“You have to get off this ship!” yelled Baekhyun, regaining his balance.

Sehun reflexively shielded Kyungsoo from harm as he pulled him up to his feet. The sound of canons continued to reverberate through the hull of the ship.

“Get me to Chanyeol!” commanded the Prince. “We must tell him to stop the attack!”

“But what about the Black Navy?” asked Sehun, unsure of how they were going to get themselves out of this mess. “Who’s going to stop them?”

“I can take care of that,” replied the Black Captain. “Sehun, get the Prince to safety. Take him to Chanyeol. I will distract my men so that they don’t get in your way.”

“But what about you?!” asked Kyungsoo. “Aren’t you coming with us?”

Baekhyun looked back at him sadly. “I would love to come with you. But I’m afraid I’ll be of much greater use to you and Prince Luhan if I don’t blow my cover. Send Chanyeol my regards.” With those final words, the Black Captain escaped through a back door.

Sehun pulled Kyungsoo close, holding him with one arm, while reaching with the other to grab one of the swords mounted on the wall. “Take this,” he instructed.

“What the hell am I supposed to do with this?” asked Kyungsoo, watching as Sehun took another sword for himself.

“Just in case you need to protect yourself, my lord.”

Kyungsoo gave the messenger a bewildered look. “If this battle comes down to my swordsmanship, we really are screwed.”

…

Admiral Park stood resolutely beside a naval officer at the bridge of the ship. He strained his eyes through a pair of binoculars, hoping to catch a glimpse of the kidnapped Prince. Instead, his gaze happened to fall upon an unexpectedly familiar face. Refusing to believe the sight, he squinted even harder through the magnifying lenses towards the small figure dressed ceremoniously in black.

“HOLD YOUR FIRE!” He yelled the words before he knew what he was doing.

“Admiral!” cried the officer beside him. “They are getting away!”

Chanyeol acted on impulse. Brandishing his sword, he made his way towards the doorway. “I need a team of sailors to report to the deck immediately, ready to board the enemy ship! Quickly!”

“But sir!” called out the naval officer. “It is too risky! They are still firing at us!”

“I did not ask for your opinion! I am going to rescue the Prince, even if it’s the last thing I do. Now follow that ship and do not let it escape! That is an order!” Without another word, Chanyeol stormed through the doorway and made his way towards the stairwell. When he emerged onto the deck, he rounded up every sailor he could find. They immediately lined up in front of him and saluted.

“Awaiting your command Admiral,” announced the leader of the troop.

“Get your ropes and ladders ready,” replied Chanyeol, eyes ablaze. “As soon as we are within striking distance again, we are invading the enemy ship. Our mission is to rescue Prince Kyungsoo and Messenger Sehun, unharmed. Their well-being will be your top priority. Do what you must to ensure their safe retrieval. Have I made myself absolutely clear?”

“YES SIR!” cried out the party of sailors in unison.

“I will be coming with you,” continued Chanyeol. The revelation was met with widened stares, but the White Admiral was not deterred. “I will need a couple of men to come with me on a secondary mission. We will be capturing the enemy Captain.”

“But sir!” cried out the lead sailor. “You will need more than just a couple of us to gain access to the Black Captain! He will be heavily guarded!”

“Leave his capture to me,” replied the Admiral, twirling his sword threateningly. “Now get to work!”

“YES SIR!” replied the group of sailors before they dispersed.

…

“Of all the hiding spots on this ship,” whispered Kyungsoo with a look of disgust on his face, “you had to pick the one beside a crate of rotten fish.”

Sehun peeked up over one of the wooden boxes. “I was ordered to keep you safe, my lord. No matter what it took.”

Kyungsoo let out an exasperated sort of sigh. “What the hell is the White Navy doing anyways? One second, they were launching cannonballs at us like no tomorrow, and now when we’re actually ready to be rescued, they’re nowhere to be found.”

 “I can see the ship in the distance,” replied Sehun. “They are closing in on us. I’m not really sure why they aborted their initial attack. Perhaps the Admiral was worried he might put you in harm’s way if he continued the assault.”

“Well it’s a little too late for that kind of cautiousness,” snapped Kyungsoo. “Maybe he should’ve…” Before the Prince could finish his thought, he felt Sehun release him from his grip.

The White Messenger had launched himself up off the ground and was engaged in a swordfight with a nearby Black Sailor, who had appeared out of nowhere. Kyungsoo scrambled to his feet as a blur of black and white flew past him. Before the Prince had even steadied his own sword, Sehun had overpowered the enemy and stabbed him squarely through the chest.

“You killed him!” exclaimed the Prince, horrified at the sight of the bleeding body on the ground. He recognized Tao’s face at once, remembering the menacing smile that had taunted him when they had first been captured.

Sehun’s cheeks became ghostly white as the color drained from them completely. “I had to protect you, my lord,” he answered, almost apologetically.

“We have to get off this godforsaken ship, Sehun! This is getting completely out of hand!”

The Messenger pulled the Prince back into his grip, wrapping an arm tightly around his shoulders, and dragging him back down behind the wooden crates. “The white sails are approaching.”

Kyungsoo looked towards the rear deck and saw a ship closing in. “How the hell are we gonna get out of this mess in one piece?”

“We’re gonna have to jump overboard,” replied Sehun, “as soon as the ship gets close enough.”

Kyungsoo’s eyes widened into circles. “You have got to be ing kidding me. That’s your plan?!”

“It’s the only way,” answered Sehun, dragging the Prince out from behind the crates. “If we’re lucky, the white sailors will throw us a rope.”

“And what the hell are we gonna do if we’re not so lucky? Drown?”

“Surely you know how to swim, my lord. You are the Prince of the Port City.”

Kyungsoo struggled against the Messenger’s grasp. “Is that supposed to be some sort of a joke?”

“I’m afraid we don’t have time to argue about this. The Black Sailor