Pirates of the Caribbean 02 The Siren Song (4 page)

CHAPTER SEVEN

"Do not fear!" Fitzwilliam shouted. He strained against the ropes that kept him tied securely to the mast. "I shall lead you into glory! Fall in behind me, men, for Fitzwilliam P. Dalton the Third and his men will be victorious!""Now who's delusional?" Jack muttered to himself. "'This is not a ship.' 'You are not a captain.'" Jack mimicked Fitzwilliam's taunts. "Well, lad, seems you, no
t me, are the bloody lunatic!"
Jack scanned the ocean, looking for a sign of the mysterious fins he saw dip beneath the waves, or anything else unusual. The misty island was on the horizon again, and the last time it had appeared, the Barnacle was attacked by a sea creature. Jack turned toward Arabella, who was leaning on the railing. This had become something of a habit for her, Jack
noticed. “You
still with us, lass?" Jack asked, noticing the glazed-over expression on her face.Arabella said nothing. She just continued to stare out at the sea.Jack sighed.Tumen stomped his feet as best he could from his position at the post. He was screaming and yelling in his native tongue, but occasionally Jack understood words like "home" and "now."The song was
getting loud again, and as it
wound its way through the boat Jack could almost feel it. As it passed them, Tumen and Jean grew limp, and their bodies seemed to sway to the song."Home," Tumen moaned. "Let me go
home. “Oh
, Constance. We've got to lift your curse," Jean cried. "Tia Dalma . . ."Constance let out a howl, stood up on her two hind legs and, bizarrely, "walked" below to the galley."That again?" Jack asked, puzzled by the cat's behavior. There was something strangely comic about it, but also something deeply disturbing.Thwack! The flying jib at the bow of the ship backwinded. The imbalance of the sails made the boat tip dangerously to starboard. Jack skidded across the deck and caught himself just be
fore he tumbled over the rail.
He gripped the ratlines and straightened up."Oooh, you'd like that, wouldn't you?" he said to the Barnacle, convinced now that the ship itself was out to sabotage his mission. "Well, it will never happen." He grinned while his restrained crew continued to chant, moan, and shout, and Arabella continued to clutch the port rail, her sad eyes never leaving the horizon."It's the sea, doll. Just the sea," Jack said, frustrated by her sudden obsession with the ocean. "Seen one, seen them all. Waves, horizons, open air. Not much else to look at besides that foggy island that might or might not be there depending on when you look, and the occasional odd tail of a sea creature that may or may not be a beastie ready to attack
us. “Jack
took a step toward her, hoping, though he kn
ew it might be in vain, to get
her attention. But the ship was still backwinded, and he slipped backward. "I'll be back in a moment, doll. Must attend to the jib," he said.Keeping a hand on the rail, he hurried to the bow. He ignored the crew, neatly leaping over them. Then he sat astride the bowsprit, muttering to himself while he inched along the pole to release the wayward sail.Salty spray stung his eyes, and he almost slipped twice due to the slickness of the wet bowsprit, but he finally made it back to the deck."Are you going to say anything today, Bell?" Jack asked.
Silence. He
waved his hands frantically in front of her face. "Hello there!" he yelled, exasperated. Gesturing to the subdued crew, he said, "Even if
this lot here does not want to
complete this mission, it's still you and I, lass. You and I who decided to do this. You and I who found the scabbard. You and I who secured the Barnacle and s
et sail and defeated Torrents.
It's you and I who are going to find this blasted sword, and keep it out of the hands of thieves, pirates, and most of all, Davy Jones. And it's you and I who will be free to do whatever we wish with its power!""It doesn't matter . . ." Arabella's voice trailed off. "None of it matters."Before Jack could respond he was distracted by Constance, back on deck from the galley. He shook his head in disbelief."What do you mean, 'none of it matters'?" he asked. "All of it matters. Every last blasted moment of it. We're partners, me and you. You said
so yourself the night we met."
Constance looked over her shoulder at Jack and Arabella and let out a snarky meow. Jack's eyes widened as he watched the cat walk two-legged over to the cup of tea Arabella had left beside the s
tovepipe the day before
everything went crazy on the ship. Constance leaned forward--still balancing on her hind legs--and tried to lift the cup with her paws. Over and over she made the attempt, letting out annoyed mews at her inability to grasp the handle of the cup."Of all the odd things I've seen in my day, this is up there," Jack muttered. He walked over to Constance, who was now trying to steer the ship's wheel. He scooped her up and tied her to the mast as well, right beside Jean. The cat's mewing joined the rest of the crew in forming a painf
ul off-key symphony of groans.
All the while, the melody coming off the sea rose and fell. The rhythm of the song seemed to match the swell of the waves, the pitch of the ship.Jack peered up at the sails, then out to sea. Through the haze of
grey
fog rolling off the island, he again spotted several green fins. As they dropped just below the surface, he gripped his sword, preparing for the worst-- another attack by a vicious beast. But he also thought the fins could just as easily belong to some kind of large fish.The fog began to wrap around the ship, and Jack noticed that they were closer than ever to the dark island that kept appearing. Jack stomped to the helm. Then he whirled to glare at the three boys and the cat tied to the mast. He cocked his head as he watched their antics. Clearly it was the song that had driv
en them mad. But why wasn't he
affected? And why not Arabella? Or was it affecting her?He turned to face the barmaid, who was still staring out to sea. "I don't know what your problem is, Lady Misery," he said, "but at least you're not trying to change the course of the mission.""Jack, I--I want my mother." Jack stared at her, surprised. "The lady speaks!" He furrowed his brow. "But she speaks nonsense.""I do, Jack. I want to be with my mother." Arabella finally pulled her gaze from the sea and faced him, her eyes wild."Your mother, eh?" Jack raised an eyebrow. "Well, best schedule a visit to the graveyard, dear. Everyone in Tortuga knows your mum is dead.""If death is the only way for us to be reunited,
then so be it."
Jack watched, stunned, as Arabella gripped the railing, hoisted herself up, and turned to him. Then, without another word, Ara
bella threw herself overboard.

