Author's Note- I apologize for the tardiness of this update. I was hit unexpectedly with additional shifts at my work, and I had to hold off on writing for a few days.
Anyway, I'm probably going to have to take a break from writing full-length adaptations after finishing POTC and publish a one-shot multiverse RWBY fic. I don't have as much free time on my hands as I used to, and I don't want to burn myself out.
If anyone has any suggestions for the one-shot multiverse PLEASE SEND THEM TO ME VIA PM, NOT IN THE REVIEW SECTION! And FYI, I've decided to make the first adaptation a video game, so send me your top five favorite games so I can draw up a voting poll if possible.
Finally, if I made any mistakes with grammar or whatever, please point them out and I'll fix them. Thank you.
Review Responses
LeoLion1997- Exactly. That's what I was aiming for with Blake playing Jack. Her bisexuality makes her a good fit, especially with the love triangle between Weiss and Ruby in this multiverse. As for your suggestions, I'd most likely go with Lethal Weapon. Though I think Taiyang would be a better fit for Riggs as he mourns for Summer (Victoria Lynn). Hazel is the most physically imposing villain in the RWBY series, so I figured he was the best choice to play Bo'Sun.
maksimmalinin33- By that, do you mean will I adapt the other POTC movies? If so, I'll have to think about it.
Guest chapter 40 . Feb 13- Indeed. Adam is such a remarkable and versatile villain he fits the role well. As for Davy Jones, I already know who I'll cast if I write "Dead Man's Chest", but I won't spoil it. As for your requests, I'll need to look into them before I consider taking on the roles.
Farmer Abe- Yeah, I figured he was the best choice. After all, he's the polar opposite of Blake, just like Barbossa is to Jack. And you've given me some creative inspiration for how to handle the audience's reaction to Adam's death.
clonetrooper29- As luck would have it, I did read "RWBY'S Universal Trailer" by KyleAlingus. That's partly the reason I chose Adam. But mainly, I chose him because I thought nobody else could play Blake's archenemy so well.
Pharamine- Duly noted, my friend. Next time, I'll set up a poll if I'm having difficulties with a casting choice. And I fixed that error between Emerald and Mercury.
Guest chapter 40 . Feb 12- "Back to the Future" may make a good full-length adaptation while And I love "Rambo"! That would make an awesome one-shot. Thank you for the ideas.
SuperSaiyanJedi14- Lol. Sorry, no eunuh jokes here my friend. And perhaps Torchwick would have been a better choice if I didn't need a villain with a strong connection to Blake, even a hostile one. And Neo as the monkey would have been priceless XD Yang would definitely get a kick out of that one.
LoamyCoffee- Thank you for your support. And you're correct, Ruby's role sheds light on societal issues concerning romance between not only a commoner and a noble, but two members of the same sex as well.
OtherwiseR00K- Probably the same as the other cast members when it happened. Believe it or not, the cast had no idea that Geoffrey Rush (Barbossa) was coming back so their reactions to his return at the end of "Dead Man's Chest" were genuine.
Luffy L Deathwalker- Mainly because he's middle aged and has a mustache like Barbossa, though I suppose those similarities were insufficient for him to get the part.
korrd- Yang as Barbossa would be interesting, but ultimately not what I went for. I think the reason I considered casting Watts was due to being the most similar in appearance to Barbossa to me.
Straw Hat PiratesFan2023- My thoughts exactly my friend. And I apologize again for the delay. There will be late postings every once in a while.
triscythe59- Lol, I saw that episode. That's why they have Penny around to refute whether or not something is possible.
Ruby awoke to where she was knocked out. Around her, chickens clucked and waddled around. Rubbing her head, she saw the devastation left over from the pirate attack. Damaged or sunken ships and razed buildings still smoldering. The townspeople were busy with cleaning or repairing.
"Those bastards really did a number on Port Royal," Harriet commented angrily on the damage to the town.
"And they got away with Weiss," Winter added, dreading just what Adam had in store for her sister.
"Hopefully Clover is taking steps to rescue her," Penny said as she enjoyed an ice-cream cone.
Up at Fort Charles, the marines were carrying and tending to the wounded. In a small, half-enclosed room office Commodore Ebi, Lieutenant Bree, and Governess Schnee were all glossing over a large map of the Caribbean laden on a table. Dee and Dudley were also present as guards.
Ruby arrived at the office. "They've taken her. They've taken Weiss," she reported.
"Mr. Dudley, remove this woman," Clover ordered without even looking up at Ruby.
Dudley grabbed Ruby's arm, but she shook him off. "We have to hunt them down. We must save her," she said urgently.
Willow approached Ruby. "Where do you propose we start? If you have any information concerning my daughter, share it!" she requested in a dead serious tone.
Weiss and Winter wore bittersweet smiles. Seeing such an assertive and concerned Willow over their own depressed alcoholic one was touching yet saddening at the same time.
"If only she were like this today…" Weiss muttered with sorrow.
Dudley remembered what Blake said yesterday. "That Blake Belladonna. She talked about the Black Pearl," he ventured warily.
"Mentioned it is more what she did," Dee corrected his partner.
That gave Ruby an idea. "Ask her where it is! She could lead us to it," she proposed.
"No. The pirates left Belladonna in her cell, ergo they are not her allies," Clover refuted, his eyes still glued to the map focused on measurements and calculations.
"He's right, but that shouldn't be surprising. No honor among thieves after all," Maria said as she sipped some tea.
"Even so, if Blake did indeed once serve aboard the Black Pearl, she may know it's destination," Ren reasoned in agreement to Ruby's counterpart.
Clover turned to Willow. "We will establish their most likely course-" he began to explain his plan.
Fed up, Ruby slammed her boarding axe into the table and through the map. "That's not good enough!" she shouted.
Everyone looked surprised by Ruby's uncharacteristic burst of anger.
Irritated, Clover plucked the axe out of the table and circled around the table towards Ruby.
"Ms. Rose, you are not a military woman or a sailor. You are a blacksmith," he said with disdain as he grabbed Ruby and shoved her out of the room. "And this is not the moment for rash actions!"
