Icy Inferno (Troyler AU)

⋙ Chapter Four

A body began to take shape from the side of a tree - the tree the lightning had appeared from. It was a boy, taller than most. I watched as the green hue of his skin faded out. His pupils contracted, colour flooding back into them. His scruffy hair change from a bark brown to mousy blonde. I knew who it was in a heartbeat.

“Joe?” Connor and I asked in unison. He stepped forward, uneven on his feet. He blinked slowly as if the events were slowly catching up with him.

“What the hell are you doing here?” I snapped. He was completely alone, in the woods, hiding something behind his back. That was not a good sign.

“I was just practicing my camoflauge. I figured no one would be in the woods, so no one would know.” I believed him, and my temper dampened slightly. Earths weren’t meant to practice camouflage under the new legislations, incase they tried to escape the law. It was denying them possibly the greatest gift they possessed. I was sympathetic to him wanting to practice.

Without warning he rushed towards us, examining us for any signs of an injury. He kept his hands behind his back, struggling to keep something in his hands still. Tentatively he asked “You didn’t get struck did you?”

Connor chuckled. “No, we just missed it, thank god.”

“Did you cause it?” I asked seriously.

He bit his lip, and checked behind him. Deciding the close was clear, Joe brought forward what he’d been secreting behind his back. It was a glass jar - not extraordinary in any way. A few seconds later it lit up. Bolts of lightning rattled within the jar, flashing from side to side. It darkened again, but sporadically the lightning came back.

“How on earth did you get that?” Connor asked, moving closer to examine it.

“Caspar gave it to me, to protect myself in case anything bad was to happen when he wasn’t around. I didn’t mean to release it - especially not on you two. I’m so sorry...  I thought if I released it, the worst happen would be a bird gets struck down. I just got a bit scared, here, alone in the forest. ”

“What dangers are there in these woods?” Connor laughed.

A branch snapped a few feet away. We all spun round to see what had caused it, but nothing was there.

Trust Connor to tempt fate.

Another branch snapped. It was closer that time. Me - being as macho as I was - made a run for it.

I didn’t wait to see what the others were doing. I rushed passed lines of trees, that bent forwards to snatch my clothes. I ran past blurry figures that were pointing at me in confusion. I ran all the way to the riverbank, stopping just in time to prevent myself toppling over the edge.

The murky water was filled with debris and who knows what else. An odour dissimilar from any pleasantries enriched my nose.  It may have appeared stagnant at a glance, but the currents running through were visible from beneath the algae. I’d heard enough about the drowning of Louise to know the water could kill you if you were unlucky enough to fall in.

I could hear the footsteps of others rushing towards me. I was about to turn, but then I felt someone’s fingers callous fingers against my arm.

“What the-”

Within a heartbeat I was being shoved into the river.

A second later and I was falling.

In a blink of an eye I was submerged in water.

I struggled against the water as it engulfed me. Every sound in the world faded out. Currents pulled on my clothes, making me sink into its unknown depths. The light above me seemed dimmer. Every move I made seemed futile. The more I struggled the more disorientated I became. I pushed my arms and legs out, but I couldn’t find anything solid. I couldn’t reach the surface. I could feel the lack of breath left in me. My body screamed for oxygen, but I knew opening my mouth was the worst way to react. The water was threatening to extinguish the little spark of life that remained in me.