Twin Suns of Arterra

7

Darkness.

Can't breathe.

Coughing... gasping!

I felt the sting of water in my nose even as I coughed, spraying it from my mouth. My lungs burned. I sucked in a breath and then I was pushed down, back into darkness. I spun, my feet lifting over my head, tumbling like a rock rolled down a hill. My back grated against gravel, scraping flesh away, and bubbles burst from my nose. The burning pain was immediate, but at least I'd found the bottom. I pulled my legs under me and used it as leverage, kicking upward. My head broke the surface and I heaved in another gasping breath, waiting to be dragged under again. Something hard pushed against my back. I twisted, seeing a flat, black square. The boat's seat! It must have broken loose in the fall. I grabbed it, wrapping an arm around it and pressing it to my chest. The flat wood and padding made a natural buoy, resisting the water's drag. I let my feet float out behind me, keeping myself as relaxed as I could manage, given the fact that I had nearly drowned.

Around me, the water churned and roared, slapping against the sides of the channel like a beast trying to escape. Ahead of me, what was left of the boat bounced along the surface. If I could get closer, I might be able to grab the rudder and—

The boat exploded, wood flying in all directions. I ducked as a pointed missile hurtled past, clutching my small flotilla as the world around me darkened.

A tunnel. The water surged into the opening, taking me with it, the ceiling close enough to my head that I didn't dare make a move other than to tighten my fingers on the cushion. Even with the low profile, the boat had been too large. If I'd been inside it I would have been dashed against the tunnel mouth.

I would have felt relief at my narrow escape, but there was no time.

The water flung me along, rocketing me through the tunnel. The dim light gave me only faint images of the space around me as it flashed by. Then the air began to brighten as another crescent of light appeared ahead.

Hog's dung!

What if it was another drop? I didn't know if I could survive another one.

There was no time to do anything but wrap my arms more tightly around the cushioned wood, and then I was back in the light. No drop. The top of the tunnel gave way to sky.

Thank the twin suns.

"Hey!"

I craned my neck right then left, finally spotting a dark figure standing on the canal wall above me.

No, that wasn't right. The figure was moving, trying to keep up with me as I bounced along on the current. Part of them was moving, waving something. Motioning...

Pointing.

Dread formed a hard ball in my gut as I turned my eyes back to what was in front of me. At first I couldn't see it. My position, the water, or maybe it was just that my eyes didn't want to see, whatever kept me from making sense of it came into focus in the shape of a large branch. It stretched left to right, somehow suspended in the middle of the water. Instead of moving with the current, it stayed in place, the water frothing and foaming around it as it passed.

A hidden tree, somehow rooted?

A large branch, bigger beneath the water than what was on top, somehow wedged between the walls of the canal?

I would have to go around it, careful not to catch my legs or skin on anything I couldn't see.

The branch rolled. A knot that had been on the side now faced the top.

But how?

How could it be free to roll, yet not be washed away? How...

The log swayed, the movement contrasting the dark branch against something lighter behind it. Something silver, making a diamond pattern above the water.

Holy heavens.

I was going to die.

Saka had been right. This was a fool's mission. How could I have imagined there would be no protection on the waterways? The large metal grate wasn't even newly placed; it had been built to do just what it had done: catch debris.

Only today I was the debris.

The thick grid, which had been nearly invisible to me, rose to the level of the top of the canal, anchored on each side by bolts sunk deep into the cement.

There was another shout from above.

I had time to glance up at the figure racing along after me, unable to see a face through the light reflecting off a visor, and then I slammed into the gate. Pain flashed across my back and my right shoulder. Me left leg was snagged by something sharp, probably a piece of the branch, and I felt a sharp tug as my calf was torn open. The water pummeled me against the metal, trying to force me through openings smaller than my hand. Debris pelted me above and below the water.

Camille.

I was going to fail her. She was alive out there somewhere, waiting for a brother who would never come.

Or she was already dead.

No!

I couldn't accept that! I wouldn't!

I growled, pushing my back against the grate and holding the cushion over my chest. Water splashed into my face. I turned my head left, letting the water hit my cheek, feeling grit and gravel rasp the skin raw. I twisted my left arm.

The beacon.

I couldn't use my other hand to open it and risk losing the cushion. I bent my elbow and brought my arm to my face, tearing at it with my teeth.

Something slammed into my right leg. A scream ripped loose as I felt something give. Muscle? Tendon?

I gripped the covering on my arm in my teeth and pulled as hard as I could. The protective cover finally broke away. An orange light began to pulse.

I felt something snag my cushion.

I looked up.

An enormous dark shape filled my eyes.

The boat... what was left of it...

I groaned, understanding what was about to happen an instant before it did. I squeezed my eyes shut, not wanting to see. I heard the sound of wood cracking, and braced for the pain.

I heard the sickening crunch as the wood made contact.