Round 268

The water was up to their necks now, cold and unforgiving as it pulled at them. Merrin grabbed a piece of debris—a broken section of railing—and used it like a makeshift paddle, fighting against the flow while Varikka clung to her. The current tried to drag them back down, but she wasn't going without a fight.

They made it to the wall just as the water reached their chins, clinging to whatever protrusions they could find while the underground lake continued its relentless expansion. Merrin's teeth were chattering now from the cold, her wet clothes doing nothing to insulate her from the chill that seemed to seep straight into her bones. But at least they were still alive—at least for now.

"Merrin!" Varikka gasped, her face pale and drawn in the dim light. "What do we do? We can't stay here much longer!" She was right—the water was already lapping at their chins, and showing no signs of slowing down. Merrin knew they needed to find higher ground or some way to generate heat fast, or hypothermia would set in long before the rising water became the real threat.

Think, damn you! she cursed internally, her mind racing. There had to be something—some solution hidden in plain sight that would get them out of this mess. But right now, all she could focus on was staying afloat literally and figuratively while the water continued its relentless ascent.

The sound of more movement below the surface snapped Merrin back to immediate reality—they weren't alone down here anymore. Something else was in the water with them, something big enough that even the churning current couldn't fully mask its presence. And then she saw them—dozens of glowing eyes breaking the surface all around them.