The Empress of the Seas

When I woke up my head was pounding. I immediately reached for my bracelet only to find it wasn’t there. My eyes snapped open.

I was in a dim, damp cell; the brig; on Corus’s ship.

There were only two torches on either side of the door that was directly in front of my cell. The floor had an inch of water on the ground and the small port hole had so much green scum on it I couldn’t see out of it.

I sat up on the bench I was laying on and looked to my right. There was another cell and in that one was Jack.

My old anger came back and I jumped up, forgetting the pain in my head. I ran it and stuck my arms throw the cell wall and trying to strangle the now pacing Jack. Sadly, I only managed to graze his shoulder and he jumped back.

“What the hell, Emma?” he said then looked at me up and down. I was almost shaking with anger.

“What the hell? I just woke up on my enemy’s ship and all you have to say to me is what the hell?”

“Well it’s not like it’s the first time that’s happened to ye.” He said but there was lightness in his voice and I knew he was talking about when I woke up on his ship.

“As far as I remember ye didn’t put me in the brig.”

“Yes, exactly. I was nice so you should be nice know.”

“Fine,” I said. “I hope they kill you quickly instead of letting you bleed to death.”

“Emma, please.”

“Please what? Forgive ye? For what?” I put my feet on the bottom bars so I was now standing on the cell wall. “For being trapped down here? For losing my bracelet? Or is it for doing this to me a fucking second time!” I was breathing very hard and my hands were sweating from holding onto the bars.

“How many times, Jack?” My voice was softer this time. “How many times are ye going to do this to me?”

“Do what?” He spoke cautiously like he was going to set off a bomb. And that’s exactly what he got.

“This!” I screamed. “Ye getting me so furious that I storm at ye then ye kiss me! And ye know what happens then? I get knocked out and somebody gets killed!” I took short gasps of breath and was just about to continue screaming when a huge wave hit the ship and I fell off the bars, hitting my head on a cage that was hanging from the ceiling. It looked like it had a decaying parrot skeleton in it.

“Emma!” I heard Jack yell and felt arms catch me before I hit the ground. But Jack was in a different cell… wasn’t he?

My eyes fluttered open and saw him standing as close as he could to me- on the other side of the bars. When I looked up I saw the last person I was expecting.

“Grotter?”

He nodded like the gentleman he is and helped me to my feet. “Ms. Read.”

This new, confusing element of the situation was almost too much for my now throbbing head to handle.

“Wh-” I began but instead grabbed my head and started falling backwards. Grotter quickly caught me again and brought me to the bench. When I opened my eyes his arm was around me so I wouldn’t fall over and Jack was gripping the bars, a trace of jealously was on his face.

I took a deep breathe. “What are ye doing here?”

“I offered for you to come with me as a treaty…”

I laughed but then hissed because it hurt my head. “Ye are the stupidest Captain I have ever seen.”

He smiled. “And you are the craziest pirate I have ever seen.”

I smiled too. “So I’ve heard.”

Jack cleared his throat, annoyed about something, but we ignored him.

“So how did you get in here?”

I heard Jack sigh. “Wrong topic, mate.”

I pushed the pain to the back of my thoughts as I stood up. “Why would that be? Because ye did the same thing ye did last time?”

Another wave hit the ship but I caught the bars before I could fall and grabbed Jack’s shirt so he couldn’t move.

“Hoping for different results? News flash, Sparrow, if something doesn’t work the first time, it most likely won’t work if ye try again. And I swear to god if Kyle has one scratch on him-!”

“Don’t worry,” said a cold, cool voice. “Your precious baby isn’t hurt.”

I slowly let go of Jack, who took a step back, but didn’t move. “Who did ye shoot?”

“The boy, but that stupid mutt jumped on him and the bullet missed both of them. We grabbed ye two and I called my men back.”

A wave of relief hit me but I was still pissed. I turned around and could only see the silhouette of the man by the door.

“So Corus, why are we disgusted with your presence today?” I walked towards him.

“Oh, don’t be like that baby…” He said and reached his hand through the bars and tried to touch my cheek. I stepped back and grabbed his arm, bending it backwards.

“Sorry, honey.”

He glared at me and called two of his men to unlock the door and bring me to his cabin.

