*Act 6, Scene 1*
Though the dragon was freed and the Nightmare storm reversed, our heroes fail to celebrate their victory despite a warm welcome home.
Drunk at a bar in Metroglade, Dwayne does his best to forget that which he lost.
"Are you sure you haven't had enough?" The bartender says.
An intimidating glare strikes Dwayne's target. He pours Dwayne another drink.
Then out of nowhere, something speaks to Dwayne. "Find the lost city, you'll find him there. Seek the circle in the square."
Dwayne jerks up, stands away from the bar then immediately collapses. It takes a lot of alcohol to knock out a cyborg, and a lot of alcohol he did have.
Dwayne passed out.
*Act 6, Scene 2*
Boom! Clattering pots and pans are scattered across the kitchen, and a whirling robot is going haywire in the Jones house.
"Fabius, get your damn bot under control!" Yells Atticus.
Gladius leaps forward and grapples the whirling robot like a professional wrestler.
"Another busted invention, hm?" Vadius Jones mocks
"Enough, it would have been perfect if you didn't get syrup in its systems, imbecile!" Fabius claims
Vadius takes two steps forward, but Atticus stops him.
A butler announces the arrival of Dwayne, from the Green Lands.
"Dwayne? I haven't seen you since-" Gladius is cut off
"Since we lost Ryan." Dwayne finishes
"Since we saved the world." Gladius corrects.
An awkward silence falls upon the house.
Gladius releases the robot which starts another rampage, chased off by Fabius and Vadius. He walks to Dwayne.
One arm on Dwayne's shoulder "Listen" Gladius says "We wouldn't be here today without his sacrifice. If I could bring him back I would, but he's gone. And you don't have to move on today or tomorrow, but you can't stay here forever."
"But that's just it, we can bring him back!" Dwayne announces "Something spoke to me yesterday, Ryan talked about hearing a disturbing voice, and I think that voice wants me to find Ryan!"
Gladius is stunned
"It said 'find the lost city, you'll find him there, seek the circle in the square" Dwayne looks at Gladius expecting an answer.
Gladius thinks for a moment, then calls his family. They recap what happened and Fabius comes to a conclusion.
Fabius raises his hand and says "There are 2 mythological lost cities. The castle in the clouds, Verix, and the underwater city of Atlanta... But the circle in the square has to be referring to the Bermuda's square at the center of the ocean."
"Then we go there, we must," Dwayne says
"Can you handle that much water?" Gladius asks
"With my new bionics, I'll have no problem." He assures Gladius
Everyone starts packing up, and Atticus acquisitions a boat from a craftsman in East Main. They say their farewells and our two heroes send off to the lost city of Atlanta in Bermuda's square.
*Act 6, Scene 3*
The journey is long and treacherous. First, they encounter a sera of sirens, beckoning them to the rocky shoal.
Gladius is tempted, but Dwayne holds him down as the ship sails past.
After a day on the sea, they get close to the square. A fog rolls in obfuscating their navigation.
"I can't see jack, any chance you have some kind of optical upgrade?" Gladius asks Dwayne.
"I do have vision enhancements, but only to identify opponent moves and weak spots in combat. Nothing for this crap" He says
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Without warning a MASSIVE KRAKEN TENTACLE BREAKS THROUGH THE WATER
The ship is sent flying on the waves before the tentacle grabs the boat and starts to squeeze.
Gladius and Dwayne leap off the ship, in a matter of seconds the tentacle crushes the ship into two distinct parts before sinking it completely.
"Land! I see a cove" Dwayne grabs Gladius and engages an underwater motor from his legs.
They manage to outswim the Kraken.
"Quickly, inside!" Gladius sprints into the cave, followed by Dwayne. But before Dwayne can enter the cave mouth, Gladius rushes back out and pushes Dwayne back the other way.
"Quickly, outside!" Gladius is chased by a horde of Krakenlings, too obvious it was that this was the Kraken's Cove.
