Page 14 of Outcast Fae
Growling in frustration, I took to the air, eyes roving around the water’s edge. When I spotted what I wanted, I rushed forward and tore a spear-like limb from one of the trees. Branch in hand, I turned and flew back.
Below me, I discovered that Wally had somehow gotten away from the beast and was swimming frantically toward the shore. Daniella urged him on, but it seemed the beast had only been toying with him because it soon grabbed him again, dunking him under.
“Hurry, Tally,” Daniella shouted.
Hovering over the chaos, I aimed the spear downward. Above the water, the tentacles thrashed, but they were poor targets, narrow and restless. Easy to miss.
I had to hit the body, but I couldn’t see it. And if I wasn't careful, I could stab Wally. Regardless, I had to act. Wally didn’t have long before he drowned.
Stopping the whirring of my wings, I dove.
The water foamed like a rabid coin-sìth’s mouth. Instincts awakened with a vengeance after being dormant for too long. My vision tunneled and everything became clear: Wally’s barely-moving shape, each separate tentacle, and then…
A huge eye.
Shifting direction in midair, I aimed and tightened my grip on the makeshift weapon.
One, two, three beats…
The branch pierced the surface of the water, impaling itself in the creature’s eye. I felt the wood sink in, like a knife through the fatty tissue of a hunk of meat, then jolt to a stop against something solid within the creature's skull. A horrible shriek tore through the night, and tentacles flew up in the air, releasing Wally.
Stuck, the branch thrashed with the creature, jerking me around. I let go and ducked a lashing tentacle which missed me by a mere inch. The animal shrieked and churned the water harder still. I needed to keep my wings dry or I was finished. I battled frantically to lift myself and dodge the creature’s tentacles.
Then I spotted Wally, a dark shape off to my right. He wasn’t swimming. He was… sinking.
Drowning.
After all of this, he couldn’t die now.
Dodging a tentacle, I went for him and managed to get a handful of his rooster hair. I pulled on it, even as strands ripped from his scalp. He was so heavy, waterlogged like he was, but I pulled and fought. Once his arms were above the surface, I hooked an arm under his and beat my wings desperately, back joints aching with the strain.
“Watch out,” Daniella screamed.
I glanced up just in time to see a purple tentacle coming at me. Letting my wings go still, I dropped a couple of feet. The tentacle whipped above me. I started beating my wings again, harder than before. Their whirring was deafening in my own ears, but despite the effort, we were sinking.
Wally was too heavy, and my strength was waning. My hold on him was slipping and the shore seemed miles away. My back muscles screamed in pain, and Wally’s weight seemed to redouble. The water’s surface got closer and closer.
I wanted to give up, wanted to get away and forget about this human, but I couldn’t.Gòrak, I couldn’t.
My wings faltered. I sank lower, skimming the water.
Something caught me. Pressure like a vice-grip strangled my ankle, threatening to snap it.
I screamed, letting go of Wally. I couldn’t save him if I couldn’t save myself.
I turned, wings beating furiously, feeling as if they might snap off. Glancing down, I spotted the purple tentacle that encircled my foot.
My hands flew to my waist, uselessly searching for a knife that should be there but wasn't. I flapped my wings harder but began to sink all the same. Water saturated my clothes, then my wings. They stopped whirring, heavy and waterlogged.
My head went under. Water rushed in as I screamed.
An instant later, I came back up, coughing, arms flailing, foot still trapped. The creature was toying with me too, dragging me down and then pushing me back up like a plaything. But it would soon tire of the game and finish me for good.
Gods, I was done for, and all for a stupid human who never did anything for me.
The beast tugged downward. Water covered my mouth and nose as panic filled my chest.
A shape cut towards me, grabbed the tentacle that held me and tore it in two. Beating against the water with my arms as best I could, I lifted my head to see who’d come to my rescue.
