Page 10 of The Kraken Games

As the kraken craft surfaced, way out at the very end of the docks, Kai swam over, grabbed his bags from the skipper and thanked him. He’d chosen to swim from Thedaka, as proof of his fitness.

Now he hooked the heavy bag onto his back and swam to the jetty.

Before hauling himself up onto the wooden boards, he made sure his tentacles had retracted fully into his torso. On land it was essential to look fully human—at least until the games began. Except kraken would never be mistaken for human because of the blue tinge to their skin, the luminosity of their eyes, and their facial structure. They were clearly creatures of the sea. Eye catching, head turning. Considered handsome by many.

The curious gaze of monsters working on the quay shifted to him, then away as he walked nonchalantly along the jetty, the water dripping off his now fully human limbs. Kai suppressed a smirk. He wasn’t vain, but he knew he cut a fine figure with his honed muscles, the way his skin shimmered, the unusual breadth of his high cheekbones, and his full, sensual mouth. All he was wearing were shorts made from a lightweight woven seagrass. As his muscled legs powered along the jetty he relished the pull of gravity. It was a good feeling, but one he had to get used to again.

Last year, when he’d come here to observe the games he’d circulated with ease, enjoying the attention, and taken his fill of lovers.

And that was expected. It was appropriate for a young kraken in training to learn the ways of lovemaking on land. After all, you had to learn itsomewhere—mating with a female kraken was not allowed until your Metan was declared. But this year… this year, he wasn’t allowed to date, his focus and energy had to be on the games. From there, the need, the yearning to find a mate would come to fruition.

Because at the heart of it, kraken were family minded. He would return home and find a female to commit to, to spend his life with. Except… Why did that not entirely excite him? A memory of the small human he’d seen a mere two weeks ago in the depths jumped into his head.Again. This was getting to be a habit. He’d even swum to the caves a couple of times in the hope of seeing her again, before deciding he needed to curb this foolishness. He had his training to focus on, there was a mere month before the games commenced.

There was no room for such fantasies. Acha had disobeyed the rules, fucked himself stupid last year, and that was probably another reason for his defeat.

I would never…

Unless…

Gah! What nonsense. He blocked his thoughts and strode along the quay, head held high, affecting the haughty demeanor of krakens.

The persona you took on started from the moment you set foot on dry land. He represented kraken kind now, not himself,with his playful nature and soft hearts. He had to perfect an image, wear a mask, hide his gentler side.

Yet at the same time, he must not let that mask become him, take over, like it had Acha. Kai knew he was playing a game. The real Kai was someone else, someone who had suffered, been teased as a kid for his disability. It made you… humble. Made you more empathetic. That was the real Kai, the Kai he always would be.

But on the outside, he was molding his image to be The Chosen. The—One—Who—Would—Win.

As he reached the end of the quay, he saw a blue beach buggy waiting. Out hopped Shen. Like Grandpa, his Uncle Shen had a big bushy beard, but Shen was buffed and built. Now in his early forties, his prime, his skin was a shade of translucent turquoise that caught everyone’s eye. That, and the fact everyone knew Shen was in charge of the games each year.

When you saw Shen out and about, you knew the games were nigh.

And sure enough, already a small crowd of monsters had gathered to watch, grinning and nudging and talking among themselves.

A loud wolf whistle made Kai’s head jerk up. A gelfin (half elf, half goblin; the species who pretty much worked the Purple Lantern District) was watching him with a big grin on her face. “If you want a bit of fun, handsome, I’m your girl,” she called out raucously, pointing at her bouncy tits.

He winked at her and waved, reminding himself that sex was out of the question, at least until after the games, when he’d be allowed to indulge—providing he won. A whole heap of females squealed gleefully, and Kai struggled not to blush. This was kind of… weird. Like he was a movie star or something.

“Hey there, kiddo.” Shen gave him a bear hug, took his bags, and slung them in the back of the buggy. “Let’s get you home.There’s a feast of shrimp and shellfish waiting. Your aunt Hana has been slaving away in the kitchen all day.”

Shen jumped in, and Kai circumnavigated the buggy and hopped in next to him. With a crunch of gears, they took off along the busy port road, lined with shipping containers and scattered with orcs and minotaurs loading cargo onto ships. Soon they reached the river and crossed over the bridge to the marshes.

The marshlands that lay along Motham River on the other side of the docklands were a real mixed area. Mostly the abodes were damp, shanty houses, but some parts had been gentrified, with modern, smart residences set on canals. On the first canal street they turned into, one house was set high on stilts.

Shen’s house.

Kai had attended a few parties here when he was in Motham last year, though the kraken youth who were allowed to attend the games stayed in hostels. He remembered the garden with its emerald green lawn and neat flower beds. The garden led down to the canal, where a snazzy motorboat was moored. Big picture windows were built to optimize the view, and loungers were laid out on the wooden deck.

As they entered the house his aunt Hana floated over to greet them, her tentacles visible with only a sarong draped around her. In the privacy of their homes, kraken allowed themselves half shift mode. Now, as she brought out food, it was clearly easy for Hana to grab what she needed. When they’d sat down, she shimmied over to the table, suctioning several bowls and the salad servers while her human arms held a big pot of fish stew.

Shen gave her a slap on the bottom. “She loves being at home, just free to float around.” He grinned. “More fun for me too.” He winked at Kai. “Remember not to go out in public like that, sweetheart.”

“Of course I won’t.” Hana gave a pout. She was younger than Shen, a glamorous kraken from a well-to-do family. She would soon be bearing Shen’s younglings for sure. “I wouldn’t sabotage Kai’s chances by doing that.”

That had been Acha’s downfall, parading around in half shift, sometimes even becoming full kraken when he went to bathe in the clear waters south of the bay, foolishly thinking he wouldn’t be spotted. Or maybe just not caring, too cock-sure he’d be victorious.

Giving other monsters a chance to study his tentacles had been a major blunder.

But on the positive side, it had given Kai his chance—one he had no intention of blowing by being slack and vain. Kai kept his tentacles embedded in his torso as he surveyed the feast.

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