Limitless Seas, Chapter 5.

Chapter 5. 

“I may not live to breathe it for long, but for the first time in months, I can taste the air of freedom,” the orc said, holding out his hand to Larson who returned the orc’s firm grip. “I am Nogreb and I will follow you, Larson. Don’t think this absolves you of your debt to me for killing Maggot, that remains to be paid. I’ll check on the course of the battle above us,” Nogreb said, moving toward the hatch. Winston followed behind the orc, and Larson could tell that he was anxious to get some revenge. The orc had finally given up his name, and from the way he carried the shortsword, Larson could tell he knew how to use the weapon. 

Nogreb peeked his head above the hatch coaming, he would have been hard to spot in the chaos of battle. The sound of fighting had drifted off but hadn’t diminished much since it had started. If anything, the fighting seemed more frantic than before. Tarley was making good time, but many of the locks hadn't been used since the day they were first attached to the prisoner. Salt air had rusted several closed and it took some time to work them loose. 

“Most of the pirates are now on the other ship, only a handful remain behind. The merchants are fighting hard, but it looks like they were outnumbered. There must have been more pirates than I had thought they could pack onto this tub,” Nogreb advised. 

“Are there any weapons on deck that you can see?” Larson asked. 

“A few bodies are on the deck, pirates killed by ranged weapons from the other ship. If nothing else, the men can grab a belaying pin, they at least make a decent club,”

“How many are we facing and where are they located?” Larson asked, this was battle and vague answers got people killed. 

“A half dozen, one at the rudder with a flouncy elf officer next to him, and four other pirates at the railing, guarding the boarding plank,” Nogreb replied. 

“Right, we’ve got a dozen men freed now and only four of us with weapons. We need to move before the pirates take the other ship and turn their attention back here. Those of us with weapons will rush the four pirates at the boarding plank while the rest of you gather up what weapons you can from the fallen. Once you're armed, go after the two manning the rudder,” Larson ordered. Tarley passed off his key to the man he just freed and drew his dagger, joining the attacking group.

“Go!” Larson ordered, as he slithered up the stairs. His body was strangely agile over the rough surface, the loops of his tail pushing up against the wooden steps and allowing him to climb up at a walking pace. Once on deck, he inhaled a breath of fresh air, the first one in this new world that hadn’t been tainted by the stench below decks. Not wasting any time, Larson selected his victim. Four pirates stood near a pair of planks that had been thrown across the gap between the two ships. Their attention was completely on the battle in front of them. 

The chosen victim was a human pirate in simple sailors garb that was holding a long boarding pike. Larson wanted that weapon. The noise above decks masked their approach until the elf on the elevated quarterdeck spotted them and shouted a warning. It was too late for Larson’s target, the man turned around confused and he could see the look of terror in the man’s face as Larson slithered toward him, the warped ballista bolt aimed for his chest. The force of Larson’s impact drove the dull tip of the bolt deep into the pirate’s body. His target made a strange ‘oh’ sound before collapsing to the deck. Larson dropped his ballista bolt and grabbed the boarding pike, the weapon feeling much more balanced than his makeshift one. 

A quick look showed that Nogreb had his opponent under control, the man was bleeding from a wound to his belly and was feebly trying to fend off Nogreb’s follow up strike. Tarley wasn’t faring as well, the man he had targeted held a cutlass and despite getting a quick strike into the target’s side with his initial attack, the pirate held him back with a longer reach. Larson swung his new pike into place and rammed it into the hip of the pirate fighting Tarley. That was the plan at least, instead of impaling his target, the man turned with blinding speed and deflected his pike with the blade of his cutlass before launching a counter blow that cleaved the left index finger from Larson’s left hand. 

While the pirate was focused on Larson, Tarley stepped in drove his dagger into the pirate's neck. This blow landed, the old sailor's knife hit something vital, causing the pirate to drop lifeless to the deck. Tarley grabbed his victim’s cutlass and the pair of them turned to help Winston. Sadly, Winston’s skills with his whip weren’t up to the task. The man lay dead on the deck and the pirate he had been fighting was already over the boarding plank and shouting a warning to his comrades. 

