Ma Neteyam

11

He withered, desperatere to go up and when she finally let go, he took off. Kicking his feet urgently but with his arms tied, he was slow. Luckily adrenaline pushed him onward.

With a gasp, he finally broke the surface, but it was difficult to keep himself afloat. Despite them being inside the reef and having calm waters, small waves felt heavy on him. After only a few struggling seconds, a rough tug on his leg brought him down once again. Wiya, he thought inwardly as he looked down at Vareya strongly bringing him down despite his kicking.

He was sick of this. He didn't understand why she would do this or if this was some setup to actually drown him. Maybe that was her intentions all along and he judged her wrong, made her out to be a good person when she wasn't.

All the warnings Aonung had said only made his headache worse and his body began jerking for air. He anxiously tried to get out of Vareyas grasp but she was relentless.

He needed air... fast. Neteyam began panicking. He would drown, and he's pretty sure she wouldn't be the one to save him.

With one hand gripped tightly around his ankle, Vareya looked up at Neteyam, a calm expression on her face as if she wasn't understanding the fact that he was losing air. That he could die.

His heart was pounding rapidly, he wanted to ask so many questions and curse her at the same time. But she only began waving her arms, tapping her lower stomach, and motioning breathing.

It took him a bit to understand that Vareya was actually telling him to calm down and use the breath inside him. But how could he when he had nothing left, when his body was aching and spasming.

As he still tried to kick his way free, she signaled for him to calm down again. And when Neteyam stared into her strong violet eyes, luminescent under the shining waters, he couldn't help but calm slightly.

He did his best to do as she had told him earlier. Tried his best to ignore his anger, and aches, and the suffocating water around him. He closed his eyes, picturing using the amount of air still inside him.

Before he knew it his heart was slowing, his mind became clearer, and Vareya had let him go. When he opened his eyes, she no longer held on to him, she only pointed to a sharp piece of coral behind her, and began swimming up.

Seeing her leave made him forget the peace he had just made a moment before, and he rushed towards the sharp rock. Using his last breaths, his mind already feeling dizzy, he rubbed the rope against it until it snapped.

With his arms he was able to swim fast, getting twice the speed not only from the extra set of hands but also from the adrenaline to survive.

After what felt like eternity later, he breathed in the air of Pandora. Somehow, his lungs were burning despite no longer being underwater, and his body was jumpy from the exhilarating 'training'.

Vareya had already made it back to the shore where she waited for Neteyam, and he slowly made his way to her. That time made him remember just what she had put him through, the dangers.

His anger was boiling by the time he stomped with his sore legs onto the sandy shore, gripping Vareyas arm roughly and growled in her face, " What the heck was that?"

This time, when Vareya tried to break free, he didn't let her. Let her get a taste of her own medicine, " I don't know what you're talking about."

He bared his fangs at her, " You could've killed me! I couldn't breathe, I was running out of air and then you left me out there to die."

This time she yanked her arm free from him, but she didn't put any distance between them. Instead, she got right in his face, " If you didn't freak out and calmed yourself like I told you, you would've been free much earlier. And I didn't leave you, I told you what you needed to do to break free. If you would've drowned that would've been your problem."