Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides

Chapter 12: Stirrings

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Jack and Barbossa crouched on a cliff and looked down at the crumbling remains of a ruin on the island where the Spanish had made camp.

"Jack!" A voice whispered.

Barbossa shushed him as Gibbs crawled up next to Jack.

"Gibbs! (Y/n) and I were just on our way to bail you out of jail." Jack told him.

Gibbs hummed in annoyance, obviously not believing him.

Jack then narrowed his eyes at Gibbs. "You stole my map." He flicked him in the nose.

"We best get started." Barbossa said reminding them why they were there.

He and Gibbs slipped away to get closer to the camp.

Jack stayed a little long and smirked. "Ole."

...

Blackbeard and his crew walked through the jungle of thick trees when they came to the series of pools Jack has told him about.

Blackbeard lowered his torch and shined light on a skeleton that was half above water and half in one of the pools.

"Mermaids." He muttered. "Careful, these pools run deep. If she escapes, all is lost."

Gunner set Syrena down by one of the pools and stuck her legs in it, holding her arms behind her back. The Quartermaster removed the bag from her head, and she hissed at him.

"Look. Look!" Blackbeard ordered.

Gunner grabbed her head and made her look at the other skeletons.

"Staked out to die, to dry in the sun. Only half in the water. Not enough to live, but just enough to make the dying slow. Think on it. Your people, murdered, harvested for their tears. Syrena, won't you cry?"

Syrena glared at him. "All die. Even you. Soon, I hear." She spat.

Blackbeard's gaze hardened. "Listen..." he grabbed her hair and she hissed at him. "Listen. Can you not hear your sisters scream? Do you not hear them? We need but one tear."

Syrena still didn't give in, and Blackbeard slapped her across the face. "Vile creature!"

Both Philip and (Y/n) rushed to help her, but we're held back by zombified crewmen, as the rest of the crew started shouting ways to torture her.

"Chop off her fingers, one by one!"

"Choke her!"

"Cut out the tears from behind the eyes!"

"No!" (Y/n) protested.

Philip pulled himself free of the crewman's grasp and looked to Angelica. "Where's your voice in this?"

"Maybe she'll have a change of heart when the sun rises." Angelica suggested.

"Oh, aye, she will burn but I cannot wait for the sun. Perhaps we should build a fire." Blackbeard said.