Yang glared at the screen. "So what? She could fight just as well as any of the marines could," she said in Ruby's defense.
Ruby nodded. "Yeah. I don't remember any of you guys killing any pirates."
Harriet glared at Ruby. "You didn't kill any pirates. That one guy got back up."
Yang stood up to retort, but Ironwood intervened. "All right, both of you settle down," he ordered.
"The general is correct. I won't tolerate fighting in my theater," Gold-Sith reprimanded.
Harriet and Yang paused before they relaxed and continued watching the movie.
"Do not think you are the only woman here who cares for Weiss," Clover said in a low but slightly threatening tone as he shoved the axe into Ruby's hand and walked away to continue his discussion with Willow.
Ruby stared heatedly at Clover at before leaving.
Down in the cell block, Blake was trying to pick her cell door open, using the now sharpened dog bone as a lockpick.
A few audience members snickered at Blake's futile attempt to escape her prison cell.
"I don't think that's going to work, Blake," Yang said doubtfully.
"You're determined, I'll give you that," Vine said, also thinking the makeshift lockpick was ineffective.
"Well, excuse me for not resigning myself to the gallows," Blake said dryly.
Suddenly, Blake heard a door open from atop the stairwell. She quickly acted natural as she lay face up on the cell floor, leaving the bone in the keyhole.
Ruby arrived in the cellblock. "You! Belladonna!" she asked breathlessly.
Blake looked up at Ruby. "Aye?"
"You are familiar with that ship: the Black Pearl?"
Blake set her head back down. "I've heard of it."
"Where does it make berth?" Ruby questioned.
Blake looked at Ruby again. "Where does it make berth? Have you not heard the stories?"
Ruby stared wordlessly at Blake.
"Captain Taurus and his crew of miscreants sail from the dreaded Island of Death," Blake said, sarcasm in her voice as she said 'captain'. "It's an island that cannot be found, except by those who know where it is."
"The Island of Death? That doesn't sound appealing at all," Winter fretted, knowing it was definitely bad news for Weiss. [1]
"Yep. That sounds like a place pirates would hang around," Nora said with a nod.
"Especially pirates under a curse," Ren added, still as curious as everyone else about the exact details of said curse.
"The ship's real, therefore its anchorage must be a real place. Where is it?" Ruby demanded.
Blake checked her fingernails. "Why ask me?"
"Because you're a pirate," Ruby replied as if it were obvious.
"You want to turn pirate yourself. Is that it?" Blake asked curiously.
Ruby leaned in angrily. "Never!"
Ruby held her head high. "That's right. I'd never go sailing around stealing and killing people," she shared her counterparts' declaration.
Yang and Qrow both nodded with pleased smiles. "Good kid," the latter said.
"That's a relief to hear, Ruby," Penny happily praised Ruby's integrity.
Blake lowered her head again while Ruby pursed her lips and backed away from the cell bars. "They took Miss Schnee," Ruby informed.
"So it is that you found a girl! I see!" Blake said enthusiastically as she sat up.
"If you intend to brave all, hasten to her rescue, and so, win fair lady's heart, you'll have to do it alone, mate," Blake refused. "I see no profit in it for me."
Ruby stared at Blake, an idea forming in her head. "I can get you out of here," she offered.
"Helping an inmate escape? But that's illegal," Yang said, not wanting Ruby to get arrested.
Ruby sighed. "I know it is. But I guess there isn't any other way to save Weiss," she said, knowing that being right and being law-abiding didn't always coincide.
"If you must spring Blake out, you must be quick and quiet about it," Weiss cautioned, appreciative of Ruby's willingness to rescue her counterpart.
"How's that? The key's run off," Blake informed doubtfully.
"I helped build these cells," Ruby said as she examined the cell structure. "These are half-pin barrel hinges."
Ruby looked around, picked up a nearby bench and placed it at the bottom of the cell door while Blake watched with sudden interest.
"With leverage and the proper application of strength, the door will lift free," Ruby explained.
"Wow. Well done," Penny complimented Ruby's handiwork.
Ren noticed Blake studying Ruby onscreen. "Why is your counterpart looking at Ruby like that?" he asked Blake, the latter shrugging.
"It's almost like Ruby reminds her of someone," Elm pointed out as he also took notice.
Oscar scratched his chin. "Yeah. Now that you mention it... she did say Ruby looked familiar back at the forge."
Blake paused as she eyed Ruby inquisitively. "What's your name?"
"Ruby Rose."
Blake leaned forward. "Good strong name. Are you related to Summer Rose, by any chance?"
Ruby stared suspiciously at Blake. "Yes."
Ruby recoiled slightly. "How does she know mom?"
"Yeah. That's... kinda fishy," Yang remarked as she cocked her head slightly.
Qrow shrugged and sipped his diet soda. "We'll just have to watch and find out."
"Uh-huh." Blake processed the new information.
Blake finally stood up. "Well, Ms. Rose, I changed me mind. If you spring me from this cell, I swear on pain of death, I shall take you to the Black Pearl, and your bonny lass." She then stuck her hand through the cell bars. "Do we have an accord?"
Ruby gazed down at Blake's hand in hesitation.
The entire audience eyed Blake's counterpart dubiously. Something was definitely off about how quickly she'd changed her mind about helping Ruby. Blake herself studied her counterpart with squinted, studious eyes as she wondered what her full story and intentions were.
"Blake is hiding something. And I doubt it's a good thing," Maria said warily.
"I think you're right. After all, Blake didn't agree to the deal until after learning who Ruby's mother was," Qrow agreed with the elderly huntress.
"Yeah. Maybe. But what else can I do," Ruby said with a shrug, reluctant her counterpart had to help a pirate to save her friend.
With no other options, Ruby slowly placed her hand into Blake's. "Agreed."
"Agreed! Get me out!"
Ruby pushed down on the bench, applying the amount of strength needed, and it tore out cell door hinges. The prison door was now severed, and Ruby threw it to the ground.
"Hurry! Someone will have heard that," Ruby warned.
