Chapter 287: Split Maw Kraken
That red and orange monster was wrapping its tentacles securely around our vessel, its bulbous head poking free from the water just long enough for it to glare at us all with its giant glittering eyes.
The markings on its head shifted ever so slightly as it leaned back, causing Captain M’Koli to shout out a warning before everyone dropped to the deck, narrowly avoiding the stream of reddish bubbles that had been ejected from its giant beak.
Each one exploded above us with an almost visceral pop, wisps of flame flaring up from where they had been and bathing the entire deck in a sudden dry heat as the temperature momentarily climbed quite a few degrees.
If you had been standing up, one of the soldier’s hats showed what might have happened considering the perfectly fine leather was now little more than a thin strip of blackened rags draped across the woman’s face.
She was cursing and flinging them away, revealing the red welts that were already forming thanks to the magical heat that those bubbles had provided, but besides that there hadn’t been any damage.
Just one hell of a scare and the sudden realization that this monster was far tougher than you would think, and that alone got the adrenaline pumping as everyone redoubled their efforts at chopping up those tentacles.
The soldier I had dragged into a safe spot gave me a grin and said "Thanks Natalie! When this is over I’m gonna kiss you~!" before she focused on healing her battered body, only taking a few seconds to get back onto her feet and charge back into the fray... after she grabbed a spare weapon.
Taji just gave me a look before she too started towards the monster, only to pause and march back over to me as she said "Focus you arrows on the head of the monster. We’ll get the tentacles. If you can irritate it enough and it feels damaged enough from us, it’ll push away and leave us be."
It was a - presumably - solid plan, so I nodded and prepared to start taking shots at the monster whenever it breached the surface of the water again, though before I could do that Taji reached over with her free hand and grabbed a fistful of my collar.
Without any hesitation whatsoever she yanked me forwards and slammed her lips against mine, claiming herself a deep and possessive kiss while staring into my eyes the whole time, making sure I got the message...
When she let me go she did so without another word, just licking her lips, staring down at my own and then spinning on her heel as she lunged for the nearest tentacle, leaving me stunned on the safe part of the deck.
I honestly wasn’t expecting any sort of intimacy from her at this moment in time considering we were in the midst of a battle against a red and orange Kraken that was quite large and very pissed off right now, and yet... she kissed me anyways.
So I was a little stunned because of what she had done, yet after a second I was able to collect myself and get back to normal, shaking it off and focusing on aiming for the big angry monster that was determined to kill us all.
Nocking an arrow and waiting for the monster to come back up, I bit the inside of my cheek and focused everything I had on this instead of wondering why Taji was suddenly becoming so possessive and forwards about... well, everything.
Well I mean, obviously she had recently fucked me, and obviously I had recently given her that blowjob that made her quiver, and also she was making it pretty clear she wanted to fuck a few pups into me sometime soon, and-
So admittedly I wasn’t doing that good of a job since I was currently thinking about Taji ramming herself into me from behind, but when the Split Maw Kraken popped out of the water again the shock of seeing it once more jolted me from my stupor.
The first arrow flew and punched into a patch of orange flesh above its eye, drawing a rumbling groan from the monster as it looked around to try and figure out what was going on, only for it to hone in on me as it heard and saw the second arrow flying towards it.
Slamming its eyes shut, the monster somehow blocked that second arrow completely, the arrowhead getting deflected whilst the shaft splintered harmlessly against its flesh; I didn’t get stunned by that and simply aimed another, this time going back to less ’important’ targets.
This time I shrouded the arrow in mana and let it loose, enjoying the shrill scream as it zipped through the air before slamming into the monster with a crack of electricity that arced over its flesh, scorching it slightly.
Three more sang off of my bowstring before the monster finally took a plunge back beneath the water, and by that point some of its tentacles had been sliced off, causing it to let out a low, rattling grumble as it slowly detached from the hull of the ship.
When it slid off completely Captain M’Koli rushed to the edge of the ship and peered into the water, doing something I thought was dangerous but apparently was alright for her to do as she just observed the now murky sea.
After a few seconds of calm she nodded her head and began shouting new orders, some of which included gathering up the tentacles and storing them properly in jars that were filled with something, keeping them fresh... I think.
Taji was back by my side immediately, cleaning her blade off of that blue blood and staring down at me intently, only to stiffen as that soldier rushed over and dragged me into her arms, laughing out loud and spinning me around.
A weathered yet pretty woman, she grinned at me and did what Taji did earlier, yanking me forwards and slamming her lips into mine as she gave me a deep kiss; I stared at her in shock for a moment before shrugging and leaning into it, enjoying her taste and loving the way Taji was staring at us...