I huffed, throwing my hands up, rushing them back down as the towel started to slip. “That's what I just said.”
“Can’t you just accept help? Even if it isn't Veridiana, or even in the way I'm proposing, you need the backup.”
I digested his words, then regurgitated his earlier ones. “I'll take it under advisement.”
“Thank you. And..if you need it, I'll be around too.” His eyes locked with mine.
My eyebrows shot up. “Thanks for that, whatever that is,” I managed around the dryness in my mouth. I swallowed and cleared my throat. “But don't worry. I'll be fine.”
Zevrial pressed his lips tightly together, saying nothing. “Really,” I stressed. “I'll be fine.”
Shaking his head, he turned and walked away. “Don't say I didn't warn you,” he called back.
I rubbed my arms to ward off the chill that had rooted into them despite the warm air, taking off the towel and sliding fully into the pool.
He was wrong, I didn't need help. Overdoing it training had been a mistake. It was one I wouldn't repeat. But I'd made it this far on my own, I would make it through the midterm too.
Chapter 17
What Lives in the Deep
Today was our last lesson before the midterm. It was difficult concentrating on anything Instructor Garcien said because my anticipatory anxiety had reached critical mass. Henrik’s sprawling clutter around our usual bench seats didn’t help. I shoved his bag toward him with my foot.
Instructor Garcien had already covered a dozen creatures, but I’d have to reread my notes to remember any of it.
“...ders travel in schools, posing a minor threat. They are only dangerous if you’re beside miasma, since they jump out of it. You should never be that close, due to the miasma burn risk. They’re drawn to movement.”
I doodled a picture of the Shredders she spoke about, eerie fish with large mouths, haunting eyes, and pointed teeth.
“Sanguirs are a bigger threat,” she continued.
I remembered a picture of Sanguirs from a book I owned. They were parasitic leeches the size of watermelons that lived inthe miasma, and subsisted on the blood and viscera of anything they came into contact with.
“They’re bloodthirsty, and move deceptively quick given their size. They have limited intelligence and vision, and are attracted to anything that might be their next meal, including each other. Vibrations, warmth, motion. They latch onto any exposed flesh they can feed from. They especially enjoy the taste of eyeballs.”
Delightful.Well wasn’t that a wonderful tidbit that I could never unknow?
“Typically they travel alone, but they will swarm when significant blood is spilled. A single Sanguir can be deadly, so take care if you ever encounter multiple. Hydras are uncommon, but massive and dangerous. The spit within all three jaws is more corrosive than miasma. It eats through bone and rock in seconds. They are aggressive, both to us and to each other, but can be managed with fire, which they fear.”
I shooed a mayfly off my paper with a jittery jerk of my hand.
“The most common creature you’ll face are Cragscales,” she pointed to a lumpy blob with pits for eyes. “They will attach themselves to the sides of Arcs after they mate. Male Cragscales must be stationary and dry while carrying their eggs to term. And yes, the males carry the egg sacs. You will have to scrape them off the Arc’s hulls periodically, as their presence attracts predators.”
“Another problematic miasma resident are the Leviathans. They do not like attention, but their size is gargantuan enough that even brushing up against an Arc could throw anyone topside overboard. As a general rule, Arcs should be steered away from any larger creatures. In all recorded cases, Leviathans have swum away from Arcs. We leave them alone, and they leave us alone.”
The Leviathan picture Instructor Garcien was showing us looked more like a poorly cooked noodle on my page. Artistic talent was not in my Tide.
“Riftfloats are another peril you’ll encounter on your journeys to the outer islands.”
Oh goodie. There’s more.
“Though rare, you can see their gelatinous membrane exterior above the surface of the miasma. Their tentacles glow beneath it.”
Huh.What would that look like beneath the miasma sheen?
“They are harmless when isolated, but when two or more fight in a mating display, whirlpools can open up in their wake. If you see more than one Riftfloat, navigate away. The whirlpools are not large enough to threaten an Arc, but the currents they create are strong enough to pull you off course.”
Instructor Garcien held up a wooden carving of a Riftfloat, delicate tentacles extending out from a bulbous head. I tried and failed to capture its likeness.
