At World's Beginning

Choosing A Side

Ona's heart plunged in tandem with the cursed ship as she watched it race onward and disappear over the edge of the maelstrom. She took a half-step forward, stopped, and glanced over her shoulder.

Lord Beckett was watching her with amused interest. He no longer sat at the table since the deluge had ruined his teatime, but he was still on deck, shrouded in a thick jacket that kept off the rain. Ona was afforded no such thing, and had to rely on Norrington's coat to keep the stinging cold water at bay.

Shivering as she drew the coat tighter across her chest, Ona looked to the maelstrom once more as the boom of cannons echoed across the stormy waters. Even through the howling wind and the sound of heavy drops beating against the wood deck and canvas sails, it was still quite audible and filled her with foreboding. The second ship must have joined the Dutchman, as she could see the top of two mainmasts above the maelstrom edge.

The reckless abandon it must have taken to commit such an act was unfathomable to her, and the captains of both ships were mad to even attempt sailing into Calypso's wrath, let alone battle within its twisting abyss.

"Soon, the Dutchman will have her prey and the Pearl will be naught but debris at the bottom of the sea," Beckett spoke up to be heard above the torrential downpour. "Appropriate, considering this is not the first time I have sunk that particular vessel beneath the ocean waves. It's a shame the captain won't go down with his ship," he added with a cruel smirk.

She didn't know what he meant, but she suspected that was the idea. Beckett seemed of the belief he knew more than those around him, and he was not averse to showing it.

"When this is over, I get Jones," Ona said, keeping her voice as unfeeling as stone. It felt the wiser choice to make him believe she cared only about Jones' death and held no interest in a particular person aboard Jones' ship.

Beckett gave a faint smile but kept his eyes forward toward the ever-churning maelstrom.

"Telling you how to kill Jones was a show of good faith on my part. Giving you the opportunity to kill Jones is contingent on you offering me something in return."

"What would you have me give?" she asked outright, not interested in Beckett's games and simply wanting the truth spoken aloud. "My freedom, I suppose." Or perhaps my heart, she thought darkly. Carved out and handed to you on a silver platter, where you can keep it in a chest. Just like Jones.

"Partnership."

Ona turned to look at him and found he was already staring at her, that light smile touching his lips as if they were conversing over tea and not through a violent storm.

"Do you believe I wish to make you my servant? I don't."

He spoke so quietly she had to lean in and concentrate on his soft voice. It put her in a proximity that was too close for her liking, but she had little choice if she wished to hear him over the wind tugging at their clothing and the rain dashing against the wood.

"I do not want you at my beck and call. Nor do I wish to control you. What I want, nay, what I need is a partner with equal share in the stakes. Which means they also have an equal share in the risks and rewards. I want someone who cooperates out of their own self-interest, not because I must threaten them at every turn. A partnership, Miss Sharp.

"It's just... good business," he added with the smallest curl of his lips. Such a tiny gesture, but one that sent a cold chill up her spine.

"What say you to my proposal?" Beckett asked when she remained silent.

"I haven't yet made up my mind," she responded shortly, looking away from him and back toward the center of the storm.

In truth, she hadn't. She would have to be a fool to trust this man, but that did not mean allying with him wasn't the right choice. It might even be the only choice. If she did refuse his offer, where would she go after? Ona had a very particular set of skills that had benefited her during her years trapped as a human, but most men were not as kind and accepting as Franklin. The possibility that she could crew aboard another ship was nonexistent.