“Water Under the Bridge pt 2.”

“DAIN!”

Maelis cries, going to rush back to the water, Silas has to restrain them with all his might.

“W-What do we do!?”

Emrys shouts, her voice full of terror.

“No..”

Anastiana whispers.

Jorvain comes crashing to the floor

“DAIN”.

He screams, slamming his fist against the water.

“Isn’t there some way to undo the potion so we can save him?!”

Wilkin barks.

“Potions don’t wear off that fast, not in enough time to..

Leopold says, falling silent.

“Insult me!”

I shout

“Wh-what?”

Jorvain says looking up with teary eyes and furrowed brows.

“Hurry up! Please! Just say something mean!”

I plead, tears pricking at my eyes.

Leopold's eyes widen, catching on to my plan

“Your armor is hideous!”

They shout.

“Your breath stinks!”

Anastasia shouts.

“I hate how you never clean your sword after using, what kind of hero does that!”

Jorvain shouts

“You annoy me to no end!”

Emrys shouts.

“Say something actually hurtful!”

I shout back.

“YOU’LL NEVER BE A HERO!”

Maelis shouts through tears—I flinch and feel my feet start to sink.

I shut my eyes and repeat it to myself.

“I’ll never be a hero, I’ll never be a hero, I’ll never be a hero,”

I start to sink faster and faster, till the waters above my waist.

“Keep saying it! All of you come on!”

I shout.

Again and again, louder, harsher, they repeat the words I’ve told myself my whole life.

“You’ll never be a hero.”

“W-What if you don’t make it back up?”

Jorvain croaks tears running down his cheeks.

“I will,”

I say, sucking in a breath of air—as my head goes beneath the water.

Once I’m beneath the water, I sink fast, kicking my feet and pushing myself forward to sink faster. The cool sensation of the water tickles my face and tingles my eyes.

“Dain!”

I shout, the sound rippling through the water

I fixate on him, all the way at the bottom, suspended in the water, his dark hair fanned out, his eyes shut, brows furrowed. Water floods into his open mouth.

My brows furrow as I swim faster, faster and faster, my arms burning from the repetition—but finally I reach him.

“Dain!”

I scream, a muffled sound leaving my mouth.

“It’s okay, I’m here, don’t be afraid.”

I say finally before reminding myself to save my breath.

I wrap my arms around him and kick my feet off the ground, but he’s too heavy wearing his armor

My lungs start to burn in my chest as my eyes prick with tears

I’ve gotta save him, I’m a hero this is what I do!

I reach back and grab my sword from my side, swinging it through the water, the gem on its hilt glows as its form starts to meld into slime

I think back to what Silas told me when I asked if the slime cores would sink—” Don’t be ridiculous, they’re just as buoyant as the slime itself”.

His words echo in my head as my sword forms into a blade of slime, trying to pull from my hand with its newfound buoyancy, I hold on tight—as my feet leave the ground, and I begin to float with Dain in my arms.

***

I must've blacked out for a split second. Because when my eyes opened, I was coughing up water, lying on my side, on soft grass, beside Dain, who looked back at me with tears in his eyes, reddened from the water.

“Thank you Roba.”

He croaked, an influx of tears rushing down his face.

I smile, breaking into sobs.

“Woo..I did it..”

I whisper in disbelief.

“They’re awake!”

Maelis exclaims, teary-eyed and full of relief.

“Oh thank goodness!”

They cry, wrapping their arms around both of us as the others rush over.

“Dain! Roba!”

Jorvain shouts.

Soon I sat up, catching my breath, surrounded by everyone, we all sat on the grass, on the other side of the grass.

“Please tell me we weren’t out for days like last time?”

I ask with a cough.

“Nope, no more than a few minutes.”

Emrys says with a sniffle, wiping her eyes.

“Thank goodness.”

Maelis says with a small smile.

“For a moment I thought…”

Jorvain says quietly, looking down.

“I was totally useless just then..”

He says clenching his fist.

“Hey, you’re gonna turn into me if you start talking like that.”

I say lightheartedly

“What would be so bad about that, seeing as you might just be one of the bravest I’ve ever seen?”

Wilkin says walking over with his hands on his hips.

