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Continuing from last post, we start with Justin (because the last paragraph of his view got dropped and forgotten on accident. Then we switch.
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Selkies' SkinsInstallment 67Chapter 35 (part two)
Tampered
Tampered
A piercing scream wrapped around him, even as hands roughly pushed his spear to the side. The tactic he had expected, she’s seemed oddly good at that the last they had met. What he wasn’t braced for were the welts and stings forming as hair tendrils wrapped around him. Some he had expected. To lose vision was not expected.
As she assailed the membrane the scent and feel of danger intensified. A sharp object was brought to it from the other side, and a black aura surrounded the blade that threatened her. The form she now knew to be male, and it bore down on her with all its weight and fury as it tore into her world from his.
Kirsty moved as fast as she could while also casting her shield spell, pressing the blade down enough that she could grasp the spearshaft and hoped to use that to springboard herself over the Finman.
He brought his head up into her own as hard as possible and she let go. Kirsty tried to hit him with her tail as she passed over. The membrane, ripped by his passage, let her through and she landed roughly on a rock before bouncing to the ground.
The water drained, leaving the passage half air and half water. Kirsty bounced from the ledge she’d landed on back into the water. Stars filled her vision and the ringing in her ears dulled the sound of his movements. She drew a breath, flopping and trying to move despite how each move further made it difficult to keep her breath.
Justin turned as swiftly as he was able after her powerful tail, and likely more than a little magic, drove him into the floor of the passage. His skin tingled and he could feel his blood moving in ways he’d not felt before. When his eyes fell on her she seemed to shine for a moment, but it was only momentary.
He grinned and advanced on her as she fought to move. Seaswimmer hissed at him and raised her hands. Her pupils were wide and didn’t seem to focus on him as he moved, and he grinned wider.
She flopped her tail and moved another body length. Kirsty pulled what energy she could from the water to replenish what she’d used and prepared to channel it toward him. She operated more on feel than sight, the stars refusing to leave her vision.
He was on her as she felt the water leave her hands. The kiss of stone never came, only the power that radiated off his own hands and tried to control the flow of her blood. Her heart slowed, and more black crept across what little vision she had, leaving only the infuriatingly familiar eyes locked on hers while wills battled. Their energies tangled, snarled, and pushed even as hands tried to grapple or press away.
The unused wand in its sling crackled to life, transmuting some of the energies that passed between the pair. The selkie hair within screamed in protest. Another consciousness flowed through their blood and attempted to press both youths down, to drag them apart. In the backs of their minds a half-remembered face formed, marred by a deep frown and dark hair gaining another streak of silver. Pearl teeth glinted in these recesses the longer she stayed between them. The scent of tears went unnoticed while each fought to be the victor.
Again what saved Kirsty was more feeling-based than sight-based. She found a gap in the webbing his energy was casting, mercifully kept slightly away from herself by Marsali’s hair. The knot was loose, as if he was not used to manipulating energy and only doing so on instinct. Kirsty focused her own energy through that point, visualizing a blade as she did to further widen the hole. She was already disengaging as fast as she could, and so did not notice when the same energy that gave her space placed itself between her strike and target enough to slightly deflect it. The electricity from her hair released again at the same time, only ripping away due to his movement.
The netting fell away even as the focused rush pressed him back. Unaware of the contortions of her face Kirsty managed to get over to her belly again and moved as swiftly as she could along the stream, using her arms more than her tail. Just above her back was beginning to go between fire and ice, and she tried to use the water’s flow to further move herself along.
Behind her Justin landed against one of the stones, his own head contacting as hard as her own, temporarily taking his sight and breath. Electricity continued to dance over him for a moment, and where her nails had scratched were beginning to already swell and spread red roots.
This was an extra post in the schedule (bi-weekly normal posting). Next week will be the regular post. If you'd like to have another episode in the update schedule (April 20th), feel free to use the Paypal button below. Otherwise the next post for the story will be on April 13th. A total of $10 earns everyone an extra episode. We are actually close enough that I probably will get to post an extra time. One more ought to bump us over. Alternatively you can buy an ebook, print book, or audiobook from me through Amazon, B&N, or Smashwords, then comment here (or pop me an email) with the amount of what you spent on the title and I will credit that to the pool. If the ten dollars is not met, then the amount rolls over toward the next early episode.