The other prisoners that had come on deck behind them were gathering weapons from the fallen. They held a motley collection of everything from another boarding pike to small daggers like the one Tarley had started the battle with. The group looked over to Larson, seeking his guidance. That was good, they were seeing him as the authority here. If, make that when, they took the ship, he would be the one in charge. 

“Have at them lads, take the helm from these pirate scum,” Larson shouted. The men obliged and a dozen poorly armed former prisoners charged up the steps toward the enemy. As they fought, more prisoners trickled up onto the deck as they were freed from their bonds. 

“Tarley, you and Nogreb gather up whatever weapons you can find and see to it that the new arrivals are armed as best they can,” Larson ordered, gesturing toward the pirates they had just killed. Hold our new arrivals here at the boarding plank in case the pirates head back in this direction. I’m going to help out the others, it looks like they have their hands full,” Larson said as he slithered toward the fight on the quarterdeck. His men weren’t doing all that well, despite outnumbering the enemy six to one. The human pirate was armed with a cutlass in one hand and a long dagger in the other. Two dead prisoners lay on the deck, a testament to pirate’s weapons skill. The elf at the tiller was busy moving his hands in an intricate pattern that ended with him pointing at the swarming prisoners. Half of Larson’s men dropped to the deck, whether dead or merely unconscious, he didn’t know. 

“Good of you to join us naga, you should at least make the fight more interesting,” the elf pirate taunted as Larson approached. The human pirate had taken down another of his men and was easily in command of his fight against the last two prisoners still on their feet. Larson ignored the taunt and used his longer reach to poke at the human pirate’s defenses. The human easily batted away his pike, controlling the long weapon was harder without half of an index finger. He pushed aside the pain for now, as well as the question of whether his body’s rapid healing could somehow replace lost appendages. 

“All together men, strike!” Larson shouted as he and the other two attacked at the same time. The pirate deflected Larson’s pike with his cutlass and drove his dagger into a prisoner armed with what looked like a broken mop handle. Despite his skill, the pirate couldn’t do much against the third strike, as the final prisoner hacked a bloody furrow into the pirate’s shoulder with a short sword. The pirate lost his grip on the cutlass but used his dagger to take down the man who had injured him. This opened the pirate up to Larson’s next strike, and with all the power he could muster, Larson impaled the man. The pirate pulled the pike from Larson’s hand as he fell, the blood slicked handle proving too hard to hold onto. 

“Did you lose your toothpick? Too bad, my magic can’t be disarmed,” the elf taunted as he closed in and unleashed a fan of flames from his outstretched hand. The fire hit Larson’s chest, burning away the rag of a shirt he wore and blistering his flesh. In the corner of his eye, Larson could see his health bar drop rapidly as the damage to his abused body mounted. The elf grinned and resumed his chanting, pushing more power into his spell as he closed in on Larson. That move proved to be his undoing. 

Instinctively knowing he was in range, Larson lashed out with his tail, the scaly appendage resisting the flames for the brief moment he needed to secure a solid grip on the outstretched arm of the elf. A flex of his powerful serpent body ripped the delicate arm from his victim. The elf made a squeal as the magical flame guttered out and Larson closed in. Fumbling for a small red vial on his waist, the elf dropped the vial and cried out as Larson grabbed him. 

“Who’s disarmed now, elf,” Larson taunted as he picked up the pirate mage and tossed him over the railing into the sea below. With his arm pumping out blood at a prodigious rate, he knew the elf was finished. Blood loss or a hungry sea creature would take care of that problem for him. Curious, he picked up the small vial the elf was trying to use. 

Minor Healing Potion. Ingesting this potion will greatly speed the natural healing process for the next twenty seconds. 

