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Lord Cutler Beckett was wrong about one thing.
Elizabeth Swann was still very much alive.
She had seen the Black Pearl dragged to the depths of Davy Jones’s Locker with Jack Sparrow on board. And she knew that no matter what stories were told, it was her fault he was dead. After fleeing Isla Cruces , the Pearl had come under attack by the Kraken. Why? Because Jack had been marked by the Black Spot. Its presence on his hand meant there was nowhere on the sea he could hide. And so the Kraken had found him.
At first, Jack fled—taking a longboat and heading back to shore ... alone. But then he had a change of heart. He had returned to his ship to help Will, Elizabeth, and his crew. But Elizabeth knew that if Jack were with them, the Kraken would not stop hunting them—and they would all die. So she distracted Jack with a kiss and then chained him to the mast of the Black Pearl , leaving him there to die.
In the aftermath, Elizabeth had been racked by guilt. She was determined to fix things. Along with Will and Jack’s crew, she had gone to see a powerful mystic named Tia Dalma, who had helped Jack in the past.
The woman lived far up the Pantano River in a bayou that smelled of mystery and magic. The air was never quite clear and, as they had made their way slowly toward Tia Dalma’s shack, it had been hard not to feel watched.
It was in the dim twilight that Elizabeth, Will, and the remaining members of Jack’s crew had rowed their way slowly up to Tia Dalma’s rickety front porch. With a great deal of effort and an even greater amount of fear, they had made their way inside, where Tia Dalma waited.
There, the mystic had told them there was indeed a way to bring Jack Sparrow back to the World of the Living. But they would need the help of an old enemy ... Captain Barbossa, the man who had stolen the Pearl from Sparrow many years before. Before their run-in with Jones, Will and Elizabeth had helped Jack reclaim the Pearl , and Jack had killed Barbossa on Isla de Muerta . But now Tia Dalma had brought Barbossa back from the dead. And she knew he could help them bring back Jack as well.
Singapore’s harbor was a dark and shadowy place, full of secrets, unkempt pirates, and flashing knives. Tall ships and smaller junks crowded together around ramshackle docks. Wooden boards creaked in the wind and hanging lamps cast flickering shadows over the faces that darted through narrow, winding streets.
A small boat drifted through the gloomy byways. In the bow, a cloaked figure used a long pole to maneuver the boat through a maze of pylons below the docks. The figure’s voice drifted eerily through the darkness, singing an old pirate song.
“ The bell has been raised from its watery grave ... do you hear its sepulchral tone? ” she sang. “ A call to all, pay heed the squall and turn your sails toward home! ”
Suddenly, the boat was illuminated by a lantern, revealing the figure. It was Elizabeth Swann. While she appeared calm, her large brown eyes darted back and forth, taking in the city. It had nothing like the manicured streets and stately mansions of her youth or her time in Port Royal. The corseted dresses she had once worn had no place here—the brown, shapeless cloak she had on was far more appropriate.
As her longboat floated under the docks, Elizabeth passed an old woman crouched over a mess of fish remains. Nearby, a man was blowing glass at a coal fire, the glowing orange-red light reflecting off the round glass shape. An explosion to her right made her jump; she saw a dazzling pinwheel spin out of a fireworks shed, sparks flying. A boy chased it, stamping down the sparks.
With a shiver, Elizabeth saw the shadow of a monkey race by. She moved forward, still singing, until she reached a dock where she tied up the boat and climbed out.
“ Yo ho, haul together ,” she sang as she tied up the line. Suddenly she stopped and ducked her head. A troop of East India Trading Company agents was passing by, led by Beckett’s aide, Mercer. They were exactly who she didn’t want to hear her song. She wanted the song to identify her as a pirate—but only to fellow pirates.
A few moments later, the march of their boots faded away. Elizabeth resumed her song.
“ Raise the colors high! Heave ho ...”
“... thieves and beggars ,” a new voice joined in. “ Never say we die .”
Elizabeth rose to her feet as a man stepped out of the darkness of a large sewer pipe. Two armed guards flanked him. He was tall and imposing, his sinewy muscles rippling under his dark robes. He had a menacing look in his eyes and a wicked sword at his side.
Despite the man’s formidable presence, Elizabeth sighed in relief. This was Tai Huang, the man she was looking for. Or at least, the man who could take her to the man she was looking for. Tai Huang was second in command to Sao Feng, the fearsome Pirate Lord of Singapore.
