Suddenly, things went wrong very rapidly. Instead of rising higher, she seemed to be going downward. An invisible current pulled her towards the chimney's opening, getting stronger with each second. It felt as if the whole ocean was draining into that hole and taking her with it. The mermaid gave one last scream before she vanished.
For several excruciating minutes, she tumbled through blackness, barely able to control her own limbs in the face of the overwhelming force around her. Every now and then, a ring of light would zoom past, but Joan kept her eyes shut to hold in her terror.
Only when she emerged into brightness again and had settled onto a smooth and blessedly stationary surface did she dare to crack open her eyes. It took another second for her to comprehend what she was seeing.
