"Hey, Merry. What do you see?"
"If my eyesight improved in the last ten minutes then probably something. Otherwise no."
Renko sighed in defeat as she leaned back. She turned on her side, leaning over the edge of the boat to glide her fingertips on the surface of the water. Idly watching the ripples expand from her hand. She tore her gaze away from the water to look at Maribel, who seemed to give up searching for...what were they looking for again? Renko shook that thought away, believing that nothing would come of it. She saw Maribel gaze up to the sky, well what should be the sky as the mist surrounding them blocks their view of anything that is more than several inches away. Renko brought her gaze back to the surface as she disturbed the still water. She felt the boat rock slight to accommodate the shifting weight. The boat dipped as she felt Maribel's arms encircle her waist, her blonde friend hugging her from behind. Renko sighed as she removed her hand from the water and turned on her back, causing Maribel to move closer to her.
"I can tell something's on your mind."
Maribel hummed in response. Not wanting to give Renko the satisfaction of a proper answer.
"Do you want to say what it is?"
Maribel didn't respond immediately, mulling it over in her head before deciding how to answer.
"I...I don't know. If we should be doing this."
"Riding out in the middle of a lake in a boat, surrounded by mist?"
Renko was given a glare as she chuckled, patting Maribel on the head affectionately.
"Should we keep on searching for this 'land' Renko? I mean time and time again, we're shown that it shouldn't exist. Shown the impossible, or trying to prove it exists?"
"Of course it exists Merry. You said it yourself, it's the land of the forgotten. In time, we will find it."
Maribel looked at Renko a little surprised at her optimism.
"How can you be so sure about that?"
Renko grinned as she answered.
"Because we believe it exists. It's bound to show itself to us if we continue to do so."
Maribel sighed, she should have known Renko would say something like that.
"I guess if-"
The boat jerked to the side as it rocked violently. Did they hit something? They looked at each other a little scared. Who was going to look?
"Why-why don't you see what we hit Merry? It might be nothing."
Maribel glared at Renko, who looked to be quivering with fear before moving to the other side of the boat. She gingerly placed her hands on the wooden edge, to keep herself steady but mostly to stop her hands from shaking so much. A deep breath, and peered over. Ready to jump back if something leaped out of the murky depths.
There was nothing to see on the water's surface.
Maribel sighed in relief, calling out to the friend over her shoulder.
"It was nothing Renko. A fish must have bumped the boat. Ha, scared over a fish."
Maribel chuckled to herself before turning to Renko, but she wasn't there. Renko wasn't on the boat.
"Renko?"
Did she go overboard? No, Maribel would have heard her splash in the water. Neither the less, she searched the surrounding area in hopes she could spot Renko. Nothing. Not even a ripple the water was so still.
"R-Renko?"
Panicking, Maribel began shouting her name. Each time louder and louder until her voice gave out. Still nothing. She searched the waters again, hoping Renko was there and ultimately fearing the worst before breaking down into a fit of tears. Unknowing that the mist surrounding the blonde grew ever closer, and of the lurking danger.
"Merry?"
Maribel's head immediately shot up. That was...Renko? It couldn't be.
"Merry!"
It had to be. But why was she so far away? Maribel turned to the sound of her best friend, bewildered that Renko could still be alive. She was about to call out, but instead cried out in terror as a slender, cold hand dragged her under from behind. She gasped at the sudden frigid temperature as she kept herself afloat. The boat must have been knocked as it was floating away slowly. Taking deep breaths, Maribel began to swim towards it. But before she could even lay a finger on it, another hand snagged her foot and began dragging her away. She tried to wiggle her foot for the thing to let go, but with each time she does so, the thing tightens its grip. Managing to finally break free, Maribel frantically swims to the boat. Another hand grabs her ankle as a second makes a beeline for her foot again and drags her under. Her panicked cry was cut short as she submerged, trailing into unintelligible garbles. Instead of breaking free again, Maribel frantically swam to the surface, for each time to be submerged once more. More and more hands join to drag her further down, becoming stronger the more she struggles. She begins to tire, her retaliation slows as her legs are bound by whatever is dragging her down. The frigid coldness becoming overbearing, numb. Water fills her lungs as her will starts to fade away. She stops, believing she has reached the bottom of the expanse of water. More blackened, decaying hands emerge and begins to encase her. Out of instinct, she struggles one last chance, small air bubbles escaping to the surface. She turns and her eyes widen at what she sees.
Renko, already tangled up in the seaweed like creature, dead. Her arms floating beside her as if she tried to escape. Her cold, lifeless eyes staring. Mouth open, black tar like substance emerged from it, heavier than water as it slowly drips down into the creature. Maribel shrieked and began to panic. Water rushed into her lungs as more hands latch onto her, squeezing her life, her soul out of her body. Her vision fading as something passed over her face before violently twisting her.
Maribel woke up in a panicked start. Leaping into a sitting position, coughing violently. Wheezing, she can't breath as if her lungs were blocked. She throws herself out of bed and rushes to the bathroom. Realising she wouldn't make it to the toilet, she collapses into the tiled floor of the bathroom and coughed up what was blocking her lungs, the retched stench filling her sinuses as the last remnants of whatever it was left her. Gasping in relief she could breath once again, Maribel leaned backwards to rest her back on the wall behind her, taking deep breaths as she calmed down. Her head snapping up to a sudden thought.
"Renko."
She dashed out of the bathroom, the mess forgotten about for now as she reached for her phone and began messaging Renko.
*Mari: Hey, Renko. You there?
It wasn't long for a reply.
*Renko: Yeah? Why?
*Mari: No reason.
*Renko: -.- Merry, you woke me up at 2:30 in the goddamn morning for nothing? I know you can't sleep at night but please...
*Mari: I know. It...I was bored, I thought well, you know...
*Renko: You know I have class in the morning, and I'm sleepy. So Pleeeeease let me sleeeep.
*Mari: Ok, ok. I'll let you. I don't want you grouching at me because I know what you're like when you're tired.
*Renko: Zzzzz
Maribel chuckled as she placed her phone back on the bedside table, her mood changing as she made her way back into the bathroom. She wanted to dump whatever was she spewed onto the floor into the toilet before it began to smell even worse and stain, but she stopped. It wasn't the average stuff you normally find after coughing your guts up, instead it was a sludgy black mess, shining a deep violet against the light. Taking a handful of tissue paper, she began to clean it up. Which was more difficult than it originally seemed, it was goopy and had some solidarity to it as it created ripples against the tissue. It reminded Maribel of the slime experiments she had done as a young girl and failed to teach Renko how to make one. The thought of it made her shudder, resulting in the memory to be pushed to the back of her head. She she lifted her hand to place the tissues into the bin, in turn taking some of the black goop with it. A strand of it clung to the rest on the floor, never breaking. Eventually sliding off the white paper with a splat back into the puddle, residue sticking like glue. Maribel furrows her brows before standing to look in the small hand mirror. She expected her teeth to be coated in the black goop, but instead found nothing to suggest she had coughed up the strange substance.
'This is strange.'
Grabbing a small bucket, she gathered the mess into it, tissue as well before grabbing a lid to close it shut to not make the bathroom smell. Maribel placed the bucket near the door so she could deal with it in the morning as the events that had passed eventually took its toll on the blonde as she felt extremely fatigued. But before she passed out on her bed, Maribel remembered something her doctor recommended. Grabbing her music player, she scrolled to a playlist she created a few days ago after her appointment and began to play it. She made sure it was quiet enough that no one else on the floor could hear, that is if they lived right next door to her. But also loud enough for herself to hear, lulling her into a deep, thankfully dreamless, sleep.