"I'm almost done, just hang in there a little longer!" Moxxie said, carefully removing the final bullets from the chamber of the gun that was still aimed at his head.

In the few minutes it had taken him to take the first few bullets out of the gun, the water had risen to his waist, already making him shiver. He knew that ocean water was cold, but he had no idea that it was this cold. It hadn't even been ten minutes and he was already beginning to lose feeling beneath his waist. Which, in of itself, was both a blessing and a curse. He was at least thankful to not have to deal with the searing pain in his knees for a few moments, even if those moments were going to be his last.

"You'd better be right," Octavia said, voice shaking, "Because as much as I wish I could, I can't breathe water."

"We're getting out, I just need a few more seconds…"

As much as Moxxie feigned confidence, he truly wasn't sure if they were going to bullshit their way out of this one.

Not only were the odds stacked against them, but time was also running out.

He also couldn't swim.

It wasn't his proudest secret, it was much more of a skeleton in his closet. Telling people about it was basically putting a "kick me" sign on his back, and he couldn't count the number of times he had been thrown into pools or lakes "as a joke."

People were assholes.

The memory of his first, and most scarring experience with the sea, still haunted him.

It had been shortly before he applied to IMP, a hot and dry day with the flames of hell burning their hottest. With the air conditioning unit in his shabby apartment completely junking out, staying cool was becoming harder and harder.

Deciding to find a way to cool down and escape the general chaos of the main city, he had made his way to the closest beach, which was a few rings down. Although long, the journey would be worth it, to escape the treacherous heat.

Or so he had thought.

"No lifeguard on duty" the sign had read, followed by a poorly drawn image of a drowning imp. The lack of a safety net should have been his first warning, but his typically analytical and cautious mind had forsaken him on that day, whether it be from heat or mental exhaustion. All he wanted to do was cool off.

Sitting down at the bar and ordering a cold drink, he laid back and stared out at the blue water, small whitecaps dotting the sea like sprinkles. The sun was especially bright, the reflected light cutting into his eyes through his sunglasses and copious amounts of sunscreen. The view was beautiful, no doubt, but it was still unbearably hot.

"Hot one today, isn't it?" Moxxie said to an imp wearing a plaid shirt covered in festive flowers and holding a drink in his hand.

"Yeah, yeah…" they laughed back awkwardly, before taking a gracious sip from their drink.

After a failed attempt at small talk with his fellow patrons, Moxxie grew tired of waiting for his drink, and decided that a quick dip in the water would be better than trying to hold up a conversation.

Another big mistake.

He would be careful, wouldn't he? No going deeper than his waist, and keeping an eye on the tide. It would be an easy way to get comfortable in the water, since he had never set foot in the sea before.

Crowds of surfers and swimmers dotted the shoreline, riding the sizable waves with the salty ocean breeze, a flock of birds cawing loudly as they flew overhead.

He stopped and stared out at the vast ocean, seeming to expand infinitely into the horizon. The vastness of the environment both intimidated and amazed him, his mind unable to fully wrap itself around the sheer size of the sea.

"You've gotta get in there!" a surfer shouted, noticing Moxxie standing stationary at the shoreline, "The water's great!"

"I'll be sure to get a move on," he said nervously, "It looks fun…"

Moxxie placed his towel on the ground as the woman ran away, placing his sunglasses on top of a book that he intended to read once he returned. Another strong breeze from the ocean sent a wave inward towards the shore, nearly soaking his belongings.

Once again, he ignored the signs of trouble and dashed into the sea.

He started off slowly, the cool ocean foam washing over his feet. The new feeling was welcomed with open arms, since oceans were few and far between in hell. Up until today, he had only heard stories and tales about the sea, telling of vast bodies of nothingness, the sky stretching as far as the eye could see.

Clouds of sand floated up to the surface as he moved, kicking up tiny sea creatures that scattered about on the ocean breeze was cool, caressing his face with cold hands and filling his nose with the smell of salt. Around him, the waves crashed gently and with a graceful sound, forming an almost melodic sound with the other sounds of the beach, a haunting yet beautiful song of nature.

