Chapter 28: The Spiral Truth
The waves outside groaned like an old man nursing a wound, heavy and broken. The sea no longer danced beneath the hull of the Black Pearl—it trembled, almost... resentful. And yet, the ship moved, pressing through the morning fog like a ghost through old memory.
Below the quiet sails and above the silent depths, Jake Sparrow sat at his cluttered captain's desk, a half-empty bottle of rum swaying in time with the ship. Beside him stood Elias, arms folded, black sword sheathed at his side like a coiled shadow. Raina leaned on a barrel in the corner, her eyes darting between them both.
"Alright," Jake muttered, waving his hand lazily. "So... spooky dagger whispers secrets, and now the sea's acting like it got its heart broken. That about sum it up?"
Elias didn't laugh. For once, his smirk was missing.
"She said the sea is dying," he muttered.
Jake raised a finger. "Aye, well, I've heard that before. Usually from rum-starved pirates three weeks into a dry voyage. Doesn't mean the gods have truly packed their bags and left."
"She also said," Raina added softly, her voice a breeze across still water, "You were not born of this age, Elias. Your name is not your own."
Jake leaned back in his chair, raising a brow.
"Now that's interesting," he said with a grin. "You hiding a secret time-traveling past, mate? Or are you secretly a prince of Atlantis?"
Elias didn't answer. His gaze dropped to the floorboards as if he could see through them—through the ship, through the ocean, into the very spiral the prophet spoke of.
"She said the world doesn't turn. It spirals," he said. "That's not metaphor. That's something else."
Jake nodded solemnly, then immediately undercut the gravity. "Right, so we're in a giant galactic drain, spinning toward cosmic doom. Splendid. What do we do now—build a bigger boat?"
Raina chuckled, but Elias didn't. He stepped forward, leaning on the table, eyes on Jake.
"She said I was placed here. Not born. That my name isn't mine." He paused. "What if... what if I'm not supposed to be here?"
Jake didn't smile now.
"Everyone's out of place in this world, mate. Look at me—Captain Jack Sparrow, born to command the sea, yet always runnin' from it."
Elias glanced at him sideways. "That's because you steal from everyone with a sail."
"And do it with style!" Jake shot back, grinning.
But the grin faded. "Still... I know what it's like to feel like the world ain't where you belong."
Raina leaned forward. "Do you feel different, Elias? Like you don't... fit?"
Elias's answer was slow. "Since I was a boy. I've always been faster. Stronger. I see things others don't. I thought it was luck or madness. Now I'm not sure."
Jake nodded toward the dagger sitting on the table—quiet now, the whisper gone, but its presence a weight in the air.
"You think this... prophet, this whispering lady, knew you? Knew where you came from?"
"She spoke like she remembered me," Elias said. "Like I was part of something ancient... something older than this ship, this ocean, even this age."
Jake leaned in, serious for once.
"If what she said is true, and the sea is dying... then maybe you're not the only one misplaced. Maybe time's gone crooked. Maybe the whole world is unraveling."
Raina stood up straight. "So what now? Do we search for answers?"
Jake sighed, pouring himself a bit more rum.
"I say we drink until it makes sense."
"Jake," Elias said, shooting him a glare.
The captain grinned and raised his hands in surrender. "Fine, fine. If the sea's dying, and you're a misplaced mystery man, then we sail to the edge of the spiral. Wherever that is. Find answers. Maybe find gods, or their graves."
Raina looked between the two of them. "That sounds like a death wish."
Jake winked. "Then it's a damn good pirate plan."
Outside, the wind changed. The sails caught a strange breeze—not cold, not warm, just… old. It tasted like a forgotten name.
The ship shuddered.
Elias looked toward the window. "The spiral has already begun."
Jake grabbed his compass—black, erratic, twitching wildly—and stood.
"Then let's see where it leads."
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