Cornered on the land and doomed by the sea Dwayne stomps the ground. An echoey ripple is heard, he stomps again this time with intention. Breaking open a hole in the ground Dwayne falls hundreds of feet, Gladius notices and dives into the hole too. The krakenlings can't even fit their beaks through the hole.
After a drop as long as the tallest water park they are met with a deep pool of pure fresh water.
Dwayne swims up and helps Gladius get to the surface.
*Act 6, Scene 4*
They find a small patch of land to recover on.
"Maybe a way to breathe underwater would have been good to think about before trying to find Atlanta..." Gladius, crestfallen, proclaims.
Suddenly he's struck with inspiration. Gladius forms a mask out of his grass armor and dives into the water.
After 2 minutes Dwayne rescues Gladius from drowning.
After 20 minutes they have no ideas.
Then they spot something moving in the water. A merfolk woman, she was sent to clean the pollution to their purest water.
Gladius prepares to fight
Dwayne, has a change of heart however "Hello" he yells, startling the merfolk.
She recoils but approaches the two.
"I had not known there were living creatures that caused the pollution" she states
"We..." it's at this moment Dwayne realizes he doesn't have a clue what he's looking for. "...I'm looking for a man?" He repeats.
She looks confused... but she has a sudden realization.
"It is you! We must have the attention of our Trident." She exclaims "I will bring you a device we have to allow air under the water." She dives backward into the pool.
"What do you think she meant by 'it is you'?" Dwayne asks
Gladius shrugs, "Maybe she recognized me from the stories?"
Dwayne cringes at the thought.
When the merfolk returns she offers a bubble fish for them to wear on their heads.
The party continues underwater.
As they glide through the rocky entrance of the subterranean cavern, a breathtaking display of underwater life unfolds before them.
The walls are adorned with vibrant coral reefs, painting the surroundings in a mesmerizing palette of aquamarine, blue, and green hues. Amidst this natural wonder, the lost city of Atlantis emerges, its structures gleaming with a futuristic chrome aesthetic crafted from prismatic metals. The sight is nothing short of spectacular, a testament to the beauty and mystery of the underwater world.
The Lost City of Atlanta
"There is a prophecy carved in the walls of our holy land. It speaks of a turtle with a shell made of metal whose brain and heart outweigh his entire body. And of a great fighter of folktale and legend who rides atop the turtle..." the merfolk lady tells tale
Dwayne glances at Gladius who is struggling to not laugh.
"Fu-" Dwayne is cut off by the sound of the gates opening for our party.
The gates are more symbolic than literal. They swim to the city hall, a grand white and blue oval-shaped building. Within the chambers is a court of merfolk and three distinct elders circling a great water deity.
"Where is the turtle?" Says an elder merfolk woman wearing tight purple robes intricately woven around her fins like shibari.
Gladius grins at Dwayne.
Dwayne bangs his robotic chest "Yeah it's me, the turtle with the metal shell."
The Trident look at each other, a second female merfolk dressed in green with shimmering scales speaks "Atlanta has long held the gate to a dark underworld sealed and protected, but since the nightmare apocalypse our seal has been cracked."
The third elder, a red merfolk more dragon-like than fish warns the group "Evil things have been creeping through the thin break. We lose dozens of good soldiers every night to the beasts."
The blue water deity confronts the party. "I grant you the blessing of the tides" A surge of blue magic envelops the two, and immediately they feel more confident in the water. "The Merfolk tale has spoken. The night of your arrival there shall be a challenge so great, fate herself fails to pre-tell the story."
Tonight, there is no rest, tonight our remaining heroes are called to war they never knew they had a part in.
*Act 6, Scene 5*
Perhaps it was the crushing weight of the world's water, perhaps it was the crushing weight of expectation. Neither hero could sleep, Dwayne opens the door to a lounge room, where he meets Gladius.
"Hey"
"Hey"
"Ryan" Dwayne says plainly
"He's not here?" Gladius continues.
"No... why was I brought here? Why are we a part of this prophecy? It could have been anyone" Dwayne rants. Maybe it was easier, knowing what to do, that is, when he was doing it for someone else.