Once he had grown comfortable, he nervously waded in a few inches deeper, the waves washing up against his waist and chilling him to the bone despite the hellish temperatures.

In spite of the cold, however, the views and sounds were enough to keep him engaged, wishing he could just lay down and float away, carried off by the gentle lapping of the waves. It was ten times better than the stories he had been told, no words could capture the beauty of the beaches, right at the edge near Heaven's border.

A group of swimmers knocked a beach ball over in his direction, landing a few inches away from him in the water, splashing saltwater into his eyes.

"Over here!" one of them shouted, waving at him as he waded out to retrieve the ball.

A few more feet wouldn't make that much of a danger, right? Sure, the water had been getting steadily deeper as he had waded out, but nothing out of his control. Barring some terrible catastrophe, he had nothing to fear.

He picked up the ball and spiked it back over to the group, impressed by his own coordination. They laughed courteously and continued on with their game, as Moxxie stared back out towards the now setting sun.. The sight of the bright shades of crimson simmering on the water and lining up with his shadow was breathtaking, and he wanted nothing more than to stand and watch.

The sunset wouldn't be the only thing that took his breath away that day.

He took another step forward, and felt his foot sinking into the sand, his balance violently shifting to his left side.

Waving his hands around in the waist-high water, he tried to balance himself again and get back to shore, a seed of panic planting itself in his stomach.

"A-!" was all he managed to mutter before things took a sharp turn for the worse.

In his panic, he fell over backwards into the water, disorienting him even further. The deep rumbling sound of water filling his ears obscured his hearing, and his throat burned from the saltwater forcing its way into his lungs.

Adrenaline pulsing through his veins, Moxxie's survival instincts kicked in, a primitive urge for preservation seizing control over his body.

Flailing around in desperation, Moxie's head breached the surface briefly, hacking up seawater and gasping loudly. He felt for the ground, but when he stood, felt nothing at his feet, and was pulled under by a sizable wave.

His heart pounded, forcing air out of his lungs and intensifying his panic. He couldn't tell which way was up and which way was down, nor could he tell how far under he was.. Opening his eyes only caused them to burn, the water blurring his vision as he felt himself sinking farther and farther down.

Above him, a wave crashed and pushed him down even more, his foot touching what he thought was the bed of the sea. His lungs felt like they were on fire, and it took every fiber of his being to keep himself from accidentally gasping and drowning himself. Snatching what little air was left, a muffled scream escaped from his mouth.

Kicking himself up from the seabed, he resurfaced once again, unable to even wave a hand up and ask for help. All that he cared about was getting in one more breath, and praying that somebody would see him and help.

Another large wave crashed over his head and sent him back under, his head smashing into the sharp edge of a rock. The force caused him to reflexively gasp, driving water into his lungs and causing him to struggle.

The strain of his movements and the intense panic only drained him of what little rationality his mind had left in it.

Was this truly how it was going to end for him? Dead from his own stupidity, so close to survival but so far away?

Time drastically slowed, the movement of the water appearing to come to a standstill, only intensifying the hellish experience.

Visions of his past flooded his vision, too quick to process. Within seconds they devolved into unintelligible colors and sensations as his oxygen quickly ran out..

This is it.

His chest convulsed as a sudden feeling of calmness and contentment came over him, the world fading to black as his last bubble of air escaped from his lungs. Every muscle in his body relaxed, like the last bit of tension being released from a slingshot. The feeling of his lungs trying to expunge the liquid was the last sensation that he remembered feeling, his eyes rolling back in his head as his life slipped away.

If a nearby surfer hadn't seen him struggling, Moxxie wouldn't be alive.

The next memory he had of that day was of a surfer with sharp and defined features pressing down on his chest as he coughed up what felt like the entire ocean, coughing and gagging uncontrollably.

