On the open ocean, Jack sat in his cabin and examined the Apple. Letting himself in, Kenway joined the pirate captain. As Kenway walked up to him, Jack's focus quickly changed from the Apple to Edward.
"I must admit I… I wasn't sure about you at first, but you've come through time and time again," Jack applauded.
"Wise to be on the side of caution, especially towards a pirate," Edward added.
"Aye, but you're not just a pirate… are you?" he challenged.
"I am but a man making his living in this world," he explained.
"Aren't we all?" Jack asked while examining the Apple once more, "What happened on that island?"
"Hellen had a group waiting for her on the island. She was hoping to ambush us and take the treasure for herself."
"A setup… sounds like a pirate if I've ever known one," Jack commented while wrapping up the Apple in a cloth and shoving it inside a drawer in his desk.
"Unfortunate she found herself on the wrong side," Kenway agreed. Several days later, the Black Pearl once again found itself at the port of Tortuga. When they arrived, they found the crew of the Jackdaw eagerly awaiting Edward's return. Anne was found on the deck of the pier as Kenway stepped off the ship with Sparrow and Gibbs behind him. He greeted his quarter master as she began asking questions about the journey.
"We should discuss this later," he quickly suggested as Sparrow came into earshot.
"Right then, drinks?" he asked, eliciting a chuckle from the two of them.
"Lead the way," Kenway suggested, forcing the remainder of the day to be spent in revelry. The next day, both ships readied themselves to set sail for their next destinations. As The Jackdaw was making its final preparations, Edward boarded the Black Pearl once more.
"Jack!" he called out, causing the captain's head to whip around.
"Ah! Edward!" he called back just before walking to him, "Are you taking off?"
"Indeed," he confirmed while shaking the pirate's hand, "I have business to attend to."
"Very well then, perhaps we might run into each other again," Sparrow asked.
"Perhaps," Kenway said with a smile.
"Either way, take care and take what you can."
"And give nothing back," Edward finished before walking off the deck of the ship. Suddenly, a worried look appeared on Jack's face as he rushed inside his cabin. He went behind his desk and pulled open the drawer only to let the wrapped object roll around in response. He sighed and shut the drawer. Meanwhile, several hours later, Kenway and Anne stood around a table, examining a golden spherical object.
"So… this is what all the fuss was about?" Anne asked.
"Aye, it's called an Apple of Eden. I've seen it corrupt men unlike anything before."
"What are you going to do with it?" she asked.
"Only one thing to do," he answered. The two of them left the cabin and walked to the edge of the deck and looked at the open water. Kenway then threw the Apple as far as he could into the water. The sound of the sphere impacting the water confirmed Kenway's intention.
"He knows where our island is, he'll find us," she warned.
"Let him… he doesn't pose a threat to us," he said cockily.
"And if Thatch finds us?" Anne asked.
"We can only hope to be ready."
Meanwhile, The Black Pearl also glided toward its next destination. With Jack at the helm, and compass in his hand, he had his next target in sight. He pulled the supposed Apple from his pocket. However, in his hand, it felt… soft. Puzzled, the pirate captain unwrapped the cloth to reveal not The Apple, but an orange. He then quickly turned to look back in their wake where the left port before looking over the orange. He smiled.
"Pirate."
A/N - As promised, here's the final installment of The Code and the Creed. It's been a very interesting ride with this story and was quite different from the infamous stories I'm used to writing. However, if you don't go outside your comfort zone, you can't expect yourself to grow as a writer or individual. That being said, I will unfortunately have to take a break from writing for a while. Classes are picking up and I'm running low on time to devote to this. I hope you guys enjoyed the story and make sure to stay on the lookout for my next work. Thanks so much for the support! Falkreath out!
