Now

The Island

"I'm in Dubai." said Mernae, talking to Mason through Nemo's console, "I've managed to wrangle an appointment with al-Sheikh. Hopefully I'll be able to convince him to meet with the rest of you."

"That's excellent work, Mernae."

"So...Is the opposition de-moled? All the League spies out?"

"Yes, we're secure."

"That's good to know. I'll contact you as soon as I get al-Sheikh's approval. Bye."

"Goodbye."

Mason turned the consol off, then turned around to look upon Nemo, who was reading an old book as the two of them sat in the Bridge of the Yellow Submarine.

"I'm sure Mernae will be able to get us an audience with Naif al-Sheikh, don't worry."

"I'm not." said Nemo calmly.

"Nemo, we have to talk about what happened last night."

"Priest is extremely hard to kill." said Nemo just as calm, never taking his eyes off his book, "Once, in Gotham, he was at shot by a dozen SWAT members armed with machine guns and he survived. A wounded neck is nothing to worry about."

"That doesn't change the fact that you shot one of our own men in the neck! I mean we all agree that what he did was indeed terrible, and we all despise him for it. But surely his intent was not to hurt us."

"He's not one of us. He's a soldier of fortune; he does what we tell him because he's getting paid. He told you that himself."

"Yes, and I'm inclined to attribute that to his ego."

"As you wish. I for one, want nothing to do with him."

"He's proved to be a very capable man, even though he made grievous mistakes. But he's still of use."

"He attacked his own men in Vietnam and fled to avoid punishment. Judas Priest is a man ruled by his impulses. If you want him you can have him, and you may ask Raimus or Barbossa to give him passage. Do whatever you want with him. I will simply not have him in my ship."

"If that's what you want." said Mason, "Look, to make sure we got rid of everyone, we've decided to check who had psychic blocks. Lucy said it was George Costas, Eel O'Brien, Dr. Robert, a few of Barbossa's crewmen, and Bruno, one of your crewmen."

"Dr. Robert I trust, I expect Barbossa trusts Mr. Costas enough. We'll let Raimus decide about O'Brien, we'll get rid of everyone, just to be safe."

"My thoughts exactly. However, there's the matter of Priest. You see, Lucy had read him once before and lost consciousness. She refuses to do it again. She says it might be a result of his nature as a vampire, but she isn't sure."

Nemo looked up from his book for a second.

"As much as I'd like to be rid of Priest, I don't believe he could working for the League."

"Me neither." said Mason as he got up, "Think about what I said, Nemo."

Priest stood by Lucy's tent, wearing a helmet to keep the sun away.

"Come in." Lucy invited him in.

"Funny, I didn't say anything." said Priest as he walked in, Lucy was boiling water, and apparently in the process of making a cup of something.

"I'm psychic, remember." said Lucy, "Would you like some hot chocolate?"

"Why not?" said Priest as he took his helmet off and sat on the ground.

"How's your neck?" asked Lucy, pointing at the gauze wrapped around his throat.

"All better." said Priest, "The bandage is still on because it keeps the sun out."

"I'm glad you're, okay?" said Lucy as she handed him a cup of hot chocolate and then started preparing her own, "What can I do for you?"

"I have a question."

"I'm listening."

Priest took a sip of the chocolate, the lowered his head.

"Everybody hates me, don't they?"

"Yes." said Lucy matter-of-factly as she sat down on her chair with her mug in her hand, "Well, not everyone. And hate might a strong word."

"Shit..." said Priest as he took another sip.
"Some don't, believe it or not."

"Like who?"

"Your friend, Mona."

"Who else?"

"The Irish brothers. Talbot. The captains, except for Nemo of course. Shaun..."

"Shaun? Shaun doesn't hate me?!"

"No, he doesn't."

"But...Shit, this makes no sense."

Lucy quietly drank her chocolate, as did Priest.

"Well, thanks for the chocolate."

"You're welcome, Judas."

"Are you calling me Judas because that's my first name," asked Priest, "Or do you feel betrayed, like everyone else?"

"What you've done has no effect on what I think of you." said Lucy, "I tried to read you twice, both times I became sick. I told Mason that it was merely because you're a vampire, but that's not it. It's what's in you, all those intense emotions; the sorrow, the self-loathing, the guilt, the wrath, the regret. What seems like centuries' worth of bad karma."

Priest looked deep into Lucy's cobalt blue eyes before putting on his helmet and standing up.

"Thanks for the chocolate." he said as he walked out.

"Miss Watts has managed to set up a meeting with Naif al-Sheikh," said Mason as he and the other three captains as well as Jenny stood on the beach, "But we need to head to Dubai soon in order to convince him to help us."

"We'll take the Red October." said Raimus, "It's not as fast as the Black Pearl, but it has the necessary stealth. One of us will have to remain on the island to keep an eye on everyone."

"I'll remain," said Barbossa, "Jenny can take my place. That is if you don't mind, love."

"No, I'm fine with it, Hector."

"It's settled, then." said Nemo, "We leave now."

Priest watched as he sat on the beach, as the Red October submerged beneath the waters, just as the sun sank bellow the horizon. He took off his helmet, then angrily hurled it into the ocean.

"Hey," said Shaun, "Mind if I join you?"

"...Suit yourself."

Shaun sat down next to Priest, stretching his legs before him and watching the twilight sky.

