The Siren Song
The Siren Song (Pirates of the Caribbean: Jack Sparrow #2)
Rob Kidd
Captain's Log: Our proud ship Barnacle set sail from Tortuga a few weeks ago. I must admit Arabella and Fitzwilliam are quite the landlubbers, but things are improving. We took on two crewmembers, a Creole chap called Jean and a Mayan named Tumen, when we washed up on what we thought was a deserted island, after a vicious storm--a raging beast of one--started by the dreaded Captain Torrents, incidentally. Alas, we also picked up Jean's raging beast of a cat, a creature he claims is actually his sister under a mystic's curse. I fought off and, of course, soon defeated the rampaging Captain Torrents practically single-handedly, and found a whole lot of treasure. I cleverly deduced that the magnificent sword is now in the hands of a fearsome pirate Left-Foot Lewis, and we are making fair speed after him.
CHAPTER ONE
"As we all know," Jack Sparrow began, facing his crew, who stood before him on the deck of the Barnacle, "the diabolical pirate captain we are following lost his right foot in battle."Jack tossed a perfectly polished onyx stone around in his hands. It was the stone used as a glass eye by the legendary pirate, Stone-Eyed Sam, and Jack had retrieved it from the lair in Sam's ruined pirate kingdom. Jack kep t it with him at all times as a memento of his most recent adventure. He thought it might make a nice piece of jewelry: maybe a necklace or something. He stuck the stone in his pocket as a swelling wave heeled the deck. Jack grabbed a line for balance, ducked as the mainsail jerked toward him, then continued his story, hardly missing a beat."The captain, the notorious Left-Foot Louis, swiftly slew his fearsome boatswain, quickly lopped off his foot, and had it expertly reapplied to his own leg by the ship's cook, the equally notorious pirate Silver, who, having recently sailed the high seas with a certain doctor, had henceforth become skilled in the art of limb-replacement surgery. Only after said surgery was it evident that Louis, in his panic to get his appendage back, severed the wrong foot."Fitzwilli am P. Dalton the third, Jack's aristocratic crewmate, laughed obnoxiously."Oh, rubbish." Arabella, the crew's first mate and a former barmaid on Tortuga, laughed.Another wave rocked the boat. Arabella clung to the railing to maintain her balance. Fitzwilliam landed on his rump, while Tumen and Jean, the young sailors Jack had met on Captain Stone-Eyed Sam's island, scurried to steady the ship. Jack, the only crew member who had somehow remained steady despite the swaying of the boat, scowled."Your attention!" he barked. "Your captain is speaking.""Jack, my friend," Fitzwilliam said, picking himself up off the floor, "you may think you are a captain, but look closely around you. This is surely not a ship, and we are hardly a crew."Jack stepped up to Fitzwilli am. He was a whole head shorter than the aristocrat, but commanded as much, if not more, respect."Question my authority again, mate, and you'll be having this discussion with Davy Jones," Jack said. "On this ship, you call me Captain Jack Sparrow.""Fine . . . Jack," Fitzwilliam said with an uncharacteristic smirk. Jack huffed and moved toward the bow where Arabella stood staring out over the bowsprit. Despite her tousled hair and bedraggled clothing, Arabella looked very much like the lady she was. She had a delicate face toughened by all the things she'd seen and done."Missing Tortuga much, Bell?" Jack said sarcastically."Yeah, sure," she responded with equal sarcasm. "I miss me dad terribly." She ran her hand along the boat's railing and stared dreamily out to sea.Jack hoisted himself up onto the bow and swung his legs around so that they dangled on either side of the bowsprit--the long pole that extended out over the water. It was a glorious day at sea. The warm sun shone brightly, making the crystal clear water sparkle. Jack took in
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