Somewhere deep within the depths of the sea.

A boy floated up into the beaming light penetrating the cascading blue liquid that enveloped the entire surroundings. He felt cold yet warm at the same time. His dark-blue hair resembling the deeper parts of the ocean naturally flowed along with the currents of the waters and his tattered clothing rose up along with him towards the light.

He had been rendered unconscious yet he lived.

Something must've happened, but to his last of wits, he cannot remember a single memory. Well, it was fractured, but it was something akin to millions of glass shards. His unconscious mind was begging to learn more yet it was to no avail. 

The boy simply abided by the laws of the tidal currents that carried him to wherever it may be. Would it carry him back to the treacherous and dark depths? or would it carry him to somewhere foreign?

He did not know.

All he knew was a single word lingering and echoing inside his mind.

He did not know how long he had been flowing along with the tidal currents of the mighty sea. But, a single word kept his sanity intact and his mind alive.

"Aegir."

It was somehow unfamiliar yet that word holds his entire heart and mind dearly. It was.. something great, something that was important but had long been forgotten.

Alas, he felt useless as he kept succumbing to the strength of the sea. Every time he regained consciousness the immediate shift in the terrorizing pressure swept his mind away, knocking his sense of living absent.

He could sometimes see his surroundings though.

At first, he noticed that he was enveloped in an inky-black darkness that stretched far across the distances.

Then, the second time that he regained consciousness, he saw the darkness be swept away by a foreign ray of light that seemed utterly out of the world. It flowed down from above, and was occasionally swept away by the formidable liquid of the great sea. It lingered every now and then but ultimately ended up being swallowed by the darkness below him.

Next, he remembered being sick to the stomach. It was the feeling of everything in the surroundings constantly aiming to strike at every direction at the same time. This time, he could not open his eyes due to the immense and sudden pain.

After that, the pain subsided and he was left feeling awry, as if something in his body shifted from where it usually was or something in his body changed. 

This happened a number of times, constantly shifting his body to the adjustment of the pain and then an instant wave of terrific agony. 

It was a constant loop.

It felt like weeks or months since he had been trapped in this conundrum.

But now, after a significant amount of time, the pain was no longer, and he had adjusted to the cycle of agony and adjustments. Still, he was unconscious but it would take no more than a day for him to wake up this time.

It would be the last time that he will be trapped in the vast array of cold liquid seeping through his entire body and dragging him mercilessly across the depths.

In just mere hours, he would feel warmth and this time it was not accompanied by coldness.

It was akin to a warm touch of another living being, not that he felt it before of course, but it was too foreign. 

In his mind, he visualized a scene, he had been trapped in a seabed filled with sea volcanoes that increased the temperature of the water around him. He was in the middle of these craters and had been unconscious for a long time. Thus, explaining the situation in his head.

Yet, when the boy began to slowly move his eyelids, his retina captured a blinding light up above, making him quickly shift to the side and cover his eyes. Then, almost as if he was back in the ocean, he felt sudden movement from where he was laying down on. 

It made a sound of creaking and occasionally moved along with the foreign sounds of water splashing along with a solid surface. 

Feeling the pain in his eyes subside, the boy opened his eyelids once more and this time he was extra careful. He took his leisure time to sluggishly move his eyes, and now, he saw a pair of legs wearing dark-brown high boots with a buckle and strap. 

It stood firm and exuded a presence of someone formidable - the boy could notice at least that much.

He carefully shifted his head upwards, and slowly moved his eyes towards the direction of the individual wearing the dark-brown high boots.

He noticed the individuals' black-fitting trousers that gave off a vibe coming from the depths. Then, he moved his pupils higher and saw a black corset-styled top which was paired with a frilled white long sleeved shirt that cascaded down from the individual's neck, and a golden symbol paired from the clothing that covered the neck. Next, he couldn't ignore the individual's warm blond hair that reached below the individual's shoulders, it had twists and looked a bit curly. Lastly, the boy noticed the individual's black tricorn hat with a symbol of an imposing skull crossed with two bones. The hat's shadow was hiding the individual's face but the boy barely saw her sea-like blue eyes, her rosy lips, and her smooth, fair skin. 