Tai Huang narrowed his eyes, looking her up and down.
“A dangerous song to be singing,” he said ominously, “for any who are ignorant of its meaning.” He stepped closer. “Particularly a woman. Particularly a woman alone.”
“What makes you think she’s alone?”
Tai Huang and his guards turned at the sound of the new voice. Barbossa was standing behind them, a smile on his weather-beaten face.
“You protect her?” Tai Huang asked.
“What makes you think I need protection?” Elizabeth replied with a hiss. Tai Huang froze. Elizabeth’s voice was in his ear, her knife pressed to his throat.
Barbossa tsk-tsked .
“Your master is expecting us,” he said to Tai Huang. He added, pointedly, to Elizabeth: “And an unexpected death would cast a slight pall on our meeting.” He eyed her knife, and slowly she lowered it but did not sheathe it.
Tai Huang rubbed his neck and studied the old pirate. “You’re Captain Barbossa,” he said.
“Aye,” Barbossa agreed. “And she be Elizabeth Swann. And Sao Feng has promised us safe passage.”
Huang nodded thoughtfully. “For as long as it suits him,” he said in a dark voice. He turned in a whirl of robes to lead them away, then abruptly held up his hand. Everyone stopped short.
The sound of boots heralded the passage of more East India Trading Company men. Tai Huang waited until the agents turned a corner, and then he signaled the others to follow him into the mouth of the large sewer pipe.
As Elizabeth and Barbossa vanished into the darkness, something peculiar was happening not too far away.
On one of the many dilapidated bridges that crossed over the canals and waterways of Singapore, a pair of East India Trading Company agents was standing guard. Had they looked over the edge into the water, they might have seen a line of coconuts floating by.
And below the coconuts was something that would have interested the agents very much indeed. Underneath each coconut was a member of the nefarious Captain Jack Sparrow’s crew.
As the coconuts floated into the darkness under the bridge, one rose out of the water, revealing the top of the pirate Ragetti’s head. He was wearing the coconut shell as a helmet, hiding him from sight up above. His one good eye darted back and forth, while his wooden one stared blankly ahead. Following behind him were Pintel, Gibbs, Cotton, and Marty.
When they were safely hidden in the shadows below the bridge, they took off their coconut helmets and swam over to a metal grate. From the oilskin bundles they carried, they produced large rasps which could be used to file through the bars of the grate.
Then they waited.
Squeak, squeeeeak . The East India Trading Company agents snapped to attention and peered into the gloom. What was that sound?
A moment later, a woman trundled out of the darkness, pushing a cart with squeaky wheels. The cart carried several birdcages holding twittering canaries, clanking bottles filled with mystery potions, and bags of flour. On top of the cages was a colorful parrot, and riding alongside the bird was a monkey turning the crank of an organ.
This was what Jack’s crew had been waiting for. The organ’s music, the squeaking wheels, and the clattering sounds of the cart were all loud enough to hide any noise from below. It was time to act. The pirates set to work on filing through the bars of the grate.
The cart rolled closer and closer. The agents exchanged a suspicious glance. They stepped forward to stop the cart.
The music stopped. Down below, the pirates froze.
One of the agents pulled out his sword.
“You can’t be here,” the agent said gruffly to the woman.
She lifted her face. Although they did not know it, the woman was Tia Dalma. She leaned toward the agent who had spoken to her and whispered in an eerie voice, “Your mother always knew it be you who threw the linens down the well.”
The agent jumped back, spooked. He stared at the old woman in fear.
“How did you know that?” he demanded.
She grinned, revealing a mouthful of blackened teeth. “The canaries,” she hissed.
Both agents backed away. They didn’t know what witchcraft was at work here, but they wanted nothing to do with it. “Jack” the Monkey picked up the organ again and went back to grinding, the music whirling brightly as the pirates resumed their sawing down below.
Not too far away, Tai Huang was leading Barbossa and Elizabeth toward a decrepit bathhouse. The bathhouse served as Sao Feng’s hideout and was well protected. Elizabeth glanced about her, all her senses on high alert. Anyone they passed could be a pirate ... or worse, an employee of the East India Trading Company.
She tugged on Barbossa’s sleeve. “Have we heard anything from Will?” she whispered.
