Chapter 12: A Moonlight Serenade
"Don't worry, miss, he's already informed of that. A little mermaid flopped up on deck and told him the whole story."
Officer Philip Gillette, you are, without a doubt, the most insufferable little man I have ever had the misfortune to meet. Elizabeth Swann snarled to herself as she rowed the small tub of a rowboat across the darkened waters.
Good grief, of all the men Commodore Norrington had to leave behind to be in charge of her and her father's safety, it had to be that titch.
He was one of the lesser nobles of Port Royal who had been able to climb the ranks faster thanks to his father's connections, though his simpering and brown-nosing personality left much to be desired. He had been one of many men Elizabeth had rejected courting over the years, and she did not doubt he had enjoyed ordering his men to lock her in the captain's cabin "for her own safety," as he put it in his mocking tones.
The joke would be on him because, for all his assurances to his commanding officer, Gillette had not been cautious in securing Elizabeth in her gilded cage.
Even pirates like Hector Barbossa had been more thorough in keeping prisoners.
And now here she was, having escaped the Dauntless by tying all the sheets and cloth she could find in the captain's cabin and rappelling down the stern of the ship into the small rowboat kept for emergencies.
It had been a rather daunting climb down, but Elizabeth pushed through. If Norrington and his men were going to be stubborn about listening to her warnings, then she had no choice but to take matters into her own hands.
She may not have been a pirate like Peggy, but she knew enough about Barbossa to guess what he might have done.
If the pirate would sacrifice Will on that same altar in those caves, she assumed he would take nearly his entire crew with him into the caves, just as he had done yesterday with her. He seemed to like the drama and showmanship, after all.
That meant only a handful of men would stay aboard the ship for security. Despite the dangers, it would still be easy to sneak aboard, free the rag-tag crew of the Interceptor and storm the caves with them.
She just hoped her arms would not give out before then.
God, how did William make this look so easy? She puffed, wiping her hand across her sweaty brow.
She was barely a quarter of the way to the Black Pearl, and her slender arms were already burning.
Just hold on, Will, I'm coming.
Will Turner's heart hammered in his chest as he stood in the centre of the magnificent treasure-filled cavern, a bald pirate guarding him on one side, though his hands were tied tight behind his back.
He was not sure which deity he should thank, the Lord Almighty or one of the heathen gods, but somehow, he was still alive.
He was still breathing. His neck had not been split apart to bleed all over a casket of cursed gold, nor had his guts been spilled. He was alive and breathing, thanks to Jack Sparrow's timely intervention.
In all his life, Will never thought he'd ever be grateful to a pirate for saving him. Least of all, one as selfishly driven as Jack. Oh, and he was still selfish.
Even when helping others, he was still a selfish man through and through.
Will glanced at Jack, who stood nearby, casually swiping through the piles of gold like a magpie on the hunt. Close to him, Peggy stood alone and unguarded, glaring at Barbossa, who sat on the side of the mound of gold on which Cortez's treasure chest sat open and waiting.
Despite having drawn a sword to attack the older pirate, none of the crewmen he had ordered to remain behind dared approach her. Every time someone reached to touch her, she would snarl and bare her fangs and claws at them. In the end, Barbossa stopped trying to force the issue and instead ordered his men to hover around her just in case, though they kept her away from any potential weapons.
Will did not know whether to admire her tenacity or not. He still could not believe she had been so reckless to have challenged Barbossa to a sword duel in front of his entire crew. Granted, it had the surprising boon of buying Jack time to reach them, but still, had Barbossa not been so reluctant to engage, it could have gone poorly very fast.
Will did not doubt Peggy's skill in a fight, but she had been out of practice for a little while, and Barbossa was a seasoned swordsman in a dangerous occupation where many men died young.
At least now that Jack had culled the numbers down, the three of them stood a chance if they worked together.
He had no idea how this would be achieved, but what choice did they have?
And Elizabeth. Poor Elizabeth was out there on the Dauntless, away from their help. Yes, she was on a navy ship with a crew of trained officers, but these were no ordinary pirates. They were cursed and undead and nearly unkillable.
Did she know Jack's plan? Did she know Jack was double-crossing Commodore Norrington and his men? Or were she and Norrington in on the plan? There were so many questions but no way to see the truth. It was maddening.
Will glanced at Peggy.
She was kneeling by a pile of gold and treasure, and like Jack, she had started curiously picking at it. However, unlike Jack, she did not pocket any trinkets or coins. It looked like she was biding her time to Will, for her eyes often flickered to Jack, who returned each glance with a tiny smirk or a slight tilt of his head.
Despite his relief that his friend seemed to know what was happening when he did not, Will felt his mood sour as he looked back at Jack.
He knew it was silly; he knew logically that he and Peggy also had a strong bond. They had lived with one another for ten whole years! But for some reason, he could not shake off the tiny pangs of bitterness whenever she and Jack fell into sync. It just was not right.
…at least not to him.
But while Will turned his eyes back to Jack, Peggy watched her two captors as they hovered nearby.
Both men tried their best to keep a sharp eye on her, but the constant tinkling of coins and crashing of metal upon metal from where Jack was obnoxiously rummaging around for valuables distracted them. Occasionally, their eyes would flicker to the eccentric pirate to see what he was tossing lest it be dangerous.
But Peggy was not so easily distracted.
Years of listening to Will hammer away at the anvil in his forge while she read nearby had taught her how to focus her attention even with loud noises around her. She just had to wait for the right opportunity.
