Jack opened his eyes and needed a moment to recognise his surrounding. The spray was splashing in his face and the noise of battle swelled louder and louder. He had a hell of a headache and had to curse for a bit.

"How slow are you paddling? Shouldn't we be on my ship by now? Or do you want to visit other seas with this bloody boat here?"

For once, Tia Dalma did not feel like laughing and Temari also looked at the captain in horror and disgust.

Jack followed her gaze to the dead Rose. He cried out and almost fell out of the boat.

"Who? And why dead?" he asked.

Temari was about to make a pert reply, but Tia Dalma only shook her head in concern.

"Take me back to the Fortune! My mates are fighting there," the captain then ordered and he looked sternly at the two women.

Tia Dalma asked, "Really? That is not like you and your soul is in a critical condition. You must not be hurt."

Jack stood up, gave her a withering look and jumped off the boat. The main thing was to get away from this unknown dead woman. What was Tia Dalma talking nonsense about the state of his soul?

He didn't even notice how the injury on his shoulder had healed itself as he swam back to the Fortune.

The moment Rose had left her body, Tristan and Rachel stood at the railing of the Fortune and looked at the small dinghy drifting just ahead of the Pearl.

They had watched the strange spectacle. And as Rose's body threatened to sink into the depths of the sea, the wind rushed up with desire and Tristan heard only a rustling beside him. He turned to Rachel, but there was no trace of her. Only her dress lay on the wet wood.

Then he was pulled off his feet by a giant man. It was the man who had shot Jack. Tristan hit his head hard against the mizzen mast and was unable to move for a moment. The giant smiled and swung his dagger to put an end to Tristan.

Gibbs had only seen how Tristan flew through the air out of the corner of his eye. The First Mate saw the huge man who was about to kill Tristan and ran to him as fast as he could in the general crowd to stab him from behind.

But the giant was an experienced fighter, despite his height he turned surprisingly nimbly and drew his sabre. He parried Gibbs' blow and with little effort pushed him away. Gibbs fell and saw the giant trotting towards him.

He endeavoured to get to his feet quickly, but his opponent was faster.

"Pathetic landlubber," the big man whispered before lunging.

Gibbs had lost his sabre in the fall. He still tried to reach it, but was unsuccessful. He had no choice but to watch as the man's sabre came crashing down on him.

Gibbs closed his eyes and sent a quick prayer to heaven.

Time passed and nothing happened. Gibbs opened his eyes in astonishment. But his opponent lay lifeless on the ground beside him, instead Jack grinned at him, completely soaked and smoothly pulled his sabre out of the giant.

"I'll take care to keep you as first mate for a while longer," Jack Sparrow said, holding out his hand to Gibbs to help him up.

Gibbs stared at his captain and then embraced the latter despite protests. "Thank you, Jack."

Together they made their way to Tristan, who had regained his senses and was already defending himself against the next attackers.

"Retreat! Back to the Black Pearl. We've got our captain back!" shouted Gibbs to the men of the Black Pearl.

"Command back!" ordered Jack, who by now was standing opposite Barbossa.

Astonished, both sides paused and they all listened to the exchange of words between their captains.

"Jack! Ye were dead, I saw ye get shot on the dinghy," Barbossa said, dumbfounded.

Jack grinned, he took off his hat as if to say goodbye and made a bow.

"No idea what kind of fantasy overwhelmed you, but I certainly wasn't dead. Barbossa, our lads had their fun. Tia Dalma is on my ship. So is Temari. I suggest we part company here as friends. You have nothing, but nothing, on me."

Fear flickered briefly in Barbossa's eyes. "What are ye plannin' to do with Tia Dalma?"

Barbossa's voice trembled with uncertainty, and because of that Jack's grin widened, stretching from ear to ear.

"Mate, what I will do with Tia Dalma I don't know yet. But no matter what happens, if I were you, I would avoid her in the near future. She's probably a little disappointed in you, and you know how short-lived her patience is and how unrestrained her revenge will be …"

Jack left Barbossa standing alone and set about returning to his ship with the rest of his crew.

But he turned again and called out to Barbossa, "Incidentally, Hector … I hereby take you and your crew prisoner. You may surrender or continue to fight." Jack regarded Barbossa's men with an appraising glance as he turned in a circle. "But my men outnumber you, and I have Tia Dalma. Master Gibbs, you take command of the Fortune and follow the Pearl."

Jack was back on the Black Pearl with some of his crew. The wind tugged at his clothes, which were still wet, and Jack briefly closed his eyes in pleasure. He felt so … alive.

To inspect the damage to his ship, he took a tour around. Nothing was acute and everything could be repaired at sea.

"Temari!" someone shouted, and Jack heard boots running across the planks.

He turned around and there was Tristan holding Temari tightly in his arms. Jack frowned and continued walking. Shortly afterwards, someone cleared his throat behind him.

"Captain Sparrow?"

"Aye?"

Tristan and Temari stood behind him.

"Master Gibbs has instructed me to report the losses to you."

Jacks leaned his upper body back and put his hand on the hilt of his sabre. "Then do it."

"Rachel Swann."

Jack didn't move for a while, but didn't do Tristan the favour of taking his scrutinising gaze off him either.

"Are you sure? The woman is aware of her inability with weapons. Why would she have gone on the Fortune?"

Tristan looked to the side. He couldn't understand what had happened to Rachel himself.

