Spelljammer Story chunk 2

(Already did 1425 words on a Pyramid article today, so this will be short.)

(513 words)

The standing lieutenant counterattacked, and the sounds of tearing flesh, cracking bone, and the screams of the dying began to roll over our deck. His cutlass was a blur, cutting silver lines through the air that were edged in red whenever they intersected the body of a crew member. Obviously, he was a superlative swordsman. But however dangerous the sword, it was the arms that were the true terror in that fight. They moved faster than the eye could see, darting and slashing, stabbing a human at the extreme end of their reach one moment, then shifting inward to claw the spine out of a halfling trying to get through the lieutenant's guard in the blink of an eye.
I shuddered. The deck was already slick with blood around the elf, and the crew who were not lying on the deck dead or dying were desperately trying to retreat out of range of this deadly warrior. A quick count suggested that the lieutenant had downed eight of the Jewel's men within three seconds. This couldn't go on. We simply could not afford to lose men at that rate. And we still had the other elves of the boarding party to deal with, as well! I glanced at them, and saw the marines still circling the third officer and the songmaster. Two of them sported fresh cuts on the arm and chest, but they still looked ready for a fight, and three more crew members were down on the deck at their feet. Clearly, while I had watched the lieutenant with sick fascination, the other members of the boading party had been holding their own.
And probably more, I realized. The Songmaster seemed to be putting the finishing touches on her song, and as she played the last few breathy, haunting notes, her playing took effect. Immediately, the officer in the middle of the elven circle faded from view, becoming invisible before my eyes. I cursed. If he could slip out of the circle and get to the flitter, it was perfectly possible for him to pilot it alone back to the man-o-war. And even if he didn't make a run for it, he could still do enormous damage to us. It's very difficult to parry an invisible stab, and that's if you have any idea that it's coming - not something to count on, given how good at sneaking around most elves were.
Working as fast as I could, I locked the wheel, and then sprinted down the stairs and across the deck, heading toward the flitter. I gave the lieutenant a wide berth. I'm confident in my skill with the cutlass, but I knew my superior when I saw him, and the arms would give him an even greater advantage. As I went, I gathered a couple of the crew who hadn't let been able to get into the press, but that I knew were steady. I shouted to them as we ran "We've got to stand off at the flitter's hatch! The officer's invisible - don't let him get past us!"