Sailor Baekho (crew : Minki) 

Pirate Minhyun (crew : JR, Aron) 

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Summary 

A bad day out in sea is all it takes to change the lives of both sailors and pirates. As the captain of a small crew, Baekho will do whatever it takes to make sure his crew gets by safely even if its at the cost of his own safety and in the hands of a highly notorious pirate crew. 

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1

The sea always had a treacherous streak, be it the storms or pirates but the optimistic captain of Nuble, KR., Kang Baekho, would not let those slow him down. He was determined to get to the end of his route and back to where he belonged in a single piece with the rest of his crew even if he was only captain of a small crew and a humble sized floating vessel. But the sea was a strange thing. It has ways to trick the mind, to lull the unexpected minds and to cause havoc at the most peaceful moments. It was a bright sunny day out in the sea and bright as it was, the captain's smile held the same shine to it. People looked up to him because of that. Plus his charismatic looks and leadership skills. 

"Good morning, captain!" the cheerful youngster by the name Minki greeted Baekho as he rushed across the deck to get to the captain. 

"Morning, Minki. The weather is real nice today, huh," the young man himself replied, feeling the gentle breeze against his face. The smell of the sea always felt welcoming to him despite how some others would disagree due to the fishy nature of it. "How is everything in the lower decks?" 

"All ropes are in perfect condition. Floors are scrubbed and everyone is still happy with a full tummy!" Minki chirped back as he was the ropemaker of the ship, the one in charge of maintaining and repairing the ropes on board. It wasn't a particularly popular job but one that the youngster enjoyed as he was allowed to run from one end of the ship to the other by the end of the day. 

"That's good to hear. Keep up the good work." 

But that was not all the two was. Baekho and Minki were childhood friends. Both always aiming to go out to the sea together since young and when they had achieved that dream, they had respectively applied for the same crew where they worked towards their own goals. Baekho was one of the youngest captain around, some said it was due to his background while others believed in his pure leadership skills. 

He walked along the deck, greeting his other crew mates and checking up with each lieutenant on their conditions and the crew members under them. He was delighted that everything seemed smooth sailing. It was only his fifth time out in the sea as captain but he did not wish to tarnish his reputation already. He had worked tirelessly for the title and was unwilling to let it go. 

"Captain, it'll take roughly another week for us to reach our destination," the naval officer, Wonwoo, informed him. 

"What is the holdup?" Baekho asked. 

"Recently there's been more and more cases about pirates attacking ships. If we are not cautious about our routes, chances are we might get attacked too." 

"Understood. Do what you must to ensure our safe arrival." 

"Yes, captain."

Baekho let out a held breath once he was away from the eyes of his crew mates temporarily to take a quick breather. He lowered his cap and stretched his body. He loved his job and everything that came with it. The crew, the people, the smiles, the breeze. Everything was probably better than he could have ever imagined and he always had a good night's sleep, feeling satisfaction whenever they had a good day. 

The days always passed them by quickly and soon, night had fallen. Baekho was making one last check before calling it a night. He came across Minki who seemed tired and rushed up to him, greeting his friend excitedly as there was no one else around. 

"Minki!" 

"Baekho! Hey," his friend greeted him in response.

"Aren't you going to sleep yet? It's already late," Baekho asked and Minki sighed. "Something on your mind?" 

"Yeah, a little."

"Want to talk about it?" Baekho asked since he believed his crew's happiness was important to keep morale up especially if it was his closest friend's. 

"It's just that... Something feels wrong," Minki said and sighed. "But I can't explain what it is. I've been feeling restless the past few days." 

"Really?" Baekho looked around. He wasn't sure what was wrong. Everything seemed peachy to him. 

"Yeah. The crew is a little tense? Somewhat?" 

Baekho raised his brow and folded his arm. He talked to anyone he could manage everyday but didn't feel anything different. He patted Minki's back and chuckled. "Maybe you're just a little homesick. Everything seems fine but if you're really worried, I'll check around tomorrow. See if things really are different." 

"Ahhh! I don't want to add onto your job. You're already carrying a heavy responsibility now. Feel free to ignore me," Minki said and Baekho shook his head. 

"We are brothers, aren't we? And we help each other." Baekho grinned and Minki smiled. 

"Thanks, Baek. Time to sleep then! Make sure you rest too. We still have plenty of days to go." 

Baekho nodded and waved to Minki who headed to his quarters to sleep. Baekho wandered around a little longer before heading back to his own cabin as well. He hung up his coat and cap before laying down. Feeling tired already, his body was immediately lulled to sleep easily as the waves rocked him like a child. Soothingly... 

Crackle. 

Baekho opened his eyes. He blinked, feeling something off. His eyelids felt heavy though but the first scream reached his ear. He sat up in shock and made sure he wasn't hearing things. There it was again, followed by a sharp thundering roar. Rain? Baekho slid his coat on and wore his cap messily as he rushed out from his room. The moment he reached the upper deck, he was met with strong wind and flashing frightening lightning with amplitudes of thunder he had never heard before. The ship rocked dangerously as waves crashed against them, pushing and shoving the huge vessel around mercilessly. 

