There’s little the opposing crew can do once you start boarding their ship. As long as you have the numbers, the battle is as good as won.
-Excerpt from ‘Silversea Saga’ by Norris Howell
Rushing back onto the main deck, she saw dozens of metal hooks had been tossed over the side of the wooden railings and were pulled taut. Ropes led from the hooks towards the three ships still approaching.
As she watched, dozens of navy men started to stream across the ropes towards Liberty. They were being boarded. Only her and Felix stood in the way of this invasion.
Pulling Sunsplitter from her inventory, she rushed towards the railings and immediately began chopping at ropes. With each successful slash she heard muffled screams and splashes, condemning her foes to death.
Felix mirrored her actions, the both of them hacking and slashing like their lives depended on it—they did. Rose didn’t care for technique right now, only cutting off as many routes to the ship as possible.
However, it was impossible to stop them all. Even as they worked more and more grappling hooks were tossed over the railings and dozens more soldiers started to stream across the ropes.
Suddenly, Rose had a flash of inspiration. Remembering how she’d dealt with the pirates in the last battle, she put away her cutlasses.
“Felix, can you hold them off by yourself for a little bit?” she yelled, already racing down the steps towards the main deck.
He shouted something back but she was already too far away to hear it. Reaching the rigging, she hauled herself up the rope ladder two steps at a time.
Skill up!
Climbing 1 > 3
Whether it was her speed or the ease with which she reached the crow’s nest that gave her two levels, Rose didn’t care. Looking back to the bow, she saw the first enemies already jumping onto the ship and making a beeline for Felix.
Offering a brief prayer to Sylack, she took out her fishing rod and scratched a few flecks of dried blood from the hook. Then, she reeled her arms back, giving the line a little slack.
Felix wasn’t quite ready for a fight. She saw him scrambling to get his footing as three men rushed at him with weapons drawn. Luckily, he had a guardian angel.
With a sharp tug, her arms cracked through the air and the rod whipped down after. A sharp slap sounded as the wood snapped taut and the hook shot forwards.
The reel spun as she let the line go loose, delivering death to the unsuspecting navy men. Felix’s gaze flicked to her as the hook landed between him and the closest enemy.
A silver flash was all the man had time to see before Rose whipped her arms back and the hook sliced into his throat. Blood misted in the air as the line whirled upwards and she kept the momentum going, spinning on her feet.
The line whipped round and as she finished 360 degrees she slashed downwards and the hook carved across another man’s face right before he reached Felix. Felix had finally managed to get himself in a fighting stance and engaged the third in combat.
Seeing that he was able to take care of himself, Rose turned her attention from the enemies already on board and instead went for a trickier target. Her hook was sharp and with the blessing of Sylack, she felt confident.
Reeling in the line until it had no slack, she wiped a drop of blood that sprayed on her cheek. None of her skills had gained a level from killing the two men. They were weak.
Lifting the rod once more, she trained her gaze on the tens of grappling hooks that had secured boarding routes for the navy invaders. This hook was a little blunt, but with the added power of her blessing Rose hoped she could at least slice through a bunch of them.
Whispering another prayer, she let the hook fly. Right as it cut through the first line, a cannonball smashed into the hull, sending splinters flying at the boarders and killing a few.
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It continued to sail, slicing through two more lines. Wait, that was the… her vision went white as an all-consuming explosion erupted from inside Liberty.
***
“Blackheart, did you really think you could outrun me forever? I know how much that festering wound pains you,” sneered Commodore Saff as he swung his cutlass.
Trent never let the smirk slip from his face, raising his own blade to parry the blow aimed at his chest. The bastard was going straight for his weakness this time.
“How could I?” he replied, punching at the man’s guts. “I know how much joy our little game of cat and mouse brings you. I’d never be so cruel as to deprive a child of his playtime,” he added with a smirk, pulsing his energy and burning a hole in the commodore’s jacket.
The man had used his own skills to stop any real damage, but he still kissed his teeth at the ruined coat. Saff was too prideful; too focused on his image to ever be a true warrior.
If it wasn’t for his wounds, Trent would have no trouble sending the kid packing with little more than a slap. However, he was forced to constantly guard his torso, lest an errant blow strike his rotting innards.
Unlike last time when the little bastard had been caught off guard by his new weapon, the ARM wasn’t quite as deadly. Each time there was even the slightest pulse of the arcane, the man stepped back and raised his guard.
Trent didn’t let his expression slip. If anything, the excessive caution could work in his favour if he timed it well.
***
Yasmin rushed across the sea on a wave of black ink, chasing after Trent as he rushed to meet the upstart Commodore. When they’d first encountered that little brat, he was nothing more than an ambitious Captain.
And yet he’d survived that fateful battle and somehow become an irritating thorn in Trent’s side. She just wanted to get this damned adventure over with so he could heal his rotten heart and she could go back to living in peace in her little gallery.
Though she suspected she may need to find a new home for it. They’d had one too many run-ins with the governor and he would likely escalate the matter to the High Council of Zoria if his pride took any more hits.
A blast of air followed by a powerful wave smashed into her as the two men engaged in battle. The boy was much stronger now, perhaps able to overpower Trent given his current weakness.
She sped up. There was no way he could deal with both of them. A sharp whistle came from her left and she slipped into her ink, under the waves.
An instant later, a harpoon shot through the air. She would’ve been speared through the heart if not for her keen senses and fast reactions.
Another officer, with fewer medals pinned to his chest than the braggadocious Commodore, was standing on top of a giant fish. The fish was racing towards her.
She hated pets. What kind of wild animal lets themselves be reduced to the slave of a navy dog? Kissing her teeth, she let the ink carry her back to the surface and fired off a trio of black spears.
Two aimed at the fish and one at its rider.
Her counter attack was rapid and hidden by the ocean as she emerged, so the man wasn’t expecting it. At least two of the spears were about to run him through.
At the last moment however, another huge fish leapt from the sea, followed by five lances of ice that pierced her inky spears and exploded them in an abyssal shower.
“You won’t be able to help your damned Captain, foul wench. For your crimes, we’ll drag you to the chopping block along with the rest of you villains,” declared the newcomer as both fish dove under the surface.
Fish-riding ice mages… What was this world coming to? Yasmin called back as much of her ink as she could before letting it wrap her in a cloak of darkness. These fools would soon know that the only ones facing death were the dogs of Minenblum.
***
“You dare call this a game!?” exclaimed Saff, his face going red and spittle flying. “You’re a pirate—a villain of the worst kind. My honour as a man was tainted by my first failure; my reputation as a naval officer in tatters from my continued pursuit. My life and career are stagnant because of one wretched man. And you dare call this a game!?” he roared,
Trent continued smirking. Nothing this brat could say would faze him. Well, if he offered a cure for the rot that festered in his chest perhaps, but that wasn’t going to happen in a million years.
He grunted as a particular powerful strike smashed against his ARM, making his body shake. He immediately sent back a pulse of lightning that melted the edge of Saff’s cutlass and sliced at the boy’s head with his own.
The ocean around them frothed and churned, each time their blades clashed it sent a huge wave radiating outwards. Trent didn’t want to accidentally capsize Liberty, but if he put less strength in his attacks the commodore would overpower him in seconds.
“You have nowhere to run this time, Blackheart!” he spat, kicking off the water and ducking under Trent’s blow. “Either you die here or I drag you back to Aughold to face execution,” he cried, exploding upwards and slashing with his blade.
Trent hurriedly blocked the cutlass with his own, but noticed the orange glow on the man’s other hand too late. An explosion of flame consumed him.