Categories > Movies > Pirates of the Caribbean > Legarou
DISCLAIMER: Disney tried to keep these characters all to themselves, but I bribed a few of them away with treasure. I still don't own them.
PART 5
/"All hope abandon, ye who enter here!" -Dante/
"Sail ho!"
Will paused in his frenetic hammering to peek out of his shop window. There was a cool breeze floating up from the port, and he stood still for a few more moments to enjoy it and watch two ships dock. Both were distinctively familiar. Possibly because he'd been on board each of them at some point. The Dauntless and the Black Pearl. He wanted to stand there a bit longer, but he had about a dozen more orders to finish. Why someone would order thirty-five door handles, he did not know.
*
She felt odd in a dress, but she put up with it despite her dislike of having a bit of a breeze in places she wasn't used to. She would never pass as anything other than a pirate otherwise. Anamaria finished curling her hair around a hot iron and adjusted the laces on the front of the voluminous burgundy dress that had been left on board the Pearl after Barbossa had forced Elizabeth to walk the plank. Lucky for Anamaria, the other woman was just about the same height and build.
She planned on finding Gibbs once they were on shore. To be safe, she told Moises and Duncan to disembark with her. At least when they got cleaned up, they looked like normal townsfolk. They paid a shilling to the harbormaster and gave three false names before heading into town.
Anamaria had never really been to Port Royal before, but she asked a man with a gigantic grey wig where the smith was, and he gave her directions. Following them, she was surprised to see the sign proclaiming "W. Turner" above the wooden door. Apparently the whelp had made a name for himself...
Moises held the door for her as she entered (for appearance's sake as there were several people on the street), and Anamaria had to smile at the sight of Will Turner hammering the living hell out of a piece of brass. According to Jack, the boy was now happily married to that Elizabeth girl... But it never hurt to look.
"'Ey Turner," she announced, willing him to recognize her even through the change in appearance. Will stopped his work to look up at her, and it did take him a minute to recall her face.
Then he started laughing.
Anamaria seriously considered letting his cheek get to know her hand at a high speed, but calmed herself down. "Shut up," she growled. "Where be Gibbs?"
Will calmed himself and wiped tears of mirth from his eyes before answering. "If you let me finish here, I'll take you to him."
The three pirates sat down and watched him make five brass door handles.
*
Andre was restless. Mr. Cotton had been given orders by Anamaria to not let him leave the ship, but the French man wanted on land. Dry land. Dry land with dirt. So, as soon as the old mute was sent off by another pirate to raise the rest of the sails, Andre slipped on shore and started exploring. The adamant blade that Jack left behind rested against his hip, and it slapped his thigh with every step.
It was the rhythmic slap slap slap that dragged him into a dream world where the images were sharper, the noises clearer, and the scents stronger. His strides became aimless as the sun began to set, and Andre soon found himself in the presence of three naval officers.
"Sir?"
Andre didn't know how, but his memory lapsed, and the next thing he knew, he was standing in front of Jack Sparrow's cell. Another pirate lounged in the cell adjacent to his.
"Get up," Andre ordered. He heard the words coming from his own throat, but that wasn't what he'd been thinking. What the devil...?
Jack's head lolled back on one shoulder, and the beads threaded in his hair clinked against each other. In the increasing darkness, Andre's suddenly sharp eyesight picked up a reflective flash in the man's dark eyes.
"Surrexi//!" Andre shouted. All conscious thought was lost to him as the Latin word flew across his tongue.
Jack stood slowly and with a deep growl. He bared his teeth. In response, Andre gripped the adamant sword with two hands and brought it down in a beautiful arc that severed the lock. In the cell next to Jack's, Bootstrap let out a short yelp in response.
Outside, the moon's pale yellow light began to peek through the throng of palm trees lining the beach.
*
Elizabeth was more than surprised to see Will come home early. Especially with three people following him.
"Will?" she asked as Estrella opened the door. He offered her a half smile and waved his three tag-alongs inside. Elizabeth recognized the dress before she recognized the woman.
Her frown must have clued Anamaria in, because the female pirate adopted her usual gruff look and cocked an eyebrow at her. "Is Gibbs 'ere?" she asked.
Elizabeth blinked owlishly and pointed at the stairwell. "He's upstairs in the guest room," she paused, smiled, and said: "Nice dress."
Anamaria scoffed, followed Elizabeth upstairs, and tried not to trip in the uncomfortable buckled heels that she wore. Moises and Duncan remained downstairs and admired the foyer-and Will kept a close eye on them.
*
Jack dragged himself to edge of the cell and faced Andre with an expression that could only be described as feral. Eyes that were once a deep brown now shone with a devilish golden light. As the pirate stumbled out of the cell, Bootstrap scooted backwards in his own. Dirt flew up in great clouds, and both Jack and Andre turned their attention to Bootstrap's movement. It drew a growl out of both, and he saw teeth glint against the light of the moon.
What in the name of God...? he wondered, swallowing the fear that bubbled up in his belly and choked his throat. He tried to tear his eyes away from the picture before him-of a man, whom he trusted with his life, turning into a beast. There was no other explanation for it. Those teeth were sharper. Those eyes were yellow. His hands were forming into clawed paws.
