pirate king (88): FINAL ➵ ateez

➳ PAIRING: reader x kim hongjoong (ateez) or jung wooyoung (ateez)

➳ WORD COUNT: 3315

➳ GENRE: fantasy+pirate au; romance; mystery; adventure; action

➳ SYNOPSIS: the end of this journey.

>>>

Perhaps, somewhere deep in you, you’ve always known that it would have to come to an end.

Death isn’t a concept known only to humans. From the second the breath of life passes through any living being, it fights, flees and struggles to stay alive. The reason a a shoal of fish scatter before a shark, why birds take to the sky to escape stray cats fighting for their own sustenance, death is the one language every creature understands.

Survival instinct. The basest, most primal drive shared by every living being on this earth. Stay alive.

That’s what you’re fighting as you walk towards the black dagger pointed directly at you, the wind screaming in your ears, power surging through your fingertips even as you feel your body crumbling apart under the onslaught you’re putting it through. Slowly chipping at you, sand falling through your fingertips, the end draws closer and closer no matter how much you’ve tried to fight it - inevitable.

Two responses, fight or flight.

You can no longer run from this anymore.

“Finally, we meet again, sea goddess.”

An odd feeling stirs in you, strangely serene even as the storm swirls around you, lightning flashing and thunder raging. Right, you remember now, your memories slowly surfacing the more your body deteriorates. The sea, the storm, the sky. You could never ben human to begin with. This is who you are.

Hot tears burn your eyes, sting against the cracking skin of your cheeks, but you bite your lip and stand strong, back straight and eyes fixed firmly on the man in front of you. The blade in his hand trembles at the sight of you, and somewhere in the depths of your memory, you realise why Hongjoong’s gaze had drawn you from the very beginning upon your first meeting.

The same fierce gaze. The burning glare. Both father and son had the same eyes.

Seguir leyendo

pirate king (87) ➵ ateez

➳ PAIRING: reader x kim hongjoong (ateez) or jung wooyoung (ateez)

➳ WORD COUNT: 2641

➳ GENRE: fantasy+pirate au; romance; mystery; adventure; action

➳ SYNOPSIS: the final confrontation

>>>

Hongjoong stares, eyes wide and lips parted. Kill the… kill the sea goddess?

“Kill a god?” Yeosang repeats, so incredulously that his voice wavers. “Did I just hear that right? You want to kill the sea goddess?”

“Do the gods even exist?” Wooyoung mumbles under his breath, trying to put two and two together. The expression on his face is doubtful, suspicious. “That’s it. This voodoo stuff is a bunch of bull. San’s sorcery hands are the most I can deal with.”

His father doesn’t reply, merely staring straight at Hongjoong with his head held high. Eyes unrelenting, burning with determination, he almost feels the urge to take a step back in response. “You’re going to kill the sea goddess. How?”

His father’s hand reaches down in response, beginning to pull something from his belt. At the sight of a metallic gleam, Wooyoung and Yeosang react instantly, the gunner yanking his shotgun from his back to aim it squarely at the man while Yeosang ducks behind him for protection.

“Don’t shoot!” Hongjoong’s voice is harsh, and Wooyoung’s finger stills on the trigger. He’s trembling for reasons he himself doesn’t understand, hands barely able to grip and hold the gun steady. Everything about the man before them throws him off, from how normal he appears to the way he can declare such outrageous things without the slightest change in expression. Does he really believe that he can kill a god?

Seguir leyendo

pirate king (86) ➵ ateez

➳ PAIRING: reader x kim hongjoong (ateez) or jung wooyoung (ateez)

➳ WORD COUNT: 3763

➳ GENRE: fantasy+pirate au; romance; mystery; adventure; action

➳ SYNOPSIS: father and son aren’t so different after all

>>>

“Hongjoong has always known that he would have to face his father again.

It was inevitable the second Hongjoong had chosen to become the man he was - a pirate, and one known as the Pirate King of the Caribbean, at that. Hongjoong hadn’t chosen the life of a pirate on his own, it had simply been a means to survival when there was no path left for him to take, but he had to admit he had embraced it partially to spit on his father’s ideals as the Chief Commander of the Royal Navy.

And now, he’s meeting his father eye to eye once again, both on different sides of the beach - both on different sides to this battle.

But while he has Wooyoung and Yeosang flanking both his sides, the hot summer air of the tropics taking on a sudden chill, his father approaches the no man’s land in a tiny boat - completely alone.