As they pulled me out, Jack was leaning on the bars. He had such a concerned look on his face.

I spit in his eye.

The two men pushed me into Corus’s cabin. One of them stood by the door as the other one tried my hands to the back of the chair. When he finished I slid down and wrapped my ankles around the chair’s legs.

I randomly picked one of them and stared at him until he looked back.

“What?” he said.

I slowly breathed in. “Nothing, it’s nothing.” I shook my head and looked at the floor.

“Tell me!” he yelled and I looked back up at him.

“Well… it’s just that ye seem to be a strong guy…” he seemed to puff out his chest and I laughed in my head. “And, well, I don’t know I guess I just like strong men…”

They guy smiled and took a step forward but the other guy stopped him.

“What are ye doing? If the Captain found out he’d skin ye alive!”

“The Captain isn’t here right now, is he?” I said and he smiled again and came in front of me, leaning on the arms of the chair. “Hello,” I whispered and he brought a hand up but right before it reached my face I kneed him were it hurts and he fell to the ground. “Don’t touch me,” I spat.

The other guy came after me but just then Corus walked in. “What’s going on here?!” he screamed and they both ran out of the room. “Ye will get lashes later!” he called after them.

As he yelled I took a look around the room. It was an average captains’ quarter with one small difference. There were pictures of a symbol hanging everywhere. The picture of the A Jack had showed me. Behind the desk was huge map with various labeled islands.

“Like it?” Corus said after seeing me look at the map. “It’s the newest one; just swiped it from that Grotter guy in the brig.”

I have to say I did like it. It was way more detailed then the one Jack had. “It’s okay.” I said then looked at him. “So what can I help ye with?”

He turned around and grabbed one of the A’s off the wall. “I need to know if ye have ever seen this before.”

I pretended to study it very hard. I opened my mouth to tell him it kind of looked like a chair or something ridiculous when my eyes drifted back to the map. In the top right corner was a small group of islands. And if you connected these islands they would make the exact shape of the A.

“Oh my god,” I whispered but immediately wished I could take it back.

“What, what is it?!” Corus yelled and I forced my eyes away from the map.

“Nothing, it just reminded me of a monkey…”

He backhanded me, almost making the chair to tip over. I sucked in my breath but took it and tried to breathe evenly. Then he pulled me up and ripped the cloth that held my hands. He took then in one hand and held my face in the other.

“Tell me ye good for nothing whore, or I’ll make sure Sparrow is fed to the sharks.”

I tried to glare at him but couldn’t. I just found it, I found her kingdom. I couldn’t take my mind off it. Oh yeah, and he just threatened Jack’s life, not that that mattered.

“Fine,” he said and I felt spit hit my face before he dropped me, letting me fall to the ground. He turned around to the fireplace behind him and when he turned back to me my eyes widened. “Would ye like to be branded instead?”

Through all my life I managed to remain unbranded. My father always said it was the key to the perfect disguise. Without it, no one could really prove you’re a pirate, just someone that looks like one.

Corus grabbed my right hand and I tried to stay still but I could feel my arms shaking.

“It won’t hurt that much,” he cooed waving the bright ‘P’ in front of me. “It won’t hurt at all if ye just tell me what ye know.”

I concentrated on breathing evenly and refused to look at him.

“I’ll give ye to the count of three.”

The treasure, it was right there the whole time. And we didn’t know because Jack had an old map.

“1…”

Jack. The one who, in my eyes, was the cause of my fathers’ death and the reason I was here now. I hated him so much I could puke.

“2…”

But, then again, I promised.

“3.” He pressed the hot metal into my wrist and I screamed so loud I was sure Jack’s dad could here me back in Port Rockford.

After what felt like forever he took it off and I begged the tears to stay inside my eyes. I could smell my skin burning and it felt ten times worse.

“Ye really are a worthless bitch.” I heard Corus say before he called the two men back to take me to my cell.

They held my arms so hard I was sure it felt like they were doing everything they could not to snap them in half. When they threw me in the cell I fell straight to the ground.

“What happened?” Jack demanded as he clung to the bars.

“Shut the fuck up,” I told him with so much hatred in my voice that he jumped off the bars like they bit him.

Grotter didn’t dare say a word but helped my up and over to the bench. I scarcely remember falling asleep on his shoulder.