Chapter 17. (Between) (Patreon)

Like a serpent, Charybdys rushed away from the gathering. Shooting through a maze of tunnels until he finally came to a halt in a place that smelled of the cold and sand. Almost reminiscent of home. Familiar. An abandoned tunnel.

His breathing heavy, one claw clutching his chest, while the other pressed against the chalky walls of the cavern. Though his mind was still racing, the thrum in his head kept a slow and steady beat, pounding increasing pain into his very being with each passing second as a maddening itch crept up his spine.

There was little doubt now. His body, drained from the strain of fighting and the constant need to remain in this lesser form, demanded blood. The anger he felt at the little she-mer only fuelled his need and instincts even further. That daft little thing figured she could toy with him? Well in that case, she had another thing coming. How dare she treat him this way? Make him feel like this?

Charybdis gritted his teeth. Enough. He would debase himself to pining and heartache no longer. He’d entertained those feelings under the guise of them being somewhat pleasurable, but no more. They were beneath him and he’d deserted them a long time ago. All that was left of him ought to be sharp and hardened.

A wisp of an idea formed in his mind. Staying in this form was messing with him. Making him soft. Mastering his emotions never was a problem before.

He let out a frustrated sigh. Just a little longer. Then the fishfolk would serve him and he could do with them as he pleased. His gaze focussed, seeing through the stone and settling on a path forward.

First things first. He needed to hunt. Luckily, there were troves of intoxicated merfolk nearby just ripe for the picking. All he needed to do was find his way back. Glancing around, no landmarks or tunnels looked familiar though. In his rush to get away, he’d chosen a random direction and bolted. Anything to be away from Scylla and those damned Mer. No matter, it only meant that his hunt would be a little more challenging.

On a whim, Charybdis extended his arm and raked its claws across the stone with enough force to leave deep gashes. His normal modus operandi was to lie in wait, but pain, nerves and frustration demanded something more…visceral. A hunt.

With a short flick of the tongue, he tasted the water and honed in on something smelling vaguely of saffron and rain. Following it was childsplay, the scent appearing before him like a brightly colored veil, floating gently through the water. As he got closer, much of the aroma became more defined. Female, young adult. A hint of fear hidden underneath the stench of curiosity and excitement. He could even smell the Astakos she had for dinner.

His pulse started to race just enough to drown out the incessant pounding in his head, as he sank down. After spending some days in this body, moving silently wasn’t too difficult anymore. Only the ache in his body diminished the elegance of his approach, slowing him down to somewhat of a crawl. Luckily for him, he was nothing if not patient. Slow and steady, he crept closer, cutting through the water like silent death.

He turned the corner, ready to strike, but a flash of red shocked him out of his concentration and stealth. Scarlet scales colored a tall but lean frame. Her shade was not unlike Scylla’s crimson coloring, but different enough upon closer inspection. Alas, his moment of opportunity had passed. The female turned to face him, her eyes quickly assessing the situation.

As conspicuous as he must have looked in that moment, bracing against the stone like a panther in crouch, her eyes only widened and glistened with a spark of mischievous enthusiasm.

‘You’re…’ Her hands raised slightly, instinctively covering her core and neck. ‘You’re one of Scylla’s suitors.’

She was alone, the scent of ambrosia heavy on her breath. Easy pickings.

‘But you are not at the Moonsorla. Why?’ She stated. Her voice had a pleasant timbre to it. Very smooth and confident. He could honestly say he prefered her voice over Scylla’s. As such, he came out of his skulk and straightened his back.

‘I could ask you the very same.’ His voice was coarse and low. Coated in hunger. Not that she had a way of telling, they’d never spoken before after all.

‘Too noisy.’ She stated after a moment of silence. ‘And my friends ditched me to go and rub their tails together.’

‘Such animals.’ Charybdis sighed as he pushed himself across the room. ‘Leaving a pretty thing like you all by herself.’

The female's shoulders relaxed so quickly, her immediate trust in him almost stung.

‘How about you? Did you get ditched as well?’ She gave him a genuine smile as she leaned forward.

He thought about it for a minute.

