Part 9

Monster

Hours had pass since the hurricane had down casted over the region. When the sun started to rise in the morning, the early sky shown the bare edge of the massive storm well off in the distance and its influence to the local environment lessen the farther it went away. As the star, named Olesski slowly rise over the horizon, its light and heat began warming the cool air as it climbed higher into the sky. It was these lights, when

shined in sinuous lines down into the depths of the ocean was what Mieka had first saw of the world in color. For hours she was at the mercy of hurricane, as the currents tossed her about like a rag doll, blinded by darkness and disoriented to boot. After hours of fighting the storm, all her muscles were strained and ached all over.

She winched every time she tried to move her legs. She been trying to dogpaddled all night, because that all she knew how to do. Multiple times she tried to use her tail, like how she and Moko had exercised the routine before. Even though it had been months since she last practiced, she tried working on the technique all night; despite nothing was gained by the attempt. She cursed her inability softly to herself, as she started swimming towards the surface giving up practicing for now.

She was too tired anyhow and needed a break. When she broke the surface, her gill's closed, and the lungs taken over as they expanded and welcome the rush of cool, fresh air. It felt great, and her muscles didn't seemed as sore now, although she could still used a good day's sleep after all she been thru. Then strangely, it seemed that her prayers was answered.

Somehow, she was drifting to an island. She estimated she was only a couple miles out from it. It was large; to her notion of what large was despite the island was only a fourth of a mile in landmass, and looked to be inhabited by the Humans, or Water Dragons. Maybe both? She didn't care if she would be seen now. She was too tired and starving to think anything else. Quickly, she started swimming to the island.

An hour later, as she closed in on the shore, a small voice, almost like a buzzed was heard in the depths of her mind.

“Hun?” Mieka said out loud as she tried to make sensed of it. After disregarding it, she went on for a few more feet, and then that noise became stronger.

"Dunnnn na. . ." Mieka tensed. She looked around, trying to make out where it came from. After seeing nothing but the ocean and the island, she continued swimming, and instantly it came back.

"Dunnnn na. . . Dunnnn na. . ."

"Whatever it is, STOP IT!" She yelled, trying not to sound scared. There was no one around, and yet she could swear she wasn't faking that noise. Whatever it was, it frighten her. Hurriedly, fighting thru fatigue, she pushed on harder towards the shore. So did the noise.

"Dun na nun na nun na nun na. . . . . . . . " The noised sped up. Faster and faster it went, as if it corresponded with her pacing.

Panicking, with her last burst of energy she pushed both front legs forward, scooping up the water underneath her creating large bursts of speed with each pulled. That was when some short of shadow started to crept up from behind and below her. It was coming up to the surface; coming faster then she could swim. Frantically she tried to swim even faster, her body strained near the point of breaking. She had never been so horrified in her life!

This thing, a predator of some kind, was actually coming for her. She was about to become food for whatever it was. She always knew the outside world was dangerous, but she never thought she would be such easy prey.

"You fool!" Her racing mind said, but that inner voice was just a faint buzz now, compare to this terrible drumming erupting in her head. The tunes drowned out everything else in existence, even the frantic splashing of the water around her sounded dulled. She couldn't think anything else except to survive this. Her body ached to almost crippling pain. Her lungs were icy cold. She was so tired, yet she kept pushing harder. She needed to get away, whatever means she used, she just had to escape!

As the shore was only a dozen strides away, the monster abruptly broke out of the water behind her. She only had time to turn her head, and screamed as the thing crashes on top of her. She felt its jaws snarling on her back. More teeth also grasping around the mid section, like it was trying to hold her in an embrace. Mieka tried to fight, barrel rolling over in the water in any vain hope to break free. The monster grip did let go to her luckly, and she swam franticly away.

In an instance, she started calling to herself, connecting to her body secondary source of energy. The magic, which existed in the universe in all things, air and even space itself, flowed thru from the personal storage that the body housed inside her. Its energy felt powerful, erasing most of her tiredness. The pain in her muscles dulled to almost like it was never there. It felt like life itself, and she bathed in its wonder. The magic from the body, which is called Magicka made her felt alive again, yet she knew she didn't have much of it to cast.

