The water around the cave mouth grew cooler as they moved closer. From inside, a faint, ghostly glow surfaced, throwing long shadows twisted and flowed with the currents in scary tones of blue and green on the door. Shivers ran down Seraphine's spine as whispers, sighs, and soft, melancholic chants seemed to pull her ahead, deeper into the future.
Rowan swam toward her; his motions slow and under control, his eye skeptical. His words hardly audible against the cave's continual rumbling, "this place... it feels alive."
Amara narrowed her gaze to fix the walls. She said, "The Glowing Caves are ancient," softly, almost reverently. "They are where the lines separating worlds thin blur vanish and the secrets of the ocean are engraved in light and darkness. Still, be careful, Seraphine. The caverns test as much as a knowledge source.
Leading the way forward, Seraphine nodded, tightening herself; her mark produced a faint glow combining with the bioluminescent light. The walls were alive with shimmering patterns, intricate symbols that seemed to shift and change with every pulse of her mark as though responding to her presence. Her fingers stroked the cold, stone-like surface and she sensed a little warmth under her touch—a pulse-matching hum.
As they sank, the whispers grew louder and merged into a horrible symphony that seemed to reach into her mind and tug at memories she had not known she held. Images of her father, on the deck of his ship, his face marked with intent, his eyes full of the same hunger for knowledge that had brought her here flickered in her mind.
The little road widened ahead into a huge cavern full of bright stalactites and stalagmites, their tips pouring with silvery, shimmering liquid that pooled at the bottom in an unusual, otherworldly glow. < Amara swam ahead, staring at a series of feeble blue light-emitting symbols carved on the wall.
"These inscriptions... they tell the story of the Coral Crown," she said, wonderingly. "That is more than just a relic, Seraphine. It is a binding power, a link spanning our earth into the eternity worlds. Pursues of the Crown link one to it, drawn into its might, but there are expenses.
Rowan looked at the symbols, his face darkened and his gaze blended wonder with caution. With a level but slightly anxious voice, he asked, "What kind of price?"
Amara's face darkened as her fingers gently, with almost terrible regard, traced the marks. "The Crown binds the soul to the will of the ocean and the powers existing outside our knowledge. It actually consumes as well as provides power. Those weak enough to oppose its attraction join it, linked to its purpose, their spirits always entangled with the sea.
Seraphine listened to Amara, and the weight of her voyage dropped upon her with a fresh intensity that shivered her. She stared at the symbols, at the spooky glow engulfassing the chamber, and had an unusual mix of wonder and anxiety.
As they studied the writings, a strong, unexpected tremor rocked the cave and shocked her bones in the water. The ground around them trembled, fractures running across the walls, and the sparkling stalactites began to move, their lights flickering as though under disturbance from some invisible source.
"WARN out!" Seizing Seraphine's arm and drawing her back, Rowan shrieked as a large stalactite burst loose and deafeningly fell to the earth. Seraphine felt her body twist as she tried to underline control; the consequence rocked the waves.
The murmuring in the cave got louder, more strong as though warning her of something terrible just beyond the darkness. She witnessed flashes of activity all around them: black figures floating across the sea, their eyes glistening with a cold, horrible light.
Elysine! Amara's voice pierced across the turmoil. The ghosts in this place are They draw in your mark. They will challenge you; they will sense your strength.
Her heart thumping, Seraphine straightened herself and focused on the shapes; her mark pulsating with a great light pushing back the shadows, exposing ghostly beings, their forms twisted and archaic, their eyes fixed on her with a desire that sent shills down her spine. They moved closer, dragging her into the depths of the cave, their fingers out as if to seize her.
Rowan swam beside her, will set on his face. "Stay close, Seraphine," he murmured, his voice cool even with the tension in his eyes. "These spirits are limited to Crown power. They will challenge you to try to measure your endurance.
Seraphine steadied herself with her palms together, the ghosts surrounding her their ghostly hands brushing her skin with a cold, tingling feel. She felt their whispers in her thoughts, pieces of memories and voices blending into a horrible symphony guiding her both toward inquiry and fear.
"Why have you came?" One of the ghosts mumbled, its voice like waves breaking against a far-off shore. "What do you hunt, youngster of the ocean?"
Breath deeply, then Seraphine responded with a quiet voice to meet the spirit's gaze. I chase the truth. I am searching for the heritage of my father and the knowledge kept by the Coral Crown.
The spirit's eyes misted and its appearance seemed to span millennia of loss. "The Crown isn't, child, a gift." It is a binding power, a road towards sacrifice and submission. Searchers have to be ready to offer what they value.
Another tremor shook the cave; the walls groaned under the weight; Seraphine was afraid as the ghosts approached her hands reaching for her as their words grew louder, more frenzied.
Rowan's face set with will as he walked between her and the ghosts. His voice crisp, he said, "She's stronger than you realize." She is driven to meet any obstacle that lied ahead.
Amara looked sharp and wore a mix of respect and caution on her face. "The Crown is after authority, Seraphine. Recall, however—your will is yours. Let not Crown authority over you rule.
Seraphine nodded, her will growing as she watched the ghosts, their forms shifting and turning in the water, their murmuring flooding her mind with questions, with doubts. She pushed back, her mark blazing, a furious, silver light sending the spirits retreating, their forms fading into the darkness.
The voices disappeared, and a thick silence descended around Seraphine. She felt tranquility come over her—a peaceful strength that would inspire her new confidence. She saw now that, on the road ahead, loaded with challenges, tests of her will and soul would abound. She was ready, though; her heart consistent and her aim clear-cut.
Leading the way, her mark lit the road ahead; the shadows grew less as she sank into the center of the cave, glanced one more at the dazzling marks on the wall.
The brightness of the cave walls began to change, whirling around them in strange, mirrored reflections that swirled around them, causing illusions that seemed to twist and challenge, exposing parts of memories, visions that broke the boundary between fact and fiction.
Watching flashes of her father, his face marked with intent, his voice reverberating across the sea in dreadful whispers, Seraphine started to doubt herself. Right into her skull, the illusions appeared to grip at her fears, trying her power.
Rowan and Amara moved forward, their presence offsetting the illusions. "Remember, Seraphine," Rowan said, his voice gentle encouragement. You will be endowed with will. These visions cannot shape you until you allow them.
Amara nodded, focusing on the illusions with a steady eye. "The authority of the Crown reflects our most fundamental needs and fears. But Seraphine, your doubts pale in strength compared to yourself. Count on yourself.
Supported, Seraphine gasped deeply to stabilize herself as they passed the illusions; her heart strong, her spirit whole.