Blake quickly exited the now-open cell, "Not without my effects," she said as she approached a hook across from her cell and gathered her belongings.
Cut to Port Royal's dock. The Dauntless sat beside a dock. Ruby and Blake crept toward the dock from underneath a stone bridge.
"We're going to steal the ship?" Ruby asked Blake apprehensively, as she followed Blake's gaze, "That ship?"
"Commandeer," Blake answered quietly. "We're going to commandeer that ship. Nautical term."
"Just the two of them?" Jaune asked, wondering if such an act was even possible.
"How on Remnant are they going to do that? Who knows how many sailors are aboard," Elm asked aloud.
"Is it even possible for just two people to get the ship moving?" Blake questioned as if her counterpart didn't have all her marbles.
Blake gestured to the ship that was being loaded up. Ruby was startled. It was the HMS Dauntless.
"One question about your business, girl," Blake turned to look at Ruby, "Or there's no use going."
Blake leaned forward. "This girl. How far are you willing to go to save her?" she asked.
"I'd die for her," Ruby answered without hesitation.
Weiss felt her heart aflutter at Ruby's dedication, even though she didn't swing that way. Everyone else looked touched or impressed by Ruby's declaration.
Yang clasped her hands together. "That's so sweet of you, Ruby," she gushed.
"Anyone would be lucky to have someone that dedicated to them," Elm said with a hand to her chest, eliciting a few nods from the others.
"Oh, good. No worries, then," Blake said, sounding pleased.
Blake turned back to look at the dock. Ruby looked at her peculiarly for her question.
Ruby and Blake peeked out from beneath the bridge, where dozens of fishing boats rested upside down on the beach.
Beyond the busy docks, in the harbor, the Dauntless loomed.
Down on the beach, a patrol of marines jogged along the shore. There was no sign of Ruby or Blake. Just a row of upside-down fishing boats lining the beach.
"There's marines everywhere. They'll be spotted before they even get close to the Dauntless," Weiss pointed out.
"Where did they even go?" Blake asked.
"Hiding under one of those boats I'm guessing," Ruby assumed.
Then, unexpectedly, one of the upside-down boats rose with four legs beneath it. The boat waddled down to the water's edge and plunged inside.
Down below, Ruby and Blake walked along the bottom of the harbor with the water up to their waists. They were safe inside the air pocket beneath the boat hull.
"This is either madness or brilliance," Ruby said, feeling she was making a mistake already.
"It's remarkable how often those two traits coincide," Blake remarked, speaking from experience.
"I can say the same thing for initiation day when we killed that Nevermore," Weiss reminisced on brighter days.
"Would that actually work?" Ruby questioned Blake's idea, though she doubted it.
Penny shook her head. "In fact, no it wouldn't. The buoyancy of the boat would take them back to the surface, and Ruby and Blake are much too light to keep the boat and the air pocket submerged," she pointed out. [2]
"Meh. Who needs physics when you have rule of cool instead," Nora refuted with a smile.
Just then, Ruby accidentally stepped onto a wooden, crab trap, her foot going through it. She glanced down briefly before moving on, dragging her foot as she went.
Above, the lobster trap's bouey skimmed along the surface, much to a nearby dockworker's puzzlement.
"Let's just hope none of the authorities notice that," Oscar said warily about the bouey.
"By now, they might have learned that Blake isn't in her cell anymore. They have to be quick," Ozpin said internally.
Cut to the Dauntless. Ruby and Blake silently clambered aboard the vessel's poop deck via the bow. The vessels name was painted clearly on the back of the captain's cabin.
"Wait a second. Why are they stealing the Dauntless?" Ruby questioned.
"Blake was after the Interceptor, wasn't she?" Jaune added curiously.
"It would be wise to take the fastest ship available," Penny commented, even if she disapproved of hijacking in the first place.
The duo descended the stairs to the main deck where the ship's crew was assembled oblivious to the intruders.
"Everyone stay calm! We're taking over the ship!" called out with her pistol drawn.
Standing next to Blake, Ruby pointed her sword at the Dauntless crew. "Aye! Avast!"
The Dauntless crew burst out laughing at the ridiculousness while Blake shot Ruby a look that screamed: "Are you serious?"
The whole audience laughed as well. Even Yang, Blake, and Weiss, albeit reluctantly.
Ruby groaned and turned red with embarrassment as she pulled her cloak over her head.
"Oh, yeah. Real scary," Harriet said as soon as she caught her breath.
Harriet was undaunted. "This ship cannot be crewed by two men. You'll never make it out of the bay," she smugly informed the would-be hijackers.
Blake approached Harriet, aimed her pistol at the lieutenant's face and cocked the hammer back. "Lass...I'm Captain Blake Belladonna. Savvy?" she warned.
Cut to another dock where the Interceptor was stationed. Many marines and sailors were preparing the ship to disembark. Clover and Lieutenant Marrow were there as well.
Marrow spotted something the distance and approached Clover. "Commodore!"
Marrow pointed at the screen. "There's me in old-fashioned navy threads."
"You and Clover wear them well," Elm complimented while Marrow smiled gratefully.
Clover quickly pulled out a telescope to gaze out.
He spotted Harriet and her crew in a rowboat. Harriet was shouting and pointing at the ship behind her. "They're taking the Dauntless! Commodore! They've taken the ship! Belladonna and Rose! They're taking the Dauntless!"
Harriet scoffed at her counterpart. "Are you serious?!"
Clover looked up and spotted Blake and Ruby standing atop the Dauntless, hauling loose the lines.
"Rash, Rose. Too rash," Clover lowered his telescope. That is, without doubt, the worst pirate I have ever seen."
Clover and Marrow headed for the Interceptor to pursue the two hijackers.
"Oh boy. I'm in trouble now," Ruby mumbled.
Ruby ran up to the poop deck where Blake was standing. "Here they come."
Blake had her pistol slung over her shoulder. She just looked towards the approaching Interceptor and smirked.
"Why is she smiling like that?" Jaune asked nervously.
"I think she has another trick up her sleeve," Ren presumed.
"She seems to have a knack for that," Elm noted from what they've seen of Blake so far.
