(no subject)

[bringmethatnpc]

Hot and hazy, night settles over Singapore with an ominous quiet, wreathing the docks and narrow waterways in shadows. Not many people are about, and in the absence of voices, the sound of a sharp cleaver making short work of a fish echoes dully around the creaking wooden boards of bridges and buildings. Below, the soft swish of water against pylons and stilts is ever present.

There's a sense of uneasy anticipation, as if the city herself knows that tonight, the war for the seas is coming to Singapore.

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[try_corsets]

"The bell has been raised from its watery grave... do you hear its sepulchral tone? A call to all, pay heed the squall and turn your sails toward home."

In the weeks she's had to learn it, Elizabeth Swann has come to love the song for what it is and what it represents. Here, near the docks and beneath the raised city, it's more than just a pirate call to arms; it's their guarantee of safe passage. She sings clearly but softly, intending to be heard only by those who might seek to delay them, and punts through the water with a long, thin pole.

The boat drifts beneath a bridge as a troop of East India Company agents marches overhead with synchronized efficiency. Outwardly calm, Elizabeth falls silent and holds the pole in the water to prevent a splash. Only when she's certain the men are moving in the opposite direction does she begin to sing again.

"Yo ho..."

"You're enjoying this, aren't you?" Tonks hisses from the bow, arching an eyebrow under the brim of her wide hat. They pick up a burst of unexpected speed, leaving a small wake behind, and Elizabeth answers with a quick, sly smile. "...haul together."

Their rendezvous point looms ahead, and Elizabeth scans the vicinity before steering toward the dock. "Raise the colors high," she continues, a bit louder now, identifying herself as a pirate to anyone who might be listening. She quickly ties up the boat and climbs out. "Heave ho..."

"...Thief! And beggar," a mocking voice interrupts from the shadows of a large sewer pipe. "Never say we die."

Elizabeth straightens, forcing herself to remain still as she watches the man and his imposing guards approach. The weight of ample weaponry stashed about her person is reassuring, and she gives the pirates look for look. If Barbossa's descriptions were accurate, this is Tai Huang, second in command to the Pirate Lord of Singapore, and just the man she'd hoped to find.

Tai Huang looks unimpressed. He leers at Elizabeth and says, "A dangerous song to be singing, for any who are ignorant of its meaning. Particularly a woman. Particularly a woman alone." Moving closer, he glances over Elizabeth 's shoulder at Tonks, still in the boat. "Two women alone."

"What makes you think they're alone?" asks Barbossa. Familiar grin in place, he steps into a thin stream of light cast by a lantern.

"You protect them?" Sneering, Tai Huang examines the newcomer, and gives only a twitch of an eye when he suddenly feels Elizabeth's knife against his throat.

"And what makes you think we need protecting?"

Tonks was right; there's no question Elizabeth is enjoying herself.

[try_corsets]

Following Tai Huang and his men along dark, narrow streets, Elizabeth stays close to Tonks and alert for danger. "Have you heard anything from Will?" she asks Barbossa, quietly.

It still grates that Will left without a word, but Elizabeth is determined to treat the subject with nonchalance.

"I trust young Turner to recover the charts." Wryly amused, Barbossa spares her a quick, pointed glance. "And you to remember your place in the presence of Captain Sao Feng."

"Is he that terrifying?" Elizabeth retorts, just short of openly scoffing at the idea. She's seen undead pirates, rotten flesh hanging from their bones, and those who are living are decidedly less formidable.

"He's much like myself," answers Barbossa, "but absent my merciful nature and sense of fair play."

Elizabeth smirks and is about to ask another question, when they halt before a large, heavy looking door. Tai Huang knocks and says nothing but "Hoi" to the doorkeeper, and both men hastily usher their guests into a bathhouse vestibule.

"Hot," Tonks murmurs near her ear. Elizabeth nods, distracted, unhappily watching Barbossa hand over his pistol. The doorkeeper looks her way, and she offers up her sword with great reluctance.

"Did you think because they're women we would not suspect them of treachery?" the pirate inquires when both Elizabeth and Barbossa start forward.

Barbossa gives a small, obsequious laugh. "Well, when you put it that way..."

"Remove, please," says the doorkeeper with barely restrained glee. It's not a request.

While Tonks surrenders her sword and lone pistol, Elizabeth sulkily shrugs out of her tunic and throws it and her hat at one of the guards with more force than is necessary. Mal will be so disappointed, she thinks. The harness he'd given her is revealed, along with several pistols and grenades, and all are confiscated. Elizabeth is dimly aware of Barbossa's faint astonishment. Tonks, less surprised by the multitude of weapons, meets Tai Huang’s eyes, prompting another "Remove, please."

"Do you really intend to dishonor a pregnant woman?" Elizabeth snaps, eyes blazing with exaggerated insult. "Pat her for weapons, but she had no more than two." After a tense moment, Elizabeth appears to remember something and shifts her gaze sideways, pulling attention from Tonks. She bends backwards and reaches down her leg, under her pants, and grunts at the awkwardness of retrieving the mare's leg. Smiling slightly, she finally pulls it free and drops it atop her other weapons, then looks around like this is a common occurrence and motions impatiently to Tonks. For want of words, Tai Huang complies and pulls the witch's wand out of her boot with a puzzled scowl.

Tonks blurts out, "It's a talisman. ...for a safe pregnancy."

"A worthless piece of wood, only," Elizabeth announces haughtily, arching an eyebrow as if to suggest Sao Feng must not be very worthy if he fears such a ‘weapon.’

This is a step too far for the doorkeeper, who gives Elizabeth a lecherous smile and repeats: "Remove, please."

Elizabeth's mouth drops open and she starts to refuse, but when they enter the bathhouse several minutes later, she's wearing a short blue robe and trailing behind her companions -- her still clothed companions. The thin cloth sticks to her skin in the steamy room, and she looks around uncertainly, wondering which of these hulking -- possibly barnacled -- pirates is the famed Sao Feng.