Warnings: blood, gore, a sliver of mild smut in the middle of the chapter

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Yunho and Mingi kicked the door to the naval fort down. Blunderbuss in hands and with his murderous husband by his side, Hongjoong stepped over the threshold. They faced a bunch of wide-eyed jack tar seated around a table playing cards. Their uniforms were rumpled and their weapons far as they scrambled to sit upright.

"Gentlemen, this be an invasion. Lay down yer weapons an' swear to the blackjack, then we will spare yer miserable souls."

The soldiers looked at each other, wide-eyed and unprepared for an attack despite training for years to get rid of the pirate plague. Hongjoong waited, impatient, but the fools tried their luck. One scrambled to the hind door, yelling for their commander. He went down first, riddled with bullets. The others followed the moment they made for their guns.

In a swirl of steel and blood, the pirates bathed the room in their colours. Alarm bells rang across the yard, assembling their lazing men, but whichever scallywags they expected, it wasn't the Pirate King and his crew of demon-killers. Their orderly rows got mowed down by sabres like rye.

As the crew swarmed out to search the buildings for leftover cowards, Hongjoong stomped up the stairs to the commanding office. He didn't run, never hurried though blood caked his boots and made the stairs slippery. Around him, the stench of gunfire and death filled the air. San lunged with his eyes blazing and two fumbling soldiers went down under his attack. He dragged their bodies off to a pile to salvage later.

Flanked by Yeosang and Seonghwa, Hongjoong kicked the door to the office open. The man behind the desk was but a shadow of a governor. He wore noble clothing, pigging out on the high earnings his position promised despite never lifting a blade himself. When the three pirates appeared in the doorway, he fell to his knees, fingers coming up to plead before his white wig.

"Have mercy, scourge of the seven seas! We are a humble outpost; this island has nothing to offer you!"

Hongjoong snorted. As he transgressed the room, Yeosang and Seonghwa supervised the door.

The cowering male ducked deeper, grovelling before Hongjoong's feet that carried the leftovers of his men.

"Do ye 'ave no shame? 'Idin' away 'ere while we slaughter yer mates?" A fine commander he made. He should have died at their front, leading them into battle. How must it be to die for a person without having worth to them? Hongjoong hoped his crew would never find themselves trapped by such doubts.

"I beseech you! Have my treasures and my maps, but leave this fort! Harm will come upon you once our allies arrive; it's in our mutual interest!" The man babbled.

Ice-cold scorn filled Hongjoong's heart. He crouched, not bothering to pack the man by his fake hair and going straight for his throat. Spluttering and gasping, the commander flailed as Hongjoong hauled him around the table. He didn't mind the howls of pain as his captive collided with its corners.

On the naked stones beyond the table, glimmering in lantern light, hung spreadsheets. Wanted posters of the worst pirates mingled with death warrants.

Hongjoong halted before them with the commander by his feet, grovelling and praying for clemency.

"Do ye know who I be?"

"N-No, please! Please have mercy; the Lord blessed every man walking the earth with it! You have it; you can find back on the right path and go to paradise, please, I beseech you-"

Hongjoong hauled him up and slammed him face-first into his wanted poster. The crack of the man's breaking nose echoed through the tall room and blood splotched over the visage of a past Hongjoong staring back at him. Riches beyond everyone's imagination awaited the one who handed him in. His title: Pirate King Kim Hongjoong. Just Dead.

With bulging eyes, the man gaped at the poster when Hongjoong yanked him back.

"I be the darned Pirate King, ye son o' a biscuit eater. Yer life been lost the moment ye ignored the plague investing yer shorelines." After those words, he slammed the governor's head into the rocks with enough force to crack his skull. He stepped back, wiping his hand on his coat, and retrieved the dungeon keys and the map from the slumping corpse's belt. He tossed the former to Yeosang.

"Free 'em fellows from the bilge an' send 'em to 'elp with reparations. I want everyone to search the island fer secondary watch towers. By noon, all jack tar be gone from this place."

Yeosang dashed away, gathering up the others to relay his orders. Seonghwa lingered, dark eyes heavy on Hongjoong as he sat down on the edge of the table. He left the maps to deal with later. When he patted his lap invitingly, Seonghwa came springing. His body was hot and feverish from their fighting and cosied up against Hongjoong like a starving man finding food. His tongue lapped off the mixture of blood and sweat on his neck, only partly Hongjoong's own.

As he clutched to Seonghwa's hips to crowd their bodies together, Hongjoong crooned into his ear.

"Do ye like it, sugar? This be me present to ye, this island an' its beautiful sights. These be yer forests now, yer shores an' yer cliffs."

Seonghwa panted into his neck, close as he rutted into Hongjoong. The stench of death doused them in an exhilarating haze.

"Our children can grow up 'ere. We can grow old 'ere. I will wait fer ye whenever I can nay sail with ye an' I will prepare ye meals an' a warm bed to come 'ome to. A warm body."

Chuckling, Hongjoong seized his behind with two hands, splaying him open for his leg to grind against. Seonghwa moaned, tumbling into him to sprawl them flat over the massive table. The door was open and the cheers of victory from outside could come closer any second. But Seonghwa couldn't be stopped as he feverishly kissed Hongjoong's throat, leaving marks that declared the ferocious pirate as his.

"All yers. Ours. I will brin' ye anythin' ye want. Jewels, stars, slaves. As many kids as yer arms can carry."

