Chapter 2
*The Year is 102 ACC*
The air around them shimmers, and Harith feels a tug, a disorienting pull as if the world is stretching.
BAMF! The skiff vanishes, leaving a swirling void of aetheric residue. The pursuing vessel slows, its crew peering into the space where their quarry had been.
On a distant shore, the skiff materializes with a jarring THUD. Harith is thrown clear, landing hard on rocky ground. He groans, pushing himself up on unsteady legs. Elizabeth is already out of the skiff, her movements hasty. He jumps from the destroyed skiff. He turns quickly to Elizabeth, half shouting, “Who the fuck did we just take? Elizabeth! It felt like all Amir was after us.”
“Does it matter, Harith? It is not like you have a choice in this operation, " she says coldly.
She points to Salaun —Restrain by a magical bond of magical constructs' cuffs. He is leaning against the remaining wall of the broken skiff. “Pick him up. We need to get moving, " she demands.
“ I’m serious, Elizabeth. Who the heck di—”
“His name is Salaun. We told you this befo—”
“I’m not talkin about his damn name who’s—”
“He is the Count's son! Ok! Will you help now? We don’t have time for this. The guilds are going to track my teleportation spell. They will be sending ships here soon! We need to hide.”
“The fuckin Count, son. Goddamnit. Did the the Council… No, they wouldn’t just send the two of us. Fuck! Luke’s goin’ rogue, isn’t he?
“Yes”
“How the heck we’re getin’ home? Then! The council isn’t goin’ to send a warship to pick us up, are they?” Harith says, looking toward the broken skiff with a panicked face.
“No”
“No?”
“We do not have time for this; we will discuss this after we are safe.” She pointed at Salaun again, “Pick him up. OK?!”
“ok,” Harith relents and walks towards Salaun. He approaches Salaun, his steps unsteady on the rocky shore. "Sorry about this," Harith mutters, hoisting Salaun over his shoulders. The magical bonds crackle, sending a jolt through Harith's arm. "Shit!"
Elizabeth is already moving, her dark robes billowing as she scans the horizon. "This way. There's a cave system nearby."
They scramble over jagged rocks, the sound of crashing waves growing distant. Harith's breath comes in ragged gasps, the weight of Salaun and the treacherous terrain taking their toll.
"Elizabeth," he pants, "what's the endgame here? We can't just—"
PUTT PUTT! Harith's head snaps around. On the horizon, dark shapes are materializing. Ships.
"Shit," he curses.
Salaun pats Harith on the shoulder. “What’s it now?” Harith asks.
“I can walk. Let me down.” Salaun says.
“Ain’t going to run away, are ya,” Harith says, looking toward the fast-approaching ships.
“Please,” Salaun begs.
“Kay,” Harith says, putting down Salaun. He grabbed Salaun's arm just in case.
“What's taking you so long? Hurry up!” Elizabeth shouts.
Harith grips Salaun's arm tightly as they stumble forward. The rocky ground shifts treacherously beneath their feet.
"Move faster!" Elizabeth hisses, her eyes darting between their slow progress and the rapidly approaching ships.
An ear-splitting BAR-ROOM! Splits the air. Lightning arcs from the lead vessel, striking the cliff face above them. Rock shards rain down, forcing them to shield their faces.
"Fuck!" Harith yells. "They're firin' on us!"
Salaun stumbles, nearly dragging Harith down with him. "I can't—" he gasps.
Harith yanks Salaun upright, his grip bruising. "Move!" he snarls. BAR-ROOM! They lurch forward, ducking as another bolt of lightning sizzles overhead.
Elizabeth's voice cuts through the chaos. "There!" She points to a dark crevice in the cliff face, barely visible amidst the tumbling rocks.
They scramble towards it, feet slipping on loose stones—the air crackles with ozone. Harith feels the hairs on his arms stand on end. Another blast is imminent.
"Go!" he shoves Salaun ahead, diving after him into the narrow opening. Elizabeth follows, her robes catching on jagged edges.
The cave mouth trembles. BAR-ROOM! Then darkness.
For a moment, only their ragged breathing echoes in the pitch black. Then, a soft blue glow emanates from Elizabeth's palm, illuminating their surroundings.
The cave stretches deep into the earth, its walls glistening with moisture. Strange, phosphorescent fungi cling to crevices, pulsing faintly. The air is thick with the scent of damp stone and something else... something ancient.
"We need to go deeper," Elizabeth says, her voice is stiffy. "They'll send search parties."
"And then what?” Harith says.
