(Morcster Chef) Not so trustworthy fishman - Ch. 86 (Patreon)

Belmont’s hands suddenly appeared from behind the beast’s back as he wrapped his arms around its neck and pulled himself tighter. The fishman spun, nearly dislodging both Arek and Belmont, but they managed to hold on.

The fishman whipped around in the water, grabbing Arek and trying to pry him away from the dagger. The orc’s movements felt sluggish in the water, but he already had a tight grip on the dagger. The monster let out another bubbly scream as the orc twisted the blade deeper to strengthen his hold. For an instant, Arek thought he caught a flash of Malissa’s face through the murky water, but she was gone faster than he could react.

Belmont reached around and thrust his sword towards the fishman’s mouth in slow motion. It jerked its head out of the way and the attack scraped by its neck scales, inflicting minimal damage. The monster’s second hand came into view within the murk. It was empty, but covered with large bleeding gashes.

With both hands free, the beast reached out and grabbed Arek. Already low on air, the orc was no match for the fishman’s full strength. It pulled him away, but Arek kept a firm grip on the dagger. He ripped it free from the monster’s stomach, further staining the water around them.

With another scream of either fury or pain, the fishman started to squeeze Arek. His bones and muscles screamed in protest as they were crushed under the monster’s grip. He pushed back as hard as he could, gritting his teeth and snarling in response to the creature, but they weren’t matched in strength.

Belmont reared back and thrust his sword into the monster’s neck again. The blade bit several inches into its neck. The pressure on Arek let up as the fishman released him with one hand. With impossibly fast movement underwater, it snatched Belmont and tore the armored man away from its back.

It started to squeeze both men, its eyes rabid and panicked. The bite of Belmont’s armor didn’t even seem to bother it anymore.

The murk parted as Malissa’s bloodied face appeared off to the monster’s side. She pushed off the river floor, thrusting both of her weapons into the fishman’s stomach with all the force she could muster underwater.

The massive creature launched itself upwards, releasing both Belmont and Arek as it tried to escape. Belmont and Arek grabbed onto its arms and Malissa kept hold on her daggers and allowed the monster to take her along for the ride.

Murky water assaulted their eyes and noses as the fishman slammed itself into the walls and spun to and fro. No matter what it did, the three of them only tightened their grip on it. Blood followed behind them like a trail of streamers, and the fishman’s movements grew slower with every second.

With one final panicked cry, the fishman shot straight upwards. The breached the surface of the lake and shot several feet into the air before the monster landed on dry land with an earthshaking crash. It whipped one hand to the side, hurling Belmont free and sending the man tumbling across the room.

It grabbed Malissa with its free hand and ripped her away, raising the soaked woman in front of its face. The fishman’s mouth parted, revealing several rows of shattered but still functional teeth, and let out a scream of fury that blew her hair back and covered her face in spittle.

A bolt of pure magic arced through the air and punched into its open mouth. A second attack followed immidiately after. The fishman’s scream turned to a gurgle. It’s grip slackened on Arek and it dropped Malissa to the ground.

The floor underneath it was already slick with the water from its blood and the river. Arek knocked the fishman’s hand away and swept its legs out from under it, sending the beast crashing to the ground.

Malissa pounced on it, thrusting her blades into the creature’s neck. It didn’t respond, the life already gone from its dull eyes.

The party remained in their positions, breathing heavily for nearly a minute. Belmont eventually rolled over, groaning, and sat up. His face was covered with algae and blood.

“I told you to stay away from the river.”

Malissa dropped her daggers to the floor, fruitlessly wiping her hands off on her soaked clothing for a few moments before giving up and walking over to Belmont. She helped the man to his feet and wordlessly gave him a hug, although she took care to avoid the spikes on his armor.

She then did the same to Arek. The orc patted her awkwardly on the back, the red in his vision only just starting to fade with every ragged breath he took.

“I was so worried,” Ming said, pacing in a small circle. Her grip on the staff was so tight that her knuckles had turned bone white. “I couldn’t do anything while you guys were underwater. If I shot any magical attacks, I might have hit you guys instead…”

“It’s okay, Ming,” Belmont said, wringing his hair out with a grimace. He raised a hand and summoned a pink aura around himself. It disappeared a few moments later. “We couldn’t have known that such a dangerous creature was inside the river. It wasn’t there the last time we tried this dungeon.”

“We didn’t see every monster in the dungeon the last time we tried it,” Malissa said. “That thing could have easily just not been in a room we passed through. The River Crypt isn’t linear like the Greenridge Den dungeon, so we – I – should have expected surprises.”

“Don’t beat yourself up over it,” Arek said. “We all survived and we’ve learned from it. That’s all that matters.”

Belmont nodded in agreement, approaching Malissa and summoning a pink aura around her. Several thin wounds on her skin closed, leaving no trace of ever being there. Belmont then repeated the process with Arek.

“That should get rid of any poisonous substance we might have picked up from the river,” Belmont said. “Although that doesn’t mean we should be drinking that water if we can avoid it. There’s a limit to what my magic can do.”

The four of them were still too shocked to say much more. They sat down with their backs pressed against the wall and silently gathered their energy.