Limbo between Kings

Day 5 - Drowning

The edges of Olivia's vision remained cloudy, like a fog covering the bottom of the forest edge. Her movements weren't hers to control; Her legs shifted forward, watching the edge of the balcony with expectant eyes. Something was coming, it had happened before, yet she couldn't stop herself from watching the water below.

The sea furiously crashed the cliffside, demanding entry, yet Olivia was too scared to move from the railing, her knuckles white against it. The salt of the water tickled her nose, spraying down and adding weight to the already cumbersome gown. Still, she could not move.

Pungent in her nose, the storm smelt of lightning and salt. The dark weight of the clouds lit aflame with colorful branching light. It struck the edge of her balcony, cracking the ancient stone in half. She wanted to move. Fear told her to run, to escape the sudden onset of chaos that surrounded her. Still, she could not.

Voices rang through the crashing of the water below, pulling her eyes to the noise. The docks beneath rocked unsteadily. Captains ordered their men to evacuate the ships as the hulls cracked from the onslaught of forceful water.

Olivia demanded her legs to move, watching as the sea swirled and crashed at her feet. Water filled the floor, slick with algae and seaweed. With a final breath, the water slammed into her torso, tossing her onto her stone floor. A click reverberated in her ears, a hum accompanying the pain in her head. Hot blood seeped into the cold water, dying it a beautiful crimson.

Black, darker than the night sky, took her.

~~*~~

Olivia's burning lungs felt submerged in water, the smell of salt still fresh in her nostrils. A sharp cough spewed from her mouth as if she were drowning. She felt less herself at this moment than she had in her dream. Dazed, each attempt to recover her stolen breath resulted in a deep throbbing behind her eyelids.

Her heaviest drinking hadn't compared to this. The muscles in her body were stiff, refusing to relax in her skin. Rotating to her side, Olivia released the chunked contents of her stomach. The rancid smell watered her eyes and heaved her stomach once more. This violent release continued until nothing would exit her mouth except excess saliva.

"Here." She felt the presence of him beside her, refusing to open her swollen eyes. Roughly, she snatched the waterskin from his hand, throwing it across the makeshift campground.

Her hands were unbound, she noted.

His hand softly curled around her upper arm, pulling her to a seated position. Her teeth ground together, sickened at his touch. Olivia's trembling hand summoning all the strength she had to slap his arm from her. The force threw her to the ground, her hair a blanket of safety around her quivering lips and tear-filled eyes. The acidic taste in her mouth begged her for a drink, but she would not cave. She would crawl to the stream before she took a sip of anything he offered.

Peaking through her curtain of ebony hair, she admired the forming crimson welt on his forearm, proud of her ability to cause him a fraction of the pain she had. Her body had yet to recover from the last drug he had injected into her, and with this accompanying, she didn't think she could survive another dose. She needed something to fill her stomach and absorb the poison burning her insides.

"It's water." He promised, another full skin stretched towards her, his mouth taught as he caught a small glimpse of her resentment pouring from her eyes. The hate built within her, filled with rage and contempt until she could no longer contain it. Locking her honey eyes with his, she lifted her arm behind her, striking him on the cheekbone. Her palm stinging like a hundred fire ants, she pulled her hand into her abdomen. Her eyes closed, waiting for his retaliation.