A burning sensation overcame his eyes as they opened fully, passing beachgoers kicking sand into them and staining his iriris.

Once it clicked with him that he wasn't dead, his arms suddenly tightened themselves, his fingers digging into the sand as if letting go would have him pulled away into the abyss.

In-between dry-heaves, he gasped desperately for a full breath, vomit coating the sand around him as he regained his strength and the surfer pulled away.

He tried to speak, but only fell into another coughing fit, his lungs still expunging the salty seawater. The fits caused him to roll over on his side, and he nearly ended up with a mouthful of sand, if it wasn't for one of the beachgoers throwing a towel onto the ground in front of him.

The man knelt down and spoke softly to him, "You're alright now, bud."

Moxxie tried to turn around and say something, anything to the kind stranger that had saved him from death, but all that came out was another fit of coughing and choking.

A pair of demons wearing red crosses on their heads ran over to him and picked him up to bring him to a hospital, the full moon shining down on him as he managed to catch his breath.

His last memory of that dreadful day was falling asleep in the back of an ambulance.

Now, tied to a chair with rapidly rising water threatening his life, the panic he had felt on that fateful day at the beach was coming back. Why did it have to be him of all people to be condemned to such a fate? To die in a watery prison away from the people he loved, so close yet so far from escape?

"Moxxie," Octavia pleaded, "Hurry up!"

He took in a shuddered breath as there were only two bullets left in the chamber, the water having risen to his stomach. Each second was precious time that was being wasted, and he was about to give up.

If it had been just him alone in the room, he might've.

But there was another life on the line besides his, and the last thing he wanted to do was be responsible for the death of somebody who had done nothing wrong to him. He wasn't going to let Octavia die on his water. Even though he didn't know her very well, Moxxie had grown somewhat attached to her. He would even consider her a friend if they got out of this alive.

Out of all the binds he had gotten himself into in his time as an assassin and a demon, this had to have been the worst one. Because this was the first time his life had genuinely been in danger, the odds all stacked against him. Plus, back at home, he typically had Millie or Blitzo or Loona to come up with some convoluted plan to get them out by the skin of their teeth.

"Almost there…" he said, "One more minute…"

Octavia considered herself a calm and controlled individual, not letting emotions get the best of her and keeping her cool during high-stress situations.

That had all gone out the window.

She didn't care how insane she sounded as she kept pestering Moxxie, wanting to do anything to get herself out of that chair and back to safety. They were losing time faster than they could move, and if it took any longer, both her and Moxxie would be swimming with the fishes.

The water was rising at an incline, the sea having already covered the window mounted on the wall. A clock on the wall read "12:32," Octavia having been in there for almost an hour, even though it felt like it had been years.

Fighting against the restraints would be futile, the gun before her still fully loaded and ready to end her at the slightest aggravation. Being at the mercy of another's competence wasn't exactly a comforting feeling, especially when both parties were under extreme levels of stress.

Waves lapped near her shoulders now, reeking of seaweed and salt. The musty odor filled the entire room as the ship moaned and groaned under the stress. She knew they had two or three minutes left at max, maybe four if they could hold their breaths long enough, but she wasn't going to count on it.

"Done!" Moxxie shouted, leaping up out of his chair and tucking the gun and its extra bullets into his coat pocket, "I'm coming!"

Octavia breathed a sigh of relief as Moxxie waded over to her chair and began cutting the gun loose, pointing the muzzle down and away from her as the lights began to dim.

"Thank you," she sighed, beginning to shiver in the icy water, "Thank you."

"I wasn't just going to leave you here," he said, cutting more of the ropes as the sea rose to her chin, "We're getting out of here if it's the last thing I-"

The deed was almost done, when a loud crash echoed from the other side of the room, making the floor shake and making the lights flicker.

"What was that?!" Moxxie snapped, turning his head with a sharp movement as Octavia did the same.

