If Edward killed his father, there was a chance that the pirates wouldn't kill him in return, and he would become their new leader. It made a twisted kind of sense to Edward, and it was their only real chance to survive. Everything else led to death.
Grace was the only wildcard. They had killed her son, and she hated them for it. He knew from her story that she probably didn't have any real affection for his father. If it looked like he was about to escape or win, she would probably kill him afterwards. Edward had to kill Grace first.
Edward was so deep in thought that he didn't see the oncoming missile as it hit him in the face. A bystander had thrown a rock his way. He reeled back but stamped his foot down to stay upright. He stood back up to his full, towering height and looked for the aggressor. Soon he found the man, who had gathered another rock to throw, but when Edward's eyes met his, he stumbled and dropped it. He cowered at Edward's gaze. Edward noticed others in the crowd who had gathered the courage to throw something because of the first volley, and he stared each one of them down.
Whatever power Edward held in that gaze of his made the people in the crowd sink into themselves with fear despite him heading for the gallows in bonds. He didn't question it and turned his gaze to the men and women on the other side of the road for good measure. He could feel blood trickling down the side of his face where the rock had hit, but he didn't wipe it away.
The crowd parted as they came closer and closer to the gallows, giving them a straight path to the wooden structure. Edward could see his father there, waiting for him, and another man who would operate the lever. His father moved to the side and motioned behind him, beckoning Edward towards the noose hanging at the top.
When they were not thirty feet from the gallows, Edward noticed Sam there in the crowd. Sam winked and grinned at Edward, then looked down to his hip. Edward followed his gaze and Sam tapped on the cutlass at his hip, Edward's golden cutlass, and then he tapped his wrists.
It was all the confirmation Edward needed. He could count on Sam and his crew to help them through this. Relief washed over Edward, but the feeling was brief. He steeled himself for what was coming.
Grace passed Sam, staring daggers at him. Sam shrugged and laughed. The failed distraction from earlier had blown over, but not without a loss of Sam's position. Grace turned her attention back to the gallows in front of her, ignoring Sam.
Sam pulled the golden blade from his sheath. The strange golden metal sang. Edward put his hands out and held the rope tying his wrists taut. In one swing, Sam cut the rope in two. It was no match for the razor edge of Edward's blade. With another flick of Sam's wrist, he cut the bonds from Herbert's hands as well.
Then Sam tossed the cutlass to Edward. He caught it and swung around in an arc behind him. He sliced open the two guards behind him in one stroke. They fell to the ground, instantly dead.
"Now, Herbert!"
Grace had turned around just as Edward had killed the guards.
"You're not the only one with a secret weapon, you bitch!" Herbert shouted.
Herbert pulled on a cord within the arms of his wheelchair. The cord was attached to several small flintlock mechanisms inside the arms. The flintlocks fired off all at once, sending iron balls out the front of the wheelchair.
Grace jumped out of the way and to the ground. Some of the iron balls missed, but a few caught her in the stomach, and she clutched the wounded area. She gritted her teeth and rose to shaking feet. She grabbed onto the cords in her copper greaves and pulled.
Edward grabbed Herbert out of his wheelchair and jumped as Grace's weapons fired. Edward didn't feel anything hit him, but he heard Herbert groaning in pain. They tumbled to the ground together.
"Herbert, were you injured?" he asked as he got to his feet.
Herbert coughed. "I can't feel my legs."
Edward shook his head. "This is no time for jesting." Edward looked over his friend, and it appeared that he was mostly uninjured.
Edward rose to his feet to see Grace standing there, still clutching her stomach as she bled out. "Sam, protect Herbert."
Sam came over, another weapon drawn. "You got it, Captain. Now kill yer da so we can get out of here!"
Sam's crew had surrounded the gallows and were keeping the rest of the pirates at bay. The earlier shouts of a crowd eager to see a hanging had been replaced with women screaming and the battle cries of pirates loyal to Jack. Something felt off about it all though, as though there should have been more fighting and more noise than there was. For the number of people who had gathered there, it felt subdued.
Then Edward looked up at the gallows, and he could see his father had his hand raised. When Sam's crew noticed what was happening, they stopped provoking fights but remained at the ready.
Then Jack jumped off the podium to the ground below. "Grace, are you well?"
"Well enough," she said, though the sweat on her brow and the blood from her stomach told another tale.
Jack pointed at Sam. "Kill Sam," he said.
Grace took a few deep breaths and pulled out a cutlass from her belt. "Gladly."
Jack stepped away from Grace to give her some space, and
