It didn't take long before we annihilated the undersea tribe's forces standing sentry at the gate. I definitely wasn't the decisive factor, but my appearance did speed things up. By shooting down the small fries, I freed up more of the Atlantean armada that was otherwise tied up engaging cohorts of merfolk in combat, allowing them to concentrate fire on the merfolk chiefs.
Even though the battle outside the Abyssal Tomb was over, there was no time to rest. MerArthur wasted no time reorganizing the surviving Atlanteans into squads while leaving a small detachment of medics to tend to the wounded or bury the dead. Most of the dead were left to float into the depths, to return to the great ocean.
Honestly, the bodies would probably be devoured by the bottom feeders inhabiting the trench. Well, there was little that I could do for the dead, and frankly, it wasn't practical to bring the dead back to Atlantis for a proper burial. Besides. The dead were dead. I didn't mean to sound callous, but it mattered little to them what fate their corpses suffered after the life had expired from their bodies. Funerals were held for the living, not for the deceased.
"We have to hurry." Myria took the lead, accompanied by her royal guards. She glared at the Abyssal Tomb, her expression tenser than I had ever seen. "I can feel the seal weakening considerably. We don't have much time."
No one argued. We dove through the arched entrance of the Abyssal Tomb, past the colossal statues that stood as silent sentries, and into a vast, cavernous space that resembled a pocket of sea itself. As my eyes adjusted to the eerie green luminescence that suffused the interior, the light emanating from the countless runes that covered the walls, I caught sight of a covenant of merfolk in the center. There was a group of strange-looking merfolk that were conversing frantically to an unusually massive member of their undersea tribe. At first, I thought they were wearing cowls, but it turned out to be evolved membranes that stretched over their heads. They were holding something that was generating esoteric energies, the glowing lights cascading around them and striking something in the distance.
They had formed a circle at the far end of the wall. Though I called it a wall, it was in truth a vault. A massive slab that was more gateway than barrier, protected by a huge shimmering screen of spiritual qi.
Behind that barrier, I could sense an abyssal presence. An entity so powerful it felt almost cosmic in scale, as if I was in the presence of a god.
"What…?"
Was that the Deep Sea King? The entity that destroyed the kingdom of Atlantis in a single night and sank what remained to the bottom of the ocean?
"Stop! You have no idea what you are dealing with here!"
Myria lunged forward, esoteric energies glowing around her spear as she struck. The torrent of water that blasted forward was swatted aside by one of the looming figures that stood at the vault, and it slowly turned around to regard her.
I came to a stop right behind the 4th battalion of the Atlantean Armada, noting the second army of merfolk that ringed the vault. They were turning around now and bracing for battle, quickly organized into a defensive formation by the surviving merfolk chiefs.
However, it wasn't the merfolk chiefs who drew my attention. The single merfolk who had batted away Myria's attack floated to the fore, its figure arrogant and majestic. It was much larger than the merfolk chiefs that surrounded it, and even those creatures were subordinate to this single creature. A crown formed on its reptilian head, and webbed ears spread on either side. Muscles bulged, a thick, scarred mass that withstood the tremendous water pressure at these depths. Its blubbery lips were curled into an amused sneer.
"I didn't think you would get this far," it said in human tongue. I was surprised. I didn't expect it to be able to speak our language. Worse, I could detect a cunning intelligence in those eyes, which far surpassed that of an average human.
Just what on earth was this creature?
"The Merfolk Monarch," Myria said quietly. "I'm honored. I didn't think the ruler of the undersea tribe would personally carry out this mission."
"There's a lot at stake here, little Atlantean princess. More than you can even begin to imagine." The Merfolk Monarch raised both its webbed hands, wicked claws gleaming at the membraned tips. "The extermination of humanity is merely the first step."
"First step to what?" I couldn't help but ask. The Merfolk Monarch must have heard me, for it chuckled and glanced in my direction.
"There's no need to share any information with a race that is about to be extinct." It turned back to the vault, its beady eyes focused on something at the base. I realized there was a single sword stabbed into the rock, its blade a deep sapphire. It took me a few seconds to realize that all of the qi that generated the barrier over the vault was being emitted by that sword.
What sort of weapon was it? I knew for certain that it was a cultivator treasure, but it was unlike any that I had ever seen.
The Merfolk Monarch must have realized that the sword was the source of the qi sealing the vault underneath a barrier, and it reached out to seize the hilt. With a grunt, it yanked, but the sword wouldn't dislodge. That was probably what it had been attempting to do this entire time, but evidently it had failed to even budge the thing.
"Don't touch it!'
Despite its lack of success, Myria was still panicking. I could feel the tension throughout the Atlanteans as they nervously watched the Merfolk Monarch. They were closing in, but already the undersea tribe was moving out to intercept us. As always, I stayed near the back to provide long range support, shooting down a few of the small fries with my azure arrows.
The Merfolk Monarch allowed its minions to watch its back and continued tugging at the sword.
"Why so stubborn?" It growled. "The damned thing just won't come loose!"
"If it's so easy, the seal would have been broken long ago," Myria murmured somewhat venomously, though I could hear the relief in her voice. However, that didn't stop her from issuing the order. "Atlanteans! Eliminate the enemy!"
"Destroy the humans!" The Merfolk Monarch howled in return, lashing out with a clawed and webbed hand. The merfolk responded as one, streaming forward to meet the Atlanteans in battle. Tridents clashed against claws, and qi collided explosively against each other as opposing water currents crashed and turned the interior into a swirling vortex.
