Chapter 17 - Fade

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The sudden shock of icy water brought me back. My heart raced and with my eyes wide in terror, a gasp of water flooded my mouth. My chest tightened with the burn of the water in my throat, raging towards my lungs. With the little stamina I had left, I twisted my head around.

Debris and ruptured pieces of helicarrier engulfed me, threatening an underwater burial. Thunderous explosions echoed through the suffocating waves, muffling any chance I had of rescue.

Steve.

I whipped my head back and forth. He'd been shot, too. He might be unconscious. I stroked and kicked as pain shot through my injured limbs. I searched as fast as I could through the debris. But the air in my lungs was wearing thin, water permeating with every passing second. My chest is on fire. I need air. I need to breathe. I try to swim upwards, desperate for a life-giving breath. But the debris was too densely packed, I can't find an upward route. My body quickly gives out as I start sinking. My ears start ringing, my chest is about to burst.

The urge to breathe forces my breath out in one final spurt, replacing whatever air was left with crippling water.

I closed my eyes.

I'm going to die.

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