Everything was dark. The only thing keeping me sane was the feeling of wind brushing past me, making me certain that I was still falling. It's been minutes. Or maybe more. It's not like I was counting. At this point, it would be a mercy for me to reach the bottom.
And i did.
A loud splash echoed throughout the darkness, as I felt myself hit something— it was like my legs just crashed down into solid concrete, even though i knew it was just water. The force and height from my fall made it no different compared to jumping off the fifth story of a building.
Thankfully though, since it was just water, I had aligned myself so that my feet would hit the water first, causing the shock of landing being absorbed by my calves and ankles. Still, that didn't save me from a seering pain that caused me to yelp, drinking in a bit of the salty water. Almost making me drown.
My legs were broken from the impact. I couldn't feel them at all, making it difficult to swim up. I had already recovered from the state of shock I was in when first hitting the water, my only focus being survival and nothing else at the moment.
As I continued to sink into the depths, I began frantically trying to swim up. This only caused my muscles to tire out quickly. Forcing my heart to calm down, I started slowing down and slowly swimming to the surface of the water. I couldn't see anything— everything was dark, but that didn't mean I wasn't aware of which way was up and down.
Even without using my legs, I was able to swim up and float. Taking a deep breath of the stale air, I coughed violently and squinted my eyes, the salty water getting into them. But I managed to hold myself together and look around.
There was a faint light shining down from the "sky" which was likely coming from the hole i fell down from. It allowed me to check out my surroundings. I saw rocky walls and ceilings just a distance away, stalactites hanging from the "ceiling" water dripping from it echoing audibly in the silence.
'A cave?'
I assumed. It seemed like a cave filled with water. That explained the stale air, darkness and rocky structure of it.
'Where is everyone else? Are they even alive?'
I thought, still floating in the water. I haven't seen signs of them yet. From what I saw before falling, Isabella, Zeke and the blond stranger fell here with me. They should be around here somewhere. Whether we like it or not, we have to group to find a way back to the top.
It's that blond boy I'm worried about. He could betray us and will without a doubt abandon us if he finds an opportunity to escape by himself. Nevertheless, there is also a chance nobody but me survived. After all, i got lucky and only broke my legs and suffered minor internal injuries.
I shook my heads out of these thoughts.
'First I need to find a surface to relax on. Then, I'll worry about those things....'
With my mind made, I began swimming blindly, following my intuition. It was difficult trying to swim with my legs broken. I felt like I was walking on a thin string, one mistake would lead me to falling— while in this case, drowning.
Luckily, I managed to adapt to it and swim awkwardly using just my hands. It was like learning how to swim again.
'How amazing. I just keep learning all sorts of skills like these in The Mulligan....what a great way to fill my resume with experience.'
I quipped inwardly, rolling my eyes. Having some humor helped calm down the fear and anxiety gripping my heart. No matter what happens, I had to survive after all. Im gonna win The Mulligan, even if it may be a delusional dream, I will.
After some swimming, I saw something.
It was a faint orange light in the distance. My eyes instinctively sparkled in excitement. I had this sudden urge to start swimming as fast as I could towards the light, but I held myself back. My rationality winning over.
'There is a chance it's Isabella or Zeke, or even that blond guy. But there is also a chance of it being a trap by an Unbound Creature....'
After my experiences with the "King Of Unboud Creatures" Dorian, I have stopped underestimating what these wild animals are capable of. They do have a cunning and vicious intelligence, even if I'm reluctant to admit.
'But still....its either visiting the light, or trying my luck the other direction.'
I was stumped. It was risky just rushing towards the light, but it was equally— if not more— riskier trying to gamble with my life by going somewhere else. It was hard to decide, but I quickly made up my mind.
And started swimming towards the light.
I tried to keep the splashing of water silent, but it was difficult, since I was using only my two hands. I contemplated swimming underwater towards the light, but I stopped myself. That's too risky. I didn't wanna take a gamble of provoking what lay in the depths. I couldn't dare to imagine what a shark with a Blessing would be like.
After some time, once my muscles started feeling sore, I finally saw a rocky surface above the water. On it, was a crackling fire emitting an orange light. By it's side, a shadowy figure was sitting. I couldn't make out their face, but I didn't bother. I was too desperate to care about anything else at this point. I just wanted to rest....
So, I drew closer and closer. Until one splash of the water startled the shadowy figure. They jumped back, tensed up. I heard an unfamiliar, delicate and firm voice.
"Who are you?!"
I didn't say anything and just crawled up to the surface, slumping to the floor. My breathing heavy. Looking up, I saw the face of the figure.
Unwashed blond hair with bangs, pale youthful skin, wearing only a loincloth....
I felt an urge to laugh. The one person I didn't want to meet, was the person I met. Now, it was up to him. Is he gonna kill me while helpless, or will he spare me? Even if he decides to go with the former, I will fight with all I have. That's for sure.
"I'm sure you remember me. I fell with you."
I coughed out, my voice coming out raspy from having drank too much of the salty water.
