Chapter 67

Calming Tides

Davy Jones watched the Pearl sink through his telescope. He knew now that Jack was gone; he and his ship were bound for Davy Jones' Locker. He stood flanked by some of his crew, including his first mate Maccus. The Dead Man's Chest sat on a table, its key still in the lock, secured from any who would try to claim its contents.

"Jack Sparrow, our debt is settled," he declared.

"The captain goes down with his ship," a crew member lamented.

"Turns out not even Jack Sparrow can best the devil," Maccus proclaimed.

Jones stopped dead as Maccus' comment made him realize something. He whirled around and faced his crew. "Open the chest," he ordered. His crew looked around, surprised by the demand. "Open the chest. I need to see it!"

Maccus quickly ran over and unlocked the chest. Jones shoved past and lifted the lid. The surrounding crewmen gasped as they looked inside and realized it was empty. Jones promptly looked up, horrified, looking as though he was about to spit up.

"Curse you, Jack SPARRROOOOOWW!" the captain screamed. It looked as though the greatest pirate who ever lived had gotten one last laugh against his foe.

For hours, the crew rowed (and swam, in Sora, Donald and Goofy's case) across the sea. The silence persisted amongst the fourteen sailors in the crowded longboat and the three who swam beside as everyone mourned the captain.

Finally, the silence was broken, though the mood did not change. "So, now what?" Sora asked.

Gibbs sighed. "If we're lucky, we'll be able to hail a ship to pick us up. Then, we'll go to Tia Dalma's and break the bad news," he replied.

"Tia Dalma?" Kairi asked, curious as to who this woman was.

"Ay. A voodoo lady who had a complicated history with Captain Sparrow," Gibbs explained. "She told us how to locate Jones, and even explained to those of us who were less informed of how he came to be."

"So, she knows her way around the sea's supernatural elements," Riku deduced. "I guess she could give us an idea what to do next."

"And maybe help us out with our other mission," Donald added. Gibbs raised an eyebrow, but decided not to pursue the subject.

"Gawrsh, I suppose we shouldn't just assume that the heart's lost," Goofy said.

"It's not," Elizabeth affirmed. "James Norrington must have taken it."

"And awfully soon, he'll be bringing it to that Beckett chap," Ragetti added.

"Great. Not only did we fail to save Jack from his fate, but we let that guy get his hands on the leverage he needs to get Jones to do what he tells him to," Sora lamented bitterly.

"We made it out alive," Mickey said. "Let's just say that and… and figure out what we can do from here on out."

Riku nodded, agreeing with Mickey's assessment.

In his office in Port Royal, a high-ranking uniformed man sat at his desk in front of a map of the world. A harsh-faced man in a brown coat walked into the office, bearing news.

"The last of our ships has returned," the officer, Ian Mercer, informed him.

"Is there any news on the chest?" Lord Cutler Beckett of the East India Trading Company asked.

"None. But, one of our ships picked up a man adrift at sea. He had these." Mercer placed a set of Letters of Marque on Beckett's desk. Beckett recognized these letters. He had prepared them for granting William Turner, Elizabeth Swann, and Jack Sparrow amnesty as part of his bargain with William for Jack's compass. After escaping from prison, Elizabeth forced him to sign them for her and William, but the third remained blank. A new name had been signed on this letter.

"I took the liberty of filling in my name." James Norrington entered the office, his arm held by a soldier in a blue uniform.

Beckett beckoned Norrington to come closer. "If you intend to claim these, then you must have something to trade. Do you have the compass?" he asked.

Norrington shook his head. "Better." He dropped a fist-sized pouch onto the desk. "The heart of Davy Jones."

Beckett leaned in to examine the pouch. He saw the leather rise and fall with the regular heartbeat. "It's remarkable," he admitted.

"It take it I've won the commission as a privateer?" Norrington quipped.

Beckett smiled. "Oh, I think better." He opened a case revealing Norrington's old sword which he had used when he was in the Royal Navy. He walked over to look out the window while Norrington admired the blade. "Reinstatement to your former rank and status, all rights and privileges attended." He turned back around to address Norrington directly. "And I think a promotion is due as well. Do you agree, Admiral Norrington?"

Norrington took his sword up and stared at it, hardly believing that this was real. His position restored? Admiral? It was almost too good to be true.

He tilted the blade over his left wrist, pointing the tip at the wrapped-up heart. "Give the order, sir," he requested.

"Oh, no, no, no. That would be terribly imprudent," Beckett argued. Norrington looked at him in surprise. "Where's the profit in killing Jones when instead we can add another ship to your fleet?" He opened the door and stepped out onto the balcony as a spooky, mildew-covered ship rose out of the water in the harbor. Norrington and Mercer stepped out and joined Beckett. "The Flying Dutchman. Whoever controls the heart of Davy Jones controls the sea between worlds."

