The Precipice of Reason

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Jack led the previous captain of the Voyager out of the cabin and up the stairs above the double doors, immediately bringing his hand up to shield his eyes from the now burning sun. He kept the dagger in his hand just in case.

Groves glanced back at Jack for a moment, as though hoping that he had maybe changed his mind. The pirate just glared back, giving him a silent absolutely not as an answer, twitching his head in the direction of the crew.

The Navy soldier sighed. He had never imagined being overtaken by a pirate quite so easily, but he had to admire the skill that Sparrow had in the matter.

Focusing on the rest of the ship, he noticed that his crew, or what remained of his crew, were staring up at them with incredibly confused looks on their faces.

"Captain? What's going on?" one of the sailors asked.

Groves stayed silent for a moment, earning a jab in the side from the pirate's elbow.

Clearing his throat, he started to speak.

"Captain Sparrow has persuaded me to give up the captaincy of the Voyager to him. You will follow any orders he may give from here forward without protest, and you will address him as Captain. Is that clear to all of you?"

It was very much not clear to any of them, and they made their displeasure known.

"You're giving up the ship to a pirate?"

"Lord Beckett will not take kindly to this!"

"What did he threaten you with?"

Jack rolled his eyes and looked skyward for a moment, annoyed with the general ignorance of Navy soldiers.

"Will you please stop their whining?" he snapped.

"What would you have me do? Tell them that you are going to bring them on their merry way back to Port Royal and have tea with Beckett when we arrive?" Groves said in an aggravated whisper.

Jack stepped forward until he was standing next to him. "No, I expect you to act like a captain and command your crew. Clearly, they do not hold you in very high respect."

"That might have something to do with the fact that I just handed over the ship to a notorious pirate!"

"And a wise choice it was, Teddy," Jack said, snickering.

The man bristled at the nickname and then watched Jack stride over to take his place at the railing overlooking the deck, wrapping his hands around the handsome wood.

"Gents, as your previous captain so aptly explained to you, I have taken over leadership of the Voyager. Once we assemble the rest of the crew, we will immediately begin to make sail for Tortuga. I have agreed to turn the lot of you into something resembling a pirate so that the actual pirates do not run you through on site. Upon arrival, you will either stay on the ship, or you will remain on the island."

"Beckett will find out about this and-"

A deadly glare from Jack silenced the crew member immediately. The captain removed his hands from the railing and stepped down the stairs onto the deck. He made his way over to the offending man until he was eye to eye with him.

"What is your name, lad?"

The man in question was a bit less confident now that Jack was staring him down.

"An-Anthony, sir."

"Anthony. Well, I can tell you that if it comes to my attention that Cutler has learned about any of the events involving this ship, or any of you, I will leave you to personally explain to him why exactly the rest of the crew perished."

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