She looked ethereal - her beauty seemed unparalleled. Also, she seemed to be.. speaking?

"Horasus igres?"

The boy was bumfuzzled, he heard words that he had never known before.

"Hau! Julti poi?"

Upon hearing those sounds coming from the lady's mouth, the boy simply failed to comprehend what was being said. He did not have any memories - it was fragmented like shattered glass. So, it was even harder to keep up with what was happening.

He woke up in a foreign scenery after being in constant agony and pain, only to be met with a gibberish-like talking lady in front of him?

The boy was unsure of how to feel.

So, he simply ignored the lady and looked around a little bit more.

He noticed a large pillar made of wood, something he was unfamiliar with, constantly and seldom shaking. Which was weird, because it seems to be synchronized with the sounds foreign sounds of crashing waves.

Then, he slowly brought his heavy body straight up so that he can be in a sitting position where his legs were supporting him from falling down and his arms were holding on to the ground to act as an extra layer of support.

He shifted his head once more to the left where he saw an individual with auburn hair that is covered with a red bandana. She was wearing a white loose blouse paired with a navy-blue coat. Then, her legs were covered by a long black skirt which was complemented by brown leather boots.

To his other side, the boy shifted his entire body, staring at the white haired individual in front of him.

He had almost-lifeless eyes with a white pupil that was outlined with dark black. His eyes were devoid of emotion and stared at the boy as if he were calculating how many methods he could kill him. He donned a white cloak that stretched down below his knee, and deep inside that very cloak, he wore an incandescent white suit which was layered with a deep-black coat. He wore black trousers that looked as if they were made from a very high quality material that seemed to compliment one's mobility further. 

After that, the boy backed away a couple of steps but his pace gradually slowed due to the heavy toll on his body. Eventually, the boy stopped and stared at the three in front of him, who seemed to be conversing with one another in a foreign language. 

The one in the middle, who has blonde hair, seemed to be observing the boy quite excessively as if her eyes were glowing green for a second.

Then, the one on the left, the girl with the auburn-hair, seemed loudmouthed and was complaining to the lady in the middle.

Lastly, the white-haired boy on the right looked as if he was done assessing the boy and was prepared to strike at any time when given orders.

It looked intimidating.

The blonde-haired seemed to be introducing herself to the boy. Although it was futile, she still brought her delicate hands to her chest and moved her head slightly below to show courtesy. She removed her tricorn hat and used her free hand to bring it down to her knees, facing hole-side to the boy.

Then, in the midst of her formal introduction, the boy suddenly heard an all-familiar word. 

"....Aegir..."

Suddenly, the boy's heart grew louder and beat uncontrollably. His abyssal-black eyes widened and his breathing grew unstable. 

He gripped his chest area and acted as if he was trying to make his heart beat stable once more but alas, he could not simply pierce his innards and reach to his heart to calm it down. However, the boy's head fell to the ground as he started to breathe even more worse, gasping for air uncontrollably.

Seeing this, the three individuals in front of him seemed to grow in a state of disarray, it seemed as if they were panicking as to what to do. The blonde-haired lady rushed in front of the boy and softly rested her hand on his pale cheeks. Then, she quickly jerked her head back, eyebrows in disbelief, and screamed something out of her mouth, letting out her imposing and strong voice.

"Laccul Jones!"

Then, in mere seconds, the boy began to feel his consciousness slip away. The last thing he saw was a man with black hair and green eyes rushing towards his weak body. 

Upon touching the boy, he began to calm down yet his consciousness seemed to dwindle even more. The last thing that the boy remembered is the faint voice of the echoes within his mind, something that kept him alive while being dragged along by the treacherous tidal currents. But, it was also something that almost endangered his entire being to crumble.

"Aegir.."

And thus, he lost his consciousness and became entrapped in darkness once more.

*

"We'll be quick! We'll go in and then out immediately!" A particular blonde-haired lady wearing a black tricorn hat yelled to the four people below the deck. 

"Aye! Captain Skadi!"

"Aye!"

"Yes! Captain Skadi!"

"Aye! Captain Skadi!"

Hearing the four's reassurance, the blonde-haired lady named Skadi guided the winds to control the sails of her ship. She shut her eyelids close, kneeled down to the wooden floor, and caressed it gently, whispering: "Guide us, and keep us safe."