"Get inside!" Baekho yelled to the crew, watching as water danced across the decks from one end to the other. Baekho ushered as many as he could to seek shelter within since standing and gaping wouldn't help them pass the storm. "Minki! Get inside." 

"But the ropes," his friend gasped as he tried to untangle them. Baekho gritted his teeth and rushed in without a second thought to help. 

"I'll deal with it. Get everyone under," He ordered and Minki nodded, knowing how stubborn Baekho could be and spent no time in arguing with him. Baekho managed to get everything back to its place before he rushed up to find Wonwoo. The officer himself was busy, trying to steer the ship to safety as wind crashed against them dangerously. Baekho almost slipped a couple of times as well. "Wonwoo, what's going on?" 

"Bad luck, it seems. We hit an unexpected storm," He yelled in response to try to speak over the heavy rain and thunder. "I'm trying to steer us to shallow waves but it's proving more difficult." 

"I'll help," Baekho said as he took hold of the steering and turned as well. The two worked together to try to get the ship to safety but something else other than the storm took them by surprise. 

"Holy . Is that-" Wonwoo was unable to finish his sentence as another ship, far larger and more menacing looking than their humble ship appeared beside them. The waving masts gave off an eerie feeling as the walls of the ship were dark and an absolute terror to look at. 

"A pirate ship?" Baekho gasped. It was unlike anything he had seen before and its sudden appearance along with the storm did little to ease his beating heart. 

"We gotta turn the other way!" Wonwoo yelled. 

"But the storm is that way," Baekho argued, unwilling to jeopardise the entire crew by plunging them into the heart of the storm. 

"But the pirates are in our way!"

Another loud crackle made both of them jolt as lightning had hit them unexpectedly. A small spark of fire immediately started and the two were startled. Without having enough time to process the fire, a few loud metallic noises echoed and the ship rocked to one side as if something had hit it again. The whole ship suddenly started shifting towards the gigantic floating vessel beside theirs. Baekho and Wonwoo both lost their footing and frantically clutched onto the closest thing they could find. "What's going on?!" 

"I don't know! We are being pulled!" 

Screams started to echo below deck and Baekho gasped. Were they already being attacked? He forced himself to get up once the rocking had settled a little, helping Wonwoo onto his feet as he brought the other under deck. He gasped when he saw strangers dressed in completely different outfits than theirs attacking the crew. A particular scream caught his attention when he saw Minki being grabbed by the men. 

"We are being attacked!" a crew member yelled when they caught sight of Baekho. His anger surfaced and he pushed his way through. Some of his other crew members fought back as well with blunt tools. They were not equipped for fighting after all but they were not ready to give this up. Their small ship meant their lives to them and each and every one of them would battle to their death to save it. The windows of the ship had been penetrated by large hooks, allowing the pirates to flood in and dominate them easily despite their valiant efforts to protect their ship. One by one, the sailors fell. Baekho managed to tear Minki away from the ones holding him. 

"Baekho!" 

"Run!" 

"No. How can I run and leave everyone else alone?" 

"Prepare the escape boats. I'll try to save as many of them as I can," Baekho said and Minki hesitated but Baekho was already charging at the next pirate he saw, using his fists to go up against them. He sent a strong punch across their face and then a following blow to their stomach, successfully knocking them out. Baekho was stunned for a moment after doing that. The pirate had not make a move to retaliate after all and that confused him. He didn't have time to look around though as he tried to save as many of his crew members before a few pirates had surrounded him. He was not about to go down now. 

Steeling himself, he knocked out a few more. Punching, kicking and whatever he could use to prevent himself from getting caught. The ship made a sudden rock and his footing gave way along with many others. Baekho managed to stop himself from sliding any further and started heading upwards when he heard a distinct sound of chains being released. Minki must've had done it. He rushed to the upper deck to check but instead, took notice of a few pirates with completely different auras surrounding his fallen friend instead. One of them stood out in particular. With a pirate hat, full face mask and cape, Baekho felt his blood run cold. Having reviewed bounties for pirates before, he knew of this one as it boasted a high price. 

The nickname given to this particular pirate captain was Cistus Mask due to the flowery design on the mask he wore and he was known for robbing the seas dry. Only few of the robbed ships survived shipwreck, there was nothing left on the ships. No humans, no food, nothing unless they managed to hide during the attack. Survivors were few but none had anything good to say. Baekho curled his fists and yelled, charging towards them and gaining their attention. Immediately, the one beside the captain moved to defend him. Engaging in a full fist combat with Baekho. He was shocked when the man actually fought back considering how the lackeys didn't. 

"I'll take this one," another pirate said while carrying the unconscious Minki in his arms. 

"Let him go!" Baekho yelled even as the wind continued bellowing. 

"What do we do with this one?" the one who had defended the obvious captain asked. 

"We leave no one behind," the man with the mask spoke before turning around and following the pirate with Minki back to their ship. 

"No," Baekho gasped and fought the pirate who managed to hold him back. 

"You've got good skills." 

"Let me through! Give my friend back!" 

"Sorry but you're coming along too." 

"Huh?" 

The pirate's stance changed and he was able to get close to Baekho within mere split seconds. Baekho didn't even have time to block when a heavy blow was dealt onto the back of his neck, knocking out the air from his trachea and forcing him to black out from the impact. Darkness pulled him in as he fell.