Lost City of Atlantis (POTC 6) + Shorts

Searching for the Treasure of Macedonia

Narrator's POV
1754
After On Stranger Tides, before Dead Men Tell No Tales

The crew of the Black Pearl were in-between ships at the moment, so they were currently on The Crane, which was a ship that Jack bartered for after the Pearl shrunk and was trapped in a clear bottle. Their time on The Crane was very short before they moved on to the Dying Gull, which was not much better.

The crew was talking amongst themselves, without the pressures to be silenced by their unstable captain. The velvet sky was littered with stars, but the ship was lit with every lamp that created a golden hue against the dark yet calm ocean. The wind in the sails stayed behind the The Crane, pushing them to their desired destination—if they knew where that was.

Scrum spoke up but kept his voice low as he asked the crew, "is it just me... or has the Cap'n gone a little... looney?"

The crew nodded in agreement with small grunts. They were all resting on deck, all were sitting on barrels and broken pieces of wood. The only members who were missing were Jack, who was in the small cabin, and Annette, who was down on the berth deck below to inspect the cannons.

Crumble was an older pirate, with blonde hair that came out of his hat and a scruffy beard. He said, "I thought that was the charm of Jack Sparrow?"

"Captain Jack Sparrow," Gibbs corrected. He grunted and continued, "it generally is... bad luck dogs him day and night."

"Aye, he's still our Captain," Marty nodded.

"Even when he don't act like one?" Crumble asked, "please. We could mutiny against him now and he would be none-the-wiser."

"Don't speak ill of Jack," Gibbs said uneasily, as if Jack could hear them from his cabin. His door was closed, but a dim golden light shined through his foggy windows.

"Master Gibbs, you cannot be so pleased by Jack's decision to make Annette his first-mate over yourself. A woman," Crumble said.

Meanwhile, Annette was below deck but could hear everything that the men were saying. She was right by the opened hatch that separated the two decks, holding a couple bottles of rum that she was going to give the crew as a thank-you for supporting her and Jack in these uncertain times. After hearing their conversation, it would be more of a petty way to make them feel guilty.

Gibbs grew agitated and he stood up and shook his finger at Crumble, "she is the best damn pirate the Pearl, and The Crane has ever seen. For not me, I'm glad it's her."

"Aye, me too," Scrum nodded, "she's a bonny lass."

"Annette would be better as Captain," Marty grumbled.

"Here, here," Scrum contributed.

Annette let the bottoms of her sea boots ominously click on the wood as she walked up the steps and towards the crew. Their voices quickly hushed, and the looks on their faces hoped that she did not hear what they were talking about.

She began passing the bottles around and eyed Crumble suspiciously. She wanted to have him tossed overboard or keelhauled, but she let her urges pass. She would allow him more time to be comfortable taking orders from a woman. Or, his punishment would be taking orders from a woman.

"What are we talking about?" Annette asked, raising her eyebrows to the crew.

Scrum spoke up, "we were talking about Captain Jack... he doesn't seem like himself no more."

Annette nodded, knowing where they were coming from with their worries. She said, "mes moussaillons, this is why I bring rum from below. It is a thank-you for sticking with us."