Asha had dared to ram those medium-sized ships because she had struck their flanks, and her Daughter of the Sea Monster was somewhat larger than they were.
Now, however, they were heading for a head-on collision. Not only were the enemy ships larger than hers, there were two of them, so she chose to avoid meeting them head-on.
"Lord Oliver, Asha is as slippery as an eel," the adjutant said bitterly as he watched.
Oliver did not answer. He stared at the dark shape weaving through his formation, his pupils narrowing.
Asha's goal was not to fight him head-on, but to throw his formation into complete disarray, isolating the cargo ships laden with valuables and exposing them to the other Ironborn's claws.
"Port side! Drive them back, quickly!" Oliver roared at the adjutant beside him. "Have the Iron Fist and the Sea Bass push forward and close the gap!"
The adjutant hurried to relay the order, frantically waving his signal flags in the wind, but he was still too slow.
The Iron Fist had only just received his signal and begun to turn when two Ironborn longships charged in from the side and hemmed in her bow. The Ironborn threw out barbed grappling hooks, fastening them firmly to her gunwales, and the three ships locked tightly together.
On the Iron Fist's deck, the soldiers from the Arbor had no time to form ranks before the Ironborn surged across the gaps between the ships.
The Ironborn at the front was a burly man with a thick beard. With one swing of his massive battle axe, he split an Arbor soldier's wooden shield, then drove the blade into the man's shoulder.
A jet of blood spattered his face, but he merely grinned, baring a mouthful of yellow teeth. He kicked the still-twitching