"So...they call the town Shipwreck?" Phillip asked.

Will, who had only heard of the place from Elizabeth, nodded, staring at the tall cliffs that made up The Devil's Mouth. Elizabeth had assured him that Barbossa had done this before, but he couldn't help but glance down at the water, where the bones of sunken ships lay under them. There was no chance at all he missed being captain of the Dutchman...but looking upon those wrecks, knowing how close to death he was...it made him look back at the confidence and immortality he had held with a bit of envy.

"And it is on Shipwreck Cove?"

Will, again, nodded.

"And the whole island is called Shipwreck Island?" Phillip said, clearly mocking the entire thing.

"Let it never be said pirates are original."

Elizabeth chuckled from where she stood, Billy standing at her side watching in awe.. "I believe it is more true that they stick with what they like. Why do you think so many of them name themselves after their beards?"

Barbossa spun the wheel a bit, letting out a laugh as they emerged and made way towards the port. "Behold, the town of Shipwreck, home of the-"

His speech was cut off when, from a window of the Mermaid Tavern, a man in black went flying out the window, letting out a high pitch yelp.

"I see Jack got here first," Will said, making a face.

~mC~MC~MC~

Phillip looked about the town with horrific awe. "I have always read about Sodom and Gomorrah...I never believed I would walk in their streets. Crime, filth, sin, all swirling about..."

"Hmmm...brings back fond memories," Elizabeth muttered.

"Not too fond, I hope," Will said.

"Well, there was that one time with Gibbs...kidding, kidding!" Elizabeth said quickly, grabbing a hold of Will's hand and giving him a peck on the cheek. Billy was seated on his father's shoulders, ensuring he did not go running off, as he clearly wanted too. The town was every little boy's fantasy wrapped up in dark corners and funny smells and Billy wanted to explore every inch of it.

Captain Morrison and his crew followed right behind, Smithers making sure his captain didn't go into one of his fits and attack the pirates, while Ali had apparently deemed himself Phillip's protector and was following the missionary closely, hand on his scimitar. Barbossa had given his own crew free leave for the night, knowing they would return to the ship slated of their lust and hungry for more money to spend...just the way he liked it.

"And now..." he said, deciding to try again at the grand speech, "I give you the Hall of the Brethren Court, where the nine lords..."

"Hector! So good of you to come!" Jack called out, ruining another speech. Barbossa and the group stared at Jack, who was seated at the meeting table with his feet up, a bottle of rum in one hand and a skull upon the other. He bobbed the skeleton up and down, making the jaw work. "And it seems my friend here is happy to see ya too, isn't that right?"

Barbossa's shoulders slumped as he rolled his eyes skyward, ignoring Jack and motioning for the group to enter the room. "Glad that ya are takin' this so serious, Jack."

"What can I say...a serious man takes things seriously, that is how you know they are serious. But a joking man must joke, that is how you know he is serious. If the joking man is serious, then you know he is only joking and you can ignore him till he is joking which means there is a serious matter at hand." Jack blinked, running through what he had just said. "That is rather brilliant if you don't think about it."

"I'm sure it is, but could you please remove your feet so we could get started?"

Jack shrugged, tossing the skull aside and rising to his feet, swaggering over towards Elizabeth. "It is good to see you again."

"Wish I could say the same, Jack," Elizabeth said with a smirk.

Jack looked at Phillip and Will, blinking several times. "This will not do...I can't have two whelps. Throws off the balance. Two governor's daughters, that I could handle, but two whelps..."

"You know Jack, during my time on the Dutchman, I prayed I would not see you come floating down the water." Jack smiled at this, patting Will on the shoulder. "That would mean I'd have to listen to you."

Jack's smile fell, and he turned to Phillip, slapping him on the back. "Right...this is the whelp I like!" He looked up at Billy, who was still on Will's shoulders. "And a mini-whelp. For a eunuch you do get around, Will my boy."

"Jack..." Barbossa said, putting all the sweetness he could in his voice. "If we may...before we are down to two pirate lords."

"Why would we-" Barbossa cocked his pistol, Jack quickly hiding behind Phillip. "Right right, lets get the show on the road and all that rot." That settled, Barbossa, the Turners, Phillip and the crew of The Golden Eagle made for the table. Elizabeth claimed her chair as a member of the Brethren Court, as did Barbossa, while Will and the rest stood to the side, waiting to see what would come. "However," Jack said, causing all in attendance to groan, "I don't think there is much that can be done. There must be 9 Pirate Lords to call a meeting and I count only three. Which means until there are 9, I will take my rum and my skull and go get more rum and possibly more skulls." He looked about. "Where did I throw my skull, anyway?"

Barbossa clanged the ball and chain against the table. "That be why we are here, Jack! Six of the Lords are dead and we be next, lest we do something."

"Ah, but we can't do anything until there is a full court, so until then..."

Elizabeth frowned. "Is there no way that we can just continue the meeting with only the three of us?"

Barbossa shook his head. "I am afraid Jack is right."