At most, she could just maintain one water tendril for self defense. From her right side, the magic trail lifted a small stream of water up from the ocean, to save some energy from not creating water directly from magic. Then in a split second, the budge end part of the water stream started to elongate and freeze. Mieka slowed down the H2O molecules, and the end of the tendril had flash freeze, into a wicked foot long ice spike. With magic as the binder, the ice also had become as strong as pykrete, and far from how fragile regular ice was. All of this had only taken a blink of an eye to shape, but now Mieka could defend herself. She could only hold the spell for a few minutes, but it was enough for what she needed here.

This thing wasn't going to eat her for its breakfast, and as long she had any breath left in her, she would fight. As the water tendril hover in the air waiting to strike, she snared with teeth bared angrily. She almost did shot the tendril at it, till she saw that mocking smile back from the pretend monster. It's long snouted white painted mouth smirked in satisfaction. Its yellow slotted eyes sparkle from the sun, as its deep blue skin shinned by the oil produce to protect the skin from the elements.

"I got you so good. You should of seen your face, you looked like you were about to cry!" It managed to say before he couldn't resist any longer, and started laughing.

"MOKO!" Mieka screamed as loud as she could. More in anger then relief, and now even her voice became strained.

"I thought you were a Shark or a animal of some kind, I almost killed you!" She continued yelling. Her water tendril spell broke, and the water and icicle fallen back into the ocean.

"I haven't seen one Shark yet Mieka. Beside I'm so glad I found you, I was worry sick. . . honey, where are you going?" Mieka had turn away and swam for the shore, Moko followed right behind her.

"I was just joking Mieka. Can't you laugh for once?" He said, as Mieka climbed up to the beach. She didn't stop there though, as angry as she was, she even thought about tackling him. She instead tried to focus on finding some place to lied down.

"Mieka. . . Please hold up. It was just a joke. . . Mieka?" Moko actually started to sound worried.

"Good, maybe some sense still remind in his tiny fish brain after all." Mieka thought, as she found some pushy grass, and lay down on her side. She was surprise she managed to walk that far, she didn't felt she could take another step for days. Moko, however seemed very worried indeed.

"Are you ok?"

"Am I'm ok, you say?" She said darkly. Moko wrenched back by the tone. He couldn't understand why she wasn't happy for having him back. What has he done?

"We're in the middle of the wild, with no food, no shelter, no home. Our pup's are out there alone. I almost didn't make it through the storm and I though you died from that lighting strike. And you came back, thinking this was all just . . . a game! We are in serious danger here, and again you do not take it seriously. You never do! WHY IN THE DRAGONS CAN YOU NEVER THINK BEFORE YOU ACT?"

The last of her speech came out in rage. Moko ears dropped with each word, till she was sure they would fall off. He was concerned, and was trying to understand what he did wrong.

"I was just joking. . ." He said depressingly, barely audible.

"YOUR JOKE ALLMOST MADE ME KILLED YOU!" She screamed. Moko stepped back from shocked. Mieka finished by staring intently at him, as if she was peering into his soul hoping that will drive it home. It seemed to have the desired effect, as he dropped his eyes, trying to think what to do next, but never glancing back at her.

After a few minutes of silence, Moko suddenly turned around, and started walking off. Now it's was Mieka turn to looked worried. Was she too hard on him? He always acted tough, despite he was a big softy inside, but he looked hurt now, more then she wanted him to be. His head drooped,

and his shoulders hunched. He looked lost to her. Before she could decided if she should call him back, Moko turned his head around, still not making eye contact though.

"There's a reef here with fish, if you're hungry. . . I can get something for you to eat." He said softly.

"That will be nice. But please be careful out there. Were not safe out here." She replied as normally as she could, almost like her auguring never had occurred just minutes ago. She didn't have the strength to be angry no more anyhow. As soon Moko walked off, she had fallen asleep.