Barbossa shook his head. “The whelp is more than capable of taking care of himself,” he pointed out. “But you—in the presence of Sao Feng, you’ll be wanting to show a bit more diffidence than is your custom.” He winked.
“He’s that terrifying, is he?” Elizabeth asked.
“He’s much like myself,” Barbossa answered, “absent my merciful nature and sense of fair play.” He grinned, and Elizabeth shivered.
Tai Huang stepped in front of a door, rapping a series of sharp knocks in a coded signal. A slit in the door slid open and a pair of eyes appeared. The eyes studied them. After a minute, the slit closed and, with the sound of bolts moving and hinges creaking, the door opened.
As Elizabeth and Barbossa stepped inside a small entry room, Tai Huang swung around, blocking their path.
“No weapons,” he said. “Remove them, please.” Elizabeth could tell from his tone that the “please” did not make his sentence any more of a request. It was an order.
“Of course,” Barbossa said cheerfully. He handed over his pistol and his sword, and Elizabeth followed suit. But as they stepped forward, Tai Huang held up his hand and eyed Elizabeth.
“Did you think because she is a woman, we would not suspect her of treachery?” he asked. “Remove, please.”
Elizabeth sighed and pulled off her coat, revealing two more hidden swords in scabbards tucked into the lining.
She started forward again—but Tai Huang stopped her. “Remove. Please,” he repeated.
Elizabeth tried to protest, but it was no use. She was forced to turn over each of her hidden weapons, one by one. To add insult to injury, she was also ordered to change into a robe that would allow no weapons to remain hidden.
Glaring at the men around her, Elizabeth cinched the belt on her blue silk robe tighter and tugged it down, hoping to cover her legs a bit more. Finally, scowling and completely unarmed, she followed Barbossa and Tai Huang deeper into the bathhouse.
As they walked the maze of leaky, rusted pipes past algae-crusted tubs and half-naked pirates, Elizabeth studied her surroundings. The pirates here all worked for Sao Feng. And they each bore his symbol: a dragon tattoo.
At last they reached a room that was cleaner and warmer than the rest. The Pirate Lord of Singapore was just stepping out of his tub. Silently, two attractive female attendants dressed him in all the glory of his pirate regalia.
Elizabeth stared at the man’s scarred and weathered face, looking for a sign of weakness. But the powerful Lord’s eyes were dark and cold, revealing nothing. From the corners of his eyes ran a pair of old scars that heightened his dangerous demeanor .
A long moment passed. Sao Feng did not seem to have noticed their presence ... or else he was deliberately ignoring them. Finally, Barbossa realized it was up to him to speak first.
“Captain Sao Feng,” he said smoothly. “Thank you for granting me this audience.”
Sao Feng looked up as if he’d just spotted them. “Captain Barbossa!” he said. “Welcome to Singapore.” With a gesture, he turned to the nearest guard and said, “More steam.”
The guard banged on the wall twice, and a burst of steam billowed out of the pipes.
“I understand that you have a request to make of me ... ?” he said to Barbossa.
“And a proposal to make to you,” Barbossa replied. “I’ve a venture under way, and I find myself in need of a ship and a crew.”
Sao Feng straightened and looked at Barbossa with a sly smile. “And you consider me worthy of such an honor? A ship and a crew ... ” He chuckled. “That’s an odd coincidence.”
“Because you happen to have a ship and a crew you don’t need?” Elizabeth said saucily. Barbossa gave her a warning glance, but Sao Feng only smiled wider, the scars at the corners of his eyes almost disappearing.
“No,” he said. “Because earlier this day, not far from here, a thief broke into my most revered uncle’s temple, and tried to make off with these.”
Sao Feng strode across the room to a wizened old man in long robes who was clutching a set of ancient charts to his chest. The Pirate Lord reached for the charts but had to tug on them several times with a stern expression before the old man would relinquish them.
“Navigational charts,” Sao Feng continued, turning back to Barbossa and Elizabeth and holding the charts aloft with a flourish. “The route to the Farthest Gate,” he said softly, watching their faces for a reaction. “Wouldn’t it be amazing if this venture of yours took you to the world beyond this one?”
Barbossa swallowed. “It would strain credulity, at that,” he blustered.
Sao Feng gazed at him levelly. Then with a nod, he signaled to two guards near one of the baths. The guards leaned over and hauled a figure out from under the water.
The prisoner was none other than Will Turner.