Tracy’s body collapsed suddenly against the wooden bench of the boat.
“Tracy!”
I caught her before she could fall completely. Her head rested against my arm, her red hair brushing against my hand as the boat rocked gently on the water.
For a moment, everything felt silent.
The ocean that had just roared like a living beast had returned to its calm rhythm. The storm had vanished. The creature had disappeared beneath the waves as if it had never existed.
But Tracy wasn’t moving.
“Tracy… wake up.”
I gently shook her shoulders.
Nothing.
A cold weight settled inside my chest. I quickly placed two fingers near her neck the way Kiara had once shown me when a young villager fainted during training.
She was breathing.
But her eyes stayed closed.
Relief and fear battled inside me.
“She
