Chapter 1: Aquaphobia

I had put it off for such a long time that I had completely forgotten about it until Quentin confronted me about it. As the Sky Army is in a rather inactive war with the squids, there is a requirement that surpasses a majority of the training. Every recruit needs to know how to swim. Most of the time, it'll suffice just to be able to float. The higher ranked you are, the more likely you'll be required to know how to actually swim, better than a doggie paddle. Only Jerome is allowed to doggie paddle, mostly because no one can teach him otherwise.

So, here I am in an old swimsuit, I only bring out once every year, standing on the edge of the pool. I hadn't been in this room since Quentin and I had been abducted. Maybe that's why I had been avoiding this room for so long. I felt uncomfortable standing here, covering my chest as if someone could see through my suit. It was freezing or at least I was. I felt stupid waiting for Quentin to come in and give me the test.

"Sorry, sorry," Quentin gasped, rushing in. He fiddled with his tie. "Got caught up in an argument."

"With?" I hummed, pulling myself in closer. I don't know why I felt so stupid.

"Yeah, sorry about dragging you into this…I, uh, understand why you might have been avoiding this," he gulped, pulling out a notepad. "You know the usual. Get in and, well, swim."

I gulped again, stepping over to the pool's ladder. I don't know why I felt so uncomfortable; it was just some water. It wasn't even open water or anything. It was just some contained water. Why did I even care? I sat down, dipping my feet into the pool. It was freezing or maybe that was just me.

"No!"

I perked, looking toward the entrance. Quentin grinned lightly, putting his notebook into his inside pocket. Throwing the doors of the poolroom open, Sky came busting in. He snarled, glasses barely on his nose. He stepped right up to Quentin, glaring at him. The mudkip crossed his arms, nodding lightly.

"Hello again, Adam," he smirked.

"We go over this every year…" Sky sighed, readjusting his glasses. "I. Am not. Taking. The swimming test."

Ty entered soon after, gently shutting the doors. He appeared to be deep into a conversation over his headset. Sky and Quentin didn't seem to notice him step up behind them. I continued dangling my feet in the water, apparently being completely invisible to the three now.

"We do go over this every year, Adam," chuckled Quentin, "and every year, we manage to get you in that pool."

"This is a mandatory test, Adam. You required it," Ty chimed in, tapping on his headset. "Damn, comm sets."

"What now?" grumbled Sky, glancing at Ty.

"System is having a bit of a hiccup," Ty nodded, tapping on his headset again. "Can I see your phone?"

"Right," sighed Sky, reaching into his pocket. "Seriously, fish, can't we just postpone this?"

"I don't know," shrugged Quentin. "I've been trying to go over everyone quickly but I can't seem to finish it as quick as I'd like."

"Adam, phone," repeated Ty, holding out his hand.

"Right, right," perked Sky, handing his phone over.

"Perfect," grinned Ty. "Enjoy your test."

With that, he gave Sky a mighty shove. Without warning, Sky toppled over, landing in the pool with a great shove. The splash was the most amazing thing I'd ever seen. It wrapped around his body, forming a small droplet around him as it consumed him into the pool's water. The sound was something as well, like the clap of thunder. After a moment of silence, he reemerged from the water, glasses lost. His eyes were narrowed, directed straight at Ty.

"And every year, we manage to get you in the pool," smiled Quentin, clicking a pen and pulling the notebook out from his jacket.

Ty shrugged, leaving. Sky slowly swum to the pool's edge, getting out a dripping wet sack. His glasses remained floating in the pool. They looked free. Sky growled as he passed me, marching up to Quentin. The mudkip didn't flinch as Sky stood right up close so they were practically touching. I wanted to interject, but I was just mesmerized by their intimacy.

"See you next year?" Quentin grinned. "Same time, same place?"

"You owe me a dry cleaning," he snarled, storming off.

Quentin laughed, waving Sky off. The door closed gently behind him. Quentin chuckled again, turning around. He seemed almost surprised to see me still here, kicking my feet in the water. He shook his head, flipping through his notebook. I offered a wave.

"Where were we?" he nodded.

"I was just about to get in the water, I think," I shrugged.

"We can…put this off, I mean," mumbled Quentin, looking around. "I didn't expect Sky to stop by today after all."

"I can fetch his glasses," I hummed, slowly slipping into the water. It didn't feel all that cold anymore. "Can I ask you a question? You don't have to answer if you don't want to."

"That's a great start to a question," he replied.

"Who…Do you know anything about…Dawn?" I fumbled with the words, grabbing Sky's glasses.

Since the conversation with Lewis, all I could think about was Dawn. I knew so little about someone who turned out to be the very reason we were here. I was just hoping to know a little bit more about her.

Quentin paused, looking up from his notebook. He took in a deep breath before returning his gaze to his notebook.

"Dawn, huh?" he gulped. "What do you know about her?"

"When I first got here…Jerome and Mitch told me a story about her. The reason Sky is against the squids and all that."

"I don't know very much about her, to be honest," he nodded, kneeling beside the water. "I heard about her from Jason who heard it from Ty who heard it from Adam. Adam won't talk about her, not anymore. Ty was probably the lucky one, meeting Adam so early that he actually talked about it."

"Was she nice, you think?" I sighed. "Was she pretty?"

"I don't. I wish I knew," he smirked. "Knowing Adam, I bet she was amazing."