The Locker


Reina climbed below that night, and found a good space to hang up her hammock. She lay upon it, fully clothed, and just relaxed for what felt like the first time in weeks. Closing her eyes was soothing, and as her hammock swayed with the movements of the ship it lulled her into a state of half-sleep, until she was jerked awake by a loud slap of leather boots against wood.

She looked up and saw Mr Gibbs was just finding a place to sleep, and she sighed, and settled back down. She still had a couple of hours until she had said to Barbossa that she would take over, so she relaxed again, and shut her eyes.

When she did succumb to sleep, she saw herself running through a strange land of pure white. She looked down at her body, and stopped running. She was wearing a pure white wedding dress. Confused, she looked around her, and called out, but there was no reply.

Gradually the white light faded, and she became aware that the nothingness below her feet was actually soft, and grainy, and, looking down at her bare feet, she saw smooth yellow sand. Her hair was rippling around her face and she looked up as the blue sky became visible, and slowly so did the sights of Tortuga. She smiled, and ran up the beach to the town, eager to see her sister.

As she ran up the cobbled main street, she became aware of the eerie silence that surrounded her. Looking up and down the street, she could see no one, hear nothing, it was completely silent, completely empty. She ducked inside one of the taverns and there was no one there. Frowning, she left, and hurried down to the docks.

There was the Black Pearl on the horizon, and she smiled to see it. But as she ran down the docks to find a dingy for her to row out to the Pearl, she saw huge tentacles rising out of the sea and dragging the Pearl down beneath the waves. She skidded to a halt and suddenly saw the sea was stained red with blood, and the bodies of countless pirates floated on the surface.

She screamed, but no sound came out. Panicking, she turned and ran back up to the main street, but the path was littered with bodies. She leapt over them and hurried back to the Drunken Sailor inn, where here too corpses were strewn around the place. Behind the counter was Elias, his throat cut, eyes wide and staring. Close to him was Theo, sword sticking in his chest. Beside them were Keziah and Maisha, strung up from the ceiling by their necks. Reina screamed, and ran to her sister’s body and cut it down. Holding her sister’s lifeless corpse in her arms, the blood from her wounds staining the pure white dress Reina was wearing, she cried for help, for safety, but instead felt arms behind her, pulling her.

She turned around, trying to draw her sword, but it wasn’t there. Instead she saw Captain Aspen, holding out his hand to her, gently pulling her towards him. Her body limp, she could not push away from him, and found him kissing her. Over his shoulder she saw Raul, captured, trying to reach her, to save her, but one of his captors drew their sword and slit his throat, his blood spurting out and covering the floor between them. Once more she screamed.

A sudden pain woke Reina up, and she saw that she had been thrashing around in her sleep so much that she had fallen out of her hammock. Breathing hard, she tried to forget what she had seen, but the images of the bodies, the bloodstained wedding dress, Raul’s murder filled her mind. Reina staggered to her feet and ran onto the deck of the ship Sao Feng had provided them. She breathed deep, grateful gulps of air, feeling the night wind cool her, calm her. A sailor lay in a drunken sleep beside the fish crates, a half-full bottle of rum in his unconscious hand. Reaching down, Reina picked it up, uncorked it and took a deep swig. The drink cleansed her mind, and she shook her head, pushing the dream to the back of her mind.

‘After all,’ she muttered to herself. ‘It was only a dream.’

‘Reina!’ someone shouted her name, and she looked around and saw Barbossa standing at the wheel. Telling herself to get a grip, she hurried over to him.

‘Where are we headed?’ she asked.

‘Ah, that I can’t tell ye,’ he said mysteriously.

‘Okay then, don’t,’ she shrugged, and walked away. ‘Just take us in the right direction.’

She slumped into a chair and waited, watching their surroundings change. The mangroves they had sailed through last night had turned into open sea, and as they sailed, the air started to get colder. People began climbing up onto the main deck, pulling blankets around their shoulders. Elizabeth sat beside Reina, blowing hot air onto her hands to warm them. Will came over to them holding two bundles, and handed one to each of them. Each gratefully pulled the blankets around their shoulders, Reina smiling at Will in appreciation, Elizabeth merely nodding, and looking away.

