Unedited
Water. There was water rushing into the room. Cameron pulled her feet up slightly, the water already a couple of inches off the ground and continuing to rise. Ashley was planning to drown them. She bit her lip, trying to shove down the panic that was rising in her.
It was just some water. She could get out of this. It was most likely a low chance of her getting out of this, but it was not just her life she was working on saving.
Arlo still sat a couple of feet away, body slumped forward, with labored breathing. Both bullets were more than likely still inside him, and she couldn't see where they had gone in. His skin had paled significantly, with his eyes shut and ebony hair hanging over his face.
She wasn't sure how much time he had, but she needed to be quick.
She pulled at her arms again, testing the strength of the zip tie, wincing when the pain in her wrists flared up. She grit her teeth, pushing past the pain. Lifting her arms up as far as they could go behind her, she brought them back down, pulling her wrists apart. Her wrists remained tied. She repeated the process, her wrists being rubbed rawer each time.
The sound of snapping and her wrists flying free made her sigh in relief. Ignoring the deep, angry, red marks encircling each of them, she moved straight to her ankles. Her hands dived into the water, sending water splashing onto her face as she pulled at the tightly tied ropes.
"Come on," She hissed, the water rising past her calves, and towards her knees, soaking her trousers.
She found a knot towards the back of her left ankle, her fingers going straight to untying it.
She took a deep breath in through her nose, forcing herself to remain calm and concentrate on one thing at a time. Ignore the dead bodies of her fake parents being covered over by the water; ignore the fact Arlo was bleeding out beside her, still tied to the metal chair attached to the floor; ignore that the only exit was a metal door locked from the outside, making it impossible to escape.
One undone. She moved to her other leg, finding the knot quickly, her cold fingers pulling and tugging.
Feeling the rope slacken, she gripped the cool metal with her hands and jerked her leg up and out of the restraint.
She was free.
Wasting no time, she splashed through the water, her attention now on her injured brother. He was paler, his hair a stark contrast against his skin. She bit her lip when she heard his shallow breathing, but tried to stay pessimistic. At least he was still breathing.
She dropped to her knees, causing the water to ripple away from her as she reached down to his ankles. Her hands reached under the water, finding the chair leg and following it down to the rope. Untying the knot faster than she had on hers, she was able to move to his other leg and get them both untied as the water reached the middle of her thigh as she stood.
Wading through the water to get behind Arlo, she placed on foot on one part of the zip tie, between his wrists, and pushed it against the chair. She grabbed the part closest to her. He groaned softly as she tugged at the piece of plastic. She froze, then rolled her shoulders.
"Sorry, Arlo." She whispered.
Steeling herself, she tightened her grip, wrenching the piece of plastic towards her and kicked forward with her foot. A large snap sounded through the room, her momentum sending her flying back into the water, causing a large splash as she went under.
She gasped as she broke the surface, her eyes wide in surprise. Her soaked hair was pushed backwards and out of her face as she scrambled to her feet. Her saturated clothes dragged her down, the water making her movement slower as she made her way back to Arlo's side.
The restraints were gone. One thing done.
She pushed Arlo so he was leaning backwards, his chin back to open his airway and make it easier for him to breath. A hand moved to cover her mouth as she gasped, a light feeling spreading through her body. That idiot.
She reached down and pulled a small dart out of his shoulder, and another from his stomach. He had only been sedated.
"I'm so going to kill you when you wake up," She muttered, throwing the darts behind her, hearing a small plop as they both hit the water.
The ease of knowing her boisterous brother was not bleeding out gave her more time to think, but a slip of concern for how pale her was made her thoughts hesitate. Maybe it was just the temperature of the chilly water.
Her eyes flickered to the two large pipes pumping water into the room. The more time she had, the bigger their survival chances were. She waded through the water towards them, struggling to pull her jumper off along the way. Gripping the soaking piece of clothing as she got it over her head, she wrapped it into a ball and plunged it into one of the pipes.
She wrinkled her nose as grime from the pipe stuck to her hand.
Using one hand, she pressed it into the pipe as far as it would go, the water slowing down the further it went. She slowly let it go when she couldn't push it anymore. However, a little stream of water was still able to make it past the jumper.
She wiped her hand on her jeans, using the water to wash the grime off. A lump in her jeans made her stop. She pressed down on it slightly, finding it solid and where her pocket was. Reaching into her front pocket, she pinched the small object between her fingers, and slid it out.
"What the...?" In her hand, she held her ear piece. She could have sworn she lost it, as she didn't remember putting it in her pocket.
She brought it to her ear, hearing nothing but static. Water must have got into it. She blew into it, hoping, that would help shift the water, giving it a small shake as she did.
She brought it back to her ear.
Silence.
"It's still silent Kal."
A lump formed in her throat at hearing her brother's voice.
"L-Lloyd?" She muttered, putting the ear piece in properly.
"Cameron? Can you hear-?" His voice cut out at the end, a buzzing sound filling her ear.
"Sort of. I think the water might of damaged it." She explained, a hand running through her hair as the smile wouldn't leave her face.
"-am, you're cutting out slight-. What about water?"
She took the ear piece out of her ear again, shaking it slightly and blowing air into it.
"Is this any better?" She questioned, bringing it back to her ear.
"Yes, you didn't cut out then." Lloyd replied, "What did you say about water?"
