Shadows of Iraedes | NanoWrimo 2021

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO: BEYOND THE HORIZON

Evander looked over at Aurora who wore a mixed expression on her face. Her eyes were squeezed shut as if she didn't want to see the end as it was coming up to meet them. The dark waters below them crashed against the tall crags stretching for them, their wind, whittled down tips, sharp and ragged.

Fear was written in the wrinkles creased at the edges of her eyes and at the corners of her mouth, even the lines boring in her forehead, but there was something else too. Something like a sparkle in the way she was holding her lips. A slit curl which looked like the littlest bit of happiness she could feel at the moment as the oceans charged upwards to meet them.

The crash sent ice up his back and he felt the pain in his left arm explode. It felt as if his arm had been torn off and he was afraid to look but this time he did, only he wish he hadn't. He still had his arm, which he was grateful for, but it was shattered. He only hoped he could get a physician to fix it, but he couldn't think more on it as the air in his lungs began burning and he was sinking. He kicked his legs and forced himself upwards.

But the waves fought him, pushing him down and weighting his arm with pain and pressure.

He struggled battling the force of the ocean working against him. Finally he broke the surface but then dipped below as a swell rolled over him. He was pushed back under and he gave a hard kick.

He burst to the surface and looked around. He wiped water from his eyes and pushed his wet hair from his vision trying to spot Aurora. When he didn't he yelled her name but his voice was lost as a wave splashed its salty ocean water into his mouth. Surprised he choked and sputtered and fell back under. He forced himself to push back up and looked around without pushing his hair from his eyes.

He didn't see her anywhere and spun around to look behind him. And then he saw her.

She was clinging to one of the sharp teeth below the Iraedes. She looked as drowned as he felt, but they were alive. He gave an inward smile and made for her as fast as his broken body would allow. It was harder swimming than it had trying to just push himself upwards for the surface of the water.

"Aurora!" he yelled. She still couldn't hear him when she didn't look for his voice.

He drove himself hard through the water, forcing himself to stay above the waves, the ocean water continuing to fill his mouth and log down his clothing making it harder to keep above the dark blue. He was glad she had found something to cling to. He'd not even used a second to ponder if she even knew how to swim before they jumped.

Keeping himself going forward he looked up at the rocky edge, at how far they had fallen. It was a miracle they were both alive. He was even more so that he hadn't crashed on the rocks at the bottom. He would have drowned if he hadn't been able to swim for the rock Aurora was hanging onto.

Battling the waves and tasting the salt with every wave that crashed into his mouth he finally managed to make it to the soaking rock she was clinging to. When he put a hand on the rock and grabbed a hold did she finally turn to look at him. Her blond hair stuck to her face in sandy colored strands. The braid was even matted down and soaked to her pale skin.

He had to hold on with his good arm as he could do nothing with his other. And all he wanted was to wipe the hair from her eyes so she could see him.

"We survived," she said, but had to yell so he could hear her even if they were beside one another. The waves crashing against the rock they clung to and to the rocks around them was thunderous, every wave sounding like an explosion.

"Can you swim?" he shouted above the noise.

The look on her face was one that dreaded what they would have to do to get out of the situation they were in, but she nodded.

A sputter of water burst from her mouth as her lips quivered with a chill from the ocean, "Yes, I do."

"We have to swim for the beach." He motioned with his chin to an area behind them.

For a moment she only held on with a white grip, her hands bleached of color she held so hard and then she looked over her shoulder to where the strip of sand lay miles out from where they were.

She swung her face back as if the distance itself was terrifying, but he couldn't deny it. He felt a bit of fear himself at having to swim so far with an injured arm and anything else that was damaged in the middle of a wild ocean. He was afraid he wouldn't make it. He still couldn't take in full breaths, sharp pains running across his chest and down his sides.

"We'll go together. If you go in front of me and start to go under, I'll pull you up," he said.

"But who is going to pull you up if you go under?" she asked. Her brows were brought together with concern.

A warm bought of happiness burned the chill setting in his body from the cold water as he looked at her. Her concern was touching and it tickled something inside of him he wasn't sure he'd ever felt before.

"Don't worry about me, I will be fine. We'll get through this," he said. "Once we get to that beach you'll have nothing else to worry about," he said with a smile.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Let's get to land and I'll tell you," he said and gave her a wink. She stared at him and when he gave her a reassuring look she gave him a slow nod.

"Alright," she said and then as if they both knew she pushed off from the rock and began swimming for the strip of white sand.

He took a breath, filling as much of his lungs as he could without stretching his chest that would cause the pain to flare up again and then he pushed off and followed.

She seemed to be struggling as he watched her, and felt part of the reason was the dress she had on was wrapping around her legs. It was the same dress she had been wearing at the ball almost seven days ago. Gharet hadn't either allowed her to change or hadn't bothered to get her clothes.

The dress, once shimmering and beautiful had somehow lost its luster from the environment and extended time being worn. It saddened him, but also lit a fire that wanted him to buy her all the dresses she wanted. Anything she wanted, he wanted to give her. He shook his head to keep his head where he was.

He couldn't drift off and get distracted else he'd go under and he didn't know how much strength he'd have after a while of battling waves and he needed to make sure he would be there if she began going under. He wasn't going to let her drown. He'd drown for her if it meant her or him. He didn't know much about her but he knew she'd already had a hard enough life. That would be over once they were free from the watery embrace threatening to drag them down with every swell and surge of the salty deep.

But as they dipped and rose with the water the land was slowly, achingly slow, becoming bigger, which meant they were getting closer.

He pushed himself harder, the last stretch insight. Aurora was still afloat which was good. He hoped she had enough steam to get her to the beach because he was feeling a stitch in his side and both of his arms were burning. One from pulling him through the water and having to make up for the lack of use of the other, which meant he had to swim twice as fast to keep himself up, but also because his other, he still couldn't move it.

He spit out another mouthful of salty fish water and floundered. He lost his momentum, his arm feeling numb and laden with lead and his head went under.

He'd been so close.