A Pirate's Life For Me (Kingdom Hearts 2) in Gamer's Gaming

The Road So Far…

After waking up from a long sleep, Sora, Donald, and Goofy have set out to combat both the Heartless and the Nobodies. The trio have managed to stifle the plans of their foes in the Land of Dragons, Beast’s Castle, Olympus Coliseum, and Disney Castle for the time being and got some much needed R & R. Well, if you can call battling in an Underworld tournament R & R. The trio fought and conquered the Pain and Panic Cup in the Underdrome, winning a few useful trinkets for their trouble. After that, they flew off to Atlantica to see their old undersea friends. Under the sea, the trio met up with Ariel, Sebastian, Flounder, and King Triton again as Sebastian planned a musical spectacular. He wanted Sora and company to be part of it, not only because he needed help with the musical, but because Ariel seemed to be a bit obsessed with the human world again. He and the king figured that keeping her busy might keep Ariel out of trouble. Little did they know how involved she had become. Ariel had come to the rescue of a human after his ship had capsized and she brought him back to land. Since then, he had tried to find the girl with the beautiful voice. Even Flounder knew that Ariel couldn’t be completely cured of her desire to see the human world, so he brought Sebastian and the trio to the sight of a shipwreck where a statue was trapped under a rock. He thought that the statue might be enough to assuage some of Ariel’s desires. However, the trio was not strong enough to remove the statue covering the rock and would have to come back later. With nowhere else to go but to a previously unexplored world called Port Royal, the trio set the Gummi Ship on course and landed on the new world. Unfortunately, here there be monsters…

Now…

The trio arrived in Port Royal within a fort. As they stood out on the top of the fort’s wall, they realized they were someplace completely different from anywhere they had been before. As they climbed back into the fort, they heard a woman scream somewhere nearby. Then lots of screams. They ran to another side of the fort and looked out over a port town. They wondered if it was Organization XIII or the Heartless. Sora figured there was only one way to find out. With that, the trio ran towards the town to investigate the disturbance. Meanwhile, down on the docks, Pete was found talking to a group of, well, pirates. The captain was explaining that due to an Aztec treasure they had found and the curse placed on it, they were neither among the living nor the dead. Pete said they looked like regular pirates to him. The captain said that their true selves were shown in the moonlight. Just by coincidence, the clouds above parted and the moon shone down on them. Pete chuckled and said he saw what the captain had been talking about. The pirates were all turned into bony, undead versions of themselves! Pete told him that if he saw two doofuses and a brat holding a Keyblade, he better steer clear. They had a kinda magic that didn’t belong in this world and nobody knew what it would do to them. Especially with the moon showing what they really were. The captain seemed intrigued. “A match for Barbossa, you say?” Barbossa smiled at the prospect of a worthy adversary. Right on cue, Sora and company turned up by the docks. Pete said he knew they would show up. Those were the punks he had been telling Barbossa about. Sora yelled back, asking who he was calling punks. They were Sora, Donald, and Goofy and he better not forget it! Barbossa said they wouldn’t forget it. They would even engrave it on their tombstones, to be sure. Barbossa turned to his men. He told half of them to stay here and deal with the trio. He told the other half to go find his medallion. The pirates snarled an “Aye!” and ran off to their duties. Sora said it was too bad they only would get to stomp on a few of them. After a few moments of battle, however, Sora and crew realized they were doing nothing to the pirates. Conveniently, that was when the clouds parted again and showed the pirates for what they truly were. Pete tried to warn them that the trio could see them. The pirates didn’t seem to care, but Sora thanked Pete for the tip on how to beat them. With their true forms revealed, the trio took the fight to the pirates and laid waste to all four of them. After the battle, Pete said that this wasn’t over, but turned and ran for it. Sora figured that if Pete was here, it would mean they had work to do. Goofy said that Barbossa looked pretty mean, too. Sora said he would hate to see that guy turn into a Heartless. Donald said they WERE here, after all. Sora thought it might be fun to take the pirate ship out for a spin, but he said he was just joking. He asked if the pirates had been heading into town. Goofy thought they might be looking for treasure. Hoping to keep anything bad from happening to the people in town, Sora and company took off to beat the pirates back to their ship.

