Disclaimer: Don't own any of the PoTC characters and no profit is made from their use here. I only own Juno Alex.

Chapter 16: War

"What do we do!?? What do we do??" Robert Fairfield was frantic. The Dutchman had just disappeared under the sea, leaving the surface calm and the air quiet.

"I don't know…" trailed off Beckett.

"How the fuck…I mean, really, how the FUCK do you just forget that his ship can dive??" shouted Fairfield.

Beckett pointed his finger in Robert's face. "You just shut it now." He turned to his crew. "Shoot anything that moves! Run the flags out for that order!"

"Sir, there are no flags for that order," said a confused Lieutenant.

"Then make some!" Beckett hissed as he stormed off.

…..

Below, the Dutchman cruised towards the centre of the fleet. Jones was looking around, keeping an eye out for his pet. The rest of his crew were manned at the guns, all ready to fire once they surfaced again. Then, far away, Jones saw a dark shadow speeding towards them. It was the Kraken.

"Slow down…wait till she's beside us," ordered Jones.

The Dutchman slacked its speed, waiting for the creature to catch up. She was at least seven times larger than the ship, but she did as her master commanded. As she neared the ship, she slowed down as well, perhaps finding it strange that she should find her master underwater with her. Focusing with her large eye, she looked for Jones and stayed her speed as her eye finally found the one she was looking for.

Jones stood close to the edge of his ship, looking into an eye larger than he was himself. He made sure she was focused only on him. Once he was sure, he looked upwards to his right, then upwards to his left. Then looking back into the eye of his precious, he made a gesture with his hand. He held up his palm face up, and slowly balled it into a fist. As if to signal understand, the Kraken moved one of her enormous tentacles and passed it lightly in front of her master. Jones ran his hand over it as it passed, whispering, "Good girl, do as your master commands."

The Kraken broke away from the Dutchman and headed in a perpendicular direction. Jones melted into the wall.

He appeared in his cabin, and was greeted by the sight of his darling girl dressed and ready for battle. Juno was wearing her trademark skin-tight black leather jumpsuit, and attached to her were all her weapons. Her eyes looked golden and the expression on her face was sombre.

"Are you ready for this?" asked Jones as he walked closer towards Juno, his hand caressing her face.

"Yes," she replied, playing with his beard again. It always made her smile, to play with his tentacles.

"Why…I don't understand why you like those so much."

"I don't know…they're just…they're fun," explained Juno. "I can tie them into knots," she said as she tried.

"That hurts! Stop that! …Besides, it's time to go," Jones dropped his voice with the last sentence.

Juno nodded. "I know. I just…I just wish time could stop for us, you know? Just you and me, with no one else around…" Juno trailed off, her hand still idly twirling tentacles around and around.

"Soon, Juno. Soon. Now come on, we've got ourselves some Brits to slay!"

Juno moved in quickly, and kissed Jones. She wanted just one more before they left the ship. She pressed her hands up against his chest again, feeling the absence of a heartbeat. As she pulled away, she looked into his blue eyes. "I love you," she said.

Jones didn't say anything. He only touched her face before he turned around to face the wall. Juno came up behind him, and clasped her arms around him, pressing herself against his back. She shut her eyes, and clenched her teeth together as they went through the wall. As soon as they were on the other side, Juno felt the rush of the water around her as the Dutchman began to rise. She could hear muffled calls between Jones and Maccus, and could feel the reverberations of Jones' voice through his back. As soon as the pressure subsided for Juno, she let go, and Jones turned to face her. He pointed to a ship, signalling that that would be the one they would board first. She nodded, and the Dutchman made for the surface.

…..

Beckett's fleet was getting restless. They didn't know where the Dutchman was, or where it would resurface. Too bad no one noticed a lone galleon that had strayed a tad bit too far from the group. It was noticed, however, by the Kraken. She had understood that Jones wanted her to systematically take out ships. First from one side, then the other side; that way, they wouldn't know where she'd strike next. She positioned herself right underneath the unsuspecting ship, and using her keen eyesight under the water, scanned for Jones' ship. It was surfacing. The Kraken spread out her tentacles and moved so her mouth was right under the keel of the ship. She would wait until the Dutchman resurfaced, then she would quickly and efficiently grab and crunch, bringing the ship down under where her teeth would finish the job. From experience, she knew that the humans would be frightened into confusion and would be completely helpless.

