Steel and Sorrow: Rise of the Mercenary king

Chapter 414: Sea Lions(2)

Chapter 414: Sea Lions(2)

The clash came like a hurricane—violent, inescapable, and utterly consuming. The first rows of ships collided with a force that sent tremors through the decks, their hulls slamming into each other with a deafening crack.

Wood splintered and snapped like brittle bones of a child beneath the pressure, jagged shards exploding into the air as vessels shuddered from the sheer impact. It was as if the gods themselves had seized them, shaking them like playthings before casting them into the storm of battle once they grew bored .

Some ships lurched backward from the collision, thrown off course as though struck by an unseen giant, their prows rearing down only to crash back into the waves with a mighty splash. Others locked together in a deadly embrace, their timbers groaning in protest as they became one tangled mass of destruction. The unfortunate souls who failed to brace themselves were hurled into the merciless sea, their screams swallowed by the howling wind and the roar of the battle around them.

For those who plunged into the dark abyss, the ocean's maw was not a forgiving one. The lucky ones were pulled under in an instant, the weight of their armor and weapons dragging them into the cold depths, where the light of the sun faded into a shadowy grave. The others were left to float amidst the wreckage, their fates far crueler. The saltwater would wasted no time in working its torment, seeping in their wound.

Some clung to shattered planks and broken oars, their fingers white with desperation as the waves battered them from all sides. But the sea was an unfeeling beast, and those who lingered upon its surface were granted no mercy. Hours would pass, then days, their skin blistering under the relentless sun, swelling and cracking until it peeled away in strips, leaving their bodies raw and red like the inside of a gutted fish. Their lips would split, their tongues swell, and madness would take them long before death did.

Yet the battle had no time for those already lost. Above the waves, the chaos was only beginning. The two fleets were now fully entwined, ships ramming into one another as warriors bellowed their war cries, steel gleaming in the morning light. Arrows filled the air like a swarm of stinging wasps, striking down those who dared to move too slowly. Grappling hooks were cast, thick ropes tightening as enemy vessels were drawn together, bringing the true horror of the battle into full force.