"Let's get her the fuck out of here. Now, Dani."
My eyes dart around the room, looking for any sign of an immediate threat. Every muscle in my body is coiled tight, ready to unleash hell on anyone who tries to stop us.The need to protect Seraphina and get her to safety is overwhelming, as is everything else.
We need to move, and we need to move now.
Dani nods, her face grim and determined. "I'll open another portal. Get ready to move."
I hold Seraphina in my arms, clutching her close as Dani works her magic. The portal shimmers to life in front of us, a glowing doorway back to the safety of our ship.
But just as we're about to step through, the door at the top of the stairs bursts open, and a horde of pirates comes pouring down, their swords drawn and their eyes glinting with malice.
"Fuck!" I snarl, my grip tightening on Seraphina's limp form. "Dani, we need to move!"
But Dani's already in motion, her daggers drawn whirling through the air as she charges towards the pirates, a battle cry tearing from her throat. "Go!" she shouts over her shoulder. "Get her to safety! I'll hold them off!"
I hesitate for a split second, torn between my need to protect Seraphina and my desire to fight alongside Dani. But I know what I have to do.
With a roar of frustration and rage, I leap through the portal, Seraphina clutched tight against my chest. The last thing I see before the shimmering gateway snaps shut behind me is Dani, a whirling dervish of deadly grace, her daggers singing through the air as she takes on the entire fucking horde single-handedly.
Danica
58
These filthy assholes stink to high heavens as I fight them off, their body odor a pungent mix of sweat, grime, and what I can only assume is the lingering scent of their last victim's blood. I can practically see the stink lines wafting off their unwashed bodies. It's enough to make me gag, but I don't have time for that luxury.
I'm a whirlwind of motion, my daggers flashing in the dim light as I fend off their attacks. I trip one particularly foul-smelling bastard, and he goes down hard, his ass hitting the deck with a satisfying thud—no time to celebrate, not when I've got another one trying to sneak up behind me.
I spin in time, my daggers clashing against his sword with a bone-jarring clang. The vibrations shoot up my arms. I grit my teeth and push back with everything I've got. I'm not letting some two-bit pirate get the best of me.
My peripheral vision catches a weathered barrel to my right. In a heartbeat, I feint left, the pirate's blade whistling past my ear. I pivot, my boots finding purchase on the barrel's curved surface. The wood groans under my weight as I coil, then explode upwards.
For a split second, I'm airborne, the dank air of the ship's hold rushing past my face. Time seems to slow as I twist, my legs pistoning forward. My feet slam into the pirate's chest with a sickening thud, the impact jolting up my legs. His eyes bulge, breath exploding from his lungs in a wheezing gasp.
The force of my kick sends him reeling backward. He pinwheels through the air, crashing into a stack of crates with a thunderous cacophony of splintering wood and clanging metal. Debris rains down around his crumpled form as he lies motionless amidst the wreckage, the acrid smell of gunpowder mingling with the metallic tang of blood.
The others are on me instantly, their blades flashing in the flickering light. I let my instincts take over, my body moving on pure adrenaline and muscle memory.
Gripping my daggers tighter, I slice through the neck of another pirate, his blood spurting everywhere like a macabre geyser. He grips his throat, a sickening gurgle escaping his lips as he drowns in his blood—no time to revel in the kill, not when another one comes at me from the left.
I tap into my time-warp power, the world around me slowing to a crawl as I see his next move before he can take his next breath. I tuck and roll, coming up behind him in a flash. With a savage twist, I sheath both daggers into his carotid arteries, his blood coating my hands in a slick, sticky mess. Using my foot, I kick off his back, dislodging my daggers to face the next filthy pirate charging me.
He swings his sword with a roar, and I meet his blade with both daggers, the weight of his swing sending shockwaves up my arms. The bastard releases one hand from his sword, and before I can react, his fist connects with my face in a sucker punch that snaps my head back. Stars explode behind my eyes, and for a second, I swear I can see through time.
But I'm not about to let this walking petri dish of bad hygiene get the best of me. I drop to the ground, sliding beneath the pirate's legs. With a vicious thrust that would make a proctologist wince, I shove my daggers up into his groin. His scream of agony is music to my ears, a beautiful symphony of karma and instant regret. "Didn't your mother ever teach you it's not polite to hit a lady, asshole?" I quip. "Or did she drop you on your head one too many times as a baby? Actually, don't answer that. I think we both know the answer."
"Goddamn it, Dani,"Rhyland's voice echoes in my head, his worry palpable through our bond."I'm coming. Just hold on."
I quickly roll to my feet, another pirate slamming me up against the wall, a barrel digging into my back. White-hot pain shoots through my lower spine, but I refuse to let it show. "You're out of your league, little lass," he sneers, his rancid breath washing over me in a putrid stench.
Spittle flies from his black, rotting teeth, and it takes every ounce of willpower I have not to vomit. I channel my inner Rhyland, remembering hisViking Fighting 101lessons. With a quick jerk, I slam my forehead against the pirate's nose with a sickening crunch.
He staggers back, blood gushing from his shattered nose. His hand comes up to cup his face, his eyes wide with shock and pain. I don't give him a chance to recover. With a fierce cry, I slam my foot into his gut, putting every ounce of strength I have behind the blow. He goes down like a sack of bricks, his body crumpling to the ground in a heap of filthy rags and unwashed flesh.
I finally get some breathing room, the remaining pirates circling me like sharks. One of them, a particularly ugly bastard with a face like a bulldog chewing on a wasp, leers at me with a predatory grin.
"You're going to pay for this, bitch," he snarls. "And when I get my hands on you, I'm going to take my dick and fuck you until you scream, until you wish you were dead. Then I'm going to fuck your corpse."
I feel my stomach churn at his words, a wave of revulsion washing over me. But I don't let it show, my face a mask of sassy defiance. "Sorry, ugly," I fire back. "I don't do necrophilia. And even if I did, I'd rather fuck a cactus than let your tiny, shriveled excuse for a dick anywhere near me."
