CHAPTER XXI.
CATHBARR YIELDS UP HIS AX.
Brian gazed out at the scene before him in dull despair. So close werethe ships that he could clearly make out Nuala's figure, with itsshimmering mail and red cloak, on the poop of the foremost.
Her second carack had fallen behind, a shot having sent its foremastoverside, but the other two ships were driving in. All three werelowering sail, for the Dark Master's craft were unable to get out of thebay and were giving over the attempt; his disabled ship was sendingover its men to reinforce him, and Brian saw all his own efforts gonefor nothing.
There came a new burst of cannon, and through the veil of smoke heperceived that Nuala was laying her carack alongside one of the pirateships. But it was not that on which stood the Dark Master; his was theship closest to the castle, and Lame Art was bearing down on him, whileShaun the Little stood for the third, spitting out a final broadside ashe came about and lowered sail.
The crowding men on the shore had fallen silent as they watched theimpending conflict, but now Brian felt Cathbarr touch his arm, andturned.
"Why so doleful, brother?" grinned the giant; though blood dripped intohis beard from a light slash over the brow, his eyes were as clear andchildlike as ever, and the rage of battle had gone from him. "Let usjoin in that fight, you and I?"
"Eh?" Brian started, staring at him. "How may that be?"
"Ho, here is our captain given way to despair!" bellowed Cathbarr, andhis fist smote down on Brian's back. "Wake up, brother! We have threeboats here, and we can still strike a blow or two!"
Now Brian wakened to life indeed. He saw the three boats on the shore,with dead men hanging over them, and leaped instantly into action.
"Push out those boats--get the oars, there!" he shouted, leaping down tohelp shove them out. The men saw his intent, and sprang to work with ahowl of delight.
In no long time the dead were flung out, and the boats pushed down untilthey were afloat. Brian leaped into one, Cathbarr into another, and menpiled in after them until the craft were almost awash.
An eddy in the veil of smoke that hung over the bay showed Brian thatLame Art's ship had grappled with that of O'Donnell, and with renewedconfidence thrilling in him, he shouted to his men to get aboard theO'Malley ship. The Bertragh cannon had ceased to thunder as the shipscame together, but from the ships balls were hailing, musketry wascrackling, and the water was tearing into spurting jets around theboats.
Brian's men fell to their oars in sorry fashion enough, but they made upin energy what they lacked in skill. Driving past Nuala's ship, Briansaw that she had also grappled and that the battle was raging over herbulwarks, but sorely tempted to turn aside though he was, he waved hismen on.
They rowed close under the ship to which she was fastened, and as theysped past the O'Donnells saw them, and gave them a scattering volley.One or two of Brian's men went down, and a cry broke from him as he sawa round shot heaved over into his third boat, sinking her; then theywere past, and bearing down on Art Bocagh's ship.
"Tyr-owen for O'Malley!"
Cathbarr's bellow rose over the tumult, and his boat crashed into thewaist of the ship just as Brian leaped up into the mizzen-chains. Hisfeet gained hold on a triced-up port, and as he looked down he saw aswell heave up the two boats, then bring them down together with asplintering smash.
The result was dire confusion. None of the men were seamen, but some ofthem gained the side of Brian, others scrambled in through the ports,and more than one of them fell short and went down. Standing in thesinking boat with the water swirling about his ankles, Cathbarr caughtup his ax and leaped; a moment later Brian was over the bulwarks withthe giant at his side, and the O'Malleys welcomed them with a yell ofjoy.
They were badly needed, indeed. The Dark Master had led his men infurious onslaught across the waist of the ship, and Art Bocagh was beingbeaten back to the poop despite his stubborn resistance. Brian saw thatthe Dark Master's men far outnumbered Art's, while from the rigging ofeach ship musketeers were sending down bullets into the melee. With ashout, Brian and Cathbarr led their men on the O'Donnell flank, and thetide of battle turned.
At the first instant the rush of men bore Brian against the Dark Master,who was fighting like a demon. Brian caught the snarl on the other'spallid face, and struck savagely; O'Donnell parried the blow with hisskean and returned it, but Brian warded with his left arm and swept downhis blade. The Dark Master flung himself back, but not far enough, andBrian saw the point rip open the pallid cheek. Even as he pressed hisadvantage, however, another surge of men separated them.
