Disclaimer: Nope, I don't own the characters. It's a shame, if you ask me, but I don't.
A/N: This chapter could have spoilers for the next movie, but I don't think it is much, apart for a couple names. Oh, and it has also a scene taken from DMC, I liked it so much I couldn't help putting it here grins. Well, as usual, if you read it, then review it, savvy? Please...
Chapter 5: Sao Feng and The Treasure
As soon as Ragetti said there was land in front of them, Will ran to Jack's side to look with his telescope.
"There's a ship too" he commented.
"Aye, lad. I guess they are those pirates Tia Dalma told us about. Well, let's go see, maybe with time they've become friendly, but I doubt it. Gibbs, make the crew prepare to fight. Out the cannons, and load them"
The Pearl was quickly nearing its opponent, the Empress, a ship with red sails.
"Nice colour they chose for those sails, don't you think Will?" Jack commented. But they couldn't continue their chat because as a welcome the Empress started firing its cannons at them.
"Now, that's rude" Jack said, before letting the crew fire back. Cannonballs flew everywhere, and once one even managed to hit Jack, who however was quick enough to dodge. One, however, hit the Pearl pretty badly near its waterline, and Ragetti and Pintel had their fair share of job to do to keep the leak manageable. On the other side, things weren't better, as one of the masts of the Empress had been broken in half, and other cannonballs had hit the board of the ship.
"Broadside!" Jack ordered, while the captain of the other ship, a Chinese pirate, not so tall but with fiery eyes that promised nothing good to anyone who stepped in his path, a big scar on his left arm, did the same.
Soon the two ships were at boarding distance, so both crews took their swords and guns and attacked.
The fight was harsh, and although the Pearl's crew was trained well, and Will and Jack were two masters with the sword, they were not going to win that battle anytime soon. What troubled them was that every time they managed to hurt one of their opponents, they would regenerate themselves.
"Bloody Hell, has you lot been cursed?" Jack asked to one of the other pirates.
"No, we're under the protection of a goddess" he replied, then proceeded to attack, but Jack dodged his sword easily.
Will had decided that taking out of the scene the captain would be a big step in the battle, so he charged him, but the task was not easy at all.
"What's your name?" he asked while duelling.
"You're going to die soon, so I'll grant you your wish. I'm Sao Feng"
Jack, who was nearby, overheard that.
"Sao Feng? As the pirate who is told to be invincible?"
"Exactly, Jack Sparrow" the Chinese sneered, never losing focus on his duel with Will.
"Captain! It's Captain Jack Sparrow to you!" Jack whined, continuing his fight.
"It's a waste of time, you should just all surrender. You can't kill us" Sao exclaimed.
"We will die trying then. We won't surrender to you" Will spat, and even if he knew it was not fair, tripped his enemy, and while Sao was still falling, he feigned one attack to his heart, just to swiftly change his aim on the pirate's stomach. His sword passed through the other man's body, and a splash of blood met the deck, around Feng's dying form. Will took a moment to look around how the fight was going, and noticed most of the Chinese pirates were seemigly dead, or at least on the verge of death.
He grinned, but it died on his lips, when he saw some kind of greenish light around the harmed pirates, who stood up again and resumed the fight. He barely managed to turn and see Sao Feng's sword quickly approaching toward him, and instinctively moved his own to meet the blow.
It was just mere luck that he managed to repel the attack, but one moment later and he would be dead.
"How can this be possible?" he asked.
"Our mistress protects us, and she heals our wounds, till we're alive. You can't defeat us, now die!" Feng said, taking out his gun and shooting Will. But Jack managed to push another Chinese pirate in front of his friend, and so it was the other one who took the shot in his heart. He was dead on the spot, and there was nothing their mistress, as Sao had called the mysterious woman, could do to save him.
That gave Jack an idea, and he made a quick nod toward Gibbs and Ana Maria, who had remained on the Pearl. As they got the hint, they prepared with their rifles. Every time Jack would push one of their enemies away, they would shot the poor soul in the heart, killing him on the spot.
After five of his crewmen had died that way, Sao understood their game, and went to challenge Jack himself, while Will was charged by two other pirates. Marty, Cotton, Ragetti and Pintel were doing their fair share of duelling, but without much success, and started feeling tired, something really dangerous because they would soon get hurt or worse if they couldn't focus properly. But Pintel had his faithful gun, so he picked up his captain's game, and things looked better for them.
Suddenly, an eerie figure appeared on deck, and the Chinese pirates cheered. Will guessed this was the lady they were talking about.
