Chapter 22: That's Interesting...
In the gleaming sunlight, a couple of slim bejeweled fingers tiptoed across a barrel and snaked around an unsuspecting bottle. The hand to which they belonged to, gingerly lifted it to a pair of cracked thirsty lips. What they hadn't been anticipating was the miniscule sliver of liquid that took its time to trickle down the neck and plopped into the awaiting mouth of Captain Jack Sparrow.
His brow furrowed as he licked his lips. "Why is the rum always gone?"
"There you go again!" A rather aggravating voice barked in his ear. "Always with the predictable one-liners! That's the third time you've said that since we've set sail! Why not try saying something cleverly original for a change?"
"Oy! Hook Hand! Keep in mind that I could've let the beastie gobble you up!" Jack shouted back. "And trust me mate. That would not have been a pleasant experience…"
"I am rather curious…why did you choose rescue me anyway Sparrow?" Hook inquired with a tilt of his head. "It couldn't have been from the kindness of your heart… what do you have to gain from this? You're risking detainment in The Room by choosing to become allies with me?" The captain feigned a look of gratitude before doing his best imitation of Jack's unusual hand gestures. "I am touched by this most sincerest form of flattery."
The pirate stared at him… "Now that was just uncalled for."
"I don't believe you understand the severity of what you've done to yourself and your crew." Hook resumed. "The first rule of the game was (and I quote): No character is allowed to leave their specific world unless they have had a recent encounter with the girl."
"You forget that when you've been marooned on the Isle of Oblivion, that time crawls by at a snail's pace." Jack gave a sarcastic toothy smile. "I would even go as far as to say that Davey Jones Locker was a much more preferable hell than that pitiful spit of land. So in all actuality, I did have a recent encounter with her...savvy?"
"I suppose that's true." Hook admitted. "But I don't think that our oh-so-friendly-neighborhood monarch is too keen on loopholes… were there any others who escaped that retched place since The Projectionist's barriers were demolished?"
"As far as I know, we were the only ones."
"Your timing couldn't have been more perfect." The codfish twirled his mustache, "She doesn't remember a thing about the complicated history between you two… She's foolish for venturing off when she's so vulnerable, especially when there are a plethora of villains and heroes who have it out for her."
Just then, their first mates came running up to their respective captains.
"We're approachin' the Jolly Rodger sir." Mister Gibbs reported.
"The princess is shouting to the rooftops she is!" Smee chimed in.
"Excellent." Hook smirked. "We've got the upper hand… it won't be long before we'll have them dangling like worms on my hook!"
He thrust out his left arm for emphasis which caused the little man to gulp nervously.
"B-but Cap'n." Smee stuttered. "Don't you think this a bit… harsh? They're only children after all and-"
"-Pan is not a child!" Hook slammed his fist on the railing, making everyone on deck flinch in response. "He is a flying devil… and Melinda is not a mere girl either. She's a vile little viper, and I will not underestimate her again!"
"FIRE!"
"HIT THE DECK!"
Every pirate on the Pearl ducked simultaneously as a million forks, knives, spoons, plates, bowls, bottles, chips of peppermint, and whatever else would fit into the cannons were blasted at them at full-force. Smee cried out as a rolling pin landed inches away from his...pelvic area.
His eyes then rolled in the back of his head and he collapsed onto the deck.
Cautiously, everyone rose to their feet…
Jack was the first to break the silence. "Are we all in agreement that that was copyright infringement?"
"That should give us enough time to cover this thing in pixie dust and hightail it out of here!" Mindy turned to the fairy standing atop Peter's cupped hands, "Alright Tink, let her have it!"
Tinkerbell thrust her puny hands out with a determined smirk…only to have a couple pitiful sparks of dust drift aimlessly to the floor. She tried a couple more times but inevitably got the same result. Her wings drooped as she shrugged with an apologetic sigh.
Mindy's right eye twitched, but she waved it off with a smile that was a bit too tight. "Uh, haha…it's okay, it's okay! We've still got Alastaire, right?!"
She pressed the citrine jewel in the corner of the Amulet, but no shimmering pixie dust came spilling out. Her brow scrunched up as she attempted to pry the gem open with her fingernails but got zapped instead.
"Ouch!" Mindy waved her hand with a noise of mild disbelief, "What's gotten into you?!"
A sliver of movement caught her eye and she flipped the pendant over only to see a message engraved on the back: We can't leave yet for reasons I can't explain in full detail.
