Jack Thunder Falls Into the Turquoise Sea - An Excerpt from "Book 2: Water"
Jack Thunder put down his lunch. A cold sense of foreboding washed over the storm gremlin as the sun once again hid behind a cloud. Something bad was going to happen. Something very-
He didn't even see the first shot. It whizzed past his head, exploding in a shower of flames before him. He clambered to his feet, gripping the staff tightly. All around him were massive bursts of flame. The sky had become an inferno of explosive fireballs coming from every direction. He was under attack!
Jack Thunder acted quickly. With one wave of the staff, he summoned a mighty gale. Not only would that propel the cloud away from the crossfire, he reasoned, but it might blow away the flames that shot at him from every angle.
He clung to the cloud for dear life. The all-encompassing howl of the gale deafened him to the explosions all around. He squeezed his eyelids shut against it, clutching Stormbringer in his left hand with equal force. He didn't care that he couldn't see or hear anything. Right now, he was entirely focused on getting himself out of there without falling off the cloud. Every fireball that grazed his ears and every frantic pulse from the staff in his hand made another drop of sweat form on his brow. I can do this, I can do this, I can do this, I can do this... he repeated, desperately trying to convince himself he could make it out alive.
And that's when a fireball struck him in the left shoulder.
Jack Thunder screamed and dropped the staff. He didn't feel any pain, but he just knew he'd hurt something. He clutched his injured shoulder with his right hand, grunting and trying to get his bearings. He looked down and saw Stormbringer slipping off the cloud's edge. He tried to grab it in midair but lost his balance, tumbling off the edge of the cloud.
As he fell, he could hear the explosions above getting quieter and quieter. Or maybe it was just the ringing in his ears. It was only a few seconds before he hit the water, plunging deep into the abyss with a resounding splash.
When he opened his eyes, he saw Stormbringer sinking to the bottom of the sea. He tried to move his left arm to swim, but was met with no movement, only searing, splitting pain. The blast that had hit him in the back must have burned a lot more than just his skin. This made it quite difficult for Jack Thunder to propel himself downward and catch the staff before it sunk into the abyss, but he managed. He caught it in his right hand.
It was only then he realized how far down he'd gone. He wasn't sure if he could make it to the surface or not. He was starting to tire. Oxygen deprivation and the size and weight of the staff didn't help matters. Still, he didn't come all this way just to drown. He made his way upwards.
The journey was exceedingly difficult due to his injured shoulder. Eventually, there came a point where he could move no more, and he floated in the water, slowly sinking downwards.
So this was it? He was just going to drown? With no one around to know what had happened?
That's when he spotted familiar figures in the water. He knew what they were. These were reef sirens; half-human, half-fish people who lived in the tropical oceans of Altairus. He had seen them before in the Turquoise Sea, but he'd never met them up close. One of them stopped in its tracks, looking straight at him.
With one last burst of energy, Jack Thunder waved his one working arm frantically, trying to grab the figure's attention. With Stormbringer in that hand, he was sure he was impossible to miss. It didn't last long, though; exhaustion took hold once more and Jack Thunder floated helplessly in the water. Help me... please...
Just before he lost consciousness, Jack Thunder could see the reef siren swiftly swimming towards him.
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