Dawn of the Magus

Chapter 1

"FIRE THE CATAPULTS!!"

The operators pull the two triggers for each of their catapults, raining down fiery rocks, stones, and bombs on the battlefield below us. They hit their target: enemy ships in the harbor, which explode into balls of fire and engulf them. The operators and crew cheer loudly and start to load the catapults again. I run down the lower deck of the airship to the other side and give the good news to the first mate, the captain's second in command.

"Bring the goods news to the captain m'boy!!" he shouts to a much younger soldier, grinning and bursting with confidence. The boy nods and races up the stairs behind him to the top deck. 

Our ship is state of the art: a flying wooden vessel that looks similar to a 1700's galleon - decked out with metal armor plating on the sides, giant half-wood, half-metal wings, and two of the most up-to-date jet engines on either side of the rear to keep us moving, albeit slowly.

After the "Divine Revolution" - also known as World War 3 - occurred about 1,000 years ago, we had to revert back to the stone age for a while as the earth began to heal and the human race started to recover from its dangerously low population levels. Long story short, our gracious ancestors set a few nukes off and almost made humanity extinct - almost. Humans are strong and able to adapt well to change. Our kingdom's forefathers helped gather what remained of humanity and rebuild from scratch.

A few hundred years ago, we were able to officially clear an area of radiation. We have since moved into the time period known as The Second Industrial Revolution. We have been able to recover and adapt old machines and technology for our uses today, including warships and airplanes. We have built upon old technology and used what we can to accomplish what was once considered science-fiction: flying boats - or "airships" - like the one I'm on now.

I hear what sounds like cannon fire and turn quickly as something whistle through the air at high speeds. I race to the nearest window, my eyes widening as I gaze down upon the horror that awaits our ship: a barrage of black objects flying towards us. I barely have time to react and I dive to the floor, just as the objects hit the ship and tear through the wood below. Screams of pain and the sound of wood being ripped apart are all that I hear for the next few seconds. 

The ship lurches upwards and I start sliding across the floor towards the back. I claw at the floor desperately, trying to grab on to something, anything to stop me from falling. I see the front of the ship tilting up towards the sky; the large vessel groans and trembles loudly as it threatens to rip by the seems. It wasn't built to handle such sharp inclines; no ship was. I don't even want to know what happened to the people on the top deck above us...

The many boxes and crates throughout the lower deck start to slide towards the back of the ship with me. I am barely able to dodge them and move out of the way in time. One of the crates hits my left shoulder and I cry out in agony as it begins throbbing and pulsating uncontrollably from the large bruise. I'll definitely feel that in the morning - if I even make it out of this alive. 

I spin across the floor from the collision and start to lift off the ground as the front of the flying ship keeps raising up higher and higher. Crew members scream as they slide and fly back towards the rear of the ship, some getting crushed under the crates after they hit the bottom. A few of them have grabbed onto the frames of the windows and the pole towards the center that was built to support the ceiling. 

I land on one of the catapults and gasp in pain from having the wind knocked out of me. I grab onto it and look up to see a crate flying towards me. I duck my head as the crate sails over me, hitting a crew member behind me in the head. His head is thrown to his left and he falls down with the crate, landing with a crunch and ending up in a position that no body should ever be in. My lunch jumps out of my mouth to join him; gross.