Page 109 of Beneath the Veil of Tides
“We need to get the crew away from the Oricaans above,” Noctis responded, concern lacing his words. They still fought—or fled—from the gilded beasts.
My back erupted in pearlescent light, flooding the carved stone walls in a pale, otherworldly glow. The trident shifted subtly, tugging downward once again, just as it had when it first called to me.
I plunged beneath the surface. Noctis followed, a ball of his powers allowing him to breathe beneath the water for a short time.
Beneath the dark waters, silence pressed in from all sides. The world above hung like a distant ceiling of shadow, broken only by a soft glow that filtered down through the depths.
Our eyes caught the chained, sleeping titan as if it awaited us to free her. Blonde, wavy hair drifted outward from the sleeping woman’s giant head of smooth porcelain skin. She looked like pure peace while the realms above were in shambles. Her tranquility stirred a sharp envy in me as I circled her. Shackles wrapped her arms and legs, double the size of the ones that once held me imprisoned, each scribed with similar runes as the cave walls.
She was trapped, imprisoned within the water. A bit ironic, I thought, that she also was detained beneath the veil of tides.
I reached for the humming trident along my back. It was time to release the titan—set her free to help bring the same peace to the realms.
“Are you sure?” Noctis asked, the words muffled in his swirling bubble of air. “She’s been dormant for centuries.”
I nodded. I was sure that no other being, unless deserved, would find themselves diminished, hurt, or helpless at the hands of the Royal Vanguard or Thal’Maruun. I would fight to protect them all, because I knew too well what it meant to endure helplessness. And deep in my bones, I knew this woman was the one we had been searching for—because the trident had already chosen her.
“What is her name?” I asked in a hushed tone as if I were afraid we’d awaken the sleeping titan with our words.
“Raveeka. There isn’t much history on her besides the prophecy of the Eternal Seats,” Noctis responded as he propelled his air capsuletoward her.
“Tell it to me again.” Earlier in the day, I asked Noctis to describe the titan to me so I would know who to search for.
He looked at me, eyes softening for a second before flashing back to the bound woman. He recited the prophecy quietly in his sphere of air.
“Where the Quiet One stirs, the realms remember their fractures. If her voice is set loose, foundations will frolic, and crowns will forget their keepers. Hold her silence, for a single word can turn the realms.”
I swallowed, feigning confidence in the decision to free the titan, knowing the prophecy could very well be against us all. The Oceanwrought armies stormed, surely gaining speed and decreasing distance between them and the innocent lives on Brigg Isle. Possibly damned if we do this, but definitely damned if we don’t.
Eels pierced through the murky water, tumbling into Noctis and I, battering us backward through the water. Six advanced, evenly divided between the two of us, their serrated rows of teeth on show to attack. They slithered closer, but Noctis pulled energy through our bond, leaving me feeling cold at the loss of power, and he blasted it toward the slimy creatures.
The water ruptured, tearing into the eels, slicing their thin, scaly bodies to shreds. Blood inked through the water, an eerie hue to swim through.
Noctis kicked to the surface, the surge of power ripping his spherical bubble of air.
The trident shook violently against my order, working on its own and aiming toward the set of chains constricting the sleeping titan woman. Its power sprang from all three blades, shattering the four rusted chains.
Raveeka’s eyes snapped open, luminous diamonds igniting beneath the dark water as her massive jaws peeled apart. A roar followed—so deep and ancient it became nearly silent—yet the entire sea trembled beneath it, currents convulsing asthough the abyss itself bowed to her waking. The titan rose higher, shadows cascading from her colossal form, and then her jaded gaze found me. Locked onto me. Ancient, merciless, and impossibly aware.
Noctis shot before me in a new ball of energy, but Raveeka met my gaze over him, the titan towering over twice the size of the god. A gasp tore from my lungs as she bowed before me, the titan bending at the waist with a reverence so immense it felt wrong for something so colossal. The waters churned violently around us, her shadow swallowing the water whole as she lowered herself in acknowledgment.
Then she rose.
The moment her diamond-lit eyes lifted to mine, her hand shot outward with terrifying speed. Power cracked through the water like a storm unleashed, and the trident ripped from my grasp so violently my fingers burned from its absence. It spun through the depths in a streak of silver and ancient light before landing flawlessly in her waiting hand, as though it had always belonged there. Her gaze traced every edge and curve of it as if memorizing it, shoulders lifting slightly with a quiet, unmistakable satisfaction.
Then, she shot straight out of the water and upward through the tunnel of the cave. Noctis grabbed me, piercing through the cave with his powers, following the titan closely through the air. She was fast, ripping through the air with a whistle that trailed.
Raveeka’s feet crashed onto the solid ground on surprisingly steady legs. Her soaked blonde hair plastered to her pale skin and white bodice dress.
Two Oricaans stormed through the trees, crushing them in their wake. They turned on a hunt for whatever filtered through the greenery.
“Are these yours?” Raveeka whispered in question, her voice soft and precise, as if every word she said held value.
“They are chasing our people. Killing our kind,” I answered.
Calvin cut through the tree line, carrying Jun across his shoulders. He stumbled over the shrubbery, nearly tossing the man from his back. Terror wracked his features, sweat dripping from his hair.
Zahara shot out from another area of the trees, searching for the boys. When her eyes caught, she took off toward them.
