Chương 22: Smoke and Mirrors.

Alright, time to go. Her ship tacked against the wind and fled as fast as the wind would carry her. Unfortunately the metal plating and three ballistas limited how fast the wind could carry her. There was at least half a kilometer between her and the nearest ship. After several minutes of fleeing she piped up.

"Talvik, we can't outrun them, and the distance is closing fast, I think I have to stand and fight." There were three ships trailing behind her, but they were far lighter than her vessel.

"Child, dispel Aether Culverin and resummon it on the stern." Talvik stared out into the water. Oh yeah…. She did so with haste and before long she had three enemy ships in her firing arc.

"Take this you bastards." She yelled across the sea. Fire! The cannon roared and … completely missed as the ship rode up a wave. The shell went way over the ships. While the cannon reloaded she checked her flux. Flux: 3, 503/4, 060 These skills are eating up flux fast, I need to end this fast. She took aim again, but this time slowed the ship down to steady it. She breathed in and held. FIRE.

The cannon roared, her proximity to the blast deafening her, but watching the shell smash straight through the prow and detonate in the middle of an enemy ship was worth it. The system pinged her but she ignored it. I don't have the time for you. She took aim at another ship, they were closing in now and the distance was only a few hundred meters. They slowed, she breathed in, "Fire" She whispered. The shell rocketed out and slammed into the water next to the ship.

"Damn it, again" She took aim again, the reload time grating on her nerves.

"FIRE!" she yelled, voice full of desperation, the second it was reloaded. The shell rocketed into the vessel, it was hard to miss when they were a mere hundred meters away. The system screamed in her ear. She brushed it off. The last ship was closing in fast on her portside (the left side of a ship). Her cannon could no longer swivel to match them Flux: 3, 156/4, 060 Alright fine, I can work with this.

The enemy ship pulled up to her port gunwale and rammed into her ship, throwing her off her feet and dispelling the Aether Culverin. Talvik squawked and flew off the mast. This is not going to be fun. She immediately tried to summon an Aether Culverin on the port gunwale, facing directly into the enemy ship. The enemy crew over the gunwales and across the ships. By Kronan's blasted head, I don't have anything for close range!

With her Aether Culverin loaded and facing directly into the enemy ship, there was no way to miss. FIRE! The cannon roared and the opposing ship was turned into a splintered wreck, nearly split in half by the blast. Shrapnel flew everywhere. The sailors ran to the back of the ship to check on the noise.

"Our ships been shattered, straight through the fucking keel!" One screamed. Shit! She had nowhere to go. She swung herself over the railing at the stern and inched her way down the backside of the ship, water lapped up at her as the ship rocked. Footsteps thundered above her head, "Where did that wench go?", "Did she jump overboard?". Three of the sailors checked behind the ship. They stood right above Nythera, looking over her. She held her breath.

"Ya see her? Where in Kronan's left eye did she go?" He said and spat into the water.

"The wench is hiding below deck, let's get her." Another said, and they all departed to search the lower decks.

"What little girl carries around that much blasting powder? She's going to get us all killed" another muttered. What in the blazes do I do now? If I crawl back on deck, they'll gut me or hand me over to Damien. They've got nowhere else to go now too….. Wait. Nythera checked Synchronized Thunder, the ship twitched. She grinned. This is gonna be so much fun. She jerked the ship to the left thirty degrees, sails and rudder turning at her command. Several sailors came running back up to the stern.

"Watch the fucking wheel or I'll throw you overboard myself. Get us back to the fleet." A voice shouted.

"Yes sir." Another answered. She waited a minute, letting them believe they had control. Then jerked the ship twenty degrees to the right.

"What the fuck is going on with this damned ship?" The sailor muttered as he yanked on the wheel.

"Oi, what in the bloody blazes are ya doin' back here?" The man from before came back.

"Sorry sir, she's difficult to handle?"

"One more mishap and you're overboard." The captain grumbled. Nythera snickered and then began rotating the ballistas to face into the ship. She did it slowly, gradually, as if the rolling of the waves was causing them to swivel on their own.