Larson was having trouble concentrating, without the adrenaline of battle, the pain from the burns on his chest was overriding everything else. The skin was completely gone and burnt muscle revealed one of his ribs. Larson plucked the cork stopper from the small vial and drank it down. The potion left a faint hint of cinnamon on his tongue as it started to do its work. He tried to focus on the battle as he waited to see if the potion would help. 

The merchant vessel had been about a third larger than the Gull Dropping. Long and elegant looking, the ship was powered by solely by sail, a design feature that had allowed the pirates to catch up to it in the mild breeze. He spotted the ballista sitting on the bow of the merchant ship, the weapon had both injured him and allowed the means for his escape. To the aft of the merchant vessel, a tiny knot of armed sailors tried to fend off the swarm of pirates. Larson estimated there were only a score of sailors left trying to fight over fifty pirates. At the rear of the pirate mob, the pirate that had killed Winston was talking with Captain Ikar’re and pointing directly at Larson. 

“You going to make it Larson?” Nogreb grunted. The orc had seen the fight going poorly and had rounded up three of the newly freed prisoners to assist. 

“Aye, the elf had a healing potion and I think it’s helping,” he said. Indeed, Larson could see the exposed rib was now covered with healthy muscle and the burnt flesh was slowly mending. His stump of an index finger didn’t look any different, other than that it wasn’t bleeding anymore. 

“Good, because it looks like we’re about to have company,” Nogreb said, pointing toward Ikar’re who had gathered a dozen of his attacking pirates and pushed them back toward their vessel. To oppose them, Tarley only had a handful of prisoners armed and ready. 

“Sir, these ones that the elf magicked is just asleep, not keeled over like I thought,” one of the prisoners said as the man he was poking let out a groan and struggled to wake up. 

“Good, it looks like that was only a sleep spell. I’ll get the sleeping beauties up and armed, you go and help Tarley,” Larson ordered Nogreb

“Aye sir, we’ll hold the pirates back until you get there,” Nogreb replied as the three prisoners with him grabbed the nearest weapons and shuffled off to join Tarley. One of the men grabbed Larson’s pike, looking at the weapon with disgust as he held the blood covered haft. To his credit, the man kept a firm grip and rushed to join the others. 

Larson pulled himself up, trying and failing to stifle a scream as the pain began anew with his movement. Using his tail, he slapped at each of the sleeping men, forcing them awake. The men were groggy but quickly came to as the magic faded. With his own pike gone, Larson looked around for another weapon. Thankfully one of the prisoners that had been killed had a pike that Larson grabbed. The weapon had a warped haft, and the metal point was dull and corroded, but it should work well enough on the unarmored pirates. Between the dead pirates and prisoners, his men were all able to all find something to fight with. 

The battle for the merchant vessel was at a stalemate. The pirates had the numbers, but the merchant’s defense was anchored by a half dozen well-armed and armored guards. Whoever commanded this vessel had paid enough to hire some competent fighters. Each of the mercenaries was equipped with a large round shield and short spear. They formed a line across the steps leading to the vessel’s quarterdeck and were holding back the swarm of pirates trying to attack them. Magic had been used by both sides during the fight, smoldering deck planks and patches of ice were seen around the bodies of those that had fallen to the deadly spells. 

Larson knew only a little bit about magic, but even he realized that if any of the mages had survived the battle to this point, they would have likely depleted their magic reserves and wouldn’t be able to do much until their mana recharged. 

Tarley had been reinforced by Nogreb and the three prisoners, the mass of untrained fighters was barely holding back the higher skilled and better equipped pirates. The fact there were only two planks linking the vessels gave them a good choke point to defend from. Despite the favorable position, three of his defenders were already down and none of the pirates looked to have taken any real damage. The boarding planks had been attached by some magical means and short of hacking them apart, a task he couldn’t do in the midst of a battle, the two vessels would remain firmly attached. Larson and his men charged into the fight over the planks and tried to bring order from chaos. 