In the corner of the room, a window had broken, seawater pouring in even faster than before. The lamps bounced off of the blue surface, shimmering teal lines reflecting onto the ceiling.

"Shit."

The two of them exchanged a glance of extreme worry, and Moxxie immediately went back to removing the gun, finally taking out the final bullet and cutting Octavia loose from the chair in the nick of time.

She leaned up against a wall for better grip, not wanting to get swept away in the chest-high seawater. A chill went up her spine with each movement, feeling like a thousand knives were being driven into her body.

"Wait, the book!" Moxxie shouted, Octavia nearly forgetting herself, "We still have time!"
"Hurry!" she shouted back, the two of them going against their better instincts and running back into the flooding room, Moxxie leading the way.

Around them, the lights began failing, and they both knew if those lights went out, they were as good as dead. Fumbling around a flooding cabin was bad enough, but to fumble around a flooding cabin in the dark was even worse. Not to mention the panic that was clouding their judgement, survival instincts beginning to take over.

"In here!" Moxxie threw open the closet door, one hand on the wall holding himself up. He leapt up and down to try and reach the safe, but was too short to make the journey, "I need you to get this, hurry up!"

Octavia hesitated, before forcing herself forward, panicking as the water began to foam violently, only a few seconds away from filling the room entirely. She had a bit more time left than Moxxie thanks to her height, but she didn't imagine it would be enough to make any noticeable differences.

Her hands shook violently, both from the freezing water and the panic that was gripping her, almost forgetting what she was trying to do. It wasn't every day that she had two lives and a grimoire in her hands, and yet here she was, their safety and survival now resting on her ability to open a combination lock.

"What's the code?!" Octavia hyperventilated, "WHAT'S THE CODE?!"

"Thirty one, twenty two, and thirty three!" Moxxie choked, struggling to keep himself above the waterline, "Right, then left, then right!"

With numb fingers, it took a few extra seconds to get the lock spinning, those few seconds possibly costing them their lives. Moxxie kept shouting the code at her from behind, which she was thankful for. She could barely focus on holding the lock in her hands, let alone remember the combination under so much stress.

The room felt like it was spinning, Octavia failing to control her breathing. Her typical calm and quiet demeanor had completely vanished, reduced to a panicky ball of her former self. At least Moxxie already had a reputation of being a worrier.

A spark from behind lit up the room, right as she passed thirty one on the combination lock, spinning the dial back around to the left and making sure not to miss the twenty two. One small mistake could end with her and Moxxie ending up in a watery grave, and she was going to do everything in her power to keep that from happening.

"Almost there?!" Moxxie hissed, "Because if you're not ready in the next ten seconds, we're both going to fucking die!"
And although she could understand where he was coming from, being yelled at was not helping matters. In fact, it was only intensifying her panic, and running a combination lock with numb and shaky hands was no easy feat.

"I'm trying!" she responded, passing past the twenty two and spinning right back around, growing dizzier and dizzier with each passing second.

She attempted to take a deep breath, before twisting to the right and entering the final number, hearing the satisfying click of the tumblers inside the safe as the lock fell away and the door began to creak open.

Instantly, she recognized the cover of the book and snatched it, even though she knew it would be no use with a new moon out. As long as it was away from Monte's and Stella's grubby little hands, she was happy.

"I got it!" she panted, "Now let's get the hell out of here."

To think, at the start of the trip she had almost considered taking a trip to the human world. What a hellish few days it had been, full of so much change and turmoil.

But she had little time to dwell on the thoughts, instead taking Moxxie's shoulder and leading the two of them towards the exit, the lights on the brink of going out.

She wanted to move faster, but the water was proving to be resistant, forcing them forward at little more than a snail's pace. If she was a swimmer, perhaps she would have found a way to paddle through and get out faster, but that wasn't an option at the moment.

Another crack echoed out from behind them, Octavia turning around just in time to see the back wall of the cabin cave in and unleash a massive wall of water, pushing towards them with astonishing speed.