Something gold caught her eye as it stuck out from a nearby pile, and she gulped. It was an ornate golden sceptre poking out amidst a pile of coins with the tip shaped like a Fleur de Lys.
It must have been looted from the French.
Peggy thought as Jack tossed a heavy necklace of massive rubies without care over his shoulder, drawing the eyes of her guards and Barbossa away one more time as the trinket almost fell into the water. Carefully as she dared, she slid in front of the sceptre, so it was obscured from view, her hand carefully wrapping around the handle behind her back. It was not much, but it would have to do.
Thunk!
Splash!
Peggy gulped as Jack took a small golden fertility idol from a nearby pile of gold and tossed it aside like trash before picking up a simple string of beautiful, shiny black pearls and pocketing it.
"I must admit, Jack, I thought I had ye figured. But it turns out yer a hard man to predict." Barbossa snorted from his seat, eyes transfixed on his old friend as he tossed another priceless treasure aside like junk.
"Me, I'm dishonest." Jack shrugged as he straightened up, but something was different in his stance. He was stiffer, more concentrated.
Behind her back, Peggy gripped the sceptre handle tight as she took a slow and silent step towards one of her guards.
"And a dishonest man you can always trust to be dishonest."
Another slow step and a pause to make sure no one was noticing her. However, the eyes of Barbossa and his men were fixed on Jack. Even Will was not looking in her direction.
So far, so good.
"Honestly, It's the honest ones you want to watch out for…"
Any moment now. She glanced at Jack, who met her eye for a split second, smirk flickering at the corners of his mouth as he sauntered over to where one of the pirates was skipping stones over one of the shallow pools of water.
"Because you can never predict when they're going to do something incredibly…stupid."
WHAM! THUMP!
"GAH!"
Barbossa's head snapped back to Peggy just in time to see one of her guards fall to the ground while she drew back the heavy sceptre in her hands and struck down the second pirate on the head, knocking him clean out.
However, the pirate captain had no time to bark out the orders because Jack chose that moment to push the man skipping rocks in front of him into the water and steal his sword.
As swift as a snake, he tossed the blade to Will, who caught it deftly in his hands, pushing his captor away with his hips. The muscled man stumbled over, nearly tripping face-first into the water as Will leapt away, twisting his body so another pirate attacking him, sliced through his bonds and freed his hands.
Amid all the confusion, Peggy tossed the sceptre aside and stole one of her captor's cutlasses from their belts, raising it only just in time to catch Barbossa's blow as he bore down upon her from on high.
"Oh I don' think so lass!" Barbossa's lip curled with bloodlust and pleasure, pushing down on her hard as she tried to back away to put distance between them. "Now yer arse can get that hidin' it deserves!"
Peggy stumbled back, cursing her dress as she nearly tripped over her long blue skirt. But she kept her footing, glowered up at Barbossa, and defiantly spat in his face:
"Or maybe I thrash yours!"
She pushed back against the pirate and lunged forward in a riposte, the tip of her sword aiming for his eye only to have it swept away.
She blocked his counterattack and countered that with her own, but it was clear even to her that he had the advantage. Barbossa's reach was much longer than hers, and he wore easier pants to move in.
With each attack and counter, he pushed her further away from Jack and Will's aid as they engaged the other pirates in the room.
Peggy, however, kept her composure.
He may be the better swordsman and partially undead, but she was younger and faster than him and had built up stamina from all those years of hard labour.
She could endure. She had no other choice.
Blast this effing dress! she thought as she fell back against a pile of treasure after tripping over her skirt again.
"Peg!" Peggy heard Will's worried shout, but she had little time to focus on him. She rolled over onto her back and found the tip of a sword hovering inches above her breasts that heaved as she panted for breath.
"Ah, now this is more like it." Barbossa ran a tongue over his teeth, chuckling as she spared him a dirty glare.
"Piss off, you mangy dog!" Peggy knocked his blade aside with her own, leaping to her feet and lunging hard for her opponent, only to get tossed aside once more.
As she stumbled, she yelped as something long, flat, and metal slapped her on the rear very hard, forcing her to fall into another pile of treasure.
"YOU!" she growled as she rolled over, rubbing her behind as she felt the familiar sting and bite of the strike.
No. NO! This was NOT happening again. She was not the same little girl he used to smack around for jollies.
Quickly, she rolled to her feet, lips curled in disgust as Barbossa chortled with wicked mirth at her pain, only for it to get rapidly cut off by her violently taking a slice at his head.
He dodged to the side and found himself on the defence as she aimed swipe after swipe for his body, her eyes flashing silver and her fangs bared. Her nostrils flared with victory as she managed to nick his jaw, blood staining his scraggly beard even as he pushed her blade to the side, only to have her lunge once more for the face.
Barbossa ducked fast, only to stare in shock as one of the dark feathers of his beloved hat was sliced in two, the top half floating down right before his eyes.
His sneer fell into a roar of rage. Peggy's eyes widened in fear as she blocked and parried his now ferocious attacks, barely able to counter as his fury overtook his fancy footwork.
Now, she had done it. Now she had pissed him off.
She cried out as she dodged to avoid a violent lunge that still somehow was strong enough to slice her on the shoulder. Luckily for her, it was only a tiny cut, but it was still painful enough to distract her as Barbossa caught her blade in his, twisted his hand and disarmed her.
There was a clatter as her weapon fell to the floor and a splash as Barbossa kicked it away into a nearby pool of water.
But Peggy could hardly pay attention to that as she felt one of his heavy arms try to wrap around to draw her into a headlock.
