Chapter 65 – Messages

The door to Mayor Boro’s office burst open, startling the man. Talia stumbled in, her face flushed and her eyes wild with apparent distress.

Keanu followed close behind.

“Mayor Boro!” Talia exclaimed, her voice trembling. “I need your help. Please, it’s urgent!”

Boro, still reeling from his earlier conversation, blinked in surprise.

“What’s wrong, child? Are you alright?”

Talia shook her head frantically.

“I need to send a message to my sister, Riala. It’s... it’s about what’s happening here. Please, can you help me?”

The Mayor’s eyes widened in recognition.

“Riala? As in Riala Solara? Your sister, the Hākai Pō’s firstborn?”

Boro knew very well of both Riala and her sister, Talia, who stood disheveled right before him. Lady Apikalia had informed him of whom was not to be messed with.

Boro also felt a strong gratitude for Talia’s mother, which extended to her daughters as well. Yalena, their mother, the Hākai Pō, had been the only reason he had survived twenty years ago.

“Yes,” Talia nodded, her voice thick with emotion. “My older sister. She’s back at the Academy, and I need to warn her about... about everything that’s going on here. I think something’s wrong with Professor Iakopo… I—I don’t know if I should say but—”

Boro’s expression softened, and he mentally cheered for fate’s twists.

“You need to say nothing more, child,” he said, gesturing to the communication shell on his desk. “Use this. It’s a direct line to the Academy.”

Another piece falls into place, Boro thought to himself, relieved that this wasn’t going to be a problem in their plans.

Surely, if Yalena’s daughters were involved, it would only add more weight to the accusations against Iakopo.

The man would finally face justice for his actions.

Keanu, meanwhile, hung back near the door, his eyes darting around the room curiously.

He seemed interested in the various documents and maps scattered about the Mayor’s office.

Talia picked up the shell with shaky hands.

She closed her eyes for a moment, composing herself, before speaking into it.

Talia picked up the shell with trembling hands.

“Hello, I need to relay a message to Riala Solara from Elder Kahua’s School. This is her sister, the Kraken Slayer’s daughter, Talia Solara. I speak from the Mayor’s office in Placid City.”

The operator stumbled on his words on the other line.

“S—sure, miss, please go ahead.”

“Hello, Riala, it’s Talia. Listen carefully. There are problems with Professor Iakopo. The star has fallen into shadow. Crabs are crabbing, not alone. Please, come.”

Boro scrunched his brow when he heard Talia’s message.

The girl had seemed so agitated, but her words had come out straight and cold with what sounded like a coded message.

She’s mentioned Professor Iakopo. That’s all we need. There’s more than enough evidence already.

“Is that all, miss?” The voice spoke respectfully on the other side.

“Yes. Please, bring it to her now. It’s a question of life and death.”

“I will, miss.”

Talia passed the shell back to the Mayor.

“Thank you,” she said, her voice steadier now. “You have no idea how much this means to me.”

Boro nodded, a warm smile on his face.

“Anything for Yalena’s daughters. Your mother was a true hero.”

Talia and Keanu soon left the office.

Once outside, Talia’s demeanor changed.

The distress melted away, replaced by a determined look.

She turned to Keanu, her eyes meeting his.

“I’m sorry,” she said softly. “For what happened earlier, with the Star Glaive. I should have been more careful.”

Keanu shook his head.

“No, I’m the one who should apologize. I overreacted. I shouldn’t have pushed you away like that. You tried to use your Skill without knowing what it would do… I understand.”

“And thank you for listening to me now,” Talia said, momentarily changing topic. “I told you something was wrong.”

“You were right,” Keanu replied, frowning toward Mayor Boro’s office.

Then, as he saw her brooding, he decided to add something.

“No power is evil, Talia,” Keanu said, his voice gentle but firm. “Only their users can be evil. It’s how you choose to use it that matters.”

Talia shook her head vehemently.

“You don’t understand. This power... it’s not like my other Skills. It…”

“It’s just a Skill, no?” Keanu frowned.

“I felt different,” Talia explained. “I felt this hunger. This need to consume. It was as if it had a life of its own.”

Keanu reached out, placing a hand on her shoulder.

“Listen, just don’t use it for now,” he replied. “Not until you know more about it. It’s that simple, no? Just don’t use the Skill, and everything will be fine.”

For a moment, Talia allowed herself to feel comforted, but then she straightened and gritted her teeth.

“We need to move quickly,” she said, her voice low. “Something big is about to happen, and we need to be ready. This was just the first step. There’s more to do. Even if the Skill doesn’t drive me mad, the chances that things will be fine with the rest of the city are pretty slim.”

***

Professor Iakopo paced in his temporary quarters.

“The monsters are here again,” he muttered to himself, his voice barely above a whisper. “They are here. They must be here. But where?!”

But while the students had been away, switching rotations, he had gone inside the Placid Cave’s deepest recesses for the second time.

Nothing out of the ordinary had been there.

The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

How is it possible?