"Go!" she shouted, pushing Moxxie out the front door before throwing herself back into the hallway.

Once the two of them were out, Octavia slammed the door shut, somehow managing to force it closed against the weight of the water. And she did it just in time, too, hearing the water crash against the door and slowly leak into the hallway, this time at a far more manageable level.

"Holy shit," Moxxie breathed, steadying himself against a wall, "That was insane!"

The two of them weren't even close to being out of trouble yet, the hallway before them flooding as well. As much as the two of them wanted to celebrate their escape, they knew that any celebration would be premature at best and lead to their downfall.

"Where the hell do we go from here?" Octavia asked, backing up to a higher portion of the hallway where the water was lower.

"No idea, but I do know I don't want to die!"

"Can't argue with that!"

They continued to back up for as far as they could, before their backs hit a wall. And it was at that moment that she finally got a glimpse at the true extent of the iceberg's damage.

There was water pouring out from a hole in the wall, already having risen up high enough to reach her waist and getting higher by the second. Chairs and other debris dotted the wasteland, bobbing up and down like fishing lines. Heavy, musty odors filled the air, along with a sudden humidity that Octavia wasn't expecting. Bright flashes lit the air as lightbulb after lightbulb went out, the power down low already beginning to fail.

A nearby cabin door creaked open, a body floating out the door face-down. Moxxie gasped at the sight, which surprised her given his profession as an assassin. She would've expected him to have become desensitized, but judging from the queasy look on his face, that hadn't happened.

Octavia began searching desperately for a way out, feeling trapped with her back to the wall. With water on one end and a wall on another, the odds weren't looking good for them. And to die after all they had been though? It would be embarrassing. Not to mention pitiful.

"There's gotta be some way out of here!" Octavia said, trying to force herself to believe it, "There has to be!"

Moxxie responded, sounding detached, "Yeah, um, I hope so…"
She turned around to face the flooded corridor, her and Moxxie staring at each other, and then the body floating nearby. If they didn't get moving soon, they were going to end up like that poor demon right there, dead and alone in a sinking ship.

They both knew what they were going to have to do.

"I don't know how much I like this," Moxxie said, "I don't think I have the lung capacity to make it down there."

She felt like now was a bad time to remember that she couldn't swim.

Looking at the destruction before her, her resolve to survive began to diminish, realizing just how hopeless the situation was. At this point, it would be better for her to leave herself to die and give Moxxie a chance to get back home. Sure, she didn't want to die, but if it was coming down to both her and Moxxie dying or just her, she was willing to stay back if it meant one of them would get out alive.

She had already lived the best of life, at least in terms of wealth. Her family was the definition of "class privilege." Every material desire that she had wanted was at her fingertips, and she had taken advantage of it. She had seen things that imps like Moxxie could only dream of, surely having gotten more out of life than he had. If either of them was going to die down here, it was going to be her.

Octavia felt like now was a bad time to bring it up, but she found herself continuing to stare at the flooded corridor that she would have to brave through and the words came out before she had a chance to stop them.

"I think there's something you deserve to know before we go down there," Octavia whispered, "Something important."

Moxxie gave her a worried glance, but listened.

She felt guilty saying it, and that she had hidden it for so long. It was such a stupid thing to hide, too, and right now was about the most inconvenient time possible for it to come back to bite her.

"I can't swim," she said, "I meant to say it earlier, but I didn't want to worry you."

She paused before choking out the rest of her sentence.

"Just go on without me, okay? I don't want to weigh you down. Go on and get back home to Millie and tell them what happened to me."

Moxxie stared back in disbelief, probably about to go on some dumbass spiel about how she needed to come with him, and that they needed her back home.

But to her surprise, he looked just as fearful as she did, if not more so.

"I'm not leaving you behind," Moxxie said, right on cue, "We're both getting out of here, even if it kills us."

"Don't try that with me," she said, "I'm not letting you get yourself killed because of me, alright?"

He paused again, staring down at the floor before donning a nervous expression.

