I got this. No problem.

With my second hand free, getting my feet out took no time at all. I tugged on the loose chords as the staccato clatter of blade on blade reminded me of the deadly dance behind me.

I turned my head and saw them exchange some parries and repostes, testing each other’s styles and reach. The Princess seemed unhurried to end the fight all at once, despite the rushing water, and Bernie respected the rapier’s great length.

Finally free, I stood and sloshed across the hold to give them space. The duel between Princess Mia and Bernadette seemed far from over.

Ah, shit. This next part is about duels and weapons. It all gets rather technical if I want to do it justice. And I can’t really know who is reading this.

Bear with me as I give some context, yeah?

Let’s talk about swords.

Short weapons of all types are ideal for skirmishers, or urban combat — places where large weapons could get caught on nature, or small enclosed spaces. They’re also great for fighting in formation next to someone else that needs to swing a piece of steel right next to your head without whacking you. For a duel? For a duel, you want the most deadly thing, with the longest reach.

In this case a rapier — the weapon Princess Mia held, glowing ominously in her hand — was the superior weapon; maybe the ideal weapon for a one-on-one fight.

At this point, Bernie has tested its reach, and found the smallsword was just long enough for her to get in, and out if she was quick. And her form was perfect. And she didn’t mess up. She had to be darn near perfect.

People have this notion, based on its appearance, that a rapier is a light, delicate weapon, but that is a dangerous mistake. A rapier has all the steel of a longsword stretched out as long as possible, and ending in a devious point. It’s only a couple pounds, but try holding that out as far as you can for a couple minutes, and those couple pounds get real heavy.

It’s a significant, and deadly, weapon.

Conversely, Bernie’s short sword, Thirsting Thorn, and smallsword, Fascinator, were great weapons, fantastic ones even. And they were much lighter. If she could draw the fight out, maybe Princess Mia would tire.

But Princess Mia just had to get one good hit in, and she’d puncture right through Bernie’s chest. Even with her fancy new armor, it would all be over.

Bernie lunged with Fascinator. Mia caught the blade in the long quillons of her sword, and very nearly disarmed her with a flick of her wrist. Bernie wrenched her sword free with a ringing of steel.

This was a keen reminder of the fact that Princess Mia had held a sword in her hand since she was old enough to ask for it. Undoubtedly, she had killed fewer men, but she was much more practiced in a duel, and it showed.

This is all to say that it was not an equal match — not even close. Bernadette would need to be very clever, or very lucky to come out of this alive.

Two swords absolutely are better than one — if you can get their points or edges close enough without exposing your body. Bernadette was not used to that. Her fighting style relied on ambushes from behind, or when her opponent was distracted.

The princess had her whole attention on Bernie.

Bernadette lunged in, swiping with one sword, then the other. The Princess twisted her wrist catching the smallsword with her long quillons and engaging the blade well away from her, then ‘voiding,’ or turning to the side as the shortsword passed by her uselessly. She then twisted her wrist again and flicked the rapier, smacking Bernie on the side of the head, easily.

Bernie shuffled back through the water.

“You’re fucking with me,” Bernie snarled.

“Need to make my own fun sometimes.”

Then, Bernie thought to end it all at once.

She lunged, beat the rapier blade off-line with her shortsword just long enough to go for a stab with the smallsword. Mia elegantly flicked her wrist, getting the blade back in line, and stabbing right through Bernie’s shoulder.

My blood ran cold. It was a bad hit.

Water sloshed and sprayed in the air, as Bernie stumbled, retreated out of her range. Princess Mia stalked forward confidently.

Shit. Bernie was going to need my help. I didn’t have a weapon. I could use the Edge of Nothing. But I also wasn’t sure I wanted to murder Caleb’s daughter.

She didn’t seem to have the same qualms about us.

Man, this sucked.

I exited invisible to place a hand on Bernie’s shoulder, and give her some healing.

“Thanks,” she whispered to me, keeping her eyes on the Princess.

“You didn’t run,” Princess Mia remarked, looking right at me. “You must like her a great deal.”

She slowly walked toward us, her off hand held delicately out to her side, and her sword held point up in front of her face. She’d shown this stance to be deceptively strong. To the untrained eye, it seemed that her entire lower body was open to attack, but the ranges you would need to effectively strike them made it entirely untenable.

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She had everything under control.

“What if I just leave with him now?” Bernadette asked, panting from exertion. “Maybe we don’t fight?”

“Aw. But now you have caught my interest. I am curious to know what happens if I kill a Promised Hero. Maybe the bloody blue door opens right over your corpse. Shall we see?”

The Princess swiped with the rapier. We both scrambled back.

Bernie tucked her shortsword under an arm, and threw a dagger. Again, Princess Mia batted it out of the air harmlessly.

“You’re nasty,” Bernadette replied.

“Oh come on, how many people have you stabbed in the back? What would daddy say? ‘Game recognizes game?’”

“We’re playing two different games, I think.”

Mia lunged again. Bernie was forced to parry the blow to the left, away from me, lashed back, then parried the counter riposte wildly.

I needed a sword.

The ceiling, or I guess the deck above, shattered and a body fell through. Bernie used that moment to strike Mia in the upper arm, then wheeled away from her.

