Skirmish off of the Black Sand Beach

*"I'm not certain I can survive anymore visits from old friends."*

The **Skirmish off of the Black Sand Beach** was a small battle between the *Black Pearl* and the HMS *Endeavour* off the coast where the corpse of the kraken lay deceased on a black sand beach. The conflict was the culmination of manipulations devised by Sao Feng, who had captured Jack as per a deal he had made with William Turner, only to then hand him off immediately to the East India Trading Company. During the transaction however, Barbossa revealed his plot to release Calypso to Sao Feng, reinstalling Feng's confidence in destroying the EITC. Together Sao Feng and Barbossa fought back against the EITC, allowing Jack and the pirates to escape in opposite directions.

## Prelude

##### Previous: Battle of Singapore

The War Against Piracy had begun across the oceans after Lord Cutler Beckett had used his ownership of the heart of Davy Jones to take command of Jones' and in turn, the sea itself. He used his efforts to destroy the last remaining pirates across the ocean, including an attack on the pirate city of Singapore, where Captain Barbossa had been talking to Sao Feng about taking possession of the Mao Kun Map, that could lead him to Davy Jones' Locker, where he could bring Jack Sparrow back to the land of the living. Barbossa and his crew had been successful in doing so, taking the map, entering Jones' Locker, finding Jack and returning to the land of the living. They planned to set out for Shipwreck Cove where the Brethren Court, of which Sparrow and Barbossa were members, would convene and discuss the war against the East India Trading Company. Little did they know however, that Will had made a deal with Sao Feng in Singapore that granted him the charts to hand off Jack to Feng once they had him back so that Feng could exact revenge of Jack for previous transgressions. Unknown to Will, Mr Mercer had overheard their discussion, and had approached Sao Feng after their deal was done to offer Feng an extension on the deal, that if Sao Feng handed Jack and the crew of the *Black Pearl* over to the EITC, Sao Feng would be granted immunity from the EITC. Sao Feng agreed to do so, setting out aboard the *Empress* to await the *Black Pearl's* return from the locker to ambush and capture Jack and his crew.

##### Corpse of the Kraken

Knowing that he had arranged to give Jack to Sao Feng at an agreed location, Will pointed the Motley Crew aboard the *Black Pearl* in the direction of a black sand beach where they could restock on water and supplies while also crossing paths with the corpse of the fallen kraken. Jack walked up to the beast, staring into its lifeless eye. Barbossa made a commentary on the fallen creature, likening it to the desperate states of the pirates, that while the idea of being the last of your kind, the last of the pirates, when your gone, there be nothing left at all. Seeing the last of the grand creatures of the kraken laid out on the beach pushed Jack to concede, agreeing to go to Shipwreck Cove and meet with the Brethren Court.

##### Sao Feng's Deals

The motley crew set out further inland into the island in search of drinking water and natural resources. They quickly found a natural pool of water, however the water had been fouled by the presence of a dead body. Examining the body revealed Sao Feng's handiwork. Pintel was able to identify the corpse as Steng, the spy caught out in Singapore. Suddenly, Ragetti called out, identifying a ship that was approaching the *Pearl.* The ship was the *Empress*, the flagship of Sao Feng, who had come for Sparrow. Tai Huang, the leader of the small group gifted to Barbossa by Feng in Singapore took the moment to betray Jack, taking him and Barbossa prisoner. The group returned to the *Pearl*, where they found the entire crew caught as prisoners aboard the ship by hordes of Sao Feng's men. Feng himself stood aboard the *Pearl*, awaiting Barbossa and Sparrow's arrival. Almost immediately, Sparrow was met in the face by a punch in the nose from Feng. Will came forward, revealing his hand in the situation and demanding Elizabeth be released as she had no part in the bargain between him and Feng. Now recognizing Turner as Captain of the *Black Pearl*, Feng granted Will his demand. Both Barbossa and Jack watched in confusion as Feng regarded Turner as captain. Will revealed that he had struck his deal with Feng for captaincy of the *Pearl* so that he may use the ship to free his father. Feng that similarly revealed that he had struck a secret deal, but with the EITC, the deal being to hand over Jack and his crew to the HMS *Endeavour,* upon which he would meet Lord Cutler Beckett. As Feng revealed his play, he revealed the HMS *Endeavour* as it approached on the horizon.

##### The EITC

As the *Endeavour* reached the other two ships, soldiers boarded the boats and held down the pirates to keep order while Jack was taken prisoner, escorted onto the navy ship and taken to see Lord Cutler Beckett. Sao Feng protested the amount of men boarding what he considered to be both of his ships, however Mr Mercer determined the *Pearl* to be a company ship, and thus could be boarded by a company crew. Will also protested to Feng, saying that he had made a deal that the ship was to be his. Feng rebuked that it had been for a short while. While in Beckett's office, Jack learnt that the heart of Davy Jones was kept safely aboard the *Flying Dutchman*. He was also offered an escape in exchange for information on the location of the Brethren Court. On the deck of the *Pearl,* Mr Mercer took control of the ship. Feng exclaimed that they had agreed for the ship to be his, to which Mercer told him that Beckett would not surrender the only ship that could outrun the *Dutchman.* Barbossa poked at Feng's hurt by the lack of honor. When Feng talked about choosing the winning side and that the EITC had the power of the *Dutchman*, Barbossa rebuked that the Brethren Court had the power to release Calypso. Sao Feng saw Elizabeth Swann, mistaking her for Calypso as Barbossa spoke about using the sea goddess herself to bear down on the enemy of the EITC. Having mistaken Elizabeth Swann for Calypso, Sao Feng agreed to ally with Barbossa against the EITC in return for the honor of taking Calypso aboard his ship and transporting her to Shipwreck Cove. Knowing that Feng had mistaken Elizabeth for Calypso, Barbossa agreed. With who he believed to be Calypso now under his protection until Shipwreck Cove, Sao Feng combined his forces with Barbossa to fight against the EITC.