Today, they were entering one of the most dangerous parts of the Gigantia Ocean, the Poseidon Depths.

Known for hosting one of the King Leviathans in the world, the Poseidon Depths is actually the territory of the abomination. Only a few pirates and sailors have ever been reported to have entered the Poseidon Depths and those that came back.. can be counted on one's fingers. 

Skadi let out a deep breath as she finished caressing her ship. Then, she stood up and faced forward, staring at the eerie calmness of the waters ahead of them. She had a vigilant look on her face but she could not quite shake off the feeling of dread covering her entire being.

She was only one step away from ascending to a Pathfinder, becoming a Sage and increasing her Flourish. And in these depths, lies the key to her ascension.

So, she took another deep breath in hopes to potentially calm her nerves down. It worked somehow but it was not enough to shake off the dread deep within her.

'Their lives depend on me..' Skadi raised her foot up and took one step in front of her. With that very step, the winds shifted and gathered behind her ship. 

She was preparing to propel the ship forward in order to gain a strong momentum and acceleration - hoping to avoid any remnants of Dreadspawns that linger outside the Poseidon Depths. 

"Everyone ready?!" She called out to her crew. 

"Aye!" They all called out in unison.

"Alright! Let's-"

Suddenly! Before taking off using the winds that she's prepared, Skadi noticed a particular figure floating above the surface of the Poseidon Depths, it seemed as if the figure was unconscious or in the worst case scenario.. dead.

"Hold!"

She raised her arms up and curled her hands into a fist to signal her crew to stop, "Reid! Come up here!"

In an instant, a white-haired individual appeared right beside her, looking at her with his head lowered. 

"What is it Captain?"

Skadi lifted her arm and pointed one finger toward the floating figure in the distance, "Do you see that too?

The white-haired man named Reid raised his head upward and shifted his body to the direction where Skadi was pointing at. He squinted his eyes a little bit and it seemed as if glowing winds flowed under his eyelids, making his pupils glow viridian-green. In two seconds, Reid shifted his head back to Skadi's direction and nodded.

"Indeed, I can see it too.."

"So it's just not me," Skadi accepted with softness in her voice, she then brought her finger up her chin and started circling her thumb on her soft cheek. "Alright, I'll be right back!"

"Aye."

With that, Skadi vanished as if her entire body was taken by the winds, flowing towards the direction of the mysterious figure in the waters.

It could just be a trap set by the Leviathans underneath, but that's what Reid's assistance was for. 

Reid served as a second layer of protection as Skadi's eyes had already verified that the mysterious individual was indeed a person. That individual was not quite a human but it had the attributes and the Zeal of one.

Flying towards the individual, acting like the winds, Skadi soon reached the mysterious body. She suddenly incorporated herself back into her body and floated above the individual. Then, she raised her fingers up and the winds seemed to rush towards her fingertips. She then moved her pinky finger and faced her hand upwards. 

In doing so, the mysterious body seemed to float up in the air like Skadi was. Heaps of water droplets flowed down from the figures' ragged clothing and dark-blue hair, yet in an instant, those droplets were left in the wind as the mysterious figure's body was flung rapidly.

It was flying through the air and made its way to the direction of the ship! Behind it, the blonde-haired Skadi was following through, her hair staying perfectly still as it seems that she had formed a barrier of wind around her body which can make her fly at very high speeds without suffering from friction.

On another note, the figure's body seemed to be encased with this barrier of wind too, it seemed that there were curls of air surrounding it. The barrier clashed with the friction caused by flying at high speeds but due to its formidable nature, it didn't seem to be close to crumbling. 

And so, in just mere seconds, the two of them reached the deck of the ship. Upon landing, Skadi was immediately surrounded by her crewmembers, except for the red-haired, Galkan, who seemed to be fixated on fixing a part of the ship, and the black-haired, Jones, who hastily ran towards the infirmary of the ship.

He seemed to be hammering down on the hull since it suffered a slight crack from Skadi's song of winds back then. Galkan had a foul face while fixing the hull and he seemed to be in a hot-headed mood. 