Harriet's rowboat reached the Interceptor. "Bring her around!" Harriet shouted at the marines onboard.
Ropes and grappling hooks were slung over the Dauntless as the Interceptor's crew stormed aboard.
"Search every cabin, every hold, down to the bilges!" Clover ordered as he climbed aboard.
Meanwhile, Ruby and Blake swung aboard the now unmanned Interceptor via rope, unnoticed by the Atlesians. With her hatchet, Ruby severed the lines holding the Interceptor and Dauntless connected, allowing the former to drift away.
"Oooooh, so that's what Blake was planning all along," Oscar said.
"Well played, kitty," Yang complimented her partner's cunning plan.
"Clever girl," Clover said, irked that his ship had just been stolen.
Sensing something was amiss, Clover slowly turned around. "Sailors, back to the Interceptor!"
One sailor tried to swing back onto the Interceptor via rope but missed and landed in the water.
"Too late. They've got the fastest Atlesian ship in the Caribbean," Harriet sighed.
"But now what's stopping Clover from firing at them with the Dauntless' cannons?" Winter asked as she sipped a glass of water.
"Personally, I wouldn't fire on my own vessel. Especially a first-class vessel like the Interceptor," Clover doubted.
Clover and Marrow stared at the Interceptor, spotting Blake at the helm.
"Thank you, Commodore, for getting us ready to make way," she said while waving her hat. "We'd have had a hard time by ourselves."
"Okay, that's just rubbing salt into the wound," Marrow said while shaking his head.
Clover stared daggers at Blake while the marines fired at the Interceptor with their muskets, forcing Ruby and Blake to duck for cover.
Clover began to walk away with Marrow following. "Set topsails and clear up this mess.
"With this wind we won't catch them," Marrow informed.
"I don't need to. Get them in range of the long nines," Clover ordered as he headed for the poopdeck.
"Hands come about. Run out the guns!" Marrow commanded and the crewmembers complied as they readied the cannons.
"Hold on. They're really going to fire at their own vessel?" Marrow said in disbelief.
"It's understandable though. Allowing pirates to commandeer a military grade ship would be disastrous," Ironwood reasoned.
"So how are Ruby and Blake supposed to get away unscathed?" Yang said in a worried voice.
"I think I know how," Maria said with a sly grin.
"We are to fire on our own ship, sir?" Marrow questioned Clover's order.
Clover paused for a moment. "I'd rather see her at the bottom of the ocean than in the hands of a pirate," he stated.
Behind Clover and Marrow, the helmsmen tried to turn the wheel to no avail. "Commodore! She's disabled the rudder chain!" he reported.
"And there it is," Maria laughed whilst gesturing at the screen.
"That explains that smug grin Blake had earlier," Jaune said with a chuckle.
"She planned all of that from the beginning I'll warrant," Ren assumed.
Down below, Harriet and her sailors looked up in alarm as the rudder-disabled Dauntless loomed over them.
"Abandon ship!" Harriet shouted as she and the others jumped overboard just before the Dauntless sailed over their boat, shattering it to splinters.
Harriet groaned deeply and hung her head in embarrassment while her teammates smirked in amusement.
Clover closed his eyes and lowered his eyes in exasperation as Blake and Ruby made their escape with the Interceptor.
"That's got to be the best pirate I've ever seen," Marrow commented.
"So it would seem..." Clover replied, a hint of grudging respect in his tone.
"For better or worse, she probably is the best pirate ever," Weiss said with a nod.
"Considering they stole a major Atlesian vessel without a single casualty, I must admit that was impressive," Ironwood added.
"But now both Blake and Ruby are wanted by the authorities," Penny fretted.
"And it's just the two of them. They can't take the Black Pearl without a full crew," Elm reminded.
Maria tapped her chin in thought. "Well, Blake did mention something about getting a crew earlier. So, I guess that's they're next step."
Cut to Interceptor sailing across the open Caribbean Sea, adventurous music playing concurrently.
"When I was a girl living in Atlas, my father raised me by himself," Ruby told her story to Blake while the former sharpened her sword with a whetstone.
"After he died, I came here, looking for my mother," Ruby tried at guile.
Ruby, Yang, and Qrow all looked saddened to hear that Taiyang's counterpart had passed away in this universe.
"How did it happen?" Ruby softly asked Gold-Sith.
"He died from a disease called smallpox," the host replied.
Everyone bowed their heads in respect for Taiyangs counterpart.
"Is that so?" Blake said nonchalantly as she headed for the poopdeck.
Ruby followed. "My mother, Summer Rose?" she pressed, but Blake didn't answer.
Yang held up a finger. "Oh, right. I forgot. Blake knows Summer."
"Well, it's time to get some answers on how she knows Summer," Qrow said, intrigued on the matter.
"I have a feeling it won't be good," Blake predicted as she slowly snacked on a tuna sandwich.
Ruby gave up on guile. "It was only after you learned my name you agreed to help. Since that's what I wanted, I didn't press the matter."
Blake continued to ignore Ruby as she tightened a rope line.
Ironwood narrowed his eyes at Blake's counterpart. "She's really dodging the question."
"Then she definitely knows something Ruby doesn't," Qrow deducted.
"It could be one of those 'need-to-know-basis' kind of things," Jaune guessed, figuring Blake's pirate counterpart would withhold information until it was necessary.
"I'm not a simpleton, Blake. You knew my mother," Ruby said accusingly.
Blake relented and faced Ruby. "I knew her. Probably one of the few who knew her as Summer Rose. Everyone else just called her "Bootstrap."
Ruby blinked. "Bootstrap?"
"Bootstrap? What for?" Ruby questioned.
Nora shrugged. "Maybe she's good at making bootstraps," she assumed with a sheepish grin.
"Maybe," Ren said, though he doubted it.
Blake jumped down to the helm. "Good woman. Good pirate. I swear, you look just like her," she said.
Everyone was taken aback by the revelation that Summer was a pirate according to Blake's counterpart.
"What?!" Yang and Ruby shouted in disbelief.
"Summer a pirate? No, it can't be," Qrow denied while shaking his head.
