Come here

[Elara's POV]

I continued coughing violently until my throat hurt, and I couldn’t even feel my legs anymore. Tears blurred my vision as I stumbled blindly along the cold tunnel. When I reached the end of the passageway, I collapsed onto the ground, still coughing uncontrollably. After a few moments, my breathing began to slow, and I rested my head against the cold floor. Stalagtor was nowhere to be seen. I lay there for a few more minutes before finally deciding that moving wasn’t an option. Even if I could stand on my own two feet now, I knew I wouldn’t make it to any place safe. I had run out of energy hours ago, when all my body wanted to do was collapse in relief. The only thing keeping me going right now was the faint hope of survival.

I stood up and walked towards the edge, where I saw a huge sculpture of my face cemented in the water, stuck in place like a dead fish. Frowning, I knelt down and tried to touch the water slowly, but it kept slipping through my fingers. The water s