‘I separated out of my own accord. I’m afraid the noise as well as the company became unbearable and...’ he let the bitterness rest for a moment. ‘My presence was no longer required.’

‘I see. I’m sorry. That sucks.’ Icy blue fins flared outward away from the side of her neck. He followed them, all the way up past the curve of her neck until they were eye to eye. She wasn’t afraid to stare right at him, but he caught her gaze wandering down towards his chest more than once. This female was clever, sensing an opportunity. After a particularly deep and none too subtle dip of her eyes, she cocked her head sideways and grinned.

‘We could have fun…, if you are over Scylla that is.’

‘I bet we could.’ Charybdis sighed. ‘What’s your name, sweetheart?’ he asked while lifting her chin with one claw.

The female puffed up her chest and smiled. She really was beautiful, in a pure sort of way. The complete opposite of Scylla in every sense.

‘Charisha.’ A treasure. How fitting.

‘You caught me in a good mood, Charisha, so I’ll tell you a secret. Before I came here, there were only two things I really wanted in this world.’ As he spoke, the mermaid leaned into his hand, nuzzling his palm.

‘The first, as stupid as it sounds. Is stimulating conversation. You won’t believe how quiet the bottom of the ocean can get throughout the years.’

‘Quiet sounds a lot like lonely.’ The female purred. Scylla had said something similar just the other day. Sentimental fools, every last one of them.

‘Lonely? Perhaps.’ He grumbled while taking the opportunity to back the mer into a corner. Her eyes flashed with alarm.

‘Uhm, could you…, move back a little?’ When her plea didn’t get a reaction out of him, the female started to push back against him. He didn’t even notice the force.

‘The thing is, how can one such as I possibly earn companionship, when the very creatures who can provide said companionship are the ones who shunned me in the first place? Banished me into a cold dark hole at the bottom of the world to rot.’

His hand gripped at the female's throat, squeezing her gills and pushing her up against the cavern wall. She struggled in an attempt to pry his claws away from her neck while gasping for air.

‘You see the pickle there? The second thing, which is putting you in your current predicament, is that I need to eat.’ Much of his usual calm facade was in tatters at this point. ‘And even though nobody expects a shark to apologize to a seal for having a bite, with you guys, it’s always a problem.’

The white of her eyes shone brilliantly against her deep red scales. The look of terror. Charybdis took another moment to appreciate it, before sinking his fangs deep into her neck and consuming all she had to give. Blood, life, warmth, fear, hatred. He took it all, feeding the pit in his chest until he felt some of his strength return. The female gasped and sputtered, but stopped moving long before he was finished, going limp in his arms.

Had she screamed? He didn’t hear over the pounding in his head. Quite possibly, some passerby heard the struggle and alerted the nearby guards. There was no way of knowing for sure. Charybdis licked his lips, tasting a few stray drops of blood around his fangs. The ocean is a cruel place, as such, the body was going cold already. His stomach groaned in protest. This meal wasn’t quite enough, but Charybdis detested the idea of sampling her flesh in a place like this. The thought alone felt perverted and the little she mer didn’t deserve that. He would find something else to fill him completely later. When all was quiet and at peace again.

Until then, fresh blood warmed his veins, it rekindled the power that made him who he was. A hag. A blood witch. Denied any real magic by the gods, his kind had to take what they wanted from others. Repurposing life to bend reality to better suit his own needs. That was the way he had chosen to live his life and he wouldn’t apologize for it. Not to anyone.

A sound drew near, little rocks clattering and shifting in a nearby corridor. Guards perhaps? Charybdis turned, the lifeless body of Charisha still between his claws. If he got caught like this, the game would be over. Unless he could annihilate the surprise visitor and silence them forever. Power surged through his body, jumping at the opportunity to be set free. It would be easy to continue with another hunt. A sense of calm and focus came over him as he lowered his kill to the cavern floor. He’d deal with the carcass later. First it was time to greet his new visitor.

(How many of you would consider buying a copy of this story, or later parts of it, if I were to rewrite it a little and got a publisher? I'm just curious to see if anyone would be interested.)