CAMILLA

My stomach had stopped turning about three barf sessions ago, and now I felt calm for the first time in a while. We were all three standing on the deck, watching the calm ocean stretch towards the horizon. The sun was directly over our heads, and it made Erika and Aiden’s light hair shine like gold and fire respectively.

“Where are we?” I asked Erika who was leaning against the railing and looking down into the water, searching.

“East of the Bahamas” Erika answered. “In the Bermuda Triangle”

I laughed, a brief and aggressive sound. “Isn't that a bit cliche?”

Erika rolled her eyes as the boys laughed, with me or at me I didn't know.

“Yes, it's a bit… apparent.” Erika told me “But we are, afterall, the reason the Bermuda Triangle is so infamous. We’ve trained and roamed and used our powers here since the Glass Pyramid was first built”

“You guys took down Amelia Earhart?” I asked.

“We didn't take her down,” Erika exclaimed. “Zeph, tell her what really happened”

“Why me?” Zeph laughed, amused by Erika.

“Cause you are the oldest of us”

“She disappeared two years before I was even born”

“Amelia didn’t disappear,” Aiden started, ignoring Erika and Zeph. “She joined us. A war was approaching, and so was the new age. We needed someone who knew how to fly and handle human technology, and since Amelia had already been exposed to our secrets by Morrigan, she was the only obvious choice”

“Oh.” I said.

“We’re here” Erika burst out, still looking down into the ocean.

I joined her by the railing and looked at the water, at first I didn't see anything but dark blue, then I suddenly caught a glimpse of light being reflected towards me from the deep.

“Tell Morrigan that we are above the base” Erika commanded

“Aye, captain” Zeph mock saluted and went under deck.

Aiden stepped forward and climbed onto the railing, his feet almost touching the water. He looked as if he was about to jump head first into the water.

“See you guys on the other side” He said before dropping carefully into the water and sinking so fast I almost thought he disappeared, if it wasn't for the mist rising in his place and the water bobbing as if it was boiling hot.

“You guys do realize this is completely insane.” I said, not really a question.

“Yeah, I know.” Erika still answered. “Everything new is strange at first, and this is no exception. But it is also your first test. Every new member in the Organization has to learn how to reach the Glass Pyramid on the bottom of the ocean. It's supposed to test your ability to adapt, and your creativity. Everybody has their own method of reaching the base, and we want you to find your”

“How do you get down to the base?” I asked.

“I swim and hold my breath for an extended amount of time, it takes a lot of focus and it is not my primary way of travel, but it works” Erika said.

I looked into the water and swallowed.

“Don't worry, I’ll help you all the way down” Erika promised.

Zeph came back up and looked at the two of us. “It shouldn’t take long now” I looked questioning at Zeph. “The light signal” Zeph explained. “It's nearly impossible to see anything down there, so Morrigan and Adi made this big beam that we can follow down to the entrance.”

“It tracks a lot of unwanted attention,” Erika continued. “So it can't stay turned on for long.”

“Makes sense” I took hold of the railing and pulled myself up so I was sitting on it, ready to jump, looking for the light.

“Well, imma bounce.” Zeph clapped us on the shoulders, then jumped head first, getting caught by the air. “Cya, ladies!” he hooted, then pulled down, inside a bubble of air.

I took a deep breath, then admitted “I don't know what to do.”

“You’ll have to figure something out.” Erika said. “Think about your strengths, think about a way down and all the factors that will keep you alive. Just think”

That wasn't helpful. My mind felt like a record, going over the same notes again and again and again. I could feel my heart race, and the only thing my eyes could see was that girl the moment she opened her eyes underwater and screamed without sound. I could hear that scream now, the scream of a ghost that still haunted me.

I took a deep breath and tried to ignore that growing cold inside my being. The light broke through the ocean and I jumped into the unknown, my heart racing, my eyes open and my soul was suddenly alive.

I swam through the cold sea, and I could feel the water pulling my limbs, pressing me down. I wanted to go back to the surface, I wanted to close my eyes because the water stung and the light from beneath was blinding. I wanted to breathe air again.

Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.

I closed my eyes against the stinging and I tried to swim down, down, down. The water was too heavy, it was both pulling me downwards and trying to squash me. My head hurt and my lungs were emptying quicker than I thought possible. This was not like running.

And that’s when I started thinking. My first thought: This is the first time in my entire life I’ve ever been aware. My second thought: This is the first time I’ve been alive. My third thought: Maybe this could be like running.

When you set your mind to do something, and I mean really do something, it’s surprisingly easy. I kicked with my legs, I forced my lungs to breathe like I did when I was running, and it worked. I was swimming fast, faster than I ever imagined I could. I wasn't drowning, I wasn't falling. I was running beneath the sea. The current was the wind in my hair, the water was every single dark thing that had happened to me, and I was pushing through it all.

Then I stopped, and so did my lungs. I was once again surprised at my own shallow mind. When Erika had told me that we were going to some underwater Glass Pyramid, I had not believed her. I should have, for that was exactly what awaited me. The Pyramid was bigger than I expected. It was bigger than any building I had ever seen, which I knew didn't mean much, since the big buildings in Denmark were cottages compared to some of the big architectural wonders of the world.

