Ｃ Ａ Ｐ Ｔ Ａ Ｉ Ｎ Ｊ Ａ Ｃ Ｋ Ｓ Ｐ Ａ Ｒ Ｒ Ｏ Ｗ
For a moment he simply stared, bemused. Any previous sign of humor or sarcasm on his face had been wiped clean off by the absurdity of the situation. It truly was another ship, and quite the beauty as well. It looked like an impossible cross between a bark and a sloop, and though it couldn't compete with the Pearl it was certainly tall for a ship. Were those... figures on the other strange vessel? Were they friend or foe; merchant sailors, fellow pirate, Navymen, foreigners? What kind of devilry was keeping them perfectly afloat amidst the storm, while the Pearl was having enough bloody trouble as it was?
The other ship suddenly veered sharply to starboard, jolting Jack out of his reverie. He re-joined Cotton at the helm and they hastily attempted to yank the Pearl the other way; but it was a futile effort. He heard the collision, heard the horrific scraping of wood against wood, heard the crack of the foremast before it tumbled to the deck with a sickening crash. The main deck jolted as the Pearl was thrown abruptly upwards, her bowsprit and angel figurehead lifting clear out of the water for a jolting, wrenching heartbeat before coming down with an almost-muted SMACK against the water. Shocked cries echoed eerily over the ship as the crewmen lost their footing and slid across the ship, while Jack himself was launched clean off the poop deck and nearly fell on top of Angelica.
The force of his fall knocked the breath clean out of him and for a moment he could only lie there, stunned, on the deck. Eventually the flaming stars stopped shooting across his vision and he felt sufficiently recovered enough to stagger to his knees, then to his feet.
The Pearl was listing slightly to the side, and he could already visualize the damage that could've been done below her waterline. "What the bloody 'ell was that?!" were the only words that could come out of his mouth. There was the other ship; under normal circumstances it would've been crushed to splinters having come to a collision with the Pearl... but these certainly weren't normal circumstances, as the other ship seemed to have retained only minor damage and wasn't in any danger of sinking.
The other ship suddenly veered sharply to starboard, jolting Jack out of his reverie. He re-joined Cotton at the helm and they hastily attempted to yank the Pearl the other way; but it was a futile effort. He heard the collision, heard the horrific scraping of wood against wood, heard the crack of the foremast before it tumbled to the deck with a sickening crash. The main deck jolted as the Pearl was thrown abruptly upwards, her bowsprit and angel figurehead lifting clear out of the water for a jolting, wrenching heartbeat before coming down with an almost-muted SMACK against the water. Shocked cries echoed eerily over the ship as the crewmen lost their footing and slid across the ship, while Jack himself was launched clean off the poop deck and nearly fell on top of Angelica.
The force of his fall knocked the breath clean out of him and for a moment he could only lie there, stunned, on the deck. Eventually the flaming stars stopped shooting across his vision and he felt sufficiently recovered enough to stagger to his knees, then to his feet.
The Pearl was listing slightly to the side, and he could already visualize the damage that could've been done below her waterline. "What the bloody 'ell was that?!" were the only words that could come out of his mouth. There was the other ship; under normal circumstances it would've been crushed to splinters having come to a collision with the Pearl... but these certainly weren't normal circumstances, as the other ship seemed to have retained only minor damage and wasn't in any danger of sinking.