Andre snarled and shook himself, and more dust flew about. As it began to settle again, Bootstrap gaped in awe as long brown fur sprouted from almost every pore.
"Legarou..." it dawned on him then and he glanced around his cell for any possible escape route. "My God..."
Bootstrap looked back up-only to find that the two cursed men were gone.
*
Gibbs was tossing about in fever, muttering things about monsters and reaching for the saber that rested against the dresser beside the bed he was lying in. Anamaria threw Elizabeth a slightly dirty look over her shoulder and clucked her tongue against the roof of her mouth.
"Takin' real good care of 'im, I see," she said, crossing her arms and pursing her lips. "What be his ail?"
Elizabeth rolled her eyes and edged a bit closer to both pirates. "He came to our home with a wound in his shoulder, and it has not healed since. The blood has stopped flowing so freely, but it still festers," she replaced the damp cloth on Gibbs' forehead and sighed. "I fear that it will never get better."
Anamaria's gruff attitude diminished at this, and she felt her brow furrow against her will. "Is there anything we can do for 'im?"
Elizabeth gauged her in a glance. "If this is truly as dire as it seems?" she paused and held her breath. "Then the best we can do for him is give him a fond farewell..."
Anamaria started at this, shooting Elizabeth a glare that would have melted steel, but the young woman was unwavered.
"But in the mean time, we can keep doing what we have been doing."
Anamaria said nothing.
*
The full moon's silver light drenched the bay area of Port Royal-lending an ethereal glow to all things out and about. A sense of endless time descended upon all, and the streets were barren save for two figures slinking about in the shadows.
The first figure had lost all pretenses of humanity-its cast shadow lent the image of something more animalistic, though it walked on two legs. The second figure was well on his way to becoming the same-and as the moonlight lit upon his face, familiar features could still be seen. Though his eyes were a different hue, his face was now sporting fur, and his nose was becoming a snout, he still had prominent cheekbones and trinkets still jangled in his hair.
The first was sniffing his way through the dirt path, following a scent that was not familiar and yet had a familiar tinge to it. Gibbs had been around the man whose footprints Legarou traced.
Only one thing was on Andre's mind at the moment. His key. His saber. He was carrying Jack's cutlass, but it wasn't the blade that kept him trapped in Hell for over a century. Once that saber was back in his paw, he would be free to reign again. He would no longer lie down and be a pitiful minion.
Jack's footsteps became lighter, and Andre risked a sideways glance. The boots that the pirate had worn lay in the streets a few yards back, split along the seams. Other than the trinkets in his mane, Jack looked exactly like Andre, if a bit darker.
Time, apparently, was on his side.
Andre's wide maw lifted along the edges to give its twisted rendition of a grin. Drool ran down his chin, and he gave a pleased growl. "Furunculus//..."
/ /Gibbs wasn't too far away.
*
Bill twisted the broken bone a few more times in the keyhole until he heard a satisfying click. With a triumphant yelp, he shoved the door to his cell open, gathered up his things (gun, sword, hat, coat, etc.) and sprinted out of the stockade. He barely noticed the bodies of three Royal Navy guards littering the upper level.
At first, he had no earthly idea of where to go, but he soon realized how simple things really were and took a gander at the impressionable dirt that littered the street. Indeed, there were two sets of new prints, and a pair of torn shoes and some ripped clothing. Bootstrap followed this trail a bit further, saw Jack's own split boots and clothes, and started sprinting again.
*
The hair was standing up on the back of Will's neck. He couldn't understand why he should feel so...unnerved...but for some reason things felt very unnatural. He shivered despite the warm night air that wafted in from the open window.
"Are you well, Mister Turner?" Estrella asked, taking note of his sudden loss of color. His skin was flushed white.
A howl issued from beyond the front yard, and Will leapt into action. He guided Estrella into the kitchen, ordered her to stay there no matter what she heard, and returned to the foyer. Moises and Duncan were staring at the door in utter fear.
It was shaking.
Will was just about to ask what was wrong when the shaking door burst inward with enough force to knock Moises and Duncan clean off their feet.
Thinking quickly Will armed himself.
What came through the door was like nothing he'd ever seen.
Two great beasts lumbered into his home and sniffed the air for a moment. The first gave a pleased growl and headed for the stairwell, but the second paused upon seeing Will. This hesitation gave the blacksmith a chance to attack.
The sword that was of his own creation flashed in the silver moonlight that bled in through the ruined doorway. It licked a deadly path across a thickly muscled chest, easily shearing flesh and fur. Blackish-red blood gushed from the wound, and the creature howled his agony. Before Will realized that the giant clawed hand had even moved, a white light encompassed his field of vision and all sound bled out of reach. He felt numb. He didn't even notice that he hit the floor until he saw his own hand lying palm-up against the cold stone.
Minutes, or even seconds, after he landed, everything rushed back with a painful intensity. Will's head throbbed, the side of his face burned, and noises came back clearer and twice as loud. As the pulsing lights left his eyes, the sight of the two creatures lumbering up the stairs to the room in which his wife was-unaware in her own way-brought the worst thought thundering down upon his already aching head.
Elizabeth is in that room...They're going to kill her!
/ /Will tried to speak-tried to get up-but everything was failing him. He was left in the miserable agony of imagining his dear Elizabeth and her last moments.
