Pirates Of The Caribbean Fan Fiction ❯ A Pressing Engagement ❯ Chapter 3 ( Chapter 3 )

A Pressing Engagement

By LadyLark

 

Chapter 3 - In Which Jack Meets an Old Friend

 

oOo

 

When he came to, Jack lay still so as not to draw attention to his waking state. He heard Will talking with someone else in hushed tones behind him, but he ignored it for the moment since his brain was fixed on more important things. Like trying to find a solution to his dilemma, or at the very least find an excuse to stall for more time.

 

Additionally, there was a section of his head wholly devoted to the endeavor of cursing his compass, the weather, Elizabeth, Barbossa, and anyone else remotely connected to his current predicament. By the time he made it to the monkey, Jack, the voices behind him began to register to the relatively more rational parts of his mind.

 

“—two more ships wrecked in this storm, Captain,” a voice, which sounded eerily familiar, stated in cultured tones. “Which of the two vessels do you wish to retrieve first?”

 

“And they are equal distant from our current position?” Will asked.

 

“Quite. The Isle of Skye is in slightly better condition, however it is further from the center of the storm. It will not last long once stronger winds hit.”

 

“What about the Oso Negro?” The young man asked with concern.

 

“Foundering. She will be completely submerged within the hour.”

 

“Damn!” Will swore with some heat. “All right, have the helm lay in a course for the Oso. Hopefully, the Isle of Skye will pull through.”

 

“Doubtful.”

 

“Even so, there may yet be hope for them. Slim as it may be, it is better than what the Oso Negro has.”

 

There was a shuffling of papers. “True. I will inform the crew, Captain.”

 

“Thank you, Mr. Beckett.”

 

Jack sat up at this, forgetting his resolve to keep his awareness secret. “Beckett! Not the Cutler Beckett!”

 

“Your powers of observation remain as acute as ever, I see,” Beckett drawled, eyeing Jack's prone form with amusement. “Indeed, it is I. And as much as I would like to stay and reminisce, I have a duty to perform. Captain.” The former head of the East India Trading Company sketched a quick bow at Will and left the cabin, closing the door behind him.

 

Jack stared at the offending door stupidly for several moments before turning to confront the man he thought was his friend. “What is he doing here?”

 

“He is my pilot,” Will answered simply.

 

Jack blinked. “Come again?”

 

The younger man sighed and shook his head in resignation. “He has the best grasp of geography, navigation and mathematics out of anyone on this ship, Jack. He is best suited for the job. Thus, he is the man who guides the Dutchman to lost ships and souls.”

 

“But why is he on your crew in the first place? Why is he not languishing in the Locker? If anyone were more deserving of that place, I would think it would be him!” Jack noted that his voice had climbed several registers.

 

“He chose service when I retrieved his soul, and I am bound to accept any who is willing serve.” Will chuckled mildly. “I was as indignant as you are when I found that out. But Calypso was quite adamant on that score, threatening me with tentacles and other fishy appendages if I did not hold to my word. I will admit that he does his job well.”

 

The pirate scowled. “He's probably planning something. Something dark and twisted like his soul, the rotter.”

 

“Oh I am certain of it, however there is naught he can do to me. Even if he were to get a hold of my heart, it would do him no good,” Will stated firmly. “I am not afraid of dying like you and Davy. I also know that there is no way for him to rise any higher in the Dutchman's hierarchy.”

 

“But if he managed to get a hold of your heart, he could assume Captaincy,” Jack pointed out triumphantly.

 

Will shook his head. “No, he couldn't. The Dutchman's captain must remove his still beating heart in order to assume the power. Beckett's heart, quite fortunately, is very dead.”

 

“It always was,” Jack muttered to himself.

 

“What was that?” Will asked.

 

“I said, `That's very reassuring.'” Jack lied. “I'm not sure I would put it past him to find some loophole in the beating heart stipulation. But it isn't my immortality on the line now is it?”

 

An uncomfortable silence descended between the two friends. Will looked at Jack. Jack looked at Will. Then Jack continued his exploration of the cabin.

 

Books were taken out of bookshelves and rifled through. Knick-knacks were examined with an assessing eye. There was one small figurine of jade that caught his eye. His fingers itched to grab it and take it.

 

He could feel Will's eyes on him, so he refrained from purloining it. Eventually, while he was looking through a treatise on spices from India, Jack noticed that the other man's attention had wandered from him and onto the paperwork cluttering his desk. He inched his way back over toward the shelf that held the figurine.

 

Using the book as a screen, he reached forward and palmed the small statue, drawing it up into his sleeve.

 

“Jack, I'd put that back if I were you,” Will's tired voice came from the other side of the room.

 

He strained the urge to whirl around, but half-turned to regard his friend. He was surprised to note that Will's eyes were still focused on the papers in front of him. “What do you mean, mate?”

 

“The statue of Chimalman that you just slipped up your sleeve, I would put it back on the shelf.” He paused in his paper work and looked up at the other man with a serious expression on his face. “The Dutchman is a cursed ship, Jack. Wouldn't it make sense that all treasure aboard is also equally cursed?”

 

“And?”

 

Will motioned vaguely with his hand. “That little jade statue was used by the Aztec priests to select those men who were worthy of becoming Tezilipoca.”

 

“Tezzie-lee-who?”

 

“One of their gods.”

 

“I wouldn't mind being a god,” Jack said with a smile, pulling out the figure to examine in more closely.