Back inside Beckett's office, Jack surrendered select information to Beckett, feigning co-operation. He stated that the Court met at Shipwreck Cove. He agreed to lead Beckett to Shipwreck Cove where he could guarantee his freedom from both the EITC and Davy Jones in return for leading the Brethren Court and all the allied pirates out of the meeting and into an ambush spot for Beckett. Beckett told Jack that now he had been searched and his possessions were now in the ownership of Beckett, he had the compass that would lead him to whatever he most desired, which he could use to locate Shipwreck Cove now that he knew what he was looking for. He asked Jack why he wouldn't just cut out the middle man and kill Jack now, and move on to the Court after. Jack responded that he could ensure that the pirates within Shipwreck Cove would come outside into a vulnerable killing spot perfect for Beckett, and that Beckett needed an inside man.

## Recount

##### The Skirmish

Having come to a combined agreement, Sao Feng and Barbossa freed themselves from the shackles of the EITC, retaking command of their respective ships. They then harnessed the might of their ships to fire on the *Endeavour,* hoping to escape. The *Black Pearl* fired on the navy ship while the *Empress* made it's escape with Elizabeth Swann onboard, acting as Calypso. The cannon fire that his the navy ship allowed Jack to escape the office of Beckett, shaking the Lord's hand before he left to seal the deal to lure out the pirates at Shipwreck Cove. Jack entered the deck of the *Endeavour,* moving calmly through the chaos to find a means of returning to his own ship. Beckett quickly followed, surveying the fight to understand the cause.

Barbossa entered a duel aboard the *Pearl* against Mr Mercer. Mercer defended himself from Barbossa's angry attack, buying himself a second with which to leap from the ship into the ocean. From there he swam over to the navy ship where he was safer. Beckett followed Jack to the hull of the ship where he prepared a rope device attached to a cannon. He called Jack mad before watching the pirate fire the cannon, causing the rope mechanism to fire the pirate high into the sky, over the ocean and onto his own ship. Once on his ship, the motley crew and Barbossa ended their fight, having emptied the *Pearl* of EITC soldiers. The fight ended as the two pirate ships fled from the *Endeavour.*

## Aftermath

##### Next: Attack on the *Empress*

Both pirate ships fled in opposite directions, hoping to confuse the EITC away from Shipwreck Cove. Beckett ordered the *Flying Dutchman* to pursue the *Empress* while Beckett himself would pursue the *Pearl*. It did not take long for the *Dutchman* to catch up to Sao Feng and launch an attack. The initial assault caused the death of Feng, pushing him to use his final moments to make Elizabeth Swann a Pirate Lord, the captain of his ship and his crew. Now a pirate captain and lord, Elizabeth went with her crew to the brig of the *Flying Dutchman*.

##### A Trail for Beckett

Jack retook command of the *Pearl* fleeing away and in the direction of Shipwreck Cove. He did intend on honoring his bargain with Cutler Beckett, hoping that his plan would allow the Brethren Court to destroy the East India Trading Company Armada. He, unable to trust Will Turner, sent him to the brig, however the boy quickly escaped and began throwing the dead bodies from the skirmish over the side of the ship tied to barrels, leaving a breadcrumb trail for Beckett to follow, Will hoping that Beckett would follow the trail, eliminate Jack and the other pirates, once again allowing Will a chance to take command of the *Pearl* and rescue his father. Jack, seeing this, approached Will, bringing him into his own plan that also involved luring Beckett to Shipwreck Cove. He proposed a new plan to Will that removed the pain of him having to choose between saving his father or remaining with Elizabeth. Jack suggested that he bet he one to dispose of Jones, stabbing the heart and making himself immortal, allowing himself to roam the seas eternally free, also giving him power to free Bill Turner, saving Will's father and fulfilling his promise, while also allowing Will to remain with Elizabeth. With Jack's plan, both of them got what they wanted. Jack gave Will his magic compass, giving him a means of reaching Shipwreck Cove, and quickly throwing him overboard to be found by the *Endeavour*, where he could convince Beckett to continue onward to Shipwreck Cove.

## List of Combatants

(Those who lost their lives in combat are noted with a star)

#### Sao Feng's Crew

1. Sao Feng
2. Tai Huang

#### Motley Crew

1. Captain Hector Barbossa
2. Captain Jack Sparrow
3. Joshamee Gibbs
4. Will Turner
5. Elizabeth Swann
6. Marty
7. Cotton
8. Pintel
9. Ragetti
10. Jack the Monkey

## Appearances

1. Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End