Short, I know, I'm sorry! But please review anyway.
DISCLAIMER: Disney tried to keep these characters all to themselves, but I bribed a few of them away with treasure DISCLAIMER: Disney tried to keep these characters all to themselves, but I bribed a few of them away with treasure. I still don't own them.
PART 5
/"All hope abandon, ye who enter here!" -Dante/
"Sail ho!"
Will paused in his frenetic hammering to peek out of his shop window. There was a cool breeze floating up from the port, and he stood still for a few more moments to enjoy it and watch two ships dock. Both were distinctively familiar. Possibly because he'd been on board each of them at some point. The Dauntless and the Black Pearl. He wanted to stand there a bit longer, but he had about a dozen more orders to finish. Why someone would order thirty-five door handles, he did not know.
*
She felt odd in a dress, but she put up with it despite her dislike of having a bit of a breeze in places she wasn't used to. She would never pass as anything other than a pirate otherwise. Anamaria finished curling her hair around a hot iron and adjusted the laces on the front of the voluminous burgundy dress that had been left on board the Pearl after Barbossa had forced Elizabeth to walk the plank. Lucky for Anamaria, the other woman was just about the same height and build.
She planned on finding Gibbs once they were on shore. To be safe, she told Moises and Duncan to disembark with her. At least when they got cleaned up, they looked like normal townsfolk. They paid a shilling to the harbormaster and gave three false names before heading into town.
Anamaria had never really been to Port Royal before, but she asked a man with a gigantic grey wig where the smith was, and he gave her directions. Following them, she was surprised to see the sign proclaiming "W. Turner" above the wooden door. Apparently the whelp had made a name for himself...
Moises held the door for her as she entered (for appearance's sake as there were several people on the street), and Anamaria had to smile at the sight of Will Turner hammering the living hell out of a piece of brass. According to Jack, the boy was now happily married to that Elizabeth girl... But it never hurt to look.
"'Ey Turner," she announced, willing him to recognize her even through the change in appearance. Will stopped his work to look up at her, and it did take him a minute to recall her face.
Then he started laughing.
Anamaria seriously considered letting his cheek get to know her hand at a high speed, but calmed herself down. "Shut up," she growled. "Where be Gibbs?"
Will calmed himself and wiped tears of mirth from his eyes before answering. "If you let me finish here, I'll take you to him."
The three pirates sat down and watched him make five brass door handles.
*
Andre was restless. Mr. Cotton had been given orders by Anamaria to not let him leave the ship, but the French man wanted on land. Dry land. Dry land with dirt. So, as soon as the old mute was sent off by another pirate to raise the rest of the sails, Andre slipped on shore and started exploring. The adamant blade that Jack left behind rested against his hip, and it slapped his thigh with every step.
It was the rhythmic slap slap slap that dragged him into a dream world where the images were sharper, the noises clearer, and the scents stronger. His strides became aimless as the sun began to set, and Andre soon found himself in the presence of three naval officers.
"Sir?"
Andre didn't know how, but his memory lapsed, and the next thing he knew, he was standing in front of Jack Sparrow's cell. Another pirate lounged in the cell adjacent to his.
"Get up," Andre ordered. He heard the words coming from his own throat, but that wasn't what he'd been thinking. What the devil...?
Jack's head lolled back on one shoulder, and the beads threaded in his hair clinked against each other. In the increasing darkness, Andre's suddenly sharp eyesight picked up a reflective flash in the man's dark eyes.
"Surrexi//!" Andre shouted. All conscious thought was lost to him as the Latin word flew across his tongue.
Jack stood slowly and with a deep growl. He bared his teeth. In response, Andre gripped the adamant sword with two hands and brought it down in a beautiful arc that severed the lock. In the cell next to Jack's, Bootstrap let out a short yelp in response.
Outside, the moon's pale yellow light began to peek through the throng of palm trees lining the beach.
*
Elizabeth was more than surprised to see Will come home early. Especially with three people following him.
"Will?" she asked as Estrella opened the door. He offered her a half smile and waved his three tag-alongs inside. Elizabeth recognized the dress before she recognized the woman.
Her frown must have clued Anamaria in, because the female pirate adopted her usual gruff look and cocked an eyebrow at her. "Is Gibbs 'ere?" she asked.
Elizabeth blinked owlishly and pointed at the stairwell. "He's upstairs in the guest room," she paused, smiled, and said: "Nice dress."
Anamaria scoffed, followed Elizabeth upstairs, and tried not to trip in the uncomfortable buckled heels that she wore. Moises and Duncan remained downstairs and admired the foyer-and Will kept a close eye on them.
*
Jack dragged himself to edge of the cell and faced Andre with an expression that could only be described as feral. Eyes that were once a deep brown now shone with a devilish golden light. As the pirate stumbled out of the cell, Bootstrap scooted backwards in his own. Dirt flew up in great clouds, and both Jack and Andre turned their attention to Bootstrap's movement. It drew a growl out of both, and he saw teeth glint against the light of the moon.
What in the name of God...? he wondered, swallowing the fear that bubbled up in his belly and choked his throat. He tried to tear his eyes away from the picture before him-of a man, whom he trusted with his life, turning into a beast. There was no other explanation for it. Those teeth were sharper. Those eyes were yellow. His hands were forming into clawed paws.