"NO!"
Peggy had no idea where the shout of protest came from, but it was enough to distract Barbossa from his task. On instinct, more animal than human, she grabbed his hand before it could grip her neck and sank her teeth into his flesh.
"SHHGGAHHHHGH!" Barbossa hissed in pain as sharp fangs pierced through his skin, drawing blood from four deep puncture wounds.
With a heavy KATHWACK, he backhanded Peggy with the injured limb, the impact slamming her into the floor.
Dazed and vision spinning, Peggy struggled back to her feet, doing her best to scramble away from the swearing pirate behind her as he shook out his bleeding hand.
"ARGGHH! Get back 'ere brat!" He roared, footsteps slamming down hard as he stormed up to the stumbling woman, sword raised-
CLANG!
"Outta my way, Jack!" Barbossa hissed as Jack Sparrow shoved him back, sword raised to attack as he stood between the other pirate and his prey.
"No can do, mate." Jack snarked, not taking his eyes off Barbossa even as he shouted back at Peggy. "Go Pegs. I'll take it from here."
Peggy did not need to be told twice.
Hitching up her skirts, she ran, barely heeding the clanging of swords behind her as Jack and Barbossa resumed the fight.
"Yer off the edge of the map, mate!" Barbossa's snarl bounced off the cavern walls eerily as he caught Jack's blade in a cross "Here there be monsters!"
"Finally!" Elizabeth puffed as she stopped rowing and let her tiny boat float gently towards the side of the Black Pearl.
It had taken her a long time, but she had made it.
Now, she had to climb the ship's side without getting caught.
She almost groaned as her slender arms protested at the sight of her monumental task.
Muscles? Ha! Muscles were for commoners. Why would a noblewoman be expected to lift anything greater than a teacup or silk skirt for a curtsey?
Despite her great love for her father, Elizabeth could not help but resent his coddling nature. She knew he only wanted her to live in nothing but comfort and security since her mother died. However, now she was out in the world alone, leaving her woefully unprepared and helpless.
Well, she was not completely helpless. At least his desire to indulge her every whim had allowed her to read as many books as he wanted on subjects that most would consider too complex for a woman to comprehend as well as a man. So, with books as her whetstone, she had sharpened her mind, wit, and guile.
And here she was…clambering up the side of a cursed pirate ship, body aching and heart hammering as she did her best to stay as silent as possible.
So far, so good. She bit her lip as she quietly clambered past an open cannon hole where two pirates had set up a table with food, drink and candles.
The smell of the food was heavenly, and Elizabeth prayed her stomach would stay quiet as she slowly and gingerly hoisted herself around the opening. It had only been a few hours since she last ate, courtesy of Norrington's tender care; however, after that long row between ships, she felt like it had been days.
"What would ye pick to eat first?" one of the pirates' legs bounced up and down with excitement as he grinned at his friend across the table. "I think we should decide now, just so we're ready when the time comes."
Poor men…So much misery over a chest of gold.
Elizabeth felt a stab of pity for the two men as she hoisted herself to the railing and onto the deck of the Pearl.
Now, to find Gibbs and the crew.
Peggy puffed, ignoring the stinging in her bruised cheek, her stinging arse, and cut arm as she grabbed a sword dropped on the floor and ran to the other side of the cavern where she could see five undead corpse-like figures surrounding a familiar head of brown hair and pinning him by a wall with their swords pointed for his throat.
Peggy recognised a couple of the men as the two she had knocked out with the sceptre.
It appeared that the Curse of Cortez gave the pirates immunity to most mundane forms of death and helped them recover much faster from injury.
Fine then! I'll have to figure out how to keep them knocked out long enough.
"OI! Pissant!" Peggy picked up a small gold figurine from one of the piles and flung it at the back of one of the men's heads. It hit its mark a little too well. The impact was strong enough to knock the skull-like head from the spine and send it tumbling with a splash into a nearby pool of water.
Uh…oh dear…oops…. Peggy gulped, feeling a pang of guilt as the decapitated body of the undead man tried lunging around blindly for his head.
God, it would not be a pretty picture if he did not find the head before they won the battle and undid the curse.
However, whatever guilt she had diminished as the distraction she had created had allowed Will to dart away from the wall and back into the open space beside her.
Together, they fought against each pirate. Though they had never fought as a team like this before, they had fought against one another often enough to know their tactics and aid them.
Peggy knew Will liked long sweeping strikes and using his reach to keep his opponent out of range, so she kept her stance low and her body close. Meanwhile, he knew Peggy liked the quick lunges in and out, providing her ample room to move around his body.
What he had not expected from his partner was her willingness to fight just as much with her claws as she did with her sword. She took it with enthusiasm if ever she could use her nails, whether to swipe at a pirate's jaw or scratch at their eyes. And it was a good thing, too. Such moves were handy in blinding their opponents and giving them the much-needed edge in their fight.
Will almost felt envious that she had an extra weapon on hand, but then he remembered he did have a pair of legs and a free arm ready to kick and punch if necessary.
Unbidden memories of his first fight against Jack echoed through Will's mind. How silly he had been back then, thinking that cheating was unfair. That good swordsmanship and honour was all one needed in a fight.
While he would not betray his dignity and honour, Will could now see his folly as he fought to the death against these pirates. If cheating meant he or the people he loved did not die, he would take it and run with it if need be.
His gaze sought Peggy's red head of hair as she ducked under his arm to swipe at a pirate with her sword, nicking him in the eye. Thank God she was by his side again.
