Janet panted heavily as she rested near the front mast. The Bernans had not expected to meet such fierce opposition, and if they had boarded Victory with one ship, it would have already been over. So far, the Bernans had lost an entire brig’s worth of crew, but they had ten ships docked to her one. The situation wasn't good. What's worse, her people, tired and battered, started dying. Her personal wargear took a significant beating, but she still was surprised at how potent it was. The seemingly simple cloth of her uniform was much sturdier and tougher than the chainmails and gambesons worn by the enemies. However, even the enchanted materials of Avalon had their limits. Her barrier runes burned out a while ago after they had protected her, first when she hit the mast and again later when they tanked the multiple spells cast by the enemy mages. She wasn't sure if her healing rune was still working, so she played it safe and drank a potion occasionally. The battle of duels had lasted over an hour already, and Janet knew that they would all die if they didn't receive help anytime soon. She managed to rest a bit before one of the larger enemy sailors, a captain of one of the ships, judging by the strings on his beige uniform, stepped up and issued a challenge. She had planned to ignore the madman, but the Bernan sailors seemed to step back to form a makeshift arena. She eyed the situation momentarily, absolutely surprised that the supposed duel between enemy commanders demanded all other fights cease. The big Human began to lose his patience, so she finally stepped in.
"You? You!? A woman?! And a damned elf..." he hissed wrathfully.
"I won’t pretend to be offended by you because someone like you is incapable of offending someone like me," Janet replied with an amused smirk and a proud, crystal-clear voice. "I know it is pointless to introduce myself to a dead man, but my name is Marquess Janet A'nnet Sparrow, the Grand Admiral of the Royal Fleet of Arcadia, Lady of Avalon." She looked down at the tall captain, who looked a bit smaller now, suddenly insecure about the duel he demanded. She maliciously raised her voice so that every sailor could hear her. "Now is the moment when you introduce yourself; if you know how to do that, barbarian."
"Argh!" The man's face turned red angrily as he lunged towards Janet, cutting wide with his scimitar.
The woman simply and gracefully spun around, letting the man pass harmlessly near her. Without losing momentum, the Elf placed her left arm behind her back and assumed a fencing stance. The Bernan captain clumsily stopped a few steps past Janet, turning around with a dumb and confused look. She slowly stepped forward, unleashing a flurry of quick thrusts that pressed her opponent to a desperate defence. At first, he tried to parry the rapier, but after receiving a painful wound to his left forearm, he fearfully saved himself by simply jumping away from under her blade. He landed heavily just out of reach of her blade and almost tripped, losing his balance. She eyed his sloppy moves for a moment and smiled coldly. Upon seeing her smile, the Bernan Captain cast a simple magic bullet at Janet that harmlessly splashed over her enchanted uniform. The simple distraction worked against him as his eyes went in shock, and he froze in panic. Janet stepped forward and slashed a simple cut across the man's torso, which he barely managed to deflect before it dug into him deeper.
The simple exchange of blows lasted for a few minutes. Janet noticed that as long as she was fighting this clown, the rest of the Bernans were compelled to observe and not attack her people, who used the time to heal themselves and rest a bit. However, this wouldn't last long, even if she could drag the duel indefinitely. She focused and unleashed her self-buffs, increasing her speed and strength, preparing for her opponent's attack. Misreading why she had chosen to freeze for a moment, the Bernan Captain assumed a strange stance and started circling the Elf. Once the enemy captain had the sun behind him, he abruptly raised his sword. Janet squinted, pretending to be blinded by the sun, as predictably, her opponent was waiting for that moment to attack. The Bernan captain was not going to have it his way, however. She slashed him across his chest long before he could hit her with his scimitar. The superior reach of her rapier proved to be a factor the man had not understood or perhaps utterly disregarded. The wound wasn't lethal or even deep, but it was excruciating. He staggered back and cried out in agony, his howl ending abruptly as Janet pierced his heart. Her last attack was so fast that just a few people could even notice her blurred hand. The Bernan Captain looked at her in silent disbelief, dropping heavily to his knees, which almost wrested the weapon out of her hand. His legs folded under him as the Elf pulled her slim rapier from his chest, flicking a trail of blood through the air.
"Farewell, Captain Argh of the Bernan Navy. I'm not going to miss you." She rapidly sliced the air to shake off any blood that might have stained her blade.
