I’ll swim all the way to Ledra, she thought, allowing no other thought into her head, no other possible ending to this story. I’ll fire every one of them when I get there, for leaving me behind. It was harder and harder to move her shoulders, slap the water with arms and legs she could no longer feel.

They’re all fired, she thought. As soon as I get there.

—

She was having a sort of dream, about the time her friend Katsa had saved her from her father, after her father had killed her mother. Katsa was a Graceling and had carried her to sanctuary across an impassable, frozen mountain, running on snowshoes, yelling, keeping her warm and alive.

Don’t you give up, she heard Katsa yelling. Keep swimming. Keep swimming! Which was a strange thing for Katsa to yell, if they were crossing a mountain, but Bitterblue was used to Katsa’s teacher voice during training sessions, so she did what she was told. She kept swimming. And swimming, and crying. Her arms wouldn’t move. She couldn’t do it anymore. She breathed water. She sank.

Something bumped against her, hard. Bitterblue came awake, choking, thrashing. Katsa?

Something bumped against her again, from below. Keep swimming, it said. Then a purplish mountain formed beneath her, lifting her up to the surface, soft, slippery, and warm. It had a head and flippers and was swimming strongly forward. Bitterblue didn’t understand what was happening.

Too cold, someone said. We must hurry.

In the water around Bitterblue, she saw the faces of what looked like seals, but bigger, and deep purple, pearlescent, almost blue. They were staring at her with dark, placid eyes as they swam beside her. Don’t give up, one of them said.

Something about the way they talked made Bitterblue feel like the top of her head was coming off. “I never give up,” she said. “Everyone’s fired.”

Keep moving, another of them said. You must keep warm. But Bitterblue couldn’t move, she could only lie prostrate on the purple creature below her, letting her arms and legs trail into the water and closing her eyes.

Open your eyes! someone yelled, and her eyes popped open.

Swimming beside Bitterblue, one of the creatures stared at her hard, its whiskers long and droopy. Its whiskers reminded her of her adviser Froggatt, who was probably still asleep in his bed on the ship, and who was fired.

Don’t fall asleep, the long-whiskered creature said to her. You mustn’t fall asleep.

“I’m so tired,” she said.

If you fall asleep now, the creature said, you won’t wake up.