I look up, running my hand through my wet hair.

“Oh, um thank you.”

“Don’t be humble, none of us knew what to do just now, if not for your heroics, your friend would've..”

He says with a sigh.

“I’m really sorry everyone.”

Dain mutters, grabbing all our attention.

“Don’t you dare say sorry!”

Maelis shouts, their eyes pricking with tears.

“We know how you are with water..there was just no way around it.”

Emrys says with furrowed brows.

“I-I know I just…I was so afraid..even after all this time, I..”

He even finishes his words before he starts sobbing.

I scoot over to him, wrapping my arms around him.

“Listen Dain, what you did back in the temple, I forgive you, I mean it’s all water under the bridge. “

I say softly.

“It’s not just that…it’s..”

He mutters.

“It’s okay, you can say it, Dain, you can share your past with the people that love you.”

Jorvain says with a small smile, placing a hand on his shoulder.

We all gather round as he starts to speak.

“I used to be on a different team before this one…The Immanitas Irae, the ruthlessness of Wrath.”

He says with furrowed brows.

“We were all from a small hometown of Ira and Ruthless we were, in the name of good, we’d do a lot of bad, kill, steal, deceive, as long as we achieved our goals, we believed we were in the right. But to help the people of our town, we hurt others..it didn’t make any sense, and I knew it was wrong, but I told myself heroes have to make the hard choices, and that’s what I did every day, with every sin I committed. But one day, we crossed the wrong people, we had killed the head leader of an Ira temple, the central member of the wrath Servus. They came to our town to get revenge, and a fight broke out. There were more of them than us, we had to flee with the people of our town, but one of our teammates, Godwin, got injured badly, he wasn’t going to get away on his own, I told them so, but they said he was a liability like that, that he’d slow us down, and if I waited up for him, I’d do the same. I tried to save him, thinking surely they wouldn’t just leave us…but ruthless they were, even more so than I thought.”

His eyes prick with tears.

“Godwin bled out from his injury before they could torture him as they did me, all the scars I’ve got are from what they did, everyone who was left behind, who couldn’t escape, they were made to watch. And when they were finished, they threw me over the bridge of our town to let me sink. I’ve been scared of the water since..I thought I got over it, all of it, but it’s like the water is tied to all of it, my shame and guilt, everything I did, and all I lost.”

He whispers, looking down at his hands, wrinkled from the water.

“And if it weren’t for Jorvain and Emrys coming across the town moments after, I'm enough time for the remaining townsfolk to tell them what had happened, I would've stayed submerged in the water, beneath that bridge until there was nothing but bones left.”

“Dain, I didn’t know you went through all of that.”

I say softly, my brows furrowing.

“Neither did I..”

Maelis mutters, tears pricking at their eyes.

“I figured the fear had stemmed from how we found you, but you never told us the extent, it’s even worse than I thought.”

Jorvain says in disbelief.

“It’s the same for me too, I wish you would've told us Dain, we could've helped you through it,” Emrys says with a sad look in her eyes.

“I thought you’d all see me differently…I was different back then, at least I thought I was, I tried to unlearn all that hate and cruelty but It’s like it’s clinging to me.”

He says quietly.

“Well, I do see you differently.”

I say sternly, all their eyes widen in response.

“Because now I understand you more, I respect you more, and I forgive you even more than before! “

I shout passionately.

“I know how you feel, like this awful thing that happened to you, and the awful things you’ve done or told yourself define who you are, like it’s this defiant thing that will follow you to death. But it isn’t true! It doesn’t have to be.”

I say softly.

“Roba’s rights.”

Jorvain says with a nod.

“You’ve just got to realize it for yourself.”

He says softly, glancing my way with a small smile.

“That’s right!”

Emrys says, placing her hand over his.

“But you don’t have to do it alone.”

Maelis adds sobbing as they shoot into Dains arms, he hugs them back tightly.

In the background, Silas sobs while Anastiana rubs his back in circles, and Wilkin sniffles as Leopold shoots him a judgmental look.

“From now on, the past, is just water under the bridge, that goes for all of us.”

I say with a stern smile.

“All of us.”

Jorvain repeats softly.

End.