Chapter 6: The calm before the storm
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Ethan took a deep breath. "Prepare to repel boarders!"
Almost instinctively, Ethan called his hammer and spear to his hands. Alana made a beeline for the storage compartment where she'd stashed her bow and arrows. Anthiel drew her sword and a roll of leather. He felt the tingle of magic being used and then the roll of leather unrolled itself into a small shield that looked quite rigid. The two crewmen drew sabers and took up defensive positions.
"We are so dead." Beth whispered looking up at the twenty ropes that had just fallen from the attacking airship, then to the mere five defenders on the Argo.
Anthiel smiled. "Do you really think your father would send just anyone to protect his little girl?"
She shook her head, then glanced at the two crewmembers. A flicker of recognition came to her face. Despite that, she looked unsure what to do.
"Can you fight?" Ethan asked. She shook her head again, so he said. "Then lock yourself in the captain's cabin."
She nodded, then then did so.
"Defend the Quarterdeck." Anthiel said. "If they take that they'll control the ship."
Alana ran back up the stairs with her bow in hand and her quiver at her side. They gathered around the ship's wheel facing out and waited. Mere seconds later, twenty men began rappelling from the ropes they had dropped.
Alana drew her bow and started shooting the incoming pirates. Her aim was fast and deadly; four of the pirates were dead before they hit the deck. Inspired by her success, Ethan threw his spear at one of the descending pirates but narrowly missed. He called it back to his hand, but he didn't have time for another attempt.
The pirates had landed.
Four of them landed on the quarterdeck, the remaining dozen landed scattered around the main weather deck. Anthiel and the two crewmen engaged one each while Alana fired a fast and deadly hail of arrows at the men unlucky enough to be in her view. Ethan engaged the last pirate on the quarterdeck, dropping his war hammer to wield the spear in two hands.
The pirate looked to be about thirty with weather-beaten and worn clothing. He carried a cutlass and a one-handed boarding axe. Ethan lunged with the tip of his spear, but the pirate hooked the shaft with his boarding axe and charged in for a slash aimed at Ethan's chest.
Ethan did exactly what Heinrich trained him to do.
The moment the pirate had hooked his weapon, Ethan slid his hands far apart and jerked the opposite way. Using his superior leverage, Ethan ripped the boarding axe right out of the pirate's hands while at the same time using part of the shaft to block the pirate's slash. He continued the motion, treating the spear like a bo staff, swinging it around in an attempt to crack the pirate's skull.
The pirate ducked and stepped back, which was all the room Ethan needed. Ethan thrust at the pirate again, and the pirate was able to get his sword up, but he didn't have the strength to fight Ethan's superior two-handed leverage with only one arm. The tip of Ethan's spear plunged into the pirate's chest just above his heart and he fell like a ton of bricks.
Ethan jerked his spear out, turning to see how the others were doing...
And barely missed having his head cut off.
Another pirate had run up the stairs to the quarterdeck and aimed a slash at him. Ethan dived backwards to avoid it. The pirate advanced and Ethan would've died right there if Alana hadn't put an arrow through the pirate's head a moment before his blade would've run Ethan through.
He had just enough time to glance around at the situation. Anthiel and the two crewmen had already dispatched their opponents and were fighting a pitched battle for one of the two staircases on either side of the quarterdeck that led down to the main deck. Alana had almost emptied her quiver and the scattered pirates with arrows sticking out of them testified to her effectiveness.
"Ethan, protect the stairs." Anthiel called.
He jumped up and got to the top of one of the stairways. Only a few pirates remained and one of them was charging up the stairs. Ethan lunged with his spear. Despite the pirate's best efforts, the spear connected and buried itself deep into his chest.
Too deep.
Unfortunately, the spearhead was firmly stuck into the man's chest and he couldn't pull it out. The last pirate on his side of the ship charged up the stairs and Ethan was forced to abandon his attempt to retrieve his spear. The pirate slashed at him and he jumped back.
"Hey." Alana shouted.
The pirate whipped around toward Alana with his sword at the ready. She was only armed with a bow and didn't have an arrow in hand, so she brought it up like a stave to defend herself. Ethan took a flying leap from the ground and tackled him. Unfortunately for them both, the stairs were in that direction and Ethan's momentum carried them both into open air.
Then something odd happened.
All his life, Ethan had seen cats instantly right themselves in mid-air and land on their feet after falling from any height. Apparently, dragons shared that instinct. Time almost seemed to slow as Ethan's body automatically twisted in mid-fall. Suddenly, Ethan was facing the main deck coming up to meet his face. He stuck out both arms and legs landing on all fours; badly, but he landed. Then the pirate landed on top of him, flattening him to the deck and nearly knocking the wind out of him before rolling away.
Ethan grabbed a pirate's sword that was lying on the deck, its former owner having an arrow sticking out of his head. He turned toward the pirate and before the pirate could mount an effective defense, Ethan slashed at him. The blade caught the pirate across his arm, severing it and burying itself several inches into the man's chest. Unfortunately for the pirate, it was the side where his heart was located.
He turned white and then slumped to the deck.
Alana ran down the stairs, then -- her new position granting her a clear shot -- turned and loosed a final arrow at the last pirate who was fighting on the other staircase. The arrow caught him in the side, giving one of the Argo's sailors plenty of time to finish the job.
Anthiel and the two sailors came down the stairs to stand next to Ethan and Alana. Alana turned to face them, putting her back towards the quarterdeck. They all breathed a sigh of relief, though panted would probably be more accurate as all of them -- Ethan included -- were out of breath.
"Well... how's that?" Ethan asked. He hadn't noticed before, but his hands were shaking slightly because of the adrenaline in his veins.
"Perfect." A gruff voice said from the quarterdeck. Ethan's head snapped up. Three more pirates had fast-roped down. Two landed on the quarterdeck and one landed right behind Alana. Before she could react, he put his arm around her neck and a knife to her throat.
"Drop your weapons or the bitch gets it." The Pirate said.
Ethan's borrowed pirate cutlass was the first to fall, followed by Alana's bow. Anthiel and the two crewmen joined suit moments later.
"Get them." The pirate who was holding Alana commanded the other two. The two pirates came down the stairs and collected the weapons.
"That worked perfectly." The pirate holding Alana said to his compatriots. "I didn't figure the math on two waves, but I'll be damned if Falkaan doesn't know his shit."