______________

Mieka woken up, now much later in the day. Her body still ache, but the fish Moko had brought her every couple of hours had helped her regain some strength, especially that last one. The large fish reminds laid near her on the grass. Bug's started to claimed the carcass as their by now, swarming about it frantically on what's left on it. She was surprised that the fish was too large to swallow whole when it was brought. Moko had a hard time dragging it all the way to her. It had to be eaten bit by bit between them two.

That was the first time she had to tear into flesh, and eat the guts directly. At first, her nausea overwhelmed her stomach when she tore into the cavity, but Moko reminded her that organs had valuable nutrition, and made sure she could eat as much as she could manage. She sampled everything. Heart, liver, brain, kidneys, the whole carcass. That fish finally quail her massive hunger, and the insides wasn't that bad tasting after all. By how the sun was now starting to drop down westward, she slept well after that meal. She was still sore, especially her legs which felt like stones, but she was good enough to walk again at least. Mieka had then started off inward to the island. There was a couple of buildings here she wanted to check out.

The cottages here was summer vacation homes for some of the wealthy people of the Danager Alliance, more than likely Water Dragon dwellings, but she would not know because no one was here. All three cottages were one roomed apartments, meant for a weekend off to relax for a few days, nearly isolated from civilization yet all vacated and devoid of life. At the middle of the cottages, laid a large open space. There were grass areas to play on, and other parts the ground were stoned, where grill's and cookery were set at for open fire cooking, although nothing was alit.

At the middle, a fire pit laid empty. The edges were stoned off, and a spit lay over the pit. Wooden benches completed the circle and scene. Mieka actually would have like to know why such a setup was used for. She heard that the Water Dragons, and especially Humans like to on occasion relax and celebrate together, with for some reason or not. The grill was another matter. She never had eaten anything cooked before. They always been feed cold, gutted fish back at their prison.

"Prison?" Had even she started to use that name of their old home? Shaking off that thought, she saw something to the right of her, by the beach, and headed over. There was a small one lane dock here. Walking along the planks she went over to the end of the dock, and peer over into the ocean. The dock supports was carefully placed, so not to affect the coral reef's here. The water was swallowed, and cleared enough to see though.

Large plates of coral stretch over as far as she could see. Fish of all size and colors that called this home, swim lazily about. There were hundreds . . . no thousands of fish here.

Mieka gasped by the sight, the beauty. She was so concern before by all the potential dangers, she never thought such sights exist naturally. Right then and there she wanted to jump in and go exploring. She wanted to see it up close, to touch it. She wanted to swim with the fishes, to understand why they swim in schools. Perhaps even eat a few to see if they taste different from one other. Moko would have done that exact same thing; although more than likely he had been busily doing so since she had been sleeping. For that one minute, she thought everything would be all right.

"As long if we could all reunite and be a family again." She thought. It was then that it came to her. Moko was still gone.

He's been away for hours, and that fear returned. She knew he wasn't on the island, so calling him with her lungs wouldn't work. But they did have other ways to communicate and find one another. They were tricks they shared between them, and it involves with magic like with the water tendril,

but the spell used the power of mind. There was two type of these spells of this she and Moko known off hand, in which they were fairly practice in. One of these powers is called Far Sight.

All she remembers from the short amount of time experimenting is that the Humans and Water Dragons couldn't used this method of sensing their surroundings. It was something having to do still being feral and wild, or something of the like. Reaching out, she calmed her mind, relaxing till she was one with the dock, one with the wind, the soil, the ocean. It taken her months before she could do the trick as easily as she just did.

"Practice makes perfect." She thought briefly. If only that had applied with her tail too.

With magic as the carrier, her attention to the world around her body heighten, but that sense extended outward from a protruding shock wave that she formed and then shot out. The wave flowed outward in a widening circle, and she could fell how far it went, grain by grain. Farther and farther the wave went, right to the reached the ocean. But even so, the wave still flowed through and out into the body of water. When it did, she then could fell the fish, and all the creatures below.

