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"Is it — part of you?" I asked.
"No." His voice was soft as he lifted his gaze to meet mine. Darkness bled in from the edges, but those brilliant blue eyes were still his. "I'm just the vessel, but it's been with me for so long, I hardly know what I'd be without it. I got it shortly after …" His throat bobbed. "… well, let's just say I have very few memories without it, and those few aren't exactly pleasant." He jutted his chin toward my hand, clutching the ring. "How about you? How does that ring even work?"
"The stone on the ring dampens my magic. If I take it off or hold it like this —" I moved the ring so the stone wasn't touching my skin, and let out a soft sigh. "Then, I can be free."
And it was glorious.
No longer was I feeling the world through a hazy blanket. With that stone gone, everything around me was beautiful and crystal clear.
Gods. It felt good to be free.
The dinghy rocked gently as Jaiel chuckled, and his lips quirked into a warm half-smile.
Something shifted in the water behind him, and I reached out with my magic.
My unshielded magic expanded, imposing the Korra Realm over the physical one. I could see a massive creature's korra hiding in the watery depths, its three essences bright and lively as it swam beneath us.
Wonder filled me as the yellow ribbons of its body essence danced — dwarfing the lighter strips of blue and red writhing around it.
Could it have enough of a body affinity to manipulate its physical shape?
"What in god's name are you looking at?" Jaiel asked.
"There's a creature down there." I motioned to the ocean. "Potentially with body magic."
Jaiel gasped and the shadows around him expanded as he withdrew a blade from his pack.
"It's not going to attack us." I teased, holding up a hand. "It's just swimming around."
He arched a brow and continued to hold his weapon up as though it would do us any good.
Shaking my head, I turned back to watch.
If Lady Frexin were here, she'd force us to stop so she might trap it. But she wasn't here, so I could just watch it in peace.
I stared as the creature moved gracefully under our boat, then swam off into the distance. The swirls of its three essences pulsing and weaving around themselves like waves on the shore as it left the safety of the Forsaken Isle.
A splash sounded behind me, and I turned to see a purple fin go under the water, then a blue fin to its right appeared. Behind it, a green fin with spikes. They dove an instant later, and I couldn't stop the grin from forming on my lips.
There was so much life out here!
Opening my korra senses further, I reached out … gasping as something rumbled in the distance. It was far enough away that I couldn't sense it clearly, but it moved like some sort of writhing beast …
Fuck! That couldn't be good.
Clenching my fists, I strained to reach out farther, pushing my powers to their limits.
There!
About half-way to the Isle, a massive pulsing cloud of pure red soul essences spilled over each other like a swarm of carriage-sized insects.
They seemed to be coming straight for us! "What in the seven hells —"
"What?" Jaiel hissed, holding his weapon up as he leaned toward me, one hand held out protectively. "Is it another creature? I can't see it, so if I'm going to help, you have to explain what you're seeing!"
I heard his words, but they went in one ear and out the other.
The creature was unlike anything I'd ever seen!
