The Titanic fragment sprawled endlessly before them, its once-pristine luxury now a haunting echo of its past glory. The group had been traversing its shadowed halls and gilded corridors for days, and the absence of Aiden had grown more glaring with each passing moment. Despite Sylva's reassurances that Captain Smith was still training him and the whispers hinting at his progress, the group felt his absence deeply. Shadows lingered at the edges of their vision, a constant reminder of the Core's omnipresent threat.
Rowan paced at the edge of the ship's deck, her spear slung across her back. "Days, Sylva. It's been days. How much longer are we supposed to wander around this cursed ship?"
Sylva floated nearby, her light steady but subdued. "Aiden is safe. Captain Smith wouldn't allow harm to come to him."
"That's comforting and all," Rowan said, her voice dripping with sarcasm, "but it doesn't help us figure out what we're supposed to do."
Amara leaned against the railing, her rifle at her side. "We're gathering information," she said calmly. "The more we know about the Core and this fragment, the better prepared we'll be when the time comes."
Kieran joined them, his shield strapped securely to his arm. "I get the frustration, Rowan, but she's right. Besides, it's not like Aiden can't handle himself. He's tougher than he looks."
Rowan crossed her arms, her expression skeptical. "I'm not worried about Aiden. I'm worried about what this ship is doing to him."
Sylva's glow flickered, and her voice softened. "The Core's influence grows stronger as we approach its heart. It challenges all of us, but Aiden is resilient. He'll find his way."
The group moved cautiously through the ship, passing grand ballrooms filled with faint echoes of music and dining halls where phantom conversations seemed to linger in the air. Despite the haunting atmosphere, the civilians aboard appeared untouched by the looming darkness. They walked and laughed, enjoying the ship's amenities as though unaware of its cursed cycle.
In one corner of a lounge, a trio of enforcers played instruments, their uniforms a fusion of naval precision and shadowy accents. The band consisted of Wallace Hartley on violin, Roger Bricoux on cello, and Theodore Brailey on piano. Their music was hauntingly beautiful, a melody that seemed to carry the weight of the fragment's endless cycle.
Rowan paused, her eyes narrowing. "They're too calm. Don't they realize what's happening?"
"They do," a nearby civilian said, overhearing her. An older man with a kind face and a steady voice, he gestured toward the band. "We've all made our peace with it. This is our eternity, and we've learned to live with it."
Kieran frowned. "You're okay with being stuck here forever?"
The man shrugged. "It's not so bad. The cycle resets, but we stay. At least here, there's peace."
"Peace?" Rowan repeated, incredulous. "What kind of peace involves constant upheaval of resets and shadow attacks?"
"The kind that keeps us from falling apart," the man replied simply. "When the iceberg comes, we start over. It's just how it is."
Sylva hovered closer, her light dim. "And the Core allows this peace?"
"The Core doesn't care," the man said, his tone neutral. "It's not about us. We are but a drop in a vast ocean."
Rowan grip on her spear tightened. "That's no way to live."
The man smiled faintly. "It's the only way we've got."
Nearby, Amara and Sylva questioned a pair of civilians. An older man and his wife sat on a bench, their fingers intertwined.
"You've been here a while?" Amara asked, keeping her tone casual.
The man nodded. "Years, maybe. Hard to say. Time doesn't feel right here."
"And you're…okay with that?" Amara pressed.
"Honey, we originally died together, Drowned in our bed!" The woman smiled faintly. "What's the alternative? Fighting it? It's better to make the most of what we have."
Amara exchanged a glance with Sylva, who remained silent. The conversation was interrupted by a low whistle from an enforcer patrolling nearby. The shadowed figure nodded at the group before continuing down the hall, its posture calm but watchful.
As the group continued their exploration, the first scream pierced the air. They rushed toward the sound, emerging onto the deck to find a group of civilians huddled together as shadows climbed over the ship's railings, their forms twisting and writhing with malice. The enforcers moved quickly, forming a protective line in front of the passengers.
"Stay back!" one of the enforcers barked, his pistol glowing faintly with dark energy. "We've got this!"
Rowan was already moving, her spear snapping into a whip as she lashed at one of the shadows. "Like hell we're staying back."
Kieran charged forward, his shield glowing brightly as he slammed into a shadow, dispersing it into wisps of darkness. Amara took position on a higher platform, her rifle aimed at the creatures climbing over the railing. Each shot sent a shadow tumbling back into the dark sea below.
Sylva hovered near the civilians, her light forming a protective barrier around them. "Stay together," she instructed. "You'll be safe."
Kieran raised his shield as a shadow lunged toward a group of passengers. The impact reverberated through the air, but he held firm, pushing the creature back. "Rowan! Take the flank!"
Rowan's spear shifted into a whip, snapping through the air and slicing through a cluster of shadows. "On it!"
A civilian stumbled, their face pale with fear. "The iceberg," they whispered, their voice trembling. "It's coming. It's always coming."
Amara's rifle rang out, each shot precise as she covered the enforcers trying to usher the passenger to safety. "We need to hold them off until they can evacuate!"
Sylva's light flared as she moved to shield a pair of children, her calm presence a stark contrast to the chaos. "Stay behind me," she instructed, raising a barrier of light that deflected an incoming shadow.
The shadows came in waves, their attacks relentless. The enforcers fought with precision, their movements disciplined and purposeful. But the group's presence turned the tide, their combined efforts driving the creatures back.
As the last shadow dissolved into the air, one of the enforcers turned to the group. "You didn't have to help," he said, his tone a mix of gratitude and wariness. "But we appreciate it."
Rowan smirked, leaning on her spear. "We're not exactly the stand-and-watch type."
The enforcer nodded. "Good. You'll need that spirit when the iceberg comes."
A bell tolled in the distance, its deep chime resonating through the ship. The civilians froze, their faces pale as they turned toward the sound. The enforcers exchanged grim looks before one of them spoke. "It's time. The cycle is beginning."
Sylva's light dimmed further. "The iceberg of memory."
"What happens now?" Kieran asked, his shield still at the ready.
"We do what we always do," an enforcer replied. "Evacuate the women and children, prepare for the darkness, and hold the line until the reset."
Rowan frowned. "And then what? You just… start over?"
The enforcer's expression was unreadable behind his visor. "We start over, but the shadows don't. They grow stronger with every cycle. It's only a matter of time before they overwhelm us."
Sylva floated closer, her voice urgent. "You don't have to keep doing this. We can help—"
"You can't stop it," the enforcer interrupted. "This fragment is a piece of the Core's will. The cycle is its design."
The bell tolled again, and the air grew colder. The shadows began to gather on the horizon, their forms twisting and writhing as they prepared to strike. The civilians moved quickly, guided by the enforcers toward lifeboats that seemed to materialize from the darkness.
Rowan gripped her spear tightly. "So, what's the plan? Fight until we can't?"
Kieran stepped forward, his shield glowing faintly. "Sounds like our kind of plan."
Amara nodded, raising her rifle. "Let's make it count."
Sylva's light brightened slightly, her voice steady. "Stay together. We'll face this, just as we've faced everything else."
The group took their positions as the shadows closed in, their resolve unshaken. Behind them, the civilians boarded the lifeboats, their whispered prayers carried away by the cold wind. The iceberg loomed in the distance, its jagged surface shimmering with fragments of memory.
And as the darkness surged forward, the group stood ready, their weapons glowing with defiance.