"You can't go straight back," she says.
Water swells through the cavern as the kayak crashes against the rocks. It echoes and the water splashes onto the shore. Little drops of water fall from the ceilings and the light is washed out.
The woman steps back as she watches the water fill the crater. Her shoes are saturated, fingers pruned, hair in tangles. She had hoped she had run far enough, but not far enough to drown in a cave full of water. Without light, the space was cold, without fire, she might as well take to the water. So she proceeded to a wall that seemed darker than the rest. A breeze of air whistled at her as she tiptoed against the wall, making her way deeper and deeper into the cavern.
Her thoughts echoed and her heart raced with each step as she crept further in. Her foot slipped into something that felt like nothing. An emptiness that seemed as if it could've gone forever had she fallen through. So she stood still for a moment, to catch her bearings and her breath. A lick of water spat on her head as she stood still. It creeped down her forehead and swam near her eye forming a tear as it ran down and dripped from her chin. She continued on, fingers clasped to the rocks of the cave. No light shined still and it began to become more chilled. Her mind spoke to her in many different voices which rippled through the cavern's silence.
She kept her movement slow and quiet as to not awaken anything that may live there. After some time it has felt like she has been walking forever. So she stops. She feels the general area with the tip of her foot and sits down. She can feel her heart quiet and she dazes off. She thinks of platters of food and good company. She reminds herself of sunlit rooms and visions of skin at sunset.
The smell of the ocean breaches through every thought. Through every crevice. The water must have risen just enough to push into the tunnel. She stands and feels the wall, slick with water and algae residue. She slides her fingers to what feels like the top of the wall and feels a dryness. It's high above her head maybe 12 inches. The water doesn't reach that high, but it surely covers her. Covers her completely. The cave must swell hour by hour. But the water hasn't reached her yet. She cannot stop now. She'll keep walking until she finds something. Something that reminds her of warmth and sunlight.
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