Elizabeth laid her head back and draped her elbows back behind her. A deep sunken tub on a ship, she laughed, feeling a twinge of shame for reveling at the fact she was at last having a bath, and on the way to Shipwreck Cove, no less. Wading through the water to the other side of the tub, she sorted through the glass bottles arranged around it. Unscrewing the lid and inhaling the contents of one, she poured some of it into her water. Jasmine.
"I hope everything is to your liking, Calypso."
Elizabeth crouched as low as she could without her head going under, corralling all the soapy bubbles she could around her. Wei Bo laid a crimson robe over the back of the chair and loomed over the tub.
"Sir, it is beyond impolite to watch a lady bathe."
"Forgive me. I simply wanted to see what I could before you were set free."
"So that is the plan you're going to be in favor of when we meet the brethren court?" she asked, her eyes searching the room for…she didn't know what. A sense of dread flooded her mind, sending a tremor down her back. She held her breath. "There are several men who would rather keep the seas for themselves."
"It is what the goddess wishes, and why should a goddess be anything less than what she is?" He pulled at a sash on his clothing and with one unruffled motion, removed an endless shirt and folded it in the seat of the chair.
"If you truly felt that way, you would be too in awe of a goddess to try to look upon her," Elizabeth said with gritted teeth.
"It is too tempting for man to not look." His leer deepened. "I had hoped you would have seen fit to offer some of your power to me." Fingering the Piece of Eight strung around his neck, he turned his back to her. Glancing back at the bottles, Elizabeth reached her arm out and took one, keeping it under the bubbles with whitened knuckles. "Who knows? Perhaps I could be the one to release you."
"I should think I would be the one to choose who would release me, if I choose to be released. You assume too much."
"You will choose to be released." She recoiled at the sight of Wei Bo plopping into the tub with her, parting the waters and coming to her like a shark. "The sea is not something to be contained. It is all too easy to see it in your eyes, Calypso, that untamable restlessness, that promise of adventure that lures men to you. Give me your gifts, Calypso."
Gripping the stem of the bottle tighter, Elizabeth's back slammed into the base of the tub at Wei Bo's lunge. His hands on both his shoulders, he was forcing her down with a strength she had underestimated. Jerking her shoulder free, she hurled her arm and brought the bottle down on his head, shards of glass flying into the soapy water. Wei Bo wavered from one side of the tub to the other, holding his head and moaning. Shaking his head, he charged for her again just as she was trying to lift herself out of the water. Reaching for his shirt, it wound around her hand when he plunged her back in the water.
With a throaty scream, Elizabeth stuffed the shirt into his face, shoving him until her arms cramped. Spotting the glare of a piece of glass floating along the water that had splashed out, she took it and cut away with a blind, primal rage.
After the two men threw him into the main cabin, Jack turned to see the chair in front of the desk facing the windows, its back to him. Tiptoeing over to the long cherry wood tables, he lifted a few lids of the various chests and boxes on them, a few of the items he recognized from not so long ago…tied to a chair, watching a fiery poker close in on his forearm. Coming across a match between an ivory tusk and a statue with several winding arms, he picked it up.
"It's not here, Jack, so you can stop looking for it."
"What's not?"
"The heart of Davy Jones, what you've been searching for ever since you relinquished any ties to a promising career and sold yourself to chaos." Beckett turned the chair to face him, his icy blue eyes boring into Jack.
"Freedom isn't chaos. At any rate, it seems as if you've done just fine without my…promising career, as you called it." Paintings of the man covered several feet of each bulkhead, stark lights and darks accompanying such romantic images as Lord Beckett on a horse with its front legs curled in the air, a sword in his hand. It was a bit too much like walking into a shrine for Jack's comfort. He half-sat on the table, his hand landing on a small, cold ball. Taking a quick peek, he saw it was an iron grenade. Not a bad thing to add to one's pockets. At least there was a way now, he thought, shutting out the thoughts running through his mind, cringing at how easy it would be to fall apart at the distress of someone else. Come on now, mate, you're Captain Jack Sparrow. If she can finish you off, Wei Bo is no match for her.
