by Jamie Davis
When they finished, Cari held up the modified rapier and tested the grip in her hand. It fit her hand just as they’d planned. She liked the warmth of the pebbled hide under her fingers. It almost seemed to grip her hand back.
“This is perfect, Becca. Thank you.” Cari stifled a yawn. “It is late. I think it is time to turn in.”
“Let me get you a towel and a pitcher and wash basin so you can wash up before bed.”
The two women left to get Cari’s bed together and Cari thought about how lucky she was to have good friends like the Fletchers. They, and others like them, were part of what made Fantasma special to Cari.
She drifted off to sleep with her hand resting on the newly crafted hilt of her sword. She had a blade of her own again.
* * *
Quest completed — craft a new blade
15,000 experience
Chapter 35
Cari woke to Becca shaking her shoulder.
“Cari, get up. There are soldiers everywhere. I heard from a neighbor they are marching in the north gate.”
“Soldiers? What kind of soldiers?”
“I don’t know. They are wearing green tabards with gold trim. It is a crest I have never seen before, not that I’ve seen many soldiers at all besides the occasional Imperial courier.”
“Green and gold means they’re probably from the Duke of Charon’s forces. He must have discovered where we were.”
Cari sat up and started pulling on her boots. “Are they searching the houses?”
“No,” Becca replied. “There is a group of four of them just standing at the corner on the way to Heath’s forge. They are stopping and questioning everyone passing by.”
“They’re looking for me. Where’s Heath?”
“He got up early like he said. I think he was already out and at the forge before they started coming into town.”
“Becca, I’ve got to get out of here without them seeing me leave your house. If they do, they’ll lock up all of you for helping me.”
“You can go out the back gate. I don’t think anyone is in the alley. You should be able to slip past them if they’re not paying too much attention.”
Cari finished getting dressed, splashing fresh water on her face to wake up and then pulling back her hair into a ponytail. She didn’t have time to braid it as she usually did in the morning.
Strapping her dagger’s sheath to her right thigh and slipping her sword baldric diagonally over her shoulder, Cari felt better right away now she was armed.
“Becca, keep the children indoors and if the soldiers start searching the homes, cooperate with them. They don’t like those who offend them and won’t hesitate to kill anyone who gets in their way.”
“What about Heath?”
“There’s nothing to tie him to me so he should be fine, but you can send Sterling to warn him if you want. Just caution your son to be polite to the guards and tell them he’s on his way to work. They’re looking for me and a young girl, not a boy his age.”
Becca took Cari to the back door and out through their family garden to the fence that bordered the end of their property. A wide gate stood next to a small stable and shed.
“Go left after you pass through the gate to take you to the next street down. You should be able to sneak past the soldiers with some luck.”
“Thank you, Becca. I don’t know how I can repay you for the hospitality you’ve shown me once again.”
“Nonsense, my mother would have my hide if I let anything happen to you. She thinks of you like another grown granddaughter.”
“Pass along my regrets that I missed her when she comes for her next visit.”
“I will. Now you scoot before they decide to start searching the neighborhood.”
Cari hugged Becca and slipped through the gate, following her friend’s directions to get her turned towards the harbor.
* * *
Quest accepted — reach the Vengeance
* * *
All she had to do was get down to her ship. Once there, she could sail away and leave the Duke’s men behind her.
At the place where the alley crossed the street a block away from the talking guards, Cari decided to chance it and just cross as if she belonged there.
Just before she entered the far side of the street and the entrance to the next alley, a gruff voice called out.
“You there, girl, come over here. We have some questions for you.”
Cari waved at them, calling out, ”Sorry, I’m already late for work.”
She didn’t wait for their answer or to see if they ran after her. As soon as she entered the alley on the far side and was out of sight, Cari broke into a sprint. She had to get away and break contact before she headed towards the harbor.
The Duke likely knew she came there in her ship. She didn’t want to get bogged down in a fight this far away from the Vengeance. Cari knew she would probably have to fight her way to the ship once she reached the harbor itself.
Shouts sounded behind her and a quick glance over her shoulder had her cursing under her breath. Two of the guards followed her down the alley. She turned back around and concentrated on getting away from her pursuers.
Picking up speed, Cari exited the alley onto the next street down from Becca’s house. She turned down the larger street to try and mingle in the growing hustle and bustle of a normal market morning in Morton Creek.
As she reached the first major cross street, she ran right into two green-clad guardsmen. They all fell to the cobblestone street in a jumble of tangled limbs and curses.
Hands grabbed at her, trying to keep her from rising and continuing her flight.