Andre snarled and shook himself, and more dust flew about. As it began to settle again, Bootstrap gaped in awe as long brown fur sprouted from almost every pore.
"Legarou..." it dawned on him then and he glanced around his cell for any possible escape route. "My God..."
Bootstrap looked back up-only to find that the two cursed men were gone.
*
Gibbs was tossing about in fever, muttering things about monsters and reaching for the saber that rested against the dresser beside the bed he was lying in. Anamaria threw Elizabeth a slightly dirty look over her shoulder and clucked her tongue against the roof of her mouth.
"Takin' real good care of 'im, I see," she said, crossing her arms and pursing her lips. "What be his ail?"
Elizabeth rolled her eyes and edged a bit closer to both pirates. "He came to our home with a wound in his shoulder, and it has not healed since. The blood has stopped flowing so freely, but it still festers," she replaced the damp cloth on Gibbs' forehead and sighed. "I fear that it will never get better."
Anamaria's gruff attitude diminished at this, and she felt her brow furrow against her will. "Is there anything we can do for 'im?"
Elizabeth gauged her in a glance. "If this is truly as dire as it seems?" she paused and held her breath. "Then the best we can do for him is give him a fond farewell..."
Anamaria started at this, shooting Elizabeth a glare that would have melted steel, but the young woman was unwavered.
"But in the mean time, we can keep doing what we have been doing."
Anamaria said nothing.
*
The full moon's silver light drenched the bay area of Port Royal-lending an ethereal glow to all things out and about. A sense of endless time descended upon all, and the streets were barren save for two figures slinking about in the shadows.
The first figure had lost all pretenses of humanity-its cast shadow lent the image of something more animalistic, though it walked on two legs. The second figure was well on his way to becoming the same-and as the moonlight lit upon his face, familiar features could still be seen. Though his eyes were a different hue, his face was now sporting fur, and his nose was becoming a snout, he still had prominent cheekbones and trinkets still jangled in his hair.
The first was sniffing his way through the dirt path, following a scent that was not familiar and yet had a familiar tinge to it. Gibbs had been around the man whose footprints Legarou traced.
Only one thing was on Andre's mind at the moment. His key. His saber. He was carrying Jack's cutlass, but it wasn't the blade that kept him trapped in Hell for over a century. Once that saber was back in his paw, he would be free to reign again. He would no longer lie down and be a pitiful minion.
Jack's footsteps became lighter, and Andre risked a sideways glance. The boots that the pirate had worn lay in the streets a few yards back, split along the seams. Other than the trinkets in his mane, Jack looked exactly like Andre, if a bit darker.
Time, apparently, was on his side.
Andre's wide maw lifted along the edges to give its twisted rendition of a grin. Drool ran down his chin, and he gave a pleased growl. "Furunculus//..."
/ /Gibbs wasn't too far away.
*
Bill twisted the broken bone a few more times in the keyhole until he heard a satisfying click. With a triumphant yelp, he shoved the door to his cell open, gathered up his things (gun, sword, hat, coat, etc.) and sprinted out of the stockade. He barely noticed the bodies of three Royal Navy guards littering the upper level.
At first, he had no earthly idea of where to go, but he soon realized how simple things really were and took a gander at the impressionable dirt that littered the street. Indeed, there were two sets of new prints, and a pair of torn shoes and some ripped clothing. Bootstrap followed this trail a bit further, saw Jack's own split boots and clothes, and started sprinting again.
*
The hair was standing up on the back of Will's neck. He couldn't understand why he should feel so...unnerved...but for some reason things felt very unnatural. He shivered despite the warm night air that wafted in from the open window.
"Are you well, Mister Turner?" Estrella asked, taking note of his sudden loss of color. His skin was flushed white.
A howl issued from beyond the front yard, and Will leapt into action. He guided Estrella into the kitchen, ordered her to stay there no matter what she heard, and returned to the foyer. Moises and Duncan were staring at the door in utter fear.
It was shaking.
Will was just about to ask what was wrong when the shaking door burst inward with enough force to knock Moises and Duncan clean off their feet.
Thinking quickly Will armed himself.
What came through the door was like nothing he'd ever seen.
Two great beasts lumbered into his home and sniffed the air for a moment. The first gave a pleased growl and headed for the stairwell, but the second paused upon seeing Will. This hesitation gave the blacksmith a chance to attack.
The sword that was of his own creation flashed in the silver moonlight that bled in through the ruined doorway. It licked a deadly path across a thickly muscled chest, easily shearing flesh and fur. Blackish-red blood gushed from the wound, and the creature howled his agony. Before Will realized that the giant clawed hand had even moved, a white light encompassed his field of vision and all sound bled out of reach. He felt numb. He didn't even notice that he hit the floor until he saw his own hand lying palm-up against the cold stone.
Minutes, or even seconds, after he landed, everything rushed back with a painful intensity. Will's head throbbed, the side of his face burned, and noises came back clearer and twice as loud. As the pulsing lights left his eyes, the sight of the two creatures lumbering up the stairs to the room in which his wife was-unaware in her own way-brought the worst thought thundering down upon his already aching head.
Elizabeth is in that room...They're going to kill her!
/ /Will tried to speak-tried to get up-but everything was failing him. He was left in the miserable agony of imagining his dear Elizabeth and her last moments.
