DISCLAIMER: the following characters: Motochika Chosokabe and Ishida Mitsunari belong to Yasoyuki Muto. The Empress Saia belongs is my own O/C. I do not own Sengoku Basara. Enjoy

THE CAPTAINS BOOTY

He sailed many seas, explored many lands, but he had yet to stumble across the one he wanted. The island that housed the most beautiful empress across the seven seas, an elegant woman who was kidnapped many years before…

The empress Saia looked up at the evening sky and smiled looking down over her sleepy village. Wrapping her arms delicately around herself to try fend off the cool breeze that brushed over her tanned skin, she turned and walked into her chamber. Taking off her elaborate head dress she lay down in her bed and let herself drift to sleep. It didn't last long as the sounds of screaming villagers surrounded her palace below. Running to her balcony she half threw herself at the railing staring down in horror at what was happening to her helpless peaceful followers below her. Bashing on her chamber door caught her attention as she spun around running to grab her katana when the door crashed down. In walked a tall man with a maroon eye patch covering most of the left hand side of his face. He loomed over her tiny frame as he closed the space between them. She turned and ran bracing herself against the cold railing of her balcony for what was to come even though she knew she had to fight and defend herself. She took a deep breath to steady herself and turned around fiercely pointing her blade at the tall mans chest.

A deep chuckle emitted from the giant man as he pushed her katana out of his way and tilted her chin upwards with his fingers, he watched as her well endowed chest rose and fell with each breath she took. "It seems to me as if those stories about you were true your majesty." Taunted a deep knee weakening voice as an icy blue eye bore into her own bright green ones. With a giant hand he grabbed both of her wrists and pulled her along before letting his men tie her up and carry her. ""This one is mine gentlemen." He warned sternly as they carried her off. She however wasn't planning on giving in that easily as she kicked and writhed around kneeing the man that held her over his shoulder in the stomach. She felt her body been dropped to the floor and jumped to her feet even though her hands were tied.

She sat perched on a rock watching over the six men who had her as they all lay unconscious; she herself was fatigued after having to fight them off to free herself. "I don't know whether to be pissed off or shocked your majesty but that was impressive." The same voice wrapped itself around her making her blood freeze in her veins. With one swift motion she was thrown over his shoulder and carried off while the remaining men saw to the ones she took out. Carrying her to the hull of his ship he roughly put her in an old lion's cage and locked it after he had searched her too thoroughly for her liking and stripped her of any unnecessary clothing. "Let me go." She growled as he walked away from the cage. "You not just leaving me here are you?" She forced herself against the cage door sliding down the bars hopelessly, as she just saw him smile a devilish smile at her. Walking out onto the deck of his ship he was greeted by his partner, "Captain-sama is the woman secured?" he looked down at his trusted old crew mates and nodded. "Now we celebrate for we have in our possession the gem of the seven seas." He shouted as his men all jeered and shouted his praise.

In the hull of the ship she sighed as she looked around her. It was reasonably clean, besides the odd rat, cockroach and creepy looking spider that happened to crawl past her cage she was locked in. It seemed to her she was on the first level of the hull as she was the only person there at the time besides when the crew of the ship took turns to guard her. from much lower at night she would hear the snoring of the sleeping crew and from deeper below the groans of what seemed to be other slaves trapped below in the under belly of the ship. She closed her eyes inhaling the stale salty air, it was laced with the scent of adrenaline rushed sweat and tobacco. She sighed yet again, wrinkling her nose as the smell of food taunted her nostrils. Closing her eyes she tried to remember more details of the first time she had ever been kidnapped and thrown in a cage. Then she was treated as a trophy for a spoilt young prince. Now she was treated as a trophy just for the sake of having her in their possession. She saw herself in a dark empty room, the conditions much worse than her current ones she was thrown into, she remembered the men who hit her constantly and how they hardly ever fed her. She wondered if these men would be the same after some time. She cringed at the sound of her stomach growling and groaned slightly annoyed at its impatience.

Closing her eyes she saw the man who plagued most of her nightmares. His harsh, cold features burnt for an eternity into her memory. Yet his kindness had surprised her when he would sneak her fresh food and water and blankets on the much colder nights that they endured. She was still so young at the time. He took her under his wing and let her work under him residing in his room even though she had been collected as a prize for another man, she couldn't help but feel a deep gratitude towards the man who saved her from starving in the deep recesses of the ship. Then the day they finally reached land and she was dragged towards her uncertain future. She turned around fighting against the men who dragged her away as the man she had fallen for disappeared into the distance behind her, the mist of the harbor engulfing him, his ship and his men, like they had never existed.

taken from royalty, thrown into the pits of poverty, now yet again she was lunged into the life of wealth and royalty to be married to a man she didn't know nor love. She held a deep dark secret however that would make her people hate her if they ever found out. It was a night she took her life back from the man who caused her so much misery, the night she killed her husband, the emperor. She remembered the night so clearly it was as if it was playing out before her very eyes. She was so deep in thought she didn't even notice the tall captain standing by her cage with her dinner.

