Chapter 381:
Caspian
It's cold.
And dark.
I try to swim, but the waves are relentless. Each time I find the surface, another wave crashes over me, pushes me under, steals the air from my lungs. Again and again and again.
It hurts.
I gasp for air but my lungs burn, my throat burns, my eyes burn. I can barely keep them open. The salt stings. The rain stings. Everything stings.
No.
I kick. My boots are heavy. My coat is heavier. It drags me down like an anchor, like a chain, like a grave. With immense effort, I shrug it off.
The coat slips from my shoulders.
I feel lighter.
But not light enough.
I see tiny lights in the darkness. Lanterns, maybe. From the ship maybe, it's blurry.
"I'm here!" I try to scream, but it comes out as a croak, swallowed by the wind, drowned by the waves.
The rain digs into my skin. Needles of ice, each one a reminder that I'm still alive, still fighting, still here.
I do my best to swim.
