First Reply See The Sea

[Makai Dashiell]

The upside ; he could breathe underwater, no risk of drowning. The downside ; some tentacle was dragging him down to the deep reaches of the ocean.

The only real panic he had was the fact he didn't want to be eaten. Reasonable, in his opinion. It took a moment to reorient himself and realize that there was a good-sized tentacle wrapped around his foot and ankle. He struggled to lean down and reach the tentacle, trying to pry the suction cups off his skin. Fingers couldn't get underneath the strong suction.

His next plan was to punch the tentacle. The drag from being pulled made it difficult, but he focused his efforts around his ankle and could feel one of the little cups loosen. Trouble was there was more than one. He was going to have to keep at it in order to free himself.

Vayla Mirana

 

[Vayla Mirana]

Well, despite being a quick swimmer all things considered, what with her power being beyond her form and from that of the Force, this creature was naturally quicker and more agile than her. When a predator like this seized its prey it did not waste time being idle. Furthermore, it wasn’t just moving further and faster but deeper.

Vayla didn’t know if Makai could breathe underwater or not but she knew that her lungs would not last much longer the deeper they ventured. So there was no more time to waste. It wasn’t like she was hiding her power from him anyway. She just felt like there wasn’t the right moment to show him until this underwater hell for an environment.

The tentacle had wrapped around her partner’s foot and ankle. The Jedi was struggling to catch up so it was time to bring the predator and the prey to her. Both hands forward, Vayla used the Force and drew her power around the creature and its catch, pulling them upward through the water, past her own position and toward the surface in a kind of slingshot.

What did she glimpse? What kind of monster was this?

Makai Dashiell

 

[Makai Dashiell]

One minute he was being drug down, trying to dislodge tentacles from his leg. The next he felt an invisible force grab him, stop their momentum and then shove both him and the creature towards the surface of the ocean. The momentum was a little too quick and he was flung out of the ocean depths and into open air, sailing through blue skies, only to fall back down on the ocean far away from Vayla Mirana . At least he was able to kind of re-adjust midair and dive into the ocean instead of doing just a splat against the surface.

A bellyflop from that height would have been extremely painful.

Meanwhile, those who were on the beach finally got sight of the creature ; a vrathean . Rarely seen on the surface as its tentacles failed around, trying to escape from the invisible hold that Vayla had firmly on it.

 

[Vayla Mirana]

Vayla witnessed both figures shift in an instant as intended. She had meant to eject her friend and her teacher from these treacherous waters immediately given he needed to breathe. Well, so she thinks. Wherever Makai landed to splash and thrash, or on his back on the beach, presently Vayla had bigger things to deal with, quite literally.

The Jedi, for her part, was still in the darker depths of the water. Her slingshot maneuver had ripped Makai from the creature’s grip but the creature still lurked within. Having brought it closer toward the surface of the ocean, its image was revealed to her, eyes peeled.

Oh bloody hell. Maybe sixty feet in length but measurement was treacherous in the deep blue sea. Serpentine body. Shell-plated carapace. Menacing face with a protective bony beak. Jagged teeth. Tentacles of hardened flesh. Purple one moment. Brown the next. Bioluminescent. It growled. It bellowed. It soared toward its opponent.

Okay then. Vayla thought. It was all she could do to think. Having been floating in stillness at that moment, at least she was braced to treat with her foe, though she knew that she too needed to breathe. Come at me.

The beast charged and, were the Force not at her feet and fingertips, she might just have been harmed beyond belief. Instead, she rapidly kicked off from the beast’s head before its teeth reached her feet. Then, using the momentum and power beyond the predator, Vayla flipped upward and out of the water and landed on the beach.

She was okay. Where was Makai?

Makai Dashiell

 

[Makai Dashiell]

Once hitting the water, he had collected Vayla Mirana 's surfboard for her. His, the rental, was a total loss and his deposit left at the hotel was certainly lost. A small price to pay, he wasn't going to swim too far away from shore in case the tentacle monster wanted another piece of him. Maybe he just tasted good? Or it was the patches of shiny iridescent scales? He wasn't going to find out.

Her surfboard under his arm, Makai walked up to Vayla, the only sign of their recent trouble was a few tentacle-cup marks on his ankle. To be expected given a creature that size, it would easily fade.

"Found your board....something tells me we won't be surfing anymore for the day. Which is fine, I need to pack up and leave planet. You're okay? You and the tentacle beast had a few words? Talked it out?"

 

[Vayla Mirana]

Ah! Vayla was glad to find Makai alive and in one piece. That he had her surfboard was a bonus. He looked good enough and sounded as if he hadn't just been in the ocean with a beast. Then again, he did this for a hobby so probably had his fair share of creature encounters already. It wasn't much different from Vayla's experiences. Only they tended to be in caves.

"We came to an agreement," she grinned. "He stays away from the surface and the surfers and I don't come back to teach him another lesson in manners." She reclaimed her surfboard, nodding her head in thanks, expecting none in return. This was the life of a Jedi.

"Well, as long as you don't need the infirmary with your injuries, I guess we both need to take our leave. I'm already hungry." She knew better than to ask him to tag with her to another vendor, however.

"My thanks for the lessons, good sir. I got as far as climbing atop the board but, no matter, there is always next time." Moments later and Vayla waved goodbye, turned to leave the vicinity and looked back. "Maybe we'll meet again." Who knew? It was a small galaxy in truth.

[EXIT VAYLA]

Makai Dashiell