Where are they coming from?

I know they’re here.

I know.

Iakopo scratched at his head so hard he could feel his nails digging in his scalp.

Am I losing my mind?

No.

It can’t be.

I know.

I KNOW THEY’RE HERE!

I need to kill them!

What if they emerge when I’m away?

What if I can’t do anything again?

Iakopo had found more Torpedo Snappers around the island, but he couldn’t figure out where they had come from for the life of him.

The only reason he hadn’t stopped the training inside the Placid Cave was that he had personally gone there.

But there hadn’t been any sign of evolved Torpedo Snappers or Torpedo Snappers on the verge of evolving.

So, where were they?

Was he actually losing his mind?

A sudden knock at the door made him whirl around.

“Who’s there?” he barked, his voice cracking slightly with tension.

“Professor?” came a muffled voice from the other side. “It’s Mira. I have the report you asked for.”

Iakopo hesitated, his eyes narrowing.

Could he trust Mira?

She was family, but now... now he couldn’t be sure of anyone.

Slowly, cautiously, he approached the door.

“Slide it under,” he commanded.

He didn’t even want to look at the girl at the moment.

There was a pause, then the sound of paper rustling.

A moment later, a sealed envelope appeared in the gap beneath the door.

Iakopo snatched it up quickly, retreating to the far side of the room before breaking the seal.

As he read the contents, his face paled.

“No,” he whispered, the paper shaking in his trembling hands. “No, no, no. This can’t be happening. Not again.”

He had heard of the cultist’s summoning circles. Still, he had checked every inch of the shore and the space around the Placid Cave—every sign of the possible presence of Torpedo Snappers.

Sure, he had seen a few more Slashing Crusters around the place, but he would simply leave those to his students once they were done with the Dungeon.

But other than that…

There had been nothing.

But then, why did monsters appear around the island when the students went inside the cave?

Was he really putting all his efforts into solving this problem?

Was he subconsciously slacking off, afraid of what he might find on the island?

Iakopo crumpled the paper in his fist, his breathing becoming rapid and shallow.

“They’re here,” he hissed through clenched teeth. “I know they’re here. But why, then, why can’t I find them?!”

Placid City's surroundings had a bunch of caves, but they were incredibly small and contained nothing worth mentioning. Plus, there were so many that if Iakopo decided to

A ripple of Mana came from his body, and he barely managed to stop it.

The space around him, including the desk and furniture, was suddenly ripped apart.

“By the Deep,” he panted. “By the fucking Deep. What is happening here? Have I finally lost it? I need to get in touch with Shaker.”

He had left the man to guard the ship, but he now needed to find him.

He needed someone who had been there twenty years ago.

He needed to know he wasn’t going crazy.

“I won’t let it happen again,” Iakopo declared to the empty room.

* * *

Twenty Years Prior

Iakopo and Shaker, probably the person he trusted the most after his own sister, entered the Placid Cave.

There, waiting for them, were Yalena and the strongest out of the senior students they had brought with them, the current Champion of Elder Kahua’s School.

“Ready?” Iakopo asked.

Yalena nodded, her white hair seeming to glow in the dim light of the cave fungi.

“As we’ll ever be. The deeper sections of the cave are flooded, so we’ll need to use Mana Boards to navigate.”

The Champion, a tall young man with a serious expression and shining eyes, spoke up.

“What exactly are we looking for down there?”

“Anything out of the ordinary,” Iakopo replied. “Cultist activity, unusual monster concentrations, signs of Dark Water... Be on your guard. This isn’t a typical training exercise.”

As they ventured deeper into the cave, the air grew thicker with moisture and the faint scent of brine.

Suddenly, Yalena held up a hand, signaling the group to stop.

Her eyes focused ahead.

“There’s something... off about the Mana here. It’s too dense, too concentrated.”

Iakopo frowned, reaching out with his own senses.

He could feel it, too.

It was as if the very fabric of reality was being warped by an unusual concentration of Mana.

“You’re right,” he muttered. “This isn’t natural. You take the rear," he told Shaker. "You,” Iakopo addressed the student. “You’re with me up front. Yalena, keep your senses sharp. If there are Cultists down here, we need to know before they know we’re onto them.”

The passage soon opened into a vast underground chamber.

The ceiling stretched high above them, lost in shadows, while before them stretched a dark, mirror-smooth expanse of water.

“This is it,” Yalena whispered, her voice tense. “The flooded section. The Dark Water Well has to be somewhere beyond this point.”

Iakopo nodded grimly. “Alright, everyone. Mana Boards out. Stay close, and for the love of the Deep, don’t touch the water unless absolutely necessary. We don’t know what’s lurking down there.”

The insane concentration of Mana made it impossible to peer through the waters with one's senses.

As they summoned their [Mana Boards] and glided across the underground lake's surface, an eerie silence fell over the group.

Suddenly, a disturbance in the water caught Iakopo’s attention. Something large was moving beneath the surface, circling their group with predatory intent.

