86 Vol 2. pt. 23 Patch 4.0: The First Round (1/2)

”You ready, Olly?” Fenrir shouts to the back of the ship.

”Aye!” Oleander shouts back.

”Tabs, your engine going to handle being shut off and turned back on so quickly?”

”She'll handle it,” Tabitha says with her hands confidently on her hips.

”Alright, then let's save Morven's crew. Everybody! Hold onto something!” Fenrir orders. ”Serra! Start reeling us closer when I give the order.”

Serra gives him a thumbs-up from her seat and grips the lever to reel the chain in.

There is only a little bit of slack left in the chain, and it is decreasing by the second as The Shoebill comes perpendicular to The Yellow Minnow's starboard side.

Fenrir watches the slack in the chain to find the perfect moment to begin their maneuver. Perfect timing is required to pull this off, and the intensity in his eyes is truly fitting of a wolf.

”Three,” he says under his breath, ”two,” almost time, ”one…. Now! Serra, Olly!”

Oleander starts turning the ship's wheel, hits the pedal and pulls the lever to bring in the ship's sails, and cuts the engine at the same time as the ballista runs out of slacked chain. In that same moment, Serra pulls back on her own lever to start reeling in the chain!

The Shoebill jerks as it gets turned practically ninety degrees in a matter of seconds, resulting in anything not secured on the deck getting knocked over or flung off the ship!

Oleander spins the wheel in the opposite direction now to drift The Shoebill rather than let her get pulled straight in along the ballista's chain.

”Tabs, get ready!” Fenrir shouts to her, clinging to the side of the ship trying to stay standing upright while holding the tarp.

”Keep it up, deer boy! Show 'em how it's done!” Tabitha shouts back at Oleander while getting ready with Fenrir.

”You know what I'm planning?” Fenrir asks as water splashes all around them.

”I know exactly what you're thinkin', wolf boy,” Tabitha answers.

Both of them look to the three overboard survivors trying to stay afloat in the water. ”Grab this!” Fenrir shouts out to them.

The three men start swimming closer while waiting for Fenrir.

”Ready?” he asks Tabitha.

”Ready!”

The two throw the tarp with all their strength out into the water! It was rolled up before, but as soon as it hits the air, it unfurls and splashes into the water.

”Come on, don't miss it,” Fenrir whispers.

The tarp gets dragged in the water. It was long enough to reach the men at first, but thanks to the angling and speed of The Shoebill, it's getting pulled too far away. ”Give it some more slack!” Fenrir shouts. Both he and Tabitha loosen their grips on the rope to allow all of it but the very end to slide through their hands.

But it's not enough. Only a single one of the men are going to be able to reach it. The others are just barely not close enough to grab onto the tarp… but they're close enough to grab onto each other.

They form a chain, grabbing onto each other's arms, as the closest man clings onto the tarp with all of his strength!

”Hold on! We'll pull you in!” Fenrir shouts.

Tabitha makes pulling the trio in easy, but there's another issue. They have to start accelerating again already.

”We've got to hurry up,” he says to Tabitha before looking to the ship's stern, ”Go, Olly!”

The sails unfurl and the fire stone within the engine starts combusting once more, causing The Shoebill to thrust forward with speed as it straightens out and finishes its drifting maneuver.

Those three men holding onto the tarp have difficulty doing so when The Shoebill suddenly starts moving so much faster, but with Tabitha's help, Fenrir is able to pull them right up against the ship.

Ropes hanging down the side of it allow the men to grab on and climb up the rest of the way themselves.

Fenrir can only barely recognize the first two men to make it up, but the third man has an easily recognizable face. ”Morven!” Fenrir shouts out, grabbing onto him to help pull him the rest of the way onboard. ”Come on, we need to get you three away from the cannons.”

With the three men away from the starboard cannons, it's time for The Shoebill to resume its assault on the ship.

”Bone, fire!” Fenrir orders.

Bonekraka ignites the fuse on his cannon. They're at an angle to the longship, but Bonekraka's shot manages to fly straight through the center of the ship and tear right through the center of the longship's mast!

”Tournament not so bad!” Bonekraka shouts before making some vulgar gestures towards the longship. Two spears fly by him right afterward, causing him to bring out the most vulgar gestures he can think of while shouting taunting insults at them in Russian.

The Shoebill is parallel to the longship once more, and now it's time for the first carcass shot. ”Corwin, fire!” Fenrir orders.

”Aye!” Corwin shouts, lighting the fuse to his cannon.

Fenrir and Tabitha look at each other with sadistic grins. They're equally excited to see just how well the shots work.

The carcass shot flies out toward the longship and pierces through the starboard side of its hull, but it shatters against its port side which sends noxious flames across its deck! Fenrir and Tabitha high-five as they've essentially covered part of the longship's deck, crew, and even some of the mast in what is essentially a toxic napalm. Those who were about to try throwing more spears at The Shoebill are now trying to douse themselves and their ship with water to extinguish the flames, but the resistant flames prove difficult to put out.

”The hell did ya just do?” Morven asks, coughing and still trying to catch his breath.

”Get some revenge, and we're not done yet,” Fenrir answers.

It isn't just the fire that those onboard the longship have to worry about, but its fumes as well. The noxious fumes reach everybody on the ship even if the fire doesn't.

Of course, the fire just doesn't cover the entire ship yet.

”Cass, fire!” Fenrir orders.

Cassiel lights her cannon and sends the second and final carcass shot soaring through the air! It crashes into the back of the longship and shatters almost immediately unlike the first one. With the stronger force that it shattered at, its fragments are spread out farther and higher than the first shot's.

The longship is lit on fire from its bow to nearly its stern, and its tree of a mast is quickly turning into a raging blaze as its leaves and branches serve as perfect kindling for the spreading flames.

”Serra, slack the line! Olly, line our port side up to their ship!” Fenrir shouts.