“You with the pike, on me, we’ll cover the left plank. Any of you with swords or weapons other than daggers form up on the right. Those of you with only daggers stay to the rear and swarm anyone who breaks through. Tarley, grab the weapons from the fallen and get the new arrivals armed,” Larson ordered. Thankfully, the men obeyed and went about their task. His wounds were far from healed and every movement was still painful, but he could fight, and that’s exactly what he intended to do. 

Pulling back a prisoner who was flailing away ineffectively with a shortsword, Larson took his place. The pirate across from him took a step back and looked concerned. He was beginning to like his new body and the fear it could instill in his enemies. The pirate’s hesitation was his undoing as Larson thrust the pike into his unarmored belly. With a scream, the pirate wobbled and pitched off the plank into the sea below. The unexpected fall nearly pulled the pike from Larson’s grasp. Before he could recover, another pair of pirates were on him. A pike from the other prisoner thrust forward burying itself into the side of one pirate, wounding him but not taking him out of the fight. With a heave, the pair of pirates pulled Larson over the side of the Gull Dropping, joining him in the drop as Larson managed to grab both on the way down. 

His body smacked hard into the sea below and Larson had a moment of panic as he went under. He knew that he was supposed to be able to breathe underwater, but every instinct screamed at him to get to the surface. At least moving in the water seemed natural and his powerful tail pushed him faster than any normal human could swim. A tentative breath in didn’t leave him choking, instead he could taste the salty brine of the sea as the fluid moved in to replace the air in his lungs. He didn’t quite know how it worked, but breathing water was only slightly more difficult that air. 

The pirates that had pulled him down didn’t’ have the same ability and had swam up to the surface, gagging and coughing from the water they had sucked down. Both ships had several lines in the water, some were the results of failed casts of boarding hooks and others had been dropped over the side as a precaution for someone going overboard. The two pirates were fighting each other over one of those lines, both trying to be the first to climb back aboard. Larson wasn’t going to allow that, and with a lash of his tail, he propelled himself at his targets. 

He was able to grab the leg of a pirate in each of his hands, tugging them off the rope before diving deep under the water, his swimming ability overpowering the frantic paddling of the pirates. Twenty feet under he noticed their struggles weakening, they might have broken his grip if they had worked together, but panic causes people to do stupid things. Waiting for their struggles to cease, he searched the bodies for anything of use. One of the pirates had a dagger belted to him which Larson took. The belt fit well enough, but before he could explore what else the pirates might have, he spotted dark shapes circling in the distance. 

All the blood spilled was beginning to attract predators, just sharks for now, but Larson knew there were worse things that hungered in the depths of the sea. He swam toward the surface, leaving the pair of drowned pirates behind to feed and slow down whatever was approaching. Reaching the surface near the bow, he grabbed a rope attached to the merchant vessel and began to pull himself up. Switching to breathing water was easy enough but going back to the air caused him to cough deeply as he struggled to expel the water in his lungs. 

After his coughing fit, Larson began to haul himself up. His arms were powerful, but his body now weighed nearly triple an average human weighed. It took some work, but he was able to wrap his tail around the rope, which was thankfully knotted at the end, and used his lower body to help push him up. He left the water just in time, stopping to watch as a large shape breached the surface and a mouth full of far too many teeth snapped at him. The ten-foot long shark dove back under, frustrated, but there was plenty of other things for it to feed on this day. 

The pirates trying to force their way back aboard the Gull Dropping hadn’t noticed him and Larson was able to pull himself onto the bow of the merchant ship, which was clear of any fighting. A few bodies were scattered about and one of the mercenary defenders lay with his chest cleaved open by some powerful blow. The short spear and shield the mercenary used were nearby, so Larson equipped both. The spear was a strange design, featuring a pair of points at the end, but the weapon was well made and felt good in his grip. The shield was a round wooden shell covered in bronze, offering good protection even if it was a bit on the heavy side. It might tax his strength in a long fight, but he did like that it could cover most of his upper body. 

