Pirates of the Caribbean 02 The Siren Song

The Siren Song

The Siren Song (Pirates of the Caribbean: Jack Sparrow #2)

Rob Kidd

Captain's
Log: Our
proud ship Barnacle set sail from Tortuga a few weeks ago. I must admit Arabella and Fitzwilliam are quite the landlubbers, but things are improving. We took on two crewmembers, a Creole chap called Jean and a Mayan named Tumen, when we washed up on what we thought was a deserted island, after a vicious storm--a raging beast of one--started by the dreaded Captain Torrents, incidentally. Alas, we also picked up Jean's raging beast of a cat, a creature he claims is actually his sister under a mystic's curse. I fought off and, of course, soon defeated the rampaging Captain Torrents practically single-handedly, and found a whole lot of treasure. I cleverly deduced that the magnificent sword is now in the hands of a fearsome pirate Left-Foot Lewis, and we are making fair speed after him.

CHAPTER ONE

"As we all know," Jack Sparrow began, facing his crew, who stood before him on the deck of the Barnacle, "the diabolical pirate captain we are following lost his right foot in battle."Jack tossed a perfectly polished onyx stone around in his hands. It was the stone used as a glass eye by the legendary pirate, Stone-Eyed Sam, and Jack had retrieved it from the lair in Sam's ruined pirate kingdom. Jack kep
t it with him at all times as a
memento of his most recent adventure. He thought it might make a nice piece of jewelry: maybe a necklace or something. He stuck the stone in his pocket as a swelling wave heeled the deck. Jack grabbed a line for balance, ducked as the mainsail jerked toward him, then continued his story, hardly missing a beat."The captain, the notorious Left-Foot Louis, swiftly slew his fearsome boatswain, quickly lopped off his foot, and had it expertly reapplied to his own leg by the ship's cook, the equally notorious pirate Silver, who, having recently sailed the high seas with a certain doctor, had henceforth become skilled in the art of limb-replacement surgery. Only after said surgery was it evident that Louis, in his panic to get his appendage back, severed the wrong foot."Fitzwilli
am P. Dalton the third, Jack's
aristocratic crewmate, laughed obnoxiously."Oh, rubbish." Arabella, the crew's first mate and a former barmaid on Tortuga, laughed.Another wave rocked the boat. Arabella clung to the railing to maintain her balance. Fitzwilliam landed on his rump, while Tumen and Jean, the young sailors Jack had met on Captain Stone-Eyed Sam's island, scurried to steady the ship. Jack, the only crew member who had somehow remained steady despite the swaying of the boat, scowled."Your attention!" he barked. "Your captain is speaking.""Jack, my friend," Fitzwilliam said, picking himself up off the floor, "you may think you are a captain, but look closely around you. This is surely not a ship, and we are hardly a crew."Jack stepped up to Fitzwilli
am. He was a
whole head shorter than the aristocrat, but commanded as much, if not more, respect."Question my authority again, mate, and you'll be having this discussion with Davy Jones," Jack said. "On this ship, you call me Captain Jack Sparrow.""Fine . . . Jack," Fitzwilliam said with an uncharacteristic
smirk. Jack
huffed and moved toward the bow where Arabella stood staring out over the bowsprit. Despite her tousled hair and bedraggled clothing, Arabella looked very much like the lady she was. She had a delicate face toughened by all the things she'd seen and done."Missing Tortuga much, Bell?" Jack said sarcastically."Yeah, sure," she responded with equal sarcasm. "I
miss me dad terribly." She ran
her hand along the boat's railing and stared dreamily out to sea.Jack hoisted himself up onto the bow and swung his legs around so that they dangled on either side of the bowsprit--the long pole that extended out over the water. It was a glorious day at sea. The warm sun shone brightly, making the crystal clear water sparkle. Jack took in a deep breath, and the salt air filled him with a happy feeling of adventure. This was much better than traveling as a stowaway, as he had before. And far nicer to be at sea than scrambling for a crust in the rough-and-tumble town of
Tortuga. Jack
surveyed the Barnacle. Arabella had settled onto the deck, sitting cross-legged with her back against the foremast. Her tangled auburn hair fell in front of her face as she studied Tumen's astrolabe, a navigational device that used the s
tars as a way to
determine a ship's position. She seemed deeply engrossed, and for Jack that was a good thing: the more crew members who knew how to navigate, the better. Fitzwilliam, calmer now, secured the lines and watched the horizon while Jean and Tumen went about their duties. And best of all-- Constance, the foul-tempered cat that Jean claimed was really his sister under a mystic's curse, was nowhere to be seen.

