Sukkubus of Khymeera by Joanna Noor

Author:Joanna Noor [Noor, Joanna]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Forty Lashes Press
Published: 2018-10-31T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 11 – Squid Row

I bounced against the creature’s throat in darkness, thrown from side to side as its muscles contracted and sent me sliding down its gullet. Objects bumped against me, more bodies and debris, then I was deposited in a glowing chamber where the water subsided and I came to rest on a firm, fleshy floor.

I crouched on my hands and knees, spewing the salt water out as my body readjusted to normal breathing. The room stank—like flyblown meat left outside on a hot summer day. Barnacles scraped my palms, and phosphorescent slime lit up the curved ceiling, providing an ethereal blue glow. Around me there were others—a few pirates face down and sputtering, Kallias among them—and the hulking figure of Karzak, slumped against a wall. I scrambled to my feet and staggered to his side.

“Karzak!” I said, shaking him. “Karzak, wake up!”

I rolled him on his back and pressed my fingers to his neck to check for a pulse. Nothing. His skin was pale gray, his eyes rolled up to expose the whites. I tilted his head back and stuck my fingers in his mouth to make sure his airway was clear, then took a deep breath and pressed my lips to his, blowing air into his lungs. I pumped his chest and repeated the procedure, again and again as I continued to monitor his pulse. But his flesh remained clammy, his heart refused to start. It wasn’t working.

“Karzak, please!” I pleaded. “Don’t die now! You can’t give up yet, not before we save Rakzar!”

I knelt by him, hands on his shoulders as I waited for some sign of life. Tears pooled at the corners of my eyes and I choked back a sob, then I lay my head on his mounded stomach and wept.

“Karzak . . .” I whispered, burying my face in his damp shirt.

A barking cough echoed in the room and the giant’s chest convulsed against me, bucking me upright as a spray of water issued from his mouth. I gave a delighted shout, then jumped back and helped lift the man, propping him up so he could breathe better. I wiped the drool from his lips and brushed his tangled hair out of his face.

“Karli . . .” he rasped.

“I’m here,” I responded, holding his hand as our eyes met and he flashed me a grin.

“Where are we?”

“In some kind of whale, I think. I’m not sure. After our ship went down, it swam up from the depths and swallowed us.”

“A . . . whale?”

I shrugged. “I saw the lights of Lubrica, Karzak! I saw them—along with the city walls, and marble palaces, and other buildings. It was all there, at the bottom of Scuttlebutt Atoll, just like you said. And it was beautiful!”

“It’s not a fiction . . .”

“No,” I said. “Not at all.”

More coughs sounded, and the pirates stirred from their sleep. We watched as most of them came back to life, one by one, then sat up and peered at us sullenly in the gloom.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.