“Can we stay ahead of them?”
“The duke’s ship isn’t made for speed but the other vessel is. We can’t outrun it but we can fire upon it,” Thorn said with a nasty grin.
With the captain’s orders the sails were open wide and the distance between the three ships started to open up. Just as the ships were almost out of sight the smaller of the ships started catching up. Ash didn’t know the difference in the flags but it seemed that the red flag with black stripes belonged to Harken.
The ship was fast but it was taking time for it to catch up to the Unity. It took about an hour before the other ship was close enough for the ballista at the rear of the ship to be used. The ship ballista were different than you would find in castles of among ground forces. They were smaller for one and they had four main types of projectiles. The main one was large arrows. The second was an iron arrow that would split once it was fired with a chain with sharpened metal sticking from it, linking the two halves. The third kind was a thick hollow shafted arrow that was filled with a burnable liquid. When the arrow struck the arrowhead would collapse back breaking and lighting the oil on fire. The last kind of arrow was an iron arrow that was attached to a chain. These were used to attach to other ships for boarding.
The one that was fired at the smaller ship was the plain iron arrow. It struck the ship just above the water line and broke through the hull. The shot was perfect and even from where he was Ash could see water entering the hole from the broken spot in the hull. As the ship pulled back the Unity fired a second arrow but it fell short and sunk below the surface of the water. Most ballista arrows didn’t penetrate their target but the ones that did often didn’t do much damage and it was quickly repaired. Most battles on the sea turned toward boarding or magic. The priests of Uren came in handy but since Uren didn’t have many churches her priests were chosen often without their knowledge. The Unity’s first mate was such a priest and his grasp of his powers were decent but not the best.
The priests of each god had their own powers. They did share one thing in common and that was the ability to heal but while the priests of Altina could bless fields to grow better so that there would be richer harvest. The priests of Uren could cause the waves to either calm down or get stronger. The most favoured of the priests could create massive tornados of water that could tear through ships. The first mate wasn’t that strong but he could create small water spouts that could do some small harm to ships.
With the other ships pulling back the sailors stayed on guard but most of them went back to their normal details. Ash could have went below deck to rest but he stayed at the back of the ship his eyes trained on the calm waters in the distance. Ash didn’t know how long he had stood there when Tina appeared at his side.
“Worried?” Tina asked as she took his hand.
“A little,” Ash admitted. “I have never fought on a ship and the captain says they can’t attack the duke’s ship without risking everyone being branded as criminals. No matter how I think about it there is nothing we can do to the duke’s ship and yet they can attack with impunity.”
“You could attack the ship yourself if it gets close,” Tina offered. “The captain is right that if they sunk the duke’s ship and it was learned about on the mainland they would be branded as enemies of the crown even if the duke was trying to sink them. Brother Jaren would be called as a witness and he would have to tell the truth but that can work in your favour. If you attack alone the only person that could be charged would be you.”
“You seem to know a lot about the laws of the different kingdoms,” Ash said as he looked at Tina warmly.
“My people live in those kingdoms and they rank from the lowest commoners to the highest nobles. After watching them for countless years you learn things. Watching our subjects is about the only thing that we can do as gods. If we didn’t do that I think that even we would go crazy after a few thousand years.”
“You really make being a god seem horrible,” Ash said as he sighed heavily.
“It can be,” Tina said nodding her head. “But it can also be rewarding and exciting. If I was not a god I wouldn’t have gotten the chance to meet you or any of my other worshippers.”
“OK, you said that I could attack the ships but how?” Ash asked. “It is not as if I can run across the water.”
“Your dimension door. Right now you can see farther than ever before so you should be able to go farther as well. Just focus on the ship and open a doorway.”
“That would work,” Ash said nodding his head. “I should still talk to the captain about it though. I don’t want him running off and leaving me behind,” Ash said with a laugh.
Ash told Thorn about his plan and how he would accomplish it after listening for a bit the captain scratched the small patch of hair on his chin. “Do you have any way to signal us when you are ready to be picked up? I don’t mind you doing what you are planning but I am not going to let the duke’s ship stay on my hide until you are ready to jump back aboard.”
Ash thought about it before nodding his head. “I can cast a fireball into the air once I am ready to come back,” Ash said after he looked through his large number of abilities. “Speaking of fire how easy would it be to set the ship ablaze?”
“Not as easy as you might think. Ships are treated in firesbane. It helps seal the ship against water and at the same time keeps the wood from burning. Even our oil arrows only burn until the oil is out unless they have enough time to burn through the firesbane or find an area that has been neglected since firesbane has to reapplied every few years. It is the firesbane that gives the wood its dark purple gleam. Your best bet with fire would be to aim at the sails. If you tried to treat them with firesbane they wouldn’t be as flexible and their weight would cause the masts to break under the strain.”
Ash nodded his head in understanding. “How long before the ships come back into view?” Ash asked ready to try out his plan.
“They have pulled back and are just staying at the edge of our vision. The Harken ship has moved off and is moving ahead of us. I figure they are going to Lima port in order to get reinforcements. My guess is that we won’t be attacked again until sometimes tomorrow after we are well outside of Lima protected waters.”
