Not All Treasure is Silver and Gold...

Chapter 16

We trudged uphill for what seemed like hours, though I knew it could have only been ten minutes or so. Jack led us through dense jungle, higher and higher, until we were literally struggling to brush palm branches out of our faces. I never once questioned where exactly we were going. I didn't know why I'd felt such an urge to come with Jack. I'd just known I had to.

Eventually we came into a clearing, blinking as the Caribbean sunlight hit our faces once more. There was a steep cliff in front of us, but nothing else in view, though the crashing of distant waves was audible, signalling that beyond that cliff-edge there was nothing but open, endless sea.

Jack glanced quickly about him, before placing the box he had been carrying on the grass and kneeling down in front of it, inspecting it and running his ringed fingers over it's engraved wooden lid absent-mindedly. I glanced sideways at Will, who appeared as nonplussed as I was, and I then walked slowly towards Jack and settled down by his side. Jack ignored me, and opened the lid slowly, peering inside expectantly. A strange expression crossed his sun-bronzed face, almost a mixture of surprise and disappointment. He put his hand inside the box before retracting it quickly, clutching something tightly in his fist. He turned to me and I shot him a quizzical look, causing him to sigh and slowly part his fingers for me to observe the object in the middle of his palm.

"It's...a necklace," I uttered blankly, gazing at the string of black beads strung between his fingers. They were delicate, and I could have sworn that they had a slight glow around them.

A necklace? I screamed in my head. All of this...it's about a necklace?

I glared at the thing in his palm, hating it for wasting my time. And then it clicked. They weren't just beads. They were black pearls, the namesake of Jack's pride and joy. That couldn't just be a coincidence...

Jack watched the dawning look of recognition on my face and a glimmer of a smile appeared on his lips.

"It's no ordinary necklace," he said quietly, running his fingers over the smooth, eerily illuminated pearls. "It's cursed."

I looked up at him, confused. "How can you touch it then? Surely it would harm you if it was indeed cursed...?" I asked, frowning.

"Oh, it doesn't harm you when you just touch it, love," Jack muttered, his eyes fixed on it as though unable to be torn away. "But when you wear it...oh, now that's a different story. When worn this necklace wipes the mind blank. All your thoughts, all your feelings. You are powerless...unless you're strong enough to fight it. And I think that's impossible...you could probably only hold it for a few seconds. And when you can't fight it, your body can be controlled and made to do...terrible things...an ancient curse," Jack concluded cryptically, and then fell silent once more, looking weary.

"And...can anyone control you," I asked, trying to get my head around all of this.

"No...the person who has the other part of this cursed deal...the black pearl ring...he can control the wearer of the necklace," he said softly. I stared at him, filling with a strange sort of dread, almost as though my very blood had turned to ice in my veins.

"And...who has the ring?" I asked slowly, and rather unecessarily, as I already knew the answer. Jack sighed and buried his face in his hands.

"Captain Barbossa," came his muffled voice through his fingers. I groaned in despair.

"Well...it's okay if no-one wears it, right? No harm can be done?" I asked. Jack nodded hesitantly.

"Months of attempted raiding...for this," he mumbled bitterly, holding the necklace high so that it caught the light. "I meant to steal the ring, but I was in such a hurry I must have grabbed the wrong box from Barbossa's ship by accident," he moaned. "Foolish."

"Jack...it doesn't matter...does it Will?" I asked, trying to reassure Jack. However, expecting to hear Will's tones, equally consoling, I was surprised to hear no reply. I turned my head, shocked to find that the clearing was now even emptier than before, with Will nowhere in sight.

"Will?" I cried, staring at the spot where he had stood a few minutes earlier. I got to my feet and ran to the edge of the forest we had passed through, squinting through the wild undergrowth.

"WILL?!" I cried out desperately, but once more there was no reply. I turned back to Jack desperately, and froze in horror to find myself looking into the eyes of another.

Barbossa, surrounded by his crew, had snuck out of the bushes when I had turned around and had seized Jack, who must have not seen them, caught up in his failure over the ring and necklace. Will too was being held by two of the crew, his mouth bound, arms twisted behind his back, brown eyes wide in concern.

"Jack, Jack, Jack...I believe you have something of mine," Barbossa hissed delicately into Jack's ear, his pistol pressed into his temple as I stood rigidly, frozen to the spot. I saw Jack's fingers clench tightly around the necklace, though he said nothing, his dark eyes fixed on me as I stood helplessly opposite him.

"Put it on," Barbossa barked. Jack's eyes widened as he clutched the cursed necklace in his hand, but he did not move. I stood silent with fear, staring back at him. Barbossa followed Jack's gaze and smirked.

"Ah yes...Rose...even better. Oh, Rose? Why don't you put it on for Mr Sparrow here?" he sneered. I stared at Jack feebly, eyes filling with tears, wishing he would somehow communicate to me what I was to do. However, he merely gave a tiny, defeated nod, gesturing for me to approach him, and I walked slowly forward until we were face to face. I gently prised the necklace from his hand, hating myself for what I was doing but knowing that if I didn't obey, there would be a worse punishment for Jack, Will and I. I saw Will's brown eyes widen slightly, a muffled cry exploding from his mouth, and he motioned to hit Barbossa in fury, but a knife was promptly placed at his throat and he ceased his thrashing movements, watching the scene unfold before him helplessly.

"I'm so sorry," I whispered, a tear spilling over and trickling down my cheek as my fingers brushed Jack's. I slowly held up the necklace and placed it over his head, watching it slip down and come to rest beneath his collarbone. Barbossa smiled triumphantly as Jack's eyes clearly glazed over, a vacant expression appearing on his handsome face.

"Now Jack...let's see...you're going to give me the Pearl, aren't you?" Barbossa asked silkily. Jack nodded mechanically in response.

"And then, my friend...you're going to disappear aren't you?" Barbossa asked. Jack nodded silently once more, and Barbossa's bloodshot eyes darted around and lingered on the cliff edge. He smiled slowly. "And that's how," he said, pointing towards the edge of the cliff with one thin, ringed finger.

"So long, Jack Sparrow," he whispered in his ear, and gave him an encouraging push whilst Jack obeyed, childlike.

"JACK, NO!!" I screamed, as he walked at though in a trance towards the edge, and Will to gave a muffled protest, shaking his head violently. I saw him hesitate slightly, as did Barbossa.

"I'll tell you what, Mr Sparrow," he called. "Either you do it or your pretty lady friend goes over to her death instead. Take your pick." Barbossa bared his dirty teeth in a twisted grin. I looked up at Jack, eyes burning with frightened tears.

"What will it be Jack?" Barbossa asked idly, as though making a man jump over a cliff by using a cursed necklace was an every day occurence. "Because I do mean it Jack...jump, or she dies!" Barbossa shouted, spittle flying from his mouth.

"Don't do it," I told him softly, my voice barely a whisper. Jack's eyes ran over my pale face and he opened his mouth with effort, trying to fight against the necklace, his dark eyes desperate.

"I...have...to," he strained to speak, and then in one final movement, turned and plunged over the side without a second thought.

"NO!!" I screamed, staring at the spot where Jack had stood, refusing to believe what I had seen, refusing to believe that he was dead, wishing somehow to rewind the situation and grab him, hold him back from the cliff edge in spite of the consequences. Barbossa watched me, sneering cruelly.

"Rest in peace, Jack Sparrow," he said carelessly, with a satisfied smirk, and then burst into terrible laughter as I dropped to my knees, feeling tears begin to gently stream down my cheeks.

"Captain Jack Sparrow," I whispered.