In the town, a woman was being taken back to the pirate ship by one of the pirates. A young man chased after her, but was soon waylaid by Shadows that had appeared from out of nowhere. He wondered what they were, but was told by the arriving trio that they were called Heartless and to watch out. Sora said they would deal with the Heartless and for the young man to take cover. After all of the Heartless were defeated, the young man came running back up to them and told them they had done well. His own fencing skills were none to be ashamed of, but he had never faced a foe like the Heartless before. Goofy asked if he had found his friend. He said that he had been too late, but that he must rescue her. He asked if they would help him. Sora said of course they would. He introduced them to the young man, who, in turn, introduced himself as William Turner. Will, for short. He said that they would need to get to the docks in a hurry. As they fought their way out of the town, the group came upon a new Heartless, known as a Cannon Gun, which fired mortars at the party in the midst of battle. A short time later, the group managed to make their way to the docks, but it was too late. The pirates had escaped with Elizabeth Swann, daughter of the governor of Port Royal, and set sail for parts unknown. Suddenly, another voice called out from behind them saying that the pirates were long gone and their ship, the Black Pearl, was nigh uncatchable. The oddly dressed and mannered man said that William ought to find himself another girl. Will asked what the man was doing aboard the Interceptor. She was off limits to civilians. The man said that it was fortunate, then, that he was planning to commandeer her. She would make a fine pirate ship. The man introduced himself as Captain Jack Sparrow. Will asked Captain Sparrow to take Will with him. He needed help to hunt down the Black Pearl and save Miss Swann. Will said that he had gotten Sparrow out of his jail cell. If he did this, his debt to Will would be repaid. Jack said that he would have to win Elizabeth’s hand on his own. He saw no profit in it for himself. Sora tried to appeal to his heart. Will took another tack and appealed to his common sense. After all, did Jack really think he could sail the ship on his own? That one gave Jack pause, causing him to move to the side and allow the rest of them to board the ship. Sora introduced himself, Donald, and Goofy to CAPTAIN Jack Sparrow. Will introduced himself as well. Jack seemed particularly interested at that point, wondering if William was named for his father, perhaps. Will said that he was. Sparrow figured that was all well and good and told the group to get the ship ready to make way. He had some effects to liberate first. Will almost begged him to hurry. Sparrow figured that was a given. As the trio walked back down the gangway, Donald and Goofy asked if Sora really wanted to be a pirate. Sora said of course he didn’t as he came face to face with Jack again. Jack asked what Sora made of Will. Sora admitted that they had just met Will themselves. Jack thought to himself that his luck was about to change. A short time later, the group, with Jack now in tow, boarded the ship and left Port Royal.

Meanwhile, Elizabeth Swann was being forced to dine with Captain Barbossa aboard the Black Pearl. Elizabeth said that Barbossa could release her. She was of no further value to him. Ignoring her, Barbossa explained that the trinket they had taken from her was no trinket, at all. It was cursed Aztec gold. One of eight hundred and eighty two identical pieces delivered in a stone chest to Cortez himself. Elizabeth said that she hardly believed in ghost stories anymore. Barbossa said he had thought the exact same thing. Buried on an Isle of the Dead that could not be found except by those who knew where it was. He and his crew had found the island and the chest. In the chest was the gold. They had taken it all. They had spent and traded and frittered them away on drink and food and pleasurable company. But the more they traded them away, the more they came to realized that the drink would not satisfy and food turned to ash in their mouths. He said that they were cursed men. Compelled by greed, they were, but now, they were consumed by it. He went on to explain that there was one way to end the curse. All of the scattered pieces of the Aztec gold must be gathered and restored to the stone chest. And the blood of everybody who had touched a piece of the treasure must be repaid. For ten years they had searched, pirating and killing and looting, chasing down every piece of the treasure. After ten years, they had found eight hundred and eighty one pieces. And now, thanks to her, they had the final piece, at last. When her medallion was restored to the chest, they would be free to sail the seas as men again, instead of ghosts. Elizabeth asked about the blood to be repaid. Barbossa said that was the reason there was no sense in killing her…yet. Elizabeth made a run to try and escape, only to find the undead crew waiting on the deck of the ship. Barbossa explained to her that the moonlight showed them for what they truly were. They weren’t among the living, so they could not die. Yet neither were they dead. He had suffered for too long! He told Elizabeth that she’d best start believing in ghost stories again. After all, tonight, she was in one.

