Should we continue? Part of Spence wanted to turn around and go back. Then he considered what that would mean—losing Morgan and leading the Draconians into the gods’ war. And eventually, he would be forced to fight against Caleb and Morgan. Drowning in the swamp would be a quicker and easier path than what waited for them if they returned. Spence pointed forward and nodded. Morgan also nodded. She added a wink to Spence that Caleb couldn’t see.

Caleb continued swimming forward. They passed a few large fish swimming in the depths. Spence hoped there wouldn’t be anything to fight. There wasn’t room to maneuver, and they didn’t have enough air for the exertion. Plus, Morgan’s arrows would be useless down here, and Caleb’s sword wouldn’t be much better. Would his staff work underwater? That’s something they hadn’t discussed in much detail. Then he wondered how he would even activate it. Was the floor hard enough? Since the staff was technological and not magic, could water even short it out?

He forced those thoughts out of his mind and focused on Morgan in front of him. She had learned swimming quickly and now made it look easy—her long arms and legs were suited for it. Caleb was a natural. Spence had improved but still had trouble keeping up with the others. His body definitely wasn’t designed for swimming—floating or sinking, possibly—not swimming.

Spence looked down and realized the bottom was even closer. He saw no sign above of the roots and vegetation receding. If they didn’t reach the dome soon, it would be over. They barely had enough room to swim as it was. They continued for another few minutes when Caleb suddenly stopped swimming. Morgan nearly ran into him and then Spence into her.

Caleb curled around in the tight space and motioned for Spence to swim to him. Spence reached him, and Caleb grabbed Spence’s hand and extended it in front of him. It suddenly stopped and struck something that wasn’t water. The surface wasn’t hard, though. His hand pushed into it several inches and then gradually stopped. He visualized the dome as being like a silicone breast implant. He still couldn’t see the wall; it just appeared as if the water continued.

Spence knew it was now or never. He reached behind him and, after a few tugs and pulls, slid the staff out from under his pack straps. Maneuvering was tricky in the tight space. He then pushed the butt back onto the bottom. Nothing happened. The ground was spongy, and the staff only sank several inches into it. He looked up at Caleb, his eyes wide. Caleb’s eyes were also big, but he just shrugged. Spence tried again, but it still didn’t work. He didn’t know if his internal clock worked well, but there couldn’t be much time left with the breathing devices.

Spence wished he had one of the Limitless potions. Negative thoughts flooded his mind. They couldn’t make it back now. The only way they could survive was if he could blast a hole in the dome. But he couldn’t even activate his staff. He inhaled a costly deep breath and tried to settle his nerves. Then something grabbed his right hand. He turned and saw Morgan’s hand on top of his. She squeezed it. He could tell she was smiling even with the disk in front of her mouth. He returned the smile and instantly felt calm. The clutter in his mind melted away. I can do this. I have to do this.

He tapped Caleb and then swirled his hand, motioning for Caleb to turn around. Caleb stared at him for a moment and then nodded. Caleb turned his body around and allowed himself to sink until he lay on the bottom. Morgan removed her hand, and Spence extended his staff as far from his body as possible. Then he slammed it through the water with all his might. It struck hard in the middle of the shield on Caleb’s back, pressing him firmly against the floor.

The tip of the staff illuminated. The glow was bright in the confined space, much more luminous than the stone Caleb held. Caleb swam up beside Spence, and Morgan floated by his other side. He glanced at Caleb and then Morgan. Caleb tapped on his watch again. Spence nodded and placed his finger over the exposed buttons in the staff. He brushed over the first one; the lightning bolt would probably electrocute them. The fireball would likely only fizzle out or bounce off the invisible barrier.

His finger stopped on the third one. The shock wave would send out a tremendous force of energy. At point-blank range, he wasn’t sure what would happen. The barrier wasn’t solid, as they had seen from Tom’s arrow striking it. The shock wave would undoubtedly have an impact on it. The question was if it would open a hole or whether the surface would merely absorb it. There would also be a danger to them if the wall did deflect it. The shockwave might knock them unconscious or worse. Although with just a minute or two of air left, that might be the easiest way to drown.

Caleb tapped frantically on his wrist. Spence placed the staff's tip up to the barrier and inserted it as far as possible. He began to push the button but then removed his finger. Maybe the wall could interfere with the blast or absorb it easier if the orb were stuck into it. He pulled the tip out until it was a foot away. He motioned for Morgan and Caleb to move back.

Spence was going to hold his breath but realized he was no longer getting oxygen from his breathing device. He was breathing, but it felt like breathing into a paper bag. He closed his eyes and pressed the third button. The staff surged with power. Then the force sent him rushing back through the water, something Spence hadn’t accounted for. He opened his eyes and could only see bubbles and churning water. He finally dug his feet into the bottom of the swamp and halted his momentum. He panted into the breathing device.

Caleb and Morgan had been blown back some, but they were able to stop sooner. The water slowly cleared, and Spence saw the massive ripples in the now visible wall. It looked like a piece of ice in the water. The surface was cupped deeply, several feet deep, as if a chunk had been scooped out of it. But it hadn’t broken.

Spence watched Caleb pull his sword out of its scabbard and swim forward, both hands on the hilt. Spence began swimming frantically toward the wall too. He stared ahead and watched as Caleb paddled his feet hard, and then his sword entered the depression and disappeared through it as his body crashed into the wall.

Spence briefly saw a small hole of light appear around Caleb’s blade. Then the hole expanded, but the light faded to a dull glow as the water rushed through it. The opening sucked his body toward it, along with the surging water around him. Caleb withdrew his sword, grabbed Morgan with his free hand, and pushed her toward the opening. She extended both arms and disappeared through the wall. The hole reached its maximum size of three feet and then slowly began closing back together. The depression was filling, pulling the tear closed. Caleb motioned for Spence to hurry. Spence kicked his feet as hard as he could and held his staff pointed in front of him as Caleb had done with his sword. He was getting lightheaded and began seeing spots of light in the water.

The staff punched through the wall, and Spence suddenly felt cold air on his hands and arms and then on his face. Then something squeezed his chest and stomach. He realized in a panic that the wall was closing shut—on him! He struggled hard, but he was stuck. His body would be crushed and then cut in two. No!

Then something began pushing on the bottoms of his feet. At the same time, hands grabbed his arms and pulled on him. The opening in the wall slowly slid down his body. Then suddenly, he was through the wall and free of the water. He opened his eyes. He was no longer in the dome.

***

“Most unexpected,” Ra said.

“What now?” Odin asked.

“We are running out of time. We must quickly persuade them to return to the dome. Those two could prove most useful to us,” Enki replied.

“And if we cannot persuade them?” Artemis asked.

“Then we must eliminate them,” Enki said.