Once upon a time in Bretonnia, there was a famous and voluptuous opera singer whose performances captivated the entire Old World. Wherever she went, crowds flocked to see her. For over a decade, her operas and songs made her the most popular star in the entertainment world. Dukes and even the king of Bretonnia personally invited her to perform. She once sang for three consecutive days in the Glass Hall of Brionne.
Her fame eventually caught the attention of the High Elves, and to strengthen relations with them, the King of Bretonnia dispatched a fleet to escort her to Ulthuan for a performance.
However, the fleet never reached its destination. A terrible storm sank it into the depths of the ocean.
The story could have ended there, but things always take a turn for the worse. The wreckage was drawn into the vortex of the Shipgraveyard. There, the singer was revived as a ghost, neither fully alive nor dead. Her past memories and passions faded, leaving only a burning resentment. She blamed the Bretonnians, believing that had it not been for the king's command, she wouldn't have perished at sea. One thought consumed her: she still owed the High Elves a performance.
Even in death, the High Elves must listen to her song!
Thus, when Count Noctilus found her and proposed an alliance, the singer, now known as Cylostra Direfin, agreed. She emerged from the abyss, vowing to sink Ulthuan and make the world hear her song of death.
Cylostra Direfin, the Sea Singer, and her "Drowned" fleet joined the battle.
This fleet consisted of 23 ships—eight medium gunboats, six wolf ships (equipped with mid-range cannons as the main force), five sea wolves (designed for close combat), and four warships.
The largest among them was Cylostra's flagship, the Seven Gill Eel, which carried two regiments of zombie pirate sailors, five regiments of zombie pirate gunners, one regiment of siren wraiths, and a regiment of wights, along with 15 carronades.
Meanwhile, the undead paladin Robert Barthelmi, once a great paladin from Bordeleaux, now forcefully resurrected and serving Cylostra, despite his hatred for music, was driven by undead magic and hatred for the living. "My lady, we are ready!"
"Excellent. It is time for the High Elves, Bretonnian knights, and the whole world to hear the beautiful voice of Cylostra Direfin!" The Sea Singer twirled her rounded, ethereal form, though her ghostly body appeared heavy. As she opened her Bordeleaux fan and released her first high note, her fleet surged forward to engulf the human and elf fleet!
The fleet emerged from the southwest of the Enterprise. Ryan and his forces were caught in a pincer maneuver. In the north, Vaghurst's ghost ship, Shadow Ghost, resumed its advance after a brief pause. Cannon fire boomed from the ship's deck, and despite the poor aim and the High Elves' swift movements, several shots hit the Phoenix ship. On deck, Teclis had already ordered the phoenixes to engage. The birds, with their wingspans reaching five meters, left trails of flame as they swooped down, incinerating undead pirates aboard the ghost ship.
Teclis summoned flocks of crows to block the undead boarding parties, and the eagle claw bolt throwers fired relentlessly, with each bolt finding its mark.
But the High Elves were too few in number, and phoenixes were no dragons.
The Phoenix ship struggled against the assault of three undead warships.
On the other side, Ryan and his forces faced similar challenges.
While the Enterprise's firepower and the efforts of Ryan and Fugen had crushed the initial undead onslaught, they soon noticed Cylostra's Drowned fleet opening fire on them.
The first volley missed, landing in the ocean near the two ironclads, sending plumes of water into the air. Ryan quickly ordered his Old Guard back to the Enterprise. "Sulia, what's the situation?" he called as his wife approached.
"Enterprise is fine. Their cannons can't pierce our armor," Sulia reported. Clad in the full set of blessed Vibranium plate armor from the God-Emperor, she looked strikingly regal, wielding the glowing Sword of Lyonace in her hand. "But the Randuin is in trouble. Lord Montbatten and General Oudinot are requesting our support."
"Send Juan and the Blazing Sun Knights to support them. Where are our helicopters?" Ryan shouted over the roar of cannon fire and muskets. "Deploy the helicopters to assist the Randuin. And keep an eye on the Burning Scimitar!"
At that moment, elemental spirits surged across the battlefield—it was the Golden Mage! He summoned elemental lords. Water elementals rose from the sea, their sharp screams releasing torrents that washed away undead pirates. Wind elementals unleashed violent gales, propelling the Burning Scimitar out of the battle zone. Then, fire elementals appeared, spewing flames that consumed the undead fleet.
