Viper’s face contorted with rage. “No! This ismyship!” he screamed, spittle flying from his lips. “Reaper is a dead traitor! Kill him!”
Butcher’s meaty hand reached for the pistol at his belt, his movements almost lazy with confidence. The polished barrel glinted in the sunlight as he raised it, aiming directly at my chest. Our eyes met, his filled with malicious triumph.
I’d seen this moment in my nightmares a thousand times—the moment when death finally caught up to me. But in thosenightmares, I’d never pictured Kaspar’s terrified face watching it happen.
“Always knew I’d be the one to take down the mighty Reaper,” Butcher sneered.
The world slowed. I could hear my own heartbeat, the wind in the sails, Kaspar’s desperate intake of breath.
The hammer clicked. I blinked.
No explosion. No pain. Just… nothing.
Confusion flickered across Butcher’s face. He pulled the trigger again.Click. Click. Click.
“What the—” He turned the pistol over in his hands, examining it with growing rage.
Seizing the opportunity, I sliced my sword through the air toward Butcher, only to have Maneater shove his gun in my face with a snarl. He pulled the trigger repeatedly, each click louder than the last as his frustration mounted.
“What the fuck?” Butcher roared, prying open the chamber of his gun. His face contorted with fury. “It’s empty! Who’s touched my weapon?”
A high-pitched chittering sound drew everyone’s attention upward. There, perched on the crow’s nest, sat Sprocket, the vexling’s luminous amber eyes gleaming with mischievous delight. Though the creature was high above us, the small brass bullet they tossed playfully from paw to paw caught the sunlight with each toss.
The vexling’s mouth was pulled back in what could only be described as a self-satisfied grin, revealing sharp little teeth as they continued to chirp merrily.
“You little…” Butcher’s face turned purple with rage.
Relief brought sensation back to my limbs, and the dull ache in my stump receded as adrenaline coursed through my veins. A manic energy now pulsed through the crew, the deck electrified with tension.
Now,I urged myself.Take him down.
Though Viper must have sensed I was about to lunge at him, because he suddenly shoved Kaspar toward Butcher and shouted, “Plug him in!”
My heart leapt to my throat, the phrase echoing in my head like a death knell. Butcher caught Kaspar by the arm, dragging him toward the hatch leading below deck.
“With me!” Ariella shouted, her voice cutting through the mayhem. She gestured to Moonie and Sparrow, directing them to flank the starboard side.
Across the ship, aeronauts chose their sides, friends turning weapons on friends. The deck erupted into chaos—steel against steel, shouts and curses filling the air.
I barely had time to draw my sword before Maneater charged at me, his massive frame barreling across the deck with surprising speed. His cutlass whistled toward my head, and I ducked, feeling the air displace above me.
“Always knew you were soft, Reaper,” he growled, spittle flying from his lips as he advanced again.
I sidestepped, using my good leg to pivot while keeping my prosthetic firmly planted. “And I always knew you were slow,” I countered, slashing at his exposed flank.
He howled as my blade bit into his side, but the wound only seemed to enrage him. I kept one eye on our duel and one on the chaos erupting around us. Where had Viper gotten to? The captain was conspicuously absent from the melee. Where was he? Why wasn’t he here directing his loyalists?
Behind Manhunter, Greybeard swung his cutlass at Toothless Jimmy while Hawk-Eyes leapt at Hunter, only to be tossed to the ground like a rag doll.
Horror stole my breath as Hunter closed in on her, his rapier flashing in the sunlight. I parried another of Maneater’s wildswings, driving him backwards to give myself a better view of Hawk-Eyes’ fight.
She jumped up, her cutlass meeting Hunter’s blade with a metallic clang that reverberated across the deck. She fought with fierce determination, her movements quick and precise, but Hunter was relentless.
“You’ve always been too cocky, Hawk-Eyes,” Hunter shouted, feinting left before thrusting right.
Maneater used my distraction to land a glancing blow on my shoulder. Pain flared, hot and immediate. I hissed, refocusing on my own fight while trying to keep track of Hawk-Eyes and searching the deck for any sign of Viper. Was he below deck, plugging in Kas?
“Pay attention, Reaper!” Maneater laughed, pressing his advantage.