Tia Dalma was standing by alone by the mast, her arms wrapped around her to keep in her body’s warmth. With her dream in mind, Reina stood up and approached her.

‘What do ye need, child?’ she asked as Reina drew closer.

‘Do you know if people have past on?’ Reina asked, her uncertainty showing in her voice.

Tia Dalma looked sidewise at her. ‘Why do you asked?’

Reina down on a barrel of rum beside her, and phrased her answer in her mind. ‘Last night I had a dream,’ she said, slowly. ‘I dreamt that everyone back home, back on Tortuga, they’d all been killed.’

‘Everyone?’ Tia Dalma raised one eyebrow.

‘Almost,’ Reina corrected herself. ‘Everyone except Raul, my - er, my friend.’

Tia Dalma gave her a quizzical look. ‘What was happening to ‘im?’

‘He was being captured,’ said Reina. ‘He was trying to get to me, but he was being restrained.’

Tia Dalma paused, then said, ‘Tell me everything you remember.’

So Reina recalled the whole thing to her, and when she had finished, she asked, ‘What does it mean? Does it mean that they’re dead?’

‘No child,’ said Tia Dalma. ‘Death represents change. It means that ye have to move on. Your friend being unable to reach you means that you have gone too far for ‘im to follow. The wedding dress you’re wearing means a new start, a new love perhaps. That man, Aspen, holds the key to this new love.’

Reina bit her lip and looked down at her hands, clasped on her lap. ‘Is that going to happen then? Are you sure?’

Tia Dalma nodded. ‘I’ve never been wrong.’

‘So they’re not dead?’

‘I will make sure for ye,’ she said, inclining her head. Reina thanked her and turned, heading towards the door to the cabin. As she reached it, it opened and Aspen half climbed out. Seeing a pair of boots in front of him, he looked up, his eyes slowly moving up her body to her face. He stared at her hesitantly, and then recognition flashed in his eyes, and his face split into a smile.

‘Well, well, small world,’ he said in a disgusting smug voice.

Reina remembered her dream, and felt ill at the thought of this man’s hands on her again, and didn’t say anything, but turned away.

‘I see you’ve changed out of that delightful little dress,’ said Aspen, and Reina shuddered. ‘Such a shame, last night I wouldn’t have said no, but now I think I’ll pass.’

‘One more word out of you, sonny,’ said Pintel, pulling out his pistol and pointing it at Aspen’s head. ‘And you’ll be vomiting lead over deck.’

Aspen laughed, and his hand went to his belt, but there was nothing there.

‘Missing something?’ said Reina, pulling out a pistol from her belt, and holding it up in the air for him to see.

Anger flashed across his face and his smile turned to a scowl.  ‘Give that back to me now and I might just spare your life.’

‘Ha,’ Reina laughed. ‘Will you now? You’re all talk, Aspen! You’d better start treating your superiors with some respect, or we’ll send you to a place you’ll never be able to be brought back from.’

Reina saw hatred in his eyes, and smiled, tucking his pistol back into her belt with her own. ‘Now go swab the decks, they’re filthy.’

She stalked past him to the bow of the ship and looked ahead. Great lumps of ice stuck out from the sea in jagged formations in front of them, creating an enormous maze. Reina’s mouth dropped, and as they passed the first one, she followed its path to the back of the boat, and stared after it.

‘Like em, missy?’ said Barbossa from the wheel.

‘What are they?’ she barely breathed.

‘They be icebergs,’ he said. ‘Colossal mountains of ice that stretch for miles below the waves. Hit one of them, and we’ll be as good as Jack.’

They past through these giants and through an ice cave, where the darkness swallowed them whole. Reina’s eyes widened in amazement as they emerged into an alien world, where the sea was solid and they followed a path cut through the ice. She and Will climbed down with some others to hack away at the ice that blocked their path, and laughed as she walked on water. Using pick-axes they cut it steadily, enabling the ship to move further towards their goal.

