96. Fresh Air Redux

  Whether or not her boots were made for the job, Serac had to climb, and climb fast.

  The Tomasen twins led the charge, COASTER-bridging the cave’s natural platforms with ice. Renate pattered along with ease on her bare feet, and even Zacko adapted to the new pace in no time.

  It soon became clear that Serac was the straggler. She didn’t know if it was due to a Rakshasa’s less-than-nimble anatomy or just her own general lack of strength and athleticism. Whatever it was, something was holding her back, and she fell farther and farther behind, even as her fellow Wayfarers sped on ahead.

  At some point, she could hear the rush of water, with or without the ability to read the ripples. The sound brought with it the fresh and terrifying memories of her near-drowning episodes—and fear made her trip and stumble over her feet, slowing her even more.

  Just when her panic was about to reach a breaking point, the pink figure of Renate descended to her side. The Yaksha woman had doubled back despite her considerable lead, and she promptly scooped Serac up onto DREDGER’s blade, without a word of warning or instruction.

  It happened so suddenly that Serac had no chance to adopt a hang-on-for-dear-life position. Instead, she ended up sitting cross-legged atop the giant shovel, looking for all the world like she was settling in for meditation.

  Even with the extra load, Renate moved up the icy slopes far faster than Serac by herself could’ve. All the while, she kept the point of DREDGER remarkably stable, making her passenger feel as though she was sitting on solid ground.

  And yet, while panic receded, embarrassment took its place. After everything the frog woman had done for her, Serac couldn’t believe that she still needed more help.

  What happened to her can-do attitude? Her Rakshasa resiliency? If she made it back to the surface in one piece, she’d have to have a long look at herself in the mirror. Clearly, her ‘Path’ had to be about more than just shooting problems in the face.

  But she was also pragmatic enough to accept the free ride when she needed one. It gave her a chance, not only to reflect on her own shortcomings and areas for improvement, but also to wonder aloud:

  “Do you think this water has anything to do with us getting rid of Mulaharta?”

  “Almost definitely,” came Renate’s swift reply, only marginally broken up by her breathing. “Typically speaking, the Realm-tree contains within it an inner reservoir of water, in constant network with the Sanzu and its many branches upon the surface. The hollowed-out appearance of this cave seemed to suggest that reservoir had long dried up… but perhaps instead, it’d only been pushed down by Mulaharta’s presence and magic. With Mulaharta gone, it’s like a pressure valve has been released. The water is rushing to reclaim all this empty space.”

  Serac frowned in concentration, squeezing out every bit of her imagination to understand this latest of fluid-based analogies.

  “If the water is just refilling itself… shouldn’t it eventually top off? Assuming there’s more cave than there’s water?”

  “Theoretically, yes. But none of us know just how much water there is, nor if we’d be able to find our way out of this cave before the water could reach us.”

  Serac shuddered at the thought. She then fell silent, the better to allow her scooper-upper to concentrate more on climbing than to entertain a hell bumpkin’s inquiring mind.

  The Wayfarers climbed and climbed, slowing only to keep themselves Stamina-replete. But this latest race only served to show just how far and deep into the Roots they’d spelunked in the first place.

  The water caught up to them before they could find the exit. And all of the Tomasens’ building, Zacko’s running, and Renate’s Serac-carrying proved to be for naught, as their efforts were drowned out by a sheer force of nature.

  Serac had thought herself ready, having heard then seen the water rise and lap at the Wayfarers’ feet. But no amount of mental preparation could overcome the terrors she now associated with the frigid touch and immense pressure of a watery prison.

  [Wayfarer Status Effect: HYPOXIA]

  Almost immediately, her panic kicked back into full gear. But this time, before Serac could devolve into a flailing kicking mess, a pink, webbed hand grabbed her firmly by the wrist.

  Renate had reslung DREDGER onto her back. In her free hand, she held the creamy-orange [Pearl of Immersion], which she proceeded to push into Serac’s face.

  The Rakshasa understood the assignment, but that didn’t stop her from shaking in terror as she forced herself to imbibe more liquid inside her liquid prison. It was tough going at first, and more than once, she nearly coughed out the precious potion, but as she emptied the [Pearl], an odd sense of calm took over. Indeed, she now had the presence of mind to note the light-green bar of her [Oxygen] gauge, one that halted its rapid descent as soon as Serac had finished Renate’s potion.

  Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  On paper, [Immersion]’s passive effect was to buff a Wayfarer’s status mitigation. In reality, and especially for a novice swimmer like Serac, it did much more than that. The hourglass slowed to a crawl, and the simple knowledge that she had more time afforded her the mental clarity needed to understand what was required of her.

  In this case, ironically enough, it was to rely on the kindness of others. Instead of trying and failing to swim, Serac kept herself still, even as Renate left her side. She began to sink, as her dense-boned Rakshasa body was wont to do, but not for long, as the massive figure of Lars Tomasen swept in to grab her by the waist.

