The Prince of Ilios

Five

Bracken shook his head in wonder, "That was so cool." He made up his mind to work harder.

Ellora stretched her neck out, still slightly out of breath, she stood, almost too quickly.

Alyn looked at her as she paled slightly, "You alright?"

"Fine." She had always had a low blood pressure and getting up so quickly was one of those things that pronounced it, "Let's continue."

"Right." He nodded, "The way to build up endurance with manipulation, is to build up your physical endurance. Which is part of what we just did. In order to learn how to move the water, we must also be one with the water, hence, the next part of training." He led them to the other side of the cliff. Below the water swirled. It was the most dangerous current in the whole cove. So much so, no one was allowed to go near that part of the Island.

"Alyn, please tell me we are not..."

"Yes, we are. Both of you should be able to handle this by now. You have been training with me for months." Alyn stared down into the dark abyss. Dead Man's Pit, as it so endearingly had been named, was a place where three currents met forming a whirlpool that flushed anyone straight to the bottom of the ocean floor, and it was incredibly deep.Even Bracken, who hated showing fear looked a bit squeamish.

"The key to Dead Man's Pit is to go with the flow of the current. Read the water, feel it swirl around you, and then figure out how to get out. If for some reason you do not surface, I will find you."

Ellora's eyes widened in wonder. She had not known that her elder brother was so powerful. He was actually thinking of reversing the flow to calm the waters. It would take a tremendous amount of focus and energy to accomplish such a feat. There would be no other way to find someone at this time of night.

Bracken nodded, "I'll go first."

"No," Alyn stopped him from leaping in, "Ellora is older, she will go first." and then thought to himself, and I may need you to help me fish her out of there if she fails.

Ellora stared at Alyn, completely astounded, but shook it off as soon as she saw him raise a challenging brow, "Yes." She may be weak, but she was also determined and ferociously stubborn. She stared down into the black swirling abyss, exhaled for the jump, preparing her lungs to take in as much air on the way down, and plunged. The air whistled past her ears and then the cool water engulfed her. It was not frigid, but certainly an uncomfortable temperature. The whirlpool grabbed hold of her and pulled her down. At first she could hardly tell her up from her down being tossed so forcefully through the currents. Her heart was pounding up in her ears.

Ellora reminded herself that she had to stay calm in order to conserve her air. There was no telling if she would make it out of this in time. What was it that Alyn said? Flow with the current? more like being thrown by... Read the water? much harder. She hushed her thoughts and focused, calming her wild heart-rate she focused on the sensations along her skin. How the water felt swirling her around. Ribbons of navy satin sped between her fingers. She opened her eyes to see, but all there was was terrifying inky darkness. By now she was very deep. The pressure built in her head. She adjusted her ears accordingly, just as she felt her feet touch the sandy bottom.

She tried to spring back up, but the currents continued to weigh her down. She was stuck on the ocean floor, unsure of what to do. Read the water... Ellora tossed this idea around in her head. Her toe scraped against something sharp and she yelped. Her precious oxygen escaping her already burning lungs. She watched the bubbles float sideways with the current through the water, and then she got an idea, stop fighting and follow them. Ellora swam to where her bubbles had disappeared, she was almost out of time and still had to swim to the surface. Her head was starting to throb and limbs began to tingle from lack of oxygen. Unsure of how much time she had left, she put her all into her strokes, willing her body to obey. Following the currents. If only I had gills like a fish, or if the water could just turn to air! But neither of those things could happen. Ignoring her aches from the climb, she willed herself forward, with all of the energy and determination she had left. The water around her surged, as though it heard her cries for help. She had caught a current and it flowed straight upwards. Ellora sprang up breaking the surface, coughing and sputtering. Her vision was blurred, she had almost blacked out in the last few feet. Her lungs gasped and spasmed. Water-bearers could stay under water much longer than the average human, if they kept their cool. But, Ellora was at her limit.

Alyn was somehow next to her in an instant, his muffled voice barely reached her ears, "Ellora..." was all she heard before she blacked out.