Short, I know, I'm sorry! But please review anyway.
PART 5
/"All hope abandon, ye who enter here!" -Dante/
"Sail ho!"
Will paused in his frenetic hammering to peek out of his shop window. There was a cool breeze floating up from the port, and he stood still for a few more moments to enjoy it and watch two ships dock. Both were distinctively familiar. Possibly because he'd been on board each of them at some point. The Dauntless and the Black Pearl. He wanted to stand there a bit longer, but he had about a dozen more orders to finish. Why someone would order thirty-five door handles, he did not know.
*
She felt odd in a dress, but she put up with it despite her dislike of having a bit of a breeze in places she wasn't used to. She would never pass as anything other than a pirate otherwise. Anamaria finished curling her hair around a hot iron and adjusted the laces on the front of the voluminous burgundy dress that had been left on board the Pearl after Barbossa had forced Elizabeth to walk the plank. Lucky for Anamaria, the other woman was just about the same height and build.
She planned on finding Gibbs once they were on shore. To be safe, she told Moises and Duncan to disembark with her. At least when they got cleaned up, they looked like normal townsfolk. They paid a shilling to the harbormaster and gave three false names before heading into town.
Anamaria had never really been to Port Royal before, but she asked a man with a gigantic grey wig where the smith was, and he gave her directions. Following them, she was surprised to see the sign proclaiming "W. Turner" above the wooden door. Apparently the whelp had made a name for himself...
Moises held the door for her as she entered (for appearance's sake as there were several people on the street), and Anamaria had to smile at the sight of Will Turner hammering the living hell out of a piece of brass. According to Jack, the boy was now happily married to that Elizabeth girl... But it never hurt to look.
"'Ey Turner," she announced, willing him to recognize her even through the change in appearance. Will stopped his work to look up at her, and it did take him a minute to recall her face.
Then he started laughing.
Anamaria seriously considered letting his cheek get to know her hand at a high speed, but calmed herself down. "Shut up," she growled. "Where be Gibbs?"
Will calmed himself and wiped tears of mirth from his eyes before answering. "If you let me finish here, I'll take you to him."
The three pirates sat down and watched him make five brass door handles.
*
Andre was restless. Mr. Cotton had been given orders by Anamaria to not let him leave the ship, but the French man wanted on land. Dry land. Dry land with dirt. So, as soon as the old mute was sent off by another pirate to raise the rest of the sails, Andre slipped on shore and started exploring. The adamant blade that Jack left behind rested against his hip, and it slapped his thigh with every step.
It was the rhythmic slap slap slap that dragged him into a dream world where the images were sharper, the noises clearer, and the scents stronger. His strides became aimless as the sun began to set, and Andre soon found himself in the presence of three naval officers.
"Sir?"
Andre didn't know how, but his memory lapsed, and the next thing he knew, he was standing in front of Jack Sparrow's cell. Another pirate lounged in the cell adjacent to his.
"Get up," Andre ordered. He heard the words coming from his own throat, but that wasn't what he'd been thinking. What the devil...?
Jack's head lolled back on one shoulder, and the beads threaded in his hair clinked against each other. In the increasing darkness, Andre's suddenly sharp eyesight picked up a reflective flash in the man's dark eyes.
"Surrexi//!" Andre shouted. All conscious thought was lost to him as the Latin word flew across his tongue.
Jack stood slowly and with a deep growl. He bared his teeth. In response, Andre gripped the adamant sword with two hands and brought it down in a beautiful arc that severed the lock. In the cell next to Jack's, Bootstrap let out a short yelp in response.
Outside, the moon's pale yellow light began to peek through the throng of palm trees lining the beach.
*
Elizabeth was more than surprised to see Will come home early. Especially with three people following him.
"Will?" she asked as Estrella opened the door. He offered her a half smile and waved his three tag-alongs inside. Elizabeth recognized the dress before she recognized the woman.
Her frown must have clued Anamaria in, because the female pirate adopted her usual gruff look and cocked an eyebrow at her. "Is Gibbs 'ere?" she asked.
Elizabeth blinked owlishly and pointed at the stairwell. "He's upstairs in the guest room," she paused, smiled, and said: "Nice dress."
Anamaria scoffed, followed Elizabeth upstairs, and tried not to trip in the uncomfortable buckled heels that she wore. Moises and Duncan remained downstairs and admired the foyer-and Will kept a close eye on them.
*
Jack dragged himself to edge of the cell and faced Andre with an expression that could only be described as feral. Eyes that were once a deep brown now shone with a devilish golden light. As the pirate stumbled out of the cell, Bootstrap scooted backwards in his own. Dirt flew up in great clouds, and both Jack and Andre turned their attention to Bootstrap's movement. It drew a growl out of both, and he saw teeth glint against the light of the moon.
What in the name of God...? he wondered, swallowing the fear that bubbled up in his belly and choked his throat. He tried to tear his eyes away from the picture before him-of a man, whom he trusted with his life, turning into a beast. There was no other explanation for it. Those teeth were sharper. Those eyes were yellow. His hands were forming into clawed paws.
Andre snarled and shook himself, and more dust flew about. As it began to settle again, Bootstrap gaped in awe as long brown fur sprouted from almost every pore.