CHAPTER EIGHT

"Oh, brilliant," Jack cried, as he watched Arabella fall into the sea.He stared down at the water. Arabella disappeared below the surface but then quickly bobbed back up, gasping. Her hair streamed out behind her, and her long skirts floated up around her head. But as the heavy fabric of her dress soaked up the seawater it weighed her down, and she began to sink again.

Only one thing to do, Jack thought, tossing his vest on
to a cleat for safekeeping. He
threw the boat into the wind to stop it, leapt up onto the railing and dove into the churning blue sea.He plunged in with a splash and quickly broke the surface, scanning for Arabella. He shook his head to get the shaggy wet hair out of his eyes and spotted the top of her head just above the water.He swam to her, hoping she wouldn't resist his effort to save her. Coming up behind her, he grabbed her head and tilted it up out of the water so she could breathe. With his other hand he gripped her firmly around her shoulders, positioning her so that she lay nearly on top of him. Then he kicked hard, floating on his back, and pulled her along with him toward the ship. She seemed unconscious, but her eyes were open and blinking. She wasn't actually fighting him, but sh
e was much heavier than he had
expected--it almost felt as if she were being pulled in the opposite direction. Could her dress have snagged on something
underwater? Jack
suddenly screamed out. A sharp stab had made him jerk his hand up and out of the water, releasing Arabella. He treaded water and checked his hand. Blood streamed down into the warm Caribbean Sea. Jack's eyes bulged. Teeth marks. Like human teeth, but much sharper.Arabella was out cold and sinking again. Jack watched hopelessly as her head slipped below the surface.He muttered something, took a deep breath, and plunged down. Once below the waves, he opened his eyes and tried to focus. Underwater, everything was a blur, but he could still see Arabella slowly drifting toward the o
cean floor. He kicked hard and
was quickly by her side. He wrapped one arm around her and used the other to paddle, bringing them back up toward the surface. He had to hurry.Then he realized that something was, in fact, dragging her down.Colorful fish swam in front of him, seaweed smacked him in the face, and his own kicking churned the water--all these things obscured his ability to see what was pulling Arabella deeper and deeper. And he knew he couldn't hold his breath very much longer.He kicked hard, trying to yank Arabella out of the grasp of the unseen obstacle. He wrapped both arms around her to make sure he didn't lose her again. He reached as far as he could to strengthen his grip around her and found himself suddenly staring into a surprising--and surprisingly beautiful face. Long, flow
ing hair the colors of the sea
drifted around the strange girl. Her pearly skin made him think of the inside of an oyster shell, and her eyes glowed like moonlight. She was perhaps the most gorgeous girl Jack had ever seen. And he had seen countless pretty girls in his day.Gorgeous.Until she opened her mouth wide--and released a bubbly
hiss. Jack
reared back in shock, and in this moment of confusion loosened his hold on Arabella. The fish-girl grabbed Arabella's shoulder and tried to yank her out of Jack's arms.Jack didn't need another clue to know that this underwater stranger had bad intentions. Those sharp teeth of hers definitely matched the bite on his hand, and now that he was less startled he noticed that she was in fact a girl, but only from the waist up--she had a shimmering, scaly tail the86rest of the way down her body. A
