To be clear, Carl was now only a commander who assisted, provided distraction, and made tactical decisions.
The main characters were Catherine and Billford.
The female screamed in pain and sorrow.
In the brief moment when the male was attacking once, Billford swooped in and cut off all of the female's right fingers with one stroke.
The male reacted too late, wrapping his arms around the female and chasing away the billfish with his tail.
"Shhh! Shhh!" The male backed away frantically, making threatening noises.
But to the ruthless humans, it sounded like the tantrums of a cornered rat. They were very dedicated to protecting their females. There was only one female in this forest, so if they lost her here, reproduction would be impossible.
The male also realized belatedly that his reaction was not the right behavior, and he backed away hesitantly, hiding the female behind him.