 

“Jack, you remember that island I found you on, the place you had beached the Pearl.”

 

“Yeah,” he said absently.

 

“Remember, what they were going to do to you?”

 

Jack paused in his examination of the statue and swallowed. “You don't mean that the Aztecs ate their God?”

 

“No,” Will said.

 

Jack sighed in relief. “Good.”

 

Will continued, ignoring Jack's comment. “They sacrificed him by ripping out his heart.”

 

The pirate blanched and then swallowed painfully. “That isn't very nice of them. But what can you expect from a people who would curse their gold to turn people into undying skeletons?”

 

“So, I'd put the statue back, Jack, unless you were wanting to have your heart ripped out by an Aztec priest. Let me tell you from experience, the feeling isn't pleasant.”

 

“Right, you would know about that,” Jack admitted ruefully.

 

“So the figurine?”

 

“Oh you mean this, I was just admiring it.” He brandished it about. “No intention of taking it what-so-ever.” Jack set it back on the shelf and then arranged it so that it was facing the room. “So, all of these little baubles and trinkets are bespelled?”

 

“Yes. Why do you think they make it on board the Dutchman instead of sinking to the bottom like other treasure?” Will asked rhetorically.

 

“You have a point. So, I should probably be returning this, then,” Jack said slipping off the amethyst ring on his finger and setting it on the shelf next to the statue.

 

Rubbing his temples, Will looked at Jack wearily and then back down at his paperwork. “Do I want to know how you got the ring?”

 

“Nicked it from Jones fifteen or so years back. I'd best be giving it back seeing as it belongs to the Dutchman and all. Wouldn't want the old girl or her captain to be feeling any ill will toward old Jack.”

 

“Right.” Will looked up from paper in his hand. “Also for future reference, you do realize that on the Dutchman, the captain knows everything that happens aboard the ship.”

 

Jack raised an eyebrow.

 

“Really. The saying `part of the crew, part of the ship' is more than just talk. It is truth, and as captain, I am the heart and soul of the ship. And as such, I can sense everything that happens on the Dutchman.”

 

“Then why didn't Davy know about you or me when we was running about on the place. Seems that he wouldn't let us steal from him or escape iffen he had that gift,” Jack pointed out.

 

“He broke his agreement and in doing so lost more than his humanity. He lost several of his abilities granted by Calypso. That was one.”

 

“I see, so the monster we was all afraid of was nothing more than a crippled octopus?”

 

“Pretty much,” Will answered with a shrug. “I am a lot more powerful than Jones.”

 

“And you say that so modestly.”

 

“It's the truth. However, I'd give it all back just to be able to be with Elizabeth.”

 

A gleam of an idea flashed into Jack's mind and his head perked up in response. This little admission might be the key to his escape. He just had to find a solid way to exploit it. “There is that, mate. All the power in the world is useless if you can't protect your loved ones with it.”

 

“Jack . . .” Will started.

 

Jack wouldn't let him finish that sentence, not while he was on a roll. “Not because you don't want to. But because you can't be there.”

 

“Jack . . .”

 

He continued to ignore his friend and began pacing about the cabin. “Now I know what you're thinking, mate. And you're right. You can't because it is part of your curse. You can only step foot on land once every ten years, and buckets of seawater aside, that is a bit of a time to keep a lady waiting.”

 

“Elizabeth would never-“ Will tried.

 

“I'm not saying she would,” Jack interrupted again. “But you ain't there to protect her. To make sure that her back is covered. She's in a nasty position, mate. Pirate King and all. All the other lords will be looking to off her and take her place.”

 

“And what do you have in mind?” Will asked suspiciously, his eyes narrowing.

 

“Oh not much—“ He was cut off as the door to the cabin burst open and a red faced sailor tumbled through.

 

“Begging your pardon, Cap'n, but we be needing ya real fierce up there. Helm's acting up.”

 

Will swore vociferously and leapt from his chair. “We will finish this conversation later,” he said sternly, fixing the older man with a glare. He then looked over to the sailor who was trying to blend in with the paneling. “Send Beckett down here to keep Jack company. We wouldn't want him to be wandering off now.”

 

“How nice of you to think of me,” Jack murmured, looking decidedly sick to his stomach.

 

The red faced man sketched a little bow and ran off to fulfill his captain's orders.

 

“You'd better be here when I get back, Jack,” Will growled.

 

“Where else would I be?” Jack asked with an expansive gesture.

 

Will snorted. “Where else indeed. I've got a ship to captain and you have a decision to make. Don't think I haven't forgotten about that.”

 

Jack attempted his most innocent look. “I didn't think a thing.”

 

“I highly doubt that, Captain Sparrow. In my experience, you never seem to stop thinking.” Beckett made his entrance with respectful nod to Will. “You can take care of the ship, Captain. I will take care of our mutual friend.”

 

“Thank you, Mr. Beckett,” Will acknowledged before striding out of the cabin.

 

“So Jack, what shall we do to keep ourselves occupied,” Beckett inquired urbanely.

 

Jack smiled weakly. “Oh, I'm sure you'll think of something.

 

oOo

 

AN: I've decided I like writing Beckett. He is fun. I still am not sure if I have Jack down right.

 

Hooray for foreshadowing. I am a firm believer in that. Everything I do in this fic is for a reason. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask.

 

Let me know what worked and what didn't for you. This is not my normal fandom so I appreciate any and all feedback.

 

Special thanks go out to HostileCrayon for betaing this for me.

 

Until next time!