THE CAVE TRAP
The island of Asrhinta is a vast land filled with a variety of places, from picturesque beaches, high mountains and long coasts. But one of the island's most interesting features was the underwater caves. They are unusual first of all because of the mystery of their existence, no one knows who dug them or what forces dug through the entire underground part of the island, preventing it from sinking into the sea, but none of the caves has ever disappeared, despite the activity of the earth's rock around. At the same time, valuable materials of unknown origin were often recovered from the caves, from jewelry to strange tables made of pearls.
But time and again, there were also brave, or as the islanders called them, foolish adventurers. The melting diversity attracted many desperate seekers and explorers, but exploring the cave was a dangerous task, due to the enthusiasm and the labyrinthine tunnels, the explorers often got stuck and often did not return. Only from time to time divers who had experience in these caves were forced to pull out the drowned poor souls. The meanness of the labyrinth and the lack of air were the main rivals of the brave swimmers.
Mako was one of them. But he was different from these poor people, because he had lived on the island for quite a long time and had been in these caves more than once. Usually no further than 100 meters from the entrance to the water, because beyond that was only water and darkness, beyond which anything was waiting for them. Even if some caves were marked with lanterns and lighthouses underwater, it did not give a strong desire to swim further, but even so it was extremely rare, because no one usually risks swimming into dark caves.
He arrived at one of the caves marked on the map. It was a rather long and elaborate cave, but usually there were few swimmers there, not so much because of the danger as because of the legend that the ghosts of drowned swimmers live there. A common superstition of the islanders, but one that has been confirmed more than once by drowned swimmers or their equipment with no trace of their owners.
Mako was a trained swimmer, but still he was not afraid of the danger around him. He carefully examined the entrance to the cave, walking carefully. The water was already shimmering at the entrance, a blue blue that swayed slightly from the drops of water from the ceiling. Under the water, light washed its rays around the space, the water was clear and barely refracted the light coming from it.
He carefully looked around and put his backpack on the ground and started taking things out of it. For the dive he took a diving mask, a flashlight, and a knife belt. He didn't know how long he would be there, but with his skills it would be a 10-minute dive. He undressed, taking off all his clothes and remaining completely naked, a minimum of things - a minimum of weight. Everything was prepared, but to be sure, he checked his equipment again. Having finished the inspection, he began to prepare for the dive. Putting on his mask and checking his flashlight, he looked into the depths of the water. 
After standing for a while, he dived into the water. From here he was already swimming to the ceiling of the cave, the waves were rising from his movements, only slightly playing with his body. Looking around, he took a few breaths and dived underwater, disappearing completely into the depths of the water.
Somehow he knew where the exit was and hoped to return the same way. Now there was only darkness, the light barely reached through the surface of the water illuminating the bottom and walls of the cave, only the light of the flashlight was the only thing that made his eyes see anything around.  It was a deep, long cave covered with thickets of moss and long algae. His body shivered from the cold... the water was cold. He tried to swim fast to somehow compensate for the loss of heat.
There was a large plateau in front of him and several different small caves, the cave split into several paths, without knowing where they led. Usually, forks were rare in caves, but the appearance of one meant more problems, because each one led to its own unknown destination. He looked at each one, choosing one of them. He swam cautiously, shining his flashlight ahead of him, the dark cave only narrowing.
He swam on, and then a light flashed on the horizon, which lit up his eyes with delight. He accelerated toward the unusual sight, his speed becoming lightning fast. A long layer of algae was fluttering in front of him, pouring light from its long shoots. Everything around him was shimmering with different colors of light, and here and there small fish were swimming around, the origin or existence of which Mako did not even know. This sight was unusual for him, usually every dive was just a long cave in the dark, but here there were colors and even a strange calmness for him. The water here was warmer and provided the inhabitants with warmth for life. Long shoots of underwater plants were the variety of species, shapes and colors around him. 
These caves were indeed filled with amazing treasures, but there was still one problem: water. Mako was about to move on, but his hand shook and reached for his throat, his further movement stopped by a burning sensation in his chest, he had been underwater for too long.