Aspen was one of the others helping to break the ice, and every time they passed within each other he was throw her a filthy look, and she’d return it. If she fell in beside him she would refuse to look at him, not wanting further argument.

Days passed in the ice, and after a week they saw clear water again. They left the ice far behind them, now moving freely again, and the sea became unbroken by ice or anything else, save their small ship. As night caught up with them that day, the cold ceased and it began to feel quite warm again, and the whole crew felt glad to be rid of the ice.

After dinner that night, Reina sought solace away from the others, and stood at the bow of the ship, looking out ahead. So still was the sea in front of them that it seemed impossible to distinguish the night sky with the sea, and as the stars appeared, they seemed to be floating in a diamond filled world.

She heard a creak behind her and turned to see Aspen leading against the mast, watching her. The past few days they had said very little to each other, as Reina couldn’t trust herself to stay calm, the cold shortening her temper. Now that the cold had lifted slightly, so had her spirits and she found herself almost glad for company, even his.

‘I’m sorry,’ he said, seeing that he had disturbed her. ‘I’ll go.’

‘You don’t have to,’ she said, looking ahead again. ‘I don’t mind.’

He stayed, and she felt his eyes on her. She suddenly felt very self conscious. When the warmth returned she had changed into dress with no straps, and her hair was being blown by the wind so that it would not cover her back, so her shoulders were exposed. A shiver ran up her spine as though he had touched her.

‘What’s the matter?’ he asked, noticing her shaking.

‘Nothing,’ she said quickly, turning to face him again. I’m fine.’

He stood up properly and walked towards her, and she turned away from him again, looking out ahead, aware that he was now stood just behind her.

‘I’m afraid we got off to a bad start,’ he said slowly, his breath tickling her bare neck and shoulders. ‘And for that I apologise.’

‘Me too,’ she said, and reached for her belt, and pulled out his gun. ‘Here.’

He smiled as she gave it back to him. ‘So you trust me now?’

‘Why, shouldn’t I?’ she asked, smiling. ‘You wouldn’t get away with killing me even if you wanted to.’

‘I guess not,’ he shrugged, tucking his pistol away in his belt. ‘So, why are you on this voyage?’

She turned to look at him. ‘What?’

‘Why are you going to rescue Jack Sparrow?’ he asked.

‘Because,’ she said, looking away, ‘there’s something I never told him.’

‘Mind me asking what?’

‘Yes,’ she said, turning to look at him. ‘That’s for him, and only him.’

‘Why, he is your lover or something?’ he said, with a slight sneer.

‘No,’ she said, looking disgusted. ‘He’s my father.’

Aspen looked taken aback. ‘I’m sorry,’ he said, and Reina could have sworn that his face flushed red, although she couldn’t quite see in the dark. ‘I didn’t mean... I apologise.’

‘It doesn’t matter, you didn’t know,’ she said, smiling. She looked around. It was very quiet. Everyone had either gone back down to the galley or they were sleeping at the table. ‘Well, goodnight, um,’ she suddenly realised she didn’t know his first name, and looked up at him apologetically.

‘Francis,’ he said. ‘My name is Francis.’

‘Good night, then, Francis’ she said and turned away from him.

She went back to the front of the boat and saw Barbossa at the wheel still, staring ahead with an excited expression.

‘Well, what’s next?’ she asked, and he smiled.

‘Barbossa!’ shouted Will, running up to where Barbossa and Reina stood. ‘Ahead!’

Reina turned and looked ahead, and saw that the horizon was a lot closer than before. Her eyes widened in fear; they were going to go over the edge of the world.

‘Aye, we’re getting good and lost now!’

‘Lost?’ asked Elizabeth, running up to them.

‘Be sure, you have to be lost to find a place that can’t be found, else everyone would know where it was.’

‘We’re gaining speed!’ said Mr Gibbs.

