Fallen One (Book three of Alfireán age)

- Wallowing in the Mud -

Olivia slid down the curved wall of their protective barrier to Alf's side and channeled energy into her eyes, lighting up the dim area. Watery shadows bathed the inside of the shield, and the sound of water sloshing outside tickled her ears. "How bad are your injuries?" she asked, her palms heavy with sweat. Olivia couldn't believe they were all still alive after that fiasco.

"Not bad," Alf moaned, glancing at his hands. "I think I broke my left wrist and a couple of fingers on my other hand, but that's about it."

"You're also bleeding from your forehead," Silver noted as she joined Olivia by Alf's side while the sound of moaning from the rest of the party filled the small space.

"Oh, must've hit it against the shield," Alf muttered.

"Shh and don't move," Olivia said while she used holy Ra'avah to examine him. She'd been through enough adventures in the last week to last a lifetime, and yet, she couldn't help but think the adventure had only started.

The thought didn't cheer her up.

Sure enough, Alf's left wrist was broken along with his pinky and his thumb on his right hand. He was also suffering from a minor concussion, but by some miracle, other than that, he was fine. Thank you, Jesus, she thought as she finished examining him.

A part of Olivia wanted to scold Alf for being so stupid; another part of her wanted to hug him and hold him tight for still being alive. She settled for resting her hand on his chest while she said, "You'll live, but I should let you walk around with broken bones for a while so you think before you do something this stupid again."

Holding his hands close to his stomach, Alf smiled sheepishly up at her. "Sorry," he said. "I thought it would work."

"Ah, guys," Pony said, interrupting the moment. "There's something out there," she said pointing at several large shadows lurking in the water around their shield.

Suddenly, one of the shadows darted towards them and a loud scraping sound echoed through the air as giant rows of teeth bit into the crystalline surface.

"Gah!" Zaphaniea exclaimed. "Puranas."

Following the first fish's example, five more of the monstrous underwater predators charged their shield and their sharp, pointed teeth bounced off the exterior.

The glowing barrier dimmed a little as it became slightly more transparent.

"Well that's just perfect," Alf groaned and pushed his way to his knees. He stared intently down at the shield, a look of concentration etched in his features.

"What are you doing?" Olivia asked.

"Burying us," he answered as a hole appeared by his knees, and he shoved his right hand down through the mud seeping up through the opening.

Alf hissed in pain as his broken fingers dug into the earth; then he closed his eyes, and a few seconds later, their entire shield dropped seven to ten feet into the mud beneath them. Like a toad gulping down a fly, the soggy bottom of the lake swallowed them whole.

As the earth enclosed them and cut off the attacking Piranhas, all light faded and the silty black mud plunged them into darkness.

"I guess that works," Olivia stated, shuddering at being encased in the earth for a second time this week.

"Yeah, except now we're trapped down here at the bottom of this stinky lake!" Zaphaniea proclaimed a note of panic in her usually cocky voice.

A soft blue and orange glow formed around Drake, lighting up their small underwater prison as he started converting the carbon dioxide into oxygen for them to breathe. "Yes, that is a problem," the prince conceded. "However, I believe our first priority should be tending to Alf's wounds," Drakovian stated and glanced over at Olivia. "Can you heal him?"