A pale blue eye rested on the woman as her green eyes glazed over with pain, blankly she stared at her hands shuddering. By now the flamboyant captain wasn't alone as Ishida had joined him when he took too long to join his crew at dinner. "Is she okay captain-sama?" he asked rather concerned. Motochika grinned,"Shes perfect, I think she is sitting reminiscing, these royal kinds never have time to think about their personal problems." his voice lowered somewhat. Ishida raised an eyebrow still concerned about the girl as she sat deep in her daze. "Well then I think it is time we snap her out of that daze or I think the poor things stomach is going to slowly start consuming itself." Motochika grinned deviously moving to behind her and grabbing her shoulder. He laughed out bombastically as she jumped, her delicate features flushing immediately. "Evenin' your majesty, I brought you your dinner." she looked at the plate of food skeptically and back up at the two men that stood before her. "I'm not hungry." she pulled her nose up and crossed her arms over her chest defiantly, but her stomach seemed to disagree with her and let out a loud groan in protest. Motochika and Ishida both chuckled as her cheeks flushed a deeper shade of crimson. "It seems your stomach disagrees with you empress." Ishida spoke softly. Her shoulders hung in defeat as she took the food and slowly started eating it. "Did you hear from the rest of the crew how vicious this little woman is Ishida?" she looked up from her plate of food at the two men and swallowed hard. "It seems she is quite an asset, we were all under the impression that she was nothing more than just a pretty face." Ishida said as he glanced down at her. Motochika grinned like he had come across some massive treasure. "She took out six of my men, they were all so shocked when they woke up in the infirmary and then they all slowly remembered how she had taken them out and with her hands bound together, however what shocked me was that none of them sustained any serious injuries when she took them out. A six to one ratio and she been a female is extremely impressive." Motochika leaned casually against the cage.

She couldn't look at the men as the one stood staring at her in disbelief, "I thought royalty never fight." he asked confused. "Well even though it is deemed unacceptable for royals to engage in fights it seems that law doesn't apply to our empress here. Hence why we had no other option but to cage her until she calms down and won't try to escape." Ishida raised his eyebrow and shook his head. "I know people may think of me as a monster captain-sama, you know for my methods of killing people been so cruel and gruesome, but we surrounded by nothing but water it's not like she can go anywhere if she escapes." Motochika chuckled and shook his head. "Don't go all soft on me now Ishida-kun. She may be a female, she may be royalty but on this ship her social rank means nothing that most definitely goes for her gender as well." He ran a large hand through his snowy hair and looked down at her with his intense stare then shrugged and walked off. "Ishida bring her dishes, we're going to join the rest of the men for dinner now." she looked away as the young man took her plates and mug and followed the captain wishing her a good evening.

Down in that miserable hull time seemed to stand completely still, days and nights faded into each other and soon her will to fight against the men who held her captive had almost ceased to exist. All she longed for was a warm bath and clean clothing and a bed or something other than a wooden floor to sleep on with blankets that didn't have flees living in them. The more she found herself alone, the more dangerous her mind had become to her. She found herself constantly trapped in her dark memories of her past. That night was Ishida's turn to keep a close guard on her. He sat quietly sharpening the blade of his odachi as she watched him. "It's unlike you to be so quiet your majesty." he commented as he glanced over at her. "It feels like I lost my will to fight since I have been locked away here. Been here freed me from the life I had to live everyday on that island. It's freed me from the lies I had to keep from my people." she sighed as she stared out the canon hole at the large moon that shone outside the ship.

"I will listen if you need to talk your highness." he said softly seeing the woman was breaking inside. "been back in this cage brought back so many memories from my childhood, I was robbed of those dreams little girls have, my home was attacked and I was stolen as a bride for the prince of that island. I was locked up in conditions worse than this and treated so poorly. until the captain of that ship showed me kindness and took me under his wing, I was still so young he couldn't have me delivered to the prince in the state I was so I started doing work for him which he taught me with all the patience and understanding he had. And as it always goes I fell in love with the man, even though he was considerably older than I was at the time, he in his late twenties and I in my middle teen years. My heart broke when they dragged me off towards my new future, I didn't want one without him and in so the past stole him from me that very day. The mist engulfed him in that harbor like he never ever existed, weeks later I was married to him. Kept in place by chains incase I tried to flee from the palace. He would sit on his thrown with me at his feet, a chain attached to a collar and to the bottom of his throne. The same chain that kept me in his bed at night. When in public my ankles would be chained until I decided to just obey instead of been treated like an animal. I started training myself with a katana and learnt how to protect myself, when he started trusting me is when he made the greatest mistake of his entire life." she stopped and looked at Ishida her eyes glistening with the hope of a warrior. "What did you do?" Ishida asked curiously.