"Legarou..." it dawned on him then and he glanced around his cell for any possible escape route. "My God..."
Bootstrap looked back up-only to find that the two cursed men were gone.
*
Gibbs was tossing about in fever, muttering things about monsters and reaching for the saber that rested against the dresser beside the bed he was lying in. Anamaria threw Elizabeth a slightly dirty look over her shoulder and clucked her tongue against the roof of her mouth.
"Takin' real good care of 'im, I see," she said, crossing her arms and pursing her lips. "What be his ail?"
Elizabeth rolled her eyes and edged a bit closer to both pirates. "He came to our home with a wound in his shoulder, and it has not healed since. The blood has stopped flowing so freely, but it still festers," she replaced the damp cloth on Gibbs' forehead and sighed. "I fear that it will never get better."
Anamaria's gruff attitude diminished at this, and she felt her brow furrow against her will. "Is there anything we can do for 'im?"
Elizabeth gauged her in a glance. "If this is truly as dire as it seems?" she paused and held her breath. "Then the best we can do for him is give him a fond farewell..."
Anamaria started at this, shooting Elizabeth a glare that would have melted steel, but the young woman was unwavered.
"But in the mean time, we can keep doing what we have been doing."
Anamaria said nothing.
*
The full moon's silver light drenched the bay area of Port Royal-lending an ethereal glow to all things out and about. A sense of endless time descended upon all, and the streets were barren save for two figures slinking about in the shadows.
The first figure had lost all pretenses of humanity-its cast shadow lent the image of something more animalistic, though it walked on two legs. The second figure was well on his way to becoming the same-and as the moonlight lit upon his face, familiar features could still be seen. Though his eyes were a different hue, his face was now sporting fur, and his nose was becoming a snout, he still had prominent cheekbones and trinkets still jangled in his hair.
The first was sniffing his way through the dirt path, following a scent that was not familiar and yet had a familiar tinge to it. Gibbs had been around the man whose footprints Legarou traced.
Only one thing was on Andre's mind at the moment. His key. His saber. He was carrying Jack's cutlass, but it wasn't the blade that kept him trapped in Hell for over a century. Once that saber was back in his paw, he would be free to reign again. He would no longer lie down and be a pitiful minion.
Jack's footsteps became lighter, and Andre risked a sideways glance. The boots that the pirate had worn lay in the streets a few yards back, split along the seams. Other than the trinkets in his mane, Jack looked exactly like Andre, if a bit darker.
Time, apparently, was on his side.
Andre's wide maw lifted along the edges to give its twisted rendition of a grin. Drool ran down his chin, and he gave a pleased growl. "Furunculus//..."
/ /Gibbs wasn't too far away.
*
Bill twisted the broken bone a few more times in the keyhole until he heard a satisfying click. With a triumphant yelp, he shoved the door to his cell open, gathered up his things (gun, sword, hat, coat, etc.) and sprinted out of the stockade. He barely noticed the bodies of three Royal Navy guards littering the upper level.
At first, he had no earthly idea of where to go, but he soon realized how simple things really were and took a gander at the impressionable dirt that littered the street. Indeed, there were two sets of new prints, and a pair of torn shoes and some ripped clothing. Bootstrap followed this trail a bit further, saw Jack's own split boots and clothes, and started sprinting again.
*
The hair was standing up on the back of Will's neck. He couldn't understand why he should feel so...unnerved...but for some reason things felt very unnatural. He shivered despite the warm night air that wafted in from the open window.
"Are you well, Mister Turner?" Estrella asked, taking note of his sudden loss of color. His skin was flushed white.
A howl issued from beyond the front yard, and Will leapt into action. He guided Estrella into the kitchen, ordered her to stay there no matter what she heard, and returned to the foyer. Moises and Duncan were staring at the door in utter fear.
It was shaking.
Will was just about to ask what was wrong when the shaking door burst inward with enough force to knock Moises and Duncan clean off their feet.
Thinking quickly Will armed himself.
What came through the door was like nothing he'd ever seen.
Two great beasts lumbered into his home and sniffed the air for a moment. The first gave a pleased growl and headed for the stairwell, but the second paused upon seeing Will. This hesitation gave the blacksmith a chance to attack.
The sword that was of his own creation flashed in the silver moonlight that bled in through the ruined doorway. It licked a deadly path across a thickly muscled chest, easily shearing flesh and fur. Blackish-red blood gushed from the wound, and the creature howled his agony. Before Will realized that the giant clawed hand had even moved, a white light encompassed his field of vision and all sound bled out of reach. He felt numb. He didn't even notice that he hit the floor until he saw his own hand lying palm-up against the cold stone.
Minutes, or even seconds, after he landed, everything rushed back with a painful intensity. Will's head throbbed, the side of his face burned, and noises came back clearer and twice as loud. As the pulsing lights left his eyes, the sight of the two creatures lumbering up the stairs to the room in which his wife was-unaware in her own way-brought the worst thought thundering down upon his already aching head.
Elizabeth is in that room...They're going to kill her!
/ /Will tried to speak-tried to get up-but everything was failing him. He was left in the miserable agony of imagining his dear Elizabeth and her last moments.
Short, I know, I'm sorry! But please review anyway.
