A coronation rises from the sea. Its build is as slender as it is tall. The coating on its body is the color of the waters when the sun shines on it on a bright afternoon.

Murals of serpents and sea creatures grace the brightly colored paint. And carved into the bodice of this structure are open enclaves where engineers sit on their desks, their spectacled eyes peering over the entangled drives as they conduct simulations of the game that is to be held.

At the top of this structure is an open area where a man sits on a chair, and above the structure a floating disc like fixture hovers above. A bright and thin light hovers above this floating disc. The man stands, his hair is long and gray, pressed thin at the top and its ends- tucked into three braid tails.

He wears a silk shirt whose bottom has been folded into his trousers by three laden belts of different colors. He sports a pair of spectacles with a deep blue tint. He has a young boyish face yet there is a stretch of age to his demeanor. His name is Heltrin Gavas Whydit. Heltrin, son of Koleson Whydit and one head of the six headed serpent.

Laid out before him is an open sea and on that open sea is a congregation. Many of them sat or stood on their surfs, some were nestled comfortably in their Helsuks of various sizes, others straddled the backs of various sea beasts, some even reclined in teams, in miniature versions of the building that had just emerged from the water. All were watching.

“Good afternoon and welcome- fellow Waybreakers, to the lighthouse. Where we will be conducting the annual, Southern Fisher games hosted by the Whydit family as has been the tradition for thousands of years.

In partaking of these games, you partake in a longstanding tradition, stretching back to the re-making of the world after the great corruption wars. When the survivors of humanity were tasked to compete amongst one another, and take on great feats of heroism and chivalry, so that they may amass a fellowship who might traverse with them into the barren wastelands of the world, where they might push back the darkness and settle the Emperor's needles, extending the domain of mankind.

In recreating this long march, you all now tread the dark and dangerous path, some of you will be discarded before the games even manage to progress to the second realm, some of you will falter when you’ve almost reached the end, some of you will die and some will lose those dearly to them.

And some would climb high enough to reach the divine realm and secure knightship from Lord Hayazaki himself.

However your fates turn out, I’m sure you were well aware of the risks when you applied for the games and chosen by the administrator.

And so with good faith, I wish you all good luck, may the three needles guide your favor”.

There was applause at the end of the speech. The man looked around and noticed that the applause came from mostly the folks who came in on surfs and sea beasts, in other words the lesser candidates, while the candidates who sat in lighthouses and spacious Helsuks mostly looked bored or had stopped listening entirely.

“It usually is like this”, he thought, “the ones who lack the talent are usually the ones with the most enthusiasm. Many of them will fail and become spectators, they will pick sides amongst one another forming groups and then pin hopes on the members of their groups with an ounce of talent, they will form deals and swear oaths, and congregate to them like moths to a flame, and thus the wheel turns.”.

Who might break the wheel, he wondered.

The Southern region is vast, and often, in far away waters, one could find fishers doing what they love. In this very isolated region of water, a young fisher does the very same.

She had recently abandoned her rickety sail-boat and was now cooped up inside of a Helsuk fishing vessel. She had a grudge to settle.

You see, this girl, her name is Helletta. She lives with her master in a rambled shack off a pier at the coast of a place that seemed to exist nowhere. The only news of civilization she would receive was when fishers from the water guild would visit their port.

Her master knew a few of those Fishers and sometime she even went fishing with them. It was them, who expanded the world around her beyond the dinky place she lived in.

They told of her of Emperor Hayazaki, the man who saved the world from destruction during the corruption wars. They told her of the great genius Lord Wen Quin Fullbright, who practically built the civilization of the third age, they sang tales of the purple kings, the ruins of an old spotless temple at the Western cape, the city of Zeal and the Bird Cage games.

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The girl knew then that to be a fisher was to be free and to explore. She wanted to see all these wonders, so she asked her master, what she ought to do, so that she could go far away.

He told her that her destiny was to be baptized and her soul delegated to the Lord of Kerrasuk’s great needle, whoever they might be now that Lord Koleson is dead.

Her fate, as with the fate of most people on Aquillora was sealed. Much to her dismay. But there was one way for her to see and take all that the world had to offer, and that was to climb.

The climb was a journey most people took in order to become a Lord. It was commonly practiced through the ranking games. Most never make it, and some settle to being the vassal of another Lord only with a higher position, whichever it may be, this was her only choice.

But for her to climb she would need his approval and thus she would need to prove herself a capable fisher.

He tasked her to head out to the farthest part of the water, where it turned a dark gray brown. And there, he told her to hunt five hundred fishes. If she manges this feat, he would give her the approval she needed and also, he would gift her his Helsuk.

Brightened by his words, she thanked her master and set off, full of hope.