"How can you find it in my heart not to hate me?" asked Priest, "I'm the reason you're here, I'm the reason Liz was..."

Priest couldn't continue, he just winced and hung his head.

"Priest, it is because of Liz that I don't blame you for what you did." said Shaun, "Mona told me why you killed that Vercetti bloke. She told me all about Sophie..."

"Sophia."

"Sophia, right. You killed the man who killed the woman you loved. I understand that perfectly. I wouldn't have done anything different if I were in your shoes. Ironic, really."

"That...Thanks, Shaun. Listen, whatever you want, whenever you want it, all you have to do is ask. If it is in my power, it's yours."

"Mona's been teaching me how to shoot." said Shaun.

"I heard. How is it going?"

"I'm getting better. Priest, I want you to teach me."

"Teach you what?"

"How to fight."

"Shaun, come on."

"I've been in plenty of scraps in my life, bar fights mostly. But I couldn't put much of a fight against those bastards that got Liz."

"Those cunts were trained, Shaun."

"Exactly. And so are you."

"To what purpose?" asked Priest as he got up.

"I've no place to go, Jude." said Shaun as he followed Priest, "The League destroyed everything I ever cared about. I'm not going to stand idly by while people with less of a reason do the fighting."

"Shaun, be reasonable. The people we'd be going against have years of training and practice. I couldn't teach you enough in a few weeks, or a few months even. What kind of edge would you have?"

"I've got nothing to loose."

"You're emotional. Emotions tend to get people killed in this business."

"Oh, look whose talking!"

"Shaun," said Priest with a grunt as he quickened his pace, "I've done horrible things in my life. I don't need you getting hurt or killed, which is more likely, to weigh on my conscience."

"You owe me, Priest! You bloody owe me!"

Priest slowed down, before he stopped and looked a hundred feet away at the southern edge of the camp. He turned around and walked back toward Shaun, stopping as he was three feet away. He then kicked Shaun in the groin.

"Okay, Shaun if that's what you want." said Priest as Shaun lay curled up, moaning in pain .

"I'll teach you how to fight, I'll teach you how to duke it out with the worst of them. I'll make a five foot-nine merciless arse-kicking machine out of you. I'll teach you all my secrets. I'll tell you how to make quivering, whimpering things out of men twice you size. I'll teach you how paralyze a man with a pencil and the fine art of head-butting."

"UGHHHHH!"

"You will have no doubt noticed that I just kicked you in the balls. Although that seems at first glance like me being a wanker is actually me teaching you two valuable lessons, now listen carefully, since I don't think you want me to kick you again. Lesson number one is trust no one. Expect anything, from everyone, at any given time."

"Jesus Christ!" Shaun groaned, "My balls..."

"Lesson number two; fight dirty, if you want to win, then cheat. Cheat like crazy."

The Red October

"We'll be there tomorrow, at one a.m., Dubai's time." said Raimus as her, Jenny, Nemo and Barbossa, "We'll spend the night here and meet al-Sheikh in the following morning."

"Who is this man?" asked Jenny.

"Al-Sheikh used to run the Saudi Arabian secret service." explained Mason, "He resigned a few years ago, when the Saudi government virtually allowed the League to run their secret service for them. He's among the top experts in intelligence gathering and black ops, with decades of experience and a network of contacts. Raimus, you've probably heard of him during the afghan-soviet war, he worked with the CIA those days, arming and training the mujahedeen. Ever since cutting his ties to his government he has been self-employed as an independent intelligence consultant, and on at least two occasions has he refused a lucrative offer to assume a high-ranking position in the League."

"Sounds too good for us, Jack." said Jenny, "What do you think he'd agree to help us."

" Al-Sheikh never trusted the League and never liked his superiors' long standing bonds of cooperation with them, represented in Yusuf al-Kherish, director of the Cairo branch, which is the center of the League's operations in the Middle East. Also, I believe he has personal reasons that make him resentful."

All this time, Nemo had remained quiet and seemed to be distant. Jenny caught attention of this and asked,

"Nemo, are you alright? You seem troubled, dear."

Nemo acted like he didn't hear anything for a few moments, then turned to his compatriots and said,

"Several months ago, when Priest and Miss Sax were working for me as my agents in Gotham, their first assignment was to intercept and capture a ship filled with Korean illegal immigrants, bound for a life of poverty and servitude in the United States.

"But I didn't do it because it was the right thing to do. I did it because one of those immigrants had vital information, and do you know what? If that woman wasn't there, I wouldn't have bothered at all."

"What's your point?" asked Raimus.

"Its something that Gump said..."

"Gump?" asked Mason, "The little cretin who betrayed us and almost had us all killed?"

"...He said that we didn't do anything to make the world a better place to live, and that we only aimed to topple the League, who, at the end of the day, are the only ones doing anything to help anyone."

"You can't be taking what he said seriously!"

"Look, I know the League must be stopped, and I will spare nothing of my body or my coin in stopping them... It's just that I'm starting to think that perhaps what we're doing isn't enough, perhaps we should be trying to save people instead of trying to stop the League from damning them."

R&R.

Next Chapter: Shaun's education continues at the hands of Prof. Priest and Prof. Sax. While the foursome of Jenny, Raimus, Nemo and Mason arrive in Dubai to barter an agreement with one of the world's most formidable spies.