“And then we will steal one of their boats; they will not be able to dock their larger ships on this island, and they will need to send small boats for their search parties. But right now, we are drained, both magically and physically. So, we will head deeper into the cave. We will hide till we are well rested. Then we will steal one of their boats.” Elizabeth says calmly.
"And then what?” Harith says, his voice is gritty.
“Then we will sail through the Organons sea and head home to Noah Ark Island. We may need a new ship depending on the quality of the ship we steal, but that is the plan. That always was the plan.”
“The Organons sea. The sea of monsters. That sea! With the stories of people never returnin'. Shit! What did I get into? What did you force me into? And that's the plan? You never told me that!”
“What is your concern, Harith? It is not like you have a choice, " she says coldly.
Harith's jaw clenches, but he says nothing. The curse throbs beneath his skin, a cue of his lack of choice.
They plunge deeper into the cave, Elizabeth's magical light casting eerie shadows on the walls. The passage narrows, forcing them to walk single file. Salaun stumbles, his bound hands making it difficult to maintain balance on the slippery rock.
"Watch your step," Harith mutters, steadying him.
The air grows colder as they descend. Strange echoes reverberate through the tunnels—dripping water, skittering creatures, and something else that sounds almost like whispers.
Elizabeth pauses, holding up a hand. "Listen."
They freeze. The whispers grow louder, unintelligible communications in an ancient tongue. Salaun shivers visibly.
"What’s that?" Harith hisses.
Elizabeth shakes her head. "I don't know. But we need to keep moving."
The tunnel twists, opening suddenly into a vast cavern. Their footsteps falter as they take in the sight. Massive crystal formations are just from the floor and ceiling, pulsing with a soft, otherworldly light. The air here is different—charged with an energy that makes their skin tingle.
"What’s this place?" Harith whispers, his voice filled with awe and unease.
Elizabeth doesn't answer, her eyes darting around the cavern. She moves forward, her fingers tracing glyphs in the air. The crystals respond, their light intensifying.
"Here," she says finally, indicating a small alcove partially hidden behind a curtain of luminescent moss. "We'll rest here."
Salaun collapses, his chest heaving. The magical bonds around his wrists flicker, responding to the strange energy permeating the air. Elizabeth is staring at his ankles. “I am going to bind your feet,” She states.
“That is not necessary. I won’t run away, I swear. “Salaun says.
“It is necessary. I need to sleep, and I do not trust you,” Elizabeth states as a matter of fact. Harith watches the exchange in silence.
With a flick of her wrist, a wave of magic flows from her fingertips, conjuring a set of thick, silver cuffs that wrap tightly around Salaun's ankles, binding them together in place. The faint sound of chains rattling echoes through the room as the magical restraints hold them captive.
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“Watch him. And wake me in an hour or two. Then you can rest, and then we will head out.” She tells Harith. Harith simply nods.
She sits down near one of the walls with the glowing crystals and leans against the wall. Elizabeth's fingers trace the pulsing crystals' cold surface. As she settles into the alcove, exhaustion washes over her, and the cavern's ethereal glow fades into her slumber.
***
*The Year is 92 ACC*
She's small, so small. Trapped in a cage of shimmering energy, its bars constantly shifting and warping. The air crackles with arcane power, making her skin itch and her bones ache. She can't remember how long she's been here in this dark laboratory filled with strange machines and swirling vortexes.
The sorcerer looms over her, his face a blur of sharp angles and cruel eyes. "Again," he hisses, raising his staff.
Pain erupts through Elizabeth's body as she's torn apart, molecule by molecule. She screams, but no sound escapes. She's everywhere and nowhere, stretched across dimensions she can't comprehend. Then, abruptly, she snaps back into her cage, trembling and gasping.
"Disappointing," the sorcerer mutters, scribbling in a worn tome. "Perhaps if we increase the resonance..."
BAR-ROOM! CRAASSH! The laboratory shakes. The sorcerer whirls. His staff raises. Through tear-blurred vision, Elizabeth sees a figure silhouetted in the doorway, crackling with barely contained power.
"Step away from the child." The voice is calm but laced with steel.
The sorcerer snarls, unleashing a torrent of eldritch energy. Archmagi Luke, though Elizabeth doesn't know his name yet – deflects it with a casual flick of his wrist. The air between them warps and tears as they duel, reality itself bending under the force of their magic.
Elizabeth cowers in her cage, overwhelmed by the clash of titans—multicolored lightning arcs across the room. Ethereal creatures materialize and dissipate in the blink of an eye—the very fabric of space twists and writhes.
