by C.M Porter

Created on: June 08, 2008

A crystalline stream of water trickled lightly down the jagged rock wall, dropping quietly into the clear pool at the bottom. The morning sun filtered through the treetops, flickering lightly as the leaves shifted. A spring breeze ruffled the grass and sent a flurry of blossoms into the pool and its runoff creek. Somewhere in the distance, a low rumble could be heard.

The rumble rapidly increased in volume, sending birds, squirrels, and various other wildlife bolting away. Now a high-pitched jabbering could be heard, below the rising roar of water.
A loud "WAAAAAAHOOO!" heralded the sudden, thunderous explosion as gallons upon gallons of water were rapidly and violently expunged from the hole in the wall, fifty feet over the pond. Riding the large, outward explosion, one could see a small figure, clinging to a tiny raft with both hands, and followed by a trail of mismatched pointed sticks apparently aimed at her.
As would be expected by someone who has just been expelled into midair, the raft flipped upwards, sending the humanoid figure, and a smaller, winged one, toppling into the water. The high pitched cries continued.
A moment later, the water flow subsided, leaving a considerably larger pool (with several inches of grass growing within it's outer edges), a widened stream, a heavier waterfall, and a seventy-plus-foot radius of dripping trees, bushes, and animals. The loud shrieks from within the wall faded with the lowering water.
From out of the swirling, churning pool popped a small, silver, dripping object. From the sides jutted a pair of narrow structures, dangling with a multitude of equally wet ornaments. Two small hands reached from the surface to wipe aside the sopping strands, revealing a child's face. She tucked her silver hair behind her elongated ears as best she could, then quickly treaded over to a nearby patch of particularly violent water.
After several moments of groping beneath the surface, the girl's hand surfaced, wrapped around a small, thrashing gray thing, which was shrieking with a high, female-sounding voice.
"Mari! Mari!" The girl called to it. "MARI! YOU ARE NOT DROWNING!"
Mari stopped thrashing and looked around before sighing loudly. "I'm not? YEESS!" Then she stopped and writhed around to look at her companion's large blue eyes, glittering with laughter and cheerfulness. "ButHAVE YOU LOST YOUR MIND?!" The girl giggled at the catlike fey's shout. "Riding down a subterranean river on a RAFT when you're being chased by hordes of

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