Back on the Interceptor, the crew gave chase to the Black Pearl. As the crew sailed along, they came under attack by the Heartless. However, the ambush stood no chance against the experience of the crew at combat. After dealing with the enemy, the crew sailed on as Sparrow stared at a compass. Sora asked why he was so fixated on it. Sparrow explained that it would lead them to the Isla de Muerta where Barbossa was headed. Sora asked how he knew. Jack explained that both he and Barbossa had once had their eyes on a treasure – Aztec gold. It was hidden on the Isla de Muerta. However, Barbossa had turned traitor and stolen his ship. Will figured that meant Barbossa was after the treasure, but Jack told him that Barbossa already had the treasure. He had the curse that went along with it, as well. He had no desire for the treasure anymore, but he would be taking back what was his: the Black Pearl. A short time later, the group found themselves on the shore of the Isla de Muerta. Sparrow told the trio to wait for him there. He and Will would rescue Elizabeth. Sora asked what they were supposed to do. Jack said for them to guard the ship, of course. It was a task given to only the bravest pirates. With the plan in place, Will and Jack made their way towards the island’s interior while the trio waited idly by. After a little while, Sora told Donald and Goofy that he thought Jack had just been trying to fast talk them. And, Donald said, Sora had fallen for it. Sora wondered what was keeping the two of them. Goofy figured that if Pete was hanging around, there would probably be Heartless there too and the two of them weren’t used to fighting Heartless. Sora figured that was enough reason for them to go check things out. Further on in the caves of the island, Will and Jack spied on the pirates as they made to return the medallion to the stone chest. Barbossa said that with the medallion and the blood to be repaid, namely Elizabeth, the curse would be lifted forever. Back outside, the trio set out to find Will and Jack. As the trio made their way into the interior of the island, they were attacked by small groups of Heartless. However, a short way in, they encountered both Will and Elizabeth running in the opposite direction, being pursued by pirates! Sora told them that the trio would hold off the pirates while Will and Elizabeth got the ship ready to sail. Will said he would light the signal fire when the ship was ready to leave. The trio held off the attack of the pirates until Sora spotted the signal fire from the ship. That was their cue to haul off, so the trio turned and ran for the ship.

On board, Sora asked where Jack was. Will explained what had happened… As they spied on the pirates, Will finally got fed up with waiting and started running out of the cave, but Jack called him back and told him that he needed to wait for the opportune moment. Will wondered if that meant the moment when it was of greatest profit to Jack. Jack asked if he had ever given Will a reason not to trust him. He told Will to stay there and try not to do anything stupid. As Jack went towards the cave, however, Will smacked him on the head with an oar. In the cave, Barbossa cut Elizabeth’s hand and, with her blood, tried to repay the blood debt. However, when nothing happened, Barbossa became enraged and asked if she was the daughter of William Turner. Smiling, she said that she wasn’t. Barbossa smacked her and knocked her down the pile of treasure. The pirates became unruly and felt that they might need more blood. However, when they looked to see where Elizabeth had landed, Barbossa spotted her carrying the medallion and escaping the cave with Will. Barbossa commanded his men to chase after them. Back outside, Will explained that he’d had no choice but to do what he did. Jack was no fairy tale pirate. Real pirates could not be trusted. Left with no choice but to escape, the crew set off to head back to Port Royal. As they sailed, Elizabeth told Will about what had happened after the pirates had attacked Port Royal. After she had completed her tale, Will wondered why Elizabeth would give Barbossa his last name as her own. Elizabeth said that she didn’t know. That was when Will spotted the medallion and asked where she had gotten it. She explained that it was his from the day they had found him drifting at sea. After all that time, he thought he had lost it. It had been a gift from his father, sent to him years before. Elizabeth gave it back to Will and apologized for keeping it from him all these years. Will asked why she had taken it. Elizabeth had been afraid that he was a pirate. That would have been awful. Will realized why Jack had taken him along. It wasn’t her blood that they needed. It was his father’s blood. His blood. The blood of a pirate.

