The Forsaken Girl

It Was Nothing But A Lie

Not edited

Frigid waters lapped against his shoulders as he fought to keep his head above the poisonous liquid that threatened to overtake him the further he swam into the lake. The small wooden boat bobbed up and down as waves of cool blue water crashed against roughly against its bow. Strangely enough though the boat never moved from its location, appearing almost out of the water like a mirage in the distance. A flood of exhaustion overtook him and the tingling sensation in his skin seemed to intensify the further he swam into the depths of the lake, until it felt as if his entire body was engulfed in flames.

Hadn't Luca guaranteed that the elixir he'd drank earlier would keep him safe from treacherous waters?

Was it all just a lie?

So far it seemed that way, but what other option did he have besides reaching the boat. Luca wouldn't accept otherwise.

The boat was less than 100 yards away and the muscles in his arms began to ache terribly, his strength quickly beginning to wane. Fatigue weighed him down as he struggled to keep himself from sinking into the abyss below, the waves around him relentless in their pursuit to help him do just that.

Another wave crested over the top of him, submerging his entire face under water and he couldn't help but accidentally swallow a bit of the toxic water. Sputtering he managed to spit out most of the water but it was already too late, he'd ingested some and the pit of his stomach was already beginning to churn violently. Sharp shards of pain erupted across his entire abdomen, causing him to almost stop treading water as he struggled to stay afloat. A new sense of urgency overtook him with the realization that he wouldn't be able to last much longer before he sank to the bottom of the lake. Joining the thousands of other lost souls who forever lurked beneath the deadly waters.

Stealing himself he fought the agonizing pain that ran rampant throughout him as he swam forward, slowly closing the distance between the boat and himself. The lake seemed to protest his advancement, the waves becoming more rough as the waters around him churned violently.

On and on he went, each stroke he swam towards the boat the quicker his energy was sapped, diminishing what little strength he had left, but he still was making gains. The boat floated lazily along the water no more than 20 yards away and he began to suddenly feel hopeful. Maybe everything wasn't lost just yet, there was a chance he could still make it.

Another crippling swell of pain rushed over him, knocking the breath right out of his lungs as he neared the boat that floated only fifteen feet away. Waves crashed wildly against him, the current seemed impossible to overcome and he couldn't help but wonder what was causing the secluded underground lake to churn so violently. No way should the waters react so unnaturally without some outside force coming into play. Gathering the very last bit of his strength he struggled forward, barely managing to grab a hold of the tattered rope that dangled from the boat's bow as another wave crashed over him.

Pulling himself up and into the boat he sprawled to a heap onto the rough wood boards of the hull, gasping as he tried to catch his breath as the boat gently rocked side to side. The sound of clapping echoed loudly across the cavern and he slowly pulled himself up onto his knees to peer over the edge of the bow. Luca stood along the edge of the shoreline, one eyebrow arched upwards as he flashed a devious smirk back at him.

"Well done boy, well done. You survived the swim out, I didn't realize how resilient you humans really are. I suggest you get back here quickly before the elixir wears off and the water from your clothes absorbs into your skin. Since it took you so long to swim out they I'd say you have about 10 minutes or so at the most, time to hurry."

The feeling of dread filled him as he frantically looked the hull of the bow for anything that would help him maneuver the boat back to shore. Tucked under one of the seats was a splintering old wooden paddle, the wood was so aged that he wasn't certain it would hold up against the strain of the trip back to shore. Settling down onto the hard seat he shifted subconsciously trying to get more comfortably as he dipped the paddle into the cool water. Pushing the paddle along the side of the boat a small smile crept onto his face as he managed to propel forward a few yards. Repeating the motion on the other side of the boat he continued to paddle as fast as he could, quickly closing the distance between them. Pushing himself as hard he was almost two-thirds of the way back to shore when a sickening sound of wood splintering filled the air. Horror flooded him as he realized that the only paddle that was in the boat had just snapped in half, his stomach churned violently as he realized just how futile everything now was.

A shiver ran up his spine as the churning in his gut became too much and the contents of his stomach spewed out from his mouth in a rancid pile of vomit. Heaving he continued to vomit until there was nothing left and only bitter bile came up. Wiping the back of his hand across his mouth he spat angrily into the water.

Fúck it, he wasn't going down without a fight.

The shore was only twenty yards away when he jumped into the dark water, his body quickly submerging beneath the frigid waters. Time was definitely up but it no longer mattered, he couldn't give up yet. If he was doomed to die then at least he was going out swinging. Aching muscles protested loudly as he continued to swim towards the safety of the shore, a small flame of hope ignited within him as he closed the distance. The waves had quieted down, like the silence before a storm as he tugged the boat behind him.

Fifteen feet away from shore and another crippling wave of pain rushed through him, his time was up. The edges of his vision began to darken as he struggled to remain awake, everything becoming hazy as he fought his way forward towards safety. Using the last reserve of energy he had left a surge of relief filled him as the break in the shoreline rose up beneath him and the glorious dirt of the lake bed was suddenly under his feet. Trudging up the slight incline his muscles trembled vehemently in protest as he finally reached the beach, the blistering pain had become too much to bear. Collapsing onto the dirt he finally passed out. The battle was lost.

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Luca watched the man struggle against the desolate waters of the enchanted lake before him. The elixir's powers were already beginning to work as the waves began to grow larger and larger the further he went into the lake, the strain of swimming out quickly sapping the human of his energy. The faster he became fatigued the quicker he could put the next part of his plan into motion.

Surprisingly though the human somehow managed to make it upon the boat, despite the weakening effects of the potion he'd fooled him into drinking earlier, before sending him out on the meaningless task. Summoning a boat was child's play for a demonic lord like himself, but that wasn't of any concern right at this moment, especially since the water in the lake was completely harmless.

No. What he needed was that human weakened some more. Luca called out taunting remarks, he couldn't help himself, especially anytime it came to humans. Well besides Jaclyn that is, she was a different case completely, something more unique and special to him. Not that she'd let him get away with it anyway.

Spotting the old paddle he smirked as it suddenly snapped in half, despair overtaking Nate's face as he held the broken thing in his hands. The human suddenly lurched over to the side of the boat, spewing vomit into the dark water below.

A sinister smile overtook his face and Luca watched as Nathan purged his stomach of its contents, but by now it was too late. The elixir continued to work it's way through the humans body and the change had already started to take effect.

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A/N Hi again everyone. I'm glad you've all been patiently waiting for this chapter, especially since when writing this the first time it didn't save correctly and I lost most of the dang chapter. Lovely right? Ugh..

By the way I've been wanting to dedicate some of the chapters to you the lovely readers but there are so many awesome readers I can't decide who to dedicate to. Wanting to be fair I've decided I'll dedicate this chapter to the first person to write a comment AND vote on the chapter, so ready...set.... go!

I wonder what is coming up next? Will Nate come out of this alive or is this the end of one of our beloved characters? Most importantly what do you think of the chapter?

Vote or comment if you enjoyed reading the story so far :)

Till next week everyone