Between Scylla and Charybdis - Chapter 5 (Patreon)

Masterpost 

If ever there was a moment when Scylla could feel her every nerve tense and jerk like a fishing net dragged across the ocean floor, it was today. She didn’t like not being in control. A sense of dread filled her very being as she watched mother parade her past an ever growing audience.

‘Excited for today?’

‘Excited 'isn't the right word. Appalled is much more realistic.’

‘Now I know you’re not one for violence, but this is a necessary test. You need a strong mate to lead by your side. We’re weeding out the bad reeds, sweetheart.’

‘Strength can be measured in more than one way. All I'm saying is that this trial isn’t fair.’

‘Oh? I’ve never heard you utter this complaint before. Are you worried about something, daughter?’

Scylla jerked to the side, turning her back towards her mother in a manner that could only be interpreted as disrespectful.

‘Only that I'll be forced to mate a bubble for brains beefcake, mother.’

‘Oh, as if I'd let that happen. Don’t be such a baby. Mother has got this.’

‘Right.’

A bunch of Mer gathered in the reed fields just outside the cavern, luscious green vines circled up from the sandbed, curling upward and onto jagged black rocks that marked the outside of a forty feet wide pit. At set intervals, little handcrafted trinkets were tied to the kelp. Some consisted mostly of shells, others were a jumble of fishbone and the really daring ones contained glowing rocks and gems, casting a flickr upon the nearby rock.

Offerings for good luck. Scylla hadn’t brought any, maybe she should have. The sense of dread returned fivefold.

‘It’s not too late to go back and get the charms I made for you.’ Her mother whispered as if sensing her daughter's distress.

Scylla tensed, stroking a hand through the bundle of fins on her head. Those charms wouldn’t do her any good. They were made for her mothers favorite, and Scylla now knew all too well who that was.

Black scales came stalking through the reeds, floating perfectly  silent towards the pair of females. Scylla sensed the male before she could see his imposing frame peek out from between the cover. Pure black with hints of a deep azure blue running down a sleek and muscular tail. Sharp teeth hidden behind a set of full lips and dangerous looking quills littering across his back. He was quite the sight to behold. Enough to set any females heart a flutter.

‘Scython!’ Her mother cooed in excitement. ‘You’ve come to talk to Scylla before the fight?’

The male bowed before the matron, but his gaze remained focussed on Scylla, who couldn’t help but feel a little stalked.

‘If she’d do me the honor.’

Agathis practically shoved her poor daughter forward, giving her an encouraging pat on the back. This day was getting better and better.

‘Of course she will! She’d be delighted. Behave you two.’

Scylla was left behind, accompanied only by the male and her growing annoyance at the whole situation.

‘What do you want, Scython?’ She snarled.

‘Easy, Scylla. Tradition demands I come pay my respects. You won’t need to tolerate me any longer than is necessary.’

As if on queue, all nearby mer swiftly cleared out of the kelp forest, giving the pair some privacy.

‘Tradition? What tradition?’

Scython looked confused at her reply for a moment, but took it in stride, offering her a charming smile.

‘You’re supposed to offer a blessing to your favorite male. That’s why I am here.’

Little bubbles floated upward as Scylla pensively opened her mouth and let out a soft chuckle. A blessing? Nobody told her anything about a blessing. Also…

‘You think you’re my favorite?’ Perhaps she shouldn’t have voiced it quite as snarky as she did. The male straightened his back, quills twitching dangerously as his eyes darkened. That definitely hurt his pride a little. Good.

‘As the highest ranking male this year, by process of elimination, It should be me.’

‘Ah.’ She nodded. ‘How—logical of you.’

‘Your mother clearly favors me.’ He continued, as if that somehow helped his case.

‘Go mate her then, You don’t need to pester me about this.’ A hint of annoyance krept into Scythons gaze, his eyes trailed down Scylla’s tail and back upward until he honed in on her lips.

‘You accepted my gift, Scylla. That gave me the right to compete for your hand. Why do I need to explain this to you?’

He was right. She should’ve just refused that stupid tentacle when she had the chance.

‘I accepted a number of gifts yesterday. It didn’t make you my favorit and it certainly doesn’t entitle you to anything. Especially not me.’

