Violet

We found a spot on higher ground, far enough from the nearest lake that the mineral smell was fainter, and Bei finally relaxed enough to eat and rest her hand.

Two more days passed.

We continued moving, navigating carefully around the scattered lakes and avoiding the water entirely. Bei kept the cloth wrapped around her face most of the time now, and I noticed she gave the pink pools a wide berth whenever we passed them.

It made me feel bad.

The pull in my chest grew stronger with each passing hour. It wasn’t overwhelming, but more insistent and certain. Whatever I was being drawn toward, it was very close now.

When we got to a low rise, we stopped.

Below us, stretching out toward the horizon, was a lake unlike anything I had ever seen.

It was massive, far larger than any of the shallow pools we had passed. The water was deep and I could not see the end in sight. I wasn’t sure I had ever come across a lake this vast and deep before.

But along the edges, where it met the pale pink sand, were strange pools.

Dozens of them, maybe hundreds of pools were arranged in a cascading pattern that descended toward the main body of water. And they had different colours.

Brilliant, impossible colours that had no business existing in nature.

Pools of vivid orange and deep amber, of bright turquoise and pale green, of pink and yellow and colours I didn’t have names for. They were arranged in layers, each one slightly lower than the last, the water trickling down from one to the next in a gentle cascade that caught the light and scattered it like jewels even within the lake.

It was an insanely strange occurrence. I didn’t think it was possible for water to flow like a waterfall inside another water body.

The colours contrasted sharply with the pink of the deeper water beyond, creating a visual so striking it almost hurt to look at.

"What is this place?" Bei breathed.

I couldn’t answer. I was staring at the water, at the deep dark centre of the massive lake, and my heart had stopped.

The pull wasn’t leading me around the lake.

It was leading me into it.

"Violet?!" Bei’s voice was sharp with concern.

I snapped out of my reverie and realised I was crouched down at the very edge, almost about to jump in.

I flinched and sat away from the edge, my heart racing.

"The pull," I whispered. "It’s... it’s inside the water."

Bei stared at me, then at the lake, then back at me. Her face had gone pale.

"That’s impossible," she said. "How would you even... you can’t breathe underwater, Violet. And if that water is anything like the pools we passed..."

"It didn’t hurt me before."

"A few seconds of contact is different from submerging yourself completely!" Bei’s voice rose with panic. "What if it’s different deeper down? What if there’s something in that water that will kill you? What if—"

"Bei." I stood up and turned to face her fully. "I have to try."

"No. No, you don’t! We can find another way. Maybe there’s an entrance somewhere else, maybe—"

"There isn’t." I could feel it, knew it with a certainty that went beyond logic. "This is the only way. Whatever is down there, whatever my ancestors left behind... this is how I can reach it."

Bei’s eyes were wide. "Violet! This is crazy. I understand your excitement but your eyes look wild right now."

I blinked, stunned.

Did I really look mad?

"Even if this was the only way," she continued. "I cannot just stand here and watch you drown yourself in toxic water chasing something foreign."

My forehead wrinkled with worry and I glanced down at the water. "I can feel it, Bei. I’ve felt it for months. I don’t want to turn back..."

She stared at me for a long moment, her jaw tight and her eyes searching my face for something. Finally, her shoulders slumped.

"At least test it first," she said quietly. "Please. Before you go diving into unknown depths, at least make sure you can survive in that water for more than a few seconds."

I nodded.

We walked along the edge of the lake to where the colourful cascading pools had stopped. I chose a spot where the water was calmer, and crouched at the edge.

Bei hovered behind me, her hands clenched at her sides.

I reached out and dipped my hand into the water.

The tingling sensation returned immediately and danced across my skin, but it wasn’t painful.

I held my hand beneath the surface, counting the seconds in my head. Ten. Twenty. Thirty.

The tingling sensation began to fade.

"Violet?" Bei’s voice was tight. "Anything?"

"It tingles at first," I said slowly. "But it’s fading now. I think... I think my body is adjusting to it."

"Raise your hand," Bei demanded. "Let me see."

I lifted my hand from the water. For a moment, the tingling intensified as the air hit my wet skin, and then it faded entirely. My hand looked exactly as it had before. No redness, no blistering, no damage at all.

Bei grabbed my arm, making sure she avoided touching the wet area. She examined my skin with frantic intensity. "Hmm... Can you feel anything strange? Is your syzygy reacting?"

"No," I assured her. "And my syzygy isn’t reacting at all. It’s like... like the water doesn’t even register as a threat."

Bei let out a shaky breath, but she didn’t look reassured. "That was just your hand. Your whole body might be different."

"I know." I stood, my fingers moving to the fastenings of my clothes. "That’s why I’m going to test that next."

"Violet—"

"I’ll be careful." I stripped off my outer layers, leaving only my undergarments, a short pair of pants and a sleeveless shirt that clung to my skin. "If anything feels wrong, I’ll get out immediately."

Bei looked like she wanted to argue more, but she pressed her lips together and nodded tightly.

Hanging on to the edge, I slowly dipped myself into the water.

Unlike most lakes, it didn’t have a bank or slope of sand into the water. It was like a massive direct drop.

And despite my excitement to find out what was in there, the dark depths scared me a little.