DISCLAIMER: Disney tried to keep these characters all to themselves, but I bribed a few of them away with treasure DISCLAIMER: Disney tried to keep these characters all to themselves, but I bribed a few of them away with treasure. I still don't own them.
PART 5
/"All hope abandon, ye who enter here!" -Dante/
"Sail ho!"
Will paused in his frenetic hammering to peek out of his shop window. There was a cool breeze floating up from the port, and he stood still for a few more moments to enjoy it and watch two ships dock. Both were distinctively familiar. Possibly because he'd been on board each of them at some point. The Dauntless and the Black Pearl. He wanted to stand there a bit longer, but he had about a dozen more orders to finish. Why someone would order thirty-five door handles, he did not know.
*
She felt odd in a dress, but she put up with it despite her dislike of having a bit of a breeze in places she wasn't used to. She would never pass as anything other than a pirate otherwise. Anamaria finished curling her hair around a hot iron and adjusted the laces on the front of the voluminous burgundy dress that had been left on board the Pearl after Barbossa had forced Elizabeth to walk the plank. Lucky for Anamaria, the other woman was just about the same height and build.
She planned on finding Gibbs once they were on shore. To be safe, she told Moises and Duncan to disembark with her. At least when they got cleaned up, they looked like normal townsfolk. They paid a shilling to the harbormaster and gave three false names before heading into town.
Anamaria had never really been to Port Royal before, but she asked a man with a gigantic grey wig where the smith was, and he gave her directions. Following them, she was surprised to see the sign proclaiming "W. Turner" above the wooden door. Apparently the whelp had made a name for himself...
Moises held the door for her as she entered (for appearance's sake as there were several people on the street), and Anamaria had to smile at the sight of Will Turner hammering the living hell out of a piece of brass. According to Jack, the boy was now happily married to that Elizabeth girl... But it never hurt to look.
"'Ey Turner," she announced, willing him to recognize her even through the change in appearance. Will stopped his work to look up at her, and it did take him a minute to recall her face.
Then he started laughing.
Anamaria seriously considered letting his cheek get to know her hand at a high speed, but calmed herself down. "Shut up," she growled. "Where be Gibbs?"
Will calmed himself and wiped tears of mirth from his eyes before answering. "If you let me finish here, I'll take you to him."
The three pirates sat down and watched him make five brass door handles.
*
Andre was restless. Mr. Cotton had been given orders by Anamaria to not let him leave the ship, but the French man wanted on land. Dry land. Dry land with dirt. So, as soon as the old mute was sent off by another pirate to raise the rest of the sails, Andre slipped on shore and started exploring. The adamant blade that Jack left behind rested against his hip, and it slapped his thigh with every step.
It was the rhythmic slap slap slap that dragged him into a dream world where the images were sharper, the noises clearer, and the scents stronger. His strides became aimless as the sun began to set, and Andre soon found himself in the presence of three naval officers.
"Sir?"
Andre didn't know how, but his memory lapsed, and the next thing he knew, he was standing in front of Jack Sparrow's cell. Another pirate lounged in the cell adjacent to his.
"Get up," Andre ordered. He heard the words coming from his own throat, but that wasn't what he'd been thinking. What the devil...?
Jack's head lolled back on one shoulder, and the beads threaded in his hair clinked against each other. In the increasing darkness, Andre's suddenly sharp eyesight picked up a reflective flash in the man's dark eyes.
"Surrexi//!" Andre shouted. All conscious thought was lost to him as the Latin word flew across his tongue.
Jack stood slowly and with a deep growl. He bared his teeth. In response, Andre gripped the adamant sword with two hands and brought it down in a beautiful arc that severed the lock. In the cell next to Jack's, Bootstrap let out a short yelp in response.
Outside, the moon's pale yellow light began to peek through the throng of palm trees lining the beach.
*
Elizabeth was more than surprised to see Will come home early. Especially with three people following him.
"Will?" she asked as Estrella opened the door. He offered her a half smile and waved his three tag-alongs inside. Elizabeth recognized the dress before she recognized the woman.
Her frown must have clued Anamaria in, because the female pirate adopted her usual gruff look and cocked an eyebrow at her. "Is Gibbs 'ere?" she asked.
Elizabeth blinked owlishly and pointed at the stairwell. "He's upstairs in the guest room," she paused, smiled, and said: "Nice dress."
Anamaria scoffed, followed Elizabeth upstairs, and tried not to trip in the uncomfortable buckled heels that she wore. Moises and Duncan remained downstairs and admired the foyer-and Will kept a close eye on them.
*
Jack dragged himself to edge of the cell and faced Andre with an expression that could only be described as feral. Eyes that were once a deep brown now shone with a devilish golden light. As the pirate stumbled out of the cell, Bootstrap scooted backwards in his own. Dirt flew up in great clouds, and both Jack and Andre turned their attention to Bootstrap's movement. It drew a growl out of both, and he saw teeth glint against the light of the moon.
What in the name of God...? he wondered, swallowing the fear that bubbled up in his belly and choked his throat. He tried to tear his eyes away from the picture before him-of a man, whom he trusted with his life, turning into a beast. There was no other explanation for it. Those teeth were sharper. Those eyes were yellow. His hands were forming into clawed paws.
Andre snarled and shook himself, and more dust flew about. As it began to settle again, Bootstrap gaped in awe as long brown fur sprouted from almost every pore.