Jones chose the perfect spot to resurface the Dutchman; right in between two close frigates.

"Sir! Look!" a deckhand pointed to the sea which had begun to churn at that point.

"It's sure to be Jones! Ready to fire!" shouted the Captain of the frigate.

Unfortunately, no one was ready to fire as the Dutchman came up. Waves of water were displaced as she surfaced, rocking the two ships violently.

"FIRE!" shouted Maccus. For a moment, all that could be heard were cannon shots and screaming men.

On the other side, another ship was in distress, for the Kraken had raised her tentacles high was doling out her judgment. It was a fast death for the men on board.

And then just as suddenly as it happened, both the Kraken and the Dutchman had sunk below the waves once more.

…..

"I want to know what's going on there! What's happening!?" screamed Beckett as he watched two ships get blown to bits, and yet another on his left side disappear into the sea.

"Wait, sir! The cannons have stopped firing! They've gone!" shouted a man from atop the crow's nest.

"What do you mean they've gone?" demanded Beckett. But he knew as well as the other man that the Dutchman was no more to be seen.

…..

Jones and Juno found themselves in the cargo hold of a ship. Juno was listening to the sounds on board…if there was a tell-tale thump that would lead them to the chest. She looked at her Captain and shook her head.

Jones snorted angrily and looked upwards. "No survivors, Miss Alex."

"Aye sir."

Efficiently and mercilessly, the two of them battled their way upward through the ship. No one could stand in their way. The girl was as bloodthirsty as her Captain.

On the deck of the unfortunate ship, the Captain was in his meeting room, just being informed.

"I'm sure, sir. It's Jones himself. And the rumours were right! It is a girl fighting by his side! I've already told the men to run up the flags signalling we're under attack!"

"I don't care if it's the fucking queen! Order all hands to arms! They won't be leaving this ship alive!"

"We won't?" smiled Juno as she walked in through the door.

At once, all the men in the room trained their pistols on her. "You won't get away with this you wench!" hissed a man.

Moving slowly, Juno reached up and pulled her sword from its sheath.

"You're sword will do you no good if you're riddled with bullets. You'd better put it down and surrender," suggested the Captain.

A small giggle escaped the golden-eyed girl. "Go ahead, shoot me!" she taunted. When they hesitated (and she knew they would…they always do), she sliced downwards, cutting off a man's arm to her right. Without stopping, she finished the job, and as his head rolled onto the floor, Juno twirled and did away with another man's legs. When he hit the ground, she effortlessly stabbed her sword into his neck, relishing the choking sounds he made as his airways filled with blood. She reached for her dagger with her left hand, but the Captain kicked her over, and Juno skidded towards the wall, hitting it hard.

"You die now!" shouted the Captain as he fired his pistol into her.

Juno took the shots, and her body convulsed with each bullet. When the Captain and his remaining mate were done, she waited. She felt her body healing itself, and she couldn't help but laugh.

"She's laughing! She's mad!"

"God help us all…." whispered the Captain as Juno slowly climbed to her feet, smiling and laughing evilly.

"I don't think God has anything to do with this," she said, still smiling that queer, strange smile. She threw the dagger and it hit the mate in his eye. He keeled over, and only the Captain was left now. "You. You work for that imbecile who stole the chest. You think you're doing the right thing," Juno said as she advanced on the shrinking form of the Captain. Sheathing her sword, she lunged forward only to grab at her sai. Embedding it in the man's stomach, she took pleasure in his scream as she twisted the sai. She could feel his mutilated innards spilling out onto her hand, and the last words the Captain heard were only a whisper in his ear: "Beckett is wrong, and you and his precious fleet will all die for it."