Reina stared at Barbossa, and Will turned and shouted, ‘To stations! Everyone!’

Reina hurried to drop the anchor, to stop them going over the edge. Barbossa shouted, ‘No, let her run straight and true!’

‘God,’ gasped Reina, now back at the front of the ship and staring ahead. It was like a huge waterfall, and they were going straight towards it.

‘You’ve doomed us all!’ Elizabeth said angrily to Barbossa.

‘Don’t be so unkind. We may not survive to pass this way again, and these’ll be the last friendly words you’ll here!’

Reina looked back at Barbossa, and nodded, as everyone clambered to turn the ship and alter it’s could, she grabbed hold of the mast rigging, winding it around her arm.

‘Grab onto something!’ she shouted to everyone, as they neared the edge. The boat was caught in the current, there was nothing they could do, and Barbossa was still at the wheel, laughing manically. Barrels and cannons started to roll towards the bow, and she felt the strain on her arm as the centre of gravity changed. They were so far gone, her legs lifted off the deck, and the rope she’d wound around her wrist snapped. Screaming, she fell freely towards the abyss, but someone grabbed her arm and pulled her up. She wrapped her arms around that person, and looked up to see it was Captain Aspen. If she hadn’t been so terrified, she would have flushed red.

The boat finally tipped off the side, they were falling towards a black abyss, and Reina closed her eyes, waiting for nothingness.

She felt herself thrown into water, and opened her eyes to see she was submerged, and the boat going down. She swam upwards, and her head broke the surface into sunshine. She looked around and saw the whole crew bobbing about, and spun around, searching for land.

‘Over there!’ she shouted, pointing to a strip of land. They started swimming, and she pushed herself to go faster, to get there quicker. It seemed to far away, yet soon she found herself crawling up the wet sand and collapsing on the beach.

‘This truly is a godforsaken place,’ said Mr Gibbs when he could speak after the swim.

Reina pulled herself up and looked around. The beach they were on was deserted, as were the sand dunes in the distance, and the only things breaking the never ending sea of sand were the barrels from their ship which had floated ashore with the tide.

‘I don’t see Jack,’ said Elizabeth, looking around. ‘I don’t see anyone.’

‘He’s here,’ said Barbossa, striding up the beach without a care in the world. ‘Davy Jones never once gave up that what he took.’

‘And does it matter?’ asked Will, angrily. ‘We’re trapped here by your doing, no different than Jack.’

‘Witty Jack is closer than you think,’ said Tia Dalma, stroking a small, stone coloured crab. Reina followed her gaze and rising over the sand dunes was a mast, with black sails. Her face split into a broad grin, as she watched the Black Pearl sail into sight over the sand, with Jack standing astride the mast. The ship sailed down a dune, and into the sea, one what looked like a hundred of thousands of little crabs.

‘Slap me thrice and hand me to me mama, it’s Jack!’ said Mr Gibbs, as Jack rowed across from the Pearl in a dingy, and stepped ashore.

‘It’s the Captain!’ all of Jack’s old crew ran towards him, Reina walking behind. Seeing Jack again was surreal. She’d been told he was dead, she’d come to think of him as dead, and there he was, seemingly alive, and right in front of her eyes.

‘Mr Gibbs!’ he called, walking towards his crew.

‘Aye Captain,’ said Mr Gibbs.

‘I thought so,’ said Jack, closing the distance between them. ‘I suppose you’re able to account for your actions, then.’

‘Sorry?’ asked Mr Gibbs, bewildered.

‘There’s been a perpetuate and virile lack of discipline upon my vessel. Why? Why is that Sir?’ asked Jack.

‘Sir, you’re in – you’re in Davy Jones’ Locker, Captain,’ said Mr Gibbs, reminding Jack of the obvious.

‘I know that!’ said Jack, after a pause. ‘I know where I am. And don’t think that I don’t.’

‘Jack Sparrow!’ said Barbossa, striding forwards.