A dark smile crossed her soft features catching him off guard. "I killed the emperor; I killed that bastard that stole my life away from me. He never deserved any part of me and he never deserved to exist in this world. He never showed me a single kindness, he never showed me anything I knew deep down I deserved to be shown. Instead he misused me and abused me and for that I loathed his very existence. When I drove that blade through his heart it was driven by all the anger and hate I had bottled up inside of me, the hate and anger that had slowly started to consume me. After I killed him everything I ever did was one big masquerade from consoling his parents to been broken over his sudden assassination. However I lead my people with love and great care. That was the only truth behind my existence. My people and my village, I would do anything to protect those innocent people." she sighed staring ahead of her. Ishida was shocked by what the woman had shared with him, he knew he would have to tell his captain what she had shared with him but little did they both know he had overheard their entire conversation.

Motochika walked down the creaking wooden steps and motioned for Ishida to leave. Without a word he nodded and left that captain and his treasure. "I overheard your conversation with Ishida, I hope you feet better after sharing that, I noticed you had been out if it lately, I do apologize for not having the time to come down here and listen to you empress." he spoke as he walked towards her cage pulling a bunch of keys from his belt. She looked up at his unsure when she saw the keys and then down at the floor. "If you promise me not to run empress I will let you out of this cage but you'll have to stay by my side because you won't have the security of the cage to protect you from what lurks around in this ship." she looked up at him and nodded.

over the time she had been on the ship, she had developed a soft spot for the tall captain, she couldn't understand it but she felt safe when he was near to her, her nights she pent alone in her cage is when she would miss the days the most because of how often he would come and see to her. He slid the key into the lock and turned it slowly, his gaze never leaving hers. The lock clicked open and he pushed the door open. Holding out a giant hand to her she placed her hand in his and let him help her to her feet. From sitting most of the time her legs had grown weak, upon taking her first step she stumbled only to be caught by the captain and pulled against his chest. She blushed at the feeling of his toned stomach against the palms of her hands and looked shyly to the side as she swept her up into his arms and carried her off. Outside the moon lit up the dark night sky as millions of stars twinkled around it. The deck was empty and all that could be heard was the gentle lapping of water at the hull of the ship. Entering a door she saw a passage and then they entered his room. He smiled placing her on his bed. "Stay here so long I'll come and fetch you now, your legs are still weak. She nodded obediently and looked around her. When he returned he carried her into a bathroom and set her down. "A hot bath for an empress." he smiled then handed her some fresh clothing to put on when she was done. "Thank you so much." she whispered as the tall captain bowed closing the wooden door. She let the water take away all her aches and pains and washed her long hair out. She lay soaking letting sleep invade her fatigued mind.

She woke up in the clothing that she had taken into the captain's bathroom, covered in a hammock. A giant figure rustled on the floor stretching out restlessly. The feint light of dawn shone in by his window as she rubbed her eyes and stretched out, when the bed she was in suddenly flipped. A soft oomph escaped the man below her as instantly he enveloped her tiny shoulders in his large, muscular arms. She felt her cheeks heat up at how closely he held her and how comfortable it felt, even though she had been married she never once had been held as the captain lay holding her. Smiling to herself she rested her head on his chest and fell asleep to the light thudding of his heart.

The captain looked down as the small woman started stirring from her sleep, he was shocked to find her lying on top of him but her was comfortable so he enjoyed it. Sleepily she nuzzled her nose into his neck as he felt her eyelashes brush his neck. He stroked her hair and grinned at her when one of his men came to call him. "Cap'n-sama you are… Oh gosh my humblest apologies Cap'n it's not urgent so I believe Ishida-kun will be able to see to it." He closed the door hurriedly leaving the two of them alone yet again. He chuckled when he saw how flushed her tanned cheeks were. "So tell me now empress how on earth did you end up on top of me?" she felt her face heat up even more at the question. "I'm not used to that." She looked up at the hammock and back down at the captain. "I woke up earlier and as I stretched out it seemed to disagree with my movements and I fell out." Her voice was laced with embarrassment. The captain laughed stroking her cheek. She took as shaky breath and smiled trying to get up but the man pulled her back down against his chest chuckling. "Where are you going dear?" she blushed and shook her head relaxing in his arms.

