You are a paladin, not a mouse!

Your grip tightens on the handle of your holy sword and you charge out the door and up the stairs to the deck. You emerge into a frenzy of hand-to-hand combat. The ship is under attack from numerous blue-green bipedal amphibians. Sea wugs! The creatures have huge mouths and huge, bulging eyes on either side of their tapered heads. Vicious barbed fins rise from their spine to form crests of green and red on their heads. The are smaller than the men they are fighting by a foot or so, but they seem more athletic, leaping and attacking with their tridents and scimitar blades.

Several crewmen lie dead or dying on the deck, along with many of the attackers, but the crew remains outnumbered. You see Captain Rakins swing his saber and slice open the throat of one of the wugs. It screeches and flops to the deck spraying scarlet blood. The wind catches your gown, lifting it up your thighs and exposing your bottom and sex to the view of any who would look. No time for modesty! The sea wugs are coming at you almost immediately.

"For the Burning Rose!" you cry, your voice cutting through the shouts like the ringing of a holy bell. The sea wugs falter and the men of the Skirmisher rally. Combat resumes after the momentary pause and you find yourself confronted with three of the amphibians brutes.

One darts towards you, but the largest of the three grabs its companion and pulls it back. The wugs croak at each other in their language. They seem to shift their posture and a fourth wug joins them, this one wielding a net. They mean to capture you!

A wug leaps at you, trying to pin your sword with a its trident. It succeeds in trapping your blade, but you roar with fury and the blade flares with holy fire. The wug's trident shatters and you smash the beast over the side of the ship. Another wug slashes your left arm open. It's a bloody flesh wound. Alone, it's nothing dangerous, but if they land many more like this they'll bleed you weak. You turn on that wug and drive your sword into its belly. The creature lets out a yowl of agony and flops to the deck.

The net is thrown and drops over you, weights and momentum knocking you to the ground. You stand up, but there are two of them on you now. One smashes the handle of its trident into your side and the other steps on your sword, pinning it to the deck. Cold, wet hands prod at you and they tie the netting closed and begin to hoist you over the side of the ship, croaking with excitement.

"Unhand her!" shouts Captain Rakins.

His pistol cracks and a plume of smoke and fire launches a pistol ball into the head of one of the wugs hauling your body. You drop to the deck again and begin sawing your way out of the net as the brave captain closes with the wug leader and battles it in furious sword combat. It is far more skilled than its brethren and manages to keep up with the captain, who is obviously quite skilled himself. The wug manages to get the better of the captain, driving him back to the railing.

"Prepare," croaks the wug, "for ****."

The sword of St. Magdalena drives through the beast back and upwards, emerging from the center of the wug's chest. Rakins looks down in surprise. You spin the wug around, pulling out your impaling blade and finishing it with a slash across the throat.

"Nicely done," says the captain, sparing a glance down at the wug. "But there's more to do!"

Together, you and Captain Rakins cut a swath through the wugs, driving them back and killing several more. The creatures finally break from their fight and run. A savage cheer goes up from the crew. They shoot and stab at the wugs as they flee, shoving the dead into the water after them. Two men have died, including poor, one-handed Spivy, and several more are injured. Despite that, spirits are high.

Before you know what is happening Duullem has hoisted your bare bottom up onto his shoulders and you are being cheered by the entire crew.

"To the Burning Rose! To Sister Sabine!" The crew cheers. "To Captain Rakins!"

Glenda finally emerges from the cabin, rubbing her eyes and still swaying with drink.

"My goddess," she exclaims, seeing the mess on the deck. "What has happened? Were we... hic... was there a party?"

More cheering answers her as the last of the dead wugs are tossed overboard. Duullem sets you back on your feet and you do your best to cover yourself with your blood-stained gown. The cheering dies down and Captain Rakins begins shouting at the men to get back to work.

"I'm sorry, sisters, but we are still in perilous waters. I must see to the ship." Rakins looks at your wounded arm. "Haggen can see to that. He should be with the wounded below decks."

"It's nothing," you say, looking at the blood, but shallow cut.

"Don't look it, and besides, those wugs are nasty kippers. They'll slather their blades in rotten fish guts so the wounds go sour. Best see Haggen and ask for a poultice. But mind his hands, sister."

You nod a thanks to the captain. He never even sees the gesture as he hurries back to the wheel to guide Skirmisher out of danger. Glenda, leaning heavily on the railing, is drawing the attention of some of the hot blooded crewmen of the ship. It might be a better idea to forgo treatment for your wound and see that she is safely in the captain's cabin.