I Can Feel It in My Bones

It had been almost three days since we’d descended beneath the ocean’s surface, and the journey was beginning to fray the crew’s nerves.

“I can’t stand being stuck here with all of you anymore. Can’t we just speed up?” Toren growled, his fingers drumming impatiently on the edge of his seat.

“If we sped up, we’d burn through the Kyslicium reserves and wouldn’t make it back, genius,” Serena said without looking at him, her tone laced with mockery.

Predictably, Toren snapped back, and soon the two were locked in another argument, their voices echoing through the cramped cabin. I sighed, leaning back in my seat and letting the noise fade into the background. I didn’t have the energy—or the patience—to intervene.

Instead, I let my thoughts drift to my last conversation with Perla. Her words lingered in my mind like an unfinished equation, teasing and unresolved. I’d promised her that once we confronted the Alpha Biocore, I would help her regain her emotions. Her only response had been a dismissive laugh and a sharp jab about me being an “old idiot.”

“Wood Hunters, brace yourselves!” Captain’s sudden shout snapped me from my thoughts. She pointed to the viewport, her tone cutting through the simmering tension in the room. “We’re approaching the ocean floor.”

The cabin fell silent as we all crowded toward the glass. Shadows gave way to the pale, otherworldly expanse of the ocean floor, stretching out before us in ghostly stillness.

This was it—the moment we’d all been waiting for.

Our one chance for redemption.

It almost felt like the final battle was drawing near.

When the submarine finally reached the deepest depths, another transformation began. The vessel reshaped itself. Plates shifted, mechanisms groaned, and before we realized what was happening, the submarine’s aquatic design gave way to something more familiar—a ship.

Why were we changing back? We were still underwater.

The answer came soon enough. Perla, ever the calm guide, handed out the airboards and laseraxes while we instinctively donned our Wood Hunter masks.

When the door hissed open, shock rippled through the group like a cold wave.

The ocean floor wasn’t what any of us expected. It wasn’t even underwater. The ground was bone dry, a desolate expanse of sand and rock stretching endlessly in every direction, while the water hovered above us like a shimmering ceiling. It swayed and rippled, defying everything we understood about the natural world.

But was this natural? Or was it science?

We stood there, frozen, gazing upward at the liquid canopy.

“This was once an advanced nation,” Perla said, her voice muffled through her mask. “The birthplace of Kyslicium. And the site of World War IV.”

There, in the distance, I saw a flicker of light, faint but unmistakable. Then another. And another.

The lights formed a jagged path, like the glow of torches in ancient clay bowls, illuminating the surroundings.

“Well, my job was to get you here,” Perla said, breaking the spell. “The Wood Hunting is up to you now. Phones won’t work here, but take these transmitters to stay in touch with me.”

She handed each of us a small device, which we slipped into our pockets.

“Oh, and one more thing,” she added, her tone turning clinical. “You don’t need your masks here. Save the fuel for later.”

“What?” Kael snapped. “But we’re outside the barrier!”

“Relax,” Perla said, waving a hand dismissively. “Once you’ve been exposed to oxygen, it doesn’t matter if it’s for a second or a lifetime. The damage is done.”

I hesitated only briefly before pulling my mask off, inhaling deeply. The air tasted... strange. Heavy and faintly metallic, but not unbearable. “If Perla says so, I believe her,” I said, tossing the mask aside.

The others followed suit, though Kael kept his on, his jaw tight with defiance.

“Take it off, you stubborn fool!” Toren barked, grabbing Kael by the collar. “You’re wasting our supply!”

“It’s fine,” Liora interjected softly, her tone soothing. “One person won’t make a difference.”

Toren grunted but released Kael, who adjusted his mask with a glare. Without warning, Kael's fist shot forward, landing squarely on Toren’s jaw with a sickening thud.

“Hey, stop it!” I shouted, grabbing Kael by the arm before he could throw another punch. Liora quickly glided between them, her arms outstretched, blocking Toren from retaliating.

Kael shrugged off my grip, his expression defiant. “There, I feel better,” he muttered.

