It had to be done.
People chattered on the balconies beneath her.
She swallowed hard and slid off her sneakers. Clinging onto the crystal chandelier above her, the mist inhaled and exhaled, pulsing and convulsing like hundreds of thousands of disfigured octopi.
On your mark, it teased.
The guard rail sent an icy jolt through her hands and feet as she climbed to a crouch, gripping onto the bar with quivering hands. After a deep, painful breath, she let go and rose to a hunched stance, awkwardly shifting her weight between arches. Her stomach stiffened at the white-marbled maw below.
Can you pass out in mid-air from a twenty-floor drop?
She leaned over—she gasped–and fell.
Were people screaming at her plummet or the shrieking mist?
It must be done. Now.
But what if her voice wasn’t strong enough? Sure enough?
She said the word. Just as the porcelain fountain raced toward her, a hundred-thousand tentacles wrapped themselves around her body.
Not going to make it. She stifled a cry, her consciousness merging with the shadows.
Stupid girl. Did you really think you could do it?
She closed her eyes. Things got brighter.
*
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*
Author’s Afternote: Quick exercise to rouse the muscles =/. Not much to do with this, so I posted it here. –RNR
(c) Rowan Nhaima Rhys. This work may be shared (with credit). No derivations or alterations may be made without my permission. Thanks!
lalala of rowan nhaima rhys 
“Clinging onto the crystal chandelier above her, the mist inhaled and exhaled, pulsing and convulsing like hundreds of thousands of disfigured octopi.”
Love it! Is this character a part of your planned novel (the one with the battle orcas) or something else entirely?
Thanks! =D This is a stand alone piece I wrote just to get back into writing.