“Yeosang, do you notice something strange?” Wooyoung whispers out of the corner of his mouth, and Hongjoong can tell from just tense he is from the way his jaw is clenched. Hongjoong can’t see that well with one eye, but he trusts Wooyoung’s instincts and sight as the head gunner.

Next to him, Yeosang nods, a barely perceivable tilt of the head. “Something’s off, but I can’t tell what it is…” The navigator mumbles under his breath, chewing on his bottom lip. Hongjoong swallows, feeling unease stir in the pit of his belly. Just what is happening?

“They haven’t noticed the Treasure, have they?” Hongjoong murmurs softly as his father’s lone boat approaches the island - it’s barely small enough to fit a single man, yet it captures his attention more easily the massive armada at his father’s back. Yeosang nods again, eyes still fixed intently on the rowboat approaching shore.

Seguir leyendo

pirate king (85) ➵ ateez

➳ PAIRING: reader x kim hongjoong (ateez) or jung wooyoung (ateez)

➳ WORD COUNT: 3812

➳ GENRE: fantasy+pirate au; romance; mystery; adventure; action

➳ SYNOPSIS: you get a pain! you get a pain! everybody gets a pain! lots of pain!!

>>>

On your way out of the captain’s cabin, you spot a familiar figure pacing the forecastle deck nervously, outlined against the black night by the lit torches on board. The orange glow of the flames flicker and dance over purple locks, and half of his fine features fall into shadow when he turns to look at you. 

“Chin Hae.” He says, a little breathlessly, stepping up to meet you as you walk towards him. Wooyoung looks just a hint guilty, you think, his eyes shifting left ad right instead of meeting yours. “About earlier, I know you didn’t mean to hurt me. No matter what Jongho says, I trust that you wouldn’t, that you would never-”

You pull him into a tight embrace before he can say another word.

His body is warm against yours, and your face buries itself in his shoulder, clutching tightly to the material of his shirt in an attempt to ground yourself. A surprised noise leaves Wooyoung’s mouth as he takes a few steps back to regain his balance, before his arms are instinctively wrapping around you to comfort, to soothe. “Chin Hae? Oh, no,” your tears are soaking into the fabric along his collarbone. “Chin Hae, don’t cry, I…”

Behind Wooyoung’s back, you unknowingly fist the material of his shirt even more tightly, and he doesn’t see how your fingertips leave dark red streaks across his back with your captain’s blood. No matter who or what you are, he’s overcome it all to find you and love you, asking for nothing in return. 

“I’m not crying.” You say stubbornly against his skin. You can feel Wooyoung’s confused gaze on you, before he tries to pull away to look at your face. “You sure you aren’t crying?”

You duck back into his hold before he can look at your face, arms still wrapped around him as tightly as you can. “Don’t look.”

Wooyoung nods obediently. “Yes, yes.” He reaches up to let his fingers run gently through your hair, parting and sifting through the messy strands so tenderly that you almost feel like bursting into tears all over again. Tomorrow, he’s going to meet a dangerous man,going to face the entirety of the Royal Navy head on with only Hongjoong and Yeosang by his side. If you lost him… even the thought of it pains you so badly you can’t breathe.

“Wanna go sit on the mast with me?”

Seguir leyendo

pirate king (84) ➵ ateez

➳ PAIRING: reader x kim hongjoong (ateez) or jung wooyoung (ateez)

➳ WORD COUNT: 2425

➳ GENRE: fantasy+pirate au; romance; mystery; adventure; action

➳ SYNOPSIS: i can believe we’re reaching the end holy shit.

>>>

The blade comes down.

The second you feel it pierce, you squeeze your eyes shut tightly, unable to see with your own eyes the gentle expression your captain wears as you drive the knife into his neck. Your eyes brun, a silent scream trapped in your throat as your hands tremble around the knife.

You couldn’t stop it. Your foolish, kindhearted, loving captain really did decide to die in order to save you. You couldn’t overpower the control the sea spirit had over you, and now your captain is-

“Chin Hae.”

Your eyes fly open in shock.

Hongjoong is still lying on the ground, propped up against the wall, breaths escaping him in shallow pants. But instead of his neck, you realise that your knife has pierced the bookshelf next to his head, the blade sinking hilt deep into the pages of a book. Blood streams down from a shallow cut at the side of his neck, but his eyes still burn with the same fire as ever.

“You said you were going to die for her?” The sea spirit’s words that leave your mouth carry a hint of surprise, and your own shock is reflected in them. But Hongjoong merely ignores her, one hand reaching up to grip your wrist.