At noon he took her up out on the deck he smiled as he admired how she had turned some of his robes into a rather fitting outfit to wear and hijacked belts of his to keep the little ensemble from falling down from her hips.

The warm glow of the sun beat down on them as they looked out over the endless blue ocean. The deck before them was empty as they stood together. "So shall I take you for your first lesson on been a real pirate my empress?" he teased, his lips right by her ear. She blushed at its size and looked up at Motochika coyly. "I don't think I could handle something so big Captain." She said innocently. He chuckled and led her forward. Placing a tiny hand on it he covered her hand with a large calloused one, massaging her fingers with the tips of his to help ease her nerves. Gently he parted her legs so she stood steadier. "You ready?" he whispered in her ear. A gentle shudder ran through her body as she nodded. She blushed at the feeling of his chest against her back and focused ahead of her as his other hand rested firmly on the exposed flesh of her hip. Gently he moved her hand guiding them to a safe destination when he leant down and kissed the crook of her neck. "You see my dear it's not so difficult to steer a ship."

She blushed and laughed, Motochika felt his heart stop at the sound, and it was beautiful. She beamed as she made the giant ship go round once more, the pure joy all over her face. It was something droves of men would wage war on each other for just to get the chance of one small glimpse of her smile. The sun cast a golden glow on her skin, making her hair shine like silver and her eyes shine with a liveliness he had never seen before. She smiled content and looked at the inviting crystal water below them. She smiled at the captain and winked walking out onto his plank. His heart stopped as he walked out on it towards her. His heart stopped as slowly she let herself fall towards the crystal blue water, diving in after her she met him below the surface, swimming around him, the strips of material floating around her slender form invitingly. Motochika rested his hands on her hips pulling her body close to his and chuckled. "Pirates never walk the plank my dear unless they have committed a felony." "Or unless the water below them invites them for a swim Captain." She teased wrapping her arms around his neck. He chuckled as they swam around in the crystal water together, from the deck some of his men looked down at the two of them and smiled. "It's been a mighty long time since we last saw aniki so happy."

Seeing movement on his deck he pulled her close letting her hold onto his back as he swam to the ladder that hung from the side of the ship. With strong arms he climbed up and smiled at his men when she peeped over his shoulder. They whistled and cat called out loud chuckling and cheering as he took her to his room. "Let's get you dried off my empress." He cooed seductively in her ear. She blushed and nodded pulling off all her wet clothing. Drying herself she pulled on a dress he had handed her. He couldn't take his eyes off her as she walked out in front of him. She was truly beautiful as he pulled her into an embrace spinning her around in a dance on the deck of his ship. Later that night they all sat together on the beach of a small island they had found with a bon fire. Its flames stretched up into the dark, star speckled sky. She sat comfortably in her captain's lap listening to the tales told by the other men who drank merrily around her.

Standing up he picked her up with him placing her on her feet. "Shall we go for a walk along the beach?" he asked holding his hand out to her. nodding she took his hand and walked beside him, once all the men were out of sight the found a quiet spot and again she sat ever so comfortably in his lap. "I missed this free life. I never had anyone to share my stolen freedom with but this, this right here is a little bit of heaven I longed for, for so long." She said staring up the sky. Motochika smiled down at her. The past weeks he had spent with her had been weeks he would never give up for anything. She was a breath of fresh air on his ship, always surprising him, even bringing his crew closer together. She turned herself that she sat straddling him running her fingers delicately over his face. Gently she traced along the edge of his mask, "what happened." She asked in a delicate whisper. A brilliant, pale blue eye stared at her. "A war happened, someone tried to take over my land and I had to defend it." His fingers traced over the feint scars on her neck, wrists and ankles. He looked at her with a look in his eyes she had never seen before. "What gave you these marks my empress." He cooed stroking her hair.

"Been chained up so I wouldn't flee or try to escape a marriage I was forced into, to force a treaty between two opposing lands." She stared at him, his face was so handsome. Slowly he closed the gap between them, resting his lips on hers in a fiery kiss. Untamed passion coursed through their veins as their hands slowly and sensually explored each other. Standing up she lead him to the water's edge where the waves rolled around her ankles. He chuckled and pulled her down letting the water caress their skin as they lay kissing. Together they lay watching the sunrise when Motochika looked down at her. "I'm going to do this thing right with you my empress it has been many years since a woman has made me feel the way you do Saia." He whispered kissing the top of her head gently. Taking her hand in his, she felt him slip something on her finger as he smiled lovingly down at her. Kissing her hand he held her finger tips gently watching as her eyes widened at the ring that had taken its place on her finger. She smiled up at him full of emotion and kissed him deeply whispering the words that would bind her heart and soul to his forever. "I do." "I love you my empress." He said softly as she beamed up at him. "And I love you my Captain."