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Without knowing better, Raul would never have thought that there was anyone out here in need of rescuing. To the naked eye, this immense waterscape looked entirely empty.

But Arumoro sensed someone, apparently, and Raul knew better than to question the reaper’s senses. So he kept going, full sprint, for as long as Arumoro told him to.

Increasingly, he was certain that he could go even faster than this. With his friction power, it had to be possible. He was already able to achieve a speed greater than most boats, but if he could just figure out how to strike the perfect ratio of resistance between the soles of his shoes and this delicate watery surface, then he had a feeling that he could start to truly fly across this lake.

The difficulty was balance. Too little friction would just make his feet slip out from under him. He had to maintain enough bodily control so as not to fall on his ass. He’d never been ice skating before, but he imagined it must’ve felt something like this.

‘Slow down,’ came Arumoro’s echoing voice. ‘It’s close.’

Raul increased the friction and eased himself down to a walk. His eyes were scanning the horizon in all directions, looking for whoever it was that was in need of help. ‘Where are they?’ he said.

‘I’m... not entirely sure,’ said Arumoro.

‘What? Why?’

‘The presence is... odd. It feels like it’s... all over the place. Below us, too. And very... distorted, somehow. I can’t explain it well.’

Below? Raul looked down, peering into the clear water, though he didn’t quite understand how that could be the case. Anyone down there would’ve surely drowned by now, no? Unless it was a servant, perhaps, but a servant would not be in need of rescuing.

After a few moments, however, he did catch a glimpse of something. A glint. A shimmer. Far down.

He crouched for a closer look, but it didn’t help much. ‘Do you see that?’ he asked.

‘Hmm.’ Arumoro phased through the water.

“Whoa, hey! Hold on there!”

The reaper did not listen.

Dammit.

Raul released his fiction entirely and allowed himself to sink below the waves. He gave chase.

Arumoro was not waiting up for him. Raul was not a very good swimmer, but his ability helped him again, and soon enough, he caught up.

And he was not prepared for what he saw.

Some kind of great, shimmering egg. Or cocoon, perhaps? The size of a bus.