Branch, having splashed down roughly into the water at the bottom of the tall cliff he had just fallen from only a few moments before, was now floating just beneath the surface as he clutched tightly at his chest, the pain shooting through him making it impossible for the little grey troll to move.

He couldn't breath... but no matter how hard he tried... he just couldn't force himself up to the surface for air... he didn't know what would kill him first... the agonizing pain that was constantly getting worse inside his aching heart... or drowning from lack of air... either way... he was doomed... he would never see Poppy again...

Wait... Poppy... where was she!? Was she ok!?

     Panicked by the thought of the love of his life being hurt, Branch forced his eyes open, looking weakly around himself in concern.

He didn't see her... maybe she had gotten out? Maybe she hadn't even fell in like he had thought... all he could do was hope she was safe as he floated uncontrollably in the ice cold water surrounding him...

     Another sharp stab shot through the little grey troll's chest, causing his eyes to shut tightly once again as he wince in pain, unable to do anything but await his slow demise...

     'Tick... tick... tick...' The sudden sound filled Branch's ears, his eyes slowly blinking open once more as the familiar noise echoed in his mind as if it was completely in his head. 'Tick... tick... tick...'

     The sound was slow and getting slower, the pain in Branch's chest intensifying as the noise seemed to grow louder and louder...

     And that's when he saw it... sitting on the sandy floor of the lagoon... was his watch! He had to get to it... fast...

     Using all the strength he had left, Branch forced his body to move, swimming slowly down towards the dying watch... All he needed to do was get it, wind it back up, and then he'd be fine. He could stay... he could be with Poppy...

     Groaning in pain, the water surrounding him muffling his voice, he reached for his watch, doing his best to fight the pain coursing through his body so that he could save his life...

Just as he was about to grab the one thing that would keep him alive... something suddenly caught his eye, causing him to turn to see what it was...

     He looked over, his eyes widening in horror as he saw Poppy slowly sinking down towards the bottom of the lagoon, completely unconscious...

     She was drowning...

Slowly, he looked back to his watch which was just out of reach, the hands almost at a complete stop... he didn't have time to save both...

     There was a choice to be made, but only one clear answer in Branch's mind...

     He didn't question it. He knew exactly what he was going to do...

     Without hesitation, Branch turned his body, forcing himself in the direction of Poppy. He had to save her... he couldn't let her die...

     Quickly, he grabbed onto the young queen, struggling to swim her back up to the surface.

    Once they broke the surface of the water, Branch took a deep breath. gasping for the air his lungs so desperately needed, but as he did so, he couldn't help but immediately wince in pain, the sharp crushing feeling in his heart intensifying even farther.

     It took everything he had just to keep both his and Poppy's heads above the water, but unfortunately... that's all he could manage to do... He could no longer move... He just couldn't seem to force himself to swim Poppy back to shore...

     "Ah..." he winced in pain, clutching his chest yet again as he struggle to stay at the surface, his eyes shutting tightly as he tried to force the excruciating feeling away. He didn't have much longer... he needed to find some way to save Poppy... fast...

     Remembering something that could help in this situation, Branch quickly reached into his hair, pulling out an already inflated raft. (Good thing he was always crazy prepared 😏)

     Quickly, he put the life saving device down into the water, carefully placing Poppy into it.

"You're... you're going... going to be... ok..." he panted, clinging on tightly to the raft so he wouldn't sink back down into the water before his job was done. "I... I'm... gonna... gonna get you to... to... to safety..."

He could feel himself slipping away, the ticking sound in his brain getting louder and louder to the point where it was the only thing he could hear, as if it were taunting him, telling the little grey troll his time was almost up...

"Good... goodbye, Poppy..." he muttered softly, his body loosely dangling in the water, his head resting gently on the raft, the little grey troll unable to hold it up any longer, his mind slowly fading away...

He knew... he knew this was it for him... he just needed to get her to shore... and then he could finally let go... He was going to miss her, but he knew he was doing the right thing...

     Another sharp pain suddenly shot through his chest, causing Branch to scream out loudly, his hands involuntarily curling into tight fists... he had to hurry...

"I... I love... you..." he managed to say before pushing the raft away from himself, allowing Poppy to float away to safety.

A small weak smile came to his face as he watched the raft wash up on shore, knowing that Poppy was going to be ok... she was safe now... she was going to live... and that's all that truly mattered...

—————

     At the bottom of the lagoon, Branch's watch was slowing down more and more, until it finally came to a complete stop as water flooded the gears to make sure it would never tick again...

     The ticking sound in his head coming to an abrupt halt, Branch's eyes slowly blinked shut one final time as his body sank down into the water surrounding him...