As night stretched its dark veil over the Poseidon, Hera, alone in her cabin designed for four, succumbed to the embrace of sleep. The world around her was silent, save for the gentle creaks and whispers of a ship cutting through the calm Set Ocean. Yet, within the sanctuary of her mind, a storm raged—a vivid nightmare that thrust her onto the front lines of a battle that was all too real in her waking life.
In the throes of her dream, Hera stood shoulder to shoulder with Kasper and Wendy, their camaraderie unbreakable even in the face of the Kingdom of Berk's relentless assault. The forest around them—a dense battlefield—echoed with the sounds of war as a spear-like bullet sliced through the air towards them. Together, they dodged, but the respite was fleeting. Wendy and Kasper were caught off guard, ambushed, and brought to their knees by the enemy. Their calls for Hera, desperate and fear-laden, pierced the night, "Hera! Heraaaa!!! Heraaaaaaaaaa!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Abruptly, the nightmare shattered, replaced by a reality equally as jarring. The urgent pounding and shouting at her door dragged Hera from one nightmare into another. Wendy and Kasper's voices, now real and fraught with urgency, mirrored the desperation of her dream, "HERAAAAAA!!! HERRRAAAAAAAAAAA!! OPEN UP QUICKLY HERAAAAA!!"
Stumbling out of bed, Hera's senses immediately registered that something was amiss—the ship tilted dangerously to the right. "What the hell is going on!!??" she demanded, her voice a mix of confusion and rising panic.
"The ship is sinking!!! We gotta move!" Kasper's declaration cut through the fog of sleep that still clung to Hera.
"WHATT!!?? HOWW!?" Hera's disbelief was palpable.
"We don't know! There was an explosion on the lower decks and water started pouring in fast! We got no time to lose; we need an emergency raft!" Wendy's words were a call to action, leaving no room for hesitation.
As they hurried towards the emergency rafts, Hera's steps faltered. An instinct, honed by years of training and combat, screamed that something was amiss. "Why are you stopping, Hera?!" Wendy's concern was evident in her voice, mirrored by Kasper's puzzled, "Hera..?!"
Hera's voice was steady, her resolve clear. "Something doesn't add up. The Set Ocean is the calmest one of the four oceans! The ship exploding because of natural causes is hard to believe!" With a determined glance at her companions, she made a decision. "I'm going to check something! Please go get us an emergency raft ready! Kasper, here, take my bag."
Kasper, caught off guard, could only shout after her retreating figure, "HEY HERA-.." His voice trailed off, a mix of worry and confusion in his tone. Wendy's plea, "PLEASE RETURN FAST HERA," echoed his sentiment, her voice laced with urgency as they hurried towards the emergency rafts, leaving Hera to her solitary mission.
Navigating the tilting corridors with a blend of haste and precision, Hera reached the second floor, where the captain's cockpit and the communication systems were located. She found herself before a door that refused entry, her knocks unanswered. Fueled by desperation, she shouted, "Heyyy!! Anyone there!!! Open up fast!!!" Receiving no response, Hera took matters into her own hands, forcibly breaking through the door to uncover the truth lurking within.
The cockpit was eerily deserted, a silence that belied the chaos unfolding outside. It was then that she felt it—the menacing presence of someone behind her. Reacting just in time, Hera dodged a treacherous blow from Captain John Waverly, the very man who should have been their safeguard. "HEY! WHAT'S THE MEANING OF THIS CAPTAIN??!!" Hera demanded, her voice a mix of betrayal and disbelief.
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Breathless, the captain retorted, "That's, huff, huff, what I WANT TO KNOW AS WELL!!!" His defense was feeble, his confusion apparent.
"You were the one who tried to attack me, without warning! What is going on with the ship!" Hera pressed, her determination to uncover the truth unwavering.
Their confrontation was abruptly interrupted by a chilling voice from the communication device, a voice that heralded doom. "Hmm, seems you got some friends that will follow you to the grave...Jack! Ha ha ha!" the unknown assailant taunted.
The captain's desperation became palpable as he cried out, "THIS WASN'T PART OF THE DEAL! I DID WHAT YOU ASKED, NOW GET ME OUT OF HERE AND RELEASE MY WIFE AND KIDS!"
The mysterious voice's reply was merciless, devoid of any humanity. "...wife?...kids?...do you know how many we kill daily? They are not here anymore, idiot! HA HA HA HA."
Waverly's anguish was palpable, "Why, would you...lie...only for a small boat..with mostly new inexperienced soldiers!"
The unknown voice's contempt was clear. "...even if I told you...you subhuman monkey won't understand it..."
As the captain's plea for clarity met with a cold end, "...this talk is...finished...BEEP," Hera witnessed the despair of a man who had lost everything to a deal shrouded in treachery.
Faint and defeated, Captain Waverly's last attempt to reach out fell on deaf ears, his strength leaving him as he collapsed, leaving Hera with more questions than answers. "HEY CAPTAIN! WHAT DID YOU DO TO THE SHIP??!!" she demanded, but it was too late. "...who..cares..we're dead..anyways..." were his final, resigned words before succumbing to unconsciousness.
Time was of the essence. Hera's frustration at the captain's failure to act, "Tsk...useless old fart...gotta move fast now!" spurred her into action. As she made her way back, she couldn't ignore those still trapped. Her journey was marked by heroism as she aided the escape of others, her path a grim reminder of the cost of their perilous journey.
Upon reaching the emergency raft station, the relief on Wendy's face was evident. "HERA! There you are...we were worried, what happened?!"
Hera's findings were grim. "Not sure, but as I expected, it was not a natural cause that caused the explosion, the captain is behind it!" The revelation sent shockwaves through her friends.
Kasper's disbelief was palpable, "What??! Are you sure? You're totally serious about this!?"
"Yes, for now, let's get out of here fast! The ship will sink any minute, and no idea what else the captain has done to it that still can cause us extra trouble!" Hera urged, her leadership never more crucial.
As they set off on their emergency raft, adrift in the Set Ocean, Hera took command, ensuring they kept hope and order amidst uncertainty. "Listen here, everyone! We still have a full day before we make landfall at the West area of the Center. I have sent an SOS before the ship sank, but I don't know if they received it, I also got a namelist with everyone who should be on board the ship, I will do a roll call! Say yes if your name is on here!"
The roll call, a sobering moment, revealed the harsh reality—only 70 out of 230 souls had survived. The dawn of the next day brought with it a heavy silence, a shared mourning for those lost.
As Hera gazed towards the dawning sky, a scene elsewhere unfolded—a room bathed in the morning's first light, an alarm sounding the beginning of a significant day. Warin's hand, stretching to silence the alarm, signaled the onset of events yet to unfold,
...
...
"...so..today it's happening..."