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The Beast: An Ascendancy Short Story
Knocking. More like loud banging. Well anyone would be desperate if they were about to die. The noisemaker budged into the room breaking the door off its hinges. It was a man, good build – in these parts one had to be. His next move was just as brutal, pushing the room’s occupant and bed to the floor.
“I am up.” A melodic voice shot off trying to sound tough, a brown-skinned woman emerged from the covers. “I am up you bastard.” She stood up from the floor already dressed – in bright pink dress – her wide hips still visible through the loose clothing. “Aija!”
“His already out there you lazy bird.” The man accosted. “What kind of person sleeps through this chaos?” Pointing out the loud Shrieking outside. What an unnatural cry it was indeed, how the woman slept through it surpassed reasoning.
“The kind that’s running on two hours of sleep.” She said aggressively trying to intimidate the man but her naturally gentle voice did her no favours. “Shouting never helps Zeks.” She said moving towards the door.
The roof caved in before they could leave the room. Nonsensical words and raised arms were her only defence. Somehow it worked, saving Zeks from a deserved crushing. The crumbling wood floated above Zeks, at an angle from the woman’s outstretched hands. Adding horror to danger, a giant catfish like head appeared through the hole in the roof.
“Bloody hell, Selu. Do something!”
She threw the large wooden debris upwards. The large fish dodged the attack, proving quicker than its size suggested.
“Tail swing incoming! Hit the deck.” Selu dived towards Zeks wrapping them both in a repulsive barrier.
A large scaled spiked tail burst through the side of the room. The tail floored the pair regardless of their magical protection.
“Sorry for early.” Zeks said softly under the cushion of her large bosom as she loomed over him. “And thanks.”
“You ok?” Selu asked ignoring Zeks comments, her nurturing tone sounding more fitting. The nod she received sufficed as she repelled the wreckage – mostly wood and steel – above them.
She dusted herself off and tied a belt around her waist. They are times to gets loose and times to get tight. Or hold on tight in her case because the entire room shook violently. Selu was quick to gain composure and bounced into a steady stride once the movements stopped. Zeks followed closely as she led him through gaping holes the spiked tail had left in interconnected walls. The severely injured and the dead littered each room the two passed, “We can’t keep doing this, there has to be another way.” She looked at a small boy pleading to a corpse that used to be his mother to wake up. “We just can’t.”
“That’s what we pay you for.” Zeks reminded as they emerged from their living quarters onto steady wooden boards above water.
At this vantage, one could see the cluster of barges, ships and canoes that made their home.
“You! Have to do something about it.” Zeks repeated.
“I tried,” She said looking to the far side of the fleet as a giant spiked tail pierced through another cluster of boats. “And I failed.” She admitted as the large catfish dived into the water.
“Aija!” She called again this time the call yielded an answer from a small dark skinned boy who was missing an arm just below his right shoulder. “Oh there you are.”
“Keep close apprentice there is danger all around. No way of knowing how it will attack next-”
The large catfish rose from the water ahead cutting her off mid-sentence. Its large head was attached to a larger serpent like body that demanded awe, as it continued to rise. The hideous head snapped as fast as a cobra but Selu uttered her jumbled phrases faster and with more passion. Blood poured copiously into her eyes, threating to turn her brown iris crimson. Yet she did not yield from the spell, and covered the barge under a thick barrier.
“No you don’t!” She screamed this time her fierce fury overcame her soft tone.
Aija, maybe inspired by his masters bravely spoke his own unique gibberish to form a small but respected fireball for one’s first spell. Selu added her own voice to aid the boy as the fireball grew drastically. Good thing water surrounded them because such fire would burn an entire town but Aija had sound control anyway – two years of relentless work was paying off. He kept his composure as the odd beast repeatedly hit the barrier, weakening it with every blow.
“What are you waiting for?” Zeks cried. "Fire at that it already!"
“Patience Aija, you only get one chance.” Selu reminded bearing the tone of a routine lecture. “Now!” She instructed, coinciding the shot with the release of her barrier, trying to avoid death by friendly fire. The fireball shot into the beast’s mouth with enough force to recoil its attack.
The beast writhed in pain trying to extinguish the blaze in its mouth. It dived under again, this time mouth open.
Steam rose from the point of entry. Selu and her companions held their ground as the dive sent shockwaves on the deck. The boiling stopped and the water calmed yet no one moved a muscle.
“You think it’s dead?” Someone aboard uttered but to his surprise the beast rose again head first. Same spot as before, only angrier, it screamed at Selu as a bully would after receiving a walloping from an elder.
Selu refused to flinch. The beast suddenly swam away as cheering broke out across the entire cluster of floating vessels.
“We won.” They screamed but Selu and Zeks knew the naivety in such words and simply breathed sighs of relief. After all this wasn’t the first time they had run it off.
“It will be back.” Selu said trying to harden her face but failed. Her soft cheeks were not made for such expressions.
“I know.” Zeks admitted.
“We need a permanent solution or we’ll be dead come the full moon.” She added.
“I know. Pariue is searching for it. Let’s just pray he arrives in time.”
“All the gods died ages ago.” Aija finally spoke surprising Zeks. “I meant no disrespect my king.” He said upon remembering his company.
A wide friendly smile was his reply. “Nobody ever calls me that. What kind of king rules a floating city? Only captains rule the water.” He laughed off the honorific. He moved towards the boy’s teacher. “Chin up Aija we will all need your spirit ahead.” He uttered masking his weary expression behind bravado. That was good enough to cheer up even the exhausted Selu. That brought him joy because that’s what good leaders did. They uplifted even when what they uttered complete shite.