Some miles behind them but chasing rapidly, the Black Pearl cut the night’s ocean silently. Barbossa had Sparrow tied to the mast on board the ship. He asked how Jack had managed to get off that island they had left him to rot on. Jack said that Barbossa had forgotten one important thing when he left him on that godforsaken spit of land with nothing but a pistol and one shot: he was Captain Jack Sparrow. Barbossa said he wouldn’t make that mistake again. Jack suggested, then, that they put the past behind them, untie the ropes, and let him negotiate the return of the medallion. Barbossa figured that, since the Black Pearl was his ship now, letting Jack go didn’t seem to be in his best interest. Jack thought it was odd that Barbossa would think Jack would care about HIS interests and commanded him to give back the Pearl. Barbossa said, instead, told his crew to lock Sparrow up in the brig. They were coming up on the Interceptor. They had business to take care of. Elizabeth spotted the ghostly ship first and warned Will. As they wondered what to do next, Sora wondered what Jack would do. Will admitted that he had no idea. He figured that Jack would make a run for it. Just then, a shot from the Pearl struck the Interceptor and knocked Will overboard. Elizabeth tried to fight him, but another shot struck the ship soon after. Goofy told everyone to hit the deck as a third shot sailed towards them. After finding the medallion on the deck of the ship, Sora figured they had no choice but to fight! Sora steered the ship towards the Pearl and engaged in battle. The pirates boarded the Interceptor and tried to steal the medallion from Sora, but Sora made use of his and Donald’s Fantasia Limit attack, as well as Sora’s new Wisdom Form, to put a serious beating on the pirates. The trio cheered as they gained a victory over the pirates…or so they thought. Barbossa appeared on the deck behind them. Sora spun around and found himself completely surrounded by pirates who had Jack and Elizabeth in their possession. Barbossa said that he would be taking the medallion back now. Unless, of course, they valued the medallion more than their friends’ lives. Suddenly, Will appeared on the ship and pointed a pistol at Barbossa, saying that Elizabeth was to go free. Barbossa laughed and told him to shoot. They couldn’t die, after all. Will said that maybe they couldn’t, but he could. He told the pirates his name and said that he was the son of Bootstrap Bill Turner. His blood was the blood of his father. Barbossa started at the news. Will told Barbossa to do as he said or he would pull the trigger and be lost to Davy Jones’s locker. Barbossa told Will to name his terms. Will told him to release Elizabeth, as well as Sora, Donald, and Goofy. As Barbossa asked if there was anything else, Jack tried to get his attention, but to no avail. Will said he wanted the pirates to leave, now! Barbossa agreed that they would leave…ah, but the Heartless, they would stay. Pete appeared behind Will and knocked him unconscious before carrying him off to the Pearl. As he did, Air Pirates appeared in, well, the air. They surrounded the ship and left everyone else captured. After tying up Sora, Donald, Goofy, Jack, and Elizabeth in the ship’s hold, Pete congratulated Barbossa on a job well done. Elizabeth yelled that Barbossa was a coward. Sora said that was the last time he would trust a pirate. From behind, somebody told Barbossa that the powder kegs were ready. Barbossa bid them farewell and left on the Pearl with Will in tow. Donald asked what they were going to do. Goofy said they would be blown to smithereens. Jack figured there was little point in struggling. A pirate knew when to surrender. Sora asked if Jack was serious. Jack said an average pirate would know, anyway. However, just then, Jack slipped free of his ropes thanks to a knife he’d had hidden and said that they needed to take care of the powder kegs. He wasn’t planning on losing this ship. Sora told him that he still wasn’t planning on trusting pirates again. Jack agreed that it was a wise policy. The group got themselves to the deck of the ship and knocked the gunpowder kegs overboard, saving the ship despite the best efforts of the Heartless. Jack ran to the wheel and took hold of steering. He said that was the second time he’d had to watch Barbossa sail away with his ship, but he would be having her back soon enough.

