Chapter 426. Reappearance
Boom!
Glowing with a near-crimson fervor, the cannon finally erupted in a spectacular burst after fulfilling its duty.
The mice manning the deck cannons scurried away from their posts and rapidly organized themselves into assault squads. They rushed toward the deck, now speckled with blood and pieces of meat, and tore into the flesh of the sea otters.
"We can manage here! Secure the hatches! Make sure nothing breaches the cabins!" Charles commanded the mice.
The Narwhale had come to a standstill; her surrounding waters stained a deep, ominous red.
The crew members unleashed roars of fury as they wielded their weapons alongside their captains in a fierce battle against the invading sea otters and giant toads.
The sea otters were far from formidable and were mere creatures of flesh and blood. Despite being under the control of the monstrous creatures within the other perspective, they bore no signs of any extraordinary powers.
However, their threat lay in their numbers. There were just too many of them. Even with Sparkle's relentless attacks, their ranks seemed inexhaustible. Charles even pondered the depths from which such a multitude could emerge.
Not only was there an endless amount of sea otters, but each of them also displayed a fearlessness reminiscent of zombies. With only a handful of crew members aboard the Narwhale, it was a monumental challenge for them to defend the waves of sea otters.
It was as if they were stranded on a deserted island and had to repel invasions from every direction. Their sole strategy was to repel the relentless sea otters trying to climb aboard.
The arsenal of the Narwhale was depleted in their dire war of defense. Even the torpedoes were used as makeshift explosives in a desperate bid for survival.
The battle had been fierce, but they eventually emerged victorious. Even the formidable Anna felt drained, but fortunately, the haunting, sharp cries of the sea otters gradually disappeared.
Standing at the ship's bow, Charles suddenly felt the brown tide finally receding. The previous murderous intent in the sea otters' eyes was gone and replaced with fear as they stared at Charles, who was fully covered in blood.
With a flick, Charles pulled out his pocket watch and flipped it open.
"It has been seven hours? It felt like only thirty minutes." Charles remarked to himself.
Charles turned around and surveyed the messy deck. The Narwhale's once sleek silhouette was now marred by battle scars, and half the deck was nearly gone. Her pristine white hull now bore the crimson marks of combat, resembling a vessel forged in bloodshed, adorned with remnants of sea otters and giant toads alike.
Now that their enemies had withdrawn, the crew slumped onto the deck in extreme exhaustion as they gasped for air. If it hadn't been for their captain's unwavering lead, they wouldn't have endured the battle.
In the wake of their victory, Charles opened up his palm, and a bloodied black-red spider jumped onto it. It then climbed up his arm and onto his face before burrowing itself into the void where his right eye once was.
"We succeeded. We defeated them!" Charles declared to his crew, though his voice sounded raspy from fatigue as well.
Sprawled on the deck, the crew members were too weary to stand, yet smiles of relief appeared on their faces. Though some among them had fallen, the majority of them prevailed.
Without a moment's delay, Charles began to do a headcount; the situation was grim. He had lost quite a number of his crew members. He knew what happened to them. Some were pulled into the fray by the sea otters and were mercilessly torn apart.
Those unfortunate died a horrible death, but the survivors were hardly faring any better. They were missing chunks of skins and flesh, a testament to the sea otters' unexpectedly sharp teeth.
After a brief respite, Charles approached Linda and helped her up. "No time for rest. You are the ship's doctor. Examine everyone quickly and try your best to treat them. Look, even Audric is almost fading out of consciousness."
Linda wiped her chin, which was oozing tissue fluid due to the lack of skin, with the back of her hand and stood up to walk toward the vampire.
Then, Charles turned to look at Anna, who was reverting from her tentacled form back to human.
"Stop standing around. You're the only one with the strength to help Linda right now."
Anna casually flipped her long hair and scrutinized Charles from head to toe. Ignoring his command, she walked toward Sparkle. "I'm not one of your crew members."
Unlike the weary crew members, Sparkle displayed no signs of exhaustion. In fact, she even had the energy to toy with a struggling, squealing baby sea otter.
In this chaotic battle, his daughter had been a significant help, and Charles felt that he should express his gratitude. He approached Sparkle and crouched down to pat her head. Before he could even speak a word, a blood-curdling scream pierced the air.
Charles turned toward the source of the shout and saw Tobba clutching his head and thrashing about hysterically in a pool of blood.
"Are you crazy? You actually want to cross two entire perspectives so casually? You will attract their attention! You're not just putting yourself in danger; you're dragging me along with you!" Tobba shouted.
Brows furrowed, Charles dashed toward Tobba and grabbed him by the collar. Giving Tobba a vigorous shake, he demanded, "What happened?! Explain! What's happening?"
Tobba's eyes slowly focused on Charles. Panic was evident on his countenance. "Hurry! Run! They're coming. Those creatures have really gone mad!"
"What are you talking about? Talk clearly!"
"That giant worm! It's coming to this perspective to find you! Set sail now!" Tobba's voice went a notch higher and almost cracked from his hysteria. His words sent shivers down Charles' spine.
Having been stationary for a long while, the Narwhale began accelerating once again. Despite the crew members bleeding and being truly exhausted, the captain's command squeezed out the last bit of strength from within them.
"Quick! Run! A colossal monster is hot on our feet! We have to leave this place before it appears!"
The Narwhale's smokestacks emitted sparks and smoke as it swiftly navigated through the sea, slicing through the water and the floating carcasses of sea otters, retracing the path she came from.
As the tang of blood in the air dissipated with the breeze, the ship gradually passed through the bizarre seaweed forest.
Yet, as Charles stood at the bridge, he felt a knot of anxiety tightening. The sight of an increasingly agitated Tobba was telling him that their crisis was far from over.
"Didn't you say that that thing would collapse in its own perspective once the sea otters disappear? How can it still manifest in our reality?" Charles pressed.
However, Tobba offered no answers. Consumed by extreme fear, the old man clutched his head in dread as he mumbled a string of indecipherable words.
"Don't worry. If that thing dares to cross over, our daughter won't just stand idly by as well," Anna tried to reassure Charles.
However, Charles was hardly optimistic. He turned toward Sparkle, who was affectionately stroking the back of a headless sea otter.
"Sparkle might not be able to defeat that worm. Also, I can't bear to see her risk herself."
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