"Why thank you Hector. Phil, I take it back, he is my favorite whelp!"

"Which is why we must elect six new Lords to the Brethren Court."

Jack, still searching for the skull he had tossed, hardly paid attention. "Right right, elect new members. Never been done before, no way of knowing how..."

"I call upon Captain Teague...Keeper of the Code."

"Right!" Jack said, standing up. "I happen to know that my father is currently in London...probably lamenting his fading good looks while I remains so hanesome..." Jack paused, closing his eyes in frustration. "He's behind me, isn't he?"

"No Jackie...in front of you."

Jack let out a yelp when he opened his eyes, finding himself face to face with his father.

"Don't...do that!" He shouted, flapping his hands like they were wounded doves.

Teague paid him no heed, collecting the keys from the Key Bearing Dog and opening the Pirate Codex. He murmured to himself, flipping through the pages, till he finally found what he was looking for. "As I thought...as set down by the second Brethren Court, should any of the Pirate Lords be lost and the pieces of eight discarded, the remaining Court may elect new members...those being any sailor not under the banner of a current Pirate Lord. A majority vote shall give the selected full title and power of his new station, once all seats are filled."

Barbossa nodded. "Who would care to open the floor?"

Jack grinned. "I say we elect Yellowbeard. I will go find him and..."

"Nah," Elizabeth said.

"Nah," Barbossa agreed. "Sorry Jack...there will be no more runnin' away with ya...we agreed that Drake must be dealt with and he will be dealt with."

Jack sulked. "A town dedicated to the thrills of pirate life and I am stuck in a bloody meeting..."

Barbossa cleared his throat. "I nominate Captain Will Turner, formerly of The Flying Dutchman, as member."

Will blinked. "Me?"

Elizabeth smiled. "Aye!"

Jack stood up. "You must be joking...who ever heard of a eunuch as a Pirate Lord?"

Captain Morrison frowned. "I have! Ezekiel Turner..." Smithers shook his head, getting his captain to be quiet.

"It is agreed!" Barbossa proclaimed.

"I nominate Phillip Swift," Elizabeth said.

Phillip's eyes widened. "I don't know..."

Barbossa flashed him a dirty look. "We have no time to dance about it, boy. We have little time, which means we all must do things we do not desire. I second the nomination and nominate Captain Horatio Morrison."

Morrison frowned. "What are we doing again?"

"Picking who will be part of the Brethren Court...the group that will...uh...hunt pirates," Smithers said.

"I happily accept then. Death to all pirates!" He slammed his fist against the table.

Barbossa sighed. "When in desperate times..."

"I nominate Smithers and Ali," Elizabeth said, deciding to speed things along. Barbossa agreed, Jack refusing to vote unless it was a vote to go get rum. "That leaves us with only one seat remaining."

Teague stood up, adjusting his coat. "The Code also proclaims that a former Lord may retake his spot, should he be needed. I do just that, and nominate Mr. Gibbs as my replacement."

Jack turned to see Gibbs being lead into the room, several of Teague's men explaining to him what was going on. "The whole world is against me, eunuchs and missionaries are on the Brethren Court, and I can't find my skull!" he flopped down and sulked some more.

"That makes nine," Barbossa proclaimed, the room trembling slightly as the new Lords took their seats. "Which means we may finally get down to business."

Will nodded. "Indeed. You all owe us information..." he glanced over at Jack, who was pickign at his nails and giving Will his best 'innocent' look. "It is pretty clear that you have done something to enrage this Captain Dumas and drag us into your mess...again."

"Not this time," Jack said with a smirk. "This time you are as guilty as us. Guilt by association and all that."

It was Teague who spoke next, the room growing silent as his loud, rumbling voice filled the room. "The story of Drake Dumas is a tale of betrayal, loss...and revenge. Years ago, before the threat of Lord Beckett had come to darken our door, there was a much different threat to those of our ilk. The great pirate hunter Drake Dumas sailed all the seas, driven to hunt down and capture any pirate he could find. He did so not out of loyalty or greed...he cared not for wealth or titles such acts would bring. He hunted out kind because of a hate even now none understand.

"But it was his desire to see us die that was his undoing. Drake sailed under the flags of England, France, Spain, and others...and felt no loyalty to any of them. One day he killed French in the name of the English King, the next he hunted down the very Englishmen he had sailed with under the power of the Spanish crown.

"The day finally came when his lies came undone. The countries of the world placed bounties on his head and Drake found himself on the run, determined to continue his hunt.

"His flight took him into the waters of Singapore, where he spotted The Empress, the ship of our fallen brother Sao Feng. Seeing such a prize drove Drake into a lust for battle and he ordered his men to prepare.

"He did not realize it was a trap. The ship was empty, and under the cover of darkness, the entire fleet of Sao Feng converged upon Drake...and massacred him and his crew." Teague paused, it unknown if he was merely gathering himself or doing so for dramatic tension. "It should have ended there...but Drake's bloodletting had called upon another force...another hunter of pirates.

"Drake Dumas soon found himself at the feet of Davy Jones."