Seonghwa whimpered, picking up their pace until they wound on the table. He shuddered, blood-crazed mind emptying when ecstasy took over. Hongjoong helped him ride it out, proud to be the only one to see Seonghwa like this. As his treasure slumped onto his chest to catch his breath, Hongjoong meant every word he said.

They rested there for a moment while Hongjoong caressed Seonghwa's messy locks and pressed kisses to his forehead. Perhaps they would have stayed until the rumoured reinforcements came to determine the island lost, but Wooyoung collected them before that. He appeared at the door with his face splotched with blood, but his grin was cheeky when he laid eyes on them.

"Ahoy, captain couple," he chirped as he came sashaying inside. A grazing shot hit his arm, but Yunho already bandaged it up. When he caught Hongjoong's lingering eyes, he waved it off.

"All done in 'ere? We cleaned up outside." He stepped up behind Seonghwa, bending over his lax back. Hongjoong groaned at their combined weight, lungs protesting. Nonetheless, Wooyoung pressed a bold kiss to Seonghwa's lax cheek as his hand dipped down between their bodies.

"Once yer blood frenzy be over, we should greet the townsfolk at the marketplace an' announce our presence. If they do nay want to live under a gentleman o' fortune's rule, they better 'urry out o' 'ere."

Seonghwa stifled a whimper in Hongjoong's shoulder when Wooyoung squeezed the wet crotch of his pants. With lidded eyes, Hongjoong watched his two troublemakers put on a tempting show.

"Be this adultery?" Hongjoong asked as he helped Wooyoung balance Seonghwa on his feet. The tall quartermaster wobbled between them for a moment, drunk on his delirium, but he quickly regained his senses. As he adjusted his sleeves and ripped the wanted posters from the wall, Wooyoung grinned fondly at his ring.

"Since we both be married, perhaps nay. The solution be to team ye up with San in return."

Hongjoong snickered at Wooyoung's creativity. His body ached when he dusted his pants off and though he didn't get injured, he should check on his nutrient intake. Dying from scurvy after so many mad adventures was the most shameful way to go. He rubbed his eyes as he accompanied his lookout outside.

"It been a while since I played with ye two. Let's celebrate together once everythin' be resolved an' if me precious be up fer it."

"Savvy, Captain," Wooyoung purred. They stepped to the balustrade of the fort together, looking out over the town below. Some inhabitants took notice of the smoke rising from their patrons' quarters and warned each other in fear of the approaching pirate dread. Most were pretty damsels in elaborate dresses with their husbands that served no further purpose than being their walking aids.

"I sent the monkeys to go undercover an' pick up on any rumours. If we promise 'em the land they own currently, they might nay care who rules the isle."

"Those who feel threatened can feed the fish," Hongjoong replied as he observed their scurried haste through the narrow passages. The town was beautiful; untouched and lush since it saw few raids but plenty of nature. Even if they resisted, Hongjoong hoped they could save the buildings, so they had fewer to build later when the pirates settled in.

"They also 'ave the largest trading port on the Buried Lagoon. This be the one we want to invest in."

A port could supply them with everything a pirate needed. Canvas, food, wood. Carpenters whenever Jongho couldn't shoulder the repairs by himself. Though the others were ever so eager to help, their hands were clumsy with nails and hammers.

When Hongjoong stifled a cough in his sleeve, Wooyoung glanced at him. Burning eyes glared at the smoke raising behind the headquarters.

"I do nay need this buildin' fer meself, but tell 'em to avast 'em flames. We can put a tavern in 'ere but nay if 'em 'alls crumble."

"Aye, Cap'n," Wooyoung huffed before he jogged away to order the evildoers around. His shadow followed him through the diffuse air; harmless and unchanging by his feet.

As if all those things never happened.

They healed, slowly, but some scars lasted forever.

Seonghwa exited the office behind Hongjoong. His eyes had cleared and his posture was regal as ever. When the king offered him his hand, the prince took it so they could descend the stairs together.

As promised, Hongjoong gathered the crew at the marketplace. Many didn't dare come outside to attend his speech, but those who did would carry the news.

"Yer island been captured by pirates an' will become our outpost. Ye may stay neutral labourers or ye may join us under the blackjack. The rest may flee or pray to be rescued by the naval reinforcements. That be, if any o' 'em survived." Hongjoong grinned sinisterly at the crowd of mannerly lords and ladies. Someone fainted; Yunho laughed.

The town sunk into mayhem, but that was not the crew's place to care. While they figured themselves out and the allied pirates seized everything left unattended, the crew returned to the Black Bay. Though smaller, it was private. Hongjoong was no mayor. Someone else could do that work while he was out at sea. To him, this home was just a hideout for him and Seonghwa to catch their breaths.

They didn't see Yongguk on their way up the hill on unsteady sea legs, but light danced behind the windows of his new home. Pleased that Tikki found her place and Seonghwa wouldn't need to fret about her, Hongjoong parted from his crew before his villa.

"Keep yer deadlights on the 'orizon fer the jack tar. We will splice the mainbrace tomorrow, so take a caulk an' check each other fer injuries."

Yeosang shyly leaned in Jongho's arm as the carpenter took off his prosthesis with gentle hands. As much as it was a convenience, it caused their navigator pain when worn over longer periods of time.

"Aye, Captain!" They chittered and left for their mayhem. Hongjoong rubbed his temples at a stab of pain. He deserved his rest.

First, however, Seonghwa reached for him with a coy hand, walking backward into their shared home. Though they were grimy and full of sin, the man's lure was that of an angel.

"Let me repay the favour," Seonghwa invited as he made for the spacious bedroom, and Hongjoong all too gladly fell into his husband's siren call.