At dawn the next day, the entire Port Royal reeked of gunpowder.
Though the attackers were only one pirate ship with twenty-odd men, her crew were undead, and they'd seized the advantage of surprise, turning Port Royal upside-down.
Even now Commodore Norrington still hadn't figured out how many pirates had actually attacked.
"Eighty!"
"Rubbish—there were over two hundred pirates last night!"
Listening to his subordinates argue gave Norrington a splitting headache, while Governor Swann's face was etched with anxiety.
"Rest assured, Governor, I will rescue Elizabeth!" Norrington promised when he saw the governor's distress.
"Good." Governor Swann forced a smile. "I believe in your abilities."
But once he turned away, Swann's trembling hands showed he didn't truly believe.
The only thing Port Royal could now confirm was that the attacking vessel was the legendary "Ghost Ship," the Black Pearl.
And that only because the pirates themselves had blurted it out last night.
Beyond that, the Navy knew nothing.
How many pirates, where the bodies had gone, the Black Pearl's heading—everything was a blank.
Without a single clue, even with a weapon like the Dauntless, Norrington had nowhere to start.
"Governor, someone's asking for you."
At that moment Swann's assistant, the portly Lowry, suddenly approached.
Swann looked up to see Fang Yuan's party.
"Very well, show them in." Because yesterday's impression had been favorable, Swann didn't refuse the meeting.
"Handle the city's aftermath for now," Swann instructed Lowry.
Over the years Lowry had become Swann's most capable subordinate.
"No problem, Governor."
Lowry nodded and left, but out of Swann's sight he exchanged secret glances with Fang Yuan and the others.
Swann had no idea that his trusted aide already possessed wealth surpassing his own.
"Governor, I heard about Elizabeth," Fang Yuan said, coming straight to the point.
Swann couldn't help sighing.
"Thank you for your concern, but I'm terribly busy; please forgive me for having no time to chat."
Yet to his surprise Fang Yuan continued, "I can bring Elizabeth back for you."
"What?"
Swann instantly perked up, though suspicion still filled his eyes.
If even the Navy was powerless, how could Fang Yuan have a way?
Fang Yuan drew Swann into a deserted corner and quietly revealed his identity: "Allow me to introduce myself properly—my real name is… Fang Yuan."
"Fang… what?" Governor Swann's eyes bulged in shock. "Fang Yuan? The Black King?"
"You're a pirate!"
Utterly stunned, he staggered backward; only Fang Yuan's quick reflexes kept him from falling.
"I apologize for not telling the truth yesterday, but I trust Governor can understand it was rather inconvenient." Fang Yuan smiled apologetically.
Governor Swann shook his head vigorously, unable to reconcile this polite, handsome, knowledgeable young man with the infamous maritime emperor who plagued the seas.
"Elizabeth knows who I am," Fang Yuan continued, delivering fresh shocks. "She's very interested in pirates and asked me all sorts of questions."
"Impossible!"
Swann reflexively denied it, then immediately recalled his daughter's character.
From a lady's standpoint Elizabeth was decidedly unconventional.
The governor's daughter taking an interest in pirates sounded unbelievable—yet if it were Elizabeth, Swann felt it wasn't impossible.
"As a keepsake last night I gave Elizabeth a Pirate-Gold Necklace, and then she was taken by the Black Pearl," Fang Yuan continued his fabrication, looking grave. "Perhaps the two events are connected."
"If the necklace might be the cause, then I bear responsibility for rescuing her!"
Fang Yuan spoke with righteous conviction, making Swann feel he was listening not to a pirate but to a naval commander.
"I can use the Black Emperor Pirates to hunt the Black Pearl; as pirates we'll be far faster than the Navy," Fang Yuan said, sparking hope in Swann's eyes. But well versed in psychological tug-of-war, Fang Yuan immediately added, "However, I must caution Governor Swann."
"We are pirates. After Elizabeth is saved, Governor, you must be extremely careful not to let news of pirates aiding you leak out," Fang Yuan warned earnestly. "Otherwise it could bring disaster upon you and Elizabeth."
Fang Yuan's words were skillful: he didn't directly demand Swann bind himself in exchange for help, which might have aroused suspicion and led Swann to believe Fang Yuan was in league with the Black Pearl.
By cautioning Swann about the consequences, he showed he wouldn't use the situation to threaten him, allowing Swann to retain yesterday's favorable impression and feel that Fang Yuan was unlike any other pirate.
