A/N: I do not own any characters, plot lines, or any other details that are a part of this narrative -that all belongs to the childhood castle of Disney and the creators behind the Pirates of the Caribbean series. I only own my character/s and their actions into the story. Thank you!

THE LEGACY OF A PIRATE

CURSE OF THE BLACK PEARL

Prologue

'New Beginnings Should Start With Life Threatening Situations'

Atlantic Ocean

Crossing From England

1720

The unexpected fog blanketing the Atlantic was dense. More so then what the HMS Dauntless frequented. The Lieutenant and his crew were on a simple mission; transport the new Governor from England to Jamaica, Port Royal. The trip was all going according to plan, except, of course, the fog.

Curiosity had sparked the Governor's daughter who traveled with. To assuage the feeling, she stood at the bow of the ship and gazed out onto the sea, not seeing as far as she would have liked.

The water reminded young Elizabeth of her late mother and the stories she would tell. Stories of adventures and daring pirates in search of gold. A pirate song her mother used to sing to her before bed crept into the back of her mind.

Her singing caught the attention of the most superstitious crew member of the ship. The boatswain, unable to stop himself from what some would call his 'irrational' thinking, grabbed her shoulders. Such actions spooked the girl and causing her to jump and stare at him in shock.

"Quiet, missy!" He spoke in a breathy voice as he gazed upon the sea, as if searching for unwelcome visitors. "Cursed pirates sail these waters. You don't want t' bring them down on us now, do ya?" The man with prominent mutton chops made eye contact with the young lady. He wasn't like the rest of the Naval officers, more rugged and disorganized, even the way he spoke and dressed was odd.

"Mister Gibbs, that will do."

Elizabeth was saved by no other than the Lieutenant in charge, James Norrington. A young man with his dark chocolate hair tied into a low ponytail under his tricorn Naval hat. He wore the usual cut and clean attire and spoke with formality. His voice was calm, but stern; reminding Elizabeth of her old hag of a tutor back in England.

'Maybe there will be a nicer one in Port Royal; prettier too,' Elizabeth thought.

Norrington had an aura around him -as her mother would have called it- that demanded respect. In a way, it reminded Elizabeth of her father, who, as she now noticed, stood behind the Lieutenant.

"She was singing 'bout pirates!" Gibbs accused, pointing the finger at the girl as he stepped closer to the Lieutenant. His voice becoming one of suspicions. "S'bad luck t' be singing 'bout pirates with us mired in this unnatural fog. Mark my words."

"Consider them marked. On your way."

Elizabeth almost smirked at the face Norrington pulled. It would seem that this wasn't the first time he's heard Gibbs' talks of superstitions.

"Aye, Lieutenant." He walked past the Lieutenant and spoke to himself, though loud enough for the Lieutenant to hear. He took a sip from his trusty flask. "S'bad luck to have a woman on board too. Even a miniature one."

"I think it'd be rather exciting to meet a pirate," The young girl spoke up, causing the Lieutenant to give a polite smile to the girl.

"Think again, Miss Swann," He stated as he strolled to the girl's side by the railing. "Vile and dissolute creatures, the lot of them. I intend to see to it that any man who sails under a pirate flag or wears a pirate brand gets what he deserves." He glanced at the girl with a lazy smile as he concluded. "A short drop and a sudden stop."

Miss Swann -too young to know what the phrase meant- looked towards the nearby Gibbs for help. He grabbed his necktie and used it as a mock noose and stuck his tongue out to represent the phrase meant a hanging. Realization spread in her eyes, and she gasped in response.

'Norrington must not be good with children,' Elizabeth thought. As did, apparently, her father.

"Lieutenant Norrington," the Governor called as he intervened between the two, "I appreciate your fervor, but I'm. . . I'm concerned about the effect this subject will have upon my daughter."

"My apologies, Governor Swann." The Lieutenant faltered as he walked away.

Definitely not good with children.

The girl was glaring at the man before turning towards her father.

"Actually, I find it all fascinating." She announced with glee.

"Yes. That's what concerns me." Her father admitted monotonously before walking off.

Disappointed, she turned back to the water to see an upside parasol floating pass. Enchanted by the random object, she followed it down the ship's side. When it passed, she looked back ahead to find a large piece of driftwood sustaining the unmoving body of a young boy. A boy a year or two older than her twelve-year-old self, she believed.