"I feel like this is a bad time to say that I can't swim either," Moxxie said, "So we're in trouble either way."

His words caught her by surprise. Octavia had always thought Moxxie would've been a good swimmer, especially with the nature of his job and the needs associated with it. She knew that athletics hadn't been his strong suit or anything, but swimming was such an important skill to have. How could somebody with his expertise not know? Sure, it was hypocritical of her to ask since she didn't know herself, but it still seemed strange.

"Don't give me that look," he said, "It's the only chance we have at getting out of here. And don't do that thing where you try and throw me into a pool or something, I've gotten enough of that."

Both of them seemed unsure of what to do next. It was like putting two blind pilots into a cockpit and hoping that they would figure things out quick enough. And it was a feeling that was less than comforting to her.

"I promise I won't do that," she laughed, before the seriousness of the situation came back to hit her.

Octavia inched closer to the imp, the closest thing to a comforting presence that she was going to find. As much as she hated being close with people, she yearned so much for a sense of stability and comfort that she found herself growing platonically attached to an imp of all people.

And even weirder, Moxxie came right up to her as well, the two of them both nervous out of their minds.

Moxxie wrapped his arms around her, and she didn't hesitate, his touch warm and radiating safety. She couldn't quite place why, but Moxxie seemed to have an "aurora" of sorts around him that made him approachable and likeable. Physical contact had never been her thing, but she was willing to make an exception for him.

"I'm scared." she whispered under her breath, not knowing if it was going to be her last.

"So am I," Moxxie said, "But it's the only chance we have at getting out of here."

She knew he was right, but she still didn't want to go out there. She had her own dark experiences with water, the memories still fresh in her mind.

It had been a cold and cloudy night, about a year or so ago, and she had been out with a few acquaintances at a pool. She hadn't wanted to go, but it was the only option she had that night. And who in their right mind would decline an opportunity to go out on Friday night? She needed to make friends anyway, how bad could it be?

Looking back, it wasn't even good pool weather. It was chilly and damp, a rare occasion in hell, and one that she would come to remember for all the wrong reasons.

The bonus to having rich parents was them sending you to expensive schools where other rich parents' kids went, and being able to have other rich friends to enjoy the luxuries of royal life with.

The problem was, Octavia wasn't very social, so an opportunity like this only came once in a lifetime. And wasting it was not an option.

The leader of the group was Arya Hallows, somebody that Octavia had a few classes with at the academy. She was the stereotypical popular girl, usually surrounded by a large group of friends and constantly gossiping about others. Octavia was usually close enough to hear what they were saying, but never close enough to be invited to partake in the conversation.

So she was taken aback when Arya had invited her to join her group that night. The only qualm she had was with the location.

Now, being around water wasn't something foriegn to her, she just didn't like it. But as long as she stayed in the shallow end or made sure there were lifeguards on duty, she would be fine. It had gotten her this far, after all, what's the worst that could happen?

Octavia should've left the second she saw how deep the pool was. It wasn't the typical pool structure that she was accustomed to, instead having the build of an olympic-type pool. Which meant that there was no shallow end for her.

Not a problem, I just won't go in.

Once they had arrived, the others dove right in, and before long Octavia felt like the odd one out, standing on the sidelines and watching as her peers enjoyed their evening, while she was stuck on the outside.

And boy did they pester her about it. But even though it would shut them up, she didn't dare tell why she wasn't getting in. She already had a dead social life, and something like this would be the final nail in the coffin for her if something went wrong.

"I'm good," Octavia said as she was asked the same question for what felt like the hundredth time, "Just a bit cold, that's all."

The answer wasn't exactly creative or smooth, but it got them to leave her alone for a few minutes.

She sat on the sideline as the night passed on, the grey sky fading to black as fluorescent lights lit up around the pool. Shades of red, blue, and green blended together to bathe the ground in beautiful and vibrant colors. They bounced off of the water and shone even brighter, Octavia quickly found herself hypnotized by the sight, and for a few short moments felt completely relaxed, lost in the dancing colors.