You have equipped a shield. Equipping your first piece of protective gear unlocks various armor types. You class and race may restrict the types of armors that are available for your use.  

Larson pushed the notice aside; he didn’t have time to play with the system choices. Leading with his shield, Larson moved toward the planks connecting the ships. The pirates were, once again, so focused on the fight in front of them, that they didn’t notice Larson until he struck. Targeting the rearmost pirate, the twin tips of his new spear pierced deep into the pirate’s back. Something vital was hit and pirate fell forward, dead before he hit the deck. Unfortunately for Larson, the pirates nearest Larson saw what was happening, the pair turning to face him. A cutlass slashed out, and Larson deflected the blow with his shield. The second pirate began to circle around, trying to flank, but Larson wasn’t going to fall for that and instead, he charged the nearest pirate. His target backpedaled as the naga approached, tripping over a body and dropping his weapon onto the deck. Larson wasted no time, spearing the fallen pirate in the chest with his new weapon while turning to face the second opponent. 

The second pirate hadn’t closed in when Larson had charged his comrade, instead, he backed toward the others trying to re-board the Gull Dropping. Pausing to catch his breath, Larson could see that the merchants and their mercenary guards were still holding off the main mass of pirates, with casualties piling up on both sides. Nogreb and Tarley had organized the defense and taken out another pair of pirates at a loss of four more of his fellow prisoners. With half their number slain and an angry naga to their rear, the remaining pirates at the boarding planks gave up the fight, running a wide circle around Larson as they fled back to the main mass of attackers. 

Larson let them pass, keeping an eye on things as he approached the boarding planks. He had a couple of options at this point. The merchants had fought the pirates to a standstill but were slowly being buried under by the attackers’ superior numbers. Waiting for one side to win and finishing off the weakened victor was one option. He had no idea if the crew of this other ship were any better than pirates he was dealing with already. For all he knew, these merchants were up to even more nefarious things than simple piracy. 

The other option would be to push the attack, catching the pirates between their forces which would surely turn the tide of battle in the merchant’s favor. He would take casualties but would likely gain standing with merchants, standing he may need to make the case that the Gull Dropping was now his. By now, the last of the prisoners had been freed and with the casualties they had already suffered, he was down to twenty-six prisoners. Many, including himself, nursed various wounds, but all were still up for revenge against their captors. 

“Tarley, pick five men and hold the Gull Dropping, the rest of you get over here and make sure you’ve got some steel in your hand,” Larson ordered. Tarley pulled his defenders aside and Nogreb led the others over the plank and onto the merchant vessel. One of the prisoners, a female orc, walked up to him while chanting. She placed a glowing hand over the wounds on his chest, the light covering and soothing his wounds When the spell was done, the wounds had nearly closed over. The pain was still there, but it was manageable. 

“Thank you, who are you?” Larson asked, not remembering seeing any females among the prisoners. 

“I am called Shada, I was held above decks by Ikar’re. I am a shaman and he used my magic to help with any wounds or sickness among the crew. When the battle started, I slipped away until I saw the rest of you take the ship,” the orc advised. 

“Can you help the others?” Larson asked. 

“I’ve done what I can, using some of my power to mend the most serious wounds, but my mana runs low. I’ll save who I can,” she replied. Larson nodded in agreement, not quite sure he trusted her story, but for now, she was helping. 

“Everyone has a weapon, sir, what are your orders?” Nogreb asked. 

“Our foe lies before us, they took our freedom, now we take their lives. Leave the merchants alone unless they attack you, it’s best we only have one foe to fight this day,” Larson ordered. The men roared and charged into the back of the pirate formation. Captain Ikar’re had organized a hasty defense, but as he pulled men to face Larson’s attack, the merchants went on the offensive, sensing the weakening pirate lines. 

