Chapter 7: Acts of Piracy II

The next morning, Jack Sparrow stood at the helm of the Black Pearl. He'd not slept ever since the voice awoke him, but he didn't show it; he was still his brilliant, good-natured, drunken pirate self. He couldn't show it; today was the day. The day that the fleet of Admiral Jack Sparrow committed its first act of piracy together.


Today was the day. The day that he, Captain James Norrington, would commit his first true act of piracy. The plan was this:

A convoy of supply ships was coming through to Port Royale. This convoy was guarded by the HMS Valiant. They would be met several miles outside Tortuga by the Port Royale-based HMS Neptune. Then the group would proceed to Port Royale and deliver supplies, and receive some of their own.

There was an inherent problem in the plan, though.

They assumed that the two Navy ships could hold off a pirate ship, or maybe two.

Jack Sparrow had four. Four fully stocked ships, with well-rested, able-bodied, and full crews that wanted the ships a lot more than their defenders did.

James sat in his cabin on the Dauntless, still uneasy about the matter. He'd known that this was part of the deal of being a pirate, but it was still rooted deeply in him that this was a deplorable action, and one of the most distasteful things to be committed on the high seas.

It was also rooted deeply in him that the commander of the Valiant, Charles Kelly, was a man he'd served with. And if they met, it was likely that James would have to kill him.

Still, there was the part of him that couldn't wait. This could be very interesting, and it was, after all, his first pirate job.

So he waited for the word to come from Sparrow-the fleet flag rising on the mast of the Black Pearl.


It seemed to take forever, although only taking 5 minutes. Jack Sparrow waited for signs of action on the other ships, then called to Cotton.

"Cotton? Cotton? COTTON!" At this, the man turned his head. Deaf and mute, now. Jack shook his head. Wonderful. "Raise the flag!"


"That's it; the flag's raised," said the lookout on the Elizabeth as the eyeglass used to see it was shut.

"Alright, everyone up! Let's go!" Captain Will Turner smiled as his ship sprang into action. His ship.

As the anchor raised and the sails unfurled, the lookout raised the flag of the fleet, then came to stand next to Will again.

"Thanks for coming, Elizabeth," Will smiled down at his lookout as she removed the uncomfortable hat she wore.

"God, how can AnaMaria wear those things? And how could I not come? It's the maiden voyage of my husband's ship," she returned Will's smile. "Well, it shall take quite a while to get underway. So, do you think we can leave things to Duncan while we..." She trailed off.

She didn't have to paint him a picture. "Right away, my dear."

"Bright man," she said as they proceeded to their cabin. "I do believe that's why I married you."

"Well, I didn't figure you one to marry just for looks. Although, if you look at me..." Will Turner never did finish that thought as he received something (it felt very much like the palm of a hand traveling at terminal velocity with intent to cause serious pain) to the back of his head.

"Shut up," Elizabeth said simply.


The Black Pearl was in sight of the convoy. Sparrow could see on each side of it the ships Valiant and Neptune. As per the plan, the Elizabeth and Britannia flew up the Union Jack and came to the other ships. Then, once they were close enough for sight and shot, they raised the Jolly Roger and the Sparrow.

The fight was no fight at all. The Neptune was not interested in putting up too much of a fight. Probably had something to do with the fact that a lucky shot decapitated poor Captain Thomas.

The Valiant, now, was a fighter. Charles Kelly fought the Britannia hard, but when the Dauntless came in and boarded the Valiant, the fight intensified.

Even with the thirty fights going on around them, it came down to one fight, really; that of Commander Charles and Captain James Norrington.

"I didn't think this possible of you, James," Kelly said as he blocked a swing from James.

"I'm capable of all sorts of things." A twist in James's blade almost cut Kelly in two. Only a fast move stopped him from being killed.

This is getting nowhere, James thought. Time to step it up.


There are two problems with the art that is sword fighting.

Problem 1 is that, by its very nature, a fighter engaged in a clash of blades must focus his attention on the opponent while maintaining a minimal understanding of the surroundings. The more intense the engagement or skilled the opponent, the more of the duelist's focus is directed on the adversary and less on the environment in which the battle is taking place.

Problem 2 lies in the assumption that the adversary will fight with some sense of honor. This is a mistake commonly made by those fighting under the Royal Navy. They engage in fights under the misconception that the opponent not only desires victory, but that he wants said victory to be achieved through superior skill and mastery of the sword, versus simply winning at all costs.

Pirates, now, have no such compunctions.


A manifestation of the first problem was why Commander Kelly did not sense the pirates that began to approach behind him. The second problem was why he didn't suspect that James's barely perceptible nod was a directive for these pirates fence him in.

Then Kelly realized that he was blocked in a ring with James. Enraged, he swung at James, whose guard was down. He never finished the swing, though, because he'd been shot by a pirate of the Elizabeth's crew-Will, actually.

As he slumped, dying, he said, "You cheated."

James smiled wanly. "Pirate."


"THIS IS A DISASTER, GILLETTE!"

As evidenced, the Governor Swann was not in the most cheerful of moods when he came calling to Fort Charles. "Two ships of the Royal Navy lost, our supplies plundered, and Jack Sparrow behind it!"

The Governor raged a little more as Commodore Gillette placed his feet on hids desk.

He'd long ago learned that when upset, people in a position of power like to vent, and they like to vent for quite a while. It was typically not in one's best interests to interrupt, because then said person of power would swoop down on one like a bat out of Hell, and slap more punishments on one in five seconds than one had received in one's entire life.

Such was not entirely the case with Gillette; the ire of the Governor was already aimed at him.

After another half-hour of rage and bluster, the Governor seemed to slump. Knowing an opportunity when he saw one, Gillette spoke. "Are you finished?" When there was no response, he continued. "I know this is a disaster. Two ships under the Union Jack have been lost, under my command, no less. I do not take defeat lightly. We are taking what provisions we can, and in three days, three of the four remaining ships under my command...plus the Polaris, coming in from Ireland, will set out and hunt down Sparrow. The Pursuer will remain here for defense. Anything else, Governor?" His clipped tone made it clear that this conversation was over.

"I don't believe so...Commodore." As the Governor began to step out the door, he couldn't resist getting the last word in. "Oh, there is one thing-did you hear what ship assisted Commodore Sparrow in his assault?"

"I did not."

"Hmm." Swann smirked. "You best start referring to him as Admiral Sparrow, Gillette-the Dauntless won the day for Sparrow." As he walked out, Swann heard the satisfying sound of Gillette's booted feet hitting the floor in surprise.


Author's Note: If souderwan is reading this, I apologize-you know what for. It was just too good not to use.

Author's Note 2: Almost at 5000 hits here. Keep up the reading and please, please, please, REVIEW! Okay, okay, I admit that 5000 reviews would be a bit overwhelming, but at least I'd have some.

Author's Note 3: I'm now starting my own "Star Wars: Infinities" fanfiction. For those of you who don't know what "Infinities" is, it's applying the idea of "what if?" to the Star Wars films. What if Threepio's head were knocked off when Jabba hit him? What if Luke died that night on Hoth? What if his torpedo was a dud on the First Death Star? Hope you all like it.

Author's Note 4: Please, if you read it, review it!

Author's Note 5: I'm done with Author's Notes for today.