Now Brian gave over every thought save that of reaching his enemy again,and fell on the O'Donnells with stark madness in his face. A pistolroared into his stubbly beard and the ball carried off his steel cap,but he cut down the man and pressed into the midst of the pirates,cutting and thrusting in terrible rage.
At sight of him men bore back; the icy flame in his eyes took the heartfrom those who faced him, and behind rose Cathbarr's wild bellows as thegiant hewed through after Brian. Back went the pirates, and fartherback. Brian found that he had cut his way to Lame Art, and with a yellthe forces joined and swept on the Dark Master's men.
O'Donnell had vanished, and now his men were swept back to the bulwarksand over to their own deck. Here they made a brief stand; then Cathbarrleaped over into the midst and his ax crushed down two men at once;Brian followed him, and for an instant it seemed that they would sweepall before them.
Just then, however, Lame Art toppled from the bulwarks with a bulletthrough him from above, and the Dark Master's disappearance wasexplained by a rain of grenades that whirled among the O'Malleys. Theygave back in dismay, Brian and Cathbarr were forced after them, and theDark Master himself led his men in a mad stream over the bulwarks oncemore.
There was no stopping them now. The death of Art Bocagh had disheartenedhis men, and amid flashing steel and spurting fire Brian and Cathbarrretreated to the quarterdeck. Here they had a brief breathing spaceuntil the pirates came at them anew, and with such fury that three ofthem gained a footing to one side. Brian went at them with a shout,thrust one man through the body, sent a second back with his bare fist,and as the third man struck down at him a pikeman transfixed the manbefore the blow could fall.
The boarders drew back, but as they did so a great heave of the grindingships broke the hastily flung grapplings. The ships were borne apart,and the Dark Master with most of his men remained in the waist of theO'Malley ship.
This gave a new turn to the conflict. O'Donnell had to master the shipto win free, and when Brian saw this he gave a great laugh and rejoinedCathbarr. A quick glance around showed him that Nuala was slowly winningher grappled decks, while Shaun the Little was hanging off and sendinghis cannon crashing into the third pirate ship. The two disabled craftwere slowly drawing together with the tide, which was forcing all eightinto the bay, and were pounding away with their guns as they came.
Now the combat resolved itself into a desperate struggle for possessionof the quarterdeck, which Brian and Cathbarr held. The Dark Master's menswarmed up at them bravely enough, but the ax and sword flashed up anddown, and time after time the Millhaven men fell back, unable to win afooting. Twice the Dark Master himself led them, snarling with baffledrage, but the first time a pikeman thrust him down and the second timeCathbarr's ax glanced from his helm.
O'Donnell reeled back and was lost to sight for a time.
"That was a poor blow," grunted the giant in disgust. "'Ware, brother!Stand aside!"
Brian leaped away as the men behind him ran out a falcon and sent itsblast into the crowd below in the waist. A dozen men went down underthat storm of death, but almost at the same moment a grenade burstbehind the falcon, and with that Brian was driven back as a keg ofpowder tore out half the quarterdeck in a bursting wall of flame andsmoke.
Barely had the shattering roar died out when Brian's reeling sensescaught a wild yell of dismay from his men.
"Fire! The ship is af
ire forward!"
Brian saw that the grenades had indeed fired the ship forward, while theexplosion had sent the quarterdeck into a burst of fire also, and thelowered but unfurled sails were roaring up in flame.
Up poured the O'Malleys, and Brian staggered back to the poop. He had avision of the great form of Cathbarr heaving up through the smoke,blackened and bleeding, but with the ax whirling like a leaf and smitingdown men; then Brian gained the poop, helped the giant up, and with thefew men left they turned to drive down the pirates, who were strivingdesperately to win the ship before it was too late.
As he stood with Cathbarr at the narrow break of the poop, beating downman after man, Brian knew that it was only a question of time now, forthe whole ship was breaking into flame forward. Suddenly he felt a tugat his buff coat, and looked down to see his belt fall away, sundered athis side by a bullet. He thought little of it, for he had half a dozenslight wounds, and turned to smite down at a man who had leaped for thepoop; as his sword sheared through helm and skull, there came anothertug, and Brian felt a bullet scrape along his ribs.