The entire Pyramid was made out of glass, which the name had kind of given away already. It reflected the sunlight from the surface and cast dancing shadows around the seafloor. It was also surrounded by what I assumed was a garden, filled with corals, seaweed and colored stones. Fish swam around the place in school, creating patterns. I wanted to chase them for hours, to explore every creak of the garden, but then I remembered that I had stopped breathing, so that took over my thoughts for the couple seconds.

When I regained my ability to breathe underwater, Erika had already reached me. Her hair was pulled into a ponytail, that circled her head from behind, creating a halo of gold in stark contrast to the blue of the sea. She smiled at me and began swimming down towards the pyramid, and I followed after her, slower this time, taking in the sight.

It was only when we were a couple of metres away from the Pyramid’s top, that I began to wonder how we would get inside. I couldn't see an entrance anywhere, and it looked like Erika was headed straight towards the top instead of towards the bottom where I would have guessed the door would have been, had there been any.

I almost stopped breathing again when Erika swam straight into the top and through the glass like it was also made of water. I couldn't see her when she entered the Glass Pyramid, but guessed I would have to follow her inside. I did, and I landed on the floor three metres beneath where I came through the glass, heaving for air, finally appreciating the nice way natural air felt going through my lungs. My hair and clothes were drenched, and my insides were burning like when I had gone for a run yesterday.

A pair of feet approached me, and I almost slapped the hand that reached towards me, before I realized it was Erika, then I just settled on glaring at it. Erika was completely dry, but she had taken her coat off and was now standing in her black pants and gold, sleeveless top.

“Next time you’ll have to learn how to stay dry” Erika said when she realized I wasn't going to take her hand.

“Where is my bag?” I asked instead, beginning to worry. I had my only towel in it, and I wanted it around me as soon as possible.

“Don't worry,” Erika said, as if she read my mind. “Shira and Lynn are getting the boat down soon, along with all your things.”

I was starting to have trouble keeping up with all of the names, so instead of responding I just coughed up some water that had gotten into my lungs.

“I think the others must be waiting for us” Erika wondered out loud.

“How many?”

“We are a total of seven people living here,” Erika informed me. “But I highly doubt they’ll all be there.”

Seven people. It's less than I expected, but it still manages to feel like a crowd inside my brain. The confinement of the Pyramid suddenly doesn't seem so thrilling. I get up from where I was laying, and stretch my aching limbs.

Erika smiled at me once I was standing, then lead me towards a firepole that she took down smoothly. I hesitated, unsure of whether it was a good idea to slide down the metal pole with my wet hands and drenched pants on. I bit down my fear and jumped, catching the pole and sliding down, landing sooner than I expected with a loud thud.

This floor was bigger than the first. There weren't any rooms on this floor, and there were four curved glass walls, with the ocean behind each of them. The water was brighter than it should be this deep underneath the sea, and I could see further now that I was inside the pyramid, than I could when I was swimming inside it. It might have been a magic trick or maybe just my eyes that were more used to looking in air instead of water.

The firepole was in the middle of the room, and around it were small lounges with a mix of old fashioned couches, futuristic looking chairs and beanbags. There were a lot of beanbags. Potted plants and carpets decorated the floor too, along with a few statues along the walls.

Four people were sitting in one of the little nooks. I recognized Aiden and Zeph immediately. Aiden was sitting in one of the couches, an arm propped up on the backrest, a girl with black hair sitting beside him. Zeph sitting on the coffee table, and a tall and slender man was propped against the glass wall.

Erika called and the four collectively turned their heads to look at me.

“There she is!” The girl yelled. She wore brightly colored red pants, and layered shirts. Around her neck was one of those chokers that were properly popular in the nineties, and her almond shaped eyes were lined in bronze eyeliner. “We’ve been waiting for you. You look drenched”

“I feel drenched, too” I monotoned, crossing my arms and feeling a bit exposed.

“I’m Shira,” She told me as she got up. “Welcome. I’ll be your official your guide”

I looked at the other man who was still propped against the wall. He had dark circles under his eyes and looked uninterested in what was going on.

“Don't you have somewhere to be?” Erika asked Shira, a smile on her face that didn't quite reach her eyes.

“Oh, yes.” Shira ruffled Erika’s ponytail and looked at the man by the wall. “Lynn, I need you help”

Lynn nodded to me in silent greeting as he followed Shira to the firepole. The two of them took hold of the pole and were pulled up magicly.

“How are they going to get an entire boat down here?” I asked while still looking at the place they had been a couple of seconds ago.

“Shira is a master of transformation,” Aiden said. “She shrinks the boat and then Lynn uses his water powers to pull it down. We have a hangar on one of the lower floors where Shira then transforms the boat back”

“It's going to take a while, you should sit down,” Erika advised. “I’ll go talk to Adi, he is our leader” She added, remembering that I properly didn't know who he was. “Zeph, you make sure her room is ready. Aiden you just… I don't know”

“I’ll show Morrigan my salmon” He prompted quickly as he got up from his seat. “She’ll finally realize I was right all along about her cooking”

“Yes, I am sure she will,” Zeph said sarcastically.

I sat down and did not think about what Aiden meant with the salmon. Zeph and Erika followed Aiden to the elevator and I was alone once again.