…..

Outside the meeting room, on the deck, Jones made short work of the remaining crew. He had also successfully taken down the flags, running up some of his own signals. The flags now signalled "Surrender or Die." Juno found him outside admiring his handiwork.

"Surrender or die? I didn't even know there was a flag signal for that," commented Juno.

Jones was looking around. "Beckett's got his fleet moving so that the ships aren't as close together. Smart man. But it won't do any good."

A shadow fell upon the two as the Kraken arrived, lifting her tentacles into the air. Shouts erupted all around on the surrounding ships. In the distance, they could hear the distinctive sound of the Dutchman's triple guns as she surfaced yet again.

No one had expected Jones to use his ship's diving ability as a tactical advantage. Nor had they expected the speed at which the Kraken could sink a ship. Beckett could only watch as one by one, the ships of his fleet were demolished; either by the forceful use of the Dutchman's cannons, or by the Kraken's power. He saw that the Kraken had its tentacles raised once more to take out a ship. Neighbouring ships were now firing on it, but it didn't matter; one dull crunch and it was gone.

Just as it went under, Jones held Juno and again melted into a nearby wall, only to rematerialize on another ship. Confident in his crew and in his pet, Jones had chosen none other than the Adamant itself this time.

Juno's eyes went wide as they appeared in the cargo hold. She put her hand against the wall to steady herself for a moment.

"What is it?" asked Jones, concerned. Perhaps the fighting had taken its toll on her.

"It's beautiful…" Juno whispered.

"What is?" asked a confused Jones.

"I can hear it…." She put her small hand on Jones' chest where his heart should have been.

"It's here, then?" His voice was hopeful as he his hand over top of Juno's.

Silently, she nodded. She watched as the warmth that suddenly appeared in her Captain's eyes disappeared just as suddenly, only to be replaced a vicious coldness.

"Let's go then," he said roughly.

…..

Fairfield had been sitting on a step since the so-called battle began. He knew it was more like a massacre out there. Every time that cursed ship came out of the water, it would take one or two ships back down with it. And that animal! He had never seen anything like it. Even when a ship had tried to sail away, it could never get out of reach of one of its giant tentacles. Robert had heard someone refer to is as the Kraken. He was roused out of his thoughts as a small device in his pocket began to beep. Stunned for a moment, he just sat there, looking at the red light on the device blink off and on. It was only for a moment however, as he got up and ran full speed towards Beckett.

"SHE'S HERE! FOR CHRIST'S SAKE SHE'S FUCKING HERE!" he was shouting and yelling as he ran.

"What are you talking about?" demanded Beckett as Robert neared.

Out of breath, Fairfield spoke in short gasps. He was leaning forward with his hand on his knees, "Th-this device reacts when it senses Ju-Juno is around. I used to use a re-restrainer device to control her…but she took it…"

"I said WHAT are you talking about?? Stop babbling, man!"

"She to-took it! So I made another one!!!" Robert looked up at Beckett with a smirk on his face.

Understanding what Robert meant, Beckett returned the smirk with a smile of his own. "Signal to the fleet! Enemy on board, concentrate all firepower here!"

…..

Author's note: Okay, I had to break this up into two parts. Otherwise I think I would've ended up with a fairly large chapter…around 4000 words! Holy geez….I used to have trouble writing papers for school that were 5000 words… Lol! Anyway, sorry for the wait on this one. It was my birthday on the 29th! So the weekend has been busy for me. So….this means that next chapter is most probably the end…

Sarah Jones, thanks for the review, now you've made me have a craving to watch the Fifth Element.

Pearl's Beauty, I didn't realize I had written a cliffy! Seriously! Lol!

Salt06, oh yeah, they are in love. But…I think only Juno's actually admitted it….in this chapter. P

EleniDalby, thanks soooo much for your review! I also love the relationship between Juno and Jones. He really dominates over her. She teases too, but she teases so that he'll dominate her. Haha.

Dog youkai jane, thanks for your review, too! We'll see about a sequel, okay?