Scythons expression calmed, a mask of apathy fell into place, making it impossible to guess what he was thinking. A cold shiver krept down Scylla’s spine as the males shoulders straightened, muscles rolling as he crossed his arms.

‘Then who?’

For the briefest of seconds, Diz’ face popped up inside Scylla’s head. She quickly dismissed the vision, focussing her anger back towards Scython.

‘It doesn’t bloody concern you!’

‘Oh, but it does. I’d prefer to win your heart, but I’ll settle for ruling by your side if I have to. So tell me, what Mer holds your favor? I’ll do you a favor and make sure his death is quick and painless.’

Scylla’s heart sank.

‘Killing during the trials is forbidden.’ She sputtered.

‘No it isn't. It’s frowned upon at most. You’d be surprised at how brutal these fights can get. Ah, but you wouldn’t know, would you? Seeing as you never bothered to actually witness a ritual past the first trial. Our Matron really did spoil you.’

He was lying. There was no way her mother would allow Mer to die in these silly games. That couldn’t be true. Could it? Scylla’s throat closed up.

Scython spun a stalk of kelp between his claws and smiled.

‘I’ll look for you after the matches, Scylla. Perhaps seeing the fights will soften your attitude towards me a bit.’

Scylla wasn’t listening anymore. It was as if someone had struck her square in the face, her breathing sped up and turned shallow. It wasn’t until she felt Scython nuzzle the crook of her neck that she even realized he’d swam up to her.

Reacting on instinct, Scylla whirled her left hand upward, claws pointing out and raking across Scythons chest, catching flesh and scale alike. The male screamed in agony, pushing her away like she was nothing and curling his chest away from the potential threat.

‘You spoiled fucking brat!’ he growled while clutching his chest.

Scylla saw red. Quite literally as Scythons blood floated like a silk curtain between the two of them. She let out a low and very unladylike hiss.

‘Never. Ever touch me without permission.’ she spat. ‘I don’t care whether you win a thousand trials.’

‘Hmmpf, all it takes is two more, sweetness.’

Something in Scylla snapped. She whirled herself towards Scython with all the fury her little body could muster. The male responded in kind, easily maneuvering out of the way and over her head, only to use the brunt of his weight to knock her down. Scylla curled her body sideways, protecting the soft skin on her belly and neck, narrowly missing a swipe from Scythons claws, while retaliating with a well aimed tailslap.

Scythons grip on her loosened for only a second, which bought her enough time to wiggle free and make distance. Her heart pounded in her throat as she shot through the kelp forest.

‘Scylla!’ Scythons voice echoed in the distance. He yelled out two more times, each time sounding more and more distant, before Scylla felt confident that he wasn’t in fact chasing her and started to slow down.

Half a dozen Mer watched on as she stood huffing, her eyes glued to the kelp. Most of them were clearly concerned, but not one of them dared approach. Scylla’s fins were still flared, her claws extended into nasty arches and her fangs bared. One thing was certain. She’d never pair up with Scython. Not until the sun caused all seven oceans to boil and Leviathan himself crawled onto land.

‘Darling? Are you alright?’ Scylla’s shoulders shook, unwilling to turn her back on the kelp forest for even a second. She didn’t need to turn around. She knew who’d swam up to her without as much as a glance. The only one who would dare. When she didn’t reply, Diz carefully continued.

‘Do you need a minute? The trial is about to begin, but I’d doubt they’d start without you.’ You could tell by his tone of voice that he was smiling. The kind of smile that doesn’t reach the eyes. There were a lot of those going around lately.

‘Am I a prize to be won?’ she growled without warning. Diz remained silent, when Scylla eventually ripped her gaze away from the green tangle to meet his eye, she was surprised to find him looking at her with unveiled amusement.

‘Well?!’

‘Do you want the hard truth or the sugarcoated version, princess?’

‘I suppose that in itself is answer enough.’

(I was unsure on how to write Scython when starting this chapter. Turns out the answer is entitled and pridefull. I also kept on asking myself "I wonder when Diz is gonna show up." I guess the guy decided to sleep in, cause Scylla had to fight her own battles this chapter. Do let me know what you guys think!)