/I don't own anything you recognize in this story. /

Epilogue: World's End, World's Beginning

Don't fear it now; we're going all the way

That sun is shining on a brand new day.

It's a long way down and it's a leap of faith.

But I'm never givin' up 'cause I know

We've got a once in a lifetime love.

-Keith Urban, "Once in a Lifetime"

--

Sweat trickled down my face. Nothing could have prepared me for the pain of childbirth. More than anything I wished my mother was alive so she could be with me during this critical time of my life.

I felt another contraction building up in my stomach and I arched my back, biting my lip as hard as I dared to stop the scream that was welling up in my throat. It felt like I had a monster in my stomach rather than a small, helpless baby.

The midwife mopped my face and smiled tenderly down at me. "Don't worry, love. The first one's always the hardest one, but it gets easier with each one. Trust me, miss, I've had twelve young'uns myself."

I started to roll my eyes, but stopped when another contraction hit. This time I couldn't stop the scream from escaping my mouth. The pain felt as if it lasted an hour. Panting heavily, I pushed myself halfway up my sweat soaked pillows. God forbid me to have that many children. I don't think I would have survived.

"Where's Will?" I gasped. "I need him; I want him to be here with me."

The midwife looked at me affronted. "I don't think that's a very good idea, miss. Men don't understand the ways of bearing children."

I grabbed the midwife's arm tightly, pulling her closer to me. "He put me in this state, didn't he? He was a part of creating this burden onto me. I want him in here. Now."

I could see that the midwife wanted to protest, but one glare from me started her toward the door, yelling at someone in hall to fetch the master of the house. Panting heavily, I allowed another wave of contractions hit me. It felt like eternity.

When the pain subsided, I felt someone take my hand gently. Glancing over, I smiled when I saw Will. He had come.

"Are you alright, Elizabeth?" he asked. "The midwife said it was an emergency—"

"No, everything's alright," I said. "I just wanted you to be with me, Will. Our baby doesn't seem to want to come and see the world just yet."

"Oh, he'll be coming soon enough, miss," the midwife said, coming instantly to my side. "He's just waiting for the perfect moment to make his debut."

"Well, his debut is certainly makes it a lot of pain and effort," I grunted.

Squeezing Will's hand, I felt calmer while he was here. Somehow I knew I was going to survive this and soon we'd be holding our first child in our arms.

When the next contraction hit, the midwife told me to push hard. Gulping in air, I pushed as hard as I could, giving as much as I could to help the baby come out. The whole time I never let go of Will's hand.

Gasping for air, I fell back against the pillows. This was way too much effort for one baby. The midwife gave me a stern look and I sat up straighter.

"I can see the top of the baby's head, miss, you're almost there," the midwife exclaimed. "A few more like that and the baby'll be here. Come now, push, and push, now."

Screaming out in pain, I pushed as hard as I could. With a slithering rush, I felt the baby slide out of me. Soon the cries of the baby were filling the room.

With a sigh of relief, I collapsed onto the bed. I had borne my first child and I had survived.

"Well, isn't this little one a handsome thing!" the midwife cooed as she cleaned the baby up.

Will looked up at the midwife. "What is it? Tell me quick before I die of curiosity!"

"Congratulations, Mr. and Mrs. Turner, it's a handsome baby boy!" the midwife exclaimed happily, wrapping the baby in a warm blanket and rested my new son gently in my arms.

Pulling him closer to me, I pushed back the blanket slightly and smiled when I saw my son. His eyes were wide and expressive, and in his deep, chocolate brown eyes, I could see intelligence and curiosity already showing. I couldn't help but smile down at him.

"Look, Will," I said excitedly. "He's got your eyes."

Will smiled. "That he does. But he's got your smile, see, and your slender fingers."

"But he's got your hair and your cheekbones," I said, pretending to pout.

"The best from both of us, I should say," Will laughed.

"Or the worst of us, however you look at it," I stated. "What are we going to name him, Will?"

