When I could breathe again from our rapid acceleration, I hurriedly chanted out the words to {Barrier}, and cast them towards the shield orb. Just in time, as well, since a puff of black and red from the distant cutter, and the ship suddenly shook as the shells impacted my shield.

I gritted my teeth as I felt my mana take a solid hit. “Oof! What the honey did they put in that shell; I could feel that one!” I grumbled.

“I’m more concerned about the fact that the airships have such good engines!” Lakshmi protested. “We were going all out, why are they here?!”

Soriya raised an eyebrow. “We stopped over at the sea cave, we spent a long lazy day in Breezewood, we got a late start, and we hardly pushed the throttle to the stops when you were flying here.” She said. “Or did I miss something?”

Lakshmi ground her teeth. “No. It just… hurts my pride! And they must have headed to the far shores the instant they lost sight of us! And we never saw them on the crossing!”

Camaxtli said “The sky is vast, and we did not fly high.” The ship rocked from another blast, and I felt my mana take another sharp dip downwards.

“Why aren’t we shooting back!?” I yelped.

Lakshmi shot a glare at me, followed by the sound of the turrets opening fire. “Because I mounted fighter class guns, not a frigate cannon! The Sparrowhawk is not a capital class ship!” She spat at me, and yanked the wheel hard right, throwing us all against the bulkheads.

“Hey! A little warning!” Eshaan yelled from his turret. “I had a nice shot lined up!”

The crack-thoom of Daniyel’s torrent firing interrupted him. A brilliant splash of orange and black erupted on the cutter’s hull, but when it cleared only a small patch of broken hull was revealed.

Camaxtli observed calmly “It appears that the standard weaponry of the Sparrowhawk is not sufficient to do significant damage.”

“Yes, thank you, Camaxtli.” Lakshmi spat, as she yanked the control yoke hard to the side throwing us around the interior again.

Daniyel’s low rumbling bass came from the upper turret. “Captain, a warning is definitely appreciated. Please consider it.”

“I’m working here!” Lakshmi screamed over her shoulder. “Right, you fuckers, let’s see how you like this?!” She muttered, gripping the throttle. She paused, and then shouted again “This is your warning! Everyone hold on to something!”

Lakshmi shoved the throttle to the stops again, and the cutter suddenly leapt forward in size as the Sparrowhawk closed the distance between at an insanely rapid pace. I barely managed to grab one of the handhold straps and even then, I almost lost concentration on my spell.

Blooms of orange and black erupted behind us and the thunder of exploding shells shook the hull. For a second, I was terrified we were going to ram the cutter, but the Sparrowhawk slipped to the side and skimmed along the cutter’s surface close enough for me to read the name ‘Dryad’ stenciled in gold on the ships bow. Then we were around and behind, and Lakshmi spun the ship so we were flying backwards, pointing directly at the Dryad’s engines.

Daniyel and Eshaan didn’t hesitate, and twin gouts of flame erupted from our cannons, direct hits sending shards of metal and flame roaring into the sky and washing around our shields.

“If you’re going to do some magic shit, now is the time!” Lakshmi spat over her shoulder.

I glanced over at Soriya, and she nodded to me. I pressed my lips together firmly, swallowed down a lump in my throat, and dismissed {Barrier} from the ship, as Soriya began her chant.

The cutters upper turrets spoke, and the Sparrowhawk rocked, the shriek of metal and the ping of crystal cracking from the engines a discordant dirge. Soriya finished her chant, and I heard both Eshaan and Daniyel shout in astonishment.

“Now! Now!” Soriya shouted, and twin bolts of elementally charged cannon shells shot towards the Dryad’s engines, blooms of crystal clear fire and ice struck the engines with surgical precision.

I gasped in awe. Soriya had not disappointed, her spellcraft was elegant, precise, and beautiful in execution. I doubted I could have duplicated the detail, the care she put into that spell.

The glow from the Dryad’s engines ceased, and she started to sink towards the jungle canopy below.

We all let out a ragged cheer, though the Sparrowhawk was groaning with damage. Lakshmi pushed the yoke forward and we headed down towards the Dryad’s crash site.

Small arms fire crackled from below as we followed the line the crash of the Dryad’s had torn into the jungle. Lakshmi put us down behind the stern, and I could hear her cussing under her breath.

Eshaan and Daniyel slid out of the turrets. I cast a quick {Barrier} around us, and they rushed out the hatch towards the side of the cutter followed by the rest of us.

Lightning quick sword strokes from Eshaan paired with Daniyel’s glowing elemental punches carved a swift path through the rent torn into the side of the Dryad. Our little group made swift work of the outer guard, only to come to a skidding halt.

I stared in shock, as the captain stepped forward, drawing his blade. Eshaan let out a shocked gasp, and his sword trembled briefly in his hand.

