𝐇𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐨𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞|𝐉𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐬 𝐍𝐨𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐭𝐨𝐧

ACT VIII-ISLA DE MUERTA

Eve awakens to the sound of rain and lifts her head from the ship's wall, surprised that she had fallen asleep despite the events that had transpired. Elizabeth is no longer beside her, and in her drowsy state, Eve scans the room. Spotting Elizabeth by the window, she stands up and approaches her, capturing Elizabeth's attention.

"You're awake again," she says, offering a soft smile. "Did you manage to sleep?" she asks. Elizabeth shakes her head and replies, "You're the only one who can sleep even in these conditions." "I'm actually surprised I fell asleep at all," Eve admits, causing Elizabeth to chuckle briefly, knitting her brows in confusion.

"What do you mean?" Eve asks. Elizabeth inquires, "You never noticed?" Eve shakes her head, growing even more perplexed. "You always fall asleep in the most unconventional places. When we first met, you literally fell asleep while we were drawing on the floor. You slept for hours, and no one could wake you up. And when you did wake up, you carried on with your day as if nothing had happened."

The memory amuses Eve, and Elizabeth joins in laughter. "It's not my fault that I feel tired almost every day. No matter how much I sleep, I'm still tired for some reason," Eve tries to defend herself, but Elizabeth continues to laugh. "If it's that bad, maybe you should see a doctor," she suggests. Eve shakes her head. "What can the doctor tell me that I don't already know?" Elizabeth is about to respond when, at that moment, a chair falls and the door bursts open, and both of them are roughly grabbed by their arms once again.

Now standing before the dark cave entrance, they look up to where the pirates are gazing. A crew member stands on a hillock, slowly transforming into a skeleton in the moonlight, which shines brightly over the water, free from storm clouds. The crew member turns to say something to Barbossa. "Moonrise, Captain! The first night of the full moon." "Hah! Watch out for pits and crevasses and stay together," Barbossa responds before addressing the rest of the crew, leading them into the cave.

The group sticks together under the flickering firelight as they walk along a path that winds between boulders on a downhill slope. From the echoes and shadows, it's evident to Eve that the cave system is vast. She glimpses torches illuminating side caverns and catches a glimpse of a mound of coins. There is clearly more treasure, but it is lost in the darkness. Suddenly, Barbossa's voice is heard as he speaks to one of his crew members who has wandered a bit off the path. "Be careful, mate. If you fall down there, you'll die and miss Judgment Day. Not even for the Lord himself would I look for you," he warns, and the pirate nods.

The torchlight flickers as the pirates stoop low to enter a cavern, revealing the awe-inspiring treasure of Isla De Muerta. Chests overflow with coins, gold and silver ingots, jewelry, jade and ivory, colorful silks, furniture, precious gems, mirrors, and swords. Essentially, every valuable item one can imagine is piled up there. As the pirates move through, both Elizabeth and Eve find themselves unable to resist gazing in wonder.

"The curse drove you to collect all of this?" Eve asks Barbossa, who promptly responds, "Aye. But none of it is of any use to us. It only serves to torment us no longer."

Before Eve can say anything to Elizabeth, the pirates forcefully push Elizabeth away from her, while another pirate holds Eve in place. "Let me go this instant!" Elizabeth yells, attempting to free herself until she catches sight of someone in her peripheral vision. It's Jack, positioned behind a large pile of gold. Jack signals for her to remain quiet and subtly indicates that she should distract the pirate. Eve tries to think of something that would divert his attention in their confined space.

"What do you think of helping me choose an outfit while they finish their business?" she asks him, making an intentional effort to make it sound distasteful. The pirate scrutinizes her before smirking, clearly understanding her implication. Although it makes her uncomfortable, she continues to distract him. The pirate guides her to a stack of silk dresses, searching for the right one, but suddenly, he falls over face-first. Surprised, Eve looks up to see Jack standing where the pirate once stood, appearing as though he struck him with the handle of his sword.

"Are you alright, Miss Swann? I'm surprised it didn't take long for us to meet again," he remarks. She scoffs at his words and quickly departs, running toward where Elizabeth was taken.