not a serpent…sting! Rope…whip…Whippet! No, never mind he's dead. Sea Serpent Stevens! No, no, too young…who are you?"

A thought dawned on him then, one that caused a cocky smirk to spread across his lips. "Bootstrap…" he whispered under his breath.

Jack Sparrow emerged from his cabin with renewed zeal. "Where's that idiot Rags gone!" he barked, yanking a telescope from his coat as he did so. Staring out over the port side where Rags had descended from and searched the inky black waters for him. The tiny silhouette could be seen floating halfway between Tortuga and the Pearl, just far enough away for it to be safe for Jack to approach him.

The Captain needed no permission. He tossed the cover from a dingy and worked to get it seaworthy. Ana descended the upper deck.

"Have you lost your mind, Jack?" she shouted, but realized a split second too late it was a bad question to ask. Jack Sparrow most certainly was, out of his mind.

He wasn't listening…again; too distracted while he pushed the dingy off the port side and lowered her into the water. And he was quick about it too. By the time Ana had stomped over to him, he had jumped off the deck, into the waiting boat and slashed the ropes that held him to the ship.

"JACK!" she shouted. He started paddling for dear life in Rags' direction.

Ana turned back to the ship, "HELM TO PORTSIDE!"

Jack, however, was much faster. A single stroke propelled him several feet, while the Pearl was larger and more awkward in small spaces. She would have to make a full circle to avoid capsizing. In the meantime, he could have his short discussion with Rags and be ready to head off once more, this time knowing in which direction he needed to go.

Rags caught sight of the angry Captain in an instant, letting out a shriek like a dying animal. The oars bucked about as he attempted to quicken pace, but his emaciated limbs couldn't manage the speed that Jack could. He succeeded only in turning his dingy sharply, toward a vacant strip of beach outside Tortuga's reach. Jack smiled at his fortune, knowing that if Rags had managed to get to civilization, his plan would have failed miserably.

The two boats collided fiercely and Jack leapt from his to the other, pouncing on Rags like a wild cat would his prey. The man let out a frightened yelp for assistance, but Jack had a hand over his mouth to keep him from shouting anymore.

"I'm only going to say this once Rags, so listen well," Jack began. "I need to know the location of the Wayfarer's Redemption. And if you raise your voice anything above a whisper, your next client will be Davy Jones himself."

The barrel of his pistol was pressed tightly to Rags' chin to stave off any resistance from the smaller man. Jack slid his hand away from Rags' mouth and waited for a response.

"Bootstrap's ship? Why would you want that?"

He clamped his hand over Rags' mouth again and bent him over the edge of the dingy, allowing the back of his scalp to touch the surface of the water. "I will not ask you again Rags: where is the Wayfarer's Redemption?"

"It hasn't been in the Caribbean for years! Not since Bootstrap's murder!"

"Well then there's no use in keeping you dry, is there?" Jack asked, pushing Rags closer to the water. The smaller man could offer little opposition to Jack's strength. He just cried out again.

"NO! NO! WAIT A MINUTE! IT WAS SPOTTED NOT TWO DAYS AGO!"

"Where?" Jack hissed.

"Some Port to the west of Tortuga…"

"You're not helping," Jack reminded him by submerging him up to his eyelids.

"NO! NO! PORT…REGAL! PORT…ROYALTY! PORT…"

"Port Royal?" Jack suggested at last.

"PORT ROYAL!" Rags shouted in agreement. "Port Royal. Swann's port."

"Lovely," Jack mumbled, dropping Rags into the water. He jumped back into his own dingy and paddled back to the Pearl.

Reviews:

alexwacrap: Oh yeah, I've been obsessed with the trailer. I love the scene with Will who protests agaisnt leaving Jack behind, but suddenly changes his tune when the Jack races across the beach from a hoard of angry tribesmen. It was beautiful sniffles. I can't wait to see it now, especially because it looks like there will be another duel between Jack and Will, one in which Will may or may not disobey the rules of engagement :).

And now...

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