Free Web NovelChapter 221: Chapter 220 - Caught Off-Guard
Point-of-View: Alexis Tucker
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H-huh? Huh? HUH!? Did that really just happen!? Did he really just do that!? That...that was so not cool of him, damn it! I...I was planning on doing that on the way back after we explore the town! He totally just stole my thunder!
W-well, if I’m being honest, there was a possibility that I might have chickened out, since the thought of it really flustered me, but still! No way, did he predict what I was upto and preemptively struck first?
No, come on, that doesn’t make any sense. There’s no way he would have known...so, then, did he plan it too? No, can’t be, I sprung this on him out of the blue at the last minute, so he couldn’t have planned it beforehand. I-I guess there’s only one way to find out...
"H-hey, um, what exactly prompted you to do that?" I muttered, unable to look him in the eye.
Crap, I hope he doesn’t think that I’m mad about it or something, that’s not the impression I’m going for. B-because...I maybe, sorta, kinda liked it...
"Well, to be honest...I was just trying to think of the best way to fluster you, and then, uh...kinda acted on impulse. Sorry, guess that was crossing the line, huh?" He responded apologetically, sounding kinda awkward.
"No, it was-...actually, yes, it was. You...you pulled back after, like, an instant! That was my first k-kiss, and it was over before I even realized what had happened!" I exclaimed indignantly, before grabbing his collar and giving it a firm tug, pulling him close to me before meeting his gaze, "So, with that in mind...I’m demanding a do-over!"
I then tugged him in closer, before pressing my lips onto his, but in my surge of adrenaline, I might have been a bit too aggressive and our noses ended up hitting each other.
But I didn’t pull back, I’m not retreating after coming this far! I parted my lips slightly and then caressed his lips with mine, before he responded by doing the same, my grip on his collar loosening before I let go and he took my hand into his, lacing his fingers with mine.
U-uh-oh, my head’s starting to spin, my face and body feel like they’re on fire with how much I’m heating up. At this rate, I’ll lose my rationality and-...n-no, not out here in the open, no way!
I then pulled back, turning my gaze downwards as I caught my breath, my vision blurring slightly as I felt a deep craving and desire to continue, before taking deep breaths to calm and compose myself.
"W-wow, that was...," He trailed off with a slight gasp, also out of breath, as we stared deeply into each other’s eyes...before I found myself averting my gaze before even realizing it.
C-crap, it’s even harder to look him in the eye now than it was before, and no matter how much I try to calm down, my chest won’t stop pounding.
"A-anyway, um...let’s get to town, sh-shall we? It might rain in a couple of hours, so we should leave enough time to get back before it starts pouring," I suggested, as I tried to look him in the eye but inadvertently averted my gaze the instant our eyes met again.
Damn it, I didn’t mean to do that, but I just couldn’t help myself! And...honestly, I don’t want to go to the town anymore, I really want to suggest maybe heading back to one of our RVs and...a-and...But no, I shouldn’t. At least...not yet.
Not so soon...I don’t think I’m ready, I need time to mentally prepare myself. I’m not sure how long that’ll take, but...I don’t want to rush into anything and then regret it later.
"Y-yeah, sounds good. That’s the plan, after all. Let’s go-...," He began, before trailing off as a loud crash echoed out, startling us.
As we turned in the direction the sound came from, we both stared in bemusement at the sight of an uprooted tree flying through the air a fair distance away into the forest, like a javelin, before crashing down.
Several birds flew out from the trees around that area, as a dust cloud rose up. And shortly after that, before the dust could even begin to settle, more loud crashes and thuds rang out from there, several dozen meters away from where we were but still loud enough for us to hear clearly.
"The hell?" I muttered in bewilderment.
"Ohh, that’s probably Aurora and Fenris chasing Bastet," Realized Zoraiz, after a brief pause.
"That explains it, so they’re really doing it, huh?" I replied with a slight laugh.
"What I wouldn’t give to see his face right now, to see him all caught off-guard. But we’re probably better off staying away from there, it’ll probably be dangerous to get involved," He sighed wistfully.
"Yeah, that’s for sure. So...shall we get going?" I responded, giving him a nudge.
That was nice timing on their part, the initial surprise at not knowing what was going on has helped me calm down quite a bit. I feel a lot less flustered now, which is a huge relief.
"Mhm, sure...let’s go."
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Point-of-View: Aurora Pretorius ƒree𝑤ebnσvel.com
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"Stop chasing me, what is this about!?" Exclaimed Bastet in alarm, using his barriers as footholds to race across the air.
"Oh, come on, play along, you scaredy cat! This’ll be good training for you too! I mean, you’ve been asleep for several decades, haven’t you!? You’ve gotta be pretty rusty. So, you could use the exercise!" I yelled out in response, as I used a shadowy streak to pick up a large rock and flung it up at him after Fenris fired out slashes from his claws at the barrier footholds.
"Yeah, and shouldn’t a Deity be ashamed of running away from us mere mortals!?" Called out Fenris in amusement, as Bastet halted and dropped straight down to avoid our attacks.
"That is not how it works, we Deities do not get ’rusty’ when we hibernate! This is completely unnecessary to me, so leave me alone!" Snapped Bastet in exasperation.
As he landed on a tree branch and the rock I flung crashed down on the ground several meters up ahead, I took aimed and fired out a Negative Slash in his directions, which he sprang away to evade, before Fenris unleashed a deafening howl at him while he was still in mid-air.
He quickly responded by forming a barrier foothold to his side and then kicked off of it to shoot himself straight across towards a tree, his feet slamming onto the trunk, before he leapt off of it in the next instant, onto another tree and then springing off again, bouncing across the trees and the occasional barrier footholds around us like a pinball.
Damn, that’s pretty good, I think I should be able to pull that off too...he’s moving in straight lines, but because of how abruptly and quickly he changes trajectory, and the unpredictability of whether he’s going to use a tree or a barrier foothold to spring off of, keeping up with his movements is more than a little tricky.
Alright, then, if sight isn’t enough to keep up...I’ll focus on scent and sound instead! Suddenly, as he leapt off a barrier foothold straight down at me from above, I swiftly raised my right hand and grabbed his wrist as he began to spear his claws down towards me, halting his attack in its tracks.
"There we go, now that’s more like it!" I smirked, as Fenris fired out his claw slashes at Bastet while I tightened my grip around his wrist.
Bastet swiftly formed a barrier to block Fenris’s attack, before twisting his arm and breaking his own wrist to slip out of my grasp. He then swiftly leapt up while rapidly healing his broken wrist, an irritated look on his face.
As I swung several shadowy streaks up at him, converging in on him from multiple directions as Fenris sprang up behind him, ready to unleash a howl, Bastet jumped back off another barrier foothold and slammed his elbow onto Fenris’s midsection and eliciting a sharp gasp from him, grimacing as my shadowy streaks left several cuts across his fur.
He then swung Fenris in front of himself as a shield before leaping away and getting some distance, as he healed his injuries rapidly, the cuts closing up in a matter of seconds.
"That was quite painful. Very well, then, I shall indulge the two of you...however, I will not treat this as training, I shall fight fully intending to kill you," He remarked icily, clearly salty over the fact that we attacked him out of the blue.
It’s not our fault that he was caught off-guard...
"Fine by me, that’s exactly what we were hoping for," I grinned in response, as I cracked my knuckles.
"Yeah, what she said," Nodded Fenris in agreement, his voice kinda strained as he rubbed the spot where Bastet had elbowed him.
"Now, then...time for round two!" I declared, as I charged up a Negative Blast...
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