Barbossa sits at what has quickly become his usual spot by the lake, on a large flat rock from which he gets a good view of the Pearl. This time, though, he's busy with something entirely different, as he has occasionally been for the last few days. He holds a small, palm-sized leather-bound book in one hand and seems to be reading backwards through it. His brow is knitted, a worried frown across his face.
There's got to be something. We can't get to the Locker without some kind of supernatural guidance, and I know I heard of something, a long time ago...
His eyes narrow, suddenly, and he tilts his head. The thought is there, fleeting, and any attempt to look directly at it will only scare it away. He has to think carefully around it, build a fence of other thoughts to keep it in.
Singapore. There must be a reason why I thought of Sao Feng first, of all the Pirate Lords. Hell, it's been easy enough to convince the likes of WIll Turner that it's the best option but of course they don't -know- the other Brethren. But why was Sao Feng the first to come to mind? Why haven't I even considered any other alternatives...?
It is a fact that most of the time the mind works without actually telling its owner. Do you know those sudden inspirations that seem to come out of the blue and hit you like a hammer after you've been pondering a problem from a completely different direction for days?
Bullshit. It's all the work of those carefully hidden parts of your mind that toil endlessly like sweatshop workers, without thanks nor ever seeing the light. Feel bad enough already? Good, back to track, then.
The memory sparks up suddenly. He doesn't dare dwell on it, but instead backtracks through the pages of the small book in his hands until he finds it, tucked into a small note on the margin of one of the pages. And he starts to laugh. Laughter that starts as a low sound and a shake of his shoulders and finally erupts in a loud, if brief, outburst.
"Of course! Singapore!"
It's the simple, elegant nature of the double-dealing that pleases him most. No convoluted scheme holds more beauty than a simple, traditional double-cross. And at the same time it holds the solidity of planned courses. Not haphazard improvisation and insane wit, like Jack's endeavours tend to be.His mood has improved much when he again starts to ponder the finer points of the plan.
And now, who? Who do we send in there? Got to be careful there, don't want to send someone exceedingly bright, lest they puzzle out the whole delightful bit of duplicity involved. But it has to be someone who can actually sneak into the temple and get the charts, maybe even possibly fight his way out...
The smile that curls his lips would could wither a whole orchard of apple trees out of sheer wickedness.
"Well, well, well, mr Turner. Seems like we've found you an use at last."
There's got to be something. We can't get to the Locker without some kind of supernatural guidance, and I know I heard of something, a long time ago...
His eyes narrow, suddenly, and he tilts his head. The thought is there, fleeting, and any attempt to look directly at it will only scare it away. He has to think carefully around it, build a fence of other thoughts to keep it in.
Singapore. There must be a reason why I thought of Sao Feng first, of all the Pirate Lords. Hell, it's been easy enough to convince the likes of WIll Turner that it's the best option but of course they don't -know- the other Brethren. But why was Sao Feng the first to come to mind? Why haven't I even considered any other alternatives...?
It is a fact that most of the time the mind works without actually telling its owner. Do you know those sudden inspirations that seem to come out of the blue and hit you like a hammer after you've been pondering a problem from a completely different direction for days?
Bullshit. It's all the work of those carefully hidden parts of your mind that toil endlessly like sweatshop workers, without thanks nor ever seeing the light. Feel bad enough already? Good, back to track, then.
The memory sparks up suddenly. He doesn't dare dwell on it, but instead backtracks through the pages of the small book in his hands until he finds it, tucked into a small note on the margin of one of the pages. And he starts to laugh. Laughter that starts as a low sound and a shake of his shoulders and finally erupts in a loud, if brief, outburst.
"Of course! Singapore!"
It's the simple, elegant nature of the double-dealing that pleases him most. No convoluted scheme holds more beauty than a simple, traditional double-cross. And at the same time it holds the solidity of planned courses. Not haphazard improvisation and insane wit, like Jack's endeavours tend to be.His mood has improved much when he again starts to ponder the finer points of the plan.