As of the moment however, Helletta was furious.

Every time she pulled her net from the water, her gains were snatched away by a lurking sea beast. The creature seemed to wait patiently, hovering just below the surface, ready to seize her catch at the last moment.

She could feel its presence—a dark, looming shadow in the water, a predator that had claimed her hard-earned rewards as its own.

Determined to put an end to this thievery, she boarded her Helsuk, which sat bobbing on the water beside the sail.

The Helsuk, shaped like a giant manta ray, was massive, large enough to accommodate seven people comfortably. The craft was divided into several sections: a spacious storage compartment for the day's haul, a middle sleeping area with two makeshift beds stacked above each other, and a control center at the front equipped with a powerful reel and harpoon system.

The Helsuk was her lifeline, like it was for most deep-sea fishers—capable of swimming at incredible speeds and navigating the ocean's depths with ease.

Helletta climbed inside and revved up the engine, feeling the familiar vibration of the machine beneath her. She settled into the tight leather chair, slightly uncomfortable but necessary for gripping her securely during rough chases.

She scanned the water through the Helsuk's visors, designed to provide crystal-clear images of the deep, dark sea, but the beast was elusive, barely a shadow even against the inky depths.

The controls hummed under her fingers, and with a fierce determination, she launched the Helsuk forward, the craft slicing through the water like a knife.

The beast she pursued was a monstrous thing, nearly invisible in the ocean's gloom. It moved with an unnatural fluidity, its skin an oily black that seemed to absorb the faintest traces of light. Its body was long and serpentine, covered in thick, sinewy scales that shifted color with the water, making it almost impossible to track.

Large, jagged fins jutted out from its sides, ragged like torn sails, and its head was a twisted version of a predator's, with rows of serrated teeth that glinted like daggers in the darkness.

Its eyes were large and glowing, a sickly yellow that pierced the shadows—a predator’s gaze, intelligent and malevolent.

Helletta maneuvered the Helsuk skillfully, her hands deftly adjusting the controls to match the beast's erratic movements. The creature darted to the side, and she immediately shifted the craft, keeping pace.

The Helsuk's harpoon system hummed as she armed it, a sharp metallic sound filling the cabin. She needed to time her strike perfectly; the beast was fast, faster than anything she had hunted before.

The monster surged ahead, and Helletta accelerated, the Helsuk’s engines roaring in response. She flicked a switch, and the reel deployed, the harpoon attached to a thick, coiled cable. She waited, breath held, eyes focused on the flickering shadow ahead. The beast suddenly veered downward, diving into the abyss.

Helletta followed without hesitation, her Helsuk diving smoothly into the depths, the pressure increasing with every second. She adjusted the visor, switching to thermal mode, and saw the outline of the beast glowing faintly below.

She released the harpoon with a sharp flick of her wrist. The harpoon shot forward, slicing through the water, but the beast twisted away at the last moment, the weapon barely grazing its side.

Frustration flared, but she kept her focus. The creature was toying with her, weaving in and out of the Helsuk's path, always just out of reach.

Helletta gritted her teeth and revved the engine even harder, the Helsuk surging forward with a burst of speed. She adjusted the harpoon’s angle and waited for her chance, her eyes never leaving the dark shape ahead.

The beast slowed, perhaps sensing a trap, and in that moment, she fired again.

This time, the harpoon found its mark. It pierced the beast's thick hide with a shuddering thud, and the creature thrashed violently, sending shockwaves through the water.

Helletta gripped the controls tightly as the Helsuk bucked and strained against the force. The reel whirred, tightening the cable, and she felt the full weight of the beast pulling against her.

The Helsuk began to circle, spiraling around the struggling monster, tightening the harpoon’s line and binding the creature in its grip. The beast thrashed harder, its jagged fins slicing through the water like blades, but Helletta held firm, guiding the Helsuk in a tight orbit, drawing the monster closer and closer.

With one final, furious effort, the beast surged upward, breaching the surface with a deafening roar. Water exploded around them, the Helsuk shuddering from the force. But Helletta remained undeterred. She angled the craft, pulling it alongside the beast, and fired a second harpoon directly into its side. The creature let out a guttural scream, a sound that seemed to shake the very ocean.

She had it now. Helletta tightened the lines, drawing the creature in closer. She could see its eyes, burning with a furious intelligence, but there was no escape. The Helsuk was relentless, and so was she. She felt the adrenaline surge through her veins, her heart pounding in rhythm with the thrashing of the beast. Finally, with one last heave, the Helsuk's powerful reels pulled the creature tight against its hull.

She had won. The sea beast was caught, and Helletta knew it would steal from her no more.

She looked at the console for the time and found that she was late into the day that testing was supposed to begin.