Yes, Jack thought proudly, this is a right trim ship. No matter that it was full of splinters, the sails were tattered, and a few spots in the galley below and over the berths leaked when it rained.Jack jumped back down onto the deck and clapped his hands. "Back to my story," he
said. The
crew moaned, but Jack rolled his eyes and continued des
pite the protest.
"Upon discovering the error Silver had made, Louis quickly had the cook-cum
surgeon-cum-pirate tossed overboard. But Silver was under the protection of Sirens, who attacked Louis and used their power to fuse his botched job into place forever. He was clawed across the face by a Siren's talons, which is why he now has three scars running from his right eye over his nose to his left jawbone."Oh, ye will believe anything," Arabella said dismissively.Jack swiveled all the way around to face her. "Then, pray tell, why do you think the man in question has two left feet?"Arabella did not take her attention away from the astrolabe. "Accident of birth," she said flatly."We are obsessing over the wrong details,"
Fitzwilliam put in. "Louis is a
dangerous pirate, and we should be concerned with how we will defeat him and secure the Sword. It will not, rest assured, be easy.""You're not frightened, are you, boyo?" Jack asked with a smirk. "I warned you this was no mission for the lily-livered and pampered.""I should think I have already proven I am neither," Fitzwilliam snapped, turning his head sharply to glare at Jack."No need to get huffy," Jack said. "Any sane man would be afraid of going up against Louis. So perhaps you're saying you're crazy. Hmm. That's a bit worrisome."Fitzwilliam sighed and shook his head. He wasn't going to take Jack's bait this time.Despite his arguing, Jack knew Fitzwilliam was right. Louis would not give up the Sword. N
ot when it was rumored to grant
great power to whomsoever wields it--and omnipotence when it is united with its sheath. Of course, Jack badly wanted the freedom that having the Sword would provide. But equally important, he needed to keep the sword out of the hands of dangerous pirates, like Louis and Torrents--and especially out of the hands of the evil Davy Jones, who was said to rule the seas.A gust of wind billowed the mainsail, and the heavy boom swung around. Jack quickly jumped out of the way, toppling into Fitzwilliam. They both went sprawling on the deck, and a wave washed over the railing, soaking them. Jack smoothed his long dark hair and scrambled to his feet."Big wave," Jack said.Fitzwilliam got up from the now-slippery deck more slowly and carefully. "Why is the water ge
tting so rough? It was not calm
earlier, but it was also certainly not this violent. And there is nary a cloud in the sky, so it cannot be that Torrents has escaped and is stirring up the sea with his storms."*"Perhaps not Torrents, but it could be Louis," Jean said. "Who knows what power the Sword wields, even without the scabbard? And in the hands of Louis, a little bit of power will go a long way."Jean continued. "He is certainly a vicious man, diabolical and fierce. The only thing about your story that was not accurate, Captain Jack, is how the pirate became marked with those facial scars.""Oh?" Jack scoffed. "And how are you such an expert?""We met him," Tumen said, retur
ning to his place at the wheel.
Jack and the crew defeated the notorious Captain T
orrents, whose anger was terrible.

Everyone turned toward the helm to stare at Tumen. Then a yowling sound filled the stunned silence. Constance leapt down from her hiding place behind the mainmast and landed right in front of Jack, finally showing her mangy self. She let out
an angry but frightened hiss.

CHAPTER TWO

Jack's eyes narrowed as he stared at Constance. The shabby cat's tail flicked slowly, purposefully, as she stared back. For a moment there was a standoff. Then Constance let out another hiss; her back arched and she bared her teeth. Jean bent down and picked her up. "Ah, ma petite" he crooned to the flustered cat, petting her matted coat. "My sister is clearly nervous enough simply hearing Louis's name. Please don't make things worse for her,
Jack. She's suffered enough."
Jack smirked, then took off his bandana and brought it to his chest. "Please accept my most heartfelt apologies, m'lady," he said to the cat, with an exaggerated bow."Oh, enough already," Arabella said to Jack (and for that matter, to Constance, too). Arabella gazed up at Tumen, who rested a hand lightly on the wheel. "What do ye mean, you met Left-Foot Louis?" Arabella asked."Just as I said," Tumen replied. He relaxed against the helm, as the sails billowed and the ship made a steady course in the sea, which had calmed down considerably."Not only did we meet him," Jean said, "we faced him in battle. We barely escaped with our lives."Tumen nodded. "He is a fierce fighter."Jean p
etted Constance a moment, then
he glanced at Tumen as if he wanted his permission to tell the story. Tumen shrugged."It was not quite a year ago," Jean said, leaning against the rail and holding Constance tightly in his arms. "We made port in Martinique, and we were unloading the cargo. Precious stuff, those spices. Worth their weight in gold--literally. And quite handy to have on hand in the kitchen." He scratched Constance under the chin. "You do love your cumin and coriander in your Creole rice, don't you, ma soeur?""Get on with it," Jack barked impatiently."We were working with the longshoremen at the docks," Jean explained. He put Constance back down on the deck and she immediately licked her paws and began washing her face. "They seemed a rough and rugged band, but they often are, so I t
hought no more about it.
That work does tend to attract a hardened lot," Fitzwilliam commented,
nodding. “How
would you know?" Jack asked. "One whiff of the wharf and you'd probably faint."