Mako's body began to remind him of the need for oxygen, his chest tightened every now and then, drawing out the last of the air he needed to live, but the long dive had already tired him out and used up a lot of air. After assessing the situation, he headed back to the passage and swam rapidly to the exit. But there was only darkness around him, barely driven away by the light of the flashlight.
The cave creaked around him, forcing him to look back again, and the next second, something reached around his leg and tried to pull him back. Confused, he tried to close his mouth against the surprise and realize what had pulled him back. He shouted in anger, he was so close and here he was again... But quickly, the anger was replaced by fear, his lungs caught fire again, forcing him to only shudder in pain and clutch at his throat. 
There was only water and long algae around him, and it was the algae shoots that grabbed the poor man's leg like some kind of anchor. Its long shoots stretched around his leg and held him tightly, not letting him swim away, they were not going to leave their guest. He was terrified, no one would help him, such thoughts gnawed at him. Mako knew that this could not last. He let out most of his air, and the struggle used up what little oxygen he had left. His head began to spin.
Mako looked at the unexpected opponent and pulled out a knife from his belt to cut it open, a knife that had saved him from trouble more than once. The knife sliced through the algae like an arrow, separating their flesh from one another, freeing the poor guy. But his body shuddered, and Mako grabbed his neck tightly, trying to stop himself from inhaling more water, but it was to no avail. A loud moan escaped his lips, marking the approaching end of his resistance.
His chest continued to spasm uncontrollably. He squeezed both eyes shut, closed his mouth, and gritted his teeth again. His arms and legs began to tremble as he began to suffocate, the remaining air coming out of his nose and mouth in waves until there were almost no bubbles. His lungs were completely empty, his chest and stomach almost completely concave. He started biting his lips to distract himself from the pain. But it became difficult for him, his body went limp, he breathed in air with his empty chest, but there was only water instead. His eyesight became worse, he was drowning, he had no strength to swim up to the surface, he was not waiting for anything. His body gave up and now there were no bubbles coming out of his mouth, on the contrary, each sip was accompanied by a dull moan and a gurgling sound in his throat. He swallowed the water, his face showed a blue tint on his lips... His body was already weak, he was convulsing randomly, his body was so desperate to breathe.
"N-no... not yet! He opened his eyes, trying to concentrate, to keep his consciousness as long as possible - until the last time. He spat the water out of his mouth, then took it back in, repeating this movement over and over again, trying to imitate breathing. But with the last of his strength, his consciousness returned, forcing his heavy body to jump to its feet and flounder to the top. He grabbed his neck and mouth with his hands, his eyes wide open, searching for the surface of water he could not even see.
But his movements were in vain. With each sip of water, he felt better and better. The burning sensation in his throat began to subside as his body adjusted. His lungs were almost completely filled with water. His muscles began to relax, only occasionally spasming as his body tried to breathe again and again. The boy was already completely drowned. His lungs were completely filled with the same water that surrounded him. Slowly, his body began to sink. His eyelids began to drop, with only the lower half of his pupils still visible to the water. He continued to breathe, the water flowing in and out of his lungs more freely, and the last vestiges of his consciousness began to fade.
His consciousness began to fade. He continued to look up, the struggle of his movements gone. Like his leg before him, Mako gradually descended into darkness, his arms floating limply above his head as he disappeared into the black abyss of the cave. Mako's consciousness faded, his eyes closed completely, and his lips parted slightly.
Darkness was all around him, covering some shadow that was watching him, reaching for him to catch him before the darkness...
...
Something wrapped around his waist and pulled him up... 
...
Only her snow-white hair.
...
Only her tail.
...
A few minutes passed, Mako's body laying on the cold sand, a hand on his face, his chest heaving with heavy breathing. Barely conscious. The dive had almost ended in his death, but for now he was safe. 
With every breath, the pain and fatigue in his body went away. He was still having a hard time, but his eyes were trying to catch the snow-white hair that had pulled him out. But there was no one around. He didn't know who it was, but she had saved him... But why?
[To be continued?]