Eril's Story

Day 3

I was up at dawn, and out of the town in less than an hour. My pack felt light, even though there was nothing less in it, and my footsteps were brisk, carrying me towards adventure. Around midday the edge of the cliff began to falter, and the view ahead dropped away as the elevation took a sharp decline, reaching sea level. The road that followed it down was only sparsely tread, most of the traffic out of Tenora was headed either further North on a more direct and maintained highway, or West and to the other great cities that lay there.

It took me the better part of the afternoon to make it down, as some of the path was covered in loose gravel, and not to mention steep in places. By the time I had made it to the bottom I was at was on a wide sandy dune, the gentle sounds of waves in the distance. The part of the coast that I had specifically come to see had a strange phenomenon known only in this region.

As I got closer to the sea I had to cross the beach proper, here the sand was loose and soft, and this extended for about half a mile. On the beach I was surrounded by towering rock pillars, stretching the rest of the way to the surf, appearing in the shape of exposed coral reefs, an odd sight out of water.

Walking among the first of the natural monoliths peppering the beach I begin to see what I came for. Hanging from one of the rock formations was a ball of water, like a reverse bubble, defying gravity and nature itself - the evening was light shining golden through it, dappling the rock behind in an exotic ever changing pattern. Further on towards the ocean, the spheres of water became more numerous, and increased in size - meshing, and taking on shapes with the rock that they were intertwined with. Some of them even had kelp and other aquatic life growing quite happily inside, looking almost as if in stasis, with no current to animate them.

Everything apart from the noise of crashing waves in the distance was still and serene. A short time later while looking over a particularly odd shaped bubble, a crab scuttle from where it had been hiding in the rock into the water, sending a small ripple through the eco-sphere, somehow not rupturing the skin that contained the water. Curious, I ran my hand through the water, and it felt cold on my hand, it still held its shape. In some ways, it seemed the texture of the water was different, almost as if it had the consistency of cream, while still retaining all of the properties of water.

The pools of water increased in size as I approached the shoreline. A few were even large enough to fit my body comfortably a few times over - I took advantage of this opportunity by disrobing, and gingerly climbing one of the rock sides up through the bottom of a bubble. I could feel the water invite me in, and I half swam, half climbed inside, the weight of my legs still trying to drag me back out. But after making it all the way in, I was suspended, holding my breath, looking back out on the beach through a distorted lens.

Swimming was slightly more difficult because of the thicker water, but I vigorously pumped my legs and slowly began to rise, my head popping out the top, gathering a lungful of air. It was a very surreal moment, and I felt like I had suddenly gained the ability to fly as I looked down on my surroundings from a weightless vantage. Going back in I did a somersault with a fish, then floating on my back stuck my head out the side, looking up towards the sky. Once I had my fun, I came out the same way I went in, drying myself off before continuing walking.

Weaving in and out of the rock stacks, I was lost in time. Each offered a miniature world to peer into, and I felt compelled after looking into one to gaze into just one more. It was only after the sun had sank, and the hues around me had turned to dark violet, that I made my way back to dry sand to sleep for the night. Once at a suitable spot, I scooped out an indent facing the water and laid down. And with the smell of salt and the sounds of moving water, a calm bathed my mind.

My thoughts became reflective and meditative as I began to be present with the environment and the moment I was in. Then with a smile, arising from my trance, I ate some of my packaged supplies; a dried plant stalk, which was very chewy, but with a lot of substance. Packing down a hard spot of sand that was jabbing into my back just so, I laid down, drifting off into the world of dreams.