The skull-and-bones ship grew larger with every passing second, its black sails blotting out part of the morning sun. The grin of the painted emblem mocked us as the vessel cut through the clouds with alarming speed.
Serana snapped her spyglass shut, her expression grim but calm. "It's a corsair brigantine. They'll try to soften us with ballistae before boarding. Positions, everyone!"
The Valkyries moved as one. Kaelen the wolf-kin warrior strapped on her steel gauntlets and cracked her neck with a grin. Alenya strung her bow, pulling back the string to test its tension before setting a quiver of enchanted arrows at her side.
Miri, the cat-kin pilot, murmured a quick prayer as she drew a dagger. Veyra's demon eyes glowed faintly, arcs of lightning running between her fingers as she prepared her spells.
Mae, on the other hand, dashed to the side rail and began hastily adjusting the fittings on one of the deck-mounted mana repeaters. "I can boost the fire-rate by about thirty percent if I reroute the stabilizers! Just give me five minutes!"
"You've got two!" Serana barked.
Lira placed a hand on my shoulder, her eyes steady. "This is your first real fight since you learned to use mana correctly. Remember your training. Keep your mana flow controlled, and don't try to be a hero. We fight together."
I nodded, my pulse quickening. "Understood."
The brigantine closed to striking distance, its ballistae gleaming like fangs. A shrill whistle cut through the air, followed by the thunk-thunk-thunk of bolts being launched.
"Brace!" Serana shouted.
The Skyfang shuddered as two bolts slammed into the deck, one embedding itself dangerously close to the mast. Splinters flew, stinging my cheek, but the ship held firm. The Valkyries didn't falter.
"Return fire!" Serana commanded.
Alenya loosed an arrow crackling with lightning. It arced across the gap between ships and exploded against the brigantine's side, scorching the wood. Veyra followed with a volley of flame orbs, each one leaving a smoking scar where it struck.
"[Baby Boom]!" I called, channeling mana into my pistol. The glowing shot flew true, colliding with a pirate ballista. The explosion shattered the weapon in a burst of smoke and fire.
"Nice shot, Master!" Mae yelled over the din, still elbow-deep in the repeater.
The pirates howled in anger, their deck swarming with rough figures wielding cutlasses, axes, and muskets. Grappling hooks soared through the air, clanging against the Skyfang's railings. The gap between ships closed with a sickening inevitability.
"They're boarding!" Kaelen roared, slamming her gauntlets together with a metallic crack. "Let's give 'em hell!"
The first wave of pirates swung across on ropes, landing with battle cries. Kaelen met them head-on, her gauntlets striking like hammers. One pirate went flying over the side with a howl, another crumpled with a broken jaw.
I fired again, blasting a pirate off his rope mid-swing. He screamed as he plummeted into the endless clouds below.
I ducked under a wild swing from another and pulled the trigger. Bang! The shot caught him square in the chest, sending him sprawling across the deck.
Around us, chaos reigned. The Valkyries moved like a storm, their synergy obvious from years of fighting together. Alenya's arrows flew with deadly accuracy, pinning pirates to the mast. Veyra hurled crackling spheres of lightning that left charred bodies writhing on the planks.
Miri darted between allies, slashing at enemies with her dagger while chanting quick healing incantations whenever someone took a hit.
Mae finally finished her tinkering. "All done! Let's see how they like this!"
She pulled the lever, and the mana repeater roared to life, spitting bolts of energy at a blistering pace. Pirates on the brigantine scrambled for cover as their railing splintered under the barrage.
But the corsairs weren't finished. Another whistle, and more grappling hooks sailed across. A second, larger wave poured onto the Skyfang.
One pirate managed to slash Kaelen across the arm. She snarled, blood dripping down her fur, but responded by crushing his ribs with a brutal punch.
I felt the heat of a musket shot graze past my ear, close enough to make me flinch. Spinning, I spotted the shooter: a lanky pirate aiming for me again. Without hesitation, I raised my pistol and fired. The [Baby Boom] spell caught him in the chest, blasting him over the railing.
"Not bad for a newbie," Kaelen grunted, clutching her wounded arm.
"Thanks," I replied, heart pounding.
On the far side of the deck, Serana clashed blades with what looked like the pirate captain: a hulking brute with a scarred face and a cutlass the size of my leg. Their duel was a whirlwind of steel, each strike ringing loud over the din of battle.
"Focus on the grunts!" Serana shouted between blows. "Leave this one to me!"
Mae cackled as she hurled a small gadget, a rune-inscribed orb, that detonated in a flash of light, blinding a cluster of pirates. "That's three in one go! Who's keeping score?"
Alenya loosed another arrow, pinning one of the blinded pirates to the deck. "Not you, obviously!"
The fight raged on, the deck a blur of blades, smoke, and sparks of magic. Despite the danger, I felt strangely exhilarated. Every time I pulled the trigger, every time an enemy fell, my confidence grew.
Still, it wasn't without cost. Lira took a shallow cut along her thigh, wincing as she kicked her attacker away. Miri darted in, chanting quickly as a warm glow sealed the wound. Kaelen's arm still bled, though she fought on with unrelenting ferocity.
For all our efforts, the pirates kept coming. The brigantine drew closer still, more figures lining its rails, ropes ready. Their captain roared, shoving Serana back with a powerful strike.
"Hold fast!" Serana commanded, her voice carrying above the chaos. "This fight isn't over yet!"
I tightened my grip on my pistols, mana thrumming eagerly in my chest. Around me, my companions stood bloodied but unbowed, determination blazing in their eyes.
The first half of the battle was ours; but the true storm was only beginning.