I weaved through the arches, firing arrows and taking out as many ordinary merfolk as I could. Da Hai and Xiao Ke watched my back, slashing or unleashing hydro torrents and freezing beams to take out any merfolk that sortied to neutralize the ranged threat I posed. The Atlanteans, buoyed by the momentum their earlier victory gave them, surged into the cavern, momentarily pushing the merfolk back.
The Merfolk Monarch sighed heavily. "Do I have to do everything myself?"
Then he stepped in, or to be more precise, swam in. Turning into a blur, he plunged right into the middle of the combating forces. Clenching his webbed claws into a fist, he punched a hole through an Atlantean soldier's torso, killing him instantly.
Whirling around, he kicked the helmed head off a second Atlantean. Catching a trident that thrust toward his heart, he crushed the weapon before he bit off the stunned soldier's head, crushing the sea steel helmet with his fangs alone.
"Your opponent is me!" Orin hollered and charged forward to mee the Merfolk Monarch in combat, surrounded by his private militia. Sapphire whirlpools gathered around him as he struck with his trident, his muscular body speeding forward like a bullet.
The Merfolk Monarch casually obliterated him with a single punch, the webbed fist demolishing the trident before blowing a hole in Orin's chest. The Atlantean noble's eyes widened as he stared at the bloody crater in his torso before he cartwheeled away in the water, wrapped in an expanding mist of red. His house militia fought bravely but futilely, butchered by the fury of the Merfolk Monarch, even as they were reinforced by soldiers from the Atlantean Armada.
Just that single monster turned the tide of battle immediately. Realizing the danger of having his forces routed, MerArthur quickly rushed in, swinging his trident.
"Your opponent is me, you monster!"
The Merfolk Monarch turned to grin at the elderly admiral. Dropping the corpse of an Atlantean and allowing it to float away, it met MerArthur's trident with its claws, and qi detonated between them. The admiral was hurled away by the sheer force, blood spurting from his lips.
"Admiral MerArthur!"
A couple of his command staff kicked off and swam to grab him, arresting his momentum in a frenzy of bubbles. MerArthur coughed out more blood before glaring at the Merfolk Monarch, who simply flexed its fist.
"How weak."
"You've got to be kidding me…"
MerArthur was about intermediate Earth ranked, and yet he was so easily repelled by the Merfolk Monarch. Judging from the quantity of qi that it was emanating, the ruler of the undersea tribe had to be peak Earth rank at least.
A shudder ran down my spine. Could we win against such a formidable foe?
"Do not falter!" Myria yelled, rallying her men. The royal guard surrounded her, each of them being at least beginner Earth ranked. Even so, they were getting pummeled by the Merfolk Monarch, who disappeared into another bubbling blur and tore apart one of the elite guards. The rest desperately parried its slashes with their tridents, but a couple were flung across the exterior, vanishing under rubble when they crashed into pillars.
The rest coordinated their attacks, weaving a web of thrusts and attacks that forced the Merfolk Monarch back, but it fended them off relatively easily. It grunted, more annoyed than hurt.
"Priests!" It bellowed. "Continue the unsealing! I'll handle these pests!"
A few merfolks that looked a little different from the rest swam over, protected by their brethren. It was the group of strange creatures that I spotted earlier, conferring with the Merfolk Monarch. Unlike the ordinary merfolk, these ones held what looked like chains or jewelry, the ornaments encrusted with glowing gems. A membrane around the back of their neck had expanded to form what seemed like hoods, marking them out physically from the other merfolk.
I could sense arcane qi crackling around them as they synchronized and echolocated what sounded like prayers to each other. Mysterious energies linked them from gem to gem before arcing toward the sword. So that was what they were assaulting earlier, before we had interrupted their attempts with our intrusion.
"No!" Myria screamed. "You have no idea what you're unleashing upon the world! That thing won't just kill humanity…it has the potential to destroy the world!"
"All the better," the Merfolk Monarch cackled, putting its bulk between her and its priests. "Destruction is what we live for."
"You…demon!"
While they bickered, I didn't waste time participating in the banter. Conjuring several azure arrows, I took aim and fired at the merfolk priests from afar. It didn't matter what they were doing. As long as I could eliminate them, then whatever ploy the undersea tribe intended would naturally fall apart.
Unfortunately, the merfolk knew that too, and the common warriors threw themselves in the way of my arrows, using their bodies as meat shields to protect their priestly charges. They were obliterated instantly by the powerful projectiles, but their selfless sacrifices bought the time needed for their tribe to accomplish their objective.
The sword shuddered violently from the spiritual assault, and the barrier began flickering wildly. The priests continued chanting in that strange new language, and I frantically fired more arrows at them. However, the merfolk was desperate to protect them, literally hurling themselves between us to absorb the deadly hits and leave the priests' work undisrupted. The blade began loosening from the ground, millimeter by millimeter at first, then by centimeters at a time.
"NO!" Myria shrieked.
With a bang, the sword was violently dislodged from its millennia old resting place, spinning rapidly before slamming into a pillar and sliding down to the ground with a dull clang.
Just like that, the barrier disintegrated. The vault began shaking, the tremors causing the structure to crumble before it split open like a fissure.
A thunderous roar bellowed from within, and the entity that had been sealed within for several millennia emerged into the physical world for the first time in near eternity.