"Back to the matter at hand, I should think you would still be a little put off if Davy Jones were to know that instead of languishing in his Locker, you are right here, alive and well."
"You talk as if you would just hand the heart right over to me." Jack collapsed into the opposite chair and put his feet up on the desk, being sure to scrunch the neat stacks of paper on top of it. "And neither you nor I make a habit of doing something for nothing, so why don't we simply name our terms?"
"Of course. That's just good business. Do name your terms." Beckett rose and loomed over him, hands behind his back.
"That would depend on what it is you want from me?"
"I want everything from you," he whispered in his ear, too close to see the other side of Jack's lip curl up in disgust. Pretend you don't mind it. Pretend you don't mind it. "I want to know who the pirate lords are, what's to be done with the Pieces of Eight, where Shipwreck Cove is."
"That's a lot to want."
"And it's not all I'll take once I know it."
Jack shuddered, but summoned a nonchalant grin and propped himself out of the chair. "You'll find my terms quite more agreeable. The Pieces of Eight are specified trinkets in the possession of each pirate lord to not only prove their pirate lordship, but, in this case, to free the sea goddess Calypso and thus return the power of the seas to the gods rather than men. I want my freedom," he said before Beckett could even open his mouth. "I want no more East India Trading Company ships chasing me or my ship."
"Done," Beckett agreed with a deadpan tone. "The rest?"
"Of course, I can't really have my freedom if I don't have a crew with which to sail my ship." He walked around the room, running his fingers alongside the marble chess set. "Yes, indeed, the other eight pirate lords would consider me a laughingstock to be sure."
"There are nine pirate lords?"
"I have no qualms in handing over Barbossa to you, shifty, oily sort of man, and naturally the homunculus and the gangly one would follow suit." He picked up the queen on the board and took her with him to the most atrocious sight in the entire room.
Wei Bo slumped under the water, only his bare back visible. Dead. She couldn't breathe, red swirls of blood curling through the water like silk ribbons. Gasping, she gave a mute scream, the coherent part of her brain slowly waking and warning her to look at the edge for glass before she lifted her naked, vulnerable body out of the bathtub. Wrapping the crimson robe around herself, she tied it off and scanned the room.
"Did ye make this doll of ye yourself? Wait until I tell Captain Jocard the head of the East India Trading Company has time to whittle."
"Jack."
"Oh yes," he said, turning back around to keep from looking at Beckett's eyes bulging, his fingertips kneading the surface of his desk, cheeks huffed out slightly. Jack had seen that same demeanor on a few climaxing whores. Where had he left off? Think, Jackie boy. "Ah, and how could I have omitted Turner? You roped him into this in the first place, all for this." He dangled his compass in front of Beckett, not daring to open it. "Since you enjoy working with him so much you may have him. The rest stay with me onboard the Pearl."
"Even Miss Swann?"
Bugger. Stay with the plan. Stay with the plan.
"Ah, the little devil herself. You may have to fight Captain Wei Bo for her."
Pushing the heavy stone stool into the tub left her close to exhausted, but she could still muster a half-smile at the fact it didn't splash all the water out. It sunk to the bottom just as she knew it would, Wei Bo's long shirt tied to it. Throwing her robe off one more time, she sat at the edge, legs dangling in the water, and tied the rest of the shirt around his neck. It dragged the body down just enough for her to position the bubbles over his back.
Sliding out and throwing the robe around her, she squinted. Yes, it was impossible to see him when you first walked in. She crossed to the cupboards for something to mop up with, wondering how long it would be before the doorknob would jiggle.
"Then you will ensure the pirates come outside to me?"
"Provided you stay a decent distance away, of course. They're expecting the Pearl and the Empress."
"Of course," Beckett said, slipping back into his chair, letting out a choppy exhale. His legs spread, head leaning back—it seemed worth pressing the matter. Jack had seen whores in such positions.