“So, traitor. We meet again.” Lieutenant Isha said calmly, swiping his blade through the air. “This has been a pleasure long denied.” He smiled, the smile of a predator that has found a meal. “But now, you will all taste the might of the Empire.”

With one last flourish, his blade lit with cold purple runes, and I could feel the pulse of mana.

I sighed inwardly. Oh of course. He’s leveled up too.

Before I could blink, Isha dashed forward faster than I could follow, his sword crashing into Eshaan’s blade with a shower of purple sparks and lightning.

“I really should thank you!” Isha gloated. “I wasn’t sure where to look for you, you could have been anywhere in this dragon forsaken green hellscape, and then you graciously lit a beacon into the sky! As well as leaving that enormous gate for us to walk right in! Do you have any idea how long the empire has wanted to exploit this land?!”

Soriya shouted angrily “Oh shut up!” and hurled an angry chant, her voice cracking with power. A massive spell bolt charged at the tip of Ægishjálmur and she hurled the blast of ravening energy at Isha.

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

The flames of the attack shattered on a glowing shield which flickered into existence around him, and I spotted a small bracelet on his wrist flare into life.

“He’s got a shielding bracelet!” I shouted. “Kill the bracelet, and we can hurt him!”

Isha laughed manically and shouted “That’s not all that the Grand Admiral has given me! I am blessed with the power of the Holy Church itself! Behold!” He held up his hand and the bracelet flashed again, bathing Isha in a purple glow.

At first, nothing seemed different, but then Isha was a flickering mass of shapes, moving almost too fast for me to keep up.

“Acceleration magic?!” Soriya yelled. “Oh come on, play fair!”

“What need have I to play fair, against traitors and heretics!?” Isha gloated.

Lakshmi dashed forward and intercepted one of his strikes just as he was about to bisect Camaxtli. “What grand admiral!? There hasn’t been a grand admiral in 200 years!” She demanded, sparks flying from the barrel of her gun as Isha’s sword blade ground against it.

Isha leapt back, and imperial troopers wearing armor emblazoned with a disturbing mix of Church and Imperial iconography rushed forward, crashing against Eshaan and Daniyel’s defense.

“The Commander, who you so callously betrayed, fool!” Isha screamed as us.

Strange. Isha almost seems to be talking more to Eshaan than any of us? And Eshaan…

I spared a quick glance at Eshaan’s face. His expression could have been carved in granite, a cold anger and determination that looked… well, he looks like a proper jrpg hero. I thought with a little sigh of mingled admiration and irritation.

Camaxtli parried a strike, his sword glowing blue and white, and staggered backwards, the blows from the troopers coming faster than he could counter.

Daniyel strode forward, grabbing Isha’s blade in his gauntlets and holding it there, blood slowly streaking down his forearm. His voice was cold and even as he asked “The commander takes the title of Grand Admiral? And who has given it to him? Has he crowned himself?”

“Holy Pope Deacon has raised him up.” Isha spat.

I hadn’t really thought it was possible that I could hate my shadow self more, but I discovered at that moment that I was wrong.

Isha hurled Daniyel backwards with a roar of effort, and Daniyel skidded backwards. I rushed over to hurriedly cast a {Heal} on him. He nodded gratefully to me and turned back to the fight.

Soriya’s chanting reached a crescendo, and Ægishjálmur lit the hallway with an explosion of black light. A burning cold so intense it felt like it was going to burn my skin flowed past us, and suddenly there was a hole cored through the ship.

{Infernal Black!?} Unfair! I haven’t even gotten to cast {Holy White} yet! I protested internally.

Metal shrieked and the whole wreck shifted and rumbled under us, followed by an enormous explosion several decks above and ahead of us.

“Dragon damn you, Soriya!” Lakshmi shouted angrily. “We need that fuel, not more explosions!”

I groaned. Oh of course. We can’t have more fuel than the bare minimum we need, now can we? What’s next, the self-destruct that stops at 1 second?

A trooper dashed past me, and I felt my body react before I could think about it. I brought my staff down hard on his head, and then walloped him backwards towards Isha. I stared in surprise as his body sailed through the battlefield knocking aside several more troopers before crumpling against a bulkhead. A moment later, the body evaporated into sparkling light.

I could feel my heart squeeze in pain. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” I murmured, even as a part of me was staring in shock. I did that?! I did an anime knockback?! Spirits bless me. Just how strong am I?! followed quickly by the thought How strong is everyone else?!

Eshaan clashed swords with Isha, strikes faster than I could follow. Too quickly for me to follow, there was a strike, a flash of light, and an arc of crimson blood splashed onto the walls.

I froze, my mind locked up in horror. Eshaan!? “No! Eshaan!” I screamed, running towards his collapsed body. He’s still there! He’s not dead! I repeated frantically, my hands already glowing with a prepared {Heal}.