“Everyone, be ready!” he called out.

The water exploded upwards as a monstrous form burst into view.

It was supposed to be a Torpedo Snapper, but it was far larger than any they had encountered before.

[Drake - Level 52]

“By the Deep,” Elder Kahua’s Champion gasped. “What is that thing doing here?”

Yalena’s face had gone pale.

“It’s... wrong. The Mana coming off it... it’s tainted. This is the work of Cultists.”

Iakopo gritted his teeth.

This was far worse than he had anticipated.

If the Cultists had found a way to artificially evolve the cave’s creatures, who knew what other horrors awaited them in the depths?

As the massive Drake lunged towards them, jaws gaping wide, Iakopo made a split-second decision.

“Yalena!” He shouted. “I need you!”

“On it!” She replied.

Translucent silvery walls enveloped Iakopo and the Drake.

As Yalena’s Star Water began to form a shimmering barrier around the creature, Iakopo charged forward, the space around him starting to distort.

Drakes were terrifying creatures that were usually found in the most dangerous parts of the North Deep.

While this one couldn’t be classified as strong by his species, it would be enough, on its own, to destroy a good chunk of Placid City.

As the Drake lunged towards them, Iakopo’s eyes narrowed.

The space around him began to break, with cowebs-like cracks spreading through the air.

With a movement reminiscent of a titan splitting the heavens, Iakopo thrust his hand forward.

The effect was immediate and devastating.

The very fabric of reality seemed to fracture, jagged lines of nothingness spreading outward from his palm.

The Drake, caught in the epicenter of this reality-shattering attack, didn’t even have time to screech.

Its massive body simply... came apart, split by the same forces tearing through the space around it.

Yalena’s Star Water barrier strained under immense pressure, containing the fracturing space that threatened to expand towards the others.

The silvery walls shimmered and bulged but held firm, protecting the rest of the group from Iakopo’s overwhelming power.

As the chaos subsided, Yalena lowered her barrier, revealing the aftermath of Iakopo’s attack.

Where the Drake had been, there was now only empty space, the water around it displaced in a perfect semicircle.

“By the Deep,” Shaker whispered, his eyes wide with awe and a hint of fear.

The group pressed on, navigating through the flooded caverns with caution.

As they progressed deeper, the water level began to recede, allowing them to disembark from their Mana Boards onto solid ground once more.

What they found there stopped them in their tracks.

The cavern floor was littered with hundreds, if not thousands, of shed skins.

Each was massive, easily the size of the Drake they had just encountered.

The implications were…

“This... this is impossible,” Elder Kahua’s Champion stammered, his face pale in the dim light. “There can’t be this many Drakes. It would be catastrophic.”

Iakopo’s expression was grim as he surveyed the scene.

“And yet, we’ve only encountered one. Where are the rest?”

Yalena knelt to examine one of the shed skins, her brow furrowed in concentration.

“These are recent. Very recent. Whatever emerged from these skins, it happened not long ago.”

As they contemplated this disturbing discovery, Shaker noticed something at the far end of the cavern.

“Look,” he said, pointing. “There’s something here. It’s... different from the rest of the cave. I can feel it. It's hidden but it's sowhere.”

Iakopo’s face pale as he looked from the countless shed skins.

Suddenly, he whirled his Space Water, which allowed him to pick on distant vibrations.

“We need to go back. Now. The city is under attack.”

“Wait,” Yalena interjected, her eyes fixed ahead. “I can feel it, Iakopo. The well. It’s down there.”

Iakopo shook his head vehemently.

“It doesn’t matter! Don’t you see? Hundreds of Drakes, Yalena. Hundreds! They’re getting up there somehow! People are about to die en masse if we don’t do something!”

Yalena stood her ground.

“Iakopo, listen to me. The Dark Water Well is our only chance to save the entire Great Archipelago from the Kraken. We can’t just leave now, not when we’re this close.”

For a moment, Iakopo looked torn.

Finally, he gritted his teeth.

“Ten minutes,” he growled. “You have ten minutes to do whatever it is you need to do. Not a second more. Understood? I need you in the fight.”

Yalena nodded solemnly.

“Understood.”

“Shaker, with me,” Iakopo commanded. “We’re heading back to warn the city.”

Then, he turned to Yalena one last time.

“If there are that many Drakes up there, I won’t be able to kill them all without you.”

“I will be back. I promise,” she said, nodding.

With a last, conflicted look at Yalena, Iakopo and Shaker turned and hurried back the way they had come.

As their footsteps faded into the distance, Yalena turned to face the senior student who had remained silent throughout the exchange.

Her eyes softened as she regarded him.

“Maui,” she said softly. “Are you ready for this? I warned you this might happen.”

The young man, Maui, dropped to one knee before her, his head bowed.

“Yes, milady,” he replied, his voice steady and resolute as he dropped to one knee. “I’m ready to die for you.”

Yalena placed a gentle hand on his shoulder, helping him up.

“Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that,” she said. “Come. We have a well to find.”