Cari jerked her elbow backward trying to shake off the hand that grabbed at her arm. A satisfying crunch and a cry of pain and alarm told her she’d broken one guard’s nose. If she managed to get out of this pile of bodies in the middle of the street, she planned to do a lot more than that.
Cari kicked out hard with her boot and connected with one of the guard’s stomach, knocking the air from his lungs in a whoosh.
With one guard rolling around and clutching his broken nose and another on his hands and knees trying to catch his breath, Cari found herself finally able to roll to her feet.
It was just in time.
The two guards who’d chased her into this intersection arrived, swords drawn.
Cari drew her new sword. It was time to blood the blade.
Pulling her dagger free from its scabbard with her right hand, she extended the arm out and pointed it at one of the guards, gesturing with her fingertip for him to come get her.
He obliged.
Their swords crossed once, twice, then Cari spun away, parrying a third attack with her dagger.
Her spinning move foiled the attack from behind by the other standing guard.
Cari needed to finish this quickly before the two injured guards recovered.
She surprised the second attacker by diving in his direction, rolling back to her feet under the attacks aimed where her head had been a second before.
Leading with her sword, she thrust upward. The freshly sharpened alloy blade sliced into her opponent’s stomach and pierced all the way upward to his heart eventually exiting from the top of his shoulder.
With a gurgling gasp, he fell over backward, sliding off her blade.
* * *
2,500 experience
* * *
As the dead guard fell away, she turned and caught his companion’s downward blow on her dagger.
Parrying the guard’s heavier blade with her dagger in one hand, Cari brought her rapier around and scored a deep thrust into his thigh.
The guard staggered backward, blood streaming down his leg as he tried to shift his weight to the uninjured side.
Cari lunged forward with a feint.
The man’s sword came down, taking the bait.
She stepped on the middle of the sword with her boot, stomping downward. The blade bent and then snapped in two, t
he end clattering to the cobblestones.
Having the advantage now, Cari snapped off three attacks in rapid succession, laughing with joy at the superior quickness of her new, enchanted blade.
One thrust, then a slash, followed by a final thrust to the throat finished off the guard.
* * *
2,500 experience
* * *
There was no time to celebrate, though. Searing pain flashed across her shoulders as the guard with the broken nose slashed at her unprotected back.
* * *
Health damage – health -15
* * *
Cari whipped around and blocked the follow-up blow with both her sword and dagger catching the heavy saber blade between them. A twist of her wrist flipped the sword from his hands.
Surprise filled his face as he backpedaled to escape her follow-up string of attacks.
He gained the momentary break he needed to recover his weapon from the street when his companion, the final guard, dove in at Cari from the side and tackled her to the ground.
She landed hard on the cobblestones, her head slamming back so hard she saw stars for a second.
* * *
Health damage — health -10
* * *
The guard on top of her wrestled to get a grip on her wrists and immobilize her with his superior bulk and strength.
Shifting her grip on the dagger, the only option in these close quarters, Cari pulled the guard closer with her other arm while she plunged the dagger down into his back twice.
The guard arched his back at the pain and rolled to the side, allowing Cari to roll in the opposite direction.
She popped back to her feet just in time to parry the other guard’s sword.
For a few seconds, it was a flashing blur of sword thrusts, parries, ripostes, and retreats. Then Cari saw her opening and drove her blade forward taking the man in the eye and piercing his brain.
The man stiffened and fell over backward like a felled tree.
* * *
2,500 experience
* * *
The final guard didn’t bother to pick up his dropped sword. He took one look at the carnage around him, turned, and ran away.
Cari was tempted to chase him down but decided she’d better get to the Vengeance and make sure the ship and Princess Jaycee were safe.
Ten minutes later, after avoiding several patrols and checkpoints of the Duke’s guards, Cari made it to the harbor.
The sound of steel on steel rang out as she got closer and rounding the corner, Cari saw her crew arrayed at the end of the pier, blocking access to the ship.
Facing them was a platoon of the Duke’s guard.
The two sides were evenly matched. Cari saw, however, that the battle could go either way. If any more of the Duke’s troops arrived, the fight would immediately shift against her crew.
Checking her power up in the corner of her display, Cari saw the satisfying flash of a fully activated bar.
She had to get closer before she put her plan in motion but it would shift the balance enough that the crew could disengage and pull back to the ship so they could flee Morton Creek.
Once they were at sea, Cari would figure out what to do next.
For now, she needed to get as close as possible without being seen by the Duke’s men.
The docks were cleared; There were no crowds of onlookers with which she could mingle and hide her approach.
