Round 327

Merrin shoved herself upright with a grunt, her injured leg screaming protest but she ignored it - Varikka needed her functional right now. The water was already lapping at their boots, cold and insistent, and the sound of rushing liquid grew louder by the second. She could feel the vibrations through the stone underfoot, ominous and growing stronger.

"Up," Merrin hissed, scanning the chamber walls desperately. "There's gotta be an up route somewhere!" Her eyes landed on a narrow ledge running along the far wall, just above the waterline. It was a long shot, but it was something. She pointed. "There! Move your asses!"

The adrenaline surge masked some of the pain in her leg for now, but she knew it wouldn't last. Every second counted - Varikka needed to get clear before that thing reached her, and Merrin wasn't about to let her friend die down here alone. She started forward, limping heavily but determined.

"Stay close!" Merrin called back over the roar of water filling the chamber. "We stick together through this shit!"

The cold water swirled around her ankles now, and she could feel the current tugging insistently at her boots. Her heart hammered in her chest as she watched Varikka navigate the treacherous ledge ahead - one misstep and...

No. She wouldn't think about that. Just move. Keep moving.

The stone under their feet shifted ominously again, a grinding sound that made Merrin's stomach drop. The entire chamber was coming down around them - it was only a matter of time now. She redoubled her efforts, teeth gritted against the pain in her leg and the rising panic in her throat.

They were going to make it out of this alive. They had to.