P54 - Treasure Beneath The Tides

Location: Unda City - Sealglass Region:

The sea winds howled over the cliffside path as Kallis jogged ahead of the group, his arms behind his head, face tilted toward the clouds with a half-smirk. "You two gonna keep up or let the 'Magical Man' show you how it's done?"

Behind him, Corin walked calmly with perfect posture, trident still strapped across his back. "You're acting like we're in a race."

"No, no--he's just trying to impress the birds," Tara teased, spinning her sword like a bored ballerina with a weapon. "Kallis wants a seagull girlfriend."

Kallis dramatically placed a hand over his heart. "You wounded me, Tara. I only flirt with danger, not feathered creatures."

Corin exhaled slowly, but a tiny smile betrayed him. "Let's focus. That familiar message wasn't a joke."

The trail led them to the Sealglass Caverns, carved into the edge of the coastline like a mouth trying to swallow the sky. Waves crashed below. Cold mist clung to the air. At the cavern's mouth, three small, glowing stones marked their entrance--each etched with symbols of the old water gods.

Tara leaned in. "These weren't here before."

Corin inspected them. "There's magic in them now. I can feel it in my bones."

Kallis laughed under his breath. "Leave the jokes to me, Corin, I don't want to hear that ever again-."
He then knelt, brushing sand off the runes. "But anyways, same. But like, it's not normal magic. It's old and feels... sad."

They exchanged looks. No one spoke, but they all felt it. Something had awakened here--because they had arrived.

The inside of the caverns were coated with damp, bioluminescent moss. Dripping water echoed throughout the area. Shallow pools reflected their steps as they descended deeper, guided only by instinct and the growing pulse in their chests.

They arrived at a stone altar submerged in ankle-deep water. Upon it lay three objects:

A whip that shimmered like a liquid snake.

A trident with frozen blood spirals across its shaft.

And a chakram shaped like a droplet, the edges gleaming in the dim light.

Each weapon hovered above the stone, calling silently.

Kallis froze. "...No way."

Tara stepped forward. "That whip's practically singing at you."

Corin's eyes didn't leave the trident. His hand slowly reached for it, almost reverently. "I know this feeling. Like I've known this feeling... my whole life."

As their hands touched the relics, a surge of raw power blasted through the chamber.

Kallis fell to his knees, gripping his head. "Agh--voices!"

Tara gasped, tears spilling from her eyes. "They're talking... the gods. They're... crying."

Corin remained silent, his body glowing faintly with frost and water-light. Then--his eyes opened sharply. "These were theirs. Their final gifts. Forged through hope for a better life, not for themselves but for these relics."

Each weapon pulsed once.

Suddenly, the cavern trembled.

Water shot out from the walls like arrows, barely missing them. Something else had sensed the power's return.

A beast, made of bone and coral, rose from the flooded chamber behind the altar. Screeching, it lunged toward them, barnacles snapping like teeth.

Kallis's whip coiled around its neck mid-leap, glowing with new-found Water Magic. "GET BACK!"

Tara dodged, slicing the beast's leg with a spinning throw of her chakram. "This is so not the time to show off!"

Corin caught the trident mid-spin, twirling it once and slamming it into the floor. A surge of ice spiraled outward, freezing the beast in place.

The three of them stood in a triangle, breathing hard.

Kallis chuckled nervously. "Guess we're not magic-less anymore."

Tara grinned wide, hair soaked. "We're just late bloomers."

Corin stared at his hands. "No... we were chosen."

As they left the cavern hours later, weapons in hand, soaked to the bone but alive, none of them said a word.

But in that silence, they walked side by side.

And the waves... whispered.