The young boy's eyes lit up in recognition, but he still seemed wary of me, observing me very carefully. His clenching fists loosened for a brief moment. Since he didn't say anything, I rolled over onto a sitting position, wincing at the pain of my legs.
"I'm Morgan, by the way. And you?"
My casualness seemed to have confused the boy. His gaze having a sympathetic look as he glanced down at my broken legs. I also noticed that he was completely fine. I held onto hope that he could possibly heal me— that is, if he isn't hostile, of course and willing to co-operate with me.
The boy hesitated for a few seconds, then said;
"I'm....Nico."
I smiled.
"Well, nice to meet you, Nico. I have to ask, though. How are you not injured after the fall?"
I didn't directly ask him to heal me, that would lead to some sort of bargaining or him becoming hostile towards me. Instead, I decided to appear friendly, helpless and curious. This boy seemed young and very inexperienced, after all. A little deceit will definitely go a long way with him.
Nico hesitated once again, his gaze kept drifting back to my broken legs, a complicated storm of emotions in his blue eyes.
"Uh, my blessing allows me to fly...."
Then, he paused and said;
"I'm sorry.....about the legs. Do they hurt? Umm, im not a medical expert. But I could try and fix them into place, reducing the pain. My dad is an orthopedist and I used to watch him work. So, I know a thing or two about fixing broken bones."
My eyes widened at the amount of information he was sharing. So, he can fly, cared about my legs and knew a bit about how to fix them. I thought I would need to coax these answers out of him, but this boy was hopelessly naive.
"Do they hurt? Yes, they do. God, they hurt, alright. You really can help me?"
Nico nodded his head.
"I will try my best."
I almost wanted to facepalm. How did Nico survive by himself with such an attitude? He's worse than Cassie. No, I shouldn't underestimate him based on his kindness. After all, he survived for about five days now. Or seven? Nevertheless, surviving for that long in The Mulligan is never luck.
Following Nico's instructions, I crawled by the bonfire and laid back down on the hard rocky surface. The sounds of fire crackling and water flowing echoed, as Nico sat down beside me, looking down at my broken legs with a serious look. I noticed a hint of pity in them.
"This is....very serious. Even if I manage to wrap a splinter, or allign the bones for them to heal by themselves it would take atleast seven months to heal fully."
My eyes widened, but then I shrugged it off.
"Alright."
Nico raised an eyebrow at my nonchalance.
"That's not a good thing, you know?"
I chuckled.
"Oh, I know. I'll be fuming if it wasn't for the fact that I knew someone who could even heal lost limbs. All I need to do is survive until I meet him."
Nico seemed interesed.
"Who? Is it the girl you were with? Or the creepy masked man?"
Normally, I would of lied and said that it was someone else. But I was infected by this boys attitude. Plus, I owed him a truthful answer for being so honest with me too.
"It's the masked man. I don't know how he does it, though. But his healing powers are no joke. So, im certain he is alive and probably with the girl. We just need to stay alive and reunite with them."
Nico's eyes sparkled with excitement, as he nodded, determined.
"Okay! Now, let me...."
Then, he turned his gaze towards my broken legs and gingerly touched them. My breath hitched at the contact, fearing the worst. Then, abruptly, he was deliberately and carefully moving my legs, trying to re-allign the broken pieces of the bone. It was a seering pain.
The cave was filled with sounds of audible gasps, groans and occasionally a vulgar curse.
I didn't know how he was doing it, or if he was doing it correctly, but I can feel my bones moving. Nico definitely was experienced with this, but without the fancy medical tech and the basic experience needed for such a serious injury, he wasn't doing too well. Sometimes, he would make a mistake, causing me to yelp. Yet, he never gave up.
Nico remained concentrated. Even though he knew the pain he was causing me, he was trying his best to atleast reduce the injury, so that I would be able to atleast move my legs without feeling an intense pain.
After what felt like hours, it finally stopped. Nico had crudely allingned the broken pieces of the bone. Then, using my upper clothing as a bandage, wrapped them around my legs, acting as a splinter. It was crude and very primitive, but helped reduce the pain I felt when trying to move my legs, atleast. That was good enough.
Sitting by the fire, my face was pale, glistening with sweat. The whole procedure took a toll on me. Nico was sitting across me, a serious expression on his youthful face.
"So, we need to find the two of you're friends next, right?"
I nodded my head weakly. Clearing my throat, i said.
"Yeah. I didn't exactly see where they fell, though. But it shouldn't be too far inside this cave. Im certain Isabella wouldn't abandon me so easily...."
I mumbled to myself, mostly trying to convince myself. In reality, I wasn't really sure. She has done it so many times. Saved me countless times when she could of killed me so easily. She only abandoned me once, but that was before we made that promise.
Shaking my head out of these unnecessary thoughts, I looked around, then my gazed rested on Nico.
"So, Nico. You don't mind me asking you a few questions, do you? I'm very curious about you."
Nico shook his head, a pleasant smile on his face.
"Not at all. I would like to know more about you too, Mister Morgan!"