Erika and Zen held their ground as the barrage of projectiles continued, each pirate pulling out a pistol or crossbow, potential death rained towards them.

Erika and her barrier of electricity stopped anything metallic dead in its path, whilst Zen's control of the surrounding terrain blasted anything else with quick bursts of water. As Fang laughed in amusement at their struggle, he suddenly raised his hand up, pausing the assault.

"Well, have you had enough? Or, would you like a further tassste?" The serpent asked, as both remained in high alert, their eyes scanning the enemy before them.

Completely ignoring him, "So, still think you can take them on by yourself?" Erika asked the merman, as an annoyed grimace filled Fang's expression.

"Maybe, but maybe not. It does not matter, I shall carry this burden alone." Zen replied, as he took a deep breath in. "After all, that bought me enough time."

Suddenly the earth the pirates stood on began to quake, as cracks formed and mud began pouring out all around them. Crossbow bolts and flintlock pellets flew off at Zen, to no effect, as his body of water armouring his skin blocked them all.

As they all began to quickly sink, all including Erika, leaving out solely their heads above ground.

"Easily enough." Zen grumbled whilst looking over the farmland of heads.

"Hey, ssscalebrain, you missssed one." A voice said, as Fang suddenly slithered out of the mud with surprising ease.

"Doesn't matter." Zen replied as he took a sudden step forward, the mud beneath him exploding out and sending him leaping up into the air above Fang who stood unmoving with a grin.

Zen's hands flowed with trailing water as his rise ended and his fall began, his palms forming the water into a sphere before elongating it into a blade which he took tight hold of.

Zen descended onto Fang with a mountain's strength, his self-made blade of water crashing down into the mud and sending another quake into it.

But Fang was nowhere to be seen, till he appeared behind the merman, his claws dripping with fresh blood.

"Do you feel it, goliath?" Fang asked with a hiss, as Zen's eyes grew wide, beginning to feel his body grow numb.

Bellowing out in anger, Zen turned to Fang, pulling his greatsword of water with and slashing at were the serpent stood. Only for Fang to bend back with unnatural flexibility and speed, avoiding the attack entirely before bending his body further and into a spin, coming into a crouching position before Zen could react.

Once again Fang rushed under Zen's blade, his paralytic claws stabbing right through the armour of water and into the merman's skin.

The serpent's finger pulsed as venom seeped into his claws and then into Zen's veins, a green glow continuing to overtake his body.

Roaring out with fury, Zen abandoned his blade and pushed his body to grab at the serpent, only for Fang to acrobatically avoid the attack entirely. As he did so, Fang quickly stabbed his claws in several more times, till finally Zen fell face-first into the muddy ground.

Unmoving, unable to even speak, only his eyes could and taking great effort to even do so.

Fang stood over the goliath of a merman, chuckling as he took out a flintlock from his waist. "What a boring opponent, thisss fight was over the moment you showed off your powersss." The pirate mused, as he took aim down at Zen's head.

When suddenly the temperature began rising quickly.

An aura of heat filled their surroundings, and Fang turned to find its source.

The mud all around Erika had dried up entirely, turning to a cracked stone, she burst her right arm out of it sending rocks and dust flying out. "I understand." She said, placing her hand flat onto the ground beside herself and meeting Zen's gaze. "I understand the feeling of safety, that fighting alone brings you. I understand that, in your mind, nothing else stands between the ones you love and death, only yourself. I understand, that no one else can be trusted to stand with you."

Her left arm exploded out then, also coming to lay on the ground beside her as she began to slowly pull herself out, the earth bursting out a third time as her tail thrashed its way out. "I understand how safe it feels, to fight alone, to trust no one but yourself. But tell me, what shall you do now? You have lost, defeated and fallen, soon to be dead."

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Fang gave her no time as immediately the pirate rushed towards her, his agile body running-almost gliding over the mud.

"Who stands to protect the ones you love now!?" Erika bellowed out, her eyes gleaming a sapphire blue as strains of gold lit up her hair also. Raising both hands before herself, her blade also then burst out of the mud, separating into multiple blades and a shield. The latter rushed to block Fang's approach followed by a dozen blade shards, one by one as Erika moved them with her mind and hands, the blood within her binding the metal to her very will.

Fang evaded for his life, slipping under the shield by sliding forward before pushing off and flipping over three blades, coming to stand before Erika as four more assaulted him.

Yet he dextrously evaded those too, one by one, his body contorting to his will as his claws found perch onto her skin.