CRACK! The sorcerer stumbles. Luke presses his advantage, his fingers weaving complex patterns. The air around the sorcerer solidifies, trapping him in a prison of his fractured dimensions.
"No!" he howls, his form distorting as he's pulled into the swirling vortex of his creation. "The research – you can't –"
And then he's gone, leaving only a faint echo and the acrid scent of ozone.
Luke turns to Elizabeth, his stern features softening as he takes in her battered form. With a gentle gesture, her cage dissolves. She flinches as he approaches, but his touch is warm and comforting.
"It's alright now, little one," he murmurs, scooping her up. "You're safe."
Elizabeth buries her face in his robes, inhaling the scent of parchment and sage. For the first time in memory, she feels safe.
***
*The Year is 102 ACC*
“Harith?” Salaun says softly, darting his eye between where Elizabeth is sleeping and where Harith is leaning against the opposite wall from him.
“She sleepin’. Suppose that's what you’re worryin’ about. What do you want?” Harith asks.
“Neither of us wants to be here. Um, I was right, wasn’t I? She said it a couple of minutes ago? They are forcing you into this?”
“Shut it,”
“Please, just give me a couple of seconds! I can help you. I mean, the guilds can help you, I swear. It is what they do. They protect sorcerers who the Council believes don’t have the right to exist. We can run away together to the guilds.”
“I’m not dumb. They were shootin' out us a while ago. And I just kidnap ya. No way in hell the guilds are lettin’ me live.”
“I can vouch for you; tell them you are being coerced.”
“You think whoever you’re tellin’ is goin’ to listen. They probably will think you just have Stockholm syndrome.”
“They won’t; trust me, please. And does it matter anyway?” Salaun says desperately. Harith frowns.
“Ugh,” Salaun continues, “I don’t mean it like that. Of course, you have a choice; in fact, I care greatly about your autonomy. As it is, the only way we both make it out of here alive. Don’t you get it? The Organons sea! If we travel there, its a—”
“I get it.”
“—Death sentence,”
“I get it.”
“Suicide!”
“I said I get it.”
“No one. I mean, no one. Has survived a trip across the Organons sea! Since the great wizard war—”
“Shut it.”
“She is crazy! Insane!” Salaun's voice slowly rose with each word, panic building for the first time since he was dragged from his home in the morning. Harith jumps up and rushes over to Salaun. He covers Salaun’s mouth with his hand. “Be quiet. I don’t think I can beat Elizabeth in a fair fight. So, let’s make sure that fight doesn’t happen right now. Let me think about your offer. Ok? And calm down, would ya? Shake your head once you're done panickin’.”
Salaun's eyes are wide, his breath hot against Harith's palm. Slowly, the panic fades from his gaze. He nods once.
Harith removes his hand and finger from his lips. "Quiet now," he whispers.
They sit in tense silence.
The cavern's eerie glow pulses, casting shifting shadows across their faces. Harith's eyes dart between Salaun and Elizabeth's sleeping form. He weighs impossible choices.
A low rumble echoes through the cave. Harith tenses, hand instinctively reaching for a weapon that isn't there. The sound grows louder, reverberating off the crystalline walls.
"What the hell?" he hisses.
The ground beneath them trembles. Tiny pebbles skitter across the floor—the luminescent moss ripples like water.
Elizabeth bolts upright, instantly alert. "We need to move. Now!"
CRACK! A fissure zigzags across the cavern floor, widening rapidly. Harith lunges for Salaun, hauling him to his feet and lifting him over his shoulders.
"Run!" Elizabeth shouts, already sprinting towards a narrow passage.
They stumble after her, the ground heaving beneath their feet. Massive crystal formations shatter, raining razor-sharp shards. Harith feels a stinging slash across his cheek. The passage twists and turns, barely wide enough for them to squeeze through. His shoulders scrape against the rough stone walls as he carries Salaun. Elizabeth's magical light flickers wildly, casting frantic shadows.
A bone-deep RUMBLE shakes the very foundations of the cave. The sound is primal and ancient—a roar that speaks of hunger and rage.
"What the fuck’s that?" Harith shouts.
Elizabeth doesn't answer, her face a mask of concentration as she weaves protective wards around them—the air shimmers with her magic, deflecting falling rocks and debris.
They burst into another vast chamber, this one alive with bioluminescent fungi and strange, pulsing veins of crystal. But there's no time to marvel at the alien beauty. The ground beneath their feet writhes and buckles.
"Watch out!" Salaun yells.
