The Girl With the Dragon Eyes

Chapter 8- Prison Break

<POV- Narrator>

Back on the ship...

Two thugs walked over a grate in the deck. Once they passed, Ronin slowly raised it, making sure they were gone. He swiftly yet silently moved the grate aside, jumped out, then replaced it. He snuck around the corner towards the staircase that led to the bottom deck. He stopped once he got down the stairs, leaning against the doorway's edge. He counted one pair of footsteps slowly pacing by the brig cells.

He waited, timed it, then jumped into the room, flinging a knife-disk at the thug guarding the cells. The disk embedded into his larynx, silencing any yell for help. Then Ronin swiftly walked over, punching him out. The thug's limp body slumped to the floor, out cold and bleeding.

"Ronin!" Joash silently yelled.

He signaled to be quiet. "There is little time to explain how and why I'm here. There's only seven other thugs on the ship, and plenty of us. Once we take them down, we'll head ashore to help."

"You got it chief," Joash said as Ronin opened the cell door as quietly as he could. Two thugs in the next room over heard the creaking though.

"What was that?" said one.

"I think it was the cell door..." this one rounded the corner first, greeted by another of Ronin's disks in his chest. "You were right...." he tumbled to the floor.

The other rounded the corner, dodging the next disk thrown, but not able to miss the sword thrown into his abdomen.

Ronin ripped his sword back out of the thugs stomach, then handed Joash a bow and arrows he found on the thug's back. "Make that five more. Give this to your best archer, and have him come up front."

"Got it. We should raid the armory before we find any more brutes," Joash said.

"That is for you, my mission is to stop Rick from killing Iris. King's orders," he said sharply.

"No problem. We'll head to the armory. See if you can score us all a ride to shore," Joash said.

"I intend to," then Ronin ran toward the staircase back to the main deck.

As he came up to the top level, Ronin was met by a thug with a large mace. He began swinging it, then swung it at Ronin's head.

Ronin duck, then jumped down a step as it flew at him again. Timing it, he swung his sword, clashing with the mace's chain, causing it to wrap around the sword. As the thug jerked the chain back, he took Ronin's sword with it, but the tangled up blade stuck fast in the timber wall, pinning the mace. Ronin then flung his dagger into the thug's chest as he ran up the stairs, then grabbed the thug's head, twisting it fast and snapping his neck. He then ripped his sword out of the wall, and the mace immediately fell from being tangled around it.

Ronin bursted out of the cabin, onto the main deck. The four remaining thugs, including a large one with a spiked hammer, turned their attention to Ronin. He held his blade horizontally, in a defensive stance. He slowly moved forward, allowing the thugs to surround him. They walked around him in a circle, slowly analyzing this new threat.

Ronin was as cool as ever. He kept his adrenaline concealed until he needed it. He darted his eyes at one thug, then the other as he slowly turned, and they slowly walked. He observed every little twitch, every blink or non.

He waited, then one of them charged at him. He threw one of his disks, but it was dodged. He clashed swords, then spun away as a thug behind him ran his blade at Ronin, but instead, into his shocked counterpart. The thug that ran his friend through by accident released the sword, allowing the one to tumble back. Ronin thrashed his blade up, slicing through the thug's chest.