At the very same time the girls fought below, a silent rampage was unfolding across the upper decks. It was a harvest of souls. The bodies of pirates and Leviacore officers alike lay scattered across the cold, salt crusted floor, their lives extinguished in a blur of motion.
The end had come for them with a terrifying speed, they felt only a sudden, sharp gust of wind against their skin, a fleeting chill, before the world turned red.
By the time they noticed the warm stains blooming on their clothes, it was already too late. They saw death before they could even scream.
Standing high above this carnage, perched upon the ship's highest point like a gargoyle of doom, was a singular presence. A few surviving officers stood beside him, their breath hitching in the frigid night air.
Officer 1: "Captain, what should we do? The song seems to have no effect on those people!"
The presence turned slowly toward the speaker. This was the man who held the lives of every passenger in his hands, the Captain of this Leviacore operated ship.
Yet, he stood in league with the very pirates he was meant to fend off.
"There is nothing we can do,"
the Captain said, his expression unreadable beneath the shifting shadows of his cap.
The six other officers looked at him with a volatile mix of emotions, some with burning anger, some with wide eyed confusion, and others with a fear that rooted them to the spot.
Officer 2: "But Veryn has arrived! I can sense his mana. There is no way they can defeat him."
The mention of that name seemed to act as a spark in the darkness. The defeated heads of the other officers rose, eyes gleaming with a newfound, desperate hope.
Officer 3: "Yes, I almost forgot that beast is here! The victory is ours!" His voice rose, shouting with an excitement that bordered on hysteria.
Officer 4: "I think we shouldn't get carried away. The battle is still not over yet."
Officer 5: "Oh, it will soon be over as soon as Veryn raises his sword. That guy can split mountains with his sword strike!"
Officer 6: "I think you are right. Victory is certain. But why did you say there is nothing we can do, Captain?"
A heavy silence fell. Every officer paused, their heads turning toward the mustached man who commanded them. The Captain did not look at them; his gaze was fixed on the horizon, where the sea met the sky in an endless line of black.
"The sea is calm... too calm. The clouds have surrounded the moon," the Captain muttered.
The officers began to whisper among themselves, the Captain's strange behavior unsettling them more than the battle itself.
Officer 1: "What does he mean?"
Officer 2: "I don't know. Maybe the old geezer needs to retire."
Officer 3: "Trust me, he probably will."
They continued to whisper, their voices a low hiss of disrespect, not caring that the man they served stood only a few feet away. They were so busy mocking him that they failed to notice the silence growing around them.
"Don't you fear calmness?" the Captain's voice cut through their gossip, catching them off guard. It was a weird question, a chilling question that made their skin crawl.
Officer 4: "Isn't calmness good? I mean, no chaos at all."
Officer 5: "Yeah, I don't understand why you ask that. What do you think.."
The officer reached out to clap his hand on the nearby officer's shoulder to emphasize his point, but his arm found only empty, cold air.
Officer 5: "Huh? Where did he go?" He turned his head toward the spot where his comrade had stood just seconds ago.
He was gone. The officer's eyes widened. He looked at the remaining three. "Hey, have you seen where those two went? They were here just moments ago!"
Officer 2: "No idea. Probably off to somewhere."
Officer 3: "Something is wrong, guys."
Officer 1: "What do you mean? They probably just went to pee."
Officer 5: "But how? I don't see them leaving. It was like they disappeared."
He groaned, running a hand through his hair in a fit of nerves. A sudden, biting wind caught his eyes, and he wiped away some grit before turning back to the group. "Let's look for them..."
The officer paused. His heart skipped a beat. His eyes widened into circles of pure terror as he stood frozen. The three remaining officers were gone.
There was no sign of them, no footsteps, no splashes in the water. Only the Captain and himself remained on the top of the ship.
With a shaking body, he turned to the only person left.
Officer 5: "Captain... what's going on? Where did they go?"
The mustached man stepped closer to the trembling officer, his presence looming large.
"Death waits for nobody. It takes everyone we cherish," the Captain sighed. He placed his heavy hands on the officer's shoulder, but the contact only made the man's shaking worse.
Officer 5: "D-death? There is no blood here! I... I... don't understand anything!" the officer screamed. The people who were his subordinates, his companions for years, had vanished in the blink of an eye. "My head hurts..."
"Don't worry. You will be free from fear and pain soon," the Captain said, looking down at him.
The officer couldn't comprehend the words. How could anyone understand a nightmare like this? The thick silence was suddenly broken by a wet, heavy thud the sound of something solid hitting the ship's metal roof.
An object rolled across the deck, tumbling over the rivets before laying still at the feet of the officer.
Officer 5: "Huh... noooo!"
He collapsed to his knees. It was a head. A human head, severed cleanly, belonging to one of his subordinates.