The Princess scowled, shook her head slightly and calmed herself. Her fingertip brushed the flat of her blade, and she pulled a mote of light from it. A flick of her finger and the mote of light hit her shoulder, and the blood stopped flowing.

“She’s got healing too,” I said.

“Yeah, I got that. Can you go find a sword?”

“On it.”

I searched through the bodies of the dead. One had a sword through his belt. Redeemer! Thank god, a lucky break!

I pulled out Redeemer and flourished it just in time for two other pirates to rush in. One wielded an axe and a pistol. The other a cutlass. I went for the man with a pistol first.

The pistol gave a heavy report. The bullet struck my hip. Blood poured from the wound. This was the first time I’d been shot. Pain lanced through my entire body, and I immediately felt the urge to just lay down.

I was cooked. This is how I was going to die.

An arrow pierced the throat of the man with the cutlass. He fell from the stairs, into the water.

“Not today,” I said through gritted teeth, fighting unconsciousness. The pain in my hip lessened. I glanced over my shoulder and saw Cal give me a little wave from the hole in the ceiling. He moved and disappeared from view.

I slashed with my sword to keep the remaining pirate on his toes. A second man with a sword rushed to replace the one who had fallen.

I slashed again with Redeemer and cut the hand of the man who held the axe, fingers flying, then I swung at the man next to him, sending him back a step, sparks flying across his face, whipped the sword back around, and pierced the heart of the first one.

“I got your back!” I said.

“Good!” Bernie yelled as a reply. “I just need to wrap this up!”

“Bold words,” Mia countered. She slashed at Bernie’s face, forcing her to throw her upper body back, or void the attack.

The water continued to pour in, surging past our calves.

The pirate with the sword had the high ground on the stairs. He swiped at my face. I parried the blow, sparks flying. He flinched. I sliced his stomach deep. He grabbed himself, and fell past me.

Bernadette retreated until we were practically back to back.

“You trying to kill her?” I asked.

“Yes!”

“Good! Caleb doesn’t like you much anyway.”

“What?!” she gasped, then was forced to meet Mia’s advance.

A long exchange of attacks, parries, and repostes sent the ring of steel into the air.

Another pirate ran down the steps. My head still ached. And I was beginning to tire. Surely I wasn’t still suffering from the drugs?

My first parry of his sword sent sparks into his eyes, and he stumbled back up the stairs and away from me. I had precious seconds. I wheeled around.

“Beta formation!” I yelled.

Bernie didn’t hesitate. I shoved my sword into the floorboards and cupped my hands. She put her foot in it, and I launched her into the post behind her. Her feet planted, and she ran up it.

I grabbed my sword and wheeled back to the men advancing down the stairs. I threw my hand out and cast a shatter spell that echoed through the hold, splintering wood, and sending spurts of blood from their ears. One fell, and the other halted as he tried to get his bearings.

I glanced back.

Princess Mia roared in frustration, and swiped at Bernie wildly. The black clad girl kept just out of reach and threw a dagger. Mia batted it aside. Another dagger. This one buried itself into her neck.

Being at a 90 degree angle from her, on the post, Mia was forced to parry wildly, and couldn’t bring her traditional sword forms to bear. Rapier fencing was a lateral form of lunges and retreats. It simply didn’t work when you were forced to fight someone above your head.

“What’s wrong? Getting tired?”

Princess Mia just gave a sneer, wisely saving her breath.

The fighting above us stopped. That was weird.

Mia and Bernie traded a couple half-hearted exchanges. Princess Mia gave ground and walked back toward the cargo hold. She tore the dagger from her neck, pulled a vial of something from her belt, and downed it. The blood from her neck stopped.

Falling through the opening in the ceiling, surrounded by and held aloft by a flurry of golden feathers, came King Caleb.

“Daddy?” Princess Mia’s voice was small.

“Oh, don’t ‘daddy’ me,” he said, his voice rumbling with rage and authority. “These men lay dead for what? You endanger your own child, my grandchild, for what? Have I not given you enough?”

His armor glinted silver, white, and blue in the light that poured from the opening above. It was like there was nobody else in the world but him. Nobody fought. Nobody breathed.

The water did not get the gravity of this moment and continued to surge into the hold.

“She’s safe,” Mia muttered. “She’s with her father. She’s fine.”

“And if you died here in some fool duel,” Here Caleb’s eyes darted to Bernie with scorn, then back at his daughter, “who would raise her?”

“I had everything —”

“No, I have everything under control,” he growled, advancing. “Conspiring with my enemies? Poisoning your brother’s wife? You have much to answer for. Come, before we all drown.”

Princess Mia’s eyes hardened, and she tilted her head up to look back at her father, her eyes hooded with contempt.

“No.”

I watched Caleb’s heart break in real time. His jaw went slack with surprise, and the lines on his face deepened. All the fight left his shoulders. They sagged as if being pulled down by invisible ropes.

This man felled giants. He fought the minotaur in single combat. He’d stood up to nations, and seen them back down. He was not able to weather his daughter’s open betrayal.

“What do I tell your mother?” Caleb asked.

“Tell her whatever you like.”

Princess Mia dropped her sword into the knee high water, pulled an amulet from her pouch, then snapped it in half. She swirled into silver mist and disappeared.

Bernie leapt to where Mia had been, and fished the sword from the water, flourishing it dramatically.

“What?” she asked, rhetorically. “It’s a good sword.”