…
"Are. You. KIDDING ME?!"
"FIRE!"
"MINDY LOOK OUT!"
Before she could process what was happening, Dakota tackled her to the ground right as a cannonball whizzed above her head. A pure unwavering silence pierced through the air…Mindy's heart raced as she stared up at her rescuer with terror-stricken eyes. Dakota panted heavily as he clung onto her in a vice-like grip.
He cleared his throat. "A-are you okay?"
"I think so." Mindy managed to gasp out… she then quirked a brow as she sniffed the air, "Your breath smells like jolly ranchers."
Her cheeks reddened at the realization that she'd said that out loud.
Dakota laughed which revealed his green apple tongue, "I couldn't help myself."
Mindy rolled her eyes as he stood up, and offered her his outstretched hands. She gingerly accepted them before springing to her feet. She shifted awkwardly as she rubbed the back of her neck.
"Thanks."
He shrugged, "What're friends for?"
"Princess!" Mindy glanced up only to see that the Black Pearl was right beside them. Captain Hook removed his hat with a sweeping bow and his usual cunning smile, "Since I would hate to resort to violence a second time, I will give you this opportunity to drop your weapons, hand over the possession of my ship, and surrender yourself to me."
"You are without a doubt the worst liar I've ever met!" She spat. "We both know that you want to get back at me for that stunt I pulled in Neverland."
"Beginner's luck isn't unheard of." The Captain huffed as he twirled his mustache… his eyes then twinkled with mischief. "Are you certain that you want to challenge me again my dear? This time, you wouldn't have your pesky pet crocodile to protect you."
"I'll take my chances."
She was about to unsheathe her sword when Dakota stepped in front of her. "If you want her, you're gonna have to go through me first."
"Oh isn't this touching?" Hook purred. "Your blithering blockhead of a boyfriend is swooping to the rescue!"
"Again, he's not my boyfriend!" Mindy hollered before grabbing Dakota's arm to hiss, "What are you doing?! I can take him!"
"I know but..." A terrifyingly threatening expression crossed Dakota's features. "I am not going to stand off to the side and watch him hurt you again."
"Wait-ugh!" He yanked himself out of her grasp before she could finish, "Dakota!"
No sooner did his name leave her lips did he snatch her sword from its scabbard, leap onto the railing, and use a nearby rope to clumsily swing across to The Black Pearl. He landed on his side, but scrambled to his feet and charged towards the upper deck where Hook was waiting.
Mindy looked about ready to tear her own hair out.
She turned to Peter, but before she could get a word in he assured her. "Don't worry, I'm on it."
With that, he withdrew his dagger, and effortlessly soared to the Black Pearl.
"Sitting this one out are you Melinda?" The villain chuckled as he clapped the end of his blade onto the curve of his hook. "I knew you'd come to your senses sooner or later! That's right… stay in your place and leave the combat to us men."
The pirates howled with laughter at his misogynist insult.
Mindy inhaled as she silently counted to ten, letting her seething rage dissipate before making her next comment: "You know, you talk so much shit Feathers that I don't know whether to offer you a breath mint or toilet paper. I'm kinda sorta leaning towards the latter!"
Ignoring Jiminy's exclamation about her use of language, she summoned the toiletry and tossed it across the gap with a triumphant smirk. The Lost Boys chortled as it unraveled at record speed across the Pearl's upper deck and bounced down the stairs. A couple of the pirates even snorted, but one look from their respective captains made them immediately stop.
As the battle between Peter, Hook, and the third wheel commenced, Jack Sparrow set his sights on the girl. When Mindy caught his menacing gaze, her once amused expression shifted into one of utter befuddlement. She whirled around to check if he was looking at someone behind her. To her chagrin, she was the only one located beside the mast.
She turned back to the pirate and pointed at herself.
Jack nodded in confirmation to her silent question, and his lips eased into a smile that Mindy could only describe as flirtatious but somehow, she knew that it wasn't supposed to be. Slightly taken aback by his somewhat lecherous nature, she leaned in towards her still temperamental conscience.
"Uh… why is he staring at me like that?"
But Jiminy didn't get the chance to respond.
"DON'T JUST STAND THERE YOU MANGY DOGS!" Hook squawked as he roughly pushed the boy-who-wouldn't-grow-up. "GET THOSE CHILDREN!"
Mindy let out an unintelligible string of curse words (that Jiminy openly did NOT approve of) as half of the pirates from both crews started swinging across to invade the ship.