Meanwhile, the black-haired and green-eyed doctor of the ship, Jones, was already rushing to his infirmary to get some supplies for the mysterious figure. He grabbed some of his green-liquid potions that glowed slightly in the dark, and occasionally, there were bubbles trying to escape the bottle.

Then, Reid, the white-haired man, stood by Skadi's side, and as did Elishia, an auburn-haired, young lady. 

Skadi's eyes remained luminescent as she stared at the figure below her. It seemed that the boy had deep-blue hair that resembled nothing that she has ever seen. It reminded her of something but she was unsure. Then, she propelled the winds to cover his sensitive parts as the figure only wore tattered rags that barely covered any skin. She noticed that he was quite lanky as if he had not eaten for the past 2 weeks or so. His body only consisted of bones and skin, and his skin was almost dry but thanks to being soaked for a long time, it was wrinkled and fragile.

To her surprise, Skadi noticed that the individual's skin was actually really tough. It was as hard as metal or perhaps even harder. The more she looked at the individual, the more she noticed that he didn't look human.

He had deep-blue hair, which was already a sign of rarity amongst humans who only had hair that was attributed to their skills. Even if a human had the affinity of water or ice, their hair wouldn't turn blue.

So, this was truly a rare case.

Another thing was his hard skin. Usually, when humans get wrinkled from being exposed to water for a prolonged period, their skin would begin to feel delicate or soft. But in this case, the figure's skin is rock hard!

Lastly, the most notable feature of the individual's appearance were the scales on its upper cheek. they were tenebrous as if absorbing the light itself. Moreover, they seemed obsidian-like and held austere properties. It was.. peculiar.

As Skadi reached toward the onyx scales, her luminescent eyes suddenly picked up a subtle movement from the figure's body. In particular, she saw the individual's eyes' twitch!

Skadi couldn't help ponder, she was interested in the onyx scales and they clearly had an ominous feeling to them. She wanted to see what it's like to touch those scales! Was it the answer that she was looking for? Her final step?

It was unlikely, her Zeal Essence was instinctually telling her that she should venture deeper into the Poseidon Depths and search for the answer along the way. It was confusing yet there was nothing she could do. She felt a longing to ascend and to get stronger in order to protect those that she held dearest.

In the process of thinking, Skadi accidentally thought her words out loud. She was facing the figure below here and her imposing yet soft voice was let out.

"Onyx Scales?" 

She didn't notice that the figure had already opened their eyes, revealing a deep-black and abyss-like luster that again, looked like nothing she'd ever seen before.

"Oh! Is it awake?"

The figure seemed confused by her words and Skadi deduced the fact that it probably did not understand anything that they said. So, after observing for a while, she noticed the figure crawling backwards but immediately stopping due to exhaustion.

'With a body like that, of course you would be quickly susceptible to being tired..' 

After seeing the figure's desperate attempt, Skadi stepped closer and focused on its onyx scales once more. However, it seemed that the three of them seemed too intimidating for the poor thing. Skadi wanted to lighten the mood for the figure and get it to somehow regain its energy but she did not know how. So, after rigorous thinking, utilising her skill, she deduced that she first needed to introduce herself.

"I am Skadi, this is Elishia, and this is Reid." She extended her arm and gently moved it towards her chest to show respect. Then, she grabbed her tricorn and extended it down to her knee, "We are part of the Aegir Pirates, pleased to be-"

Suddenly, she felt a shift in the winds. In a split-second, the winds became silent, rendering Skadi stripped of her sixth sense. 

"What just h-" She whispered to herself, slowly tilting her head downwards to stare at the figure below. She then saw the figure, gasping for life and tightly clenching its heart as its eyes were wide and barren.

With it being in a critical state, it was not the perfect time for the figure to have a mental strain!

Skadi immediately turned towards Reid and gave him orders, "Call Jones!"

It did not take no more than 10 seconds for Jones to arrive and yet he was already too late. He tried using his Ether Zeal to calm the figure's nerves but the mental strain had already taken its toll and rendered the figure unconscious once more. 

Jones made sure to catch the figure with one arm as its upper body almost fell to the ground and hit its head on the floor.

"Jones, please!" 

"Aye!", Jones immediately understood and ran towards the infirmary.