And now, who? Who do we send in there? Got to be careful there, don't want to send someone exceedingly bright, lest they puzzle out the whole delightful bit of duplicity involved. But it has to be someone who can actually sneak into the temple and get the charts, maybe even possibly fight his way out...
The smile that curls his lips would could wither a whole orchard of apple trees out of sheer wickedness.
"Well, well, well, mr Turner. Seems like we've found you an use at last."
no subject
Date: 2007-07-03 04:47 pm (UTC)From:no subject
Date: 2007-07-03 04:53 pm (UTC)From:"Good day, mr Gibbs. Glad you came along at just this moment. We are definitely going to Singapore as soon as that blasted door reappears. And your help will come in handy in that trip."
He seems pleased enough. Not even his usual faint amusement at how stupid the world at large is, but really satisfied with how things are.
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Date: 2007-07-03 04:58 pm (UTC)From:no subject
Date: 2007-07-03 05:01 pm (UTC)From:He nods and waves the other pirate over.
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Date: 2007-07-03 05:06 pm (UTC)From:no subject
Date: 2007-07-03 05:12 pm (UTC)From:There's a mild displeasure at that last bit, but he still beckons Gibbs over.
"We both know where we stand, thus flattery is moot between us. If I say something about you, it'll be because I do think so."
He drops the topic of the Pearl and its soul. He can't expect Gibbs to understand, and even less to agree with what he meant.
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Date: 2007-07-03 05:17 pm (UTC)From:"Fair enough. So...Singapore. There must be something important there, right?"
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Date: 2007-07-03 05:24 pm (UTC)From:Slowly, he counts out on his fingers.
"One, a ship. Two, a crew. Three, a way to get us to where we want to go. And four, allies for when we come back. Ehough of a reason?"
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Date: 2007-07-03 05:32 pm (UTC)From:no subject
Date: 2007-07-03 05:42 pm (UTC)From:He regards Gibbs levelly. Their crew, though good -if only, they all survived the Kraken's attack, and that goes to prove a lot- is small. Small, but they've been together for long enough, and through so much that any loss now would be painful like that of an old friend. Wouldn't it? Has he judged Gibbs rightly?
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Date: 2007-07-03 05:49 pm (UTC)From:no subject
Date: 2007-07-03 06:09 pm (UTC)From:What he means by that isn't exactly clear. How much does Gibbs know, after all? Does he know about the Brethren? Does he know Sao Feng is one? Or Jack? Barbossa isn't sure, and would like to know before they start for Singapore.
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Date: 2007-07-03 06:19 pm (UTC)From:no subject
Date: 2007-07-03 06:26 pm (UTC)From:He leans closer to Gibbs, shaking his head.
"Cutler Beckett won't make the mistake of going for him. He's gathering influence. I'd guess he already has that which Weatherby Swann held in London under his thumb, and he won't stop there. I think he might be going after something darker and more powerful."
And Barbossa -does- know about that kind of thing, doesn't he?
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Date: 2007-07-03 06:35 pm (UTC)From:"As for Beckett, he was after Jones and the Dutchman and the Kraken. Not sure what else he could be after."
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Date: 2007-07-03 06:42 pm (UTC)From:He relaxes visibly, this being the piece of the puzzle no one had provided him with. His head lowers as he ponders, then raises slowly, a gleam of determined, almost frightening passion in his eyes.
"And if he has got what he was searching for, then our quest is both more urgent and more desperate than ever, but at the same time, we have more chances of success with Sao Feng."
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Date: 2007-07-03 06:45 pm (UTC)From:"You still aren't being fully clear. Do you have a plan, man?"
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Date: 2007-07-03 06:53 pm (UTC)From:"I do. But I can't exactly tell you the whole extent of it, Gibbs. I need to know just how bad things are before I know how far my plan will take us. If they are really bad -and believe me, I'm quite sure they are- then we should have no problem getting Sao Feng to negotiate with us."
