A loud noise rang out, almost deafening to the ears.
I jumped out of my bed, tangling with the blanket and falling to the ground in a heap.
I just lay there for a while, just thinking about how I managed to get myself in this situation, while being a literal Awakened.
Another noise rang out, which of course, made me jump again. Luckily, I managed not to trip on anything this time.
I stood in my small room on the ship, not sure if I should go back to sleep or check out what's happening.
The question was answered for me when a voice rang out through what felt like the whole battleship.
"Attention passengers! We are about to set sail! Please hold onto something attached to a wall, floor, or ceiling! This will be a rough start!"
I fumbled around, but ultimately was forced to summon the [Vamparic dagger] to find a reliable object to hold myself to.
There was a pause, then the whole ship lurched, my body with it.
I was suddenly glad I was used to warp; otherwise, I was sure I would have puked on the spot.
Luckily, the feeling quickly passed, and the same voice from before informed everyone aboard that they could go back to whatever they were doing before.
I released a sigh, that was annoying but necessary I suppose.
I just flopped onto the surprisingly soft mattress, the blanket being wrapped on top of me.
Shortly after, I fell asleep, appearing in front of Mirage once more.
It was time to clean once more, this time, abominations rather than dust.
***
Dash forwards, sidestep, spin, change grip, obliterate.
The sequence formed, and I executed it to the letter.
[You have slain an Awakened Beast: Scavenger.]
I released a sigh, a happy smile forming on my face.
I was getting better at this against weaker creatures, their limited attack options making me able to predict what they would do next.
A screech rang out high above, Mirage diving downwards like one of my arrows, his giant form shrinking with each passing moment, just as he reached me, he fully transformed into a crow, landing upon my shoulder with graceful ease.
I rubbed his beak a bit, before I felt it. The forceful pull of waking up.
I sighed, turning my head towards Mirage.
"Sorry, I have to go now."
He only blinked back at me, before hopping off my shoulder.
The next moment my consciousness faded, reappearing in the true body.
My eyes shot open, the dagger manifesting under the blanket I could still feel covering my body.
An image formed, a man standing over me, the same one who had greeted me once boarding the ship.
The exhaustion was still there, but hidden below focus and determination.
"We are under attack, if you are suited for such combat go and assist the others, if not, come with me to wake the others."
Just as he finished speaking, a screeching alarm rang out, and I barely heard the words being broadcast.
"WE ARE UNDER ATTACK! WE ARE UNDER ATTACK!"
It repeated and repeated and repeated, even when my [Assassin's wear] fully enveloped me and I was charging towards the fight it continued, grinding on the nerves and splitting my focus.
Finally, as I approached the main deck, the image that formed in my mind had a monster in sight.
I wasted no time, starting to continuously fuel the dagger, as well as warping to the creature, slicing its skinny neck off.
The blood flashed through the air, and I silently noted that the blood had a shade of purple, probably poisonous.
I weaved around the corpse, a different target already selected.
I warped right into its face, dodging the instinctual swipe the creature attempted, my elbow rocketed upwards, snapping the abomination's head upwards, which left the neck wide open for my dagger to pierce through.
I stopped then, taking account of the people fighting. My unseeing eyes searched for whoever needed help.
Then I moved, I fuelled the dagger with several bursts of essence before throwing it, starting to warp it around the battleship made battlefield.
Creatures fell one by one, some cleaved through, some with a hole or two in their bodies.
The dagger reappeared in my hand just in time to block a finned tail.
My eyes narrowed, the three soul cores of this creature were quite bright. Not bright enough though.
I dodged another swipe, backpeddeling to create space.
The creature was an interesting one. Its body largely resembling a lizard's or a snake's, but with extra limbs, such as wing-like front claws and a large tail covered with fins.
It opened its mouth and I prepared to dodge.
Just as my leg muscles tensed, the attack started.
But instead of water or wind or anything of the sort.
A sharp ringing shriek rang out, making my ears bleed.
I collapsed to a knee, my singular arm shooting to cover at least a single ear.
The sound lessened, but the pain did not.
I clenched my teeth, barely able to focus on warping the dagger into its open mouth, then a few more times for good measure. Even when the sound had stopped, and my senses started to relax, I stabbed it a few more times.
That was the single most annoyingly painful experience I have had in a while.
Keywords: "a while", the pain couldn't even compare to the multiple torturous near-death experiences I've had, all far more extraordinarily painful than this.
I shook my head, my mind clearing from the shrill sound.
I couldn't just stand by, there were more people to be saved, more creatures to be eradicated.
The world in my mind expanded even more, now covering the entirety of the battlefield, there were few creatures remaining on board, but there were dozens stuck on the hull of the gigantic ship, and even more filled the waters around it.
This would take quite some time.
***
My body whirled around, grabbing onto the hood of a person, pulling them back. Just in time, a laser-like stream of water cut through the space the person had just occupied.
I could almost see the snarl building in the back of their throat die as he watched metal be torn apart like paper.
I released the hood, slowly stepping forward.
Just as I saw the soul essence coalescing for another beam, warp activated, the dagger forcefully appeared in the creature's mouth.
The next moment, the throat and jaw exploded, water, blood, and bones scattering through the air violently.
***
I lopped off a tail, ignoring the guttural scream that followed, slicing off the head as it came forward to bite my own off.
I released a sigh, now covered in blood.
I felt vile, smelled vile, and undoubtedly looked horrendous from the whispers that followed my every step.
Alas, the work was not yet done, and I stood unmovingly, waiting for the abomination to show itself.
None were fools on this battleship, everyone realized a Tyrant was lurking in the waters.
A few, like myself, saw its enormous body flowing around the ship, as if entangling it in it's massive size.
I stared at the five moderately shining stars in my view, uneasy.
I hoped that the ship could handle the battle that would soon start.
Thanks for reading and support!