"Dwarf Gyrocopter Jade Truthful, ready for action!" shouted the pilot as the rotary blades spun up. A sulfur rotary gun spat out a hail of bullets, offering air support to the Randuin. Meanwhile, Mousillon's Coldstream Guard fought fiercely against the undead pirates aboard, renowned for their resilience and determination. They wouldn't let the Randuin's name be tarnished.
The siren wraiths, nearly impervious to physical attacks, were soon vanquished by the Blazing Sun Knights. Juan-Carlos, wielding weapons blessed by the War Goddess's priests, led his knights aboard the Randuin, cutting through the sirens with holy flames and divine power.
"Hard to starboard!" Ryan roared. "All ironclads, full speed ahead!"
Both ironclads sharply turned, causing several sailors and soldiers to lose their footing, while the undead pirates who had boarded were thrown off the deck. Those who remained were swiftly cut down by Ryan and Fugen's forces.
Despite their slow speed, the ironclads turned their hulls and resumed fire. A shell from the Drowned fleet struck the Enterprise's side but left only a small dent.
The Enterprise's broadside was lined with a series of dwarf cannons, ranging from eight-pounders to twelve-pounders. Naturally, these dwarven cannons, superior in both rate of fire and power, outclassed the undead pirates' artillery.
"Broadside, fire!" Little Sorgelin ordered. The dwarven cannons fired in unison. Though only one shot hit its target, it caused significant damage to a smaller undead ship, blowing a large hole in the bow and severing a pirate's leg.
A relentless barrage rained down from the ironclads, and by the fourth volley, the Enterprise's power became evident. One by one, Vaghurst's ghost ships and Cylostra's Drowned fleet began to sink, unable to withstand the ironclads' superior firepower. While larger undead ships could endure a few hits, the smaller ones were quickly disabled. Meanwhile, the undead's return fire could only damage the ironclads' crew or weaponry, but not their hulls.
Standing on the deck, Ryan, wielding Mjolnir, swatted aside a flying skull cannonball before summoning a psychic storm that charred dozens of siren wraiths. The Grey Knight Primarch's psychic shield deflected most of the incoming bullets and cannon fire. "Hold the line! Their cannons can't harm our ironclads!"
"Yeahhh!" The sailors and soldiers cheered, energized by the ironclads' might.
"My lady, at this rate, we won't win," the undead paladin coldly informed Cylostra. "Allow me to lead the siren wraiths and deep-sea guards against the enemy."
"So holy, so noble, and yet so doomed to failure," Cylostra sang as her ethereal, rounded body spun in the air. She unleashed a powerful high note. "But now, we have gained an opportunity~an opportunity!"
Suddenly, the sea exploded with a thunderous roar. Amid the floating debris and corpses, a massive bulge formed in the ocean's surface.
A colossal sea dragon emerged from the vortex, its body stretching tens of meters long and seven or eight meters wide. Its deep blue scales shimmered in the sunlight, and its razor-sharp claws glinted ominously. The dragon let out a deafening roar: "Rooooar!"
It then turned toward the embattled Phoenix ship. With a mighty swipe of its claws, it smashed through the ship's side railing and part of the deck, sending Lothern Sea Guard and Swordmasters of Hoeth screaming into the sea. Even Teclis lost his balance and nearly fell overboard. "A sea drake?!"
The dragon then swung its massive tail, striking the Saint Sophia with enough force to cause the ironclad to shudder violently. Soldiers of the Ashen Legion tumbled across the deck.
Water cascaded from the dragon's back like a waterfall, revealing a massive, black spiked fortress atop its scales.
"That's the Tower of Doom—it's the Dark Elf navy!" Olica, who had been casting spells on the bridge, turned pale.
The black spire atop the sea dragon's back unleashed a hail of deadly repeater bolts, raining hundreds of arrows upon the human and High Elf fleets
. Anyone hit by the bolts was either killed or gravely wounded. Then the gates of the spire opened, and Black Ark Corsairs and Dark Elf crossbowmen poured out, ready to slaughter their kin and the humans.
"Khaine's blood, it's Karonde-Kar Krakenlord, appointed by Loxlia the Heartless as the Vanguard Commander," a dark elven general appeared atop the sea drake. He twirled his dagger menacingly. "According to our pact with the undead pirates, today marks the end of our kin and these humans! Their blood will all be offerings to the Blood Handed God!"
"For the Witch King! For Naggaroth! For Khaine!"
"Advance, Druchii!"
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Author's note: Honestly, there are many things in Warhammer that make little sense, like boarding actions, ramming tactics, and naval artillery duels being in the same era, but this mix of styles seems to be a charming, romantic obsession in British writing, so let's not worry too much about realism here.
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