Violet

It didn’t burst and I could actually breathe in it.

A laugh bubbled up from my chest, half-hysterical with relief.

It worked. It actually worked.

Then the concentration slipped, just for a moment, and the bubble burst against my face.

I surfaced from the water, coughing and spluttering.

But I was so happy.

"It worked!" I shouted to Bei. "It actually worked!"

Bei jumped to her feet, her face breaking into a relieved smile. "Really? You can breathe down there?"

"For a few seconds, at least. I need to practice holding it longer, but the concept works."

I spent the rest of that day refining the technique. Forming it was easier now, but maintaining it required a bit more effort and focus.

Bei watched from the shore, her journal open on her lap, taking notes on everything I did. Occasionally she would call out suggestions or ask questions about how it felt, what I was doing differently, and whether I could see clearly through the bubble.

I could tell she was fascinated. So was I. I had never thought I could use my ability this well or even to this degree.

The thought was both thrilling and terrifying.

"You need to practice swimming with it too," Bei said later that night as I dried off beside our small camp. "Actually moving through the water while maintaining the bubble. It might be different than just floating in place."

She was right. I hadn’t yet done that.

"And there might be currents down there," she continued, her brow furrowed with worry. "Strong ones. You need to be able to hold the bubble even when the water is pushing against you."

"I’ll practice tomorrow," I promised.

"And Violet?" Bei’s voice was quieter now, more serious. "What if there are things living in that water? Creatures that have adapted to the minerals? You need to be prepared for that too."

I paused. I hadn’t even considered that.

We hadn’t seen any life in the smaller pools, but that didn’t mean the larger lake was empty. For all I knew, there could be predators down there, things that had evolved to thrive in water that was toxic to everything else.

"I’ll be careful," I said. "I’ll use my syzygy to sense what’s around me before I go too deep."

Bei nodded, but she still looked worried.

The next few days blurred together in a haze of practice and exhaustion.

I learned to swim with the bubble, to move through the water while keeping my concentration split between motion and maintenance. It was harder than I expected, like trying to walk and solve a complex puzzle at the same time, but I got better at it.

I practiced in the currents near the colourful pools, where the water moved faster as it cascaded from one level to the next. The pressure changes were more dramatic there, and my bubble burst more times than I could count. But each failure taught me something, and gradually I learned to anticipate the shifts and adjust my syzygy accordingly.

I even tried making the bubble larger, big enough to encompass my entire head and shoulders, giving me more air to work with. It required more energy, but it also meant I could stay down longer without worrying about running out of breath.

By the fifth day of practice, I could stay underwater with the bubble for hours at a time.

Bei was both impressed and terrified by this development.

My rapid learning wasn’t entirely a new concept to me, personally, but it was still strange to feel.

"You’re actually going to do this," she said one evening, staring out at the dark water. "I just wish I could come with you."

"So do I."

We sat in silence for a while, watching the sunset paint the sky in shades of orange and pink that almost matched the water below.

It actually would have been nice not to be alone down there. I did not understand what exactly I would meet there.

That night, I barely slept.

I lay on my back, staring up at the stars, my grandmother’s pendant clutched in my hand. The pull thrummed in my chest, stronger than ever, calling me down into the depths.

Tomorrow, I would answer it.

Morning came and my body was humming with nervous energy. Bei was already awake, sitting by our bags. She looked worried.

"Here," she said, handing me a small waterproof pouch. "For anything you might find..." She trailed off, her voice thick.

I knelt beside her and took her hands.

"I’ll come back," I said. "I promise. I won’t be long."

"You’d better." Her voice cracked slightly. "And please don’t drown. That would be a death sentence for me."

The sudden seriousness in her tone made my eyes wide.

I laughed nervously. "I’ll be very careful."

We stayed like that for a moment, hands clasped, the weight of what was about to happen hanging between us. Then Bei pulled me into a fierce hug, her arms tight around my shoulders.

"Be careful," she whispered. "Please."

"I will."

I pulled back and stood, turning to face the lake.

The water was calm in the early morning light, and the dark depths beyond them were still and silent, revealing nothing of what lay beneath.

I walked to the water’s edge.

The pull was almost overwhelming now, a physical force tugging at my chest.

I dove in, and the tingling sensation swept over me, familiar now after so many days of practice. I let myself adjust to it, breathing deeply, calming my racing heart.

I raised my head out of the water and smiled gently.

Bei stood on the shore, her arms wrapped around herself, watching me with bright eyes.

I prepared the bubble and dove back in. 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

The lake swallowed me whole as I swam downward, my syzygy maintaining the bubble around my head with practiced ease. The water pressed against me from all sides, warm and strange, but I was used to it now. My eyes adjusted quickly to the dim light, and I could see the rocky walls of the lake descending into darkness below.

My heart thundered in my chest, a mix of excitement and fear that made my pulse race.

But beneath the fear, there was something else.

Certainty.

Whatever waited at the bottom of this lake, whatever my ancestors had hidden in these depths, I was going to find it.

I kicked harder, swimming deeper, and following the pull that had guided me for so long.