Larson charged toward the nearest pirate; a short dwarf armed with a hammer. The dwarf tried to back away from the slithering charge, only to bump into the back of another pirate fighting one of the mercenaries, throwing both off balance. Larson’s spear drove deep into the dwarf’s gut, eliciting a grunt of pain as the dwarf was pushed back further into the pirate lines. A weak swing of the hammer was deflected by Larson’s shield as he ripped the spear from the dwarf. With the dwarf collapsing in a bloody heap at his feet, Larson looked for his next victim. 

The prisoner next to him fell to a cutlass strike and Larson avenged his fallen prisoner by shoving his spear into the side of the pirate that had dealt the blow. His men were attacking with ferocity born of their hatred, but they just weren’t very good at fighting. With Larson’s forces on one side and the crew of the merchantman on the other, the pirates were hard pressed. Vicious and bloodthirsty when they had the advantage, the pirate crew began to waver as they fell one after the other to their foes. Larson moved about the fight, trying to bolster his lines whenever there was an opening, his short spear thrusting out to take down pirate after pirate. 

What he really wanted was to take down Captain Ikar’re, but the elf had surrounded himself with his best fighters and was safely ensconced in the middle of the pirate horde. Nogreb now held a shortsword in one hand and a dagger in the other. He was a blur of steel around the edges of the fight, his powerful blows shredding any pirate in his path. Shada was contributing as well, healing any seriously injured prisoners whenever her mana replenished enough to cast. When not healing, she pitched in with a shortsword and shield she had picked up. Unlike most of the prisoners, Nogreb and Tarley both had some training in using their blades, but Shada was on another level. Her movements were precise and efficient, skillfully blocking attacks and responding with a thrust of her blade. 

As the battle raged on, a group of pirates broke from the melee to make for the Gull Dropping. Many were cut down, but Larson was forced to break off the main fight and support Tarley and his defenders. Tarley and another of the prisoners were using boarding pikes to keep the attackers at bay and as Larson moved to help, one of the pirates was swept off his feet, falling to the sea below. Larson engaged the rearmost pirate, duplicating the strategy he had used earlier. Again, the pirates didn’t notice his counterattack, they were in a panic and completely focused on retaking their ship and escaping.

Larson used the pirate’s tunnel vision to his advantage. Targeting the pirates gathering on one of the boarding planks, Larson charged. With his shield held out in front; Larson build up momentum as he slithered into the tightly packed pirates. His body mass was so much greater than the pirates that the impacts barely slowed him. Thump after thump on his shield was felt as he cleared the entire plank, finishing up back on the Gull Dropping. The sea below roiled as the frantic pirates that had been pitched overboard were torn to shreds by the growing number of sharks that were circling the two vessels. 

“Nice work sir, I think it’s best to not go for a swim anytime soon,” one of the prisoners said as Larson cleared the last pirate. 

“No time to gab, you two, head across and close their escape off,” Larson ordered. The two prisoners ran across to the merchant ship, closing off the pirates on the second plank. Larson and the prisoners with spears, used their longer reach to stab and push the remaining attackers off the second plank. A cheer broke out over on the merchant ship, but Larson was too busy trying to deal with the pirates here to see what was going on. Knowing they were trapped, the pirates fought like demons, taking down another pair of prisoners before the last one on the plank was hacked down. 

Catching his breath, Larson looked over to see the last few pirates trying to surrender as one of the mercenaries took down Captain Ikar’re with his spear. Larson had wanted to take down the captain, but didn’t care who did it, as long as it had been done. Tarley and single pair of prisoners remained alive on the Gull Dropping and Larson could see there were only a dozen or so still standing on the merchant ship. Thankfully, that number included both Nogreb and Shada. 

“We’ve won the fight against the pirates, but things could still get dicey. Tarley you and the others try to get these boarding planks loosened and get ready to cast off if need to leave in a hurry,” Larson ordered as he crossed back over to the merchant vessel to meet whoever was in charge.