The Sea Calls Me Home

Untitled Part 4

I have a good feeling about today, Nyad says encouragingly. They're returning to the surface again. Nya's lost count of how many times they've been here at this point.

You say that every day, Nyad, Nya points out. Her companion smiles and shrugs.

And every day you make it a little bit further.

I guess... Nya allows with a sigh. She knows Nyad is right, but she wishes the evidence of that truth was a little more noticeable. So what if she lasted 5 seconds longer yesterday than the day before? 5 seconds isn't much in the grand scheme of things.

What Nya really wants is to be done with constantly trying and failing to successfully unmerge with the Endless Sea (which totally doesn't make her feel sucky at all, for the record). She yearns to see her family again and that can't happen until she beats this. Or, if the endeavor kills her, until Kai does something undeniably stupid and gets everyone else killed and they all meet up in the Departed Realm. Which is... a very morbid thought. Moving on.

Nya turns to head closer to shore once more. Alright, let's do this, she calls to Nyad.

Together, they make the trek, just like they do every day. As they do, Nya goes over everything in her head, trying to pint point what's causing her so much trouble. Nyad makes transitioning from water to land look so easy, but it's not. She must be missing something... right?

I believe in you, Nyad says eventually, derailing Nya's train of thought, do not let the sea win this time. It is not good for its ego.

Nya gives a weak laugh. I'll try to remember that, she says, not quite sure if the sea is actually capable of having an ego. It's hard to tell when Nyad is being serious and when she is speaking more... artistically.

Good, Nyad replies. They both fall silent as Nya begins the long walk towards the sand shore in the distance. Wave after wave; step after step. The sensation of growing solid, human, has become less of a shock to her, now. If only it wasn't a prelude to a much more unpleasant sensation.

Nya braces herself for the next stage of the transition. Only a few more steps until... do it for your family, she tells herself, do it for Kai, and Lloyd, a-and... Jay... The cold hits her first, then the waves around her grow more intense, louder. Deafening. And finally, the sea seems to develop claws. Like always it refuses to relinquish its grip on her. In her moments of clarity, Nya has come to liken the resulting pain to what she imagines it would feel like to be mauled by a tiger while being shredded by a cheese grater.

Gritting her teath, Nya forces herself to keep going. Not this time. Not. This. Time. She says over and over. Maybe if she focuses on something other than the pain? It's worth a try. She pictures the monastery grounds at the height of spring. Cherry blossom season – one of her favorite times of the year. Aside from Christmas, of course.

Jay is always doing cute things like putting flowers in her hair when she's not looking or writing little messages for her with stray petals . The air always feels so fresh. The atmosphere is somehow calmer... calm.

Nya's next step comes easier. The rushing in her ears begins to die down. She returns to her happy place. Surrounded by family. Loved. Home. The sea called to her when it needed her the most, but now it's time to leave. Time to find herself again.

Suddenly, the image of the monastery disappears from her vision, replaced by the very real sight of dry land stretching before her. With an elated gasp, Nya staggers onto the sand before sprawling face first onto it. Her lungs burn and her muscles feel like they've had a run in with a homicidal acupuncturist, but that's okay.

"... made it," she mutters, spitting out a mouthful of sand and seawater, "take that, you stupid ocean!"

A particularly large wave rolls towards her and she frantically scrambles away from it. Nyad laughs, saying, "I told you so."

Nya coughs up a bit more sand as she tries to remember exactly how one goes about breathing. She can taste the salt in the air, feel the sun's warmth on her skin, and it has never felt so good.