Ash looked at the man and found that not even a trace of worry seemed to darken his face. “You don’t seem to be afraid?”
“The unity is built tougher than most. She won’t be brought down with what any pirate has on his schooner. In the end it will come down to a fight between our crews and my men are some of the best on the waters. Not to mention we have a reaper with us,” Thorn said with a wink. “I heard that church enforces can kill thousands to get to a single target and I must admit that part of me wants to see just what one can do.”
“Not near that many,” Ash said with a weak laugh. “And honestly I hope it never comes to that. Taking life when it can be avoided has always been my policy.”
“Maybe that is the reason that the goddess chose you for your task. Better a reluctant killer than one who relishes it,” the captain said nodding his head.
“I don’t know you would have to ask the goddess for the truth of that,” Ash said though a part of him agreed with the captain’s view.
“Well if you are going to be fighting tomorrow you better get some rest while you can. If things go the way I think they are we are going to be busy for the next fortnight.”
Just as the captain advised Ash went below deck with Tina for some much needed rest. It took a bit before he was able to calm his mind enough to sleep but thanks to Tina’s presence it wasn’t long before he drifted off to sleep.
14-8
Just before midday ships once again appeared on the horizon but this time there were five instead of two. One of the ships had a different flag than the others and Ash recognized it as the duke’s ship from the previous day. The other four ships had the red and striped flag of Harken. Three of the ships were on the smaller size, one was slightly bigger and
the third was even bigger than the Unity.
Ash was currently standing next to Thorn, Jaren and the first mate Benson as they received the reports about the incoming ships. “Looks like Harken is pulling out all the stops. I don’t think that this is the first time the duke has worked with him. There is no way Harken would trust a noble enough to have all his ships in the same place without knowing him well and I mean really well. Harken is paranoid by nature and even more so when nobles are mentioned.”
“You seem to know the man pretty well,” Ash said after the captain had finished speaking.
“Not a ship that sales these waters that hasn’t been to port Lima a couple dozen time, and Harken rarely travels far from those waters. Even without having met the crazy bastard a few times, I know his reputation. It is good to know which pirates operate in the waters you travel and Harken is one of the worst. This is going to be a nasty fight.”
“I never heard of pretty fight,” Jaren said with a smirk.
“That is true Jaren,” Benson said with a wry grin. “But fights are a lot like the women that you pick up at the brothels or bars. Some aren’t bad and you can enjoy them. Some are ugly but you can still walk away with a bit of dignity left. Then there are the ones that I normally see you with the truly nasty ones. The ones that when you sober you make you dream of taking a long walk off a short pier when you realized what you have done.”
“Then I would hate to see a fight that would be like some of the men you keep for your nightly pleasure,” Jaren shot back. “You know the goddess does not approve of sowing seed on barren land.”
“I am just an equal opportunity lover. Be they man or woman as long as they can twitch my toes why not let them,” Benson said with a large smile.
The banter went on until the ships had gotten close enough for ash to start his work. The two small ships and the slightly larger one was the ones that caught up to the Unity first. The Unity could attack those ships and would if given the chance but Ash wanted to practice using his dimension door while aboard ship before trying it against the duke’s ship was no doubt better armed and trained than the pirates.
Ash went to the back of the ship along with Benson who would use his priestly skills against the enemy as best he could as well as keep an eye out for Ash’s signal in case there was need of the Unity moving in closer for a pick up. The plan was a simple one Ash would jump aboard the enemy ships and wreak havoc while the Unity started sailing in large circles doing its best at the same time to stay away from the duke’s ship which was to be saved for last.
Ash watched the ships and thanks to his dragon’s eyes ability he could see much farther and clearer than a normal human. Once Ash got a good line of sight on one of the ships he opened the portal and stepped through quickly. Where he landed was about five feet off where he had planned and just as he had expected with the ship moving his destination was set so there was a chance he could miss the ship if he didn’t time it right. As it was instead of landing near the wheel of the ship he had landed at the base of the steps leading up to it.
Ash looked around and found that the ship had a number of sailors on deck but with his sudden appearance none of the really seemed to notice him. The pirates didn’t wear a uniform and so many were moving about Ash just seemed to blend in since his clothes were also a mix of things either he had bought or Tina had bought for him. His pants were a dark leather and his boots were the worn and comfortable pair he had gotten back at the tower town. His shirt was something new that Tina had gotten in Relar. It was made from cotton and buttoned up instead of just slipping over like most of the ones he had. The reason she had bought it was because many of the sailors she had seen wore the same thing and she thought it would fit in when they were aboard the ship. The only other thing he was wearing was a cloak to hide his wings and sheath for his sword that was a plain one he had picked up at a store for cheap.
With no one noticing his sudden appearance Ash started climbing the stares that led to the steering wheel of the ship. When he was no more than five feet from the person at wheel one of the sailors next to the man noticed Ash. “What are you doing up here?”