"It's not true. She was a merchant sailor. A respectable woman who obeyed the law," Ruby
Blake whirled on Ruby. "She was a bloody pirate, a scallywag," she said impatiently.
"My mother was not a pirate!" Ruby growled as she angrily drew her sword.
But Blake didn't even turn around. "Put it away, girl. It's not worth you getting beat again."
"Beat? She didn't beat me, Mr. Brown interfered," Ruby said stubbornly.
"I had you at gunpoint. I'm pretty sure I won," Blake countered.
"You ignored the rules of engagement. In a fair fight, I'd kill you," Ruby said stubbornly.
Blake turned around. "That's not much incentive for me to fight fair, is it?"
Blake then spun the helm, the ship's sudden turn sending a sail boom whipping around and slamming into Ruby, sweeping her right off the ship. Her sword fell onto the deck. Ruby held onto the boom dangled above the water. Blake picked up Ruby's sword and points it at her.
Ruby threw her hands up. "Oh, come on! Not again!" she shouted in frustration at the underhanded attack.
"Once again, she's a pirate," Qrow reminded his niece. "And besides, fighting fair will get you killed in a real battle."
"I think it's also to emphasize that wit and improvisation are important in a fight as well," Ironwood added, speaking from experience.
"As long as you're just hanging there, pay attention. The only rules that matter are these: What a person can do and what a person can't do. For instance, you can accept your mother was a pirate and a good woman, or you can't. Pirate is in your blood, girl, so you'll have to square with that someday," Blake lectured. "Me, for example, I can let you drown, but I can't bring this ship into Tortuga all by me onesies, savvy?"
Ruby looked alarmed at Blake's threat.
Ruby and Yang calmed down a bit. Knowing no parent was perfect, but they were good people all the same was comforting to them. They figured Blake was right about Summer being a pirate with a good heart.
"For better or worse, they need each other," Marrow commented as he enjoyed a hotdog with mustard.
Blake then turned the wheel, swinging the sail boom back over the deck and sending Ruby falling onto the deck on her back.
Blake pointed the sword at Ruby. "So. Can you sail under the command of a pirate? Or can you not?" she asked threateningly.
Ruby slumped in her seat. "Not like I have a choice," she sighed.
"Oh, come on, sis. It could be fun," Yang chirped to lift her sister's spirits.
"In a dangerous, law-breaking, sort of way," Weiss snarked.
"Well, if that's what it takes to save your counterpart," Blake concluded
Blake flipped the sword and caught it by the blade, handing it back to Ruby.
Ruby took back her weapon. "Tortuga?" she asked about her destination.
"Tortuga," Blake confirmed with a grin.
Cut to later that night on the island of Tortuga. The town was a dank and dirty place. A man was road hauled behind a speeding wagon right outside a tavern. Everywhere, drunk and rowdy pirates and sailors, along with scantily clad women, partied while whooping and firing their guns into the air. Other pirates were fighting and throwing each other off balconies.
"Wow. And I though the red-light district in Vale was wild," Yang commented, though she felt she'd have a blast at Tortuga.
"Looks like the kind of place I'd hang out in during my youth," Qrow commented, taking note on all the heavy drinking.
"I'm guessing the entire town is a pirate settlement?" Ironwood presumed, wondering why the Atlesian military hadn't dealt with the town.
"Well, it's far enough from civilization to avoid the authority's attention. But close enough to shipping lanes for travelling pirates and other criminals to flock to. So yes," Gold-Sith explained.
"So, it's a hive of scum and villainy," Winter appropriately described Tortuga. [3]
Blake and Ruby strolled down an alley. "It is a sad life that has never breathed deep the sweet, proliferous bouquet that is Tortuga. Savvy?" Blake said. "What do you think?"
"It'll linger," Ruby replied simply.
"I'll tell you, lass, if every town were like this one, no man or woman would ever feel unwanted," Blake went on.
Nearby, a black-haired girl in a scarlet dress spotted Blake. She strode up to her with a scowl.
Blake smiled as she recognized the girl. "Melanie."
Melanie gave Blake a hard, face-turning slap and stalked away.
"Not sure I deserved that," Blake said doubtfully.
"Oooooh!" nearly everyone groaned with a wince while Blake awkwardly touched her own cheek with a frown.
"What was that for?" Ruby questioned.
"An old lover she jilted, maybe?" Qrow guessed with a shrug.
Blake turned back around to see another black-haired girl in a cream-colored dress standing in front of her.
"Militia," Blake greeted with a smile.
"Who was she?" she asked while jerking her head towards Melanie.
Blake's smile vanished. "What?"
Militia slapped Blake and stormed off.
"I may have deserved that," Blake admitted.
Blake bashfully scratched the back of her head, slightly reminded of her abandonment of Yang. She shook the thought from her head.
Cut to Qrow Branwen sleeping in a pig pen, using one of the animals as a makeshift pillow. His Atlesian naval clothes were tattered and stained.
Everyone either laughed or groaned in disgust at how far Qrow had fallen. Qrow himself looked a little embarrassed.
"Monty Oum, Uncle Qrow. Look at yourself," Ruby said in disappointment.
Ironwood sighed and shook his head. "You went from an Atlesian sailor to a drunk passing out in a pigpen?"
"Which one is Qrow? The pigs all look the same to me," Winter asked smugly.
"Hardy har har," Qrow muttered while rolling his eyes.
Suddenly, Qrow was splashed with water from someone offscreen.
Qrow sputtered and brandished a pocketknife. "Curse ya for breathing ya slack-jawed idiot!" he bellowed.
It was revealed that Blake splashed Qrow via a bucket.
Qrow quickly recognized Blake. "Mother's love! Blake! You should know not to wake a man when he's sleepin. It's bad luck."
"That's true in my experience," Qrow agreed with his counterpart. "I once punched Taiyang when he suddenly woke me up from a drinking binge."
Ruby giggled. "I remember him telling me about that," she reminisced.
"You and Blake know each other in this universe?" Yang asked in surprise.
"Apparently. But what does that mean? He's a pirate now too?" Maria wondered.