"Oh, I don't know." Will scratched his chin thoughtfully. "How about William, after me?"

I slapped him lightly on his shoulder. "I hardly think so. How am I going to distinguish him between his father and his grandfather?"

Will shrugged helplessly. "You could always call him Junior, or Willie."

I shook my head. "No, that won't do."

We both looked at our son thoughtfully. Millions of names passed through my name for my son, but none of them seemed good enough. Suddenly, the door burst open and Jack and Bootstrap Bill strode in.

"We heard that it was a boy!" Jack exclaimed. "We couldn't wait any longer and wanted to come see him."

Bootstrap Bill came over and sat on the edge of my bed, pulling back the baby's blankets gently. I smiled when I saw his eyes light up and he stroked the baby's cheek lovingly and watched as the baby cooed happily.

Bootstrap Bill looked up at me. "Have you a name for him, yet?"

I looked at Will and he shrugged helplessly. He was putting the responsibility up to me. Chewing my lip, I looked at Jack and Bootstrap Bill thoughtfully. Suddenly, it came to me. And it couldn't have been more perfect.

"Will," I gasped happily. "I think I've got a name for our boy!"

"Well, what is it?" Will asked impatiently, waiting was not his best virtue, especially when it came to his new baby.

Pulling him closer, I whispered the name in his ear. A warm smile spread across his face, lighting his eyes and face. Jack looked at the both of us, his boot tapping impatiently on the floor.

"Well, what is it?" Jack blurted out. "I can't stand the waiting!"

"Jack Henry Turner," Will and I exclaimed at the same time.

A smile spread across Jack's face. "You would name him after me?"

"You are our friend, Jack," Will said, standing and placing a hand on the pirate's shoulder. "And a good man. We couldn't think of a more fit name for our first son."

Jack laughed happily and danced around room, pulling Bootstrap Bill off the bed and into his jig. Finally stopping, Jack turned back towards us.

"I must go tell Ana Maria," he exclaimed and soon he disappeared from the room.

Bootstrap Bill gave a small smile. "I offer my congratulations to you both. I'm sure you two would want to spend some time with young Jack. I'll be out front if you need anything."

Will and I looked at each other lovingly. No words needed to be said about how we felt about each other and for our new son.

There are times in one's life when one wonders at the desperation of the world. At world's end, a person can fall into despair so black that he can no longer see the good in the world that still thrives.

But, if one is lucky, he can find that good in the world again, creating the world's beginning once again. He can create that one bright spot in the world to call his own to go to when all seems black to help him get back on his feet.

And in my darkest desperation, as I fell down into the black despair of world's end, I managed to grab hold onto my bright spot to bring back the light at the end of the tunnel for my on beginning in this dark and desperate world. And I had found it in a loving man and an innocent boy. Will and Jack Turner, my undying love.

--

Author's Note: The final chapter for this story. I hope everybody enjoyed it. And I have to say that I am completely satisfied in how I wrote it, especially that last paragraph there. I feel proud of myself.

But I could never have made it without everybody who's walked this journey with me as I struggled and sweated to keep this story up and keep it as true to the story as I could. I hope that I made it satisfactory to everybody and if I didn't, I hope I gave you the satisfaction that I did my best. Special thanks especially to Smithy, Dawnie-7, williz, MyUsedRomance, and PirateofSherwood for helping me keep this story going and for giving me endless hours of entertainment and support through your reviews. They were a joy to read. And to all others who I haven't mentioned, thank you for your reviews, they have also kept my boat afloat.

If any of you are sad that this story has ended, please don't be, because as we speak I'm planning on writing a sequel, with the title already in mind. Hopefully I'll get the first chapter up as soon as I can. I'm hoping the story will be called Undying Promise so if you do not have me in your alerts, you can look it up through the search engine.

Before I go, I want to thank everyone one last time for helping me write this story. I wouldn't have done it without you. Thank you for the reviews and the future reviews to come. And hopefully I'll get Undying Promise up as soon as I can. Don't forget to review!