A light breeze blew over us whilst we were asleep. Gently fell a small array of white ice. The ice began to settle on the lake, before melting and slightly discolouring the water. I could in my mind only picture and dream about what lies ahead, my future with Trek and Coral. I wonder if Trek will be more positive towards Coral tomorrow. He seemed a little bit uneasy around her today. Hopefully they will get along tomorrow. I had some strange notion yesterday that they knew each other and from what I could tell, from a very bad experience.
I was awakened by the sound of subtle birdsong. The sound was so sweet and beautiful that I had to leave the cave. I longingly stared at the sun rising over the mountaintops in the distance. Dawn. I had never taken the time to stare at this magnificent work of nature. I sat down at the edge of the water, desperately wanting Coral's attention. Due to the falling ice, the lake had began to freeze over. I waited for for a while and then I noticed it. Coral was trying to break through the layer of ice but really struggled.
I saw her and began to talk with her. If this layer of ice didn't thaw then Coral would slowly die. She needed sunlight to keep her alive. I ran back to the cave to awaken Trek. I told him why I needed him so quickly.
"Trek, if you have ever met her before or you have any respect for me you will help me. I don't want her to be condemned to death. Please?" Trek nodded in agreement.
"We need to come up with a strategy to thaw the ice, and I know just what we need to do!"
"What do we need to do?" I was quite confused.
"We have to run over the ice as fast as we can. The heat from us running will make heat which will dissolve the ice. Do you understand?" I nodded. We both exited the cave and ran straight on to the ice. The sun was shining through the trees and weakened some spots of ice. I stepped on one patch of ice which didn't look as firm. The ice separated beneath me and I plummeted in to the pool of icy cold water.
"Help! Help!" Nobody came to help me.
Trek noticed that I was beneath the ice. He ran over to me to try and help me. Coral however was to far away to hear my screams. The sun that was now at its warmest faded away behind an array of clouds. A blizzard was nearing the lake and would then prohibit me exit. I couldn't swim so I began to drown. Trek ran over to Coral.
"Coral!" He yelled. Coral looked up at him.
"Gray is drowning. Please help him. There is a hole in the ice." Without thinking twice, Coral began to swim over in my direction.
"Coral," I mumbled in relief. My voice was very distorted. My eyes began to go out of focus and I began to sink. Coral instantly waved her tail quicker than I had ever thought possible. She didn't want me to die. I saw a small droplet escape her eye. My eyes shut. I felt arms wrapped around my chest. She helped to raise me to the surface. I felt a sunned burst of heat hit me. Instead of being stuck in a pool of freezing water, I was released back to my world. My world of heat, trees and light.
I chattered when Trek came over to me. Coral and Trek dragged me over to the cave. The ice that we tried so hard to melt broke into many pieces that fell to the bottom of the lake. The water was now clear of ice. The blizzard that was once of snow changed to a storm. A storm of rain and lightning. The electricity blazed high in the sky.
"No!" Coral screamed.
"What's wrong Coral?" I asked.
"The last time that electricity blazed in the sky and hit the lake most of my people in the lake were brutally killed!"
"It doesn't affect fish or other sea creatures but it does for us. We have no protection. We don't have scales or a shell or anything else for that matter. We die whenever the lightning strike the stream. I can't lose anyone else. They're all going to die!" We sat on the floor of the cave huddled around the fire that Trek had constructed. The heat from the burning sticks and the smell of them burning brought back some sad memories. When Trek's tail had caught fire and when I noticed my parents were dead. This is what Coral faced.
I still can't comprehend that Coral has already witnessed many of her beloved people and family die in front of her. Also, she did mention whilst we sat at the fire that other animals that can't swim use vines to stop the merfish from swimming.
"They throw vines into the water with a round shape at the end. They circle catches our fins and then they drag us out of the water. They carry us back to where they live and kill us for food. We can't ever escape for the vines are so tight." Coral looked at me, crying.
The tale that she had just shared with us was very upsetting and it would be for any animal. She looked over to the water and saw many merfish now floating at the surface of the water. I think she wanted to go and try and save them but that would probably resulted in her death as well as theirs.
"Do you know any of them?" I asked trying not to upset her.
"Yes I know them. My mum, my dad, my cousins and my friends all lie there. But my twin sister isn't there!" Coral unleashed a sad smile.