Their bodies were felt from head to tail, their tiny hearts beating soundly. The blood flowed around their vein's, filled with energy and life, which the cell's on a micro level would feed off of, so as a whole, the body kept on working helping their bodies lived on. So many animals, so many things out there, willful and happy. It was almost overwhelming, but just before it was, the shock wave stopped short a mile losing strength to the point that the spell couldn't function any further. It was enough however. Far down below, in the deeper parts of the reef, she felt him. Moko was alive, thanks the Dragons, but something was wrong. She felt him tired, weak, and his mix of fright and desperation almost mimics hers own from

earlier today.

Panicking, she jumped in. Tired or not, she couldn't let her mate be in trouble alone. In matter of minutes, faster if she known how to use her blasted tail, she swam nearly a mile out, and sank below. Some of the sun still managed to shine down here, but the floor was painted black. Mieka could still see, but even with her enhance night vision, things in the distance was still shadowy. It was the same for where Moko was hiding at. Her far sight shown that he was nearby, but it seemed he was inside into the reef itself. It was impossible, but what she saw next was just as so.

Whatever had Moko hiding inside the reef, this.. . . thing seemed to had him corner into sheltering himself. Mieka couldn't see it in detail, but its silhouette shown it was a monster out of a nightmare. It was a large, elongated mass of muscle and strength. It was about as large as one of the small cottages back on the island, which could easily shallow her up and Moko at the same time if it could. Her first thought, was that it could be a shark of some kind, with its long body, blunt nose, and side tail fin, but sharks don't have dozens of long massive tentacles along it side's.

Despite the beast intimidation, Mieka could only think about Moko. She needed some way to let him know that she was there for him. He was probably more than likely worry about her as well.

He needed to know, before that fish brain of his decided to risk coming out and try to out run that thing he found trouble with. Since she couldn't just swim to him without the monster seeing her, she used option two, which was the other spell she knows. It started out like Far Sight, relaxing her mind till she was one with nature around her, but the next step was to send out a trail of telepathic thoughts in the direction to her target, straight at Moko in the form as Long Talk. The spell penetrated the reef, and she was instantly answer back.

"Mieka, what in the Dragons name are you doing here? Get out of here, NOW!" Was the response sent back to her mind. Of all the things she thought he would say when he was relieved to hear her voice, she never believe that her mate, the one person she loved and adored for all her life, had just told her to scram off.

"Why I outta make him chewed a whole box of soap and not let him wash it out for an week!" She screamed in her head in anger. Thinking of an appropriate replied that would make him quiche from her coming wrath later, she sent out a more powerful Long Talk to enhance her displeaserment over his tone.

But when she sent out the stronger spell, the monster had then started tossing and trashing about in the water, seeming to be in pain of some kind. Startle, she let go of the spell, and the monster stop thrashing about on Que. It quickly recovered, and turned to see what had attack his mind, and started swimming towards it. She stiffens up, eyes bulged from the realization that she had been seen, and it was coming straight for her, rather quickly in fact. Frighten, she turned around and started to swim away. She knew she was leaving Moko behind, but she knew this thing could just shallow her whole in one bite.

Frantically moving her legs, trying to get back to the island, she forced herself to look back once, what a mistake that has been. The monster was almost on top of her. She was tiny compare to the giant. The small amount of reminding air in her lungs escaped, and in the worse time for it, her body limped and locked. She couldn't run now, not like she could out run it anyhow. Curse her inability to use her tail!

"NOOO!" At first Mieka thought it was her own voice that said it, as loud and desperate as it sounded. Then the monsters again thrashed about mere feet's from her, and turned around again to see two shimmers of water coming straight at it. The ends were also frozen, with each stream with a long icicle spike at the front. One stabbed into one of the monsters out stretch tentacles, another towards whatever its head was. Blood started flowing out from the tentacle, diluting in the ocean from the wounds.

