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Eight red eyes glowed in the dark, and a spider stepped into the light. Prim screamed and toppled backwards into Ali’s chest. The spider was as big as a barn. Ali gently pushed Prim back onto her feet and took aim. I saw the green flights on the arrow.
“Poison?” I whispered. The huge spider didn’t appear to have seen us yet, though its ugly head was swinging back and forth, searching the room for the source of Prim’s scream. Ali took careful aim. She fired. There was a collective gasp. The arrow had missed. Ali cursed quietly and pulled a new arrow from her quiver. It had orange flights – explosive. The spider turned its head. Natalie spat her own curse. It had seen us. The spider let out a terrible roar. Ali loosed the arrow. It flew neatly through the air. The spider caught it in its mandibles and swallowed. Ali smirked. There was a muffled explosion, the spider’s body glowing orange, and the beast rolled over, dead. Ali punched the air in celebration, as a door slid open. We stepped carefully around the tangle of hairy legs and into the next room. The door slammed closed. April whirled on the spot. There was a small gurgling noise. Water stared to pour into the room from an inlet near the floor.
“I can’t swim!” yelped April, as the water started to creep higher. Natalie splashed over to her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. Sami took half a step backwards and fell over me. She managed to stay upright, but only just.
“What are you doing down there?” she asked. By way of answer, I flicked the silvery tail in place of my legs. Ali was staring.
“You’re a mermaid!” she gasped. I raised an eyebrow.
“I know that, Ali. Always have been. I tell you, it makes showers tricky, losing my legs every time I hit water,” Ali laughed, despite the cold water lapping around her waist. It continued to creep upwards, reaching everyone’s shoulders. April looked panicky. I flicked my tail and swam across to her.
“I’ll hold you up, April. It’s okay,” Gently, I wrapped my arms around her. The water rose up to her chin. Prim and the others pushed off, treading water easily. I started to churn the water with my tail, keeping April’s head and shoulders above the water. The water was nearing the ceiling now, with no sign of stopping.
“April, can you kick your legs?” I asked. She started to kick, beating the water. Tentatively, she copied Natalie, who was nearby, and managed to tread water. I let her go and swam back a little.
“I’m going to see if I can shut the water off,” I explained, and dived. After so long above the water, it was a relief to feel the water flowing around me, filtering through my gills. I swam down and found a tiny wheel beside the inlet. No-one, not even a trained diver, could stay under long enough to reach it. I turned the wheel and the water stopped flowing into the room. Quickly, I beat my tail against the water and shot up like a cork. Prim squealed as I broke the surface.
“The water’s turned off. I’m going to find an exit!”
I plunged under again. There was a door set into the wall. I pushed it. It didn’t move. Gripping the handle, I tilted and flicked my tail. The door shot open and I was catapulted back through the water. There was a rumbling sound as all the water in the room cascaded out into the next chamber, swirling into a vortex, dragging five soggy girls and one mermaid through the door. We rolled across the floor, absolutely soaked. The puddles on the floor kept me trapped as a mermaid. I looked pointedly at Sami.
“What?” she asked. I smirked.
“Don’t play daft, Sami,” Sami tilted her head, puzzled.
“You can summon wind,” I pointed out. Sami gaped.
“How did you…” she asked, trailing away in confusion.
“You went in the shower, then into your room, and came out perfectly dry. At the same time, I was on the other side of my door, using the only hairdryer in the house to dry my tail. You know my door is made of one-way glass, don’t you?” Sami shook her head, and I laughed.
“Come on, Sam. Dry us off, or I’ll be a fish for hours,” I grinned. Sami rolled her eyes, but then opened her palms towards the rest of us, radiating a soft, warm breeze, drying us all within minutes. Natalie looked around.
“What now?” she asked.
I wonder who else has a secret to hide....