Blood in the Water

Lucius got his first real look at a wyvern as they dove straight towards the Wavecutter, and he found them to be far more fearsome than his texts had made them out to be. With wingspans of more than fifteen feet and a sinewy body of at least twenty-five feet, each individual beast was both impressive and terrifying. At the end of each wing were three claws splayed out for the purpose of grasping, while powerful hind limbs also sported wicked-looking claws that were no doubt capable of ripping a man open from stem to stern. Their scales glinted dully in the sunlight, reflecting greens and blues. One would have been enough for him, but Lucius and the crew of the Wavecutter were facing down a full dozen of them.

A loud screech went up from one of the wyverns and the group split off into two, one beginning to climb up towards the sun while the other continued on a straight path towards the ship. Astora shouted a warning, “Smart bastards! They’re going to dive on us, get to cover now! Once they’re in range, take ‘em down!”

As fast as arrows, the second group dove down towards the Wavecutter, gaping maws revealing rows of sharp teeth designed to rip and tear. Lucius pushed Hana behind the railing and hunkered down as a dozen wings beat a merciless frenzy overhead. Each wyvern screamed in high-pitched shrieks as they buzzed the deck, sending crew scrambling for cover. There was a short cry of pain from below amidst the cacophony, sending a shiver up Lucius’ spine. As the shadows passed overhead and they could raise their heads, Astora called out from where she stood resolutely at the wheel,

“Second group incoming! Give ‘em hell lads! Cut ‘em to ribbons!”

The Wavecutter let loose a barrage of bolts at their assailers, sending the flying monsters scattering in all directions. The ballistae operators frantically wound their machines and reloaded, unleashing a second volley at closer range. This time, some of the bolts found their mark and two wyverns were sent splashing into the ocean. A short cry of victory went up from the crew, only to be drowned out by angry shrieks from the swirling mass above. Their shadows flitted across the deck in such numbers that at times whole sections were plunged into shadow.

Lucius turned his head rapidly to try and take it all in, hoping to keep track of as many wyverns as possible so that he wouldn’t get surprised. Blacktern appeared nearby and shook her head slowly,

“No, you try to do too much. Look at the captain. See how she holds herself in crisis. Calm, focused and collected, never doing more than one thing at a time even under pressure. Observe carefully and do not get overwhelmed, lest the waves take you.”

Though he did wonder why Blacktern was taking such an interest in him, Lucius wasn’t about to look a gift horse in the mouth, especially when it was good advice. Narrowing his focus down to the ship’s boundaries, he ignored those far beyond his reach.

“How’re you holding up, Hana? Got your sea legs yet?” She snickered, “Of course, but what about yourself? You look as though you would fall over at any moment.” Lucius rolled his eyes, smiling, “Glad to see your sense of humor is back. Just curious, you don’t mind us fighting these things, yeah?”

“Of course not. They struck first, so they need to be reprimanded. Hopefully we will not have to kill them all. I would like to avoid that outcome, at least.” He spun halfway around surprised, “Wait, we? You mean you’re going to help?” She crossed her arms and stared at him from beneath the hood, “Of course I am, these people need all the help they can get. What, did you expect me to hide away in the corner and scream every now and then?”

“Well…no.” A confident smirk crossed her lips, “Excellent. You can leave this side to me, so don’t worry about it! Just because I saw something bad, doesn’t mean I want it to happen.” As if to emphasize the point, the palm of her hand bloomed with pale green flame. Astora took notice and shouted over her shoulder,

“Hey! Watch the fire! That’ll do more damage to us in thirty seconds than those wyverns could do in a year!” Hana shouted back, “Sure thing, Captain! I wasn’t aiming for the ship anyways!” With a flick of her wrist, Hana sent the mote of flame streaking off into the cloud of circling wyverns, catching one in the wing and setting it alight. With a panicked scream, the wyvern plummeted into the ocean, where it floundered briefly before sinking beneath the waves. Lucius blinked with wide eyes, “Ten hells…that was awesome…”

Four wyverns came screaming down at the ship, fangs bared as they swept towards the scurrying crew. One veered around towards the stern, diving down at an angle to try and grab at Lucius. Knowing that he couldn’t stand directly against the oncoming monstrosity, Lucius steeled himself as he stared it down. Mere moments before the slavering jaws closed around him, he pushed himself off to the side and simultaneously struck out with the rapier’s point. The sheer force of the wyvern’s charge threw him off balance and he received a dizzying blow to the shoulder as its wings clipped him as it passed by. Hana growled audibly and launched two more burning spheres, neither of which made any purchase as the wyvern corkscrewed through the air.

