Wooyoung had calculated the pirates' route using Yongguk's map. According to his keen senses, it would take them a few weeks to reach their destination. It came as no surprise that they would have to pass on land and restock their provisions.

When Hongjoong stepped out from his cabin the day after Yeosang had cursed him out for tying Cabezon to the bowsprit, he was in an excellent mood. Not even Seonghwa's hateful glare when he strode up to the wheel next to San brushed him.

"Ye been busy last night, Capt'n?" San nodded his chin at the displeased commander on the floor. He leaned against the railing stiffly and with as much dignity as possible. Somehow, he had pinched his jacket fully shut and the high collar hugged his neck again. Only a few more days until his next rendezvous with the cat. Perhaps Hongjoong could convince him to change his clothes after that. Or he could tear them right off him using the whip.

"Aye. Got an earful o' Yeosang about 'is condition."

"Ye be feedin' 'im now?"

Hongjoong sighed, staring down at Seonghwa in displeasure that he had to divide their rations for him. Then, he giggled. It was worth keeping the man around.

"Aye. Tell me if 'e annoys ye." With a pat on San's shoulder, Hongjoong stepped away. Seonghwa looked as if he wanted to spit some comment at him, but when Hongjoong lowered his arm to pet his hair, he interrupted himself. Quick like a storm, the man's features darkened.

Hongjoong jumped off before the man's teeth could snap at him. Then, he strutted down the stairs grinning.

His crew greeted him boisterous and cheerful as always. They were singing a shanty as they worked, and Jongho sat leaned against the mainmast. The concertina with the intricate details that Mingi had carved into the wood for him sat on his leg and played a joyous melody for the working pirates. Everybody hummed or sung together, even those who sat on their knees with their holystones or flicked the sails in endless monotony.

The musician nodded at his captain before he carried the shanty further. His voice was full and powerful; one of the most pleasant that Hongjoong had ever had the joy of listening to. Cabezon up at the helm was probably annoyed by the noise still.

Hongjoong just skipped to consult Wooyoung about the daily plans when a shriek behind him had him halt. On his heel, he turned to call up to San and see what had the man so surprised. The crew was playful. The occasional slaps or pinches between them were nothing unheard of. In San's case, however, he stood yelping on one leg while his hands still grasped the wheel. His face was deformed in pain. Hongjoong noticed the lack of a white-uniformed body at his side at the same moment that the door to the captain's quarters heavily slammed shut behind San.

Chuckling, Hongjoong turned his route to return to his helmsman.

"What did 'e do?"

"Bit me leg, that bilge-suckin' rat. 'E probably chewed through 'is bindings, too." San scowled at his leg, and then at the door behind them. Seonghwa had nowhere to go. He could only end his own life by hopping from Hongjoong's windows and he doubted that was his plan. The commander most likely drafted an ambush. Amused excitement over his feistiness rushed through Hongjoong's veins.

"Let Yeosang patch ye up if it be bad. Yunho? Heave ho."

Instantly, Yunho sprung up the stairs next to them. His long legs carried him up with lightning-fast speed as they took two steps at a time. With his hand on the grip of his sword, Yunho halted next to his captain. A friendly smile that contrasted with the steely calculation in his eyes grazed his lips.

"Restrain 'im once ye spy where 'e 'ides. Most likely behind the door." Hongjoong drew his gun as he leaned to the left of the door. Yunho took position on the right. Entertained by the morning spectacle, the crew hollered at them while Jongho had switched his tune to an adventurous and fast beat that had his fingers dance over the keys.

Hongjoong waited for the melody to peak and threw the door open on the highest note. When it banged against the wall, his eyes instantly went to his right, expecting to see Cabezon there with a chair held over his head.

When a bullet whizzed past his ear to punch a hole into the wall next to his head, laughter tumbled from Hongjoong's lips. He ducked under the next shot and went straight for Seonghwa, who waited for him in the middle of the room.

With a curse on his lips, the commander reloaded the blunderbuss he had found. With perfect form, he aimed.

Hongjoong's leg reached out and kicked the muzzle of the weapon up at the same time that Seonghwa pulled the trigger. The bullet penetrated the wooden ceiling and exposed a flash of the sky above. It seemed as if Mingi would have more work to do later.

Just when Cabezon flexed his jaw and threw Hongjoong's leg down to shoot again, Yunho snuck up behind him. His arms caught Seonghwa and wrestled the weapon from him. It thumped to the ground. With a frustrated grunt, Seonghwa threw his weight against Yunho's grasp on him. The pirate was stronger, though.

Chuckling, Hongjoong put his gun away. He bent over deliberately slowly to pick up the rifle and placed it on his desk.

"What been yer plan? Shootin' us down one by one as we appeared in the doorway?" Chuckling, Hongjoong motioned Yunho to step back. The man instantly obeyed, but he rested the tip of his sword on Seonghwa's shoulder as an unmistakable warning still.

"I might have succeeded. So far, you and your crew haven't proved too much intelligence to me," Seonghwa spit venomously. The sweet grin on Hongjoong's face had him clench his fists.

"Aye, ye just underlined which one of us groups be more successful in their plannin'. Did ye steal any more weapons?"

Hateful, Seonghwa shook his head. The way he thinned the line of his lips had Hongjoong raise his brow at him.

"A movement an' a pretty red necklace decorates ye." Hongjoong nodded at Yunho, who remained perfectly still in his place behind Seonghwa. The commander scowled at Hongjoong when he brought out the metal shackles again and restrained his hands behind his back. Yet, he didn't cower. With the one superiority over Hongjoong that he had, he lowered his eyes to him from his height.

