The hand knotted in his hair pushed his head below the surface of the water a third time, holding him there longer. This time his lungs were burning and he couldn't keep from gasping for air even though he knew it would cause him to take in the poisoned water. Aris thrashed against the soldier's hold, trying desperately to rear back so he could breathe, but another pair of hands held him down. He couldn't hear Riah's voice over the roaring in his ears, and the pressure around his lungs kept increasing. He could see the spreading clouds of the poison as it slowly dissolved in the water, the bright blue liquid swirling around him as the bubbles of air – his air – disturbed it. His vision grew dim and the stuttering throb of his own pulse was the only thing he could hear as he finally lost consciousness.
A sharp pain in his scalp recalled him to awareness and Aris hit the ground hard, retching up the water he'd inhaled. He pushed himself to his hands and knees, still heaving, and looked around for his sister. Riah looked terrified, choking on the water she was being forced to drink – after seeing a number of the older youths nearly drowned after refusing, the children were plainly too frightened to resist any further. When they were herded back to the beaches to wait for whatever it was they were waiting for, Aris settled himself beside her protectively, feeling strangely light-headed. The sun burning his skin, his sore scalp, and the ache from being beaten seemed to fade slowly. His entire body felt strange, almost like it did when he'd 'borrowed' some of his father's homemade liquor and drank so much that it made his head spin.
He swayed slightly, the urge to lie down and sleep almost overwhelming. It's what they put in our water, he thought sluggishly. Riah's head kept bobbing as she fought to stay awake, but before long her chin rested on her chest and she slumped over against him. What did they do to us? Aris struggled to keep from sleeping so that he might learn something about his captors that might help him escape later, but the heaviness in his limbs made it so hard to keep upright… he leaned against Riah and closed his eyes, telling himself that he'd only rest for a few minutes.