The Monster Slayers Club by Morgan Blayde

Author:Morgan Blayde [Blayde, Morgan]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: k'12
Publisher: CreateSpace
Published: 2017-09-01T16:00:00+00:00

20. SWEPT AWAY

Angeline and Lorelei stood in a cone of light, under the hole in the floor of dorm’s lobby. Lorelei’s question rang in Angeline’s head.

I don’t suppose you can breathe water?

Across the dark cavern, the tunnel mouth spewed thundering, frothy water—a damn awful lot of it. Angeline raised her arms to shield her head, as if that could do any good. Her heart pounded. Adrenaline put a copper taste in a mouth suddenly dry.

I’m going to die.

Lorelei seized Angeline’s left wrist, compelling the girl’s attention. Angeline saw a feral grin plastered on the high schooler’s face. Indomitable confidence burned in her stare. Lorelei said, “Don’t worry. I’ve got you.”

That’s no comfort at all.

The wall of dirty water slammed closer. Lorelei lifted the palm of her free hand toward the deluge. Bright blue light bled from her pores as if her aura were leaking out. The girl’s white-blonde hair turned silver. Her eyes became sapphire stars. The grin never wavered. The water parted and whirled around them, refusing to touch.

Angeline found herself in a dome of air—an immovable bubble—which the water raged all around. The light from above dimmed, turning murky brown due to the sediment in the water.

She stared at Lorelei as the water settled down, filling the cavern.

Lorelei returned the stare. “What?”

Angeline’s voice quivered. “You’re not going to explain this, are you?”

The high school girl sighed. “Fine, but pay attention. I don’t like repeating myself.”

Angeline nodded.

Lorelei went on: “Water magic. I’m a princess of Atlantis. It’s in my blood.”

“But—”

“I’m not taking questions.” Lorelei walked toward the tunnel mouth that had let the water in. She dragged Angeline along. “I’m going to deal with this. Your job will be to stare at me in star-struck awe and clap with appreciation as required.”

Nothing like being a useful member of the team. Perhaps coming down her to help out wasn’t a smart move.

They crossed the cavern and threaded the tunnel beyond. The passage descended into a turn, winding, dropping them quickly lower. The bubble followed, an obedient protective shield. Lorelei walked along a wall, reaching through the bubble to touch it as she moved. “These passages haven’t been flooded before now. There’s no water erosion. No sign of saturation. I think we can safely rule out natural forces at work.”

“So, it’s personal,” Angeline said.

Is it too late to go back?

The tunnel descended and opened into a lower cavern system. Lorelei dragged Angeline to the center where a round hole in the floor proved to be the source of the intruding water. Her wrist was released as Lorelei knelt and peered into the well. The water burst up around the bubble and made its walls tremble.

“There’s a subterranean river here that’s being diverted upward by water magic.”

“By someone as strong as you?” Angeline asked.

Lorelei glanced over her shoulder, slanting a look of mockery. “Oh, please, like that’s even possible. What part of Atlantean princess didn’t you get?”

She’s really serious about that?

Angeline stared. “So, what now?”

Lorelei shrugged, looking back down into the hole. “I need a closer look so we’re going in.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.