Chapter 26: The Aftermath
Helen rushed down the stairs to find Sestiva, squinting to see through the smoke. She could just faintly see the silhouette of Sestiva's figure. She ran over to see if she was okay.
Sestiva was waving her hand in front of her face trying to clear the smoke in front of her. She could see a little bit of the damage caused by the explosion. She squinted to see more of the details. The aftermath of the explosion left no trace of the fortress except for a few tiny pieces of the walls that managed to stay and survive the explosion. She could tell that all the smoke wouldn't clear up any time soon.
There were, however, lots of defective explosives. They still had a risk of exploding, although it was highly unlikely.
Armada soldiers were lying around, with very few of them left. They were left with missing limbs, but most of them were nowhere to be seen. One of them, back supported by a small piece of the wall, had most of his face blown off from the explosion, while the rest of him stayed in one piece. Parts and weapons were scattered around on the island after being torn apart from the armada soldier himself, or from the weapons storage.
"I know where there's another." Helen said, breaking the silence. "It's down in Cool Ranch. It's not that long of a trip. It may not look like it at first, but the armada officer, Deacon, is there. There are rumors that he's located in Motherload Mine. "
"Sounds like a good plan to me." Sestiva agreed, continuing to look at the blown up fortress. "The armada knows how to quickly kill a pirate, like us. They know the way that most everyone attacks. That's why you got to attack with the unexpected. I'm going to defeat Deacon alone."
"No. You're not. We need each other to survive. You need me to back you up. I'll be sniping armada soldiers from behind to make it look like you're doing all the work."
"Do you seriously think the armada is that stupid?! Do you? Because I'm absolutely sure that they plan for it, and they have guards patrolling the tunnels in the mine. You're definitely going to get caught with that plan of yours. "
"Then what do you suggest if you're so smart, Sestiva?!"
"I suggest that you let me go in alone and watch the ship so the armada doesn't take it away. Like I said. I don't need your help. "
"Yes, you do. Do you realize that you don't even know how to sail? If you want to throw your life away like that…go ahead. If you know so much and don't need my help, why do you continue to stay on this ship?"
Sestiva ignored her question and slowly climbed her way up the stairs to the ship's wheel. She gripped the wheel and jerked her hands to the left, spinning the ship away from the island where the armada fortress once was. She pulled the ship into a windlane and let the windlane take them to Floatsom Skyway.
Sestiva came back down the stairs and looked at Helen in the eyes with a intense glare.
"I told you I knew how to sail. After hours and hours of just watching you, I figured it all out. I can learn by visuals, you know. I'm not so stupid as to just wait till a ship comes, fire canons, and raise anchors." Sestiva growled, making fists with her hands and tried to punch Helen directly in the face.
Helen didn't process what was happening fast enough for her to dodge Helen's punch. Although she moved, Sestiva's punch caught her right in the nose, making it bleed. Helen ignored the blood slowly making its way down to her face, dripping off her chin.
Helen stood still and remained calm. Unlike Sestiva, she was able to control her anger. She brought her foot back and out to the side. Sestiva, too focused on Helen's face, didn't notice what she was doing.
Helen swung her foot up and around, kicking Sestiva hard in the stomach. She watched Sestiva fall to the ground on her back, knocking the air out of her lungs. She used her arms to prop herself up, coughing. She glared at Helen, and stood up. She approached and raised a fist, aiming at her side. Helen moved to the side at the last second again, like Sestiva expected her too. She redirected the punch and came around the other side, hitting her in the head.
Helen backed up, watching Helen's movements carefully. What Sestiva didn't notice was that when Helen kicked her, she took the knife from Sestiva's knife holster. She hid the sharp blade in her sleeve, facing it away from Sestiva. Helen ran at Sestiva and thrust her hand out, catching the handle of the knife. She made sure to graze Sestiva's arm.
Sestiva screamed in pain, even though it was a shallow cut. Even if it was a shallow cut, it was almost the length of her forearm. Blood oozed from the wound, finding its way down her arm, and dripping off her fingertips. Helen hid the blade back in her sleeve, and Sestiva tried to reach for the knife in the holster, only to find that it wasn't there.
She looked up at Helen with wide eyes, not knowing how she took the knife from her in the first place.
Helen charged at Sestiva, kicking the back of her ankle while she was still distracted and flipped over. Sestiva landed on her stomach. She got up and ran towards Helen, clawing at her skin with her nails. Helen flinched, but remained calm. With one heavy punch, she knocked Sestiva to the ground and stomped on her stomach without saying a word. Helen's nose had stopped bleeding.
Sestiva jumped up and clawed hard at Helen's skin, breaking it open and leaving nail indents and blood seeping out.
"I told you that we need each other to survive. We're equally strong, and we can back each other up." Helen said as she sliced at Sestiva's calf to make her lose balance.
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Sadly, Pathogen will be coming to an end next week. Stay tuned!
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-Samantha