Status: This is a revamped version of an older story I had here!

A Place of Promise

Breathless

The ocean has a very distinct sound. As if the waves pooling in near the sand is a lullaby saying shhh…shhh…convincing its victims to sleep soundly at the bottom. The salt in the air is bitter, but refreshing and the heat begins to dull the closer I become to the water. Just moments beyond this a hill forms, and atop this hill lays the memorial that is partially suspended precariously over a cliff. A misshapen metal ride where the light winds that tickle my neck causes the carriages attached to its metal bars to creak. I can see outlines of people climbing upon its rusted limbs, making their way to the edge before plummeting down below into the water. They swim out, and repeat this cycle again.

“We’re finally here!” Valda cries, and runs hurriedly over to the memorial, looking for familiar faces. I follow cautiously, examining the surrounding ruins. I keep my eyes on Valda as she climbs up swiftly to meet a greeting friend.

I stand for a moment at the foot of the giant, beginning to feel a familiar throbbing against my temples. I rub my temples gently, closing my eyes and re-opening. It’s the oddest sensation seeing something there that is not. It was only but a moment, but I see a distant object reflected in the sea’s surface, but it was only for a moment before there is nothing there again. I tell myself it was the trick of my eyes, and I move on.

I hesitate for a moment looking at the jagged edges of the memorial before I hitch up my dress to my waist. Shorts peeked out from underneath and I use a hair tie to hold the length to avoid any accidents. For me climbing the mass is much scarier at night. My body is reacting appropriately – my legs shaking just beneath me. I take a quick intake of air before I render myself to my shivering and sit at the edge of a metal slab, my legs dangling above the darkness of the ocean just below the outcrop.

“It’s a great spot to view the stars, right?” I look to my left surprised by a voice speaking beside me. I did not see the boy when I had sat down and I did not hear him approach me if he had arrived after me.

“Ah…” I stutter, “Yes, it is. It’ll be even better when Altair turns out the lights.” I glance at the boy sitting next to me. His eyes are focused on the stars just above him. One of his legs is propped up on the metal duct as his other leg is hanging off. His gold-trimmed robes sit piled nicely behind him.

His brown swept hair has begun to fall now beginning to tickle his cheek. He smiles briefly up at the sky, and turns his attention towards me. “I agree.” He lifts his hand and raises it towards me. “My name’s Blair. I live on the outskirts of the city, probably why we haven’t met before.”

“I’m Althea. But you can call me Thea for short.” I take his hand gingerly in my own, and a shock of electricity spits at my finger. Pulling away slightly, I laugh nervously. “Sorry, it’s probably because of my coat.” I motion towards the black cotton jacket I have hanging over my blue dress.

He laughs, covering his smile with his fist. “It’s fine. Although…” he pauses, “I think it may have been fate that we’ve met tonight.” His eyes flicker with excitement.

I tilt my head slightly narrowing my eyes. My heart begins to beat a little faster from nervousness. Something in his tone of voice frightened me. “Hah! I would hardly call it fate…maybe a coincidence at the very least…” I fidget, my hands pressing hard in my lap.

He shakes his head, still smiling. “Are you nervous that you might disappear tonight?” A nasty glint in his eyes alarms me. It is difficult to comprehend if he is merely teasing or serious. Surely…he must be joking.

“N-No…” I stutter. “Are you?”

He shrugs, “If I am chosen that would be incredible. Who knows where I’ll go!” He smiles again, leaning his head upon his propped leg, and looks at me for a reaction.

“Where you go?” I ask more out of curiosity now, rather than for the sake of the conversation. “What do you mean; do you know where these people go to?”

He shakes his head, “I don’t know. But…I feel it in my bones that they are not dead. So if they are not here in Altair, and not dead, I think they left or were taken somewhere. Have you ever seen the other lands outside of Altair?”

“I haven’t, but I have heard stories…”

“They sound amazing, right?” He grins with a tight lipped smile. We remain in silence gazing out at the abyss.

‘What did you see?’

“Huh?” I question, looking at Blair. He looks back at my quizzically, and I correct my statement. “I’m sorry, did you say something?”

He laughs half-heartedly, “No, I did not. Are you hearing things already?”

My heart begins to thump in my chest, and in my ears. Surely he can hear it pounding. “Oh…”

“Anyway, let’s stand. It looks like Altair is beginning to turn their lights off.” He stands up with ease, and offers me his hand to help me up onto the slab of metal I had been sitting on. We stand next to one another, his shoulder a couple of inches from my own.

‘What did you see?’

“I must be going crazy…” I mutter to myself. I close my eyes again and begin running my fingers through my hair. I can hear others standing behind us, muttering and giggling. In the distance, to my right, I can see Altair’s lights slowly beginning to twinkle off, and the fires being quenched in the distance. For a moment all that is heard is the ocean below us, but a loud metal groan erupts from behind me. Suddenly I feel movement beneath my feet, and people behind me are yelping in surprise.

I reach out to grab hold of Blair who is standing quite still from the movement, and he holds onto my wrist tightly. “Are you okay?” He smiles bitterly for a moment, before his eyes begin to soften.

I swallow, looking down below me before I nod my head. “That was a bit scary. Thank you.” I laugh, my voice shaking. I stabilize myself on the platform and Blair releases his grip from my wrist. Something odd is shaped within the water’s reflection again, but I can’t determine what it is I’m looking at.

I lean further to get a closer look. “Hey, do you see tha—” A light tap against my shoulder and I have no choice but to go forward. I hear a scream that sounds something like my name, but all I see is the sky, and the stars above me. I take a deep breath before my head hits the water first. The water slows me down as it propels me lower into the ocean’s depths. My body is rigid from the freezing temperatures of the water, and for a moment I cannot move, I just sink lower into the darkness. I can see small bubbles rippling from my lips.

In that moment I hear a dull thud hit beside me, and I see bubbles forming from something large hitting the water. My head finally connects what happened and I see Blair sinking faster than I am. I reach out to grab his shirt and pull him up. He’s not responsive. I attempt to pull him up out of the water with me, but I am not sure which way is up and which way is down. I’m panicking, and losing air quickly.

Pop. Pop. Pop.

I hear the dull sound of fireworks, and I begin swimming where the flashes of lights are appearing above my head. I keep pulling but he’s too heavy. I see one other hit come from the water, and a figure coming towards me. He takes Blair from me and motions me to follow as he turns back to swim to the surface.

But I do not.

The first moment a person realizes they are drowning, becomes unreal. A sense of panic begins to set in. Arms flail in the water, and legs begin to kick. There doesn’t seem to be any movement up, only down. Discomforting questions and reasoning begins to set in with the panic.

‘Is this what it is like to drown?’
‘I cannot possibly die yet; I need to be there for Galen’s wedding.’
‘So this is how my life ends.’


The questions go on.

The second moment a person realizes they are drowning, they are voluntarily holding their breath until they can’t anymore. This is known as the breaking point. It took me 120 seconds before I reached it, at which point the person’s lungs are filled with water.

The final steps are involuntary. The fight stops to reach the surface. I expect to hit the bottom of the ocean’s floor but I never meet it. In fact, the thickness of the water seems weightless now, and I feel as if I am falling from the overhang again.
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Thank you for reading! If you have any suggestions for books or other stories here on mibba that you would recommend, let me know! I'd love to read them!