Round 135

The cold water lapped at Merrin's legs as she pulled Varikka clear of the tentacled horror's reach. The creature's enraged roars echoed through the cavern, its massive form barely visible in the gloom beyond the rising floodwaters. Every instinct screamed at her to run, but escape was cut off by the rapidly encroaching lake and the ominous sounds of collapse from deeper within the tower.

"Varikka, are you okay?" Merrin gasped, supporting her friend's weight as they stumbled backwards through the chest-deep water. The halfling woman's eyes darted around frantically, searching for any sign of a way out or—worse—a way in for whatever monstrosities might be lurking beneath the surface.

"The hell is going on?" Varikka wheezed, still coughing up water as she clung to Merrin. "First we're drowning, now we're being attacked by... by whatever that thing is? And what's with all this water?"

Merrin shook her head, her gaze fixed on the churning surface of the lake. "I don't know. But we need to move—fast. The whole place is coming down around us, and I've got a bad feeling about what's in that water."

As if in answer to her words, a series of bubbles broke the surface nearby, followed by a low, rumbling growl that seemed to emanate from everywhere and nowhere at once. Merrin's grip on Varikka tightened involuntarily as something large moved beneath them, displacing the water with a slow, deliberate motion.

"Did you hear that?" Varikka whispered, her voice trembling.

Merrin nodded grimly. "Yeah. And I think it's getting closer."