mermaid! They
had to get out of there--fast! Back up to the surface for air and back to the ship for safety! There were stories about mermaids. Many of these tales told of mermaids that were very sweet and innocent. But there were other tales of sinister mermaids who had aligned themselves with Sirens. Jack quickly deduced that this one was part of the latter
group. Clutching
Arabella tightly to his chest, Jack quickly curled his body into a ball and then sharply flung out his legs, kicking the mermaid square in the chin. She reeled backward, and Jack swam as fast as he could for the surface with Arabella heavy and lifeless in his arms. He glanced down to see if the mermaid was gaining on him, and his heart thudded
hard. The
mer
maid who had attacked Arabella
was there, but she wasn't alone. Scores of other mermaids were gathering below-- and they were all headed straight toward Jack!His lungs were already nearly bursting, but he forced himself to push hard for the surface. He knew he couldn't fight off all those creatures, and he wouldn't be getting any help from Arabella.He swam rapidly, lungs burning, muscles straining, Arabella's weight slowing him down. He fought against his tiring arms and his exhausted legs, determined to get both himself and Arabella out of that water. He burst up into the air, gasping and sputtering. But it wasn't over yet--he still had to make it to the
ship. The
water rippled around him, and he knew it was from the legion of mermaids making their
way toward the surface, their
green fins flapping as they sped up to him. He couldn't slow down now. He kicked and kicked, dragging Arabella along, creating a wake.Finally, he reached the ship, and never softening his grip on Arabella, hoisted himself onto the ladder that hung over the side. Steadying himself, hooking his feet into the rungs, he managed to shift Arabella so she was over one shoulder. He grabbed the rail of the ladder and scurried aboard.Jack heaved himself and Arabella onto the Barnacle. He laid his shipmate down, and then, panting, he collapsed. His chest rose and fell as he regained his breath. As soon as his lungs were full, he knelt beside Arabella, who was pale, bloated, soaking wet, and what concerned Jack most of all--not moving or breathing. He opened her mouth and placed his lips
firmly on hers, exhaling into
her, willing her to breathe, determined to awaken her.After all that, he thought, she can't have drowned. Not after all that!Arabella coughed and sputtered, and Jack yanked her upright, pounding on her back so she'd cough up all the seawater she'd breathed in.The moment she got her bearings, she stood and raced back to the rail."Oh, no, you don't!" Jack shouted, chasing after her. He grabbed her around the waist just as she was about to jump overboard-- again. "I risked my life getting you back onboard. I'm not doing it twice.""I must get to my mother!" Arabella wailed. "Release me at once!""I didn't see your mum down there with the Scaly Tails," Jack said, dragging her over to the mainmast
. "You'd be wasting your time.
And I'd have to get myself all wet again rescuing you." He lashed her to the mast with the others."The reason men made ships," he complained, "was so that they didn't have to get themselves drenched going from place to place." He took the ends of his shirt and wrung the water out of them. He stood in a soggy puddle. "If I've ruined these boots," he warned Arabella, "someone--and I think we both know who I mean--someone is going to make me a new pair."Jack stalked back to the helm, leaving a trail of wet footp
rints and seaweed in his wake.