Jack of Scurvy Bay

Part 3

Many months passed by and Jack was living his childhood dream with Emma and Dany. They had survived storms, raids, and many more dangers. Having such a small crew seemed to play very well in their favor.

“Where the hell is Plihr?” Emma demanded. She was getting a bit tired of the constant bickering with Jack.

“It's right over there, ya old hag!” Said Jack.

Emma felt compelled to answer, but chose to ignore him this time. Along with Dany, she turned to see that Jack was actually right. The Island of Plihr was a legendary island that was the source of many tales of great pirates.

They reached the harbor with their small boat in no time and made their way into the Tavern. Upon entering, Jack was struck by how the place functioned. It was filled with pirates going back and forth, just as he has envisioned.

“Okay, if you have any damn sense you'll stick close to me.” Said Emma.

The place was just short of magnificent. The entrance was nothing fancy, yet the inside was something else completely. At the middle of the Tavern, there was a giant billboard with notes stuck to it with pins.

“What are those?” Asked Jack.

“Those are jobs that Pirates can do to pick up some extra money.” Dany replied.

“Let's go take one!”

“f**k off the billboard, Jack, we ain't wastin' any time.”

“God damn it, Emma, why did I bring you with us again?” Asked Jack.

Emma quickly grabbed Jack and pulled him towards her. She was angry and was on the verge of punching him when a snatch of conversation made her stop.

“What? Scurvy Bay?” Said a voice coming from across the tavern.

Emma paused and let Jack go. Jack leaned forward, interested in the conversation.

“Yes, they’re the ones sending fleet after fleet.” Said one of the men seated at the table.

“Hah! What bullshit is this? Prepare all our cannons. We are going to turn that pitiful town into rubble.” Said a mean-looking pirate who sat at the head of the table.

Jack couldn't control himself and barged into the conversation.

“Jack! You i***t!” Emma cried as she tried to catch up to him, but she was too late to stop him.

“What did you say about Scurvy Bay?” Asked Jack.

The pirate didn't waste any time and got up from his chair, staring Jack in the face. He stood seven feet, had an eye patch, and his chest was exposed. He only wore a giant black jacket that covered him from the waist down.

“I will raid that town and make it mine. Got a problem with that?” The giant asked.

“Jack . . . please don't get us killed. This man is Musket Walt. The greatest and most powerful pirate who roams the seas.” Emma whispered in Jack's right ear.

A strange feeling struck Jack and he became consumed with the idea of challenging the great pirate, but was only stopped by what appeared to be an earthquake.

The walls and floors trembled. Several people stumbled and fell; the air was rent by a roaring, rumbling sound.

Pirates shouted, thinking that the end of days was upon them, but Emma and Danny knew better.

“Judgment day?” One of the pirates shouted in question.

“It's a commodore of the Authorities. They are attacking Plihr!” Said Emma as she threw a punch at the pirate out of sheer spite.

“Commodore, you say?” Said Walt as he heard Emma.

“How did you know that, sweet pants?” He asked, approaching Emma. He grasped her by the throat and lifted her from the ground.

“Let her go!” Cried Jack as he threw punches left and right without damaging Walt at all; who with one swing of his large hands knocked Jack out cold onto the ground.

“Walt! Let her go, you damn halfwit.” Said Danny as he pointed his gun towards Walt.

Danny heard a lot of clicking noises. He turned around and saw that he was surrounded by Walt's crewmen.

“Walt . . . she knew that because only the Commodore’s cannons could shake the island like this.”

“Oh, that's smart.” Said Walt. He let go of Emma; leaving her on the ground gasping for air.

“I'll tell you what. You get the Commodore to stop attacking and I won't go near Scurvy Bay.” Walt said.

“Walt, don't make such a f*****g promise.” Said one of his crew.

“It's okay. I like sweet pants.” Said Walt as he grinned at Emma.

Walt's crew decided to put their faith in their captain. He'd seen them through more battles than they could count and this wasn't the first time they were up against such a foe.

“Who the hell cares. You can't decide-“

“Shh.” Dany quickly stopped Jack from making a huge mistake. Getting the support from the greatest pirate in the world sure had its perks.

“Sweet pants, we have a deal?” Asked Walt.

Emma looked at Danny and then, nodded.

“Great.” Said Walt as he went on leaving the details of the deal to his second in command, Ruffalo.

“Okay, now where is the rest of your crew?” Asked Ruffalo.

“It's just us three.” Said Jack.

“What? You're kidding, right?”

“We just started,” Jack said hesitantly.

“Oh, Lord.” Ruffalo sighed, “Look, i***t pirates are scattered all across the tavern, so go get some of them to join your crew. We will lend you a bigger ship since I think that yours is a piece of shit.”

“Hey! Don't insult our ship, man.”

“Ship, he says.” Ruffalo mumbled as he followed Walt, “It's probably just a stupid boat.”

“It's a Pirate boat!” Jack shouted at Ruffalo, yet he didn't get much attention.

Jack, Emma, and Danny spent the next thirty minutes trying to recruit as many crewmen as they could. They knew that winning against the Commodore would not be an easy task and they needed all the help they could get. This wasn't just about saving Scurvy Bay; having Walt on their side meant that they would transform into an elite group of pirates. Walt was always known to offer protection for emerging pirates who could prove their worth to him.

Soon the three young pirates had gathered enough crew members to challenge the huge ship. They set off together and Jack was a little afraid, but mostly excited. He hadn't felt this alive in years.

“There it is!” Danny shouted. His young face was both tensed and exhilarated as they stood at the bow of Walt's ship, which was truly magnificent. Walt himself was back at the tavern gathering together the last of the pirates for the final attack—which he said was the most important one of all.

“Fire the cannons!” Emma cried to the rest of the crew who hastened to obey. She looked incredibly fierce and beautiful with her long black hair streaming behind her in the chilly sea breeze.