He sighs and leans back slightly. Gibbs might realize this is the first time he sees Barbossa look tired. After all, dead men don't need sleep, but the living do. And come to think of it, has Barbossa slept since he arrived in Millways?
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Date: 2007-07-03 06:58 pm (UTC)From:"Then when we get back, our first stop might have to be Tortuga. If Beckett and his fleet are making trouble, we can easily confirm both the reality of it and the scope in a matter of hours, if not minutes."
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Date: 2007-07-03 07:07 pm (UTC)From:"That ties in with something I wanted to ask from you, mr Gibbs. Tortuga sounds like a very dangerous place for men of our ilk, whether Cutler Beckett has got what he wanted or not. Surely the East India Company won't leave such a pirate haven alone. But in case we can still get there safely... How many men do you think we would need, in excess of those we already have, to comandeer and man a ship able to take us across the Pacific?"
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Date: 2007-07-03 07:15 pm (UTC)From:"It depends on where we find a ship. If we stay in Tortuga, or risk any other port of call in Caribbean, we might need an additional dozen. And some would be cannon fodder.
"But if we make our way across the Ismuth to Panama City, we might be able to get by with a handful of locals, and might even be able to pay them only to help us take the ship, after which they would stay behind.
"Anyway, Panama has the advantage of being much closer to our goal. I think we would both prefer to avoid going around the horn."
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Date: 2007-07-03 07:23 pm (UTC)From:"But we can still get news from Tortuga and the area around Port Royal from Panama? Just to check on how far our enemies feel they can go, how confident they are... Or how devastating."
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Date: 2007-07-03 07:28 pm (UTC)From:no subject
Date: 2007-07-03 07:36 pm (UTC)From:Which sounds so much better than 'I know you aren't going to tell me everything you learn at Tortuga unless I go there and hear it myself'.
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Date: 2007-07-03 07:41 pm (UTC)From:"That said...the only other person I think I could trust to help me and serve as a second set of ears is Marty."
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Date: 2007-07-03 07:49 pm (UTC)From:And of course, what most people would remember about Barbossa would be the hat and the monkey, right? Both highly visible and easily detachable.
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Date: 2007-07-03 07:54 pm (UTC)From:"But yes, you are right. And Tortuga is a place where one can get lost if he truly wishes to."
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Date: 2007-07-03 08:03 pm (UTC)From:He leans back again, regarding Gibbs not with suspicion, but with a keen curiosity.
"Are you ready to leave Jack behind, mister Gibbs? To go and try to save him, of course, but still."
He pointedly made no further mention of his time as captain of the Black Pearl. They need to focus on working together. There'll be time enough to bicker and possibly even attempt on each other's lives later, once things are settles with Cutler BEckett. If they all survive, that is, of which Barbossa has his share of doubts.
no subject
Date: 2007-07-03 08:07 pm (UTC)From:no subject
Date: 2007-07-03 08:14 pm (UTC)From:His displeasure, once more, is plain to see.
no subject
Date: 2007-07-03 08:24 pm (UTC)From:no subject
Date: 2007-07-03 08:33 pm (UTC)From:no subject
Date: 2007-07-03 08:40 pm (UTC)From:"Best we consider bringing along a supply of rum then." And while it's far too true that Gibbs loves his drink, sometimes the drink is the only thing that can dull the anxiety of facing the impossible.
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Date: 2007-07-03 08:44 pm (UTC)From:Barbossa prefers to face the impossible on a high of his own rage and pride. It has worked for him so far.
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Date: 2007-07-03 08:46 pm (UTC)From:"Now, as I think our business for now is done, I should be seein' to my duties."
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Date: 2007-07-03 08:52 pm (UTC)From:"See to them, mr Gibbs. And I won't ask you to give JAck my greetings, but since you seem to think she still has her soul, please give the Pearl my fond regards."
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Date: 2007-07-03 08:56 pm (UTC)From:no subject
Date: 2007-07-03 09:06 pm (UTC)From:Barbossa turns towards the Bar as Gibbs leaves, and ponders. Maybe a celebratory drink would be in order.