No but your fellow lookout does

It was common for ships of all nations to take on eagles as lookouts. Their vision was exceptionally sharp even if their combat abilities were somewhat lacking. This policy paid off as your partner in the nest, Lirahe, a slight man with brown mottled feathers caught sight of something on the other side.

"Five sails off the starboard bow!" He called out, "Unkown flags!" That usually meant pirates though it could just be a lesser known merchant house from the Bovine Herd or the Porcine understanding. You turned your own gaze in that direction and pulled up your looking glass to try and get a look. It was immediately obvious that these were no merchant ships. They were still a fair distance away, well beyond cannon range but their sail patterns would enable them to catch up with the merchant ships in your group quite easily. They were likely intending to try and split off one of them for plunder, from where they were they likely couldn't see that most of the ships in your party were warships rather than just merchants.

Your captain, a she-wolf with a sleek pure white coat named Liru, was taking no chances.

"All hands, clear the deck for action!" She called, her voice trained through many years at sea. A less experienced captain might have called for battle stations but with the enemy so far away that would only serve to tire out the crew. Clearing the deck of all possible hazards and preparing the buckets of sand and water for the battle now was a far better course of action.

"Signal to the flagship! Five sails, pirates, requesting orders!" The signalman on the stern of the ship repeated back the command to ensure he had heard it correctly and then began waving his flags to send off the message. You turned your attention to the flagship in order to see the reply.

'Vessels confirmed, engage, Night Fury, Howling Wind supporting. Good luck' The message returned. You looked over at the sister ships that would be following you into battle. You would be outnumbered, that was for sure but you knew the Commodore had to keep the majority of the flotilla with the merchants in case the pirates managed to get past you. With the way the wind was blowing they had a decent chance of doing so. Still, your skin was prickling with excitement under your fur. It was time to prove your worth.