“Go, quickly,” said the Sentinel, and the brothers hesitated but a second, then stepped through. Certain death was their reward if they remained, and if death waited on the other side of the portal, what was the difference? But a chance awaited and they took it.

Suddenly they were underwater. There was a moment’s disorientation and both brothers had to use all their focus and willpower not to gasp in lungs full of water. It was dark on all sides.

In a lucid moment, Laromendis understood they were not too deep, as he had experienced the pressure of water diving for shellfish as a youth. He blew out a slight breath and felt the bubbles rise up his face. In the gloom, he knew which way was up. He grabbed his brother’s arm and pulled and they both swam furiously to the surface.

They were less than ten feet below the surface, but it felt as if it were a hundred. They broke above rolling combers and found themselves spitting out mouths full of seawater.

Gasping for air, Gulamendis said, “We aren’t dead…yet.”

Looking around, his brother said, “We have time. I have no idea where we are.”

Gulamendis said, “This isn’t Home.”

“How do you know?”

“Demons. I can sense them.”

“How many?”

“A lot.”

The chop of the seawater was relatively mild. The peak to trough was roughly six feet, so they tried to time their exploration to looking in circles as they crested on the rising water.

“Lights!” said Laromendis.

“Where?” asked his brother as he slid down into a trough and began to rise again.

“That way,” said his brother.

“I can’t see where you’re pointing. It’s as dark as a cave here.”

“You’re right.” He got close to his brother’s face and could barely make him out. There was a faint shine on his face, and he turned to look for the source.

High in the night sky rose a single moon, a slivered crescent, obscured by a heavy mist. “Fog,” said Laromendis.

“Then we’d better make for those lights before they get obscured again,” said Gulamendis. He felt his brother’s hand on his shoulder and felt himself being moved in a specific direction. He didn’t need any more convincing and began swimming in the indicated direction.

Both brothers were not particularly powerful elves, but that still gave them more strength and endurance than humans or the lesser elves of Home. And both had spent years near the ocean, so they were both good swimmers. Both had depended more times than they cared to remember on what they could bring in from the sea if they were going to eat.

“Listen,” said Gulamendis as he paused.

“What?”

“Breakers.”

“Good. I’m starting to get numb and was desperately hoping we saw lights on land and not a passing ship.”

Saying nothing more, they both set out toward the sound of breakers.