Pulling himself up from the deck and shaking stars from his eyes, Lucius steadied himself as the Wavecutter rocked under a fresh assault. Four wyverns clammed into the deck at high speed; one managed to catch itself in the rigging and became tangled in the ropes while the other three succeeded in making it to the deck, slashing about with their fangs and claws. Astora threw the wheel over and shouted to Blacktern,

“Get down there and keep the deck clear! If we lose the sails, then we’re really dead in the water!” Blacktern took a step to comply, but then stopped and shot a look of concern towards her captain. Astora smiled to reassure her first mate, “I’ll be fine. Go!” Unable to protest further, Blacktern dashed down the steps from the quarterdeck in a blur of shadow, ramming her dual weapons into the flank of the nearest wyvern that was menacing a pair of sailors. The air was thick with the sound of steel and scales clashing in the fevered pitch of combat. Sailors and wyverns each contested for domination amidst the cramped space of the main deck, making any kind of serious movement impossible for either group.

The wyverns used their wings and claws to their advantage, scaling the masts and even trying to use the sails to gain height, ripping one of the main sails to ribbons in the process. Unable to follow as effectively, the crew used what ranged weapons they had to drive the wyverns away from the deck and tried to gang up on the ones that did manage to land. Blacktern was a moving shadow, rushing from wyvern to wyvern delivering mortal blows each time she drew back her arm. Two of the beasts were sent lifeless to the deck while another limped away into the sky, bleeding heavily from deep punctures. Hana continued her barrage of fireballs, but found only minimal success as those who still circled above seemed to be learning how to avoid them. A few more attempted to dive on her, recognizing the source of the deadly flame. Each time, Lucius placed himself in their path and warded them away, though he was unable to find any opportunities for lethal strikes.

Every now and then, a sailor would disappear under a flurry of claws and fangs and be sent reeling in a bleeding mess. Astora called for the injured to be sent below, but her words were largely lost in the chaos. Lucius scanned the deck for motionless bodies of the crew, but the frenzy was so thick that he couldn’t make anything out. He knew that the longer this went on, the chance of someone dying increased exponentially. They needed to find a way to end this or escape, fast.

Astora called out to them, “Look! Do you see that big one, with the green scales?” They both craned their necks skyward and saw what Astora was pointing at; a large wyvern with bright, shimmering scales with an oddly bright red crest on its head and neck. She continued to shout over the din, “You see that? That’s the alpha! If we can deal with him, the rest will scatter! Pretty flame girl, can you force it down? You won’t be able to kill him, but make him pissed off so he has to land!”

Hana rolled her eyes but seemed willing to comply, her hands once more coming alive with crackling flame. A spark of worry flickered through Lucius as Hana prepared to release another fusillade. Her breathing was becoming increasingly labored as beads of sweat rolled down her face, undercutting the determination clearly wrought in her expression. He wanted to tell her to take a rest and recuperate where it was safe, but at the same time he had a feeling she would reject the idea. If she was resolved to see this through, then so would he.

She launched two large bolts towards the alpha wyvern, aiming to either of its sides. When they reached the right level, just above the wings, Hana snapped her fingers. Both bolts suddenly erupted in large explosions that enveloped the alpha in a wave of green fire. Lucius felt the pulse of compressed air as the shockwave rolled over the Wavecutter,

“Nicely done!” He called over to her, “Since when could you do that?” Hana looked back at him with tired eyes, “Just now! You like?” “You never cease to impress, Hana. But I don’t think our new friend liked that trick of yours very much!”

The wyvern alpha, despite smoking and with holes in its wings, was very much alive and extremely angry. It dove down onto the stern, slamming into the wooden deck with such force that the entire stern dipped dangerously down towards the waterline. Balancing on the heavy railing, the beast reared up to its full height and spread its smoldering wings wide, sending them plunging into shadow. Lucius and Hana both retreated towards the wheel to escape its immediate range, while Astora whirled about and drew her twin scimitars and glared viciously at the new intruder,

“Alright ya overgrown lizard! Time ta show ya why nobody fucks with my ship! I’ll carve ya up into steaks and serve ya fer dinner! Come on lad, gimme a hand with this one!” Lucius waved Hana back, “You should take a moment to rest! Fire isn’t a good idea this close, anyways!”

As he expected, Hana pushed back against the idea, “I’m not going to run away! Besides, there’s nowhere to go!” Lucius gestured towards the hold, “There’re wounded down there! You can help them! Don’t worry about us up here, just go and make sure that what you saw doesn’t come to pass!” A brief instance of fear flickered in her eyes, unconvinced that there was nothing more she could do topside to help them. It was only when he turned away to devote his full attention to the wyvern did she dash towards the hold, her expression one of mixed emotion.

Astora swung her gleaming cutlasses through the air, admiring their sheen as they swished through the air, “Alright lad, if you’re done acting all big, let’s deal with this fucker. My advice, go for the joints with that pig sticker of yours. Belly is soft, so are the eyes. If it bites you, I say you’ll get about ten minutes to live. Good luck!”