"Fortunately, I know how to counter it," Blake replied to Qrow's warning. "The man who did the waking buys the man who was sleeping a drink. The man who was sleeping drinks it while listening to his proposition."
"Aye, that'll about do it," Qrow agreed as Blake helped him to his feet.
Ruby splashed Qrow with water from another bucket.
"Blast! I'm already awake!" Qrow shouted.
"That was for the smell," Ruby explained as she and Blake exchanged looks.
Qrow was about to retort, but then he shrugged as if to say: "Fair Enough."
Laughter and snickering filled the theater. Even Ruby and Yang couldn't help but giggle at their uncle's expense.
"Go ahead. Laugh it up," Qrow grumbled with a dismissive wave.
Cut to inside a tavern, "The Faithful Bride". It was just as rowdy inside as outside, with multiple drunken patrons fighting. Ruby wisely kept her distance from the brawlers.
Blake approached Ruby with a tankard of ale in hand. "Keep a sharp eye," she advised.
Blake sat down at a table opposite of Qrow, the latter drinking an ale.
"Now, what's the nature of this venture of yours?" Qrow questioned, getting straight to the point.
Blake leaned forward. "I'm going after the Black Pearl," she replied, also cutting to the chase.
Qrow briefly choked on his drink in mid-swig. Behind them, a pair of pirates were trading blows.
"l know where it's going to be, and I'm gonna take it," Blake declared.
"She makes it sound so easy," Vine said, thinking Blake was overconfident in obtaining the Black Pearl.
"Why is Blake so determined to get the Black Pearl anyway?" Ren questioned.
"Well...I've been thinking about that," Oscar began as he held his chin. "Blake did mention something about a mutiny back at Port Royal. I could be wrong, but maybe she was captain of the ship once before Adam took it from her. Or perhaps Summer was." [4]
"That's a good point Oscar. And those two pirates did say something about Blake being marooned on an island," Ozpin agreed with his host as the mystery unraveled bit by bit.
Ruby and Yang meanwhile pondered the possibility of Summer being a pirate captain.
Qrow lightly shook his head. "Blake, it's a fool's errand. You know better than me the tales of the Black Pearl."
"That's why l know what Taurus is up to," Blake said. "All l need is a crew."
"From what l hear of Taurus, he's not a man to suffer fools, nor strike a bargain with one," Qrow cautioned.
"I'd say it's a good thing I'm not a fool," Blake countered.
"Prove me wrong. What makes you think Taurus will give up his ship to you?" Qrow asked skeptically.
"Let's just say it's a matter of leverage," Blake answered.
Ruby shot a suspicious look over her shoulder at Blake mentioning the word: leverage.
Ruby scratched her head. "Leverage?"
"I think she means you're Blake's ticket to obtain the Black Pearl from Adam somehow," Qrow explained.
"It makes sense, seeing that Adam was eager to take Weiss when she lied about her surname," Oscar noted.
"But that doesn't quite explain how the Rose family name fits into all this," Ozpin said internally.
Blake jerked her head toward Ruby, just out of. At first, Qrow didn't understand until Blake jerked her head again more empathetically. Finally, Qrow looked over to see a drunk, heavyset woman laughing and coming onto Ruby, the latter looking rather uncomfortable.
"The kid?" Qrow asked in puzzlement.
"That is the child of Bootstrap Summer Rose. Her only child, savvy?" Blake revealed.
Qrow's eyes widened. "ls she, now?" he mused.
"So, they both know Summer," Yang realized.
"Makes sense if Qrow once served alongside Blake as a fellow pirate," Ironwood said.
''Leverage,' says you. 'l think l feel a change in the wind, says I," Qrow said with a smirk.
Blake smiled back and hummed in agreement.
"l'll find us a crew," Qrow offered. "There's bound to be some sailors on this rock as crazy as you."
"One can only hope," Blake said as she raised her tankard in a toast. "Take what you can…"
"…Give nothing back," Qrow finished as he and Blake clinked their tankards together, drank, and slammed them down.
"Spoken like a true pirate," Winter said flatly.
Elsewhere, the Black Pearl sailed across the Caribbean Sea. A light fog still surrounded the ship. High above, the full moon shined bright light over the ship.
Inside one of the cabins, Mercury and Emerald approached Weiss.
Mercury held a red dinner gown in his arms. "You'll be dining with the captain, and he requests you wear this."
"Tell him that I am disinclined to acquiesce to his request," Weiss refused, echoing Adam's earlier words.
Emerald and Mercury exchanged grins. "He said you'd say that. He also said if that be the case, you'll be dining with the crew. And you'll be naked," Mercury informed while Emerald tittered.
The audience was angered at the scummy perversion of Emerald and Mercury. Winter, in particular, clutched her armrests as her face scrunched.
"As if, you perverted bastard!" Weiss spat at Mercury's counterpart.
Pausing for a moment, Weiss snatched the dress.
Mercury's grin changed to a scowl. "Fine."
Weiss smiled triumphantly at her counterpart's defiance towards Mercury.
Inside Adam's cabin, one of the crewmembers lay a scrumptious looking feast on a dining table. Then he lit some candles to illuminate the room and blew out the match.
"Wow. Look at that spread," Jaune commented, feeling hungry just watching the scene.
"Say what you will about Adam's counterpart, but he dines well," Clover admitted as he sipped a glass of water.
"Look at all that seafood!" Blake said softly as she drooled slightly at the platter of seafood onscreen.
Yang giggled as she gently shut Blake's mouth to stop the drooling, the latter clearing her throat sheepishly.
Weiss showed proper dinner etiquette as she cut a tiny piece of meat and ate it daintily. Adam sat next to her, seemingly enjoying watching her eat.
"There's no need to stand on ceremony, no call to impress anyone. You must be hungry," Adam informed.
Weiss paused before dropping the utensils, picked up a turkey leg, and began to dig in. She was starving after all.
Adam poured a goblet of red wine for Weiss as she snatched a piece of bread and dug into that as well.
"Try the wine," Adam offered and Weiss accepted it and took a swig.
