Phoenix

Drowning

The large cavernous alcove on the face of the cliff face was damp and had a distinct claggy smell like a cold metal spoon dipped in glue. The wind gave a hollow howl like a breath over the mouthpiece of a flute. Ash dragged herself onto the closest section of flat rock and lay there, chest heaving. She'd made it.

It had only taken her all day and into the afternoon to figure out how to float on her back and propel herself along with her feet. It wasn't graceful, nor was it that effective, but slowly, the burnt umber cliff got closer, until she could hear the sea-birds nests scattered on its surface and hear their fledglings beckoning. The overcast sky beat a slow burning heat into her pores that sucked the moisture from her skin and lips. Her mind turned to daydreams of water, repeated over and over until she began to lose grip of reality. Her hands could not have met the rough handshake of limestone sooner.

When she'd recovered enough to study her surrounds, the first thing she noticed was shallow pools of water gathered in little dips in the limestone walls and on the ground near the back of the cave. She wondered if it would be fresh, drinkable and found herself licking her lips.

She was about to find out when something caught her eye. At the corner of cave, hidden by the shadow of rock, the cashew hulled sailboats rocked to and fro with the waves. They were bound by ropes, but strained against them like dogs on leads. Ash squinted when she noticed a strange movement aboard the closest boat. There was someone aboard, fumbling to untie the restraining rope and from the way they kept their head ducked and their shoulders stooped apologetically inward, it was clear they weren't supposed to be there.

Ash stood, the feeling of impending doom she'd felt since the morning rising to a peak. "Hey," she called out. Her voice echoed in the concave expanse.

The person looked up, eyes wide, though their hands continued to fumble with the ropes. Long wayward hair, gaunt, slightly dewy complexion. It was Freia.

"What are you doing?" Ash said, moving forward. "I don't think you're supposed to be—"

"I'm gone get!" Freia averting her gaze. "I dun spect you to understand."

"Where are you going?" Ash said. "You can't just leave. You don't eve know how to sail."

Freia ignored her and continued to untangle the rope in her hand with frantic movements. "Tell Eli I'm all apologies," she said. "But I won't stay here another day. I'll never be a Wanderer. And it's a real jaw clanker to make me sit around an peek you all this time."

Freia threw the rope into the water and began floating away. Ash scrambled to the edge of the limestone outcrop and waved her arms. "You don't even know where you're going. You'll get lost at sea."

Freia looked as though she said something more but it was lost to the wind. The boat edged even further away and began to drift out to sea.

Ash moved forward. "Wait! I'm sure if you talk to Eli, he'll take you back to ACE himself if that's where you really want to go—"

Before she could finish her sentence, a freak wave rose out of nowhere and crashed on the rock with astounding force. Freia and her boat just made it over the crest of the wave before it broke. But Ash was not so lucky. As she scrambled backwards, attempting to find higher ground, the wave crashed into her with full force, knocking her legs out from under. She fell forward, scraping her knees on the course limestone floor, before being swept in the same direction as the boat. Before she knew it, solid rock gave way to deep water and she was being dragged out to sea.

Panicking, she expelled the oxygen from her lungs in one out breath and felt another wave plummet into the side of her face. She went under momentarily this time, and rose again, coughing and spluttering. There was a distant cry from above, a golden curve on a ray of sun—"Skreeeaaaaaaahhh!"—then nothing but liquid blue and froth-white teeth, gnashing and gnawing, gripping her arms and legs pulling her like a rag-doll. Bubbles hissed in her ears, giggled, and chased each other to the surface. She sunk, chest burning as the porous tissue of her lungs became heavy and useless. She didn't know how long she fought the surge, head bobbing above the surface every now and then, teasing her with the occasional breath. But it wasn't long until her arms and legs stopped fighting and felt a fog creep into her mind.

At some stage, there was a change in the water. The ocean gave a shudder and went calm. The waves stopped tumbling and the bubbles disappeared. Two long, pale arms appeared in the murkiness, curled around her shoulders and heaved her through the slippery blue like a torpedo. She felt the water stream past, then a rush of air bite her clammy skin and a wall of flame-red hair drop like a curtain around her. 

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