"You're good fighters. This has been the first time my crew has needed my help in battle" she announced, before starting to throw magical orbs at them, so the problem now was to kill her before she, or her crew, could do that to the Pearl's one.
Pushing his opponent overboard, where Gibbs' rifle took care of him, Will approached the lady, and stopped her using magic charging her. She in a flash extracted two fans, and used them to duel, as they were in fact extremely edgy and metal-like too.
Sword clashed against fans more than once, but he couldn't find an opening in her defence. Jack could not help him because he was held by Sao, who was showing why he had the fame to be invincible in duel. But after all, he had never clashed blades with Captain Jack Sparrow.
After a long time, Jack managed to slice the opponent's sword arm, and since Will was keeping the lady occupied, she could not heal him.
"Oh, the poor baby's hurting" Jack mocked him, which made Sao Feng really angry. He attacked Jack with much more violence than before, and at high speed too.
"Oh" Jack said, seeing his enemy's reaction.
But rescue came in the form of Gibbs and Ana Maria. They never let the men remained on the Pearl stop the cannons from shooting, although it was risky as their companions where on the Empress too, but it was something that needed to be done.
Somehow, Gibbs guessed the strength of the lady was tied to the ship's fate, and so it was. As the Empress started to sink, the lady grew tired and weak, and Will easily disarmed her. He was about to kill her when he heard everyone retreating to the Pearl, so he went too. Only Jack and Sao Feng were still duelling.
"Jack! Come back to the Pearl!" Will shouted. "The other ship is sinking!"
"No, I've got a duel to finish first" the captain shouted back, and Will shook his head.
"Blasted stubbornness of his" he muttered.
Meantime, the Empress had by now almost reached the sea level with the deck, so much water it had embarked.
Sao smirked. "I may not able to kill you with my blade, but you'll die all the same, Jack Sparrow. You're not going to leave this sinking ship"
And with that he chained Jack to the mast. Then, he let the wounds Jack had inflicted him bring him to the afterlife for pirates, Dead's End.
"Bugger" Jack said, trying to break his hand free of the chain, but to no avail. The Pearl had already lost contact with the other ship, and everyone on board was looking anxiously at their captain going down with the Empress.
Finally Jack spotted a lamp, and managed to take it with his sword, then smash it on the mast he was chained to. The oil of the lamp made his hand slippery, so he managed, mistreating it a bit, to make his flesh pass through the opening of the handcuff. Just in time too, because he jumped off the ship mere moments before it suddenly cracked and reached the ocean bottom.
His crew steered the ship so they could bring him back on board, and once it was done, he made them set sail for the island in front of them, where they would hopefully find what they had come till there to seek.
Then, he went to change his soaked clothes in his cabin.
The island was not big, so their search lasted till night, but they managed to find what they wanted. An huge cavern, filled with gold and pearls, and, on some kind of makeshift throne, the Dragon's Eye.
Will almost started crying, knowing that they would be able to save Elizabeth from Calypso's locket now.
"Come on, mate. We've got a treasure to collect, it's not time to go all mushy" Jack said, patting him on the shoulder. Will nodded and helped the crew gather the gold and the precious things.
But halfway trough that process, a mighty roar was heard. Everyone panicked, but Jack and Will managed to keep them calm enough to at least see what was menacing them.
Soon an huge dragon appeared, and everyone ran away. Once back on the Pearl they fired the cannons at the dragon who was now quickly advancing toward the ship, but they caused it little damage. Things seemed desperate, but then the dragon made a mistake, and showed his belly to the crew, while trying to rise up in the air. That was what they needed, because one of the chained balls hit the beast in the stomach, effectively ripping its flesh apart, and killing it on the spot.
The crew cheered and went back to the cave to collect the treausre. Will looked at them and grinned.
He was honestly glad that they had found the treasure too, because bringing him there and helping him find what he needed to rescue her was something they deserved a reward for. And he knew even if they had not known about the treasure, they would have gone there all the same, because Jack would have made them do that, and they would have not betrayed him like Barbossa did.
Once back on the ship, the crew proceeded to divide the treasure in equal parts, and even Will was given some, although he tried to refuse.
"Nonsense, mate. It was for you that we came here, so in a certain way it is your merit if we gained this treasure" Gibbs said, a bottle of rum in his hands, happier than Will had ever seen him. Everyone was extremely cheery that night, and Will felt giddy too, so he sat with them, listening to pirating stories, and getting pissed, for the first time since he left Port Royal not out of sorrow but to celebrate.
