As stealthily as I could in the tumultuous waters, I swam closer to scan the boats.Where is this damn prince?I failed to notice the colossal wave until it plunged me underwater.
Followed by another.
Then another.
Tail working endlessly to keep me afloat, I managed to linger above the surface long enough to watch the scene unfold.A crack of lightning. A roar of thunder. And, as if on cue, a savage wave struck the lifeboats. It happened quickly, yet it was as if in slow motion. A girl sitting in one of the boats toppled into the water and was quickly swallowed by a wave.
Bellows and cries rang faintly from the lifeboats.
This wasnotpart of the plan. Saving her would be a diversion. But she was a child…
Fuck.I pushed forward as thoughmylife depended on it. I frantically scanned the surrounding area.
Nothing.
I stopped. Calming myself, I inhaled deeply and focused on commanding the currents to lead me to the girl. “Show me the way.”
Like a petulant child throwing a temper tantrum, the currents refused to be reasoned with. I was not their master.
“Show me the way,” I growled with frustration.
Again, the currents disregarded me, unmoved by my desperation. Fear, panic, and bitter anger that I was failing swelled inside of me. I would not succumb to my emotions, and I would not allow the child to succumb to the ocean.
I returned to my frantic pursuit, plunging deeper and deeper into the cloudy waters. “Where are you?” I repeated desperately until it was little more than a whimper between ragged breaths.
Just when it felt like all hope was lost, an idea jolted me back to my senses. Illumination—a useful form of elementary magic. I reached for my power and conjured a ball of light. The light was small but bright against the blackness of the ocean. Immediately, I spotted something out of the corner of my eye. Partially veiled in darkness, there was no mistaking what it was. A body.
It was as though invisible claws were dragging the girl’s limp form slowly towards the ocean bed. She was escorted by a procession of air bubbles floating around her.
It wasn’t too late. Yet.
I shot towards the body. Using every ounce of preternatural speed I possessed, I raced against time. The movement was so quick that the pouch loosened its grip from my shoulders and began floating away. I snatched it before it could be lost to the ocean, taking with it my only chance at surviving the next few weeks.
Soon, I was at the girl’s side. Tucking her body into mine, I charged up, up, up towards the surface, once again resorting to the familiar chant in my head.
Please don’t be too late.Please don’t be too late.Please don’t be too late.
Finally, we broke the surface. The storm was dying down, but the ship had been completely obliterated. The lifeboats were nowhere to be seen.
In my peripheral vision, I saw a large piece of timber, one of many floating remnants of the vessel that had been consumed by the ocean. Heart racing, and with the girl safely tucked under my arm, I swam to it.
I hoisted her onto the timber. It left me fighting for breath and somehow with a wicked slash on my right arm, but there was no time to worry about that. Right now, I had to clear the water from her lungs.
Pushing down onto her chest, I breathed into her parted, blue lips. I did it again and again, but it was useless. The child’s chest was barely moving.
Think.
A plan took form in my mind. I had never attempted it before, but I wasn’t about to let my inexperience stop me from giving it a try.
Inhaling deeply, I forced myself to be calm for the second time that night. The sound of the water lapping against the timber, the sting of the salt water licking my wound, the despair that threatened to unravel me if I failed—I banished it all from mymind and fixated on reaching for my power.
Soon, I felt the telltale sign of my magic: a comforting warmth that started in my veins then trickled through my body.
My touch was featherlight on the girl’s chest. In my mind, I spoke to the water in her lungs.
Leave this child.
Too many heart-stopping seconds later, the water responded to my command. I watched with bated breath as she recoiled and began coughing and spluttering, then emptied the contents of her stomach into the ocean. I held her as she retched again, overcome with relief that I hadn’t been too late.
