Raven

The Black Spot

Jack swirled the calipers on the map, using his left hand, trying to chart their route, and failing like always as the sway of the boat reminded him that he was yet again wishing for rum. He yanked the bottle off the table and upended it in his mouth, but when he tasted nothing he pulled it away, glaring angrily at the bottle as he tossed it to the side. 

"Why is the rum always gone?" he grumbled to himself as he rose, but with his first step he staggered to the side without the assistance of the waves against the ship, and realized the answer to his own question as he struggled to put his hat on. 

"Oh... that's why." He set off in search of more rum, leaving the cozy Captain's Quarters behind as he made his way below desk, tiptoeing through the hammocks of his sleeping men, and down the steps, through the door, into the ship's hold where the supplies were kept. It was admittedly a rather spooky place, but Jack had spent a lot of his time making this same trek from his quarters to the rum, so he wasn't as jumpy as he used to be.

It only took him a few moments to locate the rack holding the rum, but he was disappointed to see only sand left in the bottle as he poured it to the floor. 

"Time's running out Jack." A hoarse voice whispered, and Jack screeched, dropping the bottle to the floor where it broke as he spun around to face whoever had spoke. What he found almost made his heart stop. 

"Bootstrap. Bill Turner." He was a part of the ship's wall, but only for a moment as he emerged into the light like he was made of water, walking through the ship's walls. When he looked up at Jack, he could see the small crabs scuttle across his face as he dripped water onto the deck. 

"Is this a dream?" Jack whispered, reaching out to touch the spectral-like creature, but when Bootstrap's face formed a snarl and batted his hand away, Jack let a care-free grin form on his face. 

"I thought not. If it were, there'd be rum." Without a second of hesitation, Bootstrap pulled a bottle from somewhere, and handed it to Jack, it took him a moment to pry the drink from his hand, a cracking noise joining his success as it sounded like Bootstraps' fingers broke, but he didn't seem to mind as he started to work on popping the cork out.

 "You got the Pearl back I see." Bootstrap finally allowed words to leak from his lips again, taking a glance around at the darkness surrounding them. Jack opened his mouth, gaping like a fish without water for only a moment before he answered. 

"I had some help retrieving the Pearl by the way, your son." Jack said with a malicious grin on his face as he watched Bootstraps' face dissolve into a mixture of horror and confusion. 

"William." Bootstrap breathed, almost like he hadn't said the word in years and didn't quite understand what it meant. Jack took a long swig of the rum as Bootstrap muttered to himself, choosing not to interrupt the moment. 

"He ended up a pirate after all." 

"And to what do I owe the pleasure of your carbuncle?" Jack muttered, finally putting down the drink and getting down to business. 

"He sent me." Bootstrap said strongly, finally resembling the man that Jack used to know, as he took a seat on a barrel nearby, Jack's eyes following him warily. 

"Davy Jones." Bootstrap finished knowingly, watching Jack's face as his confidence melted away, leaving the same scared boy who made the deal in the first place. 

"Ah... so it's you then. He shanghaied you into service, eh?" Jack said as he sat down beside Bootstrap, a wry smile pulling his face up as he tried to hide his displeasure. 

"I chose it. I'm sorry for the part I played in the mutiny you got into Jack. I stood up for you. And for your sister. Everything went wrong after that." Bootstrap said with a far-off gaze as he grabbed the hermit crap that was scuttling across his lap, and brought it up to his mouth, crunching down on it and swallowing it after a few tortuously loud moments of chewing. Jack's face could not contain his disgust as he watched, rolling his tongue around in his mouth as he tried to stop imagining what it would feel like to have that critter in his mouth. 

"They strapped me to a cannon. I ended up on the bottom of the ocean, weight of the water crushing down on me. Unable to move... unable to die Jack. And I thought that even the tiniest hope of escaping this fate, I would take it. I would trade anything for it." Bootstrap finished, reaching over for the bottle that Jack offered as he rose to stand, Bootstrap taking a long swig of the liquid as Jack moved away from him, away from the guilt he felt when he looked at him. 

"It's funny what a man will do to forestall his final judgement." Jack commented, turning back to face Bootstrap where he was sitting some ten feet away, but before he could blink Bootstrap appeared in front of his face, so close that one shift would have had their noses touching, and Jack felt a shiver run down his spine at the look on Bootstrap's face. 

"You made a deal with him too Jack. He raised the Pearl from the depths for you and saved your sister's life. Thirteen years you've been a Captain. Thirteen years she lived that she wouldn't have." 

"Technically-" Jack started, but he was cut off as he scrambled backwards with Bootstrap advancing on him. 

"You won't be able to talk your way out of this. The terms would apply to me apply to you as well on the soul. Bound to crew a hundred years upon his ship." Bootstrap growled, getting closer by the moment as Jack backed away, until his back pressed against the side of the ship, unable to move anywhere else. 

"Yes but the Flying Dutchman already has a Captain so there's really-" Jack tried, but Bootstrap was having none of it. 

"Then it's the Locker for you! Jones' terrible Leviathan will find you, drag the Pearl back to the depths and you along with it." Bootstrap roared, his volume lowering with each word until it was barely a whisper against the wind. 

"Any idea when Jones might release said terrible beastie?" Jack said softly, a grimace on his face that he didn't even bother trying to hide. 

"I already told you Jack..." Bootstrap said, with a pitying stare on his face as he backed away from Jack, reaching towards Jack's hand though he didn't realize it yet. 

"... the time is up..." Jack's hand was incased in his wet, slimy, cold hands, and with a slap against his palm that to Jack sounded like a boom, the spot was wiped onto his hand, and there was no turning back. Bootstrap began walking away, leaving a terrified Jack behind him as he said his last warnings. 

"... he comes now. Drawn with ravenous hunger to the man what bears the Black Spot." And with one last backwards glance at the Pirate Captain who was staring in horror at his palm where the horrendous spot was growing quickly, Bootstrap Bill Turner disappeared into the shadows, leaving Jack Sparrow to his fate.