Between 23. (Patreon)

The look on the princelings face when Charybdis lifted himself out of the basin was downright mortified.
‘Now before you yell at me…’ Scylla preemptively growled. ‘This isn’t a decision I made lightly.’
‘Yell at you? Sister, did you get hit in the head during that cave in?’ The golden one curled his claws into fists, unwilling to let his gaze wander away from Charybdis for even a second. ‘That right there is the bane of our family's existence. He’s a predator! And you released him!’
‘I’ll show you what a predator looks like…’ Charybdis growled, enjoying the way the other male shrank back ever so slightly as he flashed his teeth.
‘Stop it!’ Scylla placed herself firmly between the two of them and his anger melted away almost instantly. The way her presence had an immediate soothing impact on his senses was nothing short of astounding.
‘I will vouch for him, and you…’ she turned to face him. Even the way her face scrunched up as she snarled at him was endearing to him. ‘Don’t make me regret this. No bloodmagic, No schemes. No hunting. Have I made myself clear?’
He wanted to run his nose down the back of her neck all the way down to the small of her back and…

‘Charybdis!’ Scylla snarled. The sound of his name pulled him out of his daze.
‘Yes! No, no murdering or cursing or any of that fun stuff. Promise.’
‘He’s mocking you, sis. Please reconsider, I beg of you!’ The golden one, Midas, whined as he puffed out his chest to appear more imposing.
‘He’s not mocking me…, he’s just…’ her eyes shot him up and down, eventually settling on his chest. ‘He’s just…’ her gaze hooded.
A sense of pride kindled within Charybdis, it seemed she was impacted by him too. Finally. A possessive purr rumbled in his throat.

‘Oh no. I know that look. No! Just no! That’s my sister, you sleezing whoremonger!’ Midas growled. ‘You will keep your distance!’
‘I will do whatever I please, goldfish.’ Who was this welp to command him? In front of his…he shuddered, shaking away the thought. Not yet.
The length of Charybdis' tail curled forward, bracing against the stone columns on either side of the gate. Oh, how good it felt to be back in his own body. The muscles in his tail, though sore from days of being tied down, stretched and shifted in tune to his will. Finally his body obeyed his every whim again. How easy it would be to crush the welp with one well placed swing.

‘Midas! Quit it. If you wanted to defend my honor, you might have shown up before the ritual. Now live with the consequences of your tardiness. There are more pressing problems to be dealt with anyway.’
Scylla leaned towards her brother and placed a hand on his left cheek. ‘I trust him, Can you trust me in this?’ The two males stared at each other. Midas eventually relented, while still glaring at Charybdis.
‘You owe me an explanation, but for now, i’ll help. What is it you need from me?’

It started out small, no more than a tremor tickling the ground, but that tremor swiftly turned into violent shaking as the caverns themselves seemed to move around them. Charybdis reacted on instinct, curling the length of his tail around Scylla to shield her, but as swiftly as the shaking started, it died down again, fading away into the darkness. That can’t be good.
Midas frowned, keeping a watchful eye on the ceilings.
‘Shit, that was the biggest one yet.’
‘Yet?’ Charybdis froze, glaring at Midas like somehow he was to blame for the ground shaking. ‘Explain welp. This has happened before?’
Midas didn’t appreciate being referred to as ‘welp’, but replied begrudgingly.
‘That’s the third tremor in the same amount of days. There’s always tremors around this time of year, but never like this.’

All of Charybdis’ nerves bundled together. If he wasn’t so stubborn, he might’ve even called it fear…
‘They’re just aftershocks, right?’ Scylla whispered. ‘Not like the one during the Moonsorla.’ Tentatively pressing the palm of her hand against his tail, she pushed her body out of his coil. Watching her from the corner of his eye, Charybdis regretted the loss of her reassuring warmth. This wasn't over, he’d much prefer it if she stayed put for now. The two mer bickered about the shocks for a bit longer, but Charybdis couldn’t ignore that gnawing feeling in the back of his stomach any longer.

