Henry and Lily plummeted through the darkness, wind rushing past them as they flailed helplessly.
Lily yelled, "WHY ARE THERE SO MANY HOLES IN THIS PLACE?!"
Henry flapped his arms uselessly. "WHY ARE YOU ASKING ME?!"
Then—SPLASH!
Both of them hit ice-cold water, sinking instantly.
Henry thrashed, bubbles escaping his mouth as he panicked for half a second—then realized he could actually swim. He kicked upwards and broke the surface, gasping.
Lily popped up next to him, coughing. "Okay… not dead. That's nice."
Henry looked around. They had fallen into some underground river, the water flowing lazily through a vast cavern. The eerie blue glow from before still illuminated the walls, casting long, shifting shadows.
Henry groaned. "At this point, I'm convinced this entire fortress was designed by some psychopath who just really hated guests."
Lily pushed wet hair out of her face. "So, what now? Wait for the current to carry us to an even worse part of the ruins?"
Henry grinned. "I like your optimism."
Lily rolled her eyes. "That wasn't optimism, that was sarcasm."
Henry ignored her and started paddling toward the nearest rocky shore. "Come on, let's get out before—"
A deep growl echoed through the cavern.
Lily tensed. "Oh, come on!"
Henry turned slowly.
Something big was swimming beneath the water.
Its massive shadow moved beneath the surface, circling them.
Henry exhaled. "Okay, hear me out. Maybe it's friendly?"
A giant, glowing-eyed serpent shot up from the depths, fangs bared, hissing loud enough to shake the walls.
Henry pointed. "Okay, not friendly!"
Lily pulled a dagger. "We are so cursed!"
The serpent lunged—
And then, from out of nowhere, a figure dropped down from the ceiling, landing on the serpent's head.
A woman.
Dressed in sleek, black leather, with thieves' tools strapped to her belt, a cocky grin on her face, and a hood barely hiding wild, shoulder-length hair.
She stabbed two daggers into the serpent's skull and yelled, "HEY LOSERS! NEED A HAND?!"
Henry blinked. "What."
Lily just gawked. "Who the hell is that?!"
The woman yanked her daggers free as the serpent thrashed, twisting in the water. She flipped acrobatically off its head and landed on a rock near them.
Henry, impressed, nodded. "Okay, that was cool."
The woman smirked. "I know."
The serpent recovered, whipping its head toward them.
The thief cracked her knuckles. "You guys can swim, right?"
Lily frowned. "Uh. Yeah?"
The thief kicked a loose rock, sending it crashing into the cavern wall—
Which triggered a chain reaction.
The ceiling cracked.
Henry's eyes widened. "Wait—WAIT—"
The cavern collapsed.
Henry, Lily, and the thief were swept away as a tidal wave of water surged forward, carrying them down the river at terrifying speed.
Henry screamed. "I AM SO TIRED OF FALLING—!"
To Be Continued…