His hand is painfully gentle, and his gaze doesn’t waver from yours. 

“I never said that.” Hongjoong’s words come out completely steady and resolute. His fingers tighten around your wrist. “If Chin Hae really wanted me to die for her, I would have done it in a heartbeat without any hesitation. But she doesn’t want me to.”

He lifts his other hand to touch your face, fingertips brushing under your eyes, and it’s only then that you realise hot tears are streaming down your cheeks. Hongjoong’s eyes soften at the sight of it. “I made you cry again.”

Seguir leyendo

pirate king (83) ➵ ateez

➳ PAIRING: reader x kim hongjoong (ateez) or jung wooyoung (ateez)

➳ WORD COUNT: 2572

➳ GENRE: fantasy+pirate au; romance; mystery; adventure; action

➳ SYNOPSIS: it was nice knowing you, captain.

>>>

The blade seems to sing in the ghostly light of the half moon as you take one step, then another, down the length of the ship. The deck seems to have been vacated, silent and empty, but you’re screaming inside your mind for someone, anyone, to step out and see what you’re doing - to stop you from what you’re about to do.

No one does. All you hear is the sound of the sea, waves lapping against the shore, pulling your mind into a trance like quicksand, impossible to escape from. You take another step forward, and just like that, and you’re at the door to the captain’s cabin - the light from the lamps inside flickering across your face.

One step away from committing an unforgivable sin.

You raise your hand to the door, knocking three times, the other clutching the blade behind your back.

Please don’t respond, you beg, screaming through the haze of your mind. You feel like you’re merely watching your actions play out in front of you, completely unable to control your body in the least. Keep seeing me as a monster, be afraid of me. Don’t open the door!

The door swings open.

There he stands in the doorway, eyes tired, but a gentle smile on his face. You would rather it be twisted with wariness, with hate, with anything but that guileless expression. Your fingers tighten around the handle, the carved decorations carved into steel digging into your skin.

“Kill the human captain, and return to whence you came.”

Seguir leyendo

pirate king (82) ➵ ateez

➳ PAIRING: reader x kim hongjoong (ateez) or jung wooyoung (ateez)

➳ WORD COUNT: 2781

➳ GENRE: fantasy+pirate au; romance; mystery; adventure; action

➳ SYNOPSIS: i’m sorry in advance y’all.

>>>

The sea is blue.

You stand along the beach where the land meets the sea, warm water lapping over your feet as you look out over the horizon. The beach is completely empty except for you and the sound of waves crashing against the shore.

You don’t know how long you spend standing there, but you watch as the sun slowly sinks behind the horizon, the sea enveloping and swallowing it whole. You watch as the sky fades from blue to to black, stars rippling over the surface of the water like jewels spread over the waters. You don’t move a muscle, time hung in the balance, until there’s the sound of approaching footsteps behind you.

“You’re here.” 

Your voice is a disembodied whisper, raspy and lilting like the push and pull of the tide. 

“You’ve not called for me for millennia.”  He sounds melancholy, and you turn to look at him. His bright green eyes stare back at you, luminescent in the darkness of the beach. “Yet now, you have… why?”

“Why do we not have names?”

Seguir leyendo

pirate king (81) ➵ ateez

➳ PAIRING: reader x kim hongjoong (ateez) or jung wooyoung (ateez)

➳ WORD COUNT: 2256

➳ GENRE: fantasy+pirate au; romance; mystery; adventure; action

➳ SYNOPSIS: what is happening.

>>>

“Let us off the ship, or she dies.”

The gun crew freezes from where they’d been about to move forward with their swords lifted. Iron digs into your skin hard enough for you to feel a bruise forming at your temple, and you wonder if it’s broken skin. He has a musket to your head.

“One squeeze of the trigger and her pretty head will be in pieces. I don’t think you want that to happen.” The man holding you says, yanking you against his chest roughly by the neck. He’s strong, far too strong for you to physically overpower, and for a second, you’re terrified for your life.

“Chin Hae!” The crewmate who’d talked to you earlier tries to take a step forward, but the man taps the musket against your head and he stops dead in his tracks, teeth gritted. You can see the fear in his eyes, clashing in conflict with the want to save you and have to bite back tears. 

“Bring your captain here, and tell him to cease the fighting. If another of my men falls, you’ll pay for it with her life.” The enemy pirate demands, voice as cold as the arctic seas. You know in that instant he would have no qualms at all putting a bullet through your head. The man hesitates, and the pirate points his musket at your other hand instead. “I might not kill her yet, but she has three limbs more I can take off before I end her suffering. I think you’ll find that I’m not a man of much patience.”

