Vaqal's voice cut through the chaos. "It's not over! Everyone, evacuate!"
The water began to move upward in chaotic spirals, rising unnaturally toward the sky. The ship groaned as the waves around it surged higher and higher.
Elliot grabbed Amara's arm, pulling her to her feet. "Come on, we're moving!"
Amara hesitated, her face pale. "Elliot, what's happening?"
"I don't know," Elliot admitted, his grip tightening as the ship swayed dangerously. "But we're not staying to find out!"
The group frantically moved to a larger ship nearby, leaping from boat to boat as the waves threatened to swallow them whole. Elliot lifted Amara over a gap between ships, his arm steady despite the chaos. She clung to him, her cheeks flushed.
"Thanks," she murmured, her voice barely audible over the roar of the waves.
They reached the larger ship, helping survivors aboard as the chaos escalated. Vaqal barked orders at the captain, her voice sharp. "Set sail now! We don't have time!"
The ship shook violently as vortices formed around them, pulling other vessels into their watery demise.
Altan clung to Vaqal's arm, his voice rising in panic. "This ship's going to sink too, isn't it?! I can't swim!"
"Then don't let go of me!" Vaqal snapped, though her tone softened slightly. "We'll make it through this."
Elliot held tightly to Amara as the ship lurched again. "Stay with me," he said firmly, his eyes meeting hers.
"I'm not going anywhere," Amara replied, her voice steadier this time.
The captain's voice rang out, desperate but commanding. "Straighten the ship! Keep her steady! If she roll over, we're dead!"
The crew scrambled to obey, pulling ropes and adjusting sails as the mages on board began chanting spells to diverge the ship's path.
The gang joined the effort, holding onto railings and bracing the mages to themselves as the ship tilted.
Altan held onto Vaqal, trying to keep her steady as she chanted.
Elliot wrapped an arm around Amara's waist as she chanted alongside Vaqal. "Don't worry, you're not falling." he said, his tone more a promise than a statement. "Just continue chanting"
Amara nods, her gaze unwavering despite the chaos.
Around them, other ships weren't so lucky—several sank, swallowed whole by the whirlpools.
Roshan watched in horror as one vessel disappeared beneath the surface. "Those people-!" she cried.
"We can't!" Wuxian shouted back, his usually calm demeanor cracked by urgency. "If we stop now, we'll all die!"
The ship continued its desperate ride, the crew and passengers clinging to what little hope remained as the rising water seemed intent on dragging them all into it's abyss.
The water continued to surge higher, forming a massive mountain of liquid that loomed like a watery colossus.
The ship, despite its creaking timbers and groaning masts, rode the wave steadily, though the fear in everyone's eyes was palpable.
Other ships in the distance were less fortunate. One by one, they rolled over, swallowed by the titanic wave with a finality that sent chills through the survivors.
"Hold steady!" the captain roared, gripping the wheel with white-knuckled determination.
"We can't hold much longer!" a crew cried, clutching a mast. "This ship wasn't built for this!"
Vaqal shouted above the roaring water, her voice sharp. "Mages! Channel your mana! Reinforce the hull and protect the crew!"
Around her, the remaining Pygmaian mages began chanting in unison, their voices weaving a protective barrier that shimmered faintly around the ship.
"There's an island ahead!" one of the crew members screamed, pointing to a shadowy shape emerging from the chaos.
"An island?!" Amiyan snapped, his hands gripping the railing.
"We're going to crash!" Roshan cried, panic in her voice.
"Brace for impact!" the captain shouted.
The barrier pulsed brighter, crackling with energy as the ship hurtled toward the island.
The collision was thunderous. The barrier absorbed some of the impact, but not enough. The ship smashed into the rocky peak with a deafening crunch, throwing everyone off their feet.
Elliot tumbled across the deck, instinctively shielding Amara beneath him as the ship groaned and splintered.
When the wave finally subsided, the ship was left skewed on the island's peak, its hull severely damaged and vegetation around them flattened or swept away entirely.
Elliot groaned, pushing himself up slowly. His arms pinned Amara beneath him, her face a deep crimson.
"Elliot…" Amara muttered, avoiding his gaze.
"Are you okay?" he asked, concern clear in his voice.
She nodded quickly. "I'm fine. Thank you." She shuffled out from under him, her hands already glowing with healing magic as she hurried toward the injured.
Roshan, brushing dust off her clothes, smirked, her eyes teasing.
Elliot sighed, running a hand through his damp hair. "Not the time, Roshan."
Altan helped Vaqal to her feet, his hands trembling. "Are you alright, Elder?"
Vaqal nodded stiffly. "I've survived worse. Focus on aiding the others."
Amiyan and Wuxian stood silently, their gazes fixed on the horizon.
"What are you looking at?" Elliot asked, following their line of sight.
He froze. In the distance, the water was cascading down like enormous waterfalls, draining to reveal something rising from the depths.
"What the hell… is that?" Elliot whispered, a shiver running down his spine.
"It's massive…?" Wuxian muttered, his normally calm demeanor cracking.
"Is that an island?," Amiyan said, his voice low.
The group watched in awe as an ancient citadel slowly emerged, its stone towers and crumbled walls glistening with seawater.
However as the water drained completely, a collosal terror revealed itself.
The ruins perched atop a colossal creature that defied imagination—a dragon-turtle so large it dwarfed entire islands.
Its back was a landscape of its own, overgrown with reefs and ancient structures.
Altan stumbled back, his face pale. "That's not… That can't be real."
Roshan clutched her chest, her voice trembling. "It's… it's alive?"
The turtle's massive head moved, ever so slowly, its glowing eyes scanning the horizon.
Amiyan's awe turned to dread. "We thought the monsters earlier were terrifying. This is beyond anything I've ever seen."
"It's not just a creature," Vaqal said, her voice tight. "It's a god. No a titan. A relic of an age long past."
Elliot's awe was replaced by unease. He could feel it—an ancient power emanating from the creature, pulsing in tandem with his own mana. The citadel on its back seemed to call to him, though he couldn't explain why.
Roshan took a shaky step closer to the edge of the ship. "How… how do we fight that?"
"We don't," Wuxian said flatly. "We survive."
The colossus let out a guttural roar that shook the heavens, snapping the group out of their stupor.
"Move!" Vaqal commanded. "If that thing turns its attention here, we're all dead!"
Despite their terror, the group couldn't help but steal glances at the towering creature as they scrambled to aid the injured and salvage what they could.
The citadel loomed like a monument to an age they could barely comprehend, and though none dared say it aloud, all felt the same dread:
They weren't ready for what lay ahead.