"Would you let Jean speak?" Arabella complained. "Go on, Jean.""Thank you, mam'selle. We unloaded crate after crate," Jean continued. "The sweat beading on our brows, trickling down our backs. We were nearing the end of the load, and I was making my way down the gangplank balancing a trunk on my back. Constance, eager to see the town, I'm sure-- she's always so curious about far-flung places--dashed between my feet.""Jean fell," Tumen said."Vrai," Jean said with an embarrassed shrug. "I rolled all the way down the gangplank. And the
n--this part is bad--the trunk
crashed open when it hit the dock. Luckily, this trunk held none of the rare and precious spices we were carrying--it was part of the silk shipment. So I was relieved.""Relieved to have dropped silk?" Fitzwilliam asked."Silk doesn't break," Tumen explained."Still, anything ruined would come out of my miserly pay," Jean said. "I wanted to gather up the fabric before it could get dirty or torn.""I had already begun to collect the silk," Tumen said."But then all worries about my money flew out of my mind when I realized I'd fallen at the feet of the foreman. Mon Dieu! I would catch it for sure, now. The foreman would complain to the owners, who would complain to my captain. . . ." Jean
shook his head at the memory.
"They don't like their cargo spoiled," Tumen agreed."Understandably so," Fitzwilliam said.Jack opened his mouth to make a wisecrack comment to Fitz, but noticed a warning look from Arabella and kept quiet."Seeing as I had fallen next to the foreman's left boot, I thought the best course of action would be to move to the right ... away from the towering brute! So I did--and slammed into another left foot! I had heard all the legends about the dreaded pirate with the two left feet," Jean said. "I had no doubt as to his identity.""Did he know that you knew?" Arabella asked."And more important, did you know he knew that you knew?" Jack added. "You know?"T
umen looked at Jack, confused.
"Louis stared down at me," Jean continued. "I gazed up at him, too afraid to move. In a low, gravelly voice, he muttered not to move a muscle or make a sound. I thought I was done for.""I didn't know then what was happening," Tumen said."I cannot see that mad pirate allowing anyone to live who could identify him," Fitzwilliam said. "However did you escape?"Jean scooped up Constance and cradled her to his chest. "With the help of my dear sister. Constance leaped into the air and tore her claws clear across Louis's face. That gave me the chance to roll out from under his feet. It was she who saved me.""And well she should," Fitzwilliam said. "She was probably attempting to make up for the fact that it was her fault you were in such a pre
dicament in the first place.
I didn't blame her," Jean protested. "And she scratched him so badly, he still bears those scars today. So, perhaps Sirens were involved in the fusing of his flesh, but non, it was my sister who marked him.""What happened next?" Arabella asked, completely absorbed in the story."I shoved him backward," Jean said, "hard as I could. His wig had slipped off when Constance had lunged for him, and there it was--his famous bright red hair--for all to see."I let out a cry of warning," Tumen said. "Our crew swarmed to the railing.""That was when everyone aboard our ship realized Left-Foot Louis had done away with the real foreman and the real crew. It was his own shipmates unloading--and stealing--our cargo.""Clever
chap," Jack said with a smile.
"Our brave and loyal shipmates piled out of every nook and cranny of the ship and threw themselves into the melee," Jean said. "It was awful. Knives flashing, fists flying."Then, Left-Foot Louis ripped open his shirt to display his thick chest covered with strange tattoos that looked like quill markings. He pointed to me and to Tumen--""We were fighting side by side," Tumen said."--and he shouted that he's finished a thousand men and has a marking on his chest for each one. He swore we would regret that day. He was going to find us, slaughter us, and he would skin my dear Constance alive."Constance's fur puffed out, and she hissed again."Oh, don't be afraid, dear one," Jean crooned
. "We won't let any such thing
happen." He looked back up at the others. "Louis managed to take out two members of our faithful crew and escape. We have lived in fear of him ever since."Jack whistled through his teeth. "Well, that there is some story. How much of it is true?""All of it!" Jean said."He's not lying," Tumen added."To my point earlier," Fitzwilliam said, "this only bolsters Louis's reputation as driven, cruel, and quite mad.""We can't let him get the Sword," Arabella vowed. "It's too dangerous.""Isn't that exactly what I said before?" Jack said. "Keep up, lass."He looked at her more closely. She was a greenish shade of pale and looked faint. "Are you sure you're all right?" he asked."I'm fine," Arabella
said. She stood and
leaned against the railing, waving him off and facing the water. "It's just a bit of seasickness."Before they could press Arabella any further, a faint, ghostly sound wafted out of the water. It held the crew--with the exception of Jack--frozen for a moment. Then, as suddenly as it arrived, the sound floated out over the sea once more. The crew stirred, as if they were emerging from a dream, the Barnacle began to rock violently, and when the crew looked up, they saw before them a tall mountain of an island."Um, where did that come from?" Jack asked."I can assure you," Tumen said, looking up from his navigational tools, "that islan
d was not there a moment ago."