The cheers of the Arcadians interrupted the silence that befell the attackers. As she was about to retreat towards her soldiers, Janet suddenly felt a searing pain in her right shoulder, crying out as she fell onto the deck. She tried to pull out a dagger that someone had treacherously thrown at her, but the pain at even a mere touch was unbearable. Her sailors rushed towards her to shield her from the Bernans, but a few enemies were much closer than her people and almost caught her legs. She closed her eyes, gritted her teeth, and pulled out the accursed dagger with a scream of pain and anger. She prepared herself to sell her life dearly, but the Bernans' hands never grabbed her. Instead, she heard a loud thump and a gurgled noise. Once she opened her eyes, she saw a towering yet familiar man standing between her and the Bernans, who had fallen back in panic. The man was holding a bloodied cutlass in his right hand, and he had a slim and long dagger in his left. In front of him lay four Bernans, killed with what seemed to be a single strike. Under his reinforced boot were the crushed remains of the Bernan sailor who almost grabbed her.
"Ah, good afternoon, Lady Admiral! Nice to see you today! Hahaha!" Blackbeard laughed, which terrified the Bernans even more. "Well... It would have been nicer if I had known we would meet today in advance. I would put on my best shirt. If I had known you planned to hunt the Bernans, I would have gladly helped!"
"Edward Teach..." Janet smiled, unable to believe she was relieved to see the pirate. The Admiral stood up slowly and drank a healing potion.
"In the flesh, my dear Admiral! What can we do to help our favourite Navy?"
Something large abruptly cast a shadow that covered the entire deck. Janet raised her head to see the arrival of Queen Anne's Revenge with scores of wickedly smiling pirates from above.
"How did you get here...?" she asked, stunned.
"I HAVE BROUGHT HIM HERE," a booming voice resounded as a small golden bird landed on Janet's shoulder. Upon seeing him, all the Bernans dropped their weapons and kneeled in prayer.
Twirll glared angrily at the Bernan sailors, who shuddered when his gaze rested on them even for a moment. It seemed the battle was over, but someone from the crowd eventually yelled, "It's not a God! That is some imposter!"
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Some people looked around in shock and outrage. Some of them stood up from their knees and sprinted towards their ships. But for whatever it was worth, the battle ensued anew. However, some of the Bernans moved away and dropped to their knees again, praying to their God. They were left alone, ignored by both sides. However, the Bernans still outnumbered the Arcadians. Janet’s sailors were pushed back, and she struggled greatly but somehow returned to her lines.
Now that Blackbeard's ship had arrived, the situation was becoming more decent for the Arcadians. Admiral Sparrow had gained a little hope that she might survive this fight. Despite it being only one ship, the frigate was still bigger and better armed than the Bernan brigs. Twirll, seeing four of said ships undock from the crippled Victory, gently flew from Janet's shoulder and started transforming. That alone was enough to convince even more Bernans that those who had chosen to pray were right, so they joined them in the corner. In the meantime, Twirll grew much larger and burst into crimson fire. With an attention-grabbing shriek akin to an eagle, he flashed like the sun, and scorching heat radiated from his new form. The majestic and equally legendary Phoenix gazed angrily at the four Bernan ships.
"Well... Shit." Blackbeard casually knocked out cold a Bernan sailor who had an idea about attacking the still-wounded Admiral Sparrow. "This is the reason why I don't like Gods. A man tries his best to make an effective entrance, and a moment later, they do something like that. Flashy bastards..."
Janet couldn't help but chuckle. It was still dangerous, yet Blackbeard's behaviour was utterly ridiculous. He acted so casually, as if fighting enemies that outnumbered his forces was his daily bread and butter. They slowly moved backward, with only an occasional Bernan targeting the pair. She could only be grateful for that small smile of luck, but she couldn't shake the feeling that it meant that the Bernans wanted them alive. The healing potion she drank slowly healed her wounds, but the burning sensation in her shoulder worsened. She hissed painfully and grabbed her shoulder as her vision blurred, and she tripped. The last thing she saw was the eyes of Blackbeard as he caught her, blue as the sea and skies themselves.