"Cap, something about these ballistas seems a tad bit strange." She heard a voice call out. As she felt the foremost ballista on the prow complete its swivel and face towards the deck she issued her command. FIRE!. The twang was followed by a thump and a scream.

"Bloody blazes what in Kronan's name happened. It got Dan!." The captain shouted.

"This ship is haunted, captain, I can't control the wheel either, she keeps fighting me." The sailor muttered. Nythera swiveled the other two ballistas directly towards the deck and launched two more salvos.

"fucking damn it, ships haunted… I ain't ever seen no skill like this before." The captain screamed, she could barely hear him among the sound of waves. Damn it, I didn't get another one. She tugged the ship 90 degrees to the right, the sails snapped back as wind filled the other side. If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. Her vessel had drifted much closer to the shoreline during the confrontation and the waves were pulling it closer.

I just need them to jump off and swim for land. Then I can get this thing turned around. The sailor returned and took hold of the wheel, trying to tug it back into position. Nythera kept pulling back. I've got you now! She started constructing her Aether Culverin right behind the sailor. She gave a hard tug on the rudder and the ship jerked again.

"fucking cursed ship, I ain't lettin' it win this." He cursed and pulled back on the wheel. The culverin formed, aimed directly at the wheel. Flux: 2, 681/4, 060 This is getting expensive, I need to end this fast or I'll never make it back to Grandport. Fire! The Aether Culverin roared, the shell blowing a hole straight through the sailors chest. And straight through the steering wheel. And straight through the mast. She heard footsteps pounding above her.

"Get the mast, the mast! Who the fuck blew a hole in the bloody mast?!" The captain called out.

"Devin is dead, this ship be cursed, ABANDON SHIP! ABANDON SHIP!" She heard two splashes. Nythera pulled herself back under the railing and onto the ship. Not a soul onboard, well except for me. She smirked. The ship was a disaster, the wheel was completely blown up and the mast had a gaping hole and was beginning to fall, the lines were the only thing keeping it up. She took a closer look at the mast. Shit. This thing is going to fall if I try another maneuver.

Why did I have to blow a hole straight through my own mast?! She heard a scream. Her head whipped around to the source. With [Farsight] she spotted the captain in the distance and… something around him, a large, jagged fin had broken the surface of the water. This place never quits, does it. She had the prow ballistas reloaded and grabbed a large coil of rope. The mast came toppling over the starboard (right side of a ship) gunwale, but she didn't care anymore. Time to get myself a ride back.

She dragged the dead sailor from the stern and dangled him over the front of the prow, lifeless hands sticking into the water below. Come here fishy fishy fishy. The ship jolted suddenly to the left as something knocked against it. She aimed all the ballistas forwards, hefted the dead sailor up, and then tossed him as far as she could over the prow. A jagged fin popped out off the port side, beelining straight for the corpse. I've got you! As the fin reached the corpse she let loose all three ballistas.

The rope unraveled with the flying bolts. THUMP THUMP Two bolts stuck completely out of the dorsal fin, while one scraped off on the left side. The fish dove. Oh Hel. Nythera ran to the back of the boat as the prow was pulled down and water began flooding in. The whole ship groaned and creaked under the strain, she threw herself against the back railing. This thing is going to snap the ship in half! And then she was falling, back towards the water. The ship rocked as it re-stabilized, rolling with the waves.

The lines connected to the monster fish were completely loose. That's a shame… it got away, how am I supposed to get anywhere with a snapped mast? I'm going to ask for a stronger ship next time. The entire ship was jerked to the side, the lines snapped taut. She was sent tumbling to the ground. They were moving at flank speeds… in the wrong direction.' She got up and yanked hard on the starboard-side ballista line. Come here fishy, we need to head back to Grandport. The lines all went slack again.

A certain fin popped out of the water just seconds later ahead of the ship. As it swam away she braced herself against a ballista this time. The fish had changed course again, this time it was heading towards Grandport, at increasing speeds. The ship jerked to the left and the fish made way to the shore. Damn it, you dumb fish, NO.

