Shock, Trust, and Ruthlessness - Kai's Offers

As Cersei and Barbossa entered Captain's chambers, in the prison cells of Fort Charles, Jack Sparrow broke out with a chuckle.

There was a look on Captain Jack's face that said he hadn't heard anything more absurd than Kai's words before. "Freedom…" he tasted the word, licking his lips. "Aye! That is indeed what I want. But the only freedom that I need now is to leave this place. You can forget about the Compass, my friend."

For Kai to bring the Compass back to Jack Sparrow already said that he knew about the Compass' specialty. Jack Sparrow was shrewd enough to see through it, but Kai had no intention of hiding it, to begin with.

Only the greed of even greater power could force Jack Sparrow to even consider trading the Compass, for no one wanted to go through the wrath of betrayal. Much less needed to be said about one of the Luckiest beings in the Multiverse.

Yet, Kai also knew that Jack Sparrow had indeed bartered the Compass in the future part of the main storyline. Even if he had done so in a drunken stupor, there was no changing the fact, either.

Kai smiled. "Won't you even hear what I have to offer, eh?" he asked, glancing at the other box. "I am asking for much, but I am giving you even more in return."

Jack Sparrow played with his ear for a while, showing no interest, and then said, "Let's hear it."

This was the power of the first impression. So what if Jack Sparrow didn't fear him? The ex-captain of Black Pearl at least knew him better than before. It was enough to get an opportunity, and an opportunity was all Kai needed.

Half part of the negotiations could already be considered over.

"The first thing I've to offer you is a name," Kai said, knowing well that Jack Sparrow had gotten little time after his arrival at Port Royal to prowl around for information. "Let it be a gift from pirate to pirate, and from Captain to Captain."

The shock factor had already served its purpose. Then came the matter of establishing trust.

This gift was Kai's attempt at building that trust. An attempt he knew would surely work, especially after Koehler's and Twigg's (-two pirates from Black Pearl-) recent visit.

Looking at Jack's face, one could not tell if he believed a name would garner any attention from him. But he was listening.

"William…" Kai told Jack. "William Turner."

For a moment, Jack showed no change in expression. But Kai could see the glint in his eyes and the waves the fluctuation of his emotions had caused, letting him perceive them.

Kai had got him!

"The second thing I am offering is this person's current location," Kai continued, making Jack fall into a rare silence. "The third thing is your freedom; from this prison, of course. The fourth thing is a piece of information that will bring you great joy, and I am sure it will soothe the spite in your heart you carry for your ex-crewmen."

Till now, not one thing that Kai offered seemed to have garnered Jack's attention.

It was then that Kai put forward his last offer.

"The last thing I am offering," Kai whispered, his face solemn, "is Life."

"Life?" Jack repeated, flicking the bone in his hand up and down. "No, thank you. I already have it."

Kai sneered. "That's good," he said, nodding in agreement. "What about another? Two lives are always better than one, no? Haha!"

Jack's face crumbled for the first time, and his eyes involuntarily landed on the second box.

"Get over here," a command escaped Kai's throat like a beastly growl.

The dog, who carried keys in his mouth and who had run off before the two pirates and Kai's arrival, was still resting at the foot of the stairs, leading further down the prison corridor.

With this command, Kai stimulated his Glitch, making the dog near him shiver as if being eyed by the bloodthirstiest predator.

The dog yelped and approached them under the shocking gaze of Jack Sparrow. Even he hadn't managed to make the dog come near to him.

The dog dropped the keys behind Kai and sat down on his haunches, yelping all the while.

"Wait!" Jack suddenly shouted.

Too late!

With a bang, a corner of the dog's head shattered, blood splattering everywhere as Kai stomped over it.

Shock, Trust, and Ruthlessness.

These were the three reasons behind Kai's risk. If he hadn't had faith in these reasons, then he wouldn't have carried out this plan.

Jack had gone incredibly silent. This was thin ice Kai was walking on. But even if the ice would have been thinner, he still had the courage and confidence to run over it.

The box flew open, then. The second one.

Under the penetrating gaze of Jack, Kai took out a blood-colored crystal, shining bloodier than ever. It was the size of a nail, and there was such a thick aura around it that even an ordinary person could have sensed its mystery.

Jack Sparrow, though an ordinary man, was the most extraordinary Character even among the extraordinary.

Kai held the tiny Philosopher's Stone between his fingers, crouched, and let it kiss the badly mangled wound of the twitching dog.

What happened next made Jack Sparrow draw a stunning breath.

Flesh, blood, and bones regenerated off the broken head at a visible rate as a bloody light pulsated out of the Artifact in Kai's hand. In no time, the dog's head had returned to as it was before Kai's cruel actions.

Sssss!

The dog drew breath, and its eyes snapped open. With a final yelp, it ran away, not staying a bit longer near its murderer.

This was the Philosopher's Stone; capable of healing even the most grievous wounds, even those that had been inflicted on the vital organs.

In terms of the Primordial Tower, the Philosopher's Stone supplied a substantial amount of HP almost instantly, attacking the most horrendous wounds in the target's body. Its effect was nearly perfect and instantaneous, but there was a major drawback.

Using the Philosopher's Stone to heal anything that possessed a definite form consumed it.

That's why, for Contestants, to use one of the most rare Artifacts to heal fatal wounds, when this could easily be accomplished using HP capsules, was an unforgivable crime; punishable by death. There were better and more mysterious uses of the Philosopher's Stone that no other Artifact, Item, or Skill could accomplish with half as much efficacy as it.

Like healing a damaged Soul.

As Kai saw the crystal's size shortening, he frowned inwardly.

In the open, he pushed himself to his feet and looked at Jack Sparrow. "No matter the lethality of a wound," Kai told him, "this stone can grant you one more life. This should be enough for the Compass, right? This should be more than enough for anything."

Kai had indeed planned to trade the Compass for the Philosopher's Stone. So what if the stone had cost him 33 million mission credits? So what if it could heal his soul if he were to ignore the matter of Death's tampering with it?

And so what if he could sell it again to get back the mission credits and use them for something else?

Jack Sparrow's Compass… was priceless.

It was one of the most unique Items that could only be desired but not obtained.

Not to mention, getting the Compass from Jack Sparrow himself would automatically turn the Artifact into a Named Item.

How many things were there in the Multiverse that led one to the thing they wanted the most? None.

And how many ways were there through which one could create their own Philosopher's Stones? Countless.

Creation of Philosopher's Stones was indeed a logic-defying task, but with Kai, it wasn't an impossible one. It was especially so when he had already seen their effects, his greed for them surpassing skies. If he wasn't apprehensive about these Philosopher's Stones being marked by Death, perhaps he wouldn't have given them to Jack so easily then.

And it wasn't like just anyone could approach Jack Sparrow with the Philosopher's Stone in one's hand and ask him to trade the Compass.

One must not forget what led to this moment; the combination of two monstrous concepts.

Glitch and Facelessness!

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AN: 2 more bonus chapters today. 2nd chapter publishing time: 12:30 am IST and 3rd: 6:30 am IST

Merry Christmas!!!