•••
"God damn it..." The towering man effortlessly lifted the unconscious Elf with his left hand. Edward tried to place her as gently as possible across his shoulder and slowly retreated towards the Arcadian sailors hacking and slashing at the Bernans. Someone was covering his retreat because many enemies around him died, hit by arrows. He spared a moment to raise his head and yelled, "How long were you planning to place bets, you lazy bastards?! Do you need decorated invitations?!"
A choir of laughter and twelve deaf thumps replied as a dozen pirates jumped down to aid their captain. In the meantime, the pirate ship opened fire at the Bernan ships, trying to gain altitude.
"We didn't want to interrupt your date, Captain!" one of them laughed and slashed a Bernan sailor almost in half.
"We even rooted for you!" another one added in an overly offended tone as he kicked an enemy sailor and sent him flying.
"Gods! Hush, you morons!" Blackbeard replied with a grin unfitting his words. "If she hears you, we are all as good as dead!"
The pirates started laughing as they minced the woefully unprepared Bernan sailors and slowly retreated towards the Arcadians. Despite their foolhardy attitudes, the pirates methodically moved toward the friendly lines, not leaving a gap to be exploited by the Bernanas. It took them longer than expected, but they finally reached their allies. Once the friendlies surrounded them, the pirates returned to the fray, but Blackbeard headed straight towards someone who looked like they were in charge.
"For heaven’s sake, were you running away from us? It took us an eternity to get to you!" Blackbeard asked the Arcadian officer and sheathed his cutlass. Only then did he gently lower the Elf on the deck. "No matter. We need a healer for the Admiral."
"MEDIC!" the officer yelled without asking anything.
"Over here!" someone from the rear yelled, and Edward nodded.
He lifted the unconscious woman once more, but this time, he carried her properly. She moaned painfully despite his carefulness, causing Edward to take a better look at her. Her face was covered with sweat and sickly pale, with grey, unnatural-looking spots under her eyes. Blackbeard swore under his breath. "Fucking bastards... Poison!"
"Indeed." A young woman nodded in agreement. She showed up from nowhere, spooking the towering pirate. "Hold her like that for a moment... Thank you. Purification! Radiant Heal!"
Edward raised his brow and observed the Admiral for a moment. Her breathing slowed, and she regained her colours.
"Yeah... Poison and some kind of sleep-inducing drug. A nasty mix but not the worst I cured." The Human woman shrugged and looked at the pirate. "You have a few bruises. Wanna heal or not?"
"I can...?" He asked, surprised, making the girl in front of him chuckle. "Pretty please?"
"Heal!" The healing light encompassed the pirate captain, and his jaw dropped in shock. "There you go," she declared, starting to turn away.
Blackbeard shouted from behind, "Hey! If you ever need a job, I can offer you anything for your services!"
"Hahaha! Who knows, Captain Teach... Maybe one day?" She laughed and disappeared, off to help other people in need.
In the meantime, Blackbeard stood slightly stupified, holding the Admiral in his arms. He looked around with a thoughtful gaze, actually liking what he saw. The Arcadian sailors were fierce and competent warriors on their own, but the actual soldiers, Marines, as he recalled their name, were just wild. They left a trail of corpses in their wake, and the Bernans were helpless to slow them down, not to mention stop them.
"I think I can walk on my own, Captain Teach," a very calm voice from below made him almost stop breathing. He slowly lowered his head and noticed a very amused and slightly smiling Admiral Sparrow.
"Ah, Admiral! I was just..." He stuttered a bit, but soon after, he regained his usual composure. "I wasn't sure if I could leave you alone again. You seem to fall into many troubles lately."
"It can't be helped I'm afraid." She managed to shrug while still in his arms. "Also... Thank you, Captain Teach, for saving my life."
"It would be the second time today." He grinned as he put her down. "You owe me."
"I will probably come to regret it, but I tend to agree with you." She smiled at him as the battle raged around them. "So what would the legendary pirate demand from me to pay that debt?"
She drew her rapier and stood next to him. She cocked her head aside to take a better look at the tall Human. Blackbeard drew his cutlass and rubbed his beard. "Hmmm... Dinner?"
"Hahahaha! You are impossible, Edward Teach." She burst into laughter and smiled at him with the most beautiful smile he ever saw. "If we survive this ordeal, I will truly pay my debt."
She leaped forward into the battle, followed by the laughing pirate.