Then came more thuds. Thud. Thud. Thud. Four more heads rolled out of the darkness, coming to a stop before him.
Officer 5: "S-stop it! Who is doing this... stop..." The man buried his head in his arms, pulling his knees together like a turtle trying to hide in its shell.
"It's a dream... it's a dream... it will be over soon... it's just a dream."
His breathing became a ragged, heavy hitch as he whispered the lie to himself over and over. He kept his eyes squeezed shut, desperate to avoid the sight of the dead. The Captain's earlier words echoed in his skull.
"Don't worry. You will be free from fear and pain soon."
With a final surge of desperate strength, the officer reached out. Fear had drained the blood from his limbs, but his hands shook as he gripped the Captain's blue jacket.
Officer 5: "I... I... don't want to die, Captain. I don't know what's going on here. I don't want to die. I... I... want to see my lover. I... I promised her I will marry her once I come back."
"Please, Captain, save me. Please... I... don't want to die, Captain. I don't want to die!"
The Captain closed his eyes. He held the shaking hands of the officer, his mind seemingly miles away, wondering at the cruelty of the world. The officer's voice became heavy, his throat dry as if the words themselves were choking him.
Then, the speaking stopped. His breathing became steady, the shaking ceased for a fleeting moment.
"I... thank you for your service," the Captain spoke at last. "Life is unfair, isn't it?"
As the words left his mouth, the officer's head fell to the ground, joining the other five in the dark.
"What are you mumbling about?" a voice rang out from the front.
Standing there was Ryuuken, the brown haired guard of Anathema.
His sword was slick with fresh blood, and his face was set in the hard, angry lines of a bull ready to strike.
The Captain, however, only chuckled. He raised his foot and kicked the lifeless body of the officer into the sea like a piece of common trash.
Before he could do the same to the heads, Ryuuken raised his blade, the steel catching what little light remained.
"No. The collection is not complete. You still have your head." Ryuuken gave a death glare to the man, who looked entirely unfazed.
"So bloodthirsty, aren't you, young man?" The Captain turned his back toward Ryuuken. "I didn't do anything to you. Then why are you so angry?"
"You betrayed our Lord and you have the guts to say it!" Ryuuken's eyes were bloodshot, filled with a primal need to cut the man into pieces.
"Your Lord? Ah, yes. You must be a knight, aren't you?"
"What if I am? It's an honor... something foreign to you for sure."
"Yes, honor," the Captain interrupted. "The elites make many labels to hide the term called slavery from common eyes, and they add many fancy words to it."
"Slavery? We serve our Lord because he protects and watches over his people! Not because we are forced to!"
Ryuuken's blood boiled at the horrific language coming from the traitor's mouth.
"Is that so? Then you are a slave by will. No matter what your position is whether you are a knight, advisor, strategist, lord, or king you are a slave to something or someone."
"What did you say? I don't understand you! But I am not here for that. I am here to finish you off!"
Ryuuken dropped into a sprinting stance, his muscles coiled like springs. But just as he was about to launch, he felt a tug on his trousers.
"We need him alive. Remember the plan," the voice of Rui whispered from the depths of Ryuuken's own shadow. The words were a ghost of a sound, meant only for the guard's ears.
Ryuuken groaned in sheer frustration. "Damn it, I almost forgot. That silver-haired brat..." His eyes twisted at the thought of Emerion, but he knew he couldn't break the plan Rui had agreed to.
"Hey, don't be like that now. Emerion said you can beat the Captain half dead," Rui whispered from the darkness.
Ryuuken paused. A savage grin slowly spread across his face. "Damn right I will!"
Ryuuken exploded forward, moving with the speed of sound, a blur of brown hair and steel aiming for the Captain's legs.
The Captain's back was fully exposed, but Ryuuken stayed disciplined, avoiding the killing blow.
The strike was blocked. But not by steel. Ryuuken's sword became stuck in a shimmering bubble of water that had formed in a donut shape around the Captain's legs.
"Young man, you should fight head on instead of striking from behind. But then again, you are from House Corvus,"
the Captain said, his voice a mix of ancient wisdom and biting mockery.
"I don't need a sword to beat you, ha!" Ryuuken roared. He kept one hand on the hilt of his stuck sword and raised his other fist to strike.
"Too careless. Your defense is exposed," the Captain muttered, glancing sideways.
Suddenly, a hand made of compacted water erupted from the Captain's shoulder.
It punched Ryuuken straight in the face before his own blow could land. Ryuuken was sent flying back. Arlienne had healed him recently, but the pain flared anew as his back hit the deck.
His sword landed beside him with a sharp cling.
"Oh my... it seems the punch helped you to get your sword back. I will have to be careful,"
the Captain said thoughtfully. As he spoke, water began to rise around him, forming a translucent suit of armor from shoulder to toe.
"Ryuuken, you ok?" Rui asked from the shadows.