‘This was no aftershock and what trapped us originally wasn’t an earthquake.’ Wrapping his arms around Scylla’s waist, he dragged the female up the only available tunnel, which he assumed was the way out. She yelped, struggling against his grasp. ‘What’s gotten into you all of the sudden?!’
‘We need to leave.’ Charybdis didn’t slow down, unveiled dread clear in his expression. ‘Or else this place will turn into a tomb for all of us.’

—

Scylla got carried up into the darkness at unrivaled speeds. She was vaguely aware of her brother, cursing and rushing behind her trying his best to keep up, but slowly falling behind as Charybdis glided through the tunnels.
‘Charybdis! Stop!’ She squirmed, unable to free herself from his hold. ‘I mean it! Stop right this second or I’ll scream.’ The male slowed ever so slightly, enough for Midas to gain ground. Scylla was lowered off his shoulder, while pressing her palms around his jaw. There was an unease in his expression.
‘We can’t stay…’ he huffed.
‘I know.’ Of course they couldn’t. Mother would never accept this. She’d kill Diz on sight this time.
‘No you don’t know.’
‘Then explain it to me…’ the hag blinked at her upfrontness as she cupped his face, coming to a full stop. Scylla felt her chest constrict as she stared into his eyes. He was scared. What could possibly scare the likes of him?

‘I wasn’t certain before, but I am now. It’s those damned drums. They call out to me.’
Scylla halted. The drums? How did those factor into this?
‘They resonate with my power, I can feel it every time they’re struck. They're growing louder and louder. They hurt. It’s part of how your mother downed me so easily.’
‘You are not making any sense, the drums are going to bring down the caverns?’

Charybdis shook his head wildly. ‘No. They’re ancient magic, meant to summon what slumbers inside the stone. There’s something else, something much bigger than me. The night of the Moonsorla, it awoke.’

Scylla froze.
‘That’s crazy, we’ve used those drums for ages, nothing has ever happened.’
Loud huffing closed in from behind, Midas arrived with a heavy scowl on his face.
‘Shit, you’re one bloody fast bastard. How the hell did you not escape before?’
Charybdis growled. ‘Cause I didn’t want to escape at first. Now I do. Like I said, those drums resonate with me on a level even I don’t understand. They draw from me. We need to leave, I need to leave, or risk bringing forth whatever they disturbed below.’

As unbelievable as it sounded, something in Scylla’s gut twisted. If this was real, her whole pod could be in danger. ‘How big are we talking about?’
‘Big enough to cause a cave in…’

A hand stretched out to her. ‘Come with me.’ The look on Charybdis face turned pleading. It wasn’t a question.
Go with him? Scylla’s stomach did somersaults, even despite the grave news she just heard.
‘Brother…, can you swim ahead and make sure the coast is clear?’ Midas wurmed himself past the hag, making sure to avoid touching him at all times.
‘Of course I can, but what exactly am I looking out for?’
‘Guards, mother. Anyone that could raise an alarm if they happened upon a giant snake.’
As silent as the night, Charybdis’ tail slithered in the dark, circling around Scylla possessively. ‘Are we sneaking out?’ he hissed.
‘We are. Go Midas. Do this for me and I'll be in your debt.’
‘No debt is required little sister, just promise me that you’ll stay safe.’ Midas gaze fell upon the hag, and he did little to hide his distrust.
‘I’ll keep her safe.’
Sparks of animosity bounced between the two males.
‘Oh please, can the two of you work this out another time?’
Midas huffed, pressed his forehead to hers and whispered a goodbye. When compared to Charybdis, Midas wasn’t as fast, but he still shot up into the darkness at a speed Scylla could only dream off.

‘I don’t appreciate being called a ‘giant snake’.’ Charybdis deep voice rumbled behind her, closer than she expected. How could something that big, move so silently?
‘Deal with it.’



(Tensions are rising... The next chapter will be 🌶️🌶️🌶️)