Hi! Thanks for visiting my blog :) This is part six of a little story I'm writing. For anyone who is new here, I would recommend you start at part one and work your way through. Happy reading!
I glance at Alex and I can see he's thinking the same thing as me: surely they aren't trying to kill us? If they wanted to, there are much quicker and easier ways. Still, I can't help dragging my feet a little as the Greni lead us deeper into the sea. It's up to my waist, now.
"Um, you do realise we don't have gills, right?" I say, trying to control the tremor in my voice.
"We will sustain you until your souls are tested," the male Greni says - I still don't know his name. "If you pass, we will escort you safely back to the surface. If you fail... then you will die in our underwater cities, rising only to go to the next world."
"What exactly do we need to - " Alex's question is cut off as he inhales a mouthful of water; it's up to our necks now, and rising fast as we move forward. I expect him to start choking, but to my surprise, he doesn't. As my head, too, dips beneath the waves, the Greni's hand in mine seems to become warmer and stronger. I try to hold my breath for as long as I can, but eventually I can't do it any more.
The Greni wasn't lying, though; I find the water swishing in and out of my lungs evenly, though I can feel no gills on my neck. It's almost like being above ground, except colder. I clutch the Greni's hand tighter, terrified of being trapped down here when my ability to breathe underwater is taken away.
Alex glances at me through the dark water, looking scared but determined.
Time seems to move differently down here. The Greni swim, but Alex and I don't seem to need to do anything other than keep our hold on our guide. As we get deeper, it gets colder. I wonder if the Greni have ever had humans down here before; I wonder if they know that we need warmth to survive.
It seems to take forever, but finally we reach what appears to be our destination. The Greni don't lead us to the underwater buildings, though, but to a cave set a little off to the side. The two others with us drift off, leaving Alex and me with the male holding our hands. He glides into the cave, propelling himself with only his feet, pulling us along in his wake.
"Here you will be tested," he says, and I am surprised that he is still understandable underwater; when Alex tries to ask a question, all that comes out is bubbles. Somehow, though, the Greni seems to understand.
"You do not do anything; the sacred cave will do the testing. You only need to survive it."
Before either of us can make noises of alarm, everything goes black.
I can't feel anything, not the cold water, nor the Greni's hand on mine. I can't see a thing; though it was dark in the cave to start with, at least there were a few shadows and glimpses of light. Then I feel something... the closest I've ever felt was when I had a terrible headache - as though some raging beast was in my head trying to get out. I try to scream, but I can't seem to locate my body. Images flash before my mind's eye and some of them look familiar - like memories - but it is too fast to tell for sure. I'm not sure if it lasts for seconds or hours before I can't take it any more and I fade into unconsciousness.
I wake up wet and shivering and colder than I've ever been in my life. Turning my head to the side - with great effort - I see Alex lying next to me, looking almost blue with cold.
"Alex?" I force myself up onto one elbow and shake his shoulder. "Can you hear me?"
"Cara?" He is shaking as he sits up, but definitely alive.
"We passed, then," I say. "Unless this is death."
We glance around at the familiar beach and Alex shakes his head slightly. Though neither of us knows what death looks like, we are both pretty sure this isn't it. I try to force myself up further, but Alex isn't even moving, his eyes closed.
"Alex, we need to - "
I stop abruptly as the most wonderful feeling swoops through me: warmth. I am suddenly dry and cosy as though I've just climbed out of bed. I stare at Alex, who is grinning at me. "Magic can be useful, you know," he says.
"You'll have to teach me how to do that," I mutter, standing and giving him a hand up.
"I guess that means we're to find a way to get the king to negotiate with the Greni," Alex says, staring towards the sea. "It won't be easy..."
My mind flicks back to the conversation we had before entering the water. "We'll have to move fast; if we don't, they may get impatient and abandon the idea of negotiations altogether. We don't need the kingdom swallowed while we're still working."
Alex is looking at me with a strange expression.
"What?" I ask.
He doesn't answer.
"What?" I ask again. "Spit it out, Alex."
Someone needs to go to the king," he say slowly. "He needs to be told of the situation and given a change to negotiate. If he refuses, though... we'll need an army; an army of people who can use magic to force him to step down. We don't have time to do both things together. We're going to need to split up."
I stare at him as the facts sink in. Somehow, I can't quite get myself to breathe.
To be continued
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