The morning began with an eerie calm that set everyone on edge. The water's surface, usually alive with small ripples and darting shadows, was unnervingly still. I stood with Dren and a few other hunters near the outer defenses of the settlement, observing the unnatural quiet. My instincts whispered warnings, and the faint hum of energy within my Ixorym blood buzzed louder than ever, as if it too sensed the coming danger.
"This doesn't feel right," Dren muttered, his grip tightening on the spear he had sharpened the night before. His human features were drawn tight with worry. "The sea… it's never this quiet."
Before I could respond, the distant horizon darkened. A massive wave rose, not of water alone but of writhing forms—a torrent of beasts advancing as one. The Depth Tide had arrived, its ferocity evident in the roars and cries that echoed across the expanse. The wave crashed closer, the sound of churning water and gnashing teeth growing deafening.
"Positions!" someone yelled. The settlement erupted into chaos as hunters scrambled to take their places. Crude barricades of sharpened wood and stone were braced, and weapons gleamed in the faint light filtering through the stormy skies. For many here, it would be their first Tide; for others, likely their last.
I flexed my claws, feeling the faint hum of violet energy crackle at the edges of my fingertips. The dormant power of my Ixorym heritage stirred, and I had to consciously hold it back. I wasn't ready to lose control—not yet.
The Depth Tide struck with the force of an avalanche. Lesser beasts swarmed the barriers first, their sleek, scaled bodies launching themselves over the defenses with terrifying agility. Hunters shouted and fought, spears and blades flashing as they struck down the first wave. Blood splattered across the ground, mixing with the salty spray of the sea.
I leapt into the fray, my movements faster and sharper than those around me. A serpent-like creature lunged, its fanged maw snapping inches from my throat. With a flick of my claws, I drove them into its skull, the violet energy within me sparking on impact. The creature crumpled instantly, its body disintegrating into ash. Around me, Dren and the others fought with grim determination, but the sheer number of beasts made it clear this was no ordinary Tide.
"Azrytharion!" Dren called, his voice cutting through the chaos. He was pinned against a barricade, his spear lodged in the body of a massive, crab-like beast. Its pincers snapped wildly, one grazing his shoulder and drawing blood. Without thinking, I lunged forward, slashing through the beast's limb with a crackling swipe of my claws. The energy surged again, stronger this time, and I felt a shiver of unease as the power threatened to overwhelm me.
"What the hell was that?" Dren asked, panting as he retrieved his weapon. His gaze lingered on the smoldering remains of the beast.
"Later," I snapped, turning my focus back to the fight. There was no time for explanations.
As the battle wore on, the Tide intensified. Larger beasts emerged, their immense forms crashing through the barricades like they were nothing. One such creature—a hulking, crustacean monstrosity—barreled toward me, its iridescent carapace shimmering in the dull light. It let out a guttural roar, swinging a massive claw with enough force to shatter stone.
I dodged the first strike, the ground shaking beneath me as the claw slammed into the earth. I retaliated with a strike of my own, aiming for the joints in its armor. My claws scraped against the tough shell, leaving only a shallow mark. The creature roared again, swiping at me with its other claw. This time, I wasn't fast enough. The blow sent me flying, my body crashing into a pile of rubble. Pain flared through my ribs, and I tasted blood.
"Az!" Dren shouted, spearing another beast as he tried to reach me.
"Stay back!" I growled, forcing myself to stand. The violet energy within me surged in response to the pain, and I let it flow into my claws. The power burned hotter than before, threatening to consume me, but I didn't care. If I didn't stop this creature, the settlement wouldn't survive.
The crustacean charged again, its massive bulk shaking the ground with each step. I waited, my claws glowing brighter as the energy built to a crescendo. At the last moment, I sidestepped, slashing at the creature's exposed underbelly. The strike landed, and the violet energy erupted on impact, engulfing the beast in a blinding flash of light. When the light faded, the creature lay dead, its body reduced to charred remains.
The death of the crustacean seemed to shift the momentum. The remaining beasts faltered, their advance slowing as the hunters rallied. With renewed vigor, they pushed back against the Tide, cutting down the lesser creatures and driving the survivors back into the sea. Hours later, the battle was over. The settlement, though battered and broken, had survived.
I stood amidst the carnage, my body trembling from exhaustion and the aftereffects of the violet energy. Around me, hunters tended to the wounded and began the grim task of gathering the dead. The air was thick with the stench of blood and smoke, and the ground was littered with the bodies of both beasts and defenders.
Dren approached, his face pale but resolute. "That wasn't normal," he said, his voice low. "The Tide, your… whatever you did out there. None of this was normal."
I met his gaze, the weight of my secret pressing heavily on me. "I'm not normal," I admitted. "There's… more to me than you know."
Dren nodded slowly, his expression unreadable. "We'll talk about it later," he said. "Right now, we need to focus on rebuilding. If another Tide comes, we won't survive in this state."
As he walked away, I turned my attention back to the horizon. The power within me stirred again, a constant reminder of what I was and what I could become. The gods might have assumed I was dead, but they were wrong.
I was alive, and I wasn't done yet.