Her breath caught in her throat as a burly gentleman with a scruffy beard swiped his blade at her chest. She swerved out of the way right in the nick of time but was speedily backed into the helm. The pirate lifted his weapon high above his head to land the finishing blow. Mindy ducked before spinning the wheel as hard as she could. To her delight, the pegs slapped him multiple times in the jaw, causing him to stumble backwards before plummeting onto his back with a thud!
Her victory was short-lived as a second ruffian grabbed her from behind and attempted to forcefully toss her onto his back like a sack of potatoes. Mindy thrashed around like a wild animal as she desperately tried to wiggle out of his grasp. She managed to stomp onto his bare foot, causing him to howl in pain. Luckily, this gave her the opening she needed to elbow his forehead, knocking him out cold.
"Nicely done." Jiminy complimented.
She gave a curtsy, "Thank yo-woah!"
Mindy cut her sentence short as a pirate with two eyepatches came charging towards her. She rolled out of the way before he had the chance to impale her. He then cried out as he was sent hurdling over the edge of the railing, landing in the murky water with a splash!
A stab of guilt pierced her heart, "Sorry! But maybe this could've been avoided if you had just thought through your life choices a bit more like a stable human be-"
She yelped as she was sent tumbling down the stairs.
Mindy flopped onto the main deck with a couple of coughs and wheezes. She then rested her chin in the palm of her hand as she impatiently drummed her fingers against the sticky surface.
"Ya know, I'm getting pretty sick of my enemies jumping on the bandwagon of kicking me in between my ribs and knocking the breath out of me." Mindy moaned.
She sat up to glare at whoever had a death wish, only to have her eyes narrow in bewilderment… In the blinding sunlight, she could the faintly make out the silhouette of a pirate towering over her. When he leaned forward, her pupils shrunk as the tip of Captain Jack Sparrow's blade hovered directly above her throat.
"Ello' Love…" He greeted with a devilish smile, "Remember me?"
"Yes and no." Mindy replied as she rose to her feet and pushed the weapon away, "Ya see… I don't know if you heard, but I kind of lost all my memories involving this place and my relationships with the characters that inhabit it." She rocked back-and-forth on her heels, "So, I know who you are, but at the same time, I have no idea what happened between us… savvy?"
Jack didn't utter a word.
His smirk merely widened as he swaggered towards her and held out a crumpled piece of paper. Puzzled, she snatched it from him, and took her time to unravel it. A hastily done scribble of a black dot covered the surface of the parchment.
"And what am I supposed to do with this?"
Jack Sparrow's grin faltered a bit, "You don't recognize it?"
"Of course I don't!" Mindy burst out, "Were you not paying attention? I literally just told you that I don't remember anything about what happened here when I was younger!"
His smile flickered spastically for a split-second before shifting into a scowl, "I knew that!"
"Mindy, this is The Black Spot." Jiminy piped up.
"The what?"
"In the days of pirates, whenever someone did them a great wrong, they would hand them The Black Spot." He elaborated, "It was a sign that they would stop at nothing to-" He gulped, "-kill them."
"But why does he want to kill me?" She spun around to reface the captain with frantic bug-like eyes, "Hey, why do you want to kill me?!"
When he failed to respond, she gave a nervous chuckle. "Look, even though I'm not the biggest fan of you, I know you well enough to know that you would never subject yourself to form an alliance with Captain Codfish of all people. Not to mention that- ahh!"
Mindy cried out when Jack attempted to impale her. Luckily, she was able to dart out of harm's way with a grunt. He let out a playful chuckle at the petrified expression now plastered on her face.
"Heh… okay." She squeaked as he circled her like a shark, "I guess you really mean business… I had no idea that you could hold a grudge against someone, especially if whatever happened took place years ago! So why don't we just take a deep breath and…" Mindy trailed off when she caught the overwhelming amount of fiery hatred that had formed in his eyes. It was at that moment she knew that she wasn't getting through to him. "Before I start screaming like a maniac, can you at least tell me why you're doing this in the first place? Obviously, it's to get back at me for whatever I did, but I thought that you were supposed to be one of the good guys!"
"Am I?" Jack inquired with a tilt of his head. "Because last time I checked, I'm a drunken potty-mouthed scoundrel who steals, cheats, and swindles my way into people's hearts because I'm not intelligent or mature enough to comprehend the concept of witty dialogue and realistic action scenes!"
Mindy was taken aback. "That was oddly specific."
