England could not tell which emotion was more prominent in his mind. Although he was seething with fury at the loss of his ship to that damned pirate, he also felt himself bubbling with interest.

In fact, much to his annoyance, he found himself wondering what course of action Sparrow was going to take. Interestingly, England had been there when the Wicked Wench had been raised from the ocean floor and rechristened as the Black Pearl. Thus, he knew Jack Sparrow had a ship, a bloody fast one too, so what need did he have of Freedom's Crown.

He was in the midst of his irritation when England was snapped out of his train of thought. Something cold and hard was pressed to the back of his head and his hands slowly lifted in surrender.

There was a loud click, reminiscent of a rifle cocking, then a demanding voice, "Arthur Kirkland, you're under arrest!"

"Fuck."

He really wanted to punch them straight out of their bloody red coats. They were scuffing his boots, Arthur thought bitterly, looking down at the rough, cobbled street passing below him as two armed guards, quite literally, dragged him to St. James's Palace. The two guards opened the large doorway and threw in the ruffled Arthur, who let out a string of curse words.

The palace was a grand and elegant building, commissioned by Henry VIII — A charismatic man, although he ruled with little more policy than petulant self-gratification, Arthur recalled as he pushed himself off the floor and scowled. A palace guard had come forward, ready to drag the Englishman to another room but stopped when he saw Arthur's sour expression.

"I can walk myself, thanks," Arthur snapped, putting on his tricorne with a flourish and reverting to more appropriate English, "Let's go then."

Unsurprisingly, Arthur was not brought into the throne room like one would expect, but a dining room instead, the gluttonous king George hadn't changed it seemed. He took a seat at a long table that was piled high with plates of meat, pastries and other, helping himself to a small portion of Yorkshire pudding. The guards in attendance looked at each other in question, unsure if Arthur was allowed to eat food supposedly meant for the king.

However, before they could stop him, the grand doors across the room swung open and a humongous man dressed in regal robes waddled forward, accompanied by numerous guards and other company, including Lord John Carteret and Prime Minister Henry Pelham.

The king hauled his bulk into the chair opposite Arthur, looking at England with little more than arrogance as he tore into a piece of pheasant, "The great Arthur Kirkland finally returns to his lands."

"What do you want?"

Pelham looked scandalised, "Show some respect! You are in the presence of George Augustus, Duke of Brunswick-Luneburg, Archtreasurer and Prince-elector of the Holy Roman Empire, King of Great Britain and Ireland!"

"Yes, I know who the bloody man is!" Arthur spat, "What I don't know is why the hell I've been arrested! I told you idiots I want no part in this, so if this is some attempt to get me to join your naval forces…"

Arthur thought to himself bitterly, he should have tried harder to cut off his ties to the royal family and government. Although that would be extremely difficult since the knowledge of his involvement and status as a nation was often passed down through generations of monarchs.

It was Carteret that answered Arthur's question, pulling out a rolled up parchment, "Arthur Kirkland, you have been found guilty of numerous heinous crimes against the British Empire. Including, but not limited to, multiple acts of piracy, theft and negligence regarding pledged service to the ruler under the Royal Coat of Arms."

The king slammed the table with a chubby hand, "As the representation of my country, you are supposed to serve me! Why has our great nation run off to become a blasted pirate, a despicable criminal!"

Arthur hid his rage well as he slowly moved to stand, looking at George with disbelief, "Let me make this clear… I'm not a pawn for you to move as you see fit! I'm the bloody Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and I will not serve a greedy, extravagant monarch who cares more about his supper than his subjects who starve on the street!"

He felt himself trembling and took a deep breath to calm himself, "You may be king, but in the end, if I do not wish to serve you then you hold no authority over me. I will do as I damn well please, even if what pleases me is piracy."

Arthur didn't bother to wait for dismissal, he spun on his heel and stormed from the palace, roughly twisting the arm of any guard who attempted to stop him. He shot a remark over his shoulder as the aggravated king watched Arthur leave helplessly, "When you have earned my respect, King George II, then I will return home."

Arthur missed the stability of when Elizabeth sat on the throne. Since her death, the crown had only passed on to a number of lazy rulers who were all talk and no action. Perhaps that was why he stayed on the ocean. Somehow, amidst the chaos that he - that is, his land - had become, Arthur found freedom and hope in the Golden Age of Piracy. He saw the world when he travelled, the life of a pirate was without restraint and without poverty.

At the point where he watched his ship sail away, Arthur thought his mood couldn't get any lower. But striding out of the palace after that infuriating audience with George, he realised he was wrong.

He did not really know where he was heading, he was without his ship and without his amassed treasure. His hat clenched in a white-knuckled fist. Muttering to himself, as his low-heeled boots smacked the cobbled pavement, "Curse you George. Curse you Jack Sparrow. Curse all these blasted idiots that don't know how to just leave me be."