A splash behind her grabbed her attention. She spun around, finding Arlo missing.
"Cranberries!"
She waded through the water, now past her hips and climbing higher. She dropped into the water, heart pounding, keeping her head above the surface. Grabbing blindly, she found an arm and hauled it up, Arlo coming with it. She heaved his arm over her shoulders, his 6'1" figure leaning onto her.
"Cameron, are you okay? What's going on?" Lloyd's desperate voice filled her ear.
"Arlo's been sedated," Cameron explained, shifting Arlo's arm so she was standing straighter. "And the room is filling with water."
"Oh geez... Reid, we'll need the med bay ready. Arlo's been sedated." Cameron pulled Arlo through the water, lifting one leg to step on the chair.
She lunged up, pressing her foot into the chair as she strained to step up. She gripped onto Arlo's wrist with one hand, her other arm around his chest. Sweat beaded on her brow, eyes glinted with determination and she squatted on the seat, Arlo straight beside her.
"Why?" She gasped out, bringing her hand further down to Arlo's hip and finding a loop in his pants to loop her fingers through for better grip.
"Arlo's allergic to certain anesthetics."
Cameron glanced at Arlo's pale face with widened eyes. "He's having an allergic reaction?" Her voice raised, cracking at the end.
"Yes." Lloyd stated. Cameron took a sharp breath in, panic burning like a bonfire inside her. "But only a mild one."
"A mild one? How do you know it's a mild one? You're not here, Arlo's unconscious, barely breathing, the rooms filling with water, there's two dead bodies floating about somewhere and-."
"Cameron, calm down." Reid's voice filtered through her ranting, cutting her off with a stern muttering.
"Calm down?" Cameron questioned incredulously. Did he honestly just tell her to calm down? When had she not been calm? "I am extremely calm. I am the calmest anyone in this situation has ever been. I am cool and composed. Who wouldn't be calm while they're trying to keep their brother and themselves from drowning in freezing water-."
"Cameron. Take a deep breath."
She sucked a deep breath in, holding it for a few seconds before letting go.
"Better?" He questioned.
"No." She admitted, heart pounding so hard she was scared it was going to bounce out of her ribcage. A shiver ran through her body when the frigid water lapped at the middle of her back as she squatted on the chair. She would have to stand soon, and somehow bring Arlo up on the chair with her.
Muttered talking was heard through the ear piece, as she strained to listen.
"We'll be there soon." Kalmin's stoic voice declared.
Cameron gritted her teeth filling her lungs with air, preparing herself to lift Arlo onto the chair with her.
"How soon is that?" Cameron whispered, scrunching her eyes shut and wiggling her numb toes. "And how do you know where we are?"
"Ten minutes."
"I don't know if we have ten minutes," Cameron mumbled, shifting her arms and clenching her hands. She ignored how he left her second question unanswered. She didn't have time to point it out.
"We'll make it five." Kalmin spoke, but she knew it wasn't directed at her as he left no room for argument.
Cameron nodded, not even registering he couldn't see her. When the water splashed at the bottom of her shoulder blades, she knew she needed to stand straight.
Lift with her legs, not her back. She breathed out slowly. Three. Two. One.
Her whole body groaned as she lifted Arlo up, the water weighing him down, like quick sand not wanting to let go. A hiss slipped between her lips, the stress on her body from the extra mass making itself well known.
She tugged, keeping her grip tight as she straightened her legs. Sweat beaded on her brow, rolling down her rosy cheeks and dripping off her pale jaw. Her teeth chattered together, from the cold or the strain, she didn't know.
Feeling her knees about to give out from under her, she gave one final heave, bringing Arlo onto the too small metal chair beside her. The water rippled around them from the movement.
Gasping for air, she leant forward, one arm staying around Arlo while the other gripped onto the back of the chair to keep her steady. The feeling of numbness was spreading up her legs, already spread past her feet.
The ear piece crackled in her ear as Diego's voice came through quietly. "Have you told her to breath calmly? There'll only be a certain amount of oxygen left if the room is filling with water."
Cameron wanted to cry. She forced herself to slow her breathing, eyes squeezed shut as she concentrated on lowering her heart rate. "That makes me feel so much better," She croaked out, pushing herself to stand straight.
"We're almost there." Kalmin stated.
A squeaky, high pitched whine filled her ear. A sharp yelp left her, hand reaching up and scratching the ear piece out, not caring as it dropped into the water, sinking quickly. She shook her head, wet hair spraying water everywhere, trying to get the ringing in her ear to stop.
What the ever loving weirdness was that?
The sound of rushing water had stopped, the level of the water now passed the pipes and still rising. The single light in the room flickered, Cameron watching desperately below as it blinked one last time before going out, leaving the room in pitch blackness.
The darkness, silence and cold left her feeling numb.
The bitter cold water travelled up her stomach, reaching her shoulders blades once again. She shut her eyes softly, remembering Diego's comment about breathing slowly. She couldn't panic. That wouldn't help herself or Arlo. She needed to remain as calm as she could.
Her teeth chattered, clacking against each other, echoing around the space left in the room. Her arms hugged Arlo close, his unconscious form leaning against her.
This must have been how the people on that boat felt, the one that sank in the Pacific sea. She was never watching that movie, if she could even remember the name for it. Why couldn't she remember?
She didn't care. All she knew was their brothers would be there soon and get them out.
Hopefully alive.