Thoughts entered her mind. She let them go. She didn’t need thoughts now. Her body was perfectly shaped for this environment and she relished the feeling of being free. She manipulated her appendages, tiny but powerful, so that her speed increased. She went straight down. The water pressure all around her pressed in and compressed her, as though she was being flattened. But she knew better. She wasn’t going to be crushed.
The other two fish darted ahead of her. She followed. The three of them took turns leading, the other two following and twirling behind, as though weaving some thread between them. They were a school of fish. Not individuals, but parts of a greater whole. This gave Assa comfort as well as a certain feeling of joy, something she had not felt in some time.
As they approac