They already knew.

As the crew rowed through the swamp, they saw, sitting outside of numerous huts, dark-skinned men, women and children holding candles and watching the company pass through. Some even stood waist-deep in the stream water only a few feet away from the entourage. They seemed to have been mourning someone's death since before they arrived.

The sailors recruited from Tortuga who survived the Kraken attack had decided to leave the crew after they had found a vessel to carry them the rest of the way. With the extra spots opened, Sora, Donald and Goofy decided to finish the journey in the boat.

They reached their destination and exited the boat, entering a large but humble shack. The shack was filled with an assortment of odd items, some of which seemed to be used for voodoo rituals. Riku noticed that some of them reminded him of the witch doctor they had fought in Beast's Castle and wondered if what this woman did was anything like what his powers come from.

Tia Dalma was a slender woman with dark skin, black dreadlocked hair. She wore a tribal dress and cloak with a crab-shaped pendant on a silver chain, illustrating her spiritual occupation. She wore makeup which gave her black lips and dots arcing under her eyes.

The crew sat around the shack wherever they could find a chair. Tia Dalma carried a tray holding mugs, which contained rum for the grown-ups and, at their request, tea for Sora, Riku, Kairi, Mickey, and Donald. Will absently tossed his dagger into the table over and over.

Tia Dalma walked over to Will and offered him a mug. "It's a shame," she said sympathetically. "I know you're t'inking that wid the Pearl, you coulda captured the devil and set free your fadder's soul."

"It doesn't matter now," Will lamented. "The Pearl's gone, along with its captain."

Sora held his hand over his heart and bowed his head, his eyes closed in prayer for the old pirate, who knew of honor though he would not say it. Mickey did the same, and Riku and Kairi were inspired to follow suit.

"Aye," Gibbs agreed, standing against the frame of the door. "And already the world seems a bit less bright." He took a step back into the shack, addressing the crew. "He fooled us all right to the end. But I guess that honest streak finally won out." He raised his mug in a toast. "To Jack Sparrow."

Ragetti gulped, holding in his tears. "Never another like Captain Jack," he replied, holding his mug up as well.

"He was a gentleman of fortune, he was," Pintel said.

"His heart knew what he wanted, even when he didn't," Donald saluted.

"He cheated and lied, and labeled himself a crook," Sora said sadly but with a hint of pride, "but he couldn't hide the kind of man he was."

"He was a good man," Elizabeth finished, avoiding everyone's gaze.

Everyone drank to that. Will felt uncertain, as hearing Elizabeth's comment reminded him of the incident the last time he saw Jack. He was having trouble figuring out what to make of that moment. He turned to look at her and saw that she seemed distraught.

"If there was anything could be done to bring him back… Elizabeth…" he began his question, for the moment deciding to put his feelings for Elizabeth and his complicated respect for Jack above any jealousy and uncertainty.

"Would you do it?" Tia Dalma finished, catching him by surprise as she directed the question back to him. She turned to address Elizabeth. "What, would you?" She took a few steps around, sending the question to the rest of the crew. "What would any of you be willing to do? Hmm? Would you sail to the ends of the earth, through the darkest and most ferocious of seas, and beyond, to fetch back witty Jack and 'im precious Pearl?"

There was a brief moment of stunned silence as they processed what she was suggesting. Would it really be possible to bring Jack back from the dead? Did such a miracle truly exist?

Gibbs came to a decision and took a step forward. "Aye," he replied.

Pintel stood up. "Aye."

Ragetti did the same. "Aye."

Cotton silently raised his mug. "Aye," his parrot squawked.

Sora, Mickey, Riku, and Kairi each raised their Keyblades. "Aye," they said in turn.

Donald and Goofy stood up and stood at attention. "Aye," they said simultaneously.

Elizabeth nodded. "Yes," she said quietly.

Tia Dalma turned to Will, her eyebrow raised inquisitively. He nodded. "Aye."

Tia Dalma smiled. "Alright. But if you're goin' brave the weird and haunted shores at world's end, den you will need a captain who knows dose waters," she explained. She turned to face a set of stairs, drawing their attention as well.

They heard the sound of heavy footsteps as they glimpsed a pair of black boots appear on the top visible step. As the figure descended the stairway and came further into view, a look of surprise came over everyone. Half of them recognized the thick, wiry brown beard and distinctive wide-brimmed black hat, while Mickey, Cotton and Marty knew the face from sketches (via Jiminy's Journal and wanted posters, respectively), whereas Riku and Kairi never knew him but could easily infer his identity based on Sora, Donald and Goofy's reactions.

"So, tell me," Hector Barbossa, former first mate and captain of the Black Pearl began, "what's become of my ship?" He took a bite of a green apple, letting the juice run down his chin.

The crew before him stood in shocked silence.