Hidden Plans

Chapter 3: Escape and Retrieve

"Why would he do this to us? If Jack is the chief-" Will started in confusion as he turned to Gibbs.
"Aye. The Pelegostos have made Jacktheir chief. But he only remains chief as long as he acts like a chief." Gibbs explained.
Will pulled up short. "So he had no choice. He’s a captive there as much as the rest of us."

"Worse, as it turns out. You see, the Pelegostos believe that Jack is a god in human form. And they intend to do ‘im the honor of releasing him from his fleshy prison." Gibbs explained to Will.

Will looked at Gibbs in confusion. Cotton, seeing Will's confusion, happily mimed on Gibbs. In a second he snatched Gibbs hand an bit it.

"They'll roast him." Gibbs finished as he angrily snatched back his hand from Cotton.

Will looked at the second cage, counting only twelve crew members in total. The Pearl could be crewed by so little, but it would be tough and Will knew Jack didn't like tough. "Where's the rest of the crew?"

Gibbs looked over at Will with an amused smirk. "These cages we’re in weren’t built ‘till after we got here." Drums sounded in the distance, echoing down the cliff to the crew. "The feast is about to begin. Jack’s life Will end when the drums stop." Gibbs muttered distastefully.

"I wish Victoria was here. She would know what to do." Will muttered. "Think like Victoria..." Will continued, trailing off as he looked around. When the idea struck him, he nearly wrote it off until Will realized that it might just work. With an insane smile, Will looked at Gibbs. "Well, we can’t just sit here and wait then, can we?"

Victoria shuddered as she maneuvered through the murky river. The familiar hut that held a strange woman inside came into view within the next few moments. Samantha smiled at the warm light that filtered from it and the little trinkets that decorated it. She pulled the boat to dock at a ladder and tied it off with the little bit of rope Beckett had given her in her supplies.

Tia Dalma sat inside the warm hutt, watching destiny plot it's corse. She heard the ladder rungs creak as Victoria made her way into the house but didn't look up.

"I won' be needin' yer payment. I will help ya, if ya help me." Tia spoke, not once looking at the girl.
"What be it ye need?" Victoria spoke, her Irish accent heavily weighing down her words.

"Travel to Isle De Muerta once more an' bring me back Barbossa." Tia ordered. "When ya find 'im, make 'im drink tis." She added, tossing a small flask of an unknown liquid to Victoria, who snatched it from the air expertly.

"I don't know the bearings." Victoria stated slowly.

"Take te compass. Like Sparraw's it points to what ya want most. I tink ya find tat ya want most to help Witty Jack by findin Barbossa." Tia explained to the girl, tossing a black compass onto the table.

Victoria snatched the compass and made her way out. "When ya get 'ere bring 'im in trough ta back. Ten mert me in ta front room." Tia instructed as Victoria went on her way.

Victoria found that the winds favored her greatly and that the Isle De Muerta was not too far from Tia Dalma at all.

Soon enough, she steered into the fog surrounding the island. She slowly and carefully directed the ship into the main cavren, where Barbossa laid decomposing. She took the flask from her belt and carefully opened the Captains mouth. Dumping the liquid down his throat, she watched in amazement as Jack's bullet fell out of him with a ping and as the life flooded into him. She stared in awe as a dead man sucked in his first breath in a year, his chest gently raising and falling.

"Come one Barbossa, lets get you back." She muttered, carefully lifting Barbossa as she managed to dump him in the dingy without killing the man again.

Will didn't exactly know how he had managed to survice, nor how the crew managed to make it off the island in one piece outside of the six who fell. He quickly learned that sometimes, it is best to not dote on the past and live in the present. And so, Will quickly approached the soaked Captain purposefully. "Jack."

Jack grimaced at the sound of Will's voice. He just narrowly escaped prison and the boy wanted favors. "Ah."

"Elizabeth is in danger." Will informed.

Jack rolled his eyes as he made his way up to the quarterdeck. He was half tempted to ask if she wad ever not indanger but he figured that might be a touchy subject. "Have you considered keeping a more watchful eye on her. Maybe just lock her up somewhere?" He suggested before he noticed a lack of hitting happening. "Where's Samantha? Doesn't she usually deal with this stuff?"

Will barely kept his temper in check as he replied to Jack's statements. "Samantha- or rather Victoria- was taken by Beckett. I don't know where she is. And Elizabeth is locked up in a prison, bound to hang for helping you."

Jack winced. "How do you- nevermind. In relations to Elizabeth there comes a time when one must take responsibility for one’s mistakes." He informed, trying to get out of returning to Port Royal.

The Blacksmith had enough. He was getting no where with Jack by talking so he took his own advice from earlier and snatched up a sword. "I need that compass of yours, Jack. I must trade it for her freedom."

The point of a sword did not look appealing, but Jack was not a stupid person, so he quickly spun it so that he could benefit.

"Mr. Gibbs." Jack addressed the man.
"Captain?" Gibbs asked, his gaze steady on Will as he steered the ship.
"We have a need to travel upriver." Jack informed.
Gibbs winced, his heart beating faster. "By need, do you, mean a trifling need, fleeting, as in, say, a passing fancy?"
Jack shook his head, he needed to live and this was how he would do it. "No, a resolute and unyielding need."

Bitterly, Gibbs adjusted corse, heading for the strangest woman on the planet.

"What we need to do is make sail for Port Royal with all haste." Will demanded, not sure what Jack was doing.

"William, I shall trade you the compass, if you Will help me," he started, pulling out the drawing he aquired in the Turkish Prison earlier that week, "find this."

Will looked incredulously at the drawing in his hand. "You want me to find this." He affirmed, confused how any of this related to Elizabeth.

"No. You want you to find this." Jack slowly started, thinking up a good way to phrase it. "Because the finding of this, finds you incapacitorially finding and/or locating in your discovering the detecting of a way to save your dolly belle ol’ what’s her face. Savvy?"

"This is going to save Elizabeth." Will clarified apprehensively.
"How much do you know about Davy Jones?" Jack worriedly inquired.
Will looked terrified for a moment before he shook his head. "Not much."
"Yeah, it’s going to save Elizabeth."

Later that night Jack looked dpwn at his compass as it spun in a new direction. "Where ye goin lass?" He whispered softly, raking his hands across his face as he tried to figure Victoria out. "And who let your name slip?" He asked worriedly.

On the opposite side of an island, Victoria stopped moving the boat and got settled in for a quick sleep. Before doing so, she flipped open the compass, watching as it landed dead ahead of her. "Where are ya Jack?" She murmured before falling asleep, using Barbossa as a pillow.