The group made their way back to the Isla de Muerta and disembarked. Jack turned back and told Elizabeth to stay with the ship. She said she would do no such thing. Will could die in that cave. Jack said that William was fine and asked that she trust him. Elizabeth said that she was not a fool. Hoping to avoid any extra complications, Sora asked her to trust him instead. Elizabeth relented and asked Sora, Donald, and Goofy to bring Will back safely. The trio nodded and the whole group left to go save Will and confront Barbossa. As the group moved towards the interior of the island, they grabbed treasures and puzzle pieces as they fought back groups containing both Heartless and undead pirates. In the treasure room of the pirates, Barbossa said that it was time to try again. The last of the Aztec treasure had been returned and now the blood would be repaid to lift the curse forever. As Barbossa approached Will to spill his blood over the treasure, the group ran into the room. Sora screamed out that their treasure had arrived. Barbossa was stunned. This wasn’t possible. Donald said that it wasn’t probable, but they were alive and they were pirates! The group all stepped forward and sounded off. Barbossa said if they wanted to play pirate, they had best save the playacting for the nursery. He sent his pirates after them, but the group routed them to a man. After the battle, Will ran up to Sora and thanked him for the rescue. It was then that they noticed that Jack was not among them. To the side of the cave, they heard the sound of swords clashing together and saw Jack fighting Barbossa. Sora called out to Jack, distracting him just enough that Barbossa was able to stab him with his sword. The group was stunned…until Jack tumbled back into the moonlight and became a skeleton himself! Jack had swiped a piece of the Aztec treasure while the pirates had been distracted, taking the curse upon himself for his advantage. Barbossa, frustrated at the turn of events, called for Pete to show himself. The tide had changed. Pete appeared on the other side of the cave and said that he knew Barbossa would be needing his help. Pete whistled and a lizard-like Heartless, the Illuminator, appeared in the cave to join Barbossa in battle. The Illuminator managed to capture the moonlight, keeping the room dark and allowing Barbossa to remain invincible and invisible, to a point. Sora changed into his Wisdom Form and hunted the Illuminator down, knocking it out and letting moonlight back into the room, leaving Barbossa vulnerable. Sora continued attacking with his Wisdom Form while Jack slashed and parried Barbossa’s sword attacks. As the form wore off, Sora and Donald attacked with their Fantasia Limit, using magic to propel Barbossa into the air uncontrollably while Sora jumped and attacked with everything he had. The ferocity of Sora’s attacks paired with the speed of Jack’s fencing skills finally put an end to Barbossa and his reign of terror. After the battle, Pete said that this wasn’t over yet…until, he ran off. Jack gave Barbossa the chance to surrender to him, but Barbossa drew his sword again. Jack, disappointed, dropped his sword and drew his pistol, pointing it at Barbossa. He suggested that they call it a draw, but Barbossa just laughed. He couldn’t die! Just then, Jack tossed his coin back to Will, who was standing over the chest, with his own medallion covered in blood from a cut on his hand. Jack shot Barbossa just before Will dropped both coins into the chest. Barbossa suddenly felt cold as the curse left him, only for him to be gripped by the cold hands of death.

A short time later, the group emerged from the island. Will asked Jack what he planned to do now. Jack said that he could do whatever he wanted, now that the Pearl was his again. Will thanked him for coming to his rescue. Will extended his hand, but Jack shrank back. He raised back up and said that he didn’t want Will hitting him again. Sora wished Jack good luck and Donald reminded him to be good. As Jack walked towards his ship, Elizabeth came running up and ran into Will’s arms. Sora said that was good for them. Goofy agreed, but asked why Sora’s face was all red. Sora waved his hands in front of him and said that his face was not red. Donald said that he knew who Sora was thinking about. Sora tried to cover his face, but Jack suddenly yelped as his compass took on a bright glow. The compass opened a Keyhole which Sora activated with his Keyblade. Sora said, for a minute there, he had been worried they were going to lose Donald to the curse of the treasure. Goofy agreed and Donald just shook his head, offended at the notion. For their efforts, Sora earned the Follow The Wind keyblade. The group left Port Royal in the Gummi Ship and found two new paths open, both to very familiar worlds: Agrabah and Halloween Town. The trio headed first for Agrabah to see their old friends, Aladdin, Genie, and Jasmine…