His eyes send you a clear message, please, hold out until I get captain here, and dashes off into the midst of the fighting. Swallowing, you mutter out lowly. “Do you really believe that the Royal Navy will let you go if you turn me in? They might simply-”

“Don’t bother reasoning with me, little lady.” The musket edges its way up to under your throat, and you shiver as the metal brushes the skin there. You can taste gunpowder in the back of your throat. “I’m afraid you’ll find it harder to change my mind than stop me from blowing your brains out.”

“Everyone, cease your fighting.”

Seguir leyendo

pirate king (80) ➵ ateez

➳ PAIRING: reader x kim hongjoong (ateez) or jung wooyoung (ateez)

➳ WORD COUNT: 2976

➳ GENRE: fantasy+pirate au; romance; mystery; adventure; action

➳ SYNOPSIS: amputate.

>>>

The deck is sheer chaos.

All you hear are the frantic footsteps pounding across the deck as the crew race to sail as fast as possible, the sounds of the cannons being loaded, Mingi’s sharp commands and Yunho screaming orders to trim the sails from above. Still crushed to Wooyoung’s chest, you tap him on the shoulder and he looks down at you, eyes brimming with concern.

“Just let me down somewhere, I’ll-”

“Wooyoung! Some of the halyards of the fore topsail has gotten caught, I need you to come with me and free it.” Yunho lands lightly next to the two of you, face unnaturally drawn with worry and flushed from exertion. “Chin Hae, are you alright?”

You manage a smile for him, though your legs both feel like they’re on fire and you’re missing a hand. “As alright as we’re going to get in this situation. Wooyoung, go with him, I’ll be fine on my own.”

He looks doubtful, but relinquishes his grip on you slightly. “You sure?”

“Yeah.”

With a sigh, he sets you down and you nearly stagger, biting your lip at the pain that shoots through your legs. Even Yunho looks concerned, reaching out to steady you by the shoulder. “This is definitely not okay. We should take you to the-”

“You have more important things to worry about than a sprained ankle, now shoo!” You push the two of them lightly towards the forecastle deck. “I’m not an invalid, I can get myself to the infirmary on my own. Now go!”

Seguir leyendo

pirate king (79) ➵ ateez

➳ PAIRING: reader x kim hongjoong (ateez) or jung wooyoung (ateez)

➳ WORD COUNT: 2753

➳ GENRE: fantasy+pirate au; romance; mystery; adventure; action

➳ SYNOPSIS: beginning of the end.

>>>

You can’t breathe.

Every inhale and exhale feels like gargantuan effort, not the movements that should come to your body as naturally as well, breathing. Mind swimming, your stomach heaves with each movement as you struggle to focus your gaze, which insists on remaining decidedly hazy.

What happened?

Groaning, you rub a hand across your eyes, fighting back the nausea. There’s an ache in every part of your body, legs burning like they’re on fire. Your head throbs like it’s trying to split itself in half.

“So, you’re awakening.”

Startled, you sit up as fast as you can and your vision swims, black spots breaking out over your vision. Retching, you turn to the side, body shaking and the taste of bile in your throat. When you look back, your heart leaps into your mouth, lips parting in shock.

A pair of liquid green eyes stare back at you, mouth curled into a sad, pained smile.

“You!”

Seguir leyendo

pirate king (78) ➵ ateez

➳ PAIRING: reader x kim hongjoong (ateez) or jung wooyoung (ateez)

➳ WORD COUNT: 3255

➳ GENRE: fantasy+pirate au; romance; mystery; adventure; action

➳ SYNOPSIS: myself.

>>>

You haven’t left the infirmary for a whole day.

“Ahhhh!” You shriek into your pillow for the fiftieth-something time that day, burying your face in the soft down, fingers winding into the sheets. “Ahhh!”

There’s an amused chuckle from somewhere in the room, and soft footsteps draw closer. The mattress of your bed sinks lightly from the added weight before a hand comes to rest on your head, gentle and comforting.

“What’s going on with you?” San’s light voice is full of amusement, and you peek out from under the covers to see your master sitting cross legged on your bed, teasing smile on his face. “You’ve been holed up in here for a whole day now. Don’t you think that you should go explore the town a bit before the Treasure leaves Tortuga? Did something go wrong when you tried to give Hongjoong the jacket?”

Seguir leyendo

camera… action!

1244 x 1800

1244 x 1800