Stab after stab, the toxin oozed into Erika's body as she pulled away, blasting the area between them with flames and leaping back.

The pirate did not relent though, making use of whatever power that allowed him to run over liquid, he kicked up a wall of mud as he flipped back then onto his feat. Blocking the fireball, he then rushed right through the falling mud, evading left and right as the blades befell him once more.

"Who stands, to protect you?" Erika asked, as the shield rushed onto her left wrist, while the handle and what remained of the blade flew into her right hand. Blocking the serpent's first strike with her shield, quickly she followed up with an upward slash, turning with the serpent as he evaded and descending her blade down upon him once more only for Fang to side-step it and rush aside.

Coming in close, Fang's claws blurred as they struck at her several more times, the toxin encompassing more and more of her bloodflow. Visible through the green glowing veins across her body.

Her movements began to slur and slow, and Fang took advantage of it, flowing aside and coming behind her he sunk his claws into both of her shoulders. A firm grasp of whispering death as he leaned into her, "You, were an interesssting one. Your body, it naturally resssissstsss my toxin. What...are you?" He asked, "Oh, right." Before then chuckling as he took out his claws and stepped away.

Watching with amusement as Erika remained standing, even as her entire body went completely numb, she did not collapse.

"Even now, you resssissst. Pointlessssly ssstruggling." Fang said, taking several strides back as Erika slowly began moving, her hands barely making a fist as she raised them to her side and widened her stance.

"Interesssting. Very. Good, now I can tessst thesssee." Fang mused, taking out two flintlocks from under his coat, the bullets within glowing an eerie green. The pirate took aim, and there was nothing Erika could do, as the toxin-filled vials fired out of the flintlocks and burst into her back sending a wave of toxic glow pulsating throughout her entire body.

Making it once again freeze on the spot.

"And I mussst sssay, they ssseem very effective." Fang chuckled as he reloaded both. "Now to sssee, how long can you ssstand for?"

"Y-You..." Erika managed, as her entire body began radiating an extreme level of heat. Realizing what she was doing, Fang immediately let out another barrage of toxin, sending a wave of paralysis and pain through her back once more.

But it only made her struggle further. "Your sho-shoulders, may not have been enough." She began to say, as Fang fore-went reloading and unleashed his entire arsenal, flintlock after flintlock he unloaded on her back before dumping them aside and taking up another set.

The mud all around Erika began turning to cracked stone, drying up entirely into steam as her very body emitted smoke.

Her eyes turning a dark crimson, as her hair flared up into the same. Her tail smashing into the ground beneath her, finally she clenched her hands into fists and bellowed out. "IF YOUR SHOULDERS ALONE AREN'T ENOUGH! THEN WHAT'S WRONG WITH RESTING ON OTHERS!?"

With those words the heat around her turned up even further, blurring the very air that surrounded her. Running out of guns, Fang frantically threw the last two aside which missed their target, annoyed the pirate rushed straight into the blazing heat.

Claws by his side, glowing and prepared, with his speed he easily came upon Erika from behind before she could react. Stabbing and slashing haphazzardly, the serpent began dancing around her, a whirlwind of blades that tore away at her body left and right.

Knowing he was faster, Fang let loose an unending assault.

But his toxin no longer effected Erika, as her very blood boiled it away.

"Lay them upon me." She said, meeting Zen's wide eyes. "If yours aren't wide enough, then lay your troubles upon mine! Your sorrows, your fears, even your enemies. I'll carry them all. I claim this world under my protection, and I do not speak emptily." She exclaimed as the heat finally became too much for Fang who's very scales began to fall off, yet he continued his assault, the heat clouding his thoughts.

"Even if this world is too vast, too large. I will carry it, upon my Dragon's shoulders I will carry it all!" Erika announced, as Fang's flesh and eyes began melting, as he burned alive.

As for the first time, her gaze turned to Fang. "You asked who am I?" She mused, straightening herself and crossing her arms under her chest. Her piercing crimson, gold, and sapphire irises focused on the burning serpent.

"I am, many things. If you wish to fear me, follow me, or hide from me. I couldn't care less. For I am protector from the wicked. Yet equally, I am destruction, I am vengeance incarnate, I am solace from a long tyranny. But to you...You who stand in my way." Suddenly the heat dissipated, and Fang fell to his knees, at the brink of death. "You, may die, or call me...Captain."

A horrible fear filled Fang, a frosty horror that crawled down his spineless back.

As he lowered himself to all fours, each shaking and trembling, Fang bowed for his life.

Erika was the captain now.