Laurel

2:02 Morose

Be like water the strange woman had said. I had no idea what she meant by that so I decided to first find some water and study it, see if anything made more sense. There are always sounds of water in caves, water dripping from the ceiling forming stalactites as minerals from the earth are pulled free from the rock as water works its way ever downward. Stalagmites forming on the floor below as the drips added up, creating bumps and sharp peaks reaching upwards to the ceiling. Sometimes the two would meet, forming a strange mineral tree trunk in the tunnel.

I knew down wasn't what I wanted, going down meant deeper into the Earth. I wanted out. I had no idea what the ocean was, I had never heard that word before, or read about it in any text. If the ocean was where water found its home, maybe I could too. She said water flowed to the ocean, I had come across several small rivers and reservoirs in my travels, and water certainly flowed through the underground, carving through the stone, creating cuts, caves and new paths. I decided I would try and find another river and follow the flow of water. This at least gave me some direction in my travels instead of aimless wandering in the darkness alone.

I walked as long as I could that first new day, unable to locate a river. I rested, ate some mushrooms and again walked until my strength gave out. This repeated for what I think may have been a week, I could never be sure. One day as I walked, I heard the faint sound of running water and began to move towards it, focusing on using my auditory senses to chase the running water down caves, around bends and turns until I came across the smallest rivulet of water. It barely deserved the classification of river, but it was flowing water, and so I followed the water.

I followed my river like a man possessed. Never taking my eyes off the flowing water in case it vanished. Following it as it snaked through the caves. Soon other rivulets and wider streams joined mine, increasing the size and flow of the water. After many waking and rest cycles what had started a meager trickle of water had become a mighty river. I was able to catch blind fish to eat, gaining my strength back after countless time spent on a diet of mostly mushrooms. The water in the river was clean and pure, although it did taste strongly of various minerals. Compared to the early part of my journey this was nearer to paradise than I had ever been. I had been walking so long in places that showed no sign of any activity that I felt slightly less on edge than during the start of my flight.

During another day of following my river, I could tell the sound of the flowing water was changing, there was a roar up ahead that I wasn't familiar with. The noise grew louder and louder until I figured out what it was, sadly only when I was already upon it. The river I had been following faithfully was jumping over a ledge and falling down into a great pool in a large open chamber. Several other waterfalls lined the edges of this chamber, countless small rivers must feed into this one area before continuing on.

I stopped. Unsure what I should do. The water was clearly flowing this way, but if I went over the waterfall, there was no way I would be able to climb back up. The pool below looked deep, and I could see fish swimming, but something larger and more dangerous than fish could be hidden below the placid water surface. Or maybe it was more shallow than I imagined and I would smash my skull on rocks as I tried to make my way down. Ending things once and for all.

Should I take a leap of faith? Turn around and try another way? I decided to take a literal leap of faith; If I died on rocks in shallow water, it would still be a better death than I would have experienced at the hands of my people. The past bit of time spent with endless fresh water and eating my fill of fish every day was a peaceful life and I would always be grateful for that time.

I took a deep breath, began to run and flung myself over the edge of the cliff, flying through the air in a graceful dive before plunging into ice cold water. The sudden change in temperature shocked my system as I floundered and tried to swim to the surface. I could feel surprised fish touch my skin as my arms and legs flailed trying to get my head above water to get a much needed breath. I broke through the surface, taking a gasping and grateful breath. Turning onto my back to float on the surface and catch my breath.