I didn't know how to swim! I was sinking below the water faster than I could stay afloat. With one last gulp of air, I sank below the surface.

My heart was beating rapidly in my chest. I closed my eyes thinking that this was the end for me, that today was the day I would die.

But right when I thought everything was going quiet, that was when I heard it. The music. It was faint, but I could still hear it. Out of curiosity and the ever growing need to get closer to the source of the music, I let my body sink further down. I may not know how to swim, but I do know how to sink, that's for sure.

Mom didn't know this, but since I found all of those old books in my little secret library in our garden, I found one that taught me how to hold my breath for long periods of time. I guess in the heat of the moment since I was panicking so much I had forgotten all about it. Oops!

The deeper I went, the louder the music became, and the further I was from the surface of the water, the clearer it was. I was so excited! I was finally going to experience techno music for the first time.

Finally, when I thought I couldn't sink any lower, I saw them. The techno trolls in all their glory, dancing to the beat of the music. I smiled. I couldn't believe my eyes. They were all gorgeous! In fact, everything down there was breathtakingly beautiful. There were so many lights and colors that I had never seen before! I just had to get closer.

I landed on top of a heart shaped bed of coral, which was right above the source of the music. I had to grab on to the coral in order to stop my body from floating back upwards. In that moment, I felt nothing else but pure joy. I could feel the bass vibrating through my hands and feet with every note that played, except now, I could hear it loud and clear, too.

That was when I heard a voice that was as sweet as honey, but just as loud as the booming music, call out to the audience.

"Are you having a good time, my techno trolls?"

The audience cheered in response. Who was saying that? Where were they? It sort of sounded like it was coming from beneath me.

I sneaked a quick glimpse over the edge of the coral heart, but all I could see was a navy blue hand pushing various buttons on a table in front of him. I tried to see more, but I quickly whipped my head back when a bright light shone in my face. Ouch! Thank goodness it didn't blind me.

So, instead of trying to figure out who was talking to all of the other trolls, I just closed my eyes and listened to the music. I let it pick me up and whisk me away to another world, far away from Volcano Rock City. Nothing had ever felt so perfect in all my life. And it was only going to get better.

"Alright my techno trolls," the voice called out again. "Who's ready for the drop?"

My eyes flashed open. The drop? You mean dropping the beat? That kind of drop? As the music began to build up, I got more and more excited. I tightened my grip on the coral as I waited, not noticing the burning feeling that was starting to grow in my chest. The building anticipation for the beat to drop was making everybody tense. They couldn't wait any longer, and neither could I.

"Just do it already! I can't wait much longer!" I heard someone shout over the music.

Almost as if he was waiting for that one troll to cue him, the navy blue troll in charge of the music slammed his hand down onto the beat drop button. The next few moments happened so fast that I almost thought they didn't happen. The moment he hit that button, a blast of sound rushed through the reef. The burning feeling in my chest exploded into this fire of desire as the sound wave hit me at full speed.

This feeling was everything I could ever hope to feel. It was something entirely new and unique. This music was just as beautiful as rock n' roll if not even more beautiful! Why have I never heard of this before? Why was it forbidden music? I loved it so much I felt like announcing it to the entire techno troll population!

"I-"

I forgot something, something important. I got so lost in the music that I forgot where I was. In the ocean, surrounded by water. The moment I opened my mouth, water rushed down my throat, choking me. I needed air. Now!

"Help!" I thought to myself, knowing that nobody could hear me.

I tried to swim upward towards the surface, but nothing happened. I was stuck there, completely helpless. I desperately looked around for anything that could help me float up to the surface, but it was no use. Suddenly, the beautiful music came to a sudden halt as everybody turned to look at me with shock and fear.

"No, don't stop, please," I thought.

"Prince Titus! Look!" A random techno troll shouted as she pointed a finger at me.

"Who is that?" "Is she alright?" "How did she get down here?"

Why are they just staring? Why aren't they helping me? Don't they realize I'm drowning?

A sharp pain started wrapping its way around my wrists as I slowly started to lose consciousness. My vision blurred as I saw someone navy swim towards me. He tucked his arms under my shoulders and started swimming as fast as he could to the surface.

"Just hold on a little while longer, alright? We're almost there."

I thought I could still feel the songs rhythm thumping in my head as I finally blacked out. Actually, to this day, I'm not sure what that sound was. Either it was the song or the sound of my own heartbeat. It may seem strange that I couldn't tell the difference, but that was because in that moment, they both sounded exactly the same.