"Do you believe something fragile like that punch can hurt me?"
"Be careful. I believe the Captain's ability is Water Manipulation," Rui's voice warned.
"Water Manipulation? You mean elemental magic?" Ryuuken's brow furrowed.
"No... it's different. In elemental magic, a user can generate the element using mana. But in this case, the user can manipulate the element itself."
"Isn't it the same thing? I don't understand why you interrupted me for that!" Ryuuken pinched the bridge of his nose. Rui let out a long sigh from the shadow.
"In simple words an elemental magic user doesn't need an existing source. They create it from their core. But the Captain needs an existing source, such as water. And we are surrounded by water."
Rui's voice was a mix of frustration and urgency.
"Then, idiot, how does it help us knowing that?" Ryuuken looked back at the Captain, who seemed content to wait for the next move.
"Well, we will have to avoid getting caught in the bubble of water. If you strike him carelessly again, this time we might get trapped instead of the sword."
"Then what do I do? Just watch?"
"For now, yes. Just avoid his attacks using your speed. We will only strike if I find some weakness in his defense."
"Damn it... you just ruined my mood," Ryuuken huffed. The situation was far more complicated than his temper liked.
"Control your emotions, Ryuuken.
The lives of the whole ship are at stake." Rui's words finally seemed to calm him.
"My, my... are you talking to your guardian angel now? You surely possess some eye-catching abilities," the Captain noted, his tone amused.
"That's my friend. You can call him a guardian angel if you want. But no angel will save you tonight!" Ryuuken snatched up his sword and took his stance.
"Interesting... then let's see who will be saved." The Captain summoned eight massive hands of water and launched them toward Ryuuken. Ryuuken drew his sword to slice them apart, but Rui intervened.
"Dodge!"
"What?" Ryuuken paused, confused.
"I said dodge, dumbass!"
Trusting his friend over his own instincts, Ryuuken used his speed to blur out of the way of the crushing water strikes. The Captain's mouth opened slightly as he watched the boy move.
He clapped his hands, stopping the hands in mid air.
"Your speed is breathtaking, young man. But problems don't disappear if you just run away." The Captain's eyes darkened. "You need to crush them."
Sixteen water hands rose this time, towering over the deck.
"We have no choice but to slice!"
Ryuuken's eyes burned with a fire that was quickly extinguished by Rui's voice.
"Dodge!"
"Are you serious?!"
"Yes! Try to close the distance, get closer to the Captain. He will struggle to control the long hands if you're inside his guard. If it's longer, go closer,if it's short, then go further!"
Ryuuken considered the logic for a split second. The hands were inches away, but he trusted his speed. He dodged, keeping his head low so his body wouldn't brush against the freezing water. In a blink, he reached the Captain. But the water armor was still there, shimmering and impenetrable.
"So, what now?" Ryuuken asked, darting left and right around the man.
"We wait."
"What? We came all the way just to wait?!"
"I find no opening. So wait!"
The Captain's eyes tried to track the blur, but he realized Ryuuken was too close. He called the hands back, merging them into the water armor to make the layers even thicker.
"Such a clever tactic, young man. I would be dead if I had no ability at all. You surely are worthy of the title of Knight."
Ryuuken stayed silent, continuing his high-speed orbit around the Captain. The man chuckled at the lack of response.
"But titles won't save you from eternal fate... death."
Suddenly, the water armor sprouted vicious spikes. Rui's voice echoed "Fall back! Make the distance!"
Ryuuken retreated instantly, but a few spikes dug deep into his arms. A sharp jolt of pain hit him, but when he looked, there was no blood.
The spikes were sharp, but they were still water hitting like a swarm of angry hornets. He couldn't understand the purpose of the attack... until the long range assault began.
The Captain launched a volley of water arrows into the pitch-black sky. Without the moon's light, they were impossible to see. Ryuuken tried to close the distance, but the Captain's armor was now like an echidna, covered in spikes that would impale him if he got close.
Arrows began to rain down. Using his sword and pure hunch, Ryuuken blocked those aimed at his head.
But then, the arrows began to draw real blood. They were sharp enough to pierce skin. Ryuuken found himself at a dead end.
"What do we do, Rui?!" Ryuuken panted, his breath coming in short bursts. But the shadow was quiet.
"Rui? Rui? Tell me what do we do!"
"We will die, idiot, if you don't respond!" In a fit of frustration, Ryuuken kicked his own shadow, but there was no reply.
"Rui, you bastard!"
Did Rui betray his friend at the most crucial moment, or did he have a plan that only time would reveal?
Will Ryuuken survive to escape his eternal fate, or will he be caught in its cold embrace? More importantly, will the passengers survive to tell the tale to their grandkids, or will they become a tale themselves? For now, the chaos continues to dance on the living world, while death watches from the spiritual world, awaiting another soul to return home.