The King's Possession ✔️

FORTY THREE - Part Two

Word Count: 2385

For a moment, there's just darkness, and then I hit water.

I don't manage much of a scream as I plummet into the icy cold grasp of pure obsidian coloured water. Pushing up toward the water, I remerge, gasping for air as I cough water from my mouth. Paddling to keep myself afloat, I look up, seeing a bright hole in the shroud of darkness, where two heads look through. I seriously fell from all the way up there?

I've either fallen into some elaborate trap created by a hunter, or I'm in some kind of underground pool.

"Akara!" Tai and Marek yell in unison.

"I'm okay," I reply uneasily, looking around to see nothing but darkness, aside from the small amount of light dancing along the surface of the water. "I'm in water."

Suddenly, a light appears not far from my face, and then another, followed by another. In amazement - and terror - I watch as specks of light increase, winking in an out of sight, creating what looks like a stars against a black canvas. Were it not for the small hole in the ceiling of whatever this is, I could be convinced I'm staring at the night sky.

"It looks like a cave down here," I realise, noting that I've seen these strange bug-like creatures before that illuminate a brilliant amount of light.

I gasp in amazement, as I look around me, the water having turned from ebony, to an ineffable mix of rich emerald and azure blue colours which bleed together with the sudden source of light. The walls of the cave a short distance from me are slate grey, vines hanging from the ceiling sticking against them. And in my line of sight, a small sandy bank.

"How deep is the water?" Marek calls from above me. Swallowing my fear, I refuse to look down, not wanting to imagine what creatures dwell beneath the surface, despite how beautiful the water may be coloured.

"I don't want to think about that. I'm going to swim to some land nearby," I tell them.

Wading quickly, I make it to the sand, my knees nearly giving out from under me as I crawl onto the bank, collapsing onto my back as I regain my breath. As frightening as that was, I'm now relieved to see that I've stumbled upon a very natural creation in the Jade province. A cave system.

"We are coming in after you," Marek announces. For a short moment, I hear Tai protest, before a splash of water ensues. Getting to my feet shakily, I turn, looking toward a particularly thick bunch of vines hanging from the ceiling. Pulling them apart, I wince at their slimy surface, before tearing some down, letting them fall into a heap before me. Whatever is beyond casts far more light into this part of the cave, revealing more to see.

All the little lights on the cave walls wink out as both men fall into the water, before slowly reappearing.

The water is crystal clear, tinted a vivid emerald green that's breath-taking. Beneath the water, there are no creatures, just settled earth and a myriad of different coloured rocks.

"What the hell is this place?" Tai questions as him and Marek step up onto the land, brushing his dark hair back in a move that sends water droplets spraying everywhere.

"The Jade Province is a wet place with plenty of caves dwelling underground. This is likely part of an elaborate system," I explain, ignoring Marek's intense gaze which sweeps over me, likely checking for injury. "You should travel throughout your own Province more."

Tai's eyes narrow.

Marek begins unbuttoning from the top of his shirt. "For a girl who claims she isn't well educated, you sure do have a lot of knowledge."