Toren's lips twisted into a wild, almost deranged grin as the tension seemed to drain from his shoulders. “Once this is over, I’ll fucking kill you.”

With that, we set off toward the flickering lights, the path ahead both clear and ominous.

Kael fell into step beside me, his voice low and conspiratorial. “This is it, Zehn. We made it this far. I know the Alpha Biocore is here—I can feel it in my bones.”

“Well, good for you,” I replied dryly, shifting the weight of my laseraxe on my shoulder. “The only thing I feel in my bones is strain.”

When we ventured further, the flickering flames in the clay bowls formed a massive circle, their light casting wavering shadows on the sand beneath our airboards. The eerie stillness of the scene was oppressive, each breath heavier than the last as we instinctively slowed our pace.

Then we saw it—something that shouldn’t have been here. Something impossible.

A human.

A figure lay sprawled in the center of the circle, motionless. As we glided lower to investigate, the flickering flames illuminated the unmistakable insignia on his chest: a Greek letter A, embroidered into the weathered fabric of a Wood Hunter’s uniform.

“That’s a member of Team Alpha!” I shouted, the words catching in my throat .

Liora darted forward, her medical instincts taking over. Kneeling beside the figure, she pressed two fingers against his neck. “He’s alive,” she announced, though her voice wavered. “We need to get him back to the ship—now.”

Serena crossed her arms, her sharp gaze scanning the surroundings. “But what was he doing here?”

Toren and Kael crouched down, gripping the man’s arms to lift him. As they heaved him off the ground, his eyes snapped open, and his hand shot out, clutching Kael’s forearm with surprising strength.

“H-hey…” he croaked, his voice rasping like brittle leaves.

“Don’t speak!” I urged, leaning closer. “We’ll get you to safety!”

But he wasn’t listening. His lips moved, forcing out fragmented words between labored breaths. “That… thing… We spent centuries… chasing it… Visited… this place… many times… but it… never… showed itself… until now…”

“That thing?” Liora whispered, her voice trembling. “What are you talking about?”

Before he could answer, the ground beneath him shuddered violently. A cracking sound split the air, and in an instant, a massive root erupted from the earth, piercing through his back with horrifying precision.

We froze in collective shock as the root surged upward, its jagged edges splitting through his body like a grotesque marionette. Vines snaked their way through his neck, forcing themselves out of his mouth, eyes, and ears in a macabre display. Blood mixed with the strange, glowing sap that coated the vine, dripping onto the sand in sickening splatters.

Kael and Toren released him immediately, stumbling backward as the mangled figure went limp, the life snuffed out in an instant.

The ground trembled again, more violently this time. It wasn’t over.

“Move!” I shouted, my voice barely audible over the rising rumble. We all shot upward on our airboards, the vibrations below growing into an earth-shaking quake. My lungs burned as I struggled to keep pace, the sensation of raw power building beneath us.

Then, it emerged.

The crown of a colossal tree burst through the earth, breaking free in an explosion of soil and glowing green light. Roots the size of buildings uncoiled and writhed like living serpents, reaching outward as the trunk followed—a massive, ancient form that defied comprehension.

We hovered in stunned silence as the full enormity of it was revealed. The trunk was a labyrinth of twisting bark, veins of luminous green coursing through it like lifeblood. The light pulsed rhythmically, each beat radiating power and heat. The core at its center glowed like a sun contained within a cage of wood, pulsating with an almost hypnotic rhythm.

The sight was both awe-inspiring and terrifying. It was alive, not just in the way all Biocores were, but in a way that suggested purpose—intent.

“It’s exactly like the drawing,” I murmured, my voice barely above a whisper. The ancient image from Kael’s book flashed in my mind, but the reality before us dwarfed any sketch.

Kael reached up with trembling hands, unfastening the straps of his mask. With a sharp tug, he let it drop to the ground, the sound of its fall barely audible over the hum of tension in the air.

This was the Biocore.

The Alpha.

The source of life.

The Yggdrasil.

Chapter 15: END