"Legarou..." it dawned on him then and he glanced around his cell for any possible escape route. "My God..."
Bootstrap looked back up-only to find that the two cursed men were gone.
*
Gibbs was tossing about in fever, muttering things about monsters and reaching for the saber that rested against the dresser beside the bed he was lying in. Anamaria threw Elizabeth a slightly dirty look over her shoulder and clucked her tongue against the roof of her mouth.
"Takin' real good care of 'im, I see," she said, crossing her arms and pursing her lips. "What be his ail?"
Elizabeth rolled her eyes and edged a bit closer to both pirates. "He came to our home with a wound in his shoulder, and it has not healed since. The blood has stopped flowing so freely, but it still festers," she replaced the damp cloth on Gibbs' forehead and sighed. "I fear that it will never get better."
Anamaria's gruff attitude diminished at this, and she felt her brow furrow against her will. "Is there anything we can do for 'im?"
Elizabeth gauged her in a glance. "If this is truly as dire as it seems?" she paused and held her breath. "Then the best we can do for him is give him a fond farewell..."
Anamaria started at this, shooting Elizabeth a glare that would have melted steel, but the young woman was unwavered.
"But in the mean time, we can keep doing what we have been doing."
Anamaria said nothing.
*
The full moon's silver light drenched the bay area of Port Royal-lending an ethereal glow to all things out and about. A sense of endless time descended upon all, and the streets were barren save for two figures slinking about in the shadows.
The first figure had lost all pretenses of humanity-its cast shadow lent the image of something more animalistic, though it walked on two legs. The second figure was well on his way to becoming the same-and as the moonlight lit upon his face, familiar features could still be seen. Though his eyes were a different hue, his face was now sporting fur, and his nose was becoming a snout, he still had prominent cheekbones and trinkets still jangled in his hair.
The first was sniffing his way through the dirt path, following a scent that was not familiar and yet had a familiar tinge to it. Gibbs had been around the man whose footprints Legarou traced.
Only one thing was on Andre's mind at the moment. His key. His saber. He was carrying Jack's cutlass, but it wasn't the blade that kept him trapped in Hell for over a century. Once that saber was back in his paw, he would be free to reign again. He would no longer lie down and be a pitiful minion.
Jack's footsteps became lighter, and Andre risked a sideways glance. The boots that the pirate had worn lay in the streets a few yards back, split along the seams. Other than the trinkets in his mane, Jack looked exactly like Andre, if a bit darker.
Time, apparently, was on his side.
Andre's wide maw lifted along the edges to give its twisted rendition of a grin. Drool ran down his chin, and he gave a pleased growl. "Furunculus//..."
/ /Gibbs wasn't too far away.
*
Bill twisted the broken bone a few more times in the keyhole until he heard a satisfying click. With a triumphant yelp, he shoved the door to his cell open, gathered up his things (gun, sword, hat, coat, etc.) and sprinted out of the stockade. He barely noticed the bodies of three Royal Navy guards littering the upper level.
At first, he had no earthly idea of where to go, but he soon realized how simple things really were and took a gander at the impressionable dirt that littered the street. Indeed, there were two sets of new prints, and a pair of torn shoes and some ripped clothing. Bootstrap followed this trail a bit further, saw Jack's own split boots and clothes, and started sprinting again.
*
The hair was standing up on the back of Will's neck. He couldn't understand why he should feel so...unnerved...but for some reason things felt very unnatural. He shivered despite the warm night air that wafted in from the open window.
"Are you well, Mister Turner?" Estrella asked, taking note of his sudden loss of color. His skin was flushed white.
A howl issued from beyond the front yard, and Will leapt into action. He guided Estrella into the kitchen, ordered her to stay there no matter what she heard, and returned to the foyer. Moises and Duncan were staring at the door in utter fear.
It was shaking.
Will was just about to ask what was wrong when the shaking door burst inward with enough force to knock Moises and Duncan clean off their feet.
Thinking quickly Will armed himself.
What came through the door was like nothing he'd ever seen.
Two great beasts lumbered into his home and sniffed the air for a moment. The first gave a pleased growl and headed for the stairwell, but the second paused upon seeing Will. This hesitation gave the blacksmith a chance to attack.
The sword that was of his own creation flashed in the silver moonlight that bled in through the ruined doorway. It licked a deadly path across a thickly muscled chest, easily shearing flesh and fur. Blackish-red blood gushed from the wound, and the creature howled his agony. Before Will realized that the giant clawed hand had even moved, a white light encompassed his field of vision and all sound bled out of reach. He felt numb. He didn't even notice that he hit the floor until he saw his own hand lying palm-up against the cold stone.
Minutes, or even seconds, after he landed, everything rushed back with a painful intensity. Will's head throbbed, the side of his face burned, and noises came back clearer and twice as loud. As the pulsing lights left his eyes, the sight of the two creatures lumbering up the stairs to the room in which his wife was-unaware in her own way-brought the worst thought thundering down upon his already aching head.
Elizabeth is in that room...They're going to kill her!
/ /Will tried to speak-tried to get up-but everything was failing him. He was left in the miserable agony of imagining his dear Elizabeth and her last moments.
Short, I know, I'm sorry! But please review anyway.
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