She didn’t blame the citizens of the city. No one from Morton Creek had any desire to get involved in a pitched battle with a trained soldier.
The officer in charge of the detachment of the Duke’s soldiers stood a few feet behind them ordering them to press harder to break through to the ship.
Behind him was a row of market stalls and Cari picked out the route she could use to advance on the rear of the line of soldiers.
Shifting to the opposite side of the building she was hiding behind, she looked once to make sure no one was watching her way and then she ran as fast as she could for the first in the line of stalls.
The simple structures were a basic four pole framework, with a shelf at the front and a backing of slats that could be used to hang goods on hooks inserted into the narrow gaps between them. Some of the stalls had tarps to protect the vendors from sun and rain, but not all of them.
Cari reached the first stall and crouched down. She heard no cry of alarm over the din of the fighting nearby. No one had seen her.
A shout of triumph rang out and the officer called out orders.
“Break open that gap. Push them back and set fire to that ship. I want every soul aboard her killed.”
Slipping around the corner and checking on the battle, Cari saw several of her crew down and Helen Doolan fighting to fill the gap with a few extra sailors she’d held in reserve.
They weren’t going to be enough. Cari could see that much.
Risking someone seeing her, she darted down the entire line of stalls in one loping sprint, sliding to a stop at the last one in the row.
She didn’t halt for long. Her crew was dying. She had to join the fray.
Cari opened her skill menu and activated her flashing Burst of Speed. Without even waiting for it to take full effect, she turned the corner and charged at the center of the Duke’s line.
Aiming for the guard captain while the timer clock started ticking down, Cari drove into the man from behind, leading with both her blades, the dagger held high and the rapier held low.
The officer had opened his mouth to call out more orders but all that came out was a horrible cry of pain as the two blades skewered him like a slab of meat destined for the barbecue.
* * *
5,000 experience
* * *
Cari didn’t wait for gravity to pull him off her blades; instead she drove forward using her increased speed to propel the dead officer into the back of his battle line.
Two of the guardsmen toppled over and were immediately killed by the cutlasses of Cari’s crew.
A ragged cheer went up as word passed down the line that their captain had arrived.
She had no time for accolades. She pressed onward. She had to use up every last bit of advantage her power-up gave her.
Cari kicked the captain out of her way and charged down the left-hand side of the line of guardsmen. If she could fight her way through this group, she’d take the pressure off Helen trying to hold the breech in the crew’s line.
A few of the guardsmen saw her coming and managed to react despite her increased speed. One even snaked a saber thrust past her whirling blades and slashed open a gash in her side as the charged by.
She killed him and two of his companions without slowing, though the wound in her side flashed like her insides were on fire.
* * *
2,500 experience
2,500 experience
2,500 experience
Health damage — health -16
* * *
A glance at her timer showed thirty seconds remaining. She had a long way to go and a lot of guardsmen between her and the gap Helen now held alone.
Both the first mate’s companions were down on the planks of the pier at her feet.
Cari had to get to Helen which meant pushing forward without regard to any defensive action on her part.
This was going to hurt, maybe even kill her, but she couldn’t give up without trying.
Pressing onward, Cari began an all-out attack, avoiding return strikes when she could, but only if it didn’t get in the way of her continuous flurry of attacks.
The notifications piled up in her vision as she cut her way down the line.
* * *
2,500 experience
2,500 experience
Health damage — health -8
Health damage — health -7
2,500 experience
Health damage — health -9
2,500 experience
2,500 experience
2,500 experience
* * *
Almost there, Cari thought as yet another attack slipped by and cut her, this time piercing her shoulder. Her dagger dropped to the wooden planks of the pier as her right arm now dangled limp at her side.
* * *
Health damage — health -12
2,500 experience
2,500 experience
2,500 experience
* * *
As the timer ticked downward, Five, Four, Three… Cari charged onward and took down three more guards despite only having one weapon remaining.
* * *
2,500 experience
Health damage — health -14
2,500 experience
2,500 experience
* * *
Two, One… and Cari collapsed into Helen’s supporting arms as she killed the final two assailants fighting her first mate.
* * *
2,500 experience
2,500 experience
* * *
Her chest heaving as she struggled to catch her breath, her fatigue from the power-up’s cool down took over as she almost passed out. The exhaustion was nearly total.
She looked up as Helen lowered her to the planks of the pier’s decking. The crew surged past them, taking advantage of the damage their captain caused to the Duke’s guards.
“I’m back.”
“Yes, ma’am. I wish you wouldn’t always show up bloodied like a common cur after a dog fight.”