Chapter 5

5 The little fish shot off, their tails swishing so fast they were a blur. It was hard for Sofia and Zoe to keep up! Grace was an amazing swimmer, so she had no problems. As well as being fast, the fish were very nimble. They darted this way and that, through floaty

strands of seaweed and under coral arches. For the Sea Dragons, it was much harder to twist and turn. They were so much bigger! But they did their best. We can't let them out of our sight! Sofia reminded herself, swimming as hard as she could. Grace slowed down so Sofia could catch up with her. "Am I imagining it, or are we going deeper and deeper?" "I wondered that, too," said Zoe, coming up on Sofia's other side. "I can feel a pressure in my ears." Now that Zoe mentioned it, Sofia noticed her ears did feel different, too. Also, it was becoming harder to see in the dark water. But were they actually going down? Maybe they were going up? Sofia felt her pulse begin to beat faster. Uh-oh! She was starting to feel confused and foggy. That could only mean one thing… "Watch out!" cried the school of fish from up ahead. "We're under attack!"

In the darkness, a glow had appeared. It was growing bigger and brighter by the second. "Quick! Move into defense mode!" the little fish called to one another. Swishing their tails furiously, the fish changed from two lines to one big mass. Sofia watched them in fascination. Were they trying to look like one giant fish? It was a pretty weird-looking one, if so. But maybe she was just too confused to see it clearly? As the Fire Sparks drew closer, Sofia felt less sure about everything. And was it possible that the sparks were even bigger than last time? "They're not forming a giant fish," said a familiar voice. Sofia turned. With a jolt of happiness, she saw that JellyJo was back. "They're forming a giant Fire Spark," JellyJo explained. JellyJo was right! The group of little fish looked exactly like an enormous Fire Spark. Only the fish

spark was bright silver instead of fiery gold. Rather than swimming away from the sparks, the fish sped toward them. It was amazing to watch them move as one. The sparks buzzed with anger and began zigzagging here and there to get away from the giant fish spark. The dark water was soon streaked with light and crackling electricity.

"You should do the same as the fish," JellyJo urged Sofia, bobbing close by. "You're stronger when you stick together!" Sofia nodded. She and her friends were definitely more powerful when they joined forces. Looking around, she could just make out the shapes of Zoe and Grace in the dark waters. In the flashes of light from the Fire Sparks, Sofia glimpsed her friends bravely battling them. But Sofia could see that they were struggling. Quickly, she swam over to her friends and grabbed hold of them, pulling them close. She wrapped one wing around Grace and the other around Zoe. Having her friends right there made her feel better at once. "We're strong on our own," she reminded her friends. "But together, we're unbeatable. So shall we roar?" Zoe and Grace didn't need to answer. Instead, they opened their mouths and roared as loudly as they could. Seeing the waters swirl and churn with

their sea-powered roars made Sofia feel more confident than ever. She added her roar to the mix. The Fire Sparks crackled and swooshed, but the Sea Dragons' roars pushed them back. The sparks tried to swim around their roars, but the giant fishy spark blocked their way. Finally, with an angry buzz, the Fire Sparks gave up and disappeared back into the watery depths. Sofia and her friends grinned at one another. "High tail!" Sofia said. She, Zoe, and Grace turned around and clapped their mermaid-like tails together. "You did it!" JellyJo cried, clapping her tentacles. Then she began drifting away. "I'll be back if you need me!" she called.