The O'Donnells drew back momentarily, and in the brief pause Brian sawthe figure of the Dark Master by the starboard rail in the waist, aimingup at him with a pistol, while two men behind him were hastily chargingothers. Cathbarr saw the action also, and hastily flung Brian aside, buttoo late. A burst of smoke flooded over the waist, and Brian caught thepistol-flash through it, as the ball ripped his left arm from shoulderto elbow. Then the pirates were at the poop again, and the waist wasshut out by the flooding smoke as the wind drove it down from forward.
With a scant dozen men behind them, Brian and Cathbarr once more beatthe enemy back; the giant swung his ax less lightly now, and seemed tobe covered with wounds, though most of them were slight. Brian stilleyed the waist for another glimpse of the Dark Master, but the smoke wasthick and he could see nothing. In the lull he flung a wan smile atCathbarr, who stood leaning on his ax, his mail-shirt shredded andbloody.
"Are you getting your fill of battle, brother?"
"Aye," grinned the giant, "and we had best swim for it in another minuteor the ship--look! _M'anam an diaoul!_ Look!"
At his excited yell Brian turned, as a ball whistled between them. Therebelow, in a boat half full of dead, but with two men at the oars, stoodthe Dark Master, just lowering his pistol. He flung the empty weapon upat Brian with a hoarse yell of anger, and passed from sight beneath theship's counter, toward the stern.
Realizing only that his enemy was escaping, Brian whirled and darted forthe poop-cabins. He was dimly conscious of a mass of figures behind,amid whom stood Cathbarr with the ax heaving up and down, then he was inthe cabins. Jerking open the door to the stern-walk, he saw the DarkMaster's boat directly underneath, hardly six feet from him.
"Tyr-owen!" yelled Brian, and dropping his sword, but holding his skeanfirmly, he hurdled the stern-walk railing and leaped.
At that wild shout the Dark Master looked up, but he was too late. Brianhurtled down, his body striking O'Donnell full in the chest and drivinghim over on top of the two rowers, so that all four men sprawled outover the dead. For an instant the shock drove the breath out of Brian,then he felt a hand close on his throat, and struck out with his skean.
One of the rowers gurgled and fell back, and Brian rolled over just assteel sank into his side. Giddy and still breathless, he gained hisknees to find the Dark Master thrusting at him from the stern, while athis side the other rower was rising. Brian brought up his fist, caughtthe man full on the chin, and drove him backward over the gunwale. Thelurch of the boat flung the Dark Master forward, Brian felt a sickeningwrench of pain as the sword pierced his shoulder and tore loose fromO'Donnell's hand, then he had clutched his enemy's throat, and his skeanwent home.
Spent though both men were, the sting of the steel woke the Dark Masterto a burst of energy. As the two fell over the thwarts, he twisted aboveand bore Brian down and tried to break the grip on his throat, but couldnot. For the second time in his life Brian felt that he had a wildanimal in his grasp; the sight of the snarling face, the venomous blackeyes, and the consciousness that his own strength was slowly ebbing, allroused him to a last great effort.
The smoke-pall had shut out everything but that wolfish face, and as hewrithed up even that seemed to dim and blur before his eyes, so that indesperate fear he struck out again and again, blindly. The blows fellharmless enough, for all his strength was going into that right hand ofhis; he did not know that his fingers were crushing out the DarkMaster's life, that O'Donnell's face was purple and his hands feeblybeating the air.
Brian knew only that the terrible face was hidden from him by some lossof vision, some horrible failure of sight due to his weakness. Suddenlythere was a great crash at his side, and he thought that a huge ax withiron twisted around its haft had fallen from the sky and sheared awayhalf the gunnel of the boat. He struck out again with his skean, andfelt the blow go home--and with that there came a terrific, blindingroar. The smoke-veil was rent apart by a sheet of flame, Brian realizedthat the burning ship must have blown up, and then a blast of hot winddrove down against him and smote his senses from him.