‘Ah, Hector, it’s been too long,’ said Jack, waltzing over happily.

‘Aye, Isla de Muerta, remember. You shot me,’ said Barbossa ominously.

‘No I didn’t. Tia Dalma!’ said Jack, walking past. Reina watched him, confused. What was he doing? Was he actually insane? He actions suggested he was.

‘He thinks we’re a hallucination,’ said Will.

‘William, tell me something. Have you come because you need my help to save a certain distressing damsel? Or rather damsel in distress. Either one.’

‘No,’ said Will firmly.

‘Well then you wouldn’t be here would you,’ said Jack, as though this made sense. ‘So you can’t be here. Q.E.D, you’re not really here,’ he ended with a flourish.

‘Jack,’ said Elizabeth, walking forwards. ‘This is real, we’re here.’

Jack looked at Elizabeth, weighing up everything in his mind, and then ran back to Mr Gibbs and whispered, ‘The Locker, you say?’

‘Aye,’ he whispered back.

‘We’ve come to rescue you,’ said Elizabeth, walking after him.

‘Have you now,’ he said, turning back to her. ‘That’s very kind of you. But it seems that as I possess a ship and you don’t, you’re the ones in need of rescuing, and I’m not sure as I’m in the mood.’

‘I see my ship,’ said Barbossa, and pointed at the Pearl. ‘Right there.’

Jack stared, trying to see. ‘Can’t spot it, must be a tiny little thing hiding somewhere behind the Pearl.’

‘Jack,’ said Will. ‘Cutler Beckett has the heart of Davy Jones, he controls the Flying Dutchman.’

‘He’s taking over the seas,’ Elizabeth added.

‘The song has already been sung,’ said Tia Dalma. ‘The Brethren Court is called.’

‘Leave you people alone for just a minute, look what happens, everything’s falling apart,’ said Jack, walking away from them.

‘Aye Jack, the world needs you back something fierce,’ said Mr Gibbs.

‘And you need a crew,’ said Will, attempting to negotiate.

Jack turned around, annoyed. ‘Why should I sail with any of your. Four of you have tried to kill me in the past, one of you succeeded.’

Everyone turned to look at Elizabeth, and Reina stared at her. She killed Jack?

‘Oh, she’s not told you,’ he said, walking towards them again. ‘You’ll have loads to talk about while you’re here. As for you,’ he said, walking towards Tia Dalma.

‘Oh, don’t tell me you didn’t enjoy it, at the time,’ she crooned, and Reina felt slightly sick.

‘Fair enough, alright, you’re in,’ he said, moving on to Ragetti, ‘don’t need you, you scare me, Gibbs you can come, Marty, hmm,’ he said seeing Pintel, ‘Cotton, Cotton’s parrot, a little iffy, at least I’ll have someone to talk to, he said, moving on to the Malaysian sailors. ‘Who are you?’

‘Tai Hung,’ said their leader, who gestured behind him to the others, where Reina saw Captain Aspen standing among them. ‘These are my men.’

‘Where do your allegiances lie?’ asked Jack.

‘With the highest bidder,’ said Tai Hung.

‘I have a ship?’ Jack said happily.

‘That makes you think highest bidder,’ Tai Hung answered

‘Good man,’ said Jack, the deal struck, and turned away. ‘Way anchor, all hands, prepare to make sail,’ he called, opening his compass, which he closed irritatingly.

‘Jack,’ Barbossa crooned, holding Sao Feng’s map. ‘Which way’re you going, Jack?’

Jack sniffed, and allowed them to come aboard. He started walking away and Reina, who had been standing back, ran up to him.

‘Jack,’ she said, grabbing his arm.

‘What?’ he said, shocked, and turned around and looked at her. ‘Ah, what are you doing here?’

‘They needed a ship, so we took mine until it was blown up by Beckett’s men,’ said Reina. ‘And then I tagged along, hand nothing better to you, you know?’

‘So you didn’t want to save me?’

Reina hesitated, but then smiled. ‘Of course I did.’