Will could barely concentrate while she was duelling Barbossa for his dread. From what little glimpses he had tried to catch of Peggy whenever he tried to come to her aid, she had managed to keep pace with the pirate captain. She may have done better if she wore pants like she usually preferred when sparring, but it was a testament that she had survived the battle thus far.
She was alive, and he would do everything to keep it that way. And when they got out of this mess, and they would, he would never let her out of his sight again.
"JACK!" Peggy's terrified shout almost jolted him out of his thoughts as he slammed a chalice over the top of a pirate's head and shoved him aside.
There, high above them on one of the many ledges in the cavern, Jack Sparrow stood opposite Hector Barbossa, a silver-bladed cutlass sticking straight through his gut.
"No, Peg!" Will grabbed Peggy tight around the middle to stop her from bolting.
An awful gurgling sound escaped Jack's throat, and he stumbled backward into a ray of moonlight peeking in from the ceiling above.
Peggy's yell died as Jack's body suddenly lost all its flesh, the clothes becoming tatters, exposing his bony ribs and hollowed-out insides.
Curiously, Jack raised a gaunt, skeletal hand to inspect it in the moonlight.
"That's interesting…" he muttered, lowering his hand and bringing up his other one.
A glimmer of gold hit Will and Peggy's eyes as the moonbeam shone down on the cursed gold coin, tinkling and turning over on the skeletal knuckles.
"That rotten little cad." Peggy sighed, shaking her head. Of course, how could she have forgotten? Then again, she had been so busy trying not to get killed.
"Couldn't resist, mate." Jack grinned toothily at Barbossa, whose lip curled in a scoff as he reached down to the ground. With a shout, he tossed a handful of coins in Jack's face to blind him from the oncoming attack, which allowed Jack to recover quickly and meet the blow with a block.
However, Peggy and Will had no time to continue watching the two captains' fight as a pirate came up beside them and aimed a downward slash from on high while two pirates ran out behind a pile of gold, flailing their arms and roaring at them.
Peggy and Will split apart. Will drew away the two screaming pirates, who were bigger and heavier, while Peggy took the shorter one with a beard and a red hat.
As he fought against her, Peggy could see the fear bright in the pirate's eyes as she bared her fangs in a snarl at him, nostrils flaring and eyes flashing silver.
She had never seen her face in a mirror while angry, so she had no idea how hideous or terrifying she might have looked to others, but she was not about to complain about the results.
Being feared like this was a heady tonic. Peggy could see why men like the Devil and Barbossa would covet power like this. After all those years of being afraid of so many things, it felt good to have someone quaking in their boots at the sight of her.
Yet as she advanced upon the frightened man, he quickly took a small handheld explosive from his pocket, which he promptly lit, the short fuse sparking and sizzling.
"Peg, get away!" Will yelled from behind her, but Peggy was already backing away from the device as the little bearded man threw it in her and Will's direction.
With a cry, she pushed Will out of the way only to find herself thrown back from the shockwave as the device exploded on the floor, sending golden coins and treasure scattering around the floor like shrapnel.
Ears ringing, she scrambled for purchase on her sword, eyes widening as she saw the little man with the beard rush at her with wicked glee.
"I'm gonna teach you the meaning of pain!"
"You like pain?!" a new voice yelled. A very familiar feminine voice.
There was a loud, heavy thud and a groan of pain as a long, strange pole flung the man aside.
And there, holding onto the large pole, dressed in a man's breeches, a shirt and a red coat, her blonde hair flying loose about her face was-
"Try wearing a corset!" Elizabeth Swann spat down at the groaning man at her feet.
"Lizzy?!" Peggy grinned as Elizabeth held out a hand to help her stand. "Nice pants."
"Nice dress." Elizabeth grinned back only to stiffen in readiness as a pair of feet thudded towards them.
It was Will, and he looked as shocked as if a green giraffe with pink spots had strolled across his path.
"Elizabeth?! What are you doing here?"
But Elizabeth was not paying him attention. Her eyes were on Barbossa and Jack, who fought furiously behind them.
She wondered at the two pirates as they slashed, parried, riposte and countered one another with expert precision.
She had seen the officers sparring on occasion when she and her father inspected the troops at the fort and knew enough by watching to tell when men had talent, but she had never seen two men fight like this. It was almost entrancing to watch.
Jack's fighting style was unexpectedly smooth and flowing for a man who usually presented himself as clumsy on land. Gone was the almost drunken sway to his step. In its place was the grace and skill of many years of experience. She was willing to bet he could beat Commodore Norrington in a fight without cheating or playing dirty.
And Barbossa…Barbossa was ferocious. He, too, had good technique, though he was far more vicious and violent with his strikes. He was faster than Elizabeth expected for his age and more powerful. His shoves and beatdowns were heavy against Jack's smoother style but still just as effective.
It was almost like they were dancing around one another.
Then they stumbled into a large moonbeam, and her heart almost stopped in her chest.
As soon as their forms slid into the light, their bony, undead, skeletal forms gleamed white, almost blinding them as swords clanged in a flurry of swipes and lunges.
"Whose side is Jack on?" Elizabeth muttered in horrified fascination as Jack painfully sliced off a nasty chunk of flesh that hung from Barbossa's back.
"At the moment…" Will gulped as Barbossa cried out in horrific pain.
"…ours, I think." Peggy finished his sentence, only to gasp as she caught a glimpse of gleaming metal out of the corner of her eye, its point aiming right for Will's head.