"Why is he being so courteous?" Winter asked suspiciously, coincidentally sipping a glass of white wine.
"I don't know... but I highly doubt he's being sincere about it," Blake said skeptically, knowing Adam better than anyone in the theater.
"He's probably just trying to gain her trust with food to get information," Ironwood presumed.
Then Adam held up a sour apple. "And the apples, one of those next?"
Weiss suddenly stopped eating as she realized Adam and the monkey were staring at her.
"It's poisoned!" she accused as she dropped the bread she was eating.
Nearly everyone tensed up at Weiss's words. Weiss and Winter gasped, the former hoping her counterpart was wrong.
"That makes no sense. Why would they bother taking her with them just to poison her?" Vine reasoned, calming the two Schnee sisters.
"Then why are they staring at her like that?" Harriet asked in confusion.
Adam chuckled. "There would be no sense to be killing you, Ms. Rose," he assured.
"Then release me. You have your trinket. I'm of no further value to you," Weiss implored.
Adam fished out the medallion and let it dangle in his grip. "You don't know what this is, do you?" he asked.
Weiss shrugged. "It's a pirate medallion."
Nora perked up. "Finally, we get to hear why it's so important," she said, expecting an exciting story.
Adam told his tale in a low voice. "This is Aztec gold. One of eight-hundred and eighty-two identical pieces they delivered in a stone chest to Cortés himself. Blood money paid to stem the slaughter he wreaked upon them with his armies. But the greed of Cortés was insatiable. So, the heathen Faunus gods placed upon the gold…" Adam paused. "…a terrible curse. Any mortal that removes but a single piece from that stone chest shall be punished for eternity."
The audience listened with great interest and puzzlement at Adam's tale.
"What is he talking about, Gold-Sith? Who is this Cortés?" Ironwood inquired.
"Well, Menagerie was once an isolated continent inhabited solely by primitive tribes of Faunus. It was discovered about three-hundred years prior to the time of this film. Many adventurers from across Remnant travelled to Menagerie. One of them was a ruthless Mistralian conqueror named Hernan Cortés. He led a brutal campaign across Menagerie seeking riches. Especially gold," Gold-Sith gave a short history lecture.
"So, the Aztecs were one of those tribes. Like the Hovitos in 'Raiders of the Lost Ark?'," Maria deducted with a hand to her chin.
"That's correct. Many of the indigenous Faunus tribes suffered tremendously from genocide, disease, and slavery at the hands of human invaders," Gold-Sith said sadly.
Everyone in the audience looked shocked, saddened, or angry by Gold-Sith's brief history lesson, especially Blake and Marrow.
Weiss looked intrigued but unconvinced by the tale. "I hardly believe in ghost stories anymore, Captain Taurus."
Adam grinned as he stood up. "Aye! That's exactly what I thought when we were first told the tale! Buried on an island of the dead what cannot be found, except for those who know where it is," he said dismissively.
Adam circled over to Weiss's left side. "Find it, we did. There be the chest, inside be the gold, and we took them all," he said, gesturing to emphasize his point. "We spent 'em and traded 'em and frittered' em away…on drink and food and pleasurable company."
The women in the audience looked disgusted at the mention of "pleasurable company". Except for Ruby.
"Pleasurable company?" Ruby questioned, not understanding.
Yang hesitated to answer for a moment. "He means prostitutes, Ruby," she explained in a low tone.
Ruby grimaced. "Ick!"
Adam circled around to Weiss' right side as he solemnly continued his tale: "The more we gave them away, the more we came to realize – the drink would not satisfy, the food turned to ash in our mouths, and all the pleasurable company in the world could not slake our lust. We are cursed men, Miss Rose. Compelled by greed we were, but now we are consumed by it," he finished.
Adam walked across the room; the monkey screeched. Adam went over to console it, putting it on his shoulder. Concurrently, Weiss took the opportunity to hide her dinner knife under a dinner napkin in her lap.
"I'm not sure that's a good idea, Weiss," Winter cautioned against her sister's counterpart.
"Where are you even going to go afterwards if you do manage to kill him?" Maria added, noting Weiss was on a ship full of pirates in the middle of the ocean.
"Well, I am being held captive by pirates. Fear can cause reckless behavior," Weiss justified her counterpart's action.
Oblivious, Adam let his pet monkey chew on the medallion.
"There is one way we can end our curse," Adam said as he walked back to Weiss. "All the scattered pieces of the Aztec gold must be restored, and the blood repaid."
Adam let the monkey hop off his arm and scamper off with the medallion.
"Thanks to ye, we have the final piece," Adam said jovially.
"And…the blood to be repaid?" Weiss asked tentatively.
"That's why there's no sense to be killing you. Yet," Adam answered darkly.
Weiss' eyes widened in horror.
The real Weiss' eyes widened as well while her teammates looked alarmed for their teammate.
Winter's face bristled protectively. "You'll do no such thing!" she snarled.
"So that's the reason he wouldn't bring her back to shore," Penny deducted by Adam's earlier refusal.
"And why they need her alive. For now," Harriet finished as she sipped a cherry soda.
"But why the blood of Summer Rose?" Oscar wondered.
"Hmmm...this must have something to do with Blake's past relationship with Summer. And why she decided to help Ruby," Ozpin deducted as the mystery unraveled a bit more.
Adam held up an apple again. "Apple?" he offered smugly.
Weiss smacked the apple out of Adam's hand and shot up from her seat, brandishing the hidden knife.
There was a beat, then Weiss tried to run but Adam chased after. Then, after a brief struggle, and then suddenly she plunged the stolen into Adam's chest.
Adam didn't even flinch. He looked down nonchalantly at the knife and yanked it out. There was blood on the blade, but nowhere else.
"I'm curious - after killing me, what is it you're planning on doing next?" Adam asked calmly.
The entire audience stared slack-jawed at Adam's seemingly invincible counterpart onscreen.
"What in Oum's name?" Weiss whispered in shock.
"Just like that one pirate back in Port Royal. It looks like they can't be killed," Ironwood reminded, remembering the earlier scene.