Sure enough, after hearing Fang Yuan say that, the wary look Governor Swann had given him—because he was a pirate—softened back into friendliness.
Only, Governor Swann still didn't understand Fang Yuan; otherwise he'd have realized that while Fang Yuan had kindly warned him not to expose himself, he'd never promised he wouldn't expose him himself.
Worried sick about his daughter, Governor Swann couldn't afford to overthink it; Fang Yuan's grim reminder hadn't dissuaded him in the least.
As for any pirate gold, Swann didn't care. His only concern was his daughter, so even if the person he had to beg was his sworn enemy, Swann remained resolute.
"Please, you must bring Elizabeth back to me!" Swann said outright.
"Of course!"
Fang Yuan nodded, then, with Jack, White, and the rest, strode down the wharf and boarded The Jackdaw, which had been waiting for them.
"Nice ship."
Jack began sizing her up the moment he stepped aboard.
"Three masts, huh—but still not as fast as the Black Pearl." Naturally his appraisal was biased.
Yet when Jack spotted the forty-eight broadside guns arrayed across her two decks he couldn't help pouting. "Overkill."
The Black Pearl carried only thirty-two, with no Chase Guns at all; speed was her only defense.
"I hear your ship's got magic too?" Jack asked, running a curious hand over a cannon. "Blessed by the sea-god for perfect aim?"
"Hahaha!"
His words set The Jackdaw's crew roaring with laughter; only they knew there was no sorcery—just their god-like Captain and endless practice.
Jack looked around, puzzled. "Did I say something wrong?"
"I did prepare magic for The Jackdaw," Fang Yuan said, clapping his shoulder, "just not for this ship."
"If you want to know the secret behind her deadly gunnery, I can teach you."
Whether you can learn it is another matter.
Jack gave a dry laugh; his little fishing for intel had been spotted. He quickly changed the subject. "So we sail to find Barbossa?"
"Lead the way!"
"Aye-aye, Captain!"
Jack's talent for switching sides was unmatched; now he called Fang Yuan "Captain" with gusto.
A few hours later The Jackdaw dropped anchor off an Unnamed Islet.
"Through that narrow channel lies the Cursed Cave where Barbossa and his men are afflicted," Jack said, pointing.
After last night's Mutiny Jack Sparrow had watched one of his former seamen die six or seven times without staying dead; he knew they were truly cursed.
"Serves them right."
Jack was delighted at the fate of those who'd betrayed him.
"If they hadn't marooned me I'd be cursed too—so in a way I should thank Barbossa," Jack muttered, toying with the single pistol bullet he'd saved for the man.
He glanced back at the small Glass Vial Fang Yuan held, inside which shimmered a few drops of bright-red liquid.
"Young Turner's blood—you foresaw this," Jack murmured, warier of Fang Yuan than ever.
The shrewder Fang Yuan proved, the slimmer Jack's chances of slipping free became.
Yet the stronger Fang Yuan was, the better he could free Jack from Davy Jones—so Jack's feelings were tangled.
Whoooosh—
A gust of Sea-wind snapped Jack back to the moment; he'd take things one step at a time—Barbossa was the one in trouble now.
"I tipped off the Navy; they should be on their way," Fang Yuan said suddenly.
"Huh?" Jack blinked—he hadn't expected the Black Emperor Pirates to stay on the sidelines. "Will they make it in time?"
Elizabeth was still inside; rescuing her was the whole point.
"So we need someone to draw Barbossa's attention," Fang Yuan replied, "to keep him from harming Elizabeth once he realizes she's not the one they need."
"That someone must be familiar—ideally an old acquaintance—so Barbossa will focus on him instead."
Jack had been idly scratching an itch, but his hand slowed as Fang Yuan spoke, then froze entirely.
"I suppose… The Jackdaw has just the man?" he ventured.
Fang Yuan gave a half-smile. "Aren't you standing on The Jackdaw?"
Jack instinctively leaned back. He wanted Barbossa dead, sure—but not single-handedly.
Single-handedly against Barbossa's entire crew, that is.
"Relax—Barbossa won't kill you outright," Fang Yuan assured him with a wave.
In the stories Barbossa had countless chances to finish Jack off yet never did; clearly some strange bond existed between them.
"Worst case, just sneak a coin into your pocket," he suggested.
You will get 90 chapter ahead for this fanfiction.
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