Dark Ages

“YA!” Luna screamed. Moonshine released a loud neigh while rushing forward, toward the animal transport hatch. Just as they approached, Luna pulled a small dagger from her boot and flung it forward, severing the rope that once secured the hatch to its lever. The entire door came flying out toward the enemy ship, fueled by the momentum of Moonshine and Luna soaring through the air at full speed. Three of the raiders stood in amazement; in awe at what they were witnessing. It took them a moment to realize that she was heading directly toward them. They scrambled frantically, as if they noticed all at once that death was approaching. They were too late. As Luna flew through the air, two small blades left her right hand, flipping end over end, catching one of the raiders in the throat, and one of the others in the back as he tried to scramble for safety. The third pirate managed to pull a pistol from his pants. He took aim and fired at Luna as she sailed through the wind. She quickly unsheathed her sword, just in time to deflect the bullet before it made contact with her neck. Moonshine came barreling down on top of him as Luna flipped off her mount's back, landed on the injured man, and impaled him. A stream of blood peppered Luna's face as she leaped off the warm corpse seconds before another set of bullets came firing toward her, spraying the lifeless body of their own man. Luna flipped through the air and contorted her body, narrowly avoiding the whistling bullets whizzing by her head. She landed in the center of five of the vicious raiders. Her blade moved faster than any one of their pistols. Luna slashed one diagonally across the chest, ducking and spinning as another bullet grazed the side of her head and hit one of her attackers in the gut. She jumped up and flipped forward, allowing her blade to horizontally sweep the perimeter with deadly precision. As she gracefully landed on her feet, three of their heads landed with her, and three more lifeless bodies collapsed. Without missing a stride, Luna was on the prowl again. She was heading directly for another group that was firing their pistols at her from across the ship. With her blade in front of her, she quickly closed the gap between them. Her feet propelled her forward, her head bobbing and weaving, and her blade slashing rapid X's in the wind, deflecting most of the bullets right out of thin air. Luna jumped toward the side of the ship. Planting her boots on a wooden pillar, she pushed off hard from her side as bullets peppered the pillar. Her sword was directly pointed in front of her as she soared through the air. She landed, arms out, barreling into one of her enemies, thrusting her blade through his chest. He fell to his back as Luna landed with her knees in his gut. She used her body’s momentum to flip forward toward the rest of the now frantic raiders, leaving her blade buried in the chest of her latest victim. As she landed on her feet, one of them let off a shot directly at her face. She slightly moved her head just enough to hear the singe of her hair being burned by the red hot bullet. After leaving her blade impaled in the last body, Luna was now empty-handed, but still just as dangerous. She reached out, grabbed the throat of one of the raiders, and crushed his wind pipe beneath her grasp. Luna quickly threw a high kick over her right shoulder, connecting with the jaw of another that was only seconds away from running her through from behind. He was sent flying back into one of his own men. She spun to her left just as a small blade reached out, slicing a deep gash across her cheek, which would have otherwise ended her life had she been a second slower. She threw a hard elbow, smashing his nose. The sound of bone and cartilage being crushed was drowned out by the gurgling sound of him gasping for air. Without hesitation, Luna reached for him as he fell to his knees. With both hands up to his face, she grasped his head between her palms and violently wrenched it to the side, cleanly snapping his neck. His limp body collapsed the rest of the way down with a heavy thud. Luna turned her attention toward the last two of her enemies that were still standing. They were obviously out of bullets; one had a small blade, and the other was empty-handed. There was a slight pause when they faced each other. Luna glared at them as blood dripped off her hands and face. Her clothes and skin were soaked in the blood of their fallen comrades, and by the look on her face, they knew their blood would soon be on her as well. The armed raider ended the standoff. Rushing toward her, he screamed, thrusting his blade at her gut. Luna patiently waited until he was right on top of her before she shifted slightly to the left. Grabbing his wrist, she pulled and twisted, viciously snapping it in two different places within a half second. She grabbed his blade all in the same movement and planted it upward into his chin. Without delay, Luna grabbed his limp body, and tightly gripped the front of his shirt with both hands. Spinning twice to gather momentum, she released the body, hurling it toward the last raider. The force of the body took him right off his feet and landed on top of him. While twisting and squirming to get the dead body off, he suddenly realized...it was already too late. Luna stood over him with her blade back in her possession. The immobile raider looked on her with trepidation. The blood was still dripping off her fingertips and face, which made her appearance that much more terrorizing to behold. She looked into his eyes, raised her blade in the air, and grimly smiled as her sword came down at full force into his head. Luna wearily stumbled away from his body, exhausted and, since her adrenaline was fading, she could feel the sting of her wounds. She fell to her bottom, breath ragged and heavy, sitting among the slain raiders. Their lifeless eyes stared at her, some from heads left hanging at grotesque angles, some no longer attached to their bodies. Luna quickly gathered herself and rose back to her feet. “Moonshine!” She called for her pike, noticing that she was at the far end of the ship. Moonshine neighed loudly, trying to get Luna's attention. She made it by her mount's side, and realized what she was looking at. In the floor of the upper deck, there was a built-in square hole for quick access to the pit. Luna's heart stopped for a moment when she realized that the lower-deck was half-full of water, and quickly filling up. It was only a matter of time before the entire ship began to sink, pulled under by the weight of the hungry ocean. Luna had drawn the conclusion that the bullets from the raiders’ pistols had most likely been the cause. No matter the cause; it was still her problem now, and she had very few options. Luna ran to the front of the ship, desperately staring out into the sea in hopes of a glimpse of dry land. She could see nothing but the dark, treacherous waters of the ocean, and the scant wooden remains of her own ship that had been disabled by the raiders’ cannon rounds. Luna knew what was next. Soon the angry sea would swallow the ship, and she and Moonshine would be left swimming in the cold, ursill-infested water. She knew the likelihood of their survival was slim at best. Still, she had no choice. If they had to swim for the rest of their lives, Luna was willing to do so. Such an obstacle would not stand between her and revenge. It wasn't long before the ship began its slow descent toward the bottom of the ocean. Luna's plan was to ride it out as long as possible, and when there was no longer a ship's surface to stand upon, she would do whatever it took to see to it that they survived long enough to complete her quest. As the water slowly crept up the bottoms of her leather boots, Luna decided that it was time to abandon ship.