A massive shape erupts from the stone, showering them with razor-sharp fragments. It's like no creature Harith has ever seen - part dragon, part worm, its segmented body covered in iridescent scales. Each segment is easily the size of a house, tapering to a head bristling with crystalline spines.
"A Worm," Elizabeth breathes, her voice a mix of awe and terror.
The creature, a monstrous worm, fixates its one glowing eye on the intruders, a beacon of eldritch power. Its maw opens, a terrifying sight, revealing rows of teeth like jagged quartz.
"MOVE!" Harith roars.
***
Excerpt from "Charting the Uncharted: Tales from the Edge of Atherton"
By Captain Ara Sturmreiter and First Mate Finn Tiefsee
Day 37: The Lurking Shadow
The Organons Sea. Even writing those words sends a chill down my spine. We've been sailing these accursed waters for over a month now, and every day brings new horrors and wonders in equal measure.
Today, as the twin moons cast their eerie glow upon the choppy waves, we encountered something that defied explanation. It began with a shadow, vast and undulating, passing beneath our ship. At first, we thought it might be a massive school of luminescent fish – we've seen plenty of those in these parts. But then Finn noticed the pattern. Or rather, the lack of one.
"Cap'n," he said, his voice barely above a whisper, "that ain't no school of fish. It's all one thing."
I'll admit, I didn't believe him at first. But as we watched, the shadow grew larger and larger still. It must have been at least ten times the length of our ship, maybe more. And then, just when we thought it couldn't get any bigger, it started to rise.
We barely had time to secure ourselves before the thing breached. Merciful gods, the size of it! A serpent, if you could call it that, with scales that shimmered like oil on water. But it was the eye that haunts me still. More extensive than our mainsail, it fixed upon us with an intelligence that seemed to peer into our very souls.
For a moment that stretched into eternity, we stood frozen, our ship dwarfed by this colossal being. Then, as suddenly as it had appeared, it sank back into the depths, leaving only massive waves in its wake.
Day 42: The Storm That Wasn't
Five days have passed since our encounter with the serpent, and the Organons Sea seems determined to outdo itself in strangeness.
It began with a storm unlike any I've ever seen. The clouds gathered with unnatural speed, boiling and churning in sickly shades of green and purple. Lightning crackled, not in bolts from sky to sea, but in horizontal arcs that danced between the clouds themselves.
Finn and I have weathered our fair share of tempests, but this... this was something else entirely. As we battled to keep the ship steady, the very air around us began to warp and twist. I saw impossible things in those distortions – glimpses of lands that should not be, creatures that defy description.
And then, just as suddenly as it had begun, it was over. The clouds dissipated, the sea calmed, and we found ourselves bathed in mundane sunlight once more. But the damage had been done. Half our crew lay unconscious, and those still standing babbled incoherently about visions and voices.
It wasn't until hours later, as we tended to our addled crew, that we realized the true extent of the anomaly. Our navigational instruments were useless, spinning wildly or pointing in contradictory directions. Worse still, the stars above bore no resemblance to any constellations we recognized.
We are lost, adrift in a sea that defies the very laws of nature. And yet, a part of me thrills at the discovery. What other wonders – or horrors – await us in these uncharted waters?
Day 50: The Island That Wasn't There
Today, we made landfall on an island that, by all rights, shouldn't exist. Our maps show nothing but an open ocean that runs hundreds of miles in every direction, and yet here it is – a lush, vibrant paradise rising from the mists of the Organons Sea.
As we approached, we noticed something odd about the shoreline. It seemed to shift and change as if the island itself was breathing. Finn swears he saw trees uprooting themselves and walking along the beach, but I'm inclined to attribute that to the lingering effects of our encounter with the reality-warping storm.
We sent a small party ashore to explore and gather fresh water. They returned hours later, wide-eyed and babbling about ruins of crystal, stone, and fruits that whispered secrets when bitten into. Most unsettling of all, they claim to have seen massive tunnels burrowing into the heart of the island—tunnels that pulsed with an inner light and seemed to rearrange themselves when no one was looking.
I confess I'm torn. Every instinct I have as a captain screams at me to weigh anchor and put this impossible island behind us. But the explorer in me, the part that drove us to chart these treacherous waters in the first place, yearns to uncover its mysteries.
For now, we remain at anchor, watching the island warily. Tomorrow, Finn and I will lead an expedition inland ourselves. Perhaps we'll find answers to the enigmas of the Organons Sea. Or maybe we'll never return at all.
Whatever happens, let it be known that I, Captain Ara Sturmreiter, and my crew ventured where few dare to sail. And if you're reading this, it means our tales have found their way back to civilization – even if we have not.