That feeling, she would learn, wasn't going to last long.

The rest of her group had gotten out of the water and snuck out behind her, Octavia's attention being grabbed by the bright scenery. Getting distracted had been her second mistake.

What happened next had led to a severe water phobia.

She jolted at the feeling of a hand on her shoulder, before jolting around and being greeted by the smug faces of her peers, smiling a devilish smile with devious intent.

"Oh, hey guys," Octavia said, not sure how she was supposed to react, "What are you doing?"

"You'll see." Arya said back, monitoring for the others to move in closer.

Beginning to panic, Octavia stood up and began to inch away from the edge of the pool, not wanting to fall in. She couldn't even see the bottom from where she was, and the last thing she wanted was to somehow get caught up in there.

Unfortunately for her, Arya and the rest of her group wasn't going to have it.

Somebody suddenly grabbed her arms and lifted her up, holding her over the edge of the pool. Within seconds she was off the ground and suspended in midair, the feeling almost nauseating.

"Hey!" she shouted, "Put me down!"

But her requests were met with silence.

And that was when she truly began to panic.

Looking down at the blue water triggered a primal survival instinct in her, and she began clawing at the other's hands, not caring how stupid she looked. She knew all too well what was going to happen if they tossed her in.

"I can't swim," she pleaded, hoping that it would cut her a break, "At all."

"Well, then it looks like you're learning!" Arya hissed.

The group began counting down from three, Octavia still fighting with all her might to resist their attacks.

It was all making sense now why they had invited her. They didn't care about her as a person, or how she felt, nor did they want to be her friend. All they wanted was another person to pick on, and she knew that her name would be the topic of one of Arya's next gossip circles once this was over.

"3!"

Her heart raced, and her arms were already growing sore from fighting.

"2!"

Shit shit shit shit shit.

"1!"

She took in a sharp breath, being tossed into the air and hitting the water with a loud splash.

That was when things got even worse.

She immediately began trying to claw her way back up to the surface, disoriented by a sudden dizziness and the blindness of the dark water. The pool was freezing, and she had no idea how the others had been tolerating it for so long, the cold nearly sending her into shock.

For a brief moment, her head broke the surface, Octavia taking in a staggered breath as she tried to claw her way over to the nearest wall. She was stuck in the middle of the pool, and knew that she wouldn't be able to keep clawing her way up for much longer.

Arya and the others grinned back smugly, getting some sort of sick, sadistic pleasure from watching her suffer. What else should she have expected from her type? She felt like an idiot for trusting them, even for a minute.

She couldn't even choke out a cry for help, her head going right back into the water as quickly as it had come up.

How embarrassing. Dying in a fucking pool with the popular bitch staring me down.

Even with adrenaline pulsing through her veins, she found herself growing increasingly tired, and could feel herself slowly sinking to the bottom of the pool.

Her foot hit the bottom, and she kicked up with all her strength, finally brushing the wall of the pool with her hands and pulling herself up to the other side.

The whole thing had happened so fast that she didn't even remember crawling out of the pool. The next memory she had of that night was waking up alone at the poolside, Arya and her gang far away and nowhere to be found.

And staring at the flooding hallway around her now was triggering the same feelings of anxiety and terror. Octavia wasn't sure if she was going to be able to force herself through, and the next few minutes would prove to be a great test to her willingness to survive and her own bravery.

At least Moxxie was holding himself together better than she was, already wading forward and looking ready to go. She admired his courage, plowing ahead while she was still hesitating and hanging back.

If only she knew how terrified he was too, and just how much they had in common.

"Are you ready to do this?" Moxxie asked, voice trembling slightly.

Octavia swallowed hard.

Hell no I'm not ready.

But she knew that hesitation was going to lead to her downfall. So, she mustered up what little courage she had, before choking out a response.

"As ready as I'll ever be."