Elm arched her brow. "But how is that a curse?" she questioned, forgetting Corsac's skeletal arm shown earlier.
Penny cast a downward, pondering glance. "I think I know…" she said softly, a theory already forming in her head.
Weiss backed away, eyes wide and mouth agape in stupefaction. She spun and barreled out the cabin door…and then stopped dead in her tracks.
Tuskon and Yuma were playing an accordion and violin respectively atop a spinning capstan. Only one thing: they were skeletons! Walking, living skeletons wearing tattered clothes. They're bones were mottled with patches of rotting flesh and they possessed still functioning eyes.
All over the Black Pearls deck, the undead crew were attending to their work: scrubbing the deck, hauling lines, doing laundry and other chores. Even then, they looked absolutely frightening while doing mundane activities. Haunting and suspenseful music played as the scene went on.
Everyone gaped in shock and horror at the undead pirate crew. Ruby, Weiss, Nora, and Jaune even gasped sharply. As if ordinary pirates weren't bad enough already.
"Holy crap! Look at them!" Yang exclaimed.
"They're all skeletons!" Ruby cried out, nearly dropping her soda in shock.
"Just like that one guy back at Port Royal," Elm said.
"They're not as scary as the alien…but they're still pretty scary," Nora commented in a hushed voice. [5]
"But...why didn't they appear that way earlier?" Ren wondered aloud.
Weiss could only shriek in terror as she became gets caught in the turning capstan. She was sent stumbling towards a wide-open cargo hold and she fell in. Luckily, she landed on a tarp the pirates were stretching out and they sent her fling back up over the deck.
A crewman then caught Weiss in mid-air as he swung across the length of the ship via rope. The two of them landed on the poop deck. Weiss tried to run with the pirate in pursuit. They ended up on opposite sides of the helm.
Weiss grabbed the wheel and spun it, the rungs of the helm striking the pirate on the chin until his head popped half-way off. But the pirate simply reached backwards and reattached his head with an angry growl.
Yang would have made a pun about 'losing one's head' but decided against it. "There's a time for everything...and this isn't one of those times..."
Weiss then took off down the stairs leading back to the main deck. She hid under the staircase and peered through the steps with wide eyes.
Then behind her, the monkey suddenly appeared behind her. Only now he was skeletal as well. He shrieked, baring his incisors as he continued clutching the medallion.
"Awww...even the poor monkey is cursed," Ruby whined in pity for the animal.
"Suddenly he's not so cute anymore," Nora said, unnerved by the monkey's undead appearance.
Weiss tried to run again, but Adam caught her and spun her around to face the main deck.
"Look! The moonlight shows us for what we really are. We're not among the living so we cannot die. But neither are we dead."
High above, the moon shined bright and cast light all over the Black Pearl. The undead crew assembled on the deck in silence.
Adam spun Weiss around to face him. "For too long I have been parched of thirst, and unable to quench it! Too long, I have been starving to death and haven't died!"
Adam's expression became genuinely pained. "I feel nothing! Not the wind on my face, nor the spray of the sea... nor the warmth of a woman's flesh," he said as he reached towards Weiss, his reaching hand turning skeletal in the moonlight while Weiss flinched away.
Some of the audience members actually felt a grudging pity for the cursed pirates in spite of their villainy. In particular, Blake's ears flattened as she stared at her deceased enemy, befuddled to feel sympathy for the cursed pirate captain and his crew for suffering something she wouldn't wish on anybody.
"So, they have all the desires of the living, but can't satisfy them," Maria summarized the Black Pearl's curse quite well.
"That's the price of immortality here," Qrow noted morbidly.
"I wouldn't be able to enjoy cookies. Or strawberries," Ruby mumbled and actually shuddered at the thought of such a fate.
"Or pancakes," Nora said waveringly, her pupils dilating in horror.
"And I thought Salem and I were cursed…" Ozpin said internally, grateful he could at least enjoy the simplest pleasures in life.
Adam stepped forward, completely placing himself in moonlight. His face morphed into a half-decomposed skull. "You best start believing in ghost stories, Ms. Rose. You're in one!"
Weiss could only gape as Adam brandished a wine bottle, uncorked it with his teeth, and took a long swig. The wine trickled down his throat, and splashed all over his rib cage, drenching his clothes.
"Ugh..." Ruby, Oscar, and Nora all croaked in disgust.
Yang shook her head with a frown. "Now he's just messing with her. The sick bastard."
"Seems like a waste of wine to me," Qrow said, even though he didn't drink anymore.
Completely freaked out, Weiss darted past Adam, back into the cabin. Adam hurled the bottle against the door frame with a crash and slammed the cabin doors shut. He then turned to his men and let out a loud, sinister cackle which they all returned.
"What are you looking at?! Back to work!" Adam barked and the pirates obeyed without question.
Inside the cabin, Weiss huddled in a corner, scared out of her wits at the otherworldly horror she had just witnessed.
"No offense, Weiss. But you're in way over your head on this one," Winter lightly scolded her younger sibling for the situation she'd gotten herself into.
"None taken. In fact, looking back at it, I should have jumped out the dining room window like Penny said and took my chances running off," Weiss agreed with Winter, her counterparts fear palpable
"So, her only hope is to be rescued by Ruby and Blake," Blake finished, even though she realized it would be much easier said than done.
(1)- I decided to give the island it's translated to English name since there's no Spanish language on Remnant. Plus, it gives the audience more of a sense of dread and worry for Weiss' counterpart.
(2)- As luck would have it, mythbusters disproved this in Season 5, episode 2. So, being a highly intelligent robot, I decided Penny would come to the same conclusion.
(3)- I just had to throw an accidental "Star Wars" reference into one of these adaptations, lol.
(4)- I figured at least someone in the audience would make this correct guess. Being Ozpin's current host, Oscar fit the bill for me.
(5)- As scary as the undead pirates are, deep down, they're still human beings with clear motives and they can be sympathized with. The alien is on a whole other level: it's a terrifying, otherworldly monster shrouded in mystery as nobody knows where it came from or even what its species is called. Nothing is scarier than the unknown.