The River

I swallow water.

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Fiery lungs, gasping for air in a dark vacuum.

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I try to fight my aquatic tormentor, yet unseen hands pull me further into the depths. A murky smear surrounds me; a facade for the barrage of canonball stones that pummel my flesh. A steady drum is beating in my chest whilst my limbs flail in unison. Pushing my face above the threshold, I find myself screaming a gargled war-cry. My sight streaking across a blurred landscape pierced by a blinding sun.

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Sudden darkness pounces me as a flood fills my nostrils and subdues my pleas. I descend yet again.