With a cry, she shoved Will out of the way while Elizabeth clocked the man with her pole weapon, only for Peggy to turn her with it to defend against the two swords of the remaining pirates that swung down upon her.
With her fellow woman's help, Elizabeth pushed back the three pirates, kicking the last until they formed a single line while Peggy shoved the pole forward with all her strength.
There was the crunching of bone as the pole spiked through the spines and ribs of the three pirates, linking them painfully together in a line like pieces of meat on a skewer.
"Stay back!" Will shouted as he ran up to the three pirates, a smug grin on his face as he yanked a small explosive from the belt of the short, red-hatted man in the centre of the odd chain, lit the fuse, and shoved it into his ribs where his heart should have been.
With a hard shove, Will, Peggy, and Elizabeth pushed the three pirates out of the ray of moonlight and back into the shadows. As they moved, their flesh reformed around their bodies, trapping the explosive in its original owner.
With a terrified squeal, the man pawed at his gut and chest, grubby nails dragging frantically at his clothes like a dog trying to dig up its bone while his two fellow pirates desperately did their best to pull their impaled bodies away from the ticking human bomb.
"No fair! Not FAIR!" the short pirate whimpered, eyes pleading for mercy as Will, Peggy and Elizabeth backed away from him quickly to escape the oncoming blast.
KABOOOM!
"The chest! Go-go-go!" Peggy pushed Will ahead of her and Elizabeth as the explosion behind her sent a shower of gold and silver coins raining down upon them heavily from behind.
Will did not need any telling twice.
Jack had Barbossa occupied. Nearly all the undead pirates were dismembered or too distracted to capture them, so now was his only chance.
Within a couple of long strides, Will reached the mound where the chest of Cortez's cursed gold lay open and waiting, only pausing at the top to catch his breath.
Now for the final piece!
Will looked down at Jack. The man had taken advantage of the loud shouts and explosions to distract his opponent and had successfully driven him back towards the cursed treasure chest with several hard blows. There was a grunt as Barbossa was flung back onto a pile of gold, Jack using the opportunity to cut his palm to coat his stolen piece of cursed gold with his blood before throwing it up at Will.
Will caught the trinket deftly, wrenched the medallion from around his neck, and sliced a shallow cut into his palm with Barbossa's stone dagger that lay in the stone casket atop the cursed coins where he had dropped it earlier.
Almost there-
There was a scuffling sound and the click of metal.
"NO!"
SPLASH!
Will's eyes swivelled down, breath catching in his chest as all-time seemed to slow down.
There was Elizabeth sprawled on the ground, eyes wide with shock.
A few feet away, Hector Barbossa stood, pistol cocked and raised to take a shot.
And between the noblewoman and the pirate was Peggy, standing on a rock amidst pooling water, arms outstretched to block her friend from view.
"PEG!"
BANG!
Peggy Blake winced, eyes shutting tight as the gunshot blasted through her ears. The echoes reverberated around the treasure-filled cavern, bouncing off the piles of gold, stony walls, and stalactites.
She braced herself for the pain, for the burning bite of the bullet…but…
Nothing…
She cracked an eye open.
The entire cavern was still.
No one was moving; everyone stood motionless.
Will was staring down at her, his face so pale with terror she had never seen before that he looked almost ready to faint.
She could hear Elizabeth's shocked gasps for breath behind her.
But most bizarrely of all was Barbossa.
He stared at Peggy in shock; his pistol raised before him…unfired and unused.
However, smoke rose from a point a few feet away from him.
All eyes in the room turned to look at the source.
Peggy shivered as she beheld the Jack Sparrow.
Gone was the usual smarmy smirk air of impish mischief and cunning. Gone was the slouch and saunter of his countenance.
His face was cold and hard, almost near-emotionless and devoid of life. But his eyes were sharp as daggers and gleamed with such a burning menace as he lowered his smoking pistol from where it had been pointed straight at Barbossa's chest.
Peggy gulped. She had only ever seen Jack this murderous once before…and it had not boded well for the subject of his ire.
His was a fuse slow to burn. But once it was sparked, hell hath no fury.
Barbossa knew this, and though he scoffed and snorted at Jack, Peggy could see the anxious trepidation in his gaze.
"Ten years ye carry that pistol, now ye waste yer shot!" Barbossa spat.
"He didn't waste it!"
All eyes turned towards Will high above just in time to see two golden coins drop from his bleeding hand.
Peggy's heart hammered like rolling thunder as she watched the two pieces of cursed gold drop with a couple of plinks into the chest.
This was it…this was it.
She shuddered as she felt something like an invisible wall of cold pulse through the air. Ripples formed in the tide pools around them as if an invisible wind swept over their surface, and loose gold coins in the treasure hoard slid and shifted like sand grains in a desert dune. The strange heaviness that had weighed down around them in the air seemed to lessen while the shadows of the cavern seemed less dark than before.
It rolled through her like a wave in the shallows, chilling her to the bone and making goosebumps all over her skin.
She wondered if Will or Elizabeth had felt the change in the air because she was certain Jack and Barbossa did. Both men seemed to stagger under a little on their feet as if invisible strings had been cut with a knife.
There was the clatter of metal as Barbossa dropped his sword, wrenching his coat and vest aside to look down at his chest. There, staining the white cotton of his shirt, was a growing patch of crimson.
"Hector?" Peggy gasped, eyes burning hot and wet as she gaped at the blood spilling from the mortal wound down his front like a waterfall.
