After Siren disappeared into the depths, the Priest turned to the man on the reef.
"You have three choices."
Without hesitation, the old Fish-Woman's clawed hand clamped around his throat.
A wave of panic surged through him as he croaked out, "I choose the option where I can live!"
The Priest chuckled, a low and raspy sound, and began the transformation ritual.
"I don't hate your will to live."
"Aww, Siya Kamogdos."
As the strange incantation left her lips, scales rippled across the man's skin, spreading like wildfire. His body contorted in pain, twisting into something unrecognizable. In mere moments, he had transformed into a Fish-Man.
The Priest inspected her work before speaking again. "Good. Now… tell me, what did you take from that shipwreck?"
The man-turned-Fish-Man clutched his head, his voice rasping in pain. "We… we took… gold. Lots of gold. And… a golden mask."
"A golden mask?" The Priest's orange eyes narrowed. "Is it an Ancient Artifact?"
"I… I don't know," he stammered. "But the one who wore it… could turn flesh into gold."
The Priest fell silent, reaching into her robes and producing a strange book bound in frog-like skin. She flipped through its pages, the symbols shifting and writhing unnaturally beneath her fingers.
Stopping on a particular page, she muttered, "Golden Statue Demon… and the universal key, from the same source. Both tied to the Golden Treasury, Zaik."
The frog-skin book recorded a quarter of the known Ancient Artifacts in the ocean, a fragment of the knowledge housed in the four Tide Books. The remaining three were scattered, their locations unknown.
The Priest looked at the man. "The King of the Deep Sea commands us to retrieve these Ancient Artifacts and offer them to powers far beyond our understanding. You will find the Golden Statue Demon—the mask—and return it."
The Fish-Man trembled but did not resist. The Priests of the Fish-Men, born with forbidden knowledge, commanded absolute obedience.
The Priest's coral scepter shimmered as she began another incantation.
"Ayosayyozarlosa. Invoke the Ancient Ones."
The rocks beneath her feet cracked as fleshy tentacles emerged, curling upward from the stone.
Grotesque forms appeared. Towering over seven feet, they resembled barrels with five-pointed bases like starfish. Tentacles writhed from their bloated, leathery forms, and five unblinking eyes glowed from their apex.
The Fish-Man recoiled in horror, staring at the towering creatures.
"These are the Ancient Ones," the Priest said coldly. "Stronger than humans or Fish-Men. They will ensure you complete your task."
The Priests wielded a power feared by all, their ability known as Ancient Invocation. With it, they summoned not only the Ancient Ones but an array of nightmarish creatures. Yet, despite their might, Priests were not inherently stronger than their kin. What set them apart was the forbidden knowledge etched into their minds from birth—a legacy of secrets.
Each Priest's knowledge differed, but nearly all mastered the incantations to command the tides and transform their brethren.
The newly transformed Fish-Man staggered to his feet, only to feel the Ancient Ones' tentacles coil around him.
Before he could react, the monstrous appendages lifted him high into the dark waters.
The other Fish-Men exchanged confused glances. "Priest, why choose him? We have stronger candidates."
The old Fish-Woman turned her gaze toward them, her voice carrying an air of cryptic certainty. "Every life is unique."
"Some are born to rule. Others claw their way from the depths to the heights. That is destiny."
Her glowing orange eyes flickered. "Given time, all life aspires to stand at the summit."
The Fish-Men muttered among themselves. "Do you mean he could become one of the high-ranking?"
The Priest's chuckle was low and unsettling. "Perhaps not. But he will outlive all of you."
...
In the unfathomable depths of the ocean, Siren beheld an awe-inspiring sight: a sprawling, ancient city of the deep.
Her breath caught as she struggled to comprehend its origin. Was it born of the ocean itself, or was this colossal place once a creation of man?
The Fish-Man guide seemed to sense her thoughts. "This city was here long before us, though it has lain in ruins for millennia. Some say this was Atlantis."
He gestured toward the vast, dark expanse. "On these ruins, we built our home. This is Rlyeh."
He continued, his tone dripping with pride. "A city none but we can reach. Deep within the trench, human submarines might descend, but arriving is one thing—returning is another."
"Come," he urged. "The King of the Deep Sea awaits."
They moved through Rlyeh's towering, shadowed structures. Some buildings remained incomplete, still lost to the decay of time. The city was a contradiction—newborn yet ancient, alive yet dead.
There was no natural light here, yet the Deep Ones navigated with ease, their otherworldly senses unimpeded.
At last, Siren reached the heart of the city. Her guide halted.
A figure loomed in the darkness ahead. Its silhouette was monstrous, vaguely humanoid, yet impossibly large.
The murk shifted, revealing the enormity of the being. Twenty stories tall, its massive form radiated terror.
The sea stirred violently as it exhaled. Then, in the shadowy abyss, two immense, golden eyes opened, casting their light over Siren.
Her body seized as primal fear took hold. She wanted to recoil, to retreat, but she was rooted in place, unable to tear her gaze from the figure.
"Welcome to the deep sea. I've heard of you."
Its voice rolled through the water like thunder, a guttural growl that made the ocean quake. Even the city of Rlyeh seemed to tremble in acknowledgment of its master.
"Siren."
The sound exploded in her ears, filling her chest with a bone-deep vibration. The immense being loomed closer, its sheer presence overwhelming.