He looked afraid. ‘Now I really am hallucinating,’ he said, walking away.

‘Jack,’ she said, catching up with him. ‘I did really want you back. When I found out you were gone… I don’t know… it wasn’t right.’

He stopped, and looked at her. ‘So you’re really here?’

She nodded, and he hesitated. ‘You aren’t going to hit me over the head with a frying pan, no abusing words, you’re not going to threaten to kill me?’

‘Wet powder,’ she said, pulling her pistol from her belt, and tipped it so the water drained out.

He grinned and they walked towards the sea.

Once on board it was chaos, Barbossa striding around shouting orders, and Jack echoing them. Ebony tried to follow them, but eventually just went and stood by the wheel, waiting for one of them to give her a direct order as they fought it out, each claiming captaincy of the ship.

She shook her head. There were more than enough people around, she went down to the hold and collapsed against a barrel. She looked around and saw a bottle of rum, and pulled out the cork, taking a deep swig, and sighed.

‘Didn’t tell him yet?’ she heard someone ask, and looked up to see Aspen standing at the stairs, watching her.

‘No,’ she said, shaking her head. ‘He was confused enough that I actually came, I think telling him would have tipped him over the edge.’

‘Were you not close before?’ he asked, coming over and sitting beside her.

She shook her head. ‘I only met him a year ago. He was around a bit for my older sister before I was born, but I’d never met him before. I hated him and let him know it.’

‘And now you want to tell him you’re sorry and that you do actually love him?’ he asked, reading her mind.

She turned to look at him, and nudged him with her elbow. ‘That’s not it at all,’ she said, smiling slightly. ‘Don’t assume you know me just because I bared my soul to you once.’

‘Wouldn’t dream of doing that,’ he said, grinning.

He left, and Reina fell asleep, only waking hours later when she heard something heavy being dropped overhead. Groggily, she got up, and stumbled up onto the deck. Tia Dalma, Mr Gibbs, Ragetti and Pintel, Will and Barbossa were looking over into the water. She hurried to the side to join them and saw phantom like figures floating in the water, and a little way off dinghies with a single light carrying a single passenger inside, floating past the ship as though rowed by an invisible pair of oars.

‘They’re not a threat to us, am I right?’ asked Will, stopping Mr Gibbs from firing at them.

‘We’re nothing but ghosts to them,’ said Tia Dalma, gazing down at them.

‘Its best just let them be,’ said Barbossa.

Reina stared at them all, and her heart was filled with sadness. She saw so many people, including two young identical girls sitting together. These were the people who’d been lost at sea.

Elizabeth come over to them and said excitedly, ‘It’s my father, we’ve made it back. Father, father, over here!’

‘Elizabeth, we’re not back yet,’ said Jack.

Reina walked away, filled with heartache for Elizabeth, and she hurried to the other side as Elizabeth’s cries for her father to come aboard echoed in the emptiness. Her father floated past them, and Reina watch the boats, when suddenly she saw a young man on his own.

‘Raul,’ she whispered, and Jack hurried to her. ‘Raul!’ she shouted, and he looked up.

‘Reina,’ he smiled, seeing her. ‘I found you. I knew I would eventually find you.’

‘What?’ she asked, walking closer to the edge.

‘You left, and Maisha was so upset. She told me to go after you, and I got on board the first ship I could find. But then they found me, and I ended up here, but I found you now,’ he said, happily.

‘No,’ Reina whispered, shaking her head. ‘No, please Raul, you didn’t.’

‘Are you dead?’ he asked, looking around. ‘I think I am. I think they killed me.’

‘Oh god!’ she said, covering her eyes with her hands. ‘Why did you come after me?’

‘I love you Reina. I had to find you, to tell you that,’ he said sadly. ‘Your sister and mother are waiting for you, they told me to say that.’

She felt hands on her shoulder and turned to see Jack standing behind her. Raul sailed past, and called, ‘I love you Reina. I know I’ll see you again, some day.’