An second later, with another thrashed as the second spike struck something sensitive, the monster became furious. Mieka watched, as one of the monster arm's reach out and wrapped around Moko before he could formed another set of tendril's and squeezed what was left of the air in his lungs as the bubbles raised from his mouth. Now it was time for Mieka to scream "NO", as the beast pulled him in with one powerful tug, straight to his awaiting mouth, filled of large teeth as long and he was tall.

There was no time to think, she needed to act. Out of desperation, she had pulled out all the magic she could find within herself, and as that energy was pulled to her head, her body felt cold and empty. Like she had been starving for weeks, and near death from malnutrition. With the most powerful Long Talk she had ever done, she thrown it straight at the beast just before it mouth snapped shut on Moko. Whatever had happen, the beast went limped after the wave hit. Mieka heart jumped when she saw Moko swam away from the monsters mouth. There was a third blood trail now, as one came from Moko right rear leg.

"Oh no. . ." Mieka heart jumped again, but not from relief this time. Using his tail while swimming up and down, Moko reached her just as the monster recovered. Again it thrashed about angrily. It turned to looked at them. Moko ready his own all for nothing Long Talk spell, with Mieka behind him, protecting her. Moko was stronger in the magical arts then her, as she notices how powerful he felt then and now. The monster seemed to be deciding if going after prey as they were, was worth it now that it's brained felt fried. How did these small shrimps managed to hurt it, had made it even angrier then before.

It would remember what these creatures are, and it would personally see in the future that it would eat them. However after a minute, it decided that it wasn't that hungry to attempt more injury then it had obtained, and it turned around and swam into the darkness below. After a few minutes of floating there, Moko turned and nod his head. Mieka didn't need more motivation then that. Together, they swam back to the island.

__________________

Mieka was the first to walk ashore; as Moko checked behind him one last time to see if that thing hasn't come back. Satisfied, he ran ashore over to Mieka.

"Wh. . .what was that?" She said shuttering as they walked up the beach.

"I don't know. It just came out of the dark. I was force to hide in the reef. I think I was there for hours before you came."

"Yes well, when I woke up, you weren't here. You had me worry." Mieka said looking towards the ocean.

"That's very well and all, but why you didn't go when I said to. Do you realize how scared I was when it came after you?"

Mieka turned back and blinked as they stopped.

"You were scared? I nearly fainted when I saw you were in danger Moko. You shouldn't go out looking for trouble." She said firmly.

"And you should have left when I said it was too dangerous."

Mieka blinked again, and her jaw dropped.

"You. . . . accused me of not listening! Time after time you don't seem to take in account of how dangerous it is out here, and no matter many times I remind you, you still act like a newly hatched pup." She said hotly.

"I wasn't acting childness when I attacked that thing so you could escape."

"And that thing would have eaten you if I didn't acted then."

“Which wouldn't be necessity if you just had swum back, and allow that creature to eventfully get board of me. And why you didn't listen for me when I called you earlier. I was trying to warn you about what had happen." Moko responded angrily for once. Mieka quieted her tone down.

"I. . . was sleeping, I think. I don't know, I never heard you."

"Ehh, well I was down there for hours anyhow. Guess I lost track of time." He said as they continue on. The sun was starting to reach towards the horizon now. The glow of orange and reds started to fill the sky now. Night was slowly coming.

Mieka then gasp again then as they turn inward towards the grassy areas.

"You leg!" she said startle. She had forgotten about it. Moko looked back. On his right thigh, there was a large deep gash.

"Oh that? That thing almost bit off my leg when it grabbed me."

"It's bleeding badly Moko, this is a bad wound."

"Nothing can be done about it now, I need to tell you something. . ." But right when they walk onto the grass, Mieka came over and started pushing him down.

"Lied down, I know where a first aid kit is. I'll be right back." As Moko did reluctantly, Mieka scurried off back to the dock. A large first aid box is braced along a pole. She reached up and opened it, removing the supplies. Hanging by her mouth from a bag, she hurried back. Looking at her mate leg a short time later, she studied the injury.

Sighing, she said. "It"s deep Moko. I will have to sew it up, and it's going to hurt."

"Yea sure go ahead. I can take the pain."