Ash didn’t reply and only unsheathed his sword. The three men in front of him did the same but one was too slow and Ash’s sword erupted from his back before his sword was half way out of its sheath. As the man slumped to the ground Ash heard the sound of leveling up. It had been so long since he had heard the sound that it took him slightly by surprise and nearly caused him to get skewered in the stomach but he was able to pivot on his back leg letting the blade skim past him though it did rip a hole in his new shirt.
Ash activated his flash step and appeared behind the man who had nearly skewered him and with a flash of his blade the man’s head flew into the air. As he turned back to face the last man a pain ripped through his shoulder as a crossbow bolt hit him. Ash tried to ignore the pain as he knocked aside the last man’s sword. He wanted to kill the man but his time was running short. The other sailors had noticed the fight and were quickly advancing on him. Batting aside the other man’s sword again Ash coated his sword in mana and used his sunder ability but he aimed at the wheel instead of the pirate. His sword tore through the wood cutting it off clean making it look like colored glass. With the ship disabled Ash dodged another strike and moved away from the pirates. He looked around and saw the Unity in the distance. Using the dimension door ability Ash tried to move to the ship but instead missed his shot and fell from the air and landed in the water about twenty feet behind the ship.
Coughing and sputtering Ash swam to the surface of the water and fired off a fire ball into the air. The ship slowed giving Ash a chance to open another doorway. This time he landed on the deck of the ship along with about a hundred gallons of water nearly washing one of the nearby sailors overboard. When he landed three sailors rushed over to him to help him up. Once he was on his feet Tina was already there checking out the wound on his shoulder where a bolt still stuck out. With a yank the bolt tore free and Ash had to swallow the words that wanted to escape his throat. Once the bolt was free she put her hands over the wound to heal it but Ash pushed them away. “It will heal in a few moments,” Ash said still holding her hands. His HP had went down but only slightly that meant that as long as the bolt was removed it would heal within a few minutes. “Save your strength for those who can really need it.”
Tina nodded her head then looked at his shirt which was now ripped in two spots and stained with his blood. “I really liked this shirt.”
Her words seemed so out of place that Ash couldn’t help but laugh. Just as he stopped laughing Benson appeared. “First ship should be disabled. I cut the wheel in half only a few feet above the deck.”
“That will take them time to fix even if they have the parts,” Benson said nodding his head. “Only four more to go. Think you can do it?”
“It shouldn’t be too much of a problem as long as I don’t get too focused on just the men at the wheel. The only reason I was injured this time was because I didn’t keep my attention on the other pirates,” Ash admitted.
“Good because Harkens ships are trying to box us in and force us to confront the duke’s ship and the Intrepid,” Benson said. “With one ship dead in the water it will make things easier but two can still do the job easy enough. We need at least one more ship out of commission before we can breathe easy.”
Ash stood and looked back over the water until he saw the second small ship. It was near the first one he had went on which was now veering off away from where it had been unable to hold its course. Ash didn’t want to just jump to anywhere on the ship he wanted to be near the wheelhouse. Once that was down then it wouldn’t matter what else happened the ship would be useless to Harken until it was repaired. It took Ash about ten minutes before he was ready to use his ability but as soon as he saw his chance he took it.
This time Ash appeared right behind the person at the wheel. Ash covered his sword with mana again with his mana manipulation
ability before using the sunder ability. This time he did not aim at the base of the wheel but instead cut straight down the center of it and the person at it at the same time. As the body of the wheel man spilt it half with half of the wheel in each hand Ash was already moving. The ship was already disabled but there was no reason for him to jump ship just yet. Even though the ship was disabled there was no telling how long they would be down for or how long they would chase them. Each dead pirate would be one less to deal with later and no one would morn a pirate other than his family if he had one.
Ash moved through the pirates before they could understand what was going on. He used every ability he had available to kill as many as he could as fast as he could. He would use flash step to get behind those who came in close ending their life with his sword while using light arrow, shadow whip, and cone of frost on those who were farther away. After killing ten pirates and injuring a number of others Ash caught a good view of the Unity and opened a dimensional door and appeared on the center deck a few seconds later.
Ash reported his success to Benson who was still at the rear of the ship as they tried to out manoeuvre the pursuing ships. As the other ship started to drip of their path Benson nodded his head. Before Ash could chose his next target the lone remaining ship that was trying to force them into the others pulled back. As a lone ship there was no chance of them forcing the Unity, so they had little choice. The duke’s ship and the intrepid while larger than the Unity were slower and could not manoeuvre as well. At best the ships could keep pace if they ran all out but not for long due to the stress that it put on the masts.
With the ships pulling back there was nothing for Ash to do since him continuing to push the fight would only put the sailors in additional danger. Ash and Benson went to meet up with the captain and Jaren. The fighting had been short but that didn’t mean there was no damage. During their passes by the ship three sailors had taken bolts and one had fallen overboard but thanks to the safety rope he was pulled back aboard. Thanks to Tina’s and Jaren’s healing nobody died but one of them would be in bed for days since the bolt had taken him just above the heart.
Reborn: Demons Return Page 6