"I don't know, but I think a lot of people get caught in trying to find a reason for why they're where they are. I'm true, you could be anywhere right now, there doesn't have to be some miracle or error, we could choose to swim up and out of here any second." Gladius stops, then thinks. "In fact, why don't we just go there now?"
"What?" Dwayne is taken aback
"Yeah, you and I fight better when we take the initiative, it's not like anyone's setting up traps or anything. So why don't you and me just go take the fight to them?" Gladius inspires Dwayne
They both get up and rapidly sail through the water past the back of the City Hall towards an unthinkably wide dark blue abyss.
With only one way to go and no end in sight, the two heroes dive into the dark abyss. At the bottom is a light, vibrant red entwined with what looks like gold chains. The mix of colors creates an ominous purple.
They identify a large circular seal made of red magic strapped in by physical chains with a large crack straight across the middle. On the other side of the transparent red seal, they see an army of demons, a swarm of bats, and fire in every visible corner. All these things were relentlessly pounding on the seal.
"How do we get past?" Dwayne asks, he swims closer to the deal and touches it. To his surprise his hand slips right through with no resistance no different than the water next to it.
"STOP" the merfolk woman they first met cautions. "The seal is one way, if you slip through, there's no coming back.
Something speaks to Dwayne
"Enter"
Dwayne listens to the intrusive thought and casts himself into the fire.
Gladius hesitates for the first time. But swiftly follows Dwayne.
They are instantly in combat with thousands of vampire bats, demons, and poltergeists from all directions.
Dwayne unleashed his ultimate power, Revealing six bladed arms, and a 360-degree spine rotation. He cuts in every direction, like a bat blender he shreds the flock of flying vampires.
Gladius fights hard, his tunic blade separating into a storm of jagged shards, dual-wielding elven glass he bisects demon after demon.
But they are overwhelmed soon, Dwayne is overheating, and Gladius molds the brimstone around them to form a protective dome. Demons pound on the outside without mercy.
*Act 6, Scene 6*
I'm floating through space, can I breathe here? Am I dead?
"No"
Who said that, why can I hear my thoughts? What's happening... are my friends alive?
"Yes"
Okay, this is a bad game, can I leave?
"No"
Think, Ryan, what the hell is happening? I was in an explosion, no, an implosion. There, see the shrapnel from the explosion, and black stone from the caves.
I guess I'm in the dragon's stomach?
"Yes"
So the dragon just consumes matter infinitely, what a waste, but certainly there's some way out of here?
"No"
Well, that's where you're wrong. I'm just going to shoot myself, if I die at least you can't digest me forever.
"No"
The fact you don't want me to do it means I should, that's it, I'm gonna do it, I have exactly one bullet left, and I can make more. Wait. What the heck. Is that a portal? So you can let me go... oh no, No, NOT THE FIRE!
*Act 6, Scene 7*
6 distinct gunshots are heard, followed by the whistle of bombs raining from the sky. When the smoke clears Gladius lets down the walls of his dome and there he sees Ryan.
In a heartbeat Dwayne embraces Ryan in a hug. "It's good to see you again" He says, Ryan leans in for a moment.
Amongst the bodies, our party pauses to take in their surroundings in the underworld. The air is thick with the scent of sulfur, and the ground is littered with the twisted bodies of their foes. Above, the sky glows a deep crimson, casting an ominous light on the jagged peaks that stretch into the distance. Demonic birds caw on the horizon.
A massive leviathan emerges from the depths of the molten lava. Approaching at incredible speed its colossal form casts a dark shadow over the land. With each step, the ground quakes and fractures, unable to bear the weight of this gargantuan creature. Its scales gleam like polished armor, reflecting the firelight in a mesmerizing display. As it draws closer, its enormous jaws part, revealing rows of razor-sharp teeth capable of crushing anything in its path.
The perspective aligned Ryan with a bright orange ring around a black eclipse, leaking a stream of flame straight down.
Ryan speaks as the shadow of the leviathan covers them "Welcome to Hell."