"You couldn't handle me hitting your head." Mieka replied smiling.

"Yea yea, laugh it up." Mieka then got to work, starting by cleaning the wound. Moko winched, but it didn't stop him of talking.

"While I was down there before that thing came after me, I was using Far sight."

"Yea?" Mikea said, as she got the needle ready.

"Well, while I was down there chasing fish, I decided to try a more powerful burst of energy to see what was out there in the deeps. Might of also brought that thing at me too but I don't know honestly, but when I did . . .YEE-AWW, That hurt Mieka!" Moko screamed and partly getting up after the needel went through his hide.

"I told you it would!" Mieka replied. Softly pushing him back down, she reach over and picked up something.

"Here, bite on this stick. It should help a little." She handed him a small branch. Moko looked at it wearily.

"Didn't you find anything that can dull the pain?" He asked.

"No, there wasn't anything strong enough for this. You will just have to do what you can."

Quenching, he looked at the small black lance woven into the side of his wound. Just seeing the cut made him qusey, as well reinforcing the already terrible pain. Breathing in hard, knowing this was going to hurt like nothing he had ever experience in his life, he bit down on the branch and braced himself.

Mieka then continue her work, sewing the skin back together. Moko winched, his right leg twitching as the needle went through each time. Moko just barely managed not to yelp out from each prick. After what felt like an eternity, she was done as she patted his side. Mieka started to applied a water proof second skin paste over the cut to prevent infection and Moko spit out the branch. He wiped away a small tear, making sure Mieka wouldn't see it so she won't make fun of him later by it. So now that he could talk again, he continues.

"I don't know what I did, but fiddling around with the spell mechanics somehow pushed my Far Sight shot out for miles. No not just a few, dozens of them. That's when I felt something. Something that felt like us. Like it was a part of me and you. I think it's one of our pups."

"How can that be, are you sure?" She replied smiling as she finished up bandaging the cut with a white dressing around the thigh.

"Yea, it felt like part of our blood. Too far to sense the actual mind, but no doubt it's one of ours."

"There all done." She said patting him again. Moko got to his feet and examine the bandaged. Then he turned to face her.

"Thank you."

"Your welcome. I couldn't just let you fight off some monster, then died later by infection. But it's going to scar Moko. That wasn't something I could treat with what I knew. That scar will be there for the rest of your life."

"Oh. . ." He said with a frown. "Well at least you can tell me apart from the others now, and I guess something to remind you that I will protect you, even at the cost of my life." Moko said, lifting right hand over his heart.

"Oh stop being a fish brain. I will just do the same for you, don't forget that." She pointed, and then smiled. It seemed she wasn't angry anymore. Moko sighed with relief.

"I think we should wait till sunrise before we head out. I can Far Sight again then when I recovered enough magic. You will need your rest too. You barely have any magic left in you. It's like I'm looking into a darkness surrounding your body" He said.

"I felt sick after I used that last spell. I think if I recalled, it was refer to as magical sickness. One will fell weak, like how I am feeling now, but without the external symptoms." She did felt sick in fact. She just realized then that her legs were weak again. Moko asked if she was felling ok.

"I feel just fine thank you. You need more rest then I anyhow. You're the one who got injured remember?" Then Moko jumped when she came over, and licked his face.

"Oh my little pumpkin. I don't know what I will do about your consent lack of sense."

"What's a pumpkin?" Moko asked, cocking his head, as Moko lay down with her on the grass.

She started to explain what the gouge; a fruit from the Humans sociality was, until the brilliant lights of the sunset caught their eyes. With the clouds in full, the lights shout out through the breaks in a speculator show. With the land glowing, as well the ocean, they thought of nothing else instead of the beauty. Again Mieka was asked herself how such a sight could exist in such a dangerous and unforgiving world, as Moko laid his head next's to hers, rubbing slightly back and forth.

"I will promise you Mieka, we will find them, we will." As they snuggle. Before the sun just finally disappear over into ocean body, they fallen asleep together, with Mieka head on top of Moko's.