"I…" Barbossa's gaze flickered between Jack and Peggy, his eyes watering. Peggy felt her heart constrict in her chest.
She had never seen Barbossa be so afraid of anything in her life. He might run and flee a situation, but she had never seen genuine fear in his gaze.
Yet even as she looked closer at his face, she also saw elation and relief as he muttered.
"I feel…"
For the first time in ten years, he was truly feeling something.
For the first time in ten years, he was feeling human…
And yet…
"I feel…cold."
Commodore James Norrington panted for breath as he pulled back his blade from his opponent.
The fight had been long and hard. For all the chaos and disorganisation of the undead pirates, they were fearsome opponents.
Their corpse-like bodies were enough to send chills into every man on board the Dauntless, Norrington included.
Undead…in all the God-blessed and cursed world, the undead and the supernatural were real.
That fact was enough to shock the hearts of any man.
The fact that his men were expected to fight against these brutes for as long as they had was a testament to their loyalty to the crown and their courage in the face of death. Norrington commended them for their valour silently in his head as he drew back his sword from his opponent's gut, blood staining the tip of his blade.
Wait a moment? Blood?
Norrington looked at the dark pirate before him.
Gone was the skull face; gone were the skeletal ribs barely covered by filthy ripped rags.
Now, a man stood before him—a man of full flesh, his snarling face twitching as brown eyes blinked and looked up at the light of the bright full moon above.
He was not the only one.
Where once had stood animated corpse-like beings, rough and scrappy men stood staring up to the heavens, some patting their bodies down to feel the flesh that had moulded back over what had once been unfeeling bone.
There was a thud as the man before Norrington keeled over sideways, lip twitching with the ghost of a final smile.
Despite his confusion, Norrington felt a pang of pity for the fallen foe.
For one split second, he had not seen an enemy to be struck down but a bedraggled lost soul who had found peace at last.
And the dead man was not the only one.
There were loud thumps and clatters as swords and weapons dropped from the pirates' hands. Norrington even saw some of their enemies' weep with joy as their fingers traced lines over the skin of their cheeks or breathed in the night air.
"The cold…I can feel the cold…" One pirate whispered nearby, his hands trembling as he felt for his heartbeat.
There was a scuffling sound nearby as one of the pirates, a stringy tall man with a thatch of straw-like hair who was, for some reason, wearing a pink silk and lace dress, stood up, pressing something into one of his eye sockets.
His partner in crime, a short and pudgy figure also wearing a dress stood up and grinned, raising his hands in surrender as he gulped sheepishly.
"P-Parley?"
"The ship is ours, Gentlemen," Norrington smirked.
"Huzzah!" the officers around him cheered, their faces smiling with victory and relief as they raised their fists in celebration.
"Huzzah!"
"Huzzah!"
"Huzzah!"
There was a silence as Jack pilfered through the treasure horde.
Finally, after all the years of scraping by searching for answers. After all those sleepless nights cleaning out his pistol and saving that final bullet…It was finally over.
And now all that was left to do was take whatever loot he could carry and bring it back to his beloved Black Pearl, and that would be that. Oh, sure, there would be the issue of returning the whelp and his blonde bonnie lass back to Port Royal, but that would not take too long. He had his ship, his riches and his cabin girl back.
Speaking of, where has that girl got to?
Jack looked around for a head of red hair only to stop short at the sight that met him.
There was Will Turner, standing beside Elizabeth, looking as besotted with her as if an angel had crossed his path.
Disgusting brat.
Jack narrowed his eyes and shook his head as he picked up a golden crown and placed it on his head.
The blonde-haired temptress had barely been in his presence for two minutes, and the whelp was already back under her thrall, forgetting everyone else, even the woman who had risked her life for him.
Who cares. Now that he's showing his true colours, maybe Pegsy will finally see sense and return to the Pearl. Jack thought bitterly as he began picking up random treasures of varying weights and throwing them over his shoulders like a cat wanting to toss a potted plant from a shelf for no reason.
He ignored Will's annoyed glower back at him. Indeed, he rather enjoyed the irritation.
Serves the whelp right. Jack smirked as he threw another heavy gold idol away with a loud clang. And it serves you right too, Miss Swann…for throwing away all that precious rum – ooooh! That's a beauty. He grabbed at a long gold necklace with a massive sapphire, keeping his ears pricked as Elizabeth finally mustered up the courage to say:
"We should return to the Dauntless."
"Yes…" Will mumbled, and to Jack's surprise, the lad looked away from Elizabeth. "Your fiancé will want to know you're safe."
There was no anger in Will's voice…but there was distance, and it only seemed to grow larger as Elizabeth nodded quietly with a slightly hurt expression and walked away from the young Blacksmith.
That's interesting…
Jack frowned as he picked up a goblet and sauntered casually towards the younger man.
"If you were waiting for the opportune moment…that was it." He pointed at Elizabeth's retreating back.
"I know…" Will nodded, and to Jack's astonishment, the lad's eyes were not on his lady love.
Instead, they focused on a head of coppery curls a few feet away.
Peggy was kneeling by Barbossa's side, tears streaming down her cheeks as she held something green in her hand.
An apple? Jack blinked in surprise as he watched her place the fruit into the dead man's hands, which she folded gently over his chest.
He always did love his bloody apples.
Despite his anger and disdain for his old First Mate, Jack could not help but feel a twinge of sadness as he and Will watched his body be carefully repositioned in a more restful pose.
Enemy or friend, it was never easy seeing a man die up close, especially when you knew them so well. And Jack had known Barbossa for years. It was a ruddy shame it had to end this way after all they had been through together, but that was just life. You couldn't change it; you just had to roll with it. Though Jack would have preferred to roll with this passing with a bottle of rum to hand.
There was a rustle beside him, and Jack watched as Will kneeled beside Peggy, gently wrapping an arm around her shoulders.
"You did what you could," Will murmured, pressing his lips into Peggy's temple as she fiddled with something in her fingers. It was, to his astonishment, two silver coins.
"He always…" Peggy gulped as she tried to scrub away her tears. "He always said if he could not be cremated or buried at sea, then at least give him two coins for the ferryman."
Will nodded in understanding, and though it ached at the sight of her tears, his heart also swelled with warmth and pride. Even now, after all the violence and hatred the man had thrown at her, she still wanted to do right by him in death.
"Do you need my help?" He asked softly, and she shook her head.
"No, I'm nearly done…besides…I need to do this." She sucked in a deep shuddering breath as she reached out to the dead man's face.
Barbossa's blue eyes were still open, but the light of life had long since been snuffed out. Now, they were glassy and dark as Peggy reached out towards them.
With the gentlest of touches, she slid the eyelids down with one hand, the other carefully placing a silver coin over each socket before tracing the apple in his folded hands.
She remembered stealing aboard the Black Pearl for the first time in Tortuga. She had sneakily overturned half a barrel of apples so she had enough space to stow away. She remembered how angry Barbossa was when he and Jack had discovered her presence and how often he had reamed her over the coals for the loss of his precious cargo for months. Even long after he had forgiven her for the crime, he had often niggled her about it during one of their many spats.
How it must have burned him not to be able to touch the fruit for all these years without enjoying the taste.
"Rest in peace, Hector Barbossa," Peggy muttered softly, squeezing his gnarly hand. "May the wind and tides guide your soul safely to the shores of the dead."
"And may those shores forever be stocked with the best rum and all the apples ye can stuff yer face with,"
Will looked up to see Jack kneeling on Peggy's other side, his face staring intently at Barbossa's resting face.
Peggy found her tears returning as she met her old captain's gaze. Behind the smirk, she could see some sadness in the brown kohl-lined eyes, but then it was gone as he quickly shook himself.
"Well…as sad as this all is, we best get goin' love. No point waitin' around 'ere when there's nothin' more we can do for him, ey?"
Will wanted to snap at the pirate's blasé attitude but stopped quickly as he saw Jack's ringed hand reach up to pat Peggy on the cheek and wipe away a stray tear with his thumb.
There was nothing inappropriate about the action. Indeed, it was the most innocent touch Will had seen Jack bestow on his Cabin Girl, or any woman on this voyage. There was no teasing, no jesting or scoffing. Just comfort and care between two friends who were sharing in grief.
Will might have thought the moment touching had it not been for the now familiar bitterness that stung his chest as Jack pulled his hand away to fondly ruffle Peggy's curls before standing up.
"Now if you'd both be so kind, I'd be much obliged if you'd drop me off at my ship." He sauntered away, treasure and sword in hand, leaving Peggy to smile tearily at his back and Will to grimace at it.
"He'll grieve in his own time," Peggy murmured at Will as he helped her stand. "Jack's…he's surprisingly private about these sorts of things."
"I figured as such." Will nodded, doing his best to ground himself back to reality. Yet even as he looked down at her freckled face again, his arms shot out and wrapped around her like a vice.
Peggy blushed as his hands gripped her tight against him, awfully aware of Elizabeth and Jack watching them from the entrance to the cavern. What was Will doing? The love of his life was right there watching them. If Elizabeth saw them like this, what would she think?
"Will?!" Peggy squeaked as he squeezed her tight in his arms, almost as if he were afraid she would vanish if he let her go.
"What were you thinking?" He mumbled hoarsely as he buried his nose into her curls atop her head.
"What was I what?" Peggy gulped, her hearing half muffled as she had one ear pressed against his thundering heartbeat.
"What do you mean 'what was I what?'!" Will rumbled, "You idiot! You lucky, lucky idiot! You challenged Barbossa to that duel, then pushed yourself to take the shot."
He moved his hands to grab her on the sides of her head and pulled her forward.
"Ow!" Peggy winced as his forehead knocked against hers in a gentle headbutt.
"You're lucky you didn't get killed!" he whispered, a hand cupping the back of her neck to keep her from breaking contact.
Peggy tried to struggle but stopped at the sight of Will's face. His jaw was set in an angry scowl, but his brown eyes shone with unshed tears as he nuzzled his forehead against hers and breathed in her breath.
"Don't you ever scare me like that again, you hear me?" he murmured, fingers running through the hair on the back of her head. "Never, ever again."
"Hark who's talking." Peggy smiled breathlessly as she smacked his chest. "I'm not the one who pulled a gun on himself or handed himself over to be a human sacrifice."
"I did what I had to save your life-" Will growled, half annoyed, half fond.
"And I did the same for you." Peggy cut across him, her face still smiling with relief despite herself. "And I'd do it all over again if I had to."
Will stumbled a little as she threw her arms around his neck and hugged him again.
Will's eyes shut as he became enveloped in her familiar scent. One hand wrapped tight around her waist while the other buried itself in her hair to cradle her face into the crook of his neck.
God, how close he had come to losing this…he dared not think about it. If Jack had come a few seconds too late…if that dagger had slipped from Barbossa's hands and sliced his neck open…if one of those pirates had stabbed him during the fight…if Barbossa had killed her when she fell over.
There were so many things that could have gone wrong that hadn't…it was terrifying.
But they had gone right. And here they were, together, alive and whole at the end of it.
It was over.
There was silence as Peggy, Will and Elizabeth stared at the back of Jack's crowned head.
They were in the rowboat and had just left the darkness of the caves. Will, who had been rowing, had steered them around a bend to find the Pearl where it had last been docked, only to find a patch of empty water where a black ship should have been.
"I'm sorry, Jack." Elizabeth was the first to speak.
"They've done what's right by them. Can't expect more than that." Jack said listlessly, staring blankly at the spot where his beloved ship should be.
Peggy sighed at the pitiable sight.
Even after all the trials and tribulations, the Black Pearl had again slipped from his fingers. Jack's luck was wretched.
"Where to now?" Will wondered aloud, and Jack's shoulders deflated. "Do we go wait on the shore or-"
"No. This island is cursed, mate." Jack snapped with a surprising sternness, making his three other boatmates flinch like scolded children.
"I would not step foot on its shores for shelter or provision. It was made by the gods for one purpose an' one purpose only. An' that purpose 'as been served."
There was silence as they all looked back at the black maw of the caves of Isla de Muerta. It was like staring into the gaping mouth of an ancient evil leviathan.
"So if not shore…then where?" Peggy muttered.
"Where else?" the pirate grumbled, sounding more like a sulking child than a fully grown man. "Back to bloody Commodore and his lot."
"But Jack, you'll get arrested and hung by the Navy!" Peggy gritted her teeth as she felt her eyes burn once more.
"Oh, so now you're worried about me gettin' caught?!" Jack rolled his eyes waspishly at her. "Ye didn't seem to have such a problem with leaving me for dead a few days ago."
"Jack, a few days ago, I was angry, confused and upset at you because I thought you had left me for dead." Peggy snapped, standing up and carefully clambering over Will to sit beside her old captain at the bow. "I see now I was wrong. I am sorry."
Jack scoffed, and she scowled.
"I am Jack. I know what happened that night now. Barbossa told me everything."
"Oh, he did, did he?" Jack folded his arms mulishly. "Come on, out with it. What did dear Hector say?"
"He said you tried fighting for me." Peggy put a hand on his shoulder. "That you did try to protect me."
"And you thought I did not?" Jack grunted, and Will thought the pirate sounded hurt. "I know I've got a reputation, love, but did ye really think I'd kill a kid? Or let Barbossa kill you?"
"No…I know you wouldn't." Peggy looked down at her lap guiltily. "But that night…everything just turned on its head, and I thought you had too. And then…when I was drifting out at sea for hours, and you didn't come back for me…" she trailed off, gulping down the hard lump in her throat as Will reached back to grab her bracingly by the arm. "Look…I know…I know what happened that night was not your fault, and I'm sorry I spent years blaming you for it. And I am sorry for turning on you and leaving to die twice."
There was a silence as Will and Elizabeth looked at Jack's back for an answer.
The pirate's entire body had been stiff through Peggy's apology, but Elizabeth could see his ringed hands clenched tight around the goblet he had pilfered from the treasure horde.
It was strange. Jack Sparrow had always seemed above it all, brushing everything difficult or complex off like water off a duck's back. But not this time. This time, something had hit home deep inside. Had Elizabeth not been watching for the signs, she might have missed them too easily.
Even as he straightened up and shook himself off, she could hear his voice, which was not quite its usual charming drawl.
"Apologies are all well and good love. But that still does not change the fact that we need to get out of here-"
"Jack-" Peggy tried again but stopped as Jack grabbed her hand on his shoulder.
"Good grief, love, would you stop blubbering for once an' listen to yer captain." He shook his head with fond exasperation. "There ain't no point in us huggin' it out and being all sorry if we can't get ourselves outta here. If risking the hemp men's jig is the only way to hitch a ride, then so be it. Besides…if Barbossa's lot has damaged the Dauntless, it might take a while to repair it. It might take us a bit longer than normal to reach that dumpy Port ye call home. Maybe weeks. An' a lot can happen in a few weeks." He added with a small derisive snort.
"Now quit complaining and keep a weather eye out." He turned back to stare at the open ocean. "The Dauntless can't have gone far. Not if they're looking for our dear Future Missus Commodore!" he jerked a thumb over his shoulder in Elizabeth's direction.
There was a beat as the noblewoman bristled uncomfortably in her seat, her cheeks flushed red with embarrassment at the title bestowed on her, but for once, Will barely paid it any mind as he gripped Peggy's shoulder bracingly.
"Come on Peg…it's time we go home."
Peggy stared out at the open ocean over Jack's shoulder.
"Yeah…let's go home…"
And there we are! Chapter 12. Nearly at the end of Curse of the Black Pearl.
It was not as long a chapter, but I felt this was a good spot to end it. I enjoyed writing the action scenes and giving Peggy a bit more to do than beg for Will's life. I don't fence or have any experience with sword fighting beyond video games and playing pretend as a kid (I mean, I do know hand-to-hand martial arts, so I have some fighting experience) but I can imagine that sword fighting in a dress would be bloody hard even if you have skill especially if the dress is cumbersome.
Also, Barbossa is no pushover. He may not be the Biggest Bad guy in the franchise and is one of the older characters, but he's strong enough to survive and get through some pretty tough knocks.
Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed, and please keep favouriting, Following and reviewing if you enjoyed or if you have ideas on what you'd like to see next
See you next time.
FuzzyBeta