The healer's orders, although making him bristle (he was usually the one to bark orders, wasn't he?), snapped Ben right out of his panic. A shuddering breath later and he'd calmed down enough to spot where Dionisia was. This time he didn't make a sound but made his way to her, steadying himself as they made headway. Giving the healer enough room to do his work, Ben hovered cautiously, his lips pressing into a hard line as the healer's hand came away from his lover's wife's head with a good amount of blood. If Ari didn't kill him for letting Dionisia get hurt, Ben certainly would complete the job.
Still, the healer was right, he had work to do and it wasn't going to get done by standing here being useless and glowering. With the salted air chapping his face, Ben turned back to the rail only in time to see part of it fly off followed by another vibrating screech.
Bracing himself, the auror began firing more spells; there was no mending the railing when the pieces were now long gone, lost to the depths of the ocean. Another tentacle came crashing from overhead — how in Merlin's name did it manage to get overhead?! — and Ben turned to cast another shield over all three of them huddled on the deck.
Thank Merlin this time it was accurate and effective, though he strained under the concentration of making sure it was large enough, baffled as to how the beast was both keeping up with them and knowing which points were their weakest. As an auror, being lured into a false sense of security by an opponent was no new concept to Ben. But he never thought he would see the day where he would get bested by a bloody sea monster. And then —
— there was a slight pressure around his ankle that told him today was the day.
Ben froze and felt his ankle twitch. Looking down he was met with the sight of a smaller, thinner tentacle coiled snugly, firmly around his ankle. Ben's breath hitched in his throat and he uttered the only word that came to mind.
"Shit."
The wind was forced out of him yet again as he was jerked backward through the hole the monster had just made.
Still, the healer was right, he had work to do and it wasn't going to get done by standing here being useless and glowering. With the salted air chapping his face, Ben turned back to the rail only in time to see part of it fly off followed by another vibrating screech.
Bracing himself, the auror began firing more spells; there was no mending the railing when the pieces were now long gone, lost to the depths of the ocean. Another tentacle came crashing from overhead — how in Merlin's name did it manage to get overhead?! — and Ben turned to cast another shield over all three of them huddled on the deck.
Thank Merlin this time it was accurate and effective, though he strained under the concentration of making sure it was large enough, baffled as to how the beast was both keeping up with them and knowing which points were their weakest. As an auror, being lured into a false sense of security by an opponent was no new concept to Ben. But he never thought he would see the day where he would get bested by a bloody sea monster. And then —
— there was a slight pressure around his ankle that told him today was the day.
Ben froze and felt his ankle twitch. Looking down he was met with the sight of a smaller, thinner tentacle coiled snugly, firmly around his ankle. Ben's breath hitched in his throat and he uttered the only word that came to mind.
"Shit."
The wind was forced out of him yet again as he was jerked backward through the hole the monster had just made.
![[Image: WEY2zhj.jpeg]](https://i.imgur.com/WEY2zhj.jpeg)