  Secure in the arm of a much stronger swimmer, Serac allowed herself to relax further and reassess the situation. She opened her eyes against the frigid water, and was rewarded for her courage with a surprisingly clear view of her surroundings. The water was murky and full of debris, but strangely enough, its presence had also caused the Realm-cave’s walls to glow a brighter Zealous green.

  The two outrealmers were each paired off with a local and carried up the flooded cave—Serac with Lars and Zacko with Hans. Meanwhile, the pink figure of Renate darted from Wayfarer to Wayfarer, feeding each of them a [Pearl of Immersion].

  That’s already four [Immersion]s in her latest OYSTER loadout, Serac did the math calmly. Almost like she knew or at least suspected we’d need it again. I wonder if she has a fifth one for herself?

  The answer, as it turned out, was no. The frog woman never stopped to give herself a taste of her own medicine, even as she charged ahead of the pack with smooth, powerful kicks of her webbed feet.

  This was the first time Serac had seen Renate swim, and she was once again taken by the frog woman’s competence and beauty. Finless or no, Renate belonged in the water, with her graceful movements blending seamlessly with the turbulence all around her. But then again… she also did plenty fine for herself on land.

  The Yakshas now swam in a spiral pattern, hugging the cave walls as they searched for an exit. As for Serac, she accepted her limitations and gave into the process, only occasionally checking on her [Oxygen] gauge with an almost detached sort of curiosity.

  She was oddly confident in her Yaksha friends’ ability to pull them through this mess, just as she’d been about Renate plying her expertise on a [Snap-frozen] Zacko. There would be time yet for Serac to build on her own competence and self-reliance, but for now, she was happy to accept a free ride when she needed one. After all, the Yakshas’ willingness to help her in the first place was proof enough of her value in their estimation.

  Pay your dues and show your worth. No one in this Realm eats for free.

  Perhaps this wasn’t quite what Palmr Jorgensen had in mind when he’d said those words. But he couldn’t have dreamed of the strange adventure the Wayfarers would end up having, nor the many different ways each of them showed their worth along way.

  Eventually, Renate became the first to stop the search, having no doubt read an open channel of ripples along the walls. She turned around and gestured toward the Tomasen twins with both palms out—the universal signal for: back off.

  [Auxiliary Technique: ELEMENTAL SURGE]

  A swing of a giant shovel. A vortex of water, mud, and tree bark. The edges of the open channel collapsed, until it widened enough for even big sturgeon boys to pass through.

  Fresh air never tasted sweeter—not even when Serac had climbed out of a prison in hell.

  The Wayfarers found themselves in the middle of a wide river—filled to the banks and rushing at speed. Somewhere in Stamgard, then? Or could it be…?

  Serac forced herself to remain patient for a while longer, as Lars cut across the width of the river. Once she was ashore, however, relief washed over her in an instant, causing her to tremble and nearly tear up with its sheer force.

  It seemed she’d been a lot more nervous than she’d let on (even to herself). Released from Lars’s hold, she turned onto her back and spread herself wide, using as much surface area as possible to relish the contact with solid ground and outside air.

  Once she’d had her fill of coming back up to earth, she sat up, hoping to share her joy with her newest friends.

  She turned her ear-to-ear smile first onto Lars—kneeling and panting as he finally allowed himself a moment of respite. To the brother Hans, just as exhausted but also just as alive. Then to Zacko, who’d already started wringing out his soaking wet hair (the man sure had his priorities straight!). And finally to—

  “Wait, where’s Renate?”

  Both of the sturgeons bounced up to their feet at once, with their hands instinctively reaching for their OARs. They stood at the edge of the riverbank and scanned up- and downstream, with their scales vibrating visibly all the while. Then, as if in unspoken agreement, Hans dove back into the water while his brother continued his ‘read’ on shore.

  A tense silence followed. Serac waited anxiously for one of the twins to say something—or for Renate herself to jump out of the water, or perhaps poke her hooded head out from one of the rocks behind them.

  In the end, one figure did emerge from the water, but it belonged to Hans. He calmly glided over and lifted himself ashore, apparently in no hurry to share his findings.

  “Anything?” Lars asked, wearing a cold glare to hide his own agitation. His brother shook his head.

  At first, Serac couldn’t quite process what it all meant. Did they somehow get separated from Renate? Had the frog woman been caught in some strong current that had carried her away? Or worse yet, was she still stuck inside the Realm-cave by herself? And if so, did she need rescuing?

  But then a loud ‘crack!’ beside her made her jump, at the same time bringing her back down to earth and reality. The noise had been courtesy of Lars Tomasen, having slammed his OAR into the ground.

  “Finless is gone,” he said, gentle voice brought low by anger and self-reproach, “run away, as she always does. We were so close. We had her, then we let our guard down. Let her slip away and back into shadows.”

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