Damian plunged into the water, the cold driving the breath from his lungs.
He gasped instinctively, inhaling a mouthful of frigid river water that burned down his throat. He coughed and spluttered beneath the surface, streams of precious air bubbling skywards.
The freshwater dragged him down, forbidding the buoyancy his body expected. With significant effort, he kicked off his shoes to lighten his load, and righted himself. Dispelling the natural fear of drowning was no easy feat, even for him; but he drew deep within himself, focusing on the core of his being, imagining the Flame at the centre of his soul.
Wordlessly, he invoked the Aspect of Power.
Flaming feathers sprouted from back, punching through his sodden coat, forming a pair of brilliant wings. The heat from the wings boiled away the water in a rippling channel of steam; and the light from the Angel's Blessing dispelled the murky depths of the river, chasing away the Deepshadow that slithered along the riverbed.
There! Sinking towards the bottom of the river, he spotted their bodies, limbs sprawled wide in a mimicry of life.
With a powerful beat of his wings, Damian propelled himself to the depths of the river. Towards the people he had to save.
All three of them.