"Then you'll agree the best place for me at the moment is then on the Empress towards Shipwreck Cove and not bringing up the rear with you."
"Oh, Jack, all they need is your Piece of Eight." Beckett sneered. "We can just toss that over to them."
Well, that was all he needed. He lit the match against the desk and pressed it to the grenade's short wick. Scurrying out of the cabin, he saw Beckett dive under his desk just before he slammed the door and held it shut with his body. The explosion wouldn't be much, just enough for time to swing across to the Empress. Wei Bo, even worse than Sao Feng was, no matter what the latter's personal offenses were, Jack decided with pursed lips. The boom finally came and Jack ran up to the main deck, hoping he was not too late to stop some horrid act that he hoped was not occurring on the next ship.
"Stop him!" he heard as he swung across.
Long Asian swords awaited for him on the Empress's main deck, but the momentum of the rope helped him bypass them. His hand caught the deck to keep him from tumbling once he let go of the rope. With rapid dexterity, he ran down below to the remaining decks.
"Jack!"
Jack followed the long narrow corridor to find Gibbs and Governor Swann. A rope bound Gibbs' wrist, leading up and over one of the beams and back down to Governor Swann's tied wrist. Creative, Jack mused, slicing them free.
"Why didn't they just put ye in the brig?"
"We be strangers in a strange land, don't forget," Gibbs snapped, rubbing his wrist. "What's the plan?"
"My plan was to come over here. You're due for the next one. Where's the murderess?"
"Wei Bo took her further down in the ship. I don't like this ship, Jack. Such a labyrinth I 'spect a minotaur to come out any second. Hey!" His thick hand landed on Jack's back before he could take off for the stairs. "How's about a bit of protection, eh?"
"Here." He handed him his pistol before running back down the corridor. "Do not lose that!"
Bugger, now he had to rely only on his sword. Down the last step, he stopped right in front of Mercer.
"You're not the only one what can swing across, Sparrow." Jack blocked Mercer's sword with wide eyes. Best take the offense, mate, or they'll be no getting out of it. At last he was the one moving forward, driving Mercer backwards with short, sudden attacks. Across a number of closed doors at each side of them, Jack bent at the waist and swiped at Mercer's thigh.
"Not so fast there!" Mercer cried, jumping back and kicking Jack right in the gut. Stumbling backward, Jack felt every bit of the momentum that sent him breaking through a door and landing in something wet.
"Jack!"
Jack scrambled out of the tub when he saw Elizabeth, stopping to feel what had broken his fall.
"Your handiwork?" he asked, poking the dead body weighed mostly underneath the water.
"Never mind. Wait!" She ran back and drove her arm down into the tub, yanking off Wei Bo's Piece of Eight. "Now go!"
It was not long after they hurried back into the corridor that Mercer came at them again. Jack was ready with his sword. Careening the fight to the side, he knew if he didn't think of something fast, he would lose.
"Where's everyone else?" God, she always made demands when he was preoccupied with other matters.
"Up one!" he said in time with his dodging Mercer's blade. Hearing her bound up the steps, he shifted back towards the open door leading to the bathtub.
A/N: Ah, I've ALWAYS wanted to write a bathtub attack scene and I finally got to! Yay for me! As you may have noticed, there are bits of dialogue and plot points in here that are in the actual AWE movie. This is intentional because 1.) there are some really wonderful points in AWE I wanted to expand on and 2.) fate seems to be a big part of this series, so some of the things that occur in AWE will occur in this fic. We'll just get to them via an alternate route. But don't worry. There will still be some twists and turns. I hope you've been pleasantly surprised by a lot of things that have happened so far. Please let me know! I would like to thank whoever Fedah & Colozamia are because they've posted AWE's script online and it's the one I've been referencing for this fic as well as my upcoming parody of AWE...after I've finished posting COTBP and DMC, of course. Last but not least, "Down to a Sunless Sea" is from Coleridge's Kubla Khan.