Nythera threw a piece of wood off to the right, the fish swallowed in a blitz, correcting its course for a moment. Every few seconds the ship jerked slightly to the left or right, but it seemed relatively steady, as long as she kept throwing small objects into the water to bait it. I'm Nythera…. Tamer of big fish. She laughed. As she drew closer to the town, [Farsight] revealed a catastrophic scene.

Much of the city was aflame, and over half of Damien's fleet had beached themselves, while the remaining chunk circled the waters around the city, enforcing a blockade. Periodic blasts of flux were shot out from amongst the rooftops. The fighting hasn't ended yet. I need to get back there and smash the blockade. Her current trajectory was for the deep seas, well outside Grandport's harbor. As her ship pulled closer and closer to Grandport, she checked her flux. Flux: 2, 235/4, 060 This'll have to do then….

This is not going to be cheap. She brought forth the Aether Culverin, pointed vaguely in the direction of the enemy fleet.

"FIRE" She commanded and was met with the comforting sound of artillery fire. Scanning the enemy ships, she saw a flurry of movement. Four ships had already broken off from the blockade. Good they noticed. She got out her dagger and cut one line, then the next, the ship jerked back as tension left the ropes. Thanks Fishy. Nythera ran back to the smashed up stern and lowered herself off the back, clinging onto the railings like before. She peered into the churning water below her. Please don't eat me fishy.

She watched from behind the railings as a storm of ships, 7 or 8 at least, approached her wrecked vessel. FIRE! Her Aether Culverin sounded off the port bow, shell flying well past the enemy ships, but their attention was now on the front of the ship. And not on me. She snickered. As they got closer and closer, she took more time to aim the culverin. [Synchronized Thunder] could only still the ship so far. FIRE! A shell smashed through the hull of an enemy vessel, men leaping out as their ship took on water.

[Several System Notifications Present] She brushed it off, she didn't have time to worry about the system. She aimed again, unconsciously holding her breath as she stilled the ship FIRE! Yet another shell roared forth, going high this time, it shot straight through a sail and continued past the ship. Irritation rose within her, but she settled her mind with focus. The enemy was nearly upon her. The ships diverged as they approached, some approaching from the stern, some towards the prow.

The closer they get, the easier they are to hit. The easier it is to see me hiding here too. She aimed again, this time at the ship coming straight for her prow. FIRE! Fire roared and wood debris flew. The whole ship fell apart on the spot, the shot had gone clean through the keel and detonated in the middle of the ship, leaving a flaming wreck. [Several System Notifications Present] Not now. She brushed it away. Nythera tugged on [Synchronized Thunder], but without a functioning sail there was little it could do.

Waves crashed into the starboard gunwale and the keel was creaking. It's time to… commandeer a new ship. She pushed herself flat against the back of the ship, as much as she could, her Wildfire cloak flapped in the wind behind her. She focused on the oncoming vessels. They were within 50 meters already. Easy targets, shooting a lizigeon at the docks, all clustered together. She grinned. She aimed the culverin, breathed and waited. A moment of stillness in a storm of ships. FIRE!

The culverin roared to life and another ship was smashed to splinters, men diving for the water. Eight ships had become six.

"Cannonfire! SHIELDS NOW" one screeched orders. Odds are not looking good for me, where in the blazes is Talvik? Nythera was jerked to the left as a vessel slammed into the side, boarding lines holding the boats together. A second later, she was jerked to the right as yet another ship nestled up beside her own. Captain Nythera… needs a new ship. She peered just above the floor of the ship, still hanging off the railings from the stern.

"Find the damnable wench, Damien wants her alive." a voice bellowed across the decks.

"That bitch took out two of our ships! I had family on the Drenched Wench. When I find her…." a soldier said. She felt her culverin get disrupted as it was reloading, the men had obviously found her cannon to be nonamusing. And then it dawned on her, as the light went on in her head, she grinned smugly. Time to get some old friends back. As the men searched the ship for her, they largely ignored the stern, the steering wheel was smashed to bits afterall.

Flux: 1, 672/4, 060 I've barely got enough to pull this all off. She summoned Aether Culverin, pointing straight at her own hull.