Hongjoong didn't take his gaze off the man's stiff features as he reached for his shoulders. With moderate pressure, he explored the man's body and clothes, feeling it up for a weapon.

Hongjoong wasn't stupid. He could see where the man's shirt ever so slightly bunched around the knife he had hidden in the back of his belt. Yet, he enjoyed the man's squirming as Hongjoong's fingers ever so slowly travelled down over his chest.

"Ye bit San. I 'ope ye did nay catch some disease he might carry."

The casual remark had Seonghwa go pale around his nose. Hongjoong deviously chuckled to himself.

As annoying and cruel as the commander was, Hongjoong had to hand it to him he was handsome. Not only his features but also his shoulders that formed into a tiny waist that only seemed even tinier in that corset. Hongjoong was sure that large hands like Yunho's could probably wrap around it nearly entirely.

When Hongjoong's wandering hands slipped into the slit of the long coat the man wore, Cabezon jerked in his hold. Yunho warningly pressed the flat side of his blade against his neck, reminding him with an icy touch to stay still. Cabezon barely did. His face contorted into a grimace as he had to accept how Hongjoong felt him up.

As his hands circled the man's hips with barely noticeable touches, Hongjoong stepped further in. He feigned his arms were too short to reach. Yet, he grinned up at Seonghwa smugly when the man shifted his head away so he wouldn't have to look at the playful pirate.

"Don't leave any spots on my uniform or I will have you lick it up," Cabezon bit out sharply. Hongjoong wondered if that was his go-to method. How was the man so forgetful? Did he do the same thing he did to Hongjoong to a lot of prisoners?

With a rough yank on his belt, Hongjoong brought the two of them closer. Their middles brushed, making Seonghwa curl in on himself. Stubbornly, Hongjoong held them together. Their chests crowded together as he searched around the back of the man's hips. The grip of the knife drew near.

"Do nay pretend as if ye were any cleaner." Hongjoong's hot breath brushed the commander's chin. Agitated, the man turned his head to the ceiling, not caring that he exposed his throat to them.

Without letting his eyes stray from the man's expression, Hongjoong wrapped his fingers around the hilt of the weapon. Seonghwa stiffened.

"Ye wanted to 'ornswoggle me. What a bold move." Chuckling, Hongjoong leaned his chin on Seonghwa's chest. The commander tried hard not to twist his body and throw him off, but disgust showed on every corner of his face.

"Ye should apologise. I might lower yer punishment." Hongjoong angled his hand slightly, having the blade of the knife dig against Seonghwa's backside. With a hitch in his breath, Cabezon naively avoided the touch of cold steel on his flesh. Instead, he pressed his crotch against Hongjoong's, making the captain huff a breath.

"I have nothing to apologise for. Not towards a pirate."

"Too bad." Hongjoong pulled the knife from Seonghwa and threw it onto the desk, too. As he patted down the man's legs and boots, he purposefully gripped the man's inner thighs tight as he came back up. Seonghwa's brow furrowed.

"Yunho, chain 'im to the bed. I want 'im in the best condition at 'is next whippin'. No worries about gettin' bitten, too. I'll keep me spotlights on 'im."

Seonghwa struggled when Yunho yanked him towards Hongjoong's resting place. After all, he had tried so hard to avoid it the day prior. All the more reason for Hongjoong to keep him there.

Hongjoong let them wrestle with each other, trusting in Yunho's abilities. When he stepped out on deck to reassure his men, the clouds had darkened above them. The skies smelled of rain and an upcoming storm.

Yeosang had propped San's leg up on the railing to take care of his injury right at the wheel. For balance, San leaned comfortably against Mingi's chest. The tall man casually felt up their helmsman's smooth and tanned skin beneath his open vest. Neither of them seemed conscious of the act.

The shanty beneath told of thunder and lightning, of the high waves that would soon throw their ship around. As Hongjoong's men battened down the hatches, all of them already prepared for a rough night.

Wooyoung's face had a green tint to it as his typical sea sickness that high waves caused welled up in him. Hongjoong told him to get some rest in the ship's belly where the swaying wasn't as bad.

The first rain splattered down on them when Yunho emerged from the cabin behind him. Those who were still at work pulled their hats on their faces to have them drain the rain. Hongjoong left his heavy coat behind so it wouldn't get soaked with water and pull him to the ground with the additional weight.

"Seems as if we be gettin' closer to the Enemy. Back when it appeared the first time, it been a similar storm. With lightning so dark that it looked black in the sky."

Hongjoong stared out at the horizon while rain whipped his face. Wooyoung put his spyglass into his belt.

"Aye, we be gettin' close then. Will ye offer Cabezon as the sacrifice?"

Hongjoong put his hands on the railing in front of him. His shirt stuck wetly to his body. The water and wind in combination created chilly temperatures.

"I 'ave nay decided yet. I will know when it be time."

"Be yer takin' revenge on 'im concluded after some time?"

Hongjoong didn't know. So far, he had too much fun pushing Seonghwa around and taunting him. But when it was time to decide for his fate, Hongjoong might get rid of him after having had his fill.

"I do nay know. Since we ain't even, anyway. Fer now, I would rather send 'im to the depths than 'ave 'im return to the sea."

Wooyoung nodded. The dark skies above overshadowed his face. They would need to light their lamps soon.

"Ye will nay do the same to 'im, aye?"

Hongjoong grinned, lightning flashing on his cheerful expression.

"Nay. After all, rape be punished with death fer us. I will play by bein' above 'is level."