87 Vol 2. pt. 24 Patch 4.0: The First Round (1/2)

”We're screwed if they catch us,” Fenrir says. ”We might need to cut the line. Dragging that tree is killing our speed.”

”Trust me, wolf boy, ya don't want to get rid of that. If I can pull off what I'm thinkin', our baby here is goin' to be gettin' a nice upgrade,” Tabitha replies.

”We have to survive first, and I don't see—”

”Fen!” Cassiel shouts.

Fenrir rushes to the bow of the ship where Cassiel is.

A line of ships has gathered and is crossing The Shoebill.

Or rather, they are crossing the longship.

Two of the ships in the line open up just enough space for The Shoebill to sail through while the rest of the ships in the line aim their cannons at the longship. Fenrir even spots The Steel Tiger in the line with Alexander's annoyingly-cocky smile.

For now, he's an ally.

”Fire!” Jax shouts aboard his ship in the center of the line.

The cannons of each vessel all fire on the longship, blanketing it in a volley of over twenty shots at once.

Most of the shots miss. However, a few are lucky and assist in wearing out the longship's ability to repair itself as well as take out another one of its crew.

”Come on, Captain Wolf! We've got ya!” Jax shouts while beckoning for The Shoebill to sail through the opening in the line.

”What're you giggling about?” Cassiel asks Serra.

”This is epic,” Serra answers. ”They're epicness giggles.”

Fenrir looks back at the two girls with a huge ear-to-ear smile. ”I know, right?! Olly! Take us through!” he shouts back to the stern.

While passing through the line, Jax sees a familiar face and shouts over to them. ”I knew you weren't goin' to be goin' down so easily!” he shouts at Morven.

”I've got a wolf to thank for that!” Morven shouts back.

”Only the three of ya make it?”

Morven somberly nods.

Jax returns his attention to the longship which is now breaking course to turn away. ”Keep firin' until you're out of ammo!” he commands the line.

As soon as The Shoebill and its towed trophy make it past the line, Jax's ship and the one in front of it both move closer to seal the gap in the line.

Several more volleys are shot toward the longship.

Unfortunately, the angling, distance, and speed of the longship prevent most of the shots from hitting it, and the few that do hardly inflict any damage – certainly none that will last.

Even after the longship has been scared off, the line stays in formation and keeps their cannons aimed at it in case it tries getting close again.

The Shoebill stops next to Jax's The Weeping Tit.

”Thanks for the assist. Don't know if we would've lived without your help,” Fenrir thanks Jax.

”No problem, Captain Wolf. We saw you charge and take on those bastards by yourself, and ya even helped out Morven's lot, so ya made friends with almost every fisherman in this city today,” Jax says. ”Here's a gift to show our appreciation.”

Jin, Jax's fellow fisherman, hands a barrel over the sides of the ships to Fenrir. Inside of it are dozens and dozens of fish flopping around trying to jump out. ”You sure? This is… probably five times what we've already got,” Fenrir says. ”What about yourselves?”

Jax points to several more filled barrels on their ship. ”We've got plenty to make it into the next round. More importantly, we're goin' to need ya there with us. Tomorrow – in-game tomorrow at noon, meet me at my ship.”

Fenrir nods. ”Got it. Thanks for all the help and the fish, seriously.”

”Don't worry about it. Ya earned it all. That was some great sailin' back there. Everybody would normally hate ya for usin' those flamin' shots ya used, but nobody is goin' to judge ya for usin' them on those bastards. You've got a good head on your shoulders to think of preparin' them for those bastards.”

”Yeah, we knew our enemy was going to be almost impossible to take down without those shots,” Fenrir says. Sure, the two men might be referring to completely different enemies, but Jax doesn't need to know that.

Cassiel is the one staring at him for sneakily avoiding clarifying the truth.

”Olly! Come up here,” Fenrir shouts for his deer-trap-boy of a helmsman.

”You called?” Oleander asks.

Fenrir wraps an arm around Oleander's shoulders and pulls him close, giving him a few pats on the head with his other hand. Oleander has a large, dumb grin on his face during it. ”This is the guy responsible for pulling off my plan. Couldn't have done it without his awesome steering, and Tabs over there was a huge help as well,” Fenrir praises them, pointing at Tabitha now.

Jax looks grim when he sees Tabitha. ”You… brought the Orange-Haired Siren onto your crew?” he asks.

”That's a nickname for her I haven't heard before.”