Page 15 of Citrine

I'm relieved as the hideous creature finally drops me on the shore of the lake. Screams still want to bubble up out of me, but at the same time I'm numb.

And aroused, somehow, at the same time.

Something is definitely wrong with me.

The water glistens invitingly, and without thinking, I try to stand up and walk toward it. A sharp pain shoots through my right ankle, making me wince. The injury must have happened during the fall.

I sigh and drag my body across the mushy grass toward the water's edge. My throat is burning, parched beyond anything I've felt before.

I need relief.

Even though I don't know if this water is safe to drink, I have to take the risk. It's so clear, like a pristine mirror reflecting the lavender sky above. I can see fish swimming in it, some even resembling those found on Earth.

The creature watches me with predatory eyes, but I can't worry about that now. I cup my hands and scoop up the water, drinking it like my life depends on it. The cool liquid soothes my throat, and I can't help but gulp down more.

I feel the water slide down, bringing a wave of peace.

I look up at the freak with murder in my eyes afterward, but it just cocks its head, studying me. I don't even know how to process the fact that some sort of octopus-shark-dolphin-man just talked to me.

With water in my body, I go back to what I should have been doing right away and keep crawling down the shore, desperate to get away from the freak. I've seen that sort of violence in someone's eyes before and you should never stick around.

It quickly becomes obvious that it's hopeless as he easily keeps pace with me. After a few more sharp rocks bruise my knees, I give in and shift onto my butt, feeling numb again.

My mind doesn't want to deal, and I look back at the water.

"Dios, I took water for granted," I breathe out, staring at my reflection in the clear lake.

This new version of me doesn't disgust me quite as much as it did the first time I saw it. I have accepted that this is no dream.

This is reality. A cruel, unyielding reality.

I might as well take it all in, though I'm not quite ready to embrace it.

The lake stretches endlessly, blending into the horizon. Dense forests encircle it on three sides, their dark silhouettes reflecting in the purple-tinged water. Plants and insects of a dizzying array of colors catch the fading light in a luminous glow.

On the fourth side, jagged stones jut out, and perched precariously on one of them is the ship I assume I came here in, hanging as if only a strong wind is between it and a fall.

My eyes trace the path from the crash site to the creature.

Its tentacles spread out like the villain in that Spider-Man movie, Doctor Octopus—green and filthy. His dolphin-like blue body looks soft to touch, not that I ever want to feel his skin again.

A memory of the way his tentacles writhed over me like slick snakes intrudes and I shiver. I bet my skin still has circular patterns from where he was suctioned to me.

Gross.

Then our eyes lock.

Those shark-like eyes pierce through me, and arousal surges in me, quickly followed by anger. I'm pretty certain he was hunting me. Everything about him screams that he plans to kill me. That he's toying with me and enjoying my pain.

He's a monster. I shiver and gulp.

Why not just do it, then?

I drag myself farther away from the water, still feeling the sting of my injured ankle. My throat feels better, but the rage bubbling inside me overshadows any relief. I glance back at the lake, then at the creature.

Its tentacles twitch as if waiting for my next move, ready to keep following me if I try to escape again.

I can't get away, after all that I've done to keep fleeing in my life, and now I'm trapped. There's cracks starting inside, breaking my usual control, but I can't seem to pull up my sunshine to help me disassociate.

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