Tears overwhelmed her and she turned and buried her face in Jack’s chest. He hesitated, but put his arms around her, and patted her back awkwardly. Reina choked, her lungs empty, pain ripping through her chest like a red hot poker. Raul had died because of her, she would never forgive herself for that.

She looked past Jack and saw Aspen watching her. She didn’t know how long he’d been there, what he’d seen, she didn’t care. She pushed Jack away and ran into the Captain’s quarters, and collapsed by the window looking out behind the ship. She saw the little boats sailing past, and hugged her knees to her chest, and buried her head as she sobbed uncontrollably for her lost love.

The sun streamed in through the windows the next day and Reina raised her head, her throat so dry, having spent cried to herself all night and fallen asleep at sunrise. She got up and walked out to the deck, where everyone was lounging, unable to move much. She picked up a bottle that she knew had contained water, and it was bone dry, without even a couple of drops at the bottom.

‘If we cannot escape these dull drums before night,’ said Tia Dalma, watching the setting sun, ‘I fear we will sail on trackless seas, doomed to roam the reach between worlds, forever.’

‘With no water forever looks to be arriving a might too soon,’ said Mr Gibbs. Reina winced, and looked out over the seas, wondering how they could escape this world, and return again to theirs.

She heard footsteps behind her and saw Aspen watching her. She turned away, leaning against the side, looking down at the water, wondering if soon she would join Raul among the dead.

‘Hey,’ she felt Aspen join her, leaning over the edge right next to her. ‘Are you ok?’

She shook her head, and continued to gaze down at the waves. They didn’t seem too bad, almost inviting. Death wouldn’t be so terrible.

‘I understand how you feel,’ he said.

‘How could you possibly understand how I feel,’ she whispered, shivering despite the intense heat. ‘The man I loved died trying to find me, because I left him to go on a journey, and I haven’t been of any use. They needed my ship, and then it was destroyed, and I did nothing in helping to convince Jack to come back. He died for nothing.’

‘I lost someone I loved once too,’ he said, staring at the setting sun. ‘I was even responsible for her death. But you need to move on. They’re at peace now.’

Reina pushed away from the side and started to walk away, but she heard Jack shout, ‘What’s that?’ and run to the side of the boat. She followed him and looked over the side, but there was nothing there.

‘What is that?’ he said, and then answered himself. ‘I don’t know, what do you think?’

‘Where?’ asked Mr Gibbs.

‘There, look,’ said Jack, and ran to the other side of the ship, muttered, and ran back. Reina followed him, and each time looked, not seeing anything, but then she understood. The boat was swaying increasingly as more and more people joined Jack.

‘He’s rocking the ship,’ said Pintel, catching on.

‘We’re rocking the ship,’ called Mr Gibbs.

Barbossa looked at the charts Jack had been gazing at. ‘Aye, he’s on to it!’ and joined them.

‘Untie the cannons!’ shouted Reina.

‘Loose the cannons!’ Barbossa echoed. Reina took her knife out of her pocket and the next time she reached the side slashed the robes holding the cannon in place. She ran, leaning into it more and more each time, pushing herself to keep up. One man didn’t make it to the side to grab hold in time, and fell over board. She held on, until the last moment when they ran back to the other side. The next time, she felt her legs leave the floor, and she held on tightly, seeing one of the Malaysian sailors loose his grip and get hit by one of the loosened cannons. She winced, but felt the boat tipping over even further.

A sudden jolt loosened her grip and she fell, but another hand grabbed her, and she looked up to see Aspen had once again grabbed her. He hauled her back up and she grabbed hold tighter. Suddenly the water rushed up to them and Reina took a deep breath of air, before they were engulfed. Reina looked out to where the sun shone above the surface, and saw a green flash as it hit the water.

There was a sudden rushing sound and the water below them was coming closer, the abyss disappearing and suddenly the ship bobbed out of the water like a cork and Reina was flung onto the deck, coughing, but she could breath again. She raised her head and looked to the East, where the sun was rising in their world.