I got a little carried away, but oh wellâit's the first time I've written something like this, so don't expect too much. There are some kinda weird grammatical structures... pero bue
Vendetta first heard the cannon shot, then felt the ground around her crack briefly before collapsing into a thousand pieces. At the same time, four more cannon shots from Talonâs ship struck the bow of her own. Gunpowder was exploding all around her, and she barely had time to turn and lock eyes with one of her sailors; in his eyes, she could see that they both shared the same look of despair.Â
Before the idea of terror could even cross her mind, it vanished the instant her head slammed against the deck with a sharp thud.
Meanwhile, floating in the distance, several of Vishkarâs sirens watched the scene in horror, followed by the shouts of Vendettaâs soldiers, who were ordering a coordinated counterattack against Talonâs ship. Although they exchanged glances at first, the Italiansâ imposing harpoons facilitated the coordination, resulting in a massive, organized deployment of armed mermaids accompanying the Italian vessels.
The sound of the waves faded away, as the roar of cannons and gunfire began.
When Domina first heard news of the conflict, she wasted no time in rushing to assess the state of the battle. By the time she arrived, the main threat had already been eliminated, with only a few ships remainingâthose that had managed to escape or arrived too lateâbut the scene was dominated by wrecked ships and their floating debris.Â
Domina looked at one of Vendettaâs comrades, who was already watching her, waiting for a report. Before she could open her mouth, the soldier replied:
âLa Lupaâs ship was one of the first to be attacked.â
Domina felt the tip of her tail curl as she waited intently for him to continue.
âWeâre working to rescue the survivors from the area, but the fire swirling around the ships is making access difficult, so we'll have to wait for it to go out on its own.â
âSo youâre just waiting for the people inside to die so you can go collect their bodies?â
âNoâLady Sighania, we simply canât get throughââ
âUseless,â she spat looking the other way. Vaira made no attempt to waste any more time talking to the officer in charge and decided to address her subordinates
âEveryone, the job isnât over yet; many men are still trapped inside. X, Y, take Squad B to this area; Z, divide the rest of the troops between the two remaining ships and kill any possible Talon survivors.â
The sirens nodded and took their respective positions
The soldier she had previously ignored took offense at the questioning of his strategy, bitting his own lip then opening his mouth to respond to Domina which wasnât fast enough since she left without looking back, splashing with water the surroundings
Vendetta woke up in a panic when she felt herself moving; she flailed her arms around, searching for a surface to brace herself against, even though she was already afloat thanks to two arms holding her above the waterâs surface. Standing before her was Domina.Â
âMarzia, dear, youâre alright!â    Â
Vendetta spun around, breaking the eye contactâwhich had been so brief it slightly hurt Vairaâonly to find herself surrounded by the wreckage of her own ship, the one sheâd worked so hard to acquire, now in flames and shattered to pieces.Â
Rage overtook her before common sense could kick in. Dominaâs words were cut short by a heart-wrenching scream fueled by helplessness that made Domina shudder. Vendetta tried to break free from her grip. âMarzia!â It was useless; she wasnât listening.
Faced with her continued struggle, Domina wrapped her tail around Vendetta to keep her from moving any further. âMarzia! Stop, listen to me!â
Although she was much larger than Vendetta, the fisherwomanâs strength was enough that Domina had to exert herself to restrain her. In an attempt to calm her down, she turned her toward herself, grabbing her face to force eye contact.Â
Vendetta looked at her with an expression of rage that gradually turned to sorrow. Her hair, soaked through, had lost all the shape that defined it. Her lips curved upward slightly as drops of water trickled down her cheeks, masking tears of helplessness.Â
Vendetta tried to speak, but no words seemed to come out of her mouth. Her tight grip loosened briefly before wrapping firmly around Domina, who, to provide more support, leaned back, allowing the human to lie on top of her. Vendettaâs breathing was ragged as she buried her face in the mermaidâs chest while trying to calm herself.
As her beloved began to steady herself, Domina started to notice the wounds the scuffle had caused her; Vendetta had dug her nails into her skin so deeply that blood was coming out, though that didn't really concern her at that moment.
Resting her forehead against her chest Vendetta said softly, âHow many ships did they destroy?âÂ
âAnd how many did we destroy?âÂ
Vendetta fell silent for a moment as she looked at the wounds sheâd inflicted on the mermaid, scratches that ran across both her skin and scales; she closed her eyes tightly and turned her head away.Â
âVaira⊠Iâm so sorry. Iâve used your men for something pointless. We have lost three ships and likely several men, as well as weapons and equipment. Weâve gained nothing from this conflict but losses, and on top of that, Iâve wounded you-â
Before she could hear any more self-deprecating shit, Domina covered Vendettaâs mouth with one hand.Â
âOn top of being attacked by surprise, fired cannonballs right at you, and survivingâyouâre going to start complaining to me about how this is going to affect my workers?â
âYou canât be serious.â
âIâve been searching every last scrap of the ship for you, begging the seas to keep you alive. Iâve tried to revive you multiple times with mouth-to-mouth, and now that youâre conscious, youâre going to worry about scratching me a little?â
âNonono, no âbutsââ âI could have sent any subordinate here to find you, but if I came here it is because I care about youâ
She sighs as she looks away, trying not to get too emotional.
âI know what that ship means to youâIâve seen you work your ass off to get itâbut you know this isnât your limit. Your potential extends far beyond a single ship; your crew stays alive and gains experience with every battle. We werenât even planning to attack them, and yet they lost two of their shipsâships that are twice as big as yours. I donât see this as a defeat; I see it as a fear theyâve just admitted having, a threat they recognize but havenât been able to get rid ofâ
Vendetta remembered the looks on the Talon agentsâ faces when they saw her walk into a tavern or when she saw them at the harbor. They were beginning to realize who she was, just as their superiors were. They recognized her fatherâs legacy.
Vaira's speech managed to instill a little more confidence in Vendetta. Domina gripped her face more firmly with her hands and pulled her closer, baring her teeth. âAnd don't even think about dying on this shipânow go regain your strength.â
âAt your command, Captain,â Vendetta replies sarcastically before kissing her.
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