The lightbulb lit up above Jiminy's head, "That's because it was what you told him right before giving him The Black Spot and banishing him and the entire cast of Pirates of the Caribbean to the Isle of Oblivion!"
"What is the yahh-!"
Mindy let out a screech as the pirate aimed his sword at her head. She ducked and pressed her back against the mast right as the blade struck the hard candy where her neck should've been. The bits rained on her, but her racing mind was too overwhelmed to even consider repairing it.
"We'll discuss this later!" Her conscience decided.
She nodded in agreement as she narrowly dodged the captain's incoming attacks.
Mindy wanted so desperately to shout: "Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit!" but kept her mouth clamped shut. She'd already upset her conscience twice before and wanted to protect what was left of his innocent mind.
So, she settled for screaming through her teeth.
Then she had a thought and hit her forehead, "Oh duh, I can summon stuff!"
She stuck her arm out as she ran and managed to fabricate a sword…a very, very, very, very, very crooked jagged-edged sword. It was orange (a color Mindy despised with a passion) and was missing some pieces of matter that'd been replaced with a weird glowing inky-black substance with teal balls of light pulsing in the mix.
Mindy didn't dare complain over the odd appearance of her weapon in fear that it would turn into putty before she had the chance to use it .
She skidded to a halt when she found herself trapped between the wall where the Captain's Quarters was supposed to be and her pursuer. Mindy tried to dash out of the tight spot she had unknowingly put herself in, but Jack had other plans. He roughly shoved her into the wall and gritted his teeth as the blade creeped towards her neck.
Without a second thought, Mindy whirled around and spat in his face. This startled him enough to give her the room she needed to land a sharp kick in the shins. Jack stumbled for a moment but recovered with a hardened grimace and proceeded to clash swords with the little beast.
One thing Mindy noticed right away was that Jack was an overall better swordsman than Hook. Shockingly enough, his footwork was well coordinated, and his movements were more unpredictable most likely because he was under the influence.
Her jaw dropped as he effortlessly disarmed her and grabbed her sword in midair with his opposite hand. Thinking quickly, she snatched two barrel tops from beside her to use as makeshift shields against her double-bladed assailant. The force Jack was applying to them almost caused her to collapse to her knees, but she squatted low to the ground, and pushed upwards with as much strength as she could muster.
The tops held up well enough, but she knew that they wouldn't last forever. Something tells me that this'll be far more interesting than the last battle ever was.
Dakota yelped as Captain Hook swiped his blade in the direction of his sternum.
He careened backwards and squeezed his eyes shut before swatting Mindy's sword in front of him. After a couple of blind slashes, he heard a prominent clang and peeped his eyes open. His brows shot up when he saw none other than Peter Pan intercepting his blade.
The immortal boy pushed him before whirling around to counter Hook's incoming blow. "Go back to the ship! I can take it from here!"
"But I want to help!" Dakota insisted.
"You can help by staying out of the way!" Peter shouted as he and the captain started to duel, "Don't get me wrong, I can fight this old codfish with my eyes closed and one hand behind my back if I wanted to, but I can't battle and babysit at the same time!"
"This isn't your fight lad!" Hook chimed in.
"You made it my fight when you decided to beat up my best friend!"
"Is that what all the fuss is about?" the captain threw his head back with a boisterous laugh, "And she says that you aren't romantically acquainted!"
"We're not! But that isn't the point!"
"Dakota, go back to the ship!" Peter snapped in his most authoritative voice, "That's an order! You're only going to get yourself hurt!"
"No, I am staying to avenge Mindy and there's nothing you can say or do to get me to change my mind!"
"Oh for the love of-" The boy managed to shove Captain Hook into the railing before swooping over to Dakota, looping his arms under his pits, and floating to The Jolly Rancher. The veins in his neck bulged, and he kicked wildly as he struggled to keep them both suspended in midair.
"Peter!" The captain's face twisted in outrage as he got to his feet, and leaned over the starboard railing, "Don't you dare fly away from me again, you coward!"
The boy's elfish ears perked at this comment but managed to resist the urge to spin around to acknowledge his nemesis. Snarling in frustration, Hook grabbed ahold of a rope, and swung across the gap onto The Jolly Rancher.
"HEADS UP!"
Captain Hook swerved to the side half a second before Mindy came charging past with Sparrow right on her tail. He tried to give chase, when he found that the deck of his ship made his shoes particularly sticky.
"What in blazes?"