Isha snapped his sword to the side, to clear the blood off it, and laughed. “Pitiful! This is the strength that you bring!? And now your woman offers herself to my blade as well.” He raised his blade to strike, and I spun, my eyes blazing with fury. “You! Will! Not! Touch! Him!” I screamed, a brilliant white {Barrier} I didn’t remember casting snapping into place between us. Isha’s sword impacted the shield with a sound like shattering glass, but it was his sword that broke into a hail of glittering shards.

I hated Isha with all my being in that moment, but there was an undeniable grace to every movement he made. With a graceful swirl and dip, like a ballet dancer, he grabbed one of the loot drop swords from his dead troopers, and charged towards Lakshmi.

“The traitor is so weak he relies on his woman, and she is no threat at all. But at least I can rid the emperor of a useless scion!” He shouted.

Lakshmi dodged to the side, rolling out of the way, her red trench coat flaring dramatically. I couldn’t help but be a bit jealous of how cool she looked. She popped up to a knee and snapped a shot off. It was dead center, but Isha’s shield flared around him, and I cursed.

“Pitiful. A miracle your father allowed you to live. You are not heir of the empire.” He sneered.

Lakshmi’s eyes burned with a cold fury. “Is that what he told you? Or are you merely here to enact your master’s whims?”

Isha tipped his head to the side in thought. “Does it matter? One less obstacle, and the empire can do without the stone princess.”

The world seemed to freeze for a moment, and Lakshmi’s eyes burned a cold blue that I’d never seen.

She screamed, a cry of primal pain and challenge. The air froze, blue flame boiled from Lakshmi’s eyes and wreathed her with a cyan aura. With the sound of a glacier cracking a pillar of ice erupted from beneath Isha, and his shield and bracelet shattered into dust.

“I am no princess!” Lakshmi screamed in defiance “I am an air pirate!”

I found myself cheering her on as she shouted her defiance. Go Lakshmi! You tell him!

Camaxtli finished off the last of the troopers with a single sword stroke of his rune covered katana, and moved with liquid grace towards Isha, his sword strokes a flickering blur that pressed Isha back towards the bulkhead.

“Impossible! How are you this strong!?” He protested, his voice panting with exertion. “I have… the backing of the church! The dragon himself guides me!”

A pang of sadness swept over me as I heard his words. Oh. You’re going to die then. I thought, my hand clenching at my chest. Those are the words of a fanatic about to die. I reached out towards him, wanting to say something before he could die, but unsure what could possibly sway him.

Daniyel strode forward, his gauntlets glowing with crimson power. “My lady has made her position clear.” He said, his punches blurring with speed. “It would be best if you heeded them.”

Isha gritted his teeth. “Die with your useless princess!” He shouted, and lunged forward, punching through Daniyel’s defense. Daniyel reeled backwards, slamming hard into the bulkhead, blood dripping from his chest and forehead. Camaxtli took advantage of the fraction of an opening, and I cried out as the arcane katana slid though Isha’s chest, jutting forward like a malignant horn.

“But… how…?” he said in a sad bewildered tone, and then his body collapsed into sparkling motes of light and a rain of small items falling to the deck.

If anything, I was more saddened by how… un-saddened I was. Like I should hurt more. Somebody had just died. Lots of somebodies. But… he wouldn’t give up. That was clear. Deacon won’t give up. I couldn’t understand. I was never this determined in my old life. What was different here?

I snorted at myself. Well for one I’m a pink haired healer, for another I’m actually… I felt a stab of guilt. Actually having fun. And the people on this journey are important to me.

Eshaan let out a groan, and I jerked in surprise. He’d recovered from those wounds surprisingly quickly… after I’d dumped half my mana into him, of course.

I let my {Barrier} drop, and patted him lightly on the cheek.

Lakshmi was already rushing about gathering barrels of fuel and dropped items, shouting directions to us. I supposed I should get up and help.

Sure, lets go loot the dead. I knelt by Eshaan and waited for him to wake up.

He stirred and opened his eyes, then smiled that hero’s smile he had.

“Oh. I guess I must be dead, there’s an angel waiting for me.” He said.

I could feel my blush immediately reach nova heat, and I scowled fiercely at him, whapping his arm.

He groaned and sat up then grinned unrepentantly at me. “Ah, nope, my mistake. Hurts too much to be dead. I guess we won.”

I nodded. “Somehow, yeah. I… really didn’t think Isha would have gone… this far. Even if Deacon was pushing him. It doesn’t make any sense.”

Eshaan gently patted my head. “Well, are things still sort of on track?”

I nodded, biting my lower lip. “Yes, only-”

Eshaan frowned. “Only what? What is it, Lily?”

Outside the sound of an unfamiliar woman’s voice shouted loudly in a commanding tone.

“Hands up! You’re all under arrest for despoiling the Sylvain sacred groves!”

I couldn’t help it, a giggle slowly rose up in my chest, and spilled out.