"Look! A boy! There's a boy in the water!" She exclaimed in the direction of the Lieutenant, her father, and Mr. Gibbs huddled at.

Immediately the Lieutenant dashed to the side of the ship to confirm the girl's statement.

"Man overboard!" He yelled to his now lively crew, "Man the ropes! Fetch a hook! Haul him aboard!" When the crew brought the boy on deck, the Lieutenant checked his breathing; to which he was. Gibbs was still leaning off the edge of the ship, using Jacob's ladder ropes to support himself from falling.

"Mary, Mother of God!" He declared in disbelief. He had captured the attention of Miss Swann as well as everyone apart of the crew. They looked over the water to find that the fog was gradually whisked away. A broken, burning ship, doomed to sink down Davy Jones' locker revealed.

"What happened here?" The Governor questioned, though none knew.

Norrington supplied a most logical answer.

"It's most likely the powder magazine. Merchant vessels run heavily armed."

The burning ship's mast collapsed into the water.

Gibbs scuffed in response. "Lot of good it did them. Everyone's thinkin' it, I'm just sayin' it; pirates. Maybe even the most vicious pirate in all the seven seas; Cap'n Cutthroat."

"There's no proof of that! It is probably an accident." The Governor stammered with a broken laugh. He hoped it wasn't this 'Captain Cutthroat.' He wasn't one for bedtime stories like his daughter, but the man was no fool. Stories of Cutthroat attacking Naval ships were common amongst Naval men. And they were on one.

Norrington ordered some men to rouse the Dauntless' captain from his slumber. Others to heave and take sail and launch the small boats to find other survivors.

But, by the off chance of the attacker being Cutthroat, they're likely be no other living souls.

The Governor leaned down to his daughter's ear where she stood overlooking the strange boy. Crewmates were beginning to start their tasks, and he didn't want her in their way. "Elizabeth, I want you to accompany the boy. He'll be in your charge. Take care of him." She nodded in acknowledgment and walked to where the unconscious boy lied.

She ran her hand through the boy's hair covering his eyes, waking the boy as he gasped. His cold hand grabbed onto her wind-chilled ones.

"It's okay." She reassured after catching her breath from the small scare. "My name's Elizabeth Swann."

"W-Will Turner." He breathed out.

"I'm watching over you, Will."

Just then Will passed out. Either from shock or exhaustion, Elizabeth didn't know. Curiosity sparked in her once more, and she began to investigate the boy and saw the chain around his neck. Picking up the necklace, she studied it as the chain detached. The coin was gold with an engraved skull surrounded by arbitrary symbols. "You're a pirate!" She spoke in a whisper.

"Has he said anything?" Asked Norrington from behind. Elizabeth gasped in surprise but remembered what would happen to a pirate. This Will Turner was just a boy; he shouldn't hang because he was a pirate. Elizabeth hid the medallion behind her back. She made sure to pose as the proper lady when addressing the Lieutenant.

"His name's William Turner. That's all I found out."

With a nod, he turned towards two Naval officers behind him and gave an order to have the boy taken below deck. Now with the boy gone, Elizabeth found herself at the stern of the ship. After making sure she was in fact alone, she looked at the coin once more, raising it up a bit.

A large shadow in the water grabbed her attention. She focused on it, only to find a ship sailing unnaturally fast. She noticed many rips on the black sails. The recognizable Jolly Roger flag flying high through the winds.

Pirates, Elizabeth deduced.

Luckily, these pirates sailed under a different flag than Cutthroat's. Countless times with reading about pirates back in England, she had learned a thing or two. That pirate Captain sailed under a red flag with a white skull above a horizontal cutlass.

Elizabeth released a breath of relief as she remembered the Naval saying,

'As Cutthroat raises his flag, he shows you your fate.'

Elizabeth subconsciously rubbed her throat as fear laced itself inside her and she closed her eyes.

A/N: Alright, everybody! This is my first ever fanfiction and criticisms are always welcomed! Be nick picky, I want to know what I might have spelled, structed, or worded incorrectly/confusingly so I can correct it! Suggestions? Write 'em up!