With a start, he detected the sweet scent of...candy?
Hook gave another whiff, thinking that his nostrils were playing tricks on him. In disbelief, he stumbled to the mast and licked it before smacking his lips together...that was when his complexion shifted into an unflattering shade of crimson and all hell broke loose. Captain Hook's fiery temper caused steam to burst out of his ears as well as result in a section of the mast being melted thanks to cartoon logic.
"MELINDA?! BRIMSTONE AND GALL, WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO MY SHIP?!"
Mindy winced, but showed no other signs that she'd heard the villain's fearsome bellow.
She had far more concerning matters to deal with.
Jack Sparrow twirled two swords in his hands, as he pursued the girl who was currently sprinting across the deck at full speed. When she reached a dead-end Mindy literally bent-over-backwards in order to dodge the pirate's endless stream of attacks.
"Defense is your friend! Defense is your friend! DEFENSE IS YOUR-" Mindy cut off her own sentence as she performed a smooth barrel-roll flip and avoided the captain's double-wielded blow. Once she had successfully landed, she spun around and tossed her shields upwards to block the incoming blades, "DEFENSE… IS…MY…FRIEND!"
With seemingly inhuman strength, Mindy thrust the pirate into a crate of cannonballs.
He wheezed for air as he laid in a crumpled mass before her.
"Ha! That my itsy tipsy friend is the satisfying phenomenon known as karma!" She hooted, "How does it feel to get a taste of your own medicine for once Jackie boy? I bet that blow took your breath away, didn't it?"
"I wouldn't be too sure about that missy!"
Before she knew what was happening, Captain Hook grabbed her behind and pressed her close to his chest. She thrashed around as the shields limply dropped at her sides. Mindy attempted to attack him but his arms pulsed around her like a snake, making it nearly impossible to land a single punch or kick.
"Who's laughing now?"
Mindy lifted her gaze, and her complexion transformed into a pallid shade of green.
Captain Jack stood before her with his pistol aimed directly towards her head…
Once they realized that this was a stand-still, everyone ceased their fighting, and instead turned their attention to the center of The Jolly Rancher. No one from the good side dared to utter a single word in fear that it would cause the drunken pirate to pull the trigger.
"You cheated." Mindy's voice was a low whisper.
Jack only shrugged in response, "Pirate."
"J-Jack, this is crazy… and it's also incredibly out-of-character for you!" Her breathing was starting to grow rapid and frantic, "You know it! I know it! They know it! Everyone knows it! I have no idea what my younger self put you through, but judging from the way you're reacting, I'm guessing that it was pretty bad!"
"Pretty bad is quite the understatement don't you think!"
"I was a kid!"
"Yes! An all-powerful, ten-year-old brat who didn't think twice when it came to submitting a band of scallywags to eternal damnation!"
"But I've changed now!" Mindy burst out, "I'm not the same naïve little girl I used to be! Sure, I might've imprisoned you guys on a deserted island for God-know-how-long! But I would never go as far as to kill you!"
"A lifetime of endless torment is far worse than a quick death Love." Jack stated as he cocked the gun, "Just be grateful that I decided to mercilessly end you off instead of make you suffer."
BANG!
"NO!" Dakota's shrill voice cracked as he screeched.
Mindy's eyes scrunched shut as she anticipated the sharp pricking of the bullet…when it didn't come, she hesitantly popped open an eye, and her jaw fell to the floor.
The bullet hovered mere inches away from her face…
She was too astonished to focus her attention on anything else.
She didn't hear the stupefied shouts of the pirates as they dubbed her a witch. She didn't notice Peter creep over and run his hands underneath and around the bullet. She didn't even react when Hook released her, and instead continued to stare incredulously at what she had done.
Mindy rubbed her eyes and glanced down at herself.
It was then that she noticed a midnight-bluish glow emanating from The Amulet of Illusions. She then looked up at the bullet and shifted her eyes to the right. To her surprise, it moved in the same direction. Curious, she rolled her eyes and the bullet floated in a perfect circle.
All she could say was, "That's interesting."
Hey guys,
Sorry this chapter was so late. I recently got cast in an online musical so I'm going to be spending a lot of my time working on stuff for that. Plus second semester of college is starting up for me, so I'm gonna be pretty busy. But that doesn't mean I'm giving up on this story anytime soon, it just means that I won't have as consistent a schedule as I used to.
Thanks for your understanding and my ideal goal is to have the next chapter ready by next week!
~StarRosie
