Splash Part 2

SPACE Treading water in the still darkness, Garn is afraid. “Alasdair?” he speaks very softly.
SPACE “Where are you?” Alasdair closes his eyes and tries to concentrate on the sounds around him. He calls out to Garn in a low voice. “Take my staff.” He holds his staff by one end and circles it around in the water slowly. Garn grips the staff and steadies himself.
SPACE “I don't like spiders,” he admits to Alasdair. “Let's try to stay close together, okay?”
SPACE “Lets stand back to back and wait,” the bard replies. “If the spiders come after us, it'll be easier to fight them like this.” The darkness is thick, though lessening as their eyes become accustomed to it.
SPACE “Keep quiet for a while and listen for them approaching,” Alasdair whispers.
SPACE Treading water, the two men peer silently about the room. Their arms grow weary and they can feel no bottom.
SPACE “Alasdair,” Garn whispers, “I think I see a ledge over there where we can get out of the water.”
SPACE Swimming towards the ledge, the men are hopeful. The lack of chittering sounds is encouraging.
SPACE Nearing the ledge, the bottom rises up to them and they drag themselves from the water. It is another coral outcropping.
SPACE They sit in the darkness, catch their breath, and wish they had a heat and/or light source.

SPACE The silence is broken by a splash and a scream off in the darkness.
SPACE It’s Alliandra!
SPACE She flails helplessly in the cold waters.
SPACE Garn is first to hail her. “Alliandra! Over here!”
SPACE “Garn?!”
SPACE “Shhh!” his partner hushes the refreshed warrior. “You’ll alert the spiders to us!”
SPACE “But she needs our help,” Garn says sternly. “Alliandra! Swim this way!”
SPACE “Garn,” the return call echoes. “Run, Garn! The spiders!”
SPACE “Told you,” Alasdair says cynically, standing up and looking for a place to escape from the approaching arachnids.
SPACE “We can’t leave Alliandra behind.”
SPACE “Are you sure that’s even her?” Alasdair whispers.
SPACE “The spiders got Kavan!” cries Alliandra as she drags herself from the water.
SPACE “WHAT?!” Alasdair yelps in disbelief.
SPACE Garn is hovering over Alliandra and helping her.
SPACE “We gotta get outta here!” Alasdair tells them and then walks cautiously off along the packed coral.

SPACE Alliandra takes her time and relays her story of how they came upon the barbarians unconscious in the water and how two dog-sized spiders dropped from the ceiling, knocked Tarsis down and then pounced on poor Kavan.
SPACE “That’s when I ran,” she relates.

SPACE Suddenly, a light source approaches from their right.

Light Source