"One second she was standing next to me on the deck of the Fortune and the next she had simply disappeared. Her dress was on the floor."

Jack turned his head to the side, slightly doubtful, and out of the corner of his eye saw Tia Dalma stepping up to them.

"No, she hasn't disappeared. She's here – everywhere," she said. A sadness tinged in her voice.

Jack turned slowly to Tia Dalma. Yes, he was almost afraid of the answer to his question, "Has she become you? Become Calypso, I mean."

Jack stared at Tia Dalma and she laughed, although tears were streaming from her eyes.

"No."

"Is she dead?" asked Jack.

Tia Dalma shook her head and her hair swirled wildly with the movement and the increasing wind.

The sails of the Black Pearl stretched taut as the wind suddenly rose strongly. The men struggled not to lose their balance.

Tia Dalma stared at the sky, which was getting darker, and darker, and laughed. She just laughed, and Jack was afraid she would become even more insane than she already was.

"Callisto," the witch whispered mysteriously.

Jack grabbed Tia Dalma by the arm and went with her to his cabin to exchange a few words in private.

The Black Pearl had to fight hard, the wind came at her from all sides and tore at her. Jack left the new crew members alone with this problem for the time being.

"Tia Dalma, Calypso, whatever. Rachel – she's not dead, she hasn't disappeared. But she's not on the Pearl or the Fortune either. For once, I don't feel like guessing riddles. Tell me what happened."

He stood in front of Tia Dalma, who had sat down, and Jack propped his hands on the table.

Tia Dalma looked at him impassively. She realised that Jack could not know he had been dead for a few moments.

"How is your wound?" she asked him casually.

Jack looked at her, puzzled, before touching his shoulder. His face petrified.

Tia Dalma nodded with a smile, and Jack once again had the uneasy feeling of how easily this woman could look into his head from time to time. It really went against his grain.

The wind was raging outside the cabin. It was already dusk, and only the flickering light of the candles illuminated the room and cast shadows on the walls.

"Barbossa thought I had been shot," Jack whispered more to himself.

Tia Dalma nodded. "You were dead, only briefly, but the touch of death clings to you even now. You must be very careful in the near future. His clutches already had you and he is rarely willing to return a victim."

Jack let himself sink on a chair, impacted. Lately, he felt like an ignoramus far too often, and that also went against his grain.

But he had his mind, on which he could always rely, and it knew only one question right now, "Then why am I sitting here?"

"I wanted to bring you back, but someone else beat me to it. Practically absorbed your death into herself. But that only works with supernatural beings. The other person was supernatural, not you, Jack," the witch added quickly as Jack began to grin.

"And who was this person?"

"I'll tell you another time. Two women need to know. But for now, for Rachel's sake, you should let me go. She needs me." Tia Dalma looked at Jack urgently and her eyes sparkled in the candlelight.

"Hold on," Jack said, standing up. "You said she's not dead. So I assume she has become Calypso. Can two sea gods rule at the same time? Even if … why should I let you go free? You're not the same if you're Calypso. You may want to save my life as Tia Dalma, but when you appear in your true form, we both know – you and I – that you can barely control yourself. The chances of you tearing me to pieces along with my Pearl are pretty high."

"You still don't understand the whole thing, the context," Tia Dalma sighed.

Jack opened his eyes wide. "How could I? You're not explaining anything to me."

Tia Dalma stood up and put her hands on the tabletop, knocking her chair over. The candles began to flicker wildly.

"You simple-minded idiot! Since when is Captain Jack Sparrow a puppet? Since when do people have to chew everything for you like a little bird that hasn't fledged yet? Since when can you no longer think for yourself? Tell me, at what point did you throw your self-confidence overboard with a wave? You will get to know me, even in this form, if you don't finally bury your self-doubt. Yes, things didn't turn out the way you wanted them to. Yes, Rachel is gone, and yes, a woman you don't know was willing to give her life for yours. And I hope I never regret her decision. But you're not making it easy for me right now. Find yourself again. You are no longer the man who stood outside my hut, aware of his own abilities, and brought Rachel to me."

Jack, meanwhile, had his back against the wall. He wanted to run, to run far away, as fast as if the devil himself was on his heels.

But then he controlled himself, raised his index finger briefly to show Tia Dalma to be quiet, and pulled out his compass. He glanced at it, but the pointer was just whirring around in circles. Jack frowned.

"Yes, Jack. You want Rachel, you want answers and you want to be your real self again. Not this laughable maniac. And all of that is out of reach for your compass right now." Tia Dalma sat down again.

"How dare you! I was dead, after all. Maybe that changed me?" came back hysterically from Jack.

"No, Jack. Your doubts when you were trapped in Barbossa's cell and didn't know which side to take … they changed you. You thought about too many things that didn't concern you. You lost your course. And yes, I admit, it's all a lot to ask of a mortal."

"What doubts?"

Sternly, Tia Dalma bowed her head and looked up at him. "Jack Sparrow, you forget who I am. Now release me."

The wind was still gaining strength, and Jack also realised that it wouldn't be long before he was the only one who could still get the Pearl safely through this storm.

He sighed. "How am I supposed to do that? I don't own all the odds and ends of the pirate lords. I can't free you."

"Kill me," said Tia Dalma, grinning diabolically.

"I'm sorry, what?" Jack stared at her as if she were an apparition.