The Interceptor pulled into the port at Tortuga with ease. It wasn't terribly difficult to crew the small ship with only the three of them, but they did need a crew for their mission and this was where they were planning to pick one up. Sparrow insisted that he knew a man who could easily find them all who would be willing to join them on their voyage. James highly doubted this, but he was willing to keep an open mind for the sake of Elizabeth. They left the ship tied up at the dock as they headed into the town, though James did not feel right about it. The whole island was a haven for pirates, and he wasn't so sure one of them wouldn't attempt to take The Interceptor while they were gathering their crew. He glanced back at it several times until it was finally out of sight. It wasn't until then that he noticed exactly what sort of town Tortuga was.

There wasn't a single place he could turn without seeing some sort of depravity and highly inappropriate behaviour. Drunkards were staggering down the street merrily, waving bottles full of what James assumed to be rum or possibly even grog. He noticed a couple of women, dressed rather provocatively, chatting up a group of young sailors. James frowned as he followed Sparrow and Turner through the town. Men were fighting in the streets, shooting their pistols into the sky, and generally causing a ruckus. He had never seen so much debauchery and immorality in one place at a single time. To say that he was disgusted would have been an understatement. He made a note to himself never to return to Tortuga if he could ever help it.

Sparrow made his way through the streets with ease, seeming to know exactly where he was going and how to get there without getting involved in the goings on around the streets. James wasn't quite sure if that were true, but he was willing to put his faith in Sparrow, albeit reluctantly, if it meant saving Elizabeth. They stopped when they came upon a small group of people hanging around outside of one of the many taverns. Sparrow leaned towards one of the gentlemen to exchange a few words. The man pointed towards a pigsty down an alleyway not that far away from one of the more popular taverns.

As the trio walked up to the sty, Sparrow grabbed a bucket and filled it with water from a trough. Turner did the same, not really appearing to know what exactly he was doing, but did it anyway. James just shrugged and followed the two over to the sty. He wasn't sure what the two were doing, but he was curious. As they approached the sty, James could see a man asleep with the pigs, lying against them. Sparrow stepped closer, with the bucket in his hands then tossed the water on the sleeping man.

"Curse ya for breathin', ya slack-jawed idiot!" The man opened his eyes, wiping the dripping water from his eyes and looked at Sparrow. His face seemed to light with recognition as he looked at the pirate. "Mother's love, Jack! You should know better than to wake a man when he's sleeping. It's bad luck"

"Fortunately, I know how to counter it. The man who did the waking buys the man who was sleeping a drink. The man who was sleeping drinks it while listening to a proposition from the man who did the waking."

"Aye, that'll about do it." The man got up from ground. James took a better look at the man as he started to move towards Sparrow. Though he was rather dirty, James was sure he recognized the man from somewhere. His thoughts were interrupted when Turner threw the second bucket of water at the man.

"Blast! I'm already awake!"

"That was for the smell," Turner countered.

The man shrugged and nodded slightly in agreement before he walked between Turner and Sparrow, leading the way into the tavern named The Faithful Bride. James followed behind the three men, still trying to discern where he knew the man from.

Inside the tavern, a pirate band was playing a jig as patrons drank ale and milled about. James passed tables of men having a merry time passing the hours away with drink. He couldn't imagine living life as they did. It seemed such a waste of human life; to have no purpose. He followed the group to the bar.

"Ah, Arabella," Sparrow leaned against the bar as he addressed a barmaid.

The auburn-haired woman turned and looked at Sparrow for a moment before she slapped him across the face. James winced somewhat at the sight. Sparrow turned to Turner and James before commenting, "not sure I deserved that."

"What will it be, Jack? A round for your friends?" the barmaid asked once Sparrow had turned back to her.

"Yes, please." Jack smiled at Arabella in a way James assumed he thought would win her in his good favour once again.

Arabella poured the drinks while Turner and James took a seat at a table near the bar while the other man who had joined their company headed towards a more private table near the back. James stood to join him, but Sparrow waved his index finger at him from the bar, indicating that he was not welcome to join in. Jack grabbed two of the steins and nodded Arabella towards Turner and James for the other two before he joined his companion to discuss business. James didn't really like the idea of them discussing things without his presence. They were pirates, and though they were helping him now, he wasn't all that sure he trusted them not to betray him the first chance they got. James turned to the mute Turner and attempted to start a conversation.

"So, Mr. Turner, I know there is a reason you decided to help me with this plan. What was it?"

"I don't really know. I suppose part of me hoped that through this journey, I may be able to find my father. He's a merchant sailor here in the Caribbean. I've been searching for him since my mother died. I nearly died myself on the voyage over from England. Jack seems to know a lot of people, and I thought that perhaps, if he truly does, he may know my father and where I can find him." Turner paused for a moment. "He only agreed to help us after he learned my name. He must know my father."

Turner stopped talking at that moment, clearly not wanting to reveal any more information. James turned and glanced back at Sparrow and the other man. It wasn't hard to put the pieces together: Turner's father was a pirate. It didn't really matter though. He thought that it would be highly unlikely that they would run into him. They were going after the Black Pearl and her crew. James hardly thought that they would find Turner's father aboard that ship.

"Well, I do hope you find him," James said as he turned back to Turner. "I'm not so entirely certain we can trust Sparrow. All this secrecy in his meeting… Seems a bit odd to me."

"He seems to want to help… even if it is to achieve his own ends. At the very least, I believe he will get us to where you want to go, and I may even meet up with my father. It's a risk, but I'm willing to take it. I think it's safe to trust him just enough."

"You're a brave man, Mr. Turner. Possibly a braver man than myself… If Sparrow had no clue where the Black Pearl would be, he'd still be locked in that cell on his way to the gallows. I'm still not sure we can trust him in this," James said as he watched Sparrow out of the corner of his eye.

"It's not like we have much of a choice."

"Touché," James said as the barmaid brought their drinks to the table. She set them down in front of the two men and James thanked her politely.

"If ya don't mind me sayin', you boys don't look like the sort Jack usually hangs around with. Can I ask what your business is with him?" She asked them quietly as possible in the loud tavern.

"We're looking for something and it would seem that Jack Sparrow may be our only hope, as sad as that prospect may be," James replied with a touch of disgust in his voice.

"Well, be that as it may, you have picked yerself a good man for the job. Sparrow might not seem like it, but he knows things very few others do. If ya need to find something, he's the man for the job, as long as there's something in it for him." Arabella gave the two men a nod as she headed back to the bar to tend to her waiting customers.

The four men spent the night in the sleeping quarters of the Interceptor before they got ready to head out the next morning. James hadn't slept well at all, somehow having been tricked by Sparrow out of the Captain's Quarters, and found his dreams would not allow him the comfort of slumber. They had been dark and fitful, refusing to let his conscience forget the fact that he had deserted his duties and would likely be hanged once they were caught for engaging in piracy.

The three of them clambered out of their sleeping quarters to meet on the dock. The man from the bar, Gibbs as Sparrow introduced to them that morning, had gathered some people who were willing to help with their quest, though they were not given the exact details as to what they were doing. A line of ten people were standing along the dock when James and Will woke up that morning. Jack had already started looking them over. He didn't seem overly impressed, but he knew better than to be choosy when it came to a crew that was willing to go after the impossible.

Jack stepped up to one of the men, who had a parrot sitting on his shoulder. "You there. Do you have the courage and fortitude to follow orders and stay true in the face of danger and almost certain death?"

James turned to Will as Jack continued his conversation with the crew. "Are we sure about this?"

"This is the only way to save Miss Swann."

"Why do I feel as though we've made a grievous mistake?" James wondered to himself, almost asking Turner the very same question. There was something about this voyage that didn't sit right with James. He knew it needed to be made and he knew that as long as he was able to save Elizabeth, he would do whatever necessary, but he felt as though he had sold his soul to the devil to get it done.

Elizabeth stared out the port hole at the expanse of the sea. There didn't seem to be any land for miles and she had no idea how long she had been on the ship. Her only indication of any time passing was the light and dark of day and night. The best she could figure at this point was that it had been two days, since night had fallen twice since she had been thrown into the cell. She admired the peacefulness of the sea in the evening. She heard a rumbling in the distance and tried to decipher if it was activity up above or thunder rolling in. She wrapped her arms around her torso protectively as she continued to stare out at the sea, praying for her dear James Norrington to save her from the hell she found herself in. The only thing she knew she could be thankful for was that they hadn't killed her, but she didn't want to think about how long that could possibly last. Leaning her head against the cell's wall, she allowed herself to drift off into a light, fitful sleep. She had never imagined, even with all the stories about the things that happened in the Caribbean, that something like this could ever happen to her.

The crew aboard the Interceptor worked together as they sailed towards the Isla de Muerta, hoping to catch up to the Black Pearl. It seemed an impossible task as the Black Pearl was the fastest ship in all of the seven seas, but Jack had hope and James hoped that Jack could possibly be right. He wanted desperately to catch up to the Black Pearl so that he could save Elizabeth and return her safely to her father. He had no doubt that Admiral Middleton, Governor Swann and some of the finest men in the Navy were already on their tails at that very moment in the HMS Dauntless.

James stood on the deck, looking out at the vast expanse of the sea. He felt as though it was a place he found himself a lot when he wanted to think, and lately he had been doing a lot of that. In a matter of days, his whole life had been turned upside down by one woman. He never thought he would find that kind of reckless devotion within himself. Because of Elizabeth, he had thrown away his entire life and the hard work and dedication he had shown in the Royal Navy. If he were honest with himself, he knew he would do it again in a heartbeat. Elizabeth had captured his heart and there was no turning back for him now. His fate was set in stone and there was no way to recover what he had so carelessly thrown away. It was his belief, however, that with Elizabeth by